Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
Once again, it's been a long time since I've written, and H's 14th birthday seems a good time to break the silence. The dining room table is still strewn with balloons which, like croissants, happen every birthday. I must get clearing up soon and get the cake into the oven. I haven't written for some time because we've had a very difficult few months following a death in N's family, combined with ongoing worries about my mum's health. I won't go into details but writing has fallen down the list of priorities for now. However... Here's where we all are at the moment. N is still in the same job though this may change in a few months as his work is having one of its periodic shake-ups. On alternate weekends he goes to see a relative in hospital. This, combined with my working alternate weekends, has meant a big change from our lovely cosy family times, but it's to be hoped we will get back to them at some point. I'm still working 3 days a week - very variable hours. J is now working full time at an apprenticeship and it continues to suit him, though the pay is dismal. He split up from his girlfriend at the end of the summer, and these two things in combination mean we see more of him. That's nice! L is studying for her 'A' levels and has two part-time jobs, so she's the wealthy one! Well, she would be if it weren't for clothes shopping... H has reached what are known as his 'options'. This means choosing which GCSEs to take. Aside from the compulsory ones, he's thinking of double ICT, history and one more. We are so pleased he's at least thinking of history, as that was both N's and my major subject for our degrees. Of course he may change his mind but it's nice to know one of the children is at least that much interested. He's also due to move upfrom Scouts to Exploreres soon and is looking forward to it. Apparently it's even better than Scouts! So tonight - the family celebration, and on Friday, the party. I happen to be at work so N has bravely offered to organise this. H has made a foodlist but I really don't know what else will be happening. Oh, and we're having new windows fitted soon. Trust us to book this in December! |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
I haven't blogged for ages... too much to say!
Right now I'm not sure of the connection I have, or whether pages are loading reliably, so here's a summary:
J has a new job. He was working p/t at a supermarket (who kept changing his hours) and p/t as a school cleaner. Now he has an apprenticeship in admin with the Council and seems to be enjoying it.
L has also changed her work: she has more hours at the Body Shop, though these vary. She's also got a Council cleaning job though as it's relief hours only, it's variable. She started by cleaning at the school where J worked (which H goes to), and this week has some hours at the library - where N works!
Small town ;-)
L has officially finished with school until she gets her GCSE results. If things go well there she will probably go to the sixth form.
She was the reason I started this blog, some years ago when I taught her at home. I would have liked to continue longer but she felt able to go back to school and decided for herself to go. I've since offered H some homeschooling, but he looked bemused and refused me! Interestingly, he seems to suit school better than either of the others did.
Well, it's summer holidays (grey and rainy) and we are soon going away to Norfolk for a few days so I had better go and get on with some housework - namely the perennial task of sorting the sock bag! L paused to look at the lines of socks arrayed on the living room floor, as she was on her way out to the gym just now. She pointed out three bright, fluffy oddments and told me to put them in her sock drawer: 'They haven't got partners, and they're Charlotte's!'
I asked whether she had the partners, whether Charlotte had the partners...?
No, nobody had them. they are just three random bright socks belonging to Charlotte, which is why they are now in a bundle in L's sock drawer, waiting, I suppose, for whichever of L's and Charlotte's friends has the partner socks to lend them to L some day. The oddments will then hang around in my sock bag for weeks or months until L sees them and reunites them with their other halves. Goodness knows whether they will even match by then - depends how often each has been worn! I wonder whether any will ever return to Charlotte, and whether she will remember them if they do?
