Apologies and an explanation

I have been an absent blogger for nigh on a few months now. I'd like to apologise to the three of you that read my blog. Life has been exceptionally busy, my health has been interesting and I've lost my blogging mojo.

But I am determined to get it back. I have been busy with lots of craft projects that I desperately want to show off. I have been cooking a bit of low FODMAPs food that has been tasty. I've even made my own golden syrup because I was both bored and lazy. 

The most recent "interesting" health adventure in my life has been the return of my reactive arthritis. 14 years ago I had what was the first of 2 and a bit years of swelling in my left knee. It took six months to diagnose and meant I was predominantly sedentary for a good section of those two years. Two weeks ago the other knee kicked off with unexplained swelling and the left one joined in for shits and giggles. 
I can tell you that there is a distinct difference between being 20 years old and immobile and being 34 with a 3 year old at home and immobile. I now also live two storeys up with no lift. Negotiating stairs has been an entertaining experience. So long as you define entertaining as long, awkward and uncomfortable. 
The good news in this recent flare up is the following: it didn't take six months to diagnose. It took about a week. I saw a less than fabulously engaged Dr initially who sent me off for an x-ray and gave me some drugs without indicating how long to take them for or asking if I was on any other medication which may interfere. I then returned to see a much more engaged Dr who not only looked at the joint(s) for more than 10 seconds but checked all my ligaments and did a proper history. He even sent me off for blood tests to rule out rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory conditions. Bloody amazing. 
Since then I've had a failed aspiration of fluid and an injection of steroids into the larger of the two joints and a new prescription for a different anti inflammatory. I have already seen improvement in the last two days. I may even walk down my stairs today like a normal person and save my obliques from a hard few minutes work of lifting my hips up to help clear each step. 

I have a new word of the week coming tomorrow and a recipe for the weekend. I hope that my three followers will look forward to seeing them.

I'll leave you with a picture of one of my recent crafty pursuits. Another puerperium cardi for a newborn. This time I dyed the yarn for the stripes from the same lot as the grey and had a lot of ends to sew in to finish it. But the final result was super sweet and will now be keeping a brand new baby girl warm and snug in a Melbourne winter. So worth all the extra sewing in ends time, methinks.