Last week I popped up to London to meet up with some friends who are over from Australia. We had a lovely lunch and catch up. It's so nice to see them. I desperately want to go to Australia but Chris just doesn't get long enough holiday to make the trip worthwhile. But one of these days I will get there and we will meet again...plus go on the Neighbours Tour! hahahahaha...What!? It's my guilty pleasure.
It was so good to meet up with Ted & Gae, one day I will meet up with them on their home soil. After a lovely lunch in The Chop House at Butlers Wharf (they do a great set menu if you're ever passing) I went merrily off to the shops, mooching and browsing to my heart's content.
At one point I was delving down my hand bag when it dawned on me I didn't have a single colostomy supply with me. For some reason when swapping bags over I hadn't transferred it all. Now my colostomy bag wasn't leaking or in need of changing but my heart stopped for a second. It's unnerving to be out without anything to change with or into so far from home and a 50 minute train ride away.
I had two options, risk it, stay in town and carry on, or go home asap and be better safe than sorry...but it's shopping, lots of beautiful shops, with lots of beautiful things... I was extremely torn...it would've been an awfully long journey home if my bag were to have leaked but at the same time shoes and pretty things were calling me...
...well rude not to really! Hahahahahah. I wish I could say I was totally bold and brave and stayed up there for hours and hours after I had realised my error, but I tried on some Christmas present ideas and headed home. Not defeated or deflated even, just miffed at myself for forgetting to pack my bag properly.
Golden rule of stoma-ing... take your spare supplies out with you!
Which brings us to the weekend and while my eldest son was away in a sailing race around the Isle of Wight, my baby son wanted to pop to London shopping...god I love these boys!!
This worked out perfectly for me so I could continue what I had started on the Wednesday.
He loves most of the shops I do so we had a lovely day.
I'm always on the lookout for clothes that I think will work for me but I didn't find any dresses as I had hoped.
Me and my baby.
After an unsuccessful shoe trip to Selfridges (I think I'm getting old, I'm newly addicted to comfortable shoes since I bought a couple of pairs of Tod's which feel like heaven, I can't face buying beautiful but painful shoes anymore, well not day time wear ones anyway!)
The patent loafers from Tod's are gorgeous but not as comfy as my other pairs. I will have to have a rethink, which just means research trips out. :)
We then headed over to Topshop/Topman on Oxford St where I stocked up for winter with 3 pairs of Joni jeans. They really are the best Jeans on the market to my mind. Flattering all shapes and sizes. As long as you buy the right size to start with they are a dream.
There are few things in this world lovelier than sunny walks in London on lazy Sundays.
Coat from Burberry, Top from TK MAXX, Jeans from Topshop, Shoes from Tod's, Bag from LV.
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I noticed online that it was World Ostomy day the other day. I think it's wonderful that it gets it's own special day.
Ostomies are Special!
Ostomies are life savers and life enhancers, you don't go through this for the fun of it believe me. Therefore I find it so hard and distressing when people say they have been stigmatised for it!?
What sort of world do we live in where something that should be celebrated is stigmatised?
Is dialysis stigmatised? Is Thyroxin stigmatised? Is chemo or radio therapy? No, because it's all there to do good and help live better, longer lives.
And that my friends is what a stoma does. Mine meant I had a better chance of survival after Chemo and Radio therapy did their bit. It leads me to think that anyone condemning and stigmatising or even taking the mickey out of colostomies and other stoma's hasn't progressed above the age of 5 where bums and poo are utterly hilarious.
And in the words of the great B A Baracus "I pity the fool".
I feel so fortunate that I have never experienced any negativity towards my colostomy. Not to my face anyway, I'm sure that people that dislike me are all too happy to take a swipe at it but as I've always said to Chris and my boys "other people's opinion of me is none of my business".
The people in my life and people I meet know I'm very open and happy to talk about anything and particularly my colostomy. I'm very positive about it because I'm very happy to still be alive because of it, I also think it comes with significant benefits that the non bagged are a tad jealous of at times...
Live life to the full! Without fear or shame of having a stoma!
Ostomites of the world stand proud! We've got bags of fun!