I'm not going to worry about them. In the throw-away attitude this generation has acquired, there is no value on a pair of socks. In my teens, I seemed to be forever mending socks or creating garters because they fell down! My father, growing up in the Great Depression, remembers going by train to Liverpool and seeing barefoot children running alongside. Things change. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
We had an interesting talk at church this morning - by the way I was at New Life - and a quotation stuck in my mind. The speaker was talking about how as Christians we can 'box God in', limiting what we allow him to do in us and through us. This has been a big theme recently and this speaker, from the opposite end of the country, was saying what has been said in sermons and prophecy from members of the local church recently. Towards the end of the talk he mentioned someone has said that after the Sunday morning meeting has ended, that's when the service begins. Of course he wasn't talking about chatting over coffee afterwards. He was talking about when we get home, when we interact with others, go to work or whatever comes up all the other hours of the week. A full church building which has no impact on the wider community is missing the boat. This is quite a challenge, but so true. It's hardest to walk the walk when we are with those who know us best, our families probably. In addition, outside church we may be in situations where we are the only person of faith and in that case, it's up to us to live the Kingdom in that situation and be the channel through which God can flow to others. Otherwise the real service just isn't happening. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
Yes, amazingly, in just under half an hour J will be an adult! I am saying what parents always seem to say: 'Where did the time go?!' We had a super day today: he wanted a family meal out so the five of us, plus his girlfriend S, my sister, her husband and daughter and N's parents all went to a local pub,The Fox and Hounds, and had dinner. The recent cold gave way in a very timely fashion to glorious warm sunshine and plenty of photo opportunities. We supplied a cake in the shape of a football pitch with a candle which unexpectedly played 'Happy Birthday' loud and long until J skewered it with a fork and restored peace. After the meal we came back home and the younger ones sunned themselves on the trampoline, we made a start on the football pitch and my sister took some group shots. Lovely day - and tomorrow is The Big One. The table is covered in balloons, cards and presents as we always open presents over a breakfast of croissants. Now it;s time I stacked the dishwasher and took off today's make-up before giving him a 'last hug before you're an adult'! Of course tomorrow I can give him another for being grown up! |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
...I hope you are having a lovely day. It's been great here, I always love Christmas and for once most of us were at home most of the time, which is unusual nowadays! N has a horrible cold and it looks as though H may be getting it too, but apart from that it's been very good. An added blessing is a couple of friends found me on facebook following a mention in our Christmas newsletter. And before I go... please give to someone who really needs it by clicking on the Hunger Site and friends. It's free to click on the 'button' that appears to the right of the photo and sponsors contribute to the causes mentioned. There are more tabs along the top of the page to allow access to click in support of the rainforest, child health, literacy, breast cancer and animals. Merry Christmas! |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
I knew I'd not blogged for ages, but it's been two and a half months! I'm just touching base to say what's going on, but it's been so long I don't know what's already written. J is working for a new supermarket that's opened in town and - the bit you won't have heard - has passed his driving test and bought a car! I think he would have done this at the age of about 18 months if the option had been open to him, but now, although I'm happy for him to gain experience, I do tend to stay up late to make sure he's back in one piece. L has a Saturday job which is going well and is, as ever, busy with things after school every day - oh, and over lunchtimes too, I think. She had two GCSEs in the last couple of weeks, the aim being to get two out of the way before the main onslaught next summer. Tonight she and N are at an open evening for a 6th Form College she is considering, and last week we went to one for her present school. In addition she's practising for dance and gymnastics shows to do with school. H has the Scouting/camping bug good and proper. On the first frosty night this autumn, he and a friend were trying out a new tent on our back lawn! I crept out a little before midnight to find them sound asleep, and added a couple of wrapped hot water bottles to the tent. Then an hour later I was out there again to check they were okay, which they were - though there was ice on the outside of the tent. The next day a neighbour told me how he had been camping in frosty conditions as a lad and the next morning had been very giggly, which he later found out is a first sign of hypothermia! I haven't verified this, but I don't want them sleeping out in such cold again! Other than that... not all that much going on really. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
I heard someone get up at seven this morning, and the front door clicked. That's how I knew without looking that it had been snowing! H had woken up and seen straight out of the window, seeing as the boys' room still has no curtains (the decorating moved a little further on today but has stopped till we get more white paint). Anyway we had a couple of inches of the old deep and crisp and even... it was like waking up in Narnia! There are pine trees at the top of our garden, and they were laden with snow, just like in pictures of it, but minus Mr. Tumnus, of course. Last night I had been saying that we could pretend it was Christmas Eve and that we were waking up to white Christmas. Well, it wasn't quite that, but it was a treat just the same. When we got to Church, my friend's boys, who live nearby, had made a super snowman in the churchyard, though there was less of him when we came out and most of the snow has since melted. N and L went up to the 'snow line' at Osmotherly (a village on the moors) and L showed me photos on her phone of the hills covered in snow. And yet, the sun was warm on my back when I went into the garden for a few minutes. I missed a lot of the service this morning as I decided I'd rather go and 'help' with the children (they would have coped fine without me but I enjoyed it!) I belatedly put my name back on the Electoral Roll, having forgotten to renew it last last year, so now I can vote at the AGM which comes up soon. I have also come to the conclusion I need to step down from a role I have had at church for the past few years - maybe someone else will give it a new lease of life! I sent a note to the Parish Administrator, asking him to take my name off a poster, which makes it seem more final. I'm not good at giving things up. Home, and a feast because it's Easter, and afterwards, easter eggs. N and I were being so good, and not buying for each other; neither of us needs the calories! Somehow a bag of mini eggs, a chocolate bunny and a bar of 'Divine' chocolate got in under the ban, though! The kids all had their eggs then, much to our surprise, H presented N and I each with a big egg which had taken up about a week's pocket money each! He is such a sweetie: it was a really generous gesture and I hope he realises it means a lot to us. This evening... TV! :-D There was the final part of The Passion and I have to admit I've only seen snippets. N has been gripped by it. Both of us loved what we saw, even though it's not kept strictly to the letter of the Bible. Now for me to love something that doesn't stick to the book, either I have not to have read the book, or it has to have some very special aspect. I've read the Bible, or at least the parts on which the film was based, and this wasn't verbatim. To me the letter of the Bible is the Last Word - nothing takes its place. However, translations and understandings vary, and I think sometimes even a good translation inevitably loses something. After all, words don't necessarily have exact equivalents in other languages, and different cultures have different concepts so what one culture may see as significant, another may bypass as not worthy of notice. Similarly, paraphrases of God's Word may lose nuances but bring out meanings that a strict translation does not. I think this film was rather like that, or like a song or an icon which explains someone's understanding of something about God. It showed me a credible, compassionate Jesus. After watching this we went straight on to the final episode of Larkrise, followed by The Number One Ladies' Detective Agency, both of which were worth watching too. Why is nearly all the good TV on Sunday evening? I only missed Time Team because, having given up computer games for Lent, I finally had the chance to play J's latest version of The Sims! |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
I woke to an ominous sound this morning - steady rain, falling heavily. We've had weeks of wet weather and for some days the news has been showing film of rising waters around Tewkesbury, where there were major floods in summer. Even here, a long way from that, the ground is saturated: I didn't put the rabbits in their runs yesterday although it wasn't raining because it was just too wet. Half way through the morning I had a call from the friend who was due to host home group this afternoon. "We're calling it off," she said. "The beck is rising and I just wouldn't be able to concentrate." A beck is a Yorkshire word for a stream or small river: there is one flowing just feet from her home, but normally well below the level of the houses. The beck flooded in November 2000 and theirs was one of the houses where the water came in. They had to have floors replaced and are understandably nervous now the water is again pouring across the terrace six feet or so from their back door. I remember that in 2000, someone told me they had 20 minutes from when water appeared in their road, until it came into the house. Since then, the Council has done a lot of work to improve the water course but even with this work in place, it threatens to be overwhelmed now. Not only is water falling on the town, it's pouring down from the moors, which means there will be more to come once that water reaches lower ground. I looked out of our window at the back garden, which is on a slope. When houses were built behind us a few years ago, one small patch of lawn developed the ability to collect a puddle of water, but it only comes when the weather has been very wet. I suppose the housing and roads having replaced the agricultural land, means that that area no longer absorbs water so well (a reminder that those of us with gardens shouldn't pave them over!) Anyway, you guessed it - the puddle has reappeared and what's more, there is a new puddle to one side. Now, wet though it is, the position of this house means we are highly unlikely to flood, for which I'm thankful. The rest of the week is forecast much nicer weather, so once this water has a chance to go down, it should do. However, there is just no let-up in the rain this morning: the beck must still be rising. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
Happy New Year! I meant to write before but I got a cold... (pause for sympathy). We had a lovely new year, H's friend's parents asked us to their party, L and H came too and H stayed overnight. L had been going to go to a party with friends but it fell through and she told me she enjoyed the one she went to with us very much! Not bad for a teenager! She was somewhere in the middle of the age range: the youngest was four and the oldest...h'mm... older than I am, anyway. I love all-age parties. J went out with friends; it would have been nice to have him with us and I think he would have liked it too. My cold took a turn for the better this afternoon so I have spent a long time on the computer, not just playing Age of Kings but going to Special Notices only on one of my favourite groups - at present I just can't keep up with the amount of traffic there. I've also given notice to the members of our church Internet group that I'm closing it down for lack of support, and I'm thinking and praying hard about my position in regard to a role I have in church which just doesn't seem to be working. Poor N must be so tired of me bending his ear about it so I'm thinking of contacting the ladies I used to meet with for prayer. We only stopped meeting because our increasing work committments got in the way, but I do miss them and of course they know me well and know the situation and might be able to advise me. That's almost it for today. I want to follow my good example of the past few days and get to bed this side of midnight, though it was more necessity than virtue that did it as I really needed the rest to shake off the germs. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
I've just had a chat with my Mum who's been trying to chose a cat to adopt for a friend. This is the story behind it: Mum has always had cats but when Dad was ill and her own health was poor it seemed she wouldn't be able to have any more. About that time a friend mentioned she had been given a gift of sponsorship for a cat in the Malcolm Cat Protection Society in Cyprus (http://www.malcolmcat.org/). Knowing that Mum loves to care for any living thing, I got the details and set up a sponsorship for a half-blind cat called Paparelli. Now Mum has taken on the sponsorship for herself (although she now has her own cat at home), and she is looking among the Malcolm Cat sponsorships for a cat to sponsor for another friend whose health is making it increasingly hard to have a cat of her own. Isn't it nice that my friend's friend's gift idea has had this knock-on effect and the cat sanctuary is benefitting several times over! Another way to benefit animals is to click on the Animal Rescue Site which you can reach via www.thehungersite.com - advertisers pay towards food for rescued animals when we click on the button and besdies, there are several sister sites in the same cluster. It only takes a minute to click through them all and fund food for the needy, mammograms, child health. literacy and Rain Forest preservation too. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
I am amazed at how much one fits in one these days before Christmas! Apart from work on Thursday, we went to the school fair at our children's former primary school. They've all outgrown it now but it was fun to go back - it felt just as if nothing had changed! We followed that by a hurried dash down to the Methodist church in case anyone was in (whoich they weren't) so that we could retrieve the coat L left on Monday (which we couldn't - but she got it back the next day). Then there was a trip to Tesco for the 'big shop' after which I tidied the kitchen a bit, made a lot of soup (in an attempt to eat healthily) and found a packet of cranberries in the back of the freezer, so I've also made cranberry sauce for Christmas, this last not without a twinge of guilt as I noticed they came from Wisconsin and must have been flown over so there are air miles in them. Today, Saturday, has also been very full. It's been below freezing for a few days so I really didn't feel like going out but realised I could get a lift to Middlesbrough with N and save myself a train journey in the week. I'm very glad I did, as a single trip to Matalan got H several items of clothing he needed, and a Christmas present for N. Meanwhile N did some significant Christmas shopping of his own, before we all (N, H and I) dashed home and went to the chippie for lunch to save time. J works on Saturday morning now and as it was so cold N nipped out to collect him when his shift finished, then we piled into the car again and N, H and I arrived at the Leisure Centre just in time for L's gymnastics show. Very slick this year, and done in combination with a show by the trampoline club. L and her friend E did a routine using ribbons, which don't seem to feature so much in British gymnastics as they do in the States. Then... it was all back in the car (again) and back home (dropping L's friend - a different E, at her house) for L to get changed and go back to a roller disco with gymnastics... of course N had a trip out later to collect her again, before which he somehow fitted in Tesco and I cleaned out the rabbits then dozed off in an armchair, which could be because I stopped moving! H was also dozing off, but that could be the result of road-testing his new PJs! This evening it's thawed to some extent - the little icicles on the shed roof may be gone by morning - and I went back to Tesco for bits we'd forgotten... coming back to find H had cleared some of the ironing pile (a pre-condition to putting up the Christmas tree) and the furniture had been moved to its Christmas places so the tree could go in the window. J has been out with his mates, L has been mooching round and making cups of tea (she has taken to drinking a lot of this recently) and H still hasn't cleaned out the Roborovskies (they are dwarf hamsters). All in all a successful day, but I still need to put a load in the washing machine before I go to bed... roll on the holidays! |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
'Tis I again. Thanks for the comment DeeDee, it's nice to know I was missed. I haven't time right now for my planned blog on stuff with a cover on (watch this space) as I'm planning a trip into Darlington in search of a Bible as a Baptism gift. Yes, H is to be baptised on Sunday! That's just two days before the anniversary of my own baptism. I do hope he remembers to get to his baptism class tonight! Last week he went and couldn't see anyone around so he set off for home, missing the fact they'd moved to another room. That one needs prayer - too easy for it to go by the wayside because it makes it harder to go back. I have a few other 'musts' for my list today. I'm going for coffee and to collect a bottle of stout from my friend. One of those odd consequences of being in a Bible study group: I'm sure there are enough stories to write a whole series of books of anecdotes entitled 'Things I learned in Bible Study': it wouldn't necessarily have anything biblical at all between the covers! Our group was sharing prayer requests and my friend gave thanks that she had made all her Christm,as puddings on Sunday, and when we'd all finished exclaiming in admiration (none of us has got that far yet) she told us how she'd asked her son to buy the stout for the recipe (he's in his fifties, by the way, she wasn't leading a child astray!) and had found they only came in a four-pack and what was she going to do with the other three? I offered to take one off her hands as my pudding has advanced as far as soaking the fruit in brandy and I was wondering about putting something other than milk in it - the recipe allows for stout or ale. Oh, dear, we do sound like a boozy lot! I feel I ought to confess we have just started both the sloe gin from two years ago and the damson I made last year, and both are fantastic. They are a very special treat, though. Other must-do jobs: there is a rose tree to plant but yesterday was just bitterly cold so I chickened out. Ironing - what's new there?! Put more stuff on Ebay... I am looking forward to the day I complete that job! There is a lot to list. Clean out the fish tank, change the bedding... I had better get moving. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
Three welcomes in fact! First of all is my new niece M, born on 26th August. We haven't managed to go to see her yet but we're hoping it won't be too long. She was born a week early and weighed 7lb 14 oz. We bought her a little pink outfit... gorgeous! Second and third are Flopsy and Squeaker, our new rabbit and guinea pig, who have come to us because their owners' new home doesn't have a lawn. They seem to be settling in famously, helped by both boys feeding them copiously - most unusual for J, who is not really an animal lover to any significant degree. Actually today has been a bit of a landmark as N and I were both out at work all morning, leaving the offspring to fend for themselves and instead of war breaking out they have done remarkably well. After tea N and I went for a wander round the local auction by ourselves. Wow. We must be growing up too! |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
Five months of my going to work has done our house no good whatsoever - unless you count things like a new staircarpet so we no longer live in fear of someone breaking their neck over the holes in the old one (yes, really). Now that I'm at home more I'm going round doing whatever job is next to hand and today I've made a start on the cupboard in the hall. Now if you're new to my blog I had better explain that I started it when I was teaching my daughter at home, but she decided to go to school again, thus all our kids are at school. However, everyone's moving up - J to the sixth form (I think Americans say 'Seniors'?), L to start her GCSEs and H to secondary school. It's high time I Made A Start On The Cupboard In The Hall. This is the cupboard where people dump things when they come home. I am un-dumping for England. So far today I have put the following in the washing machine: L's backpack from three years ago - still usable according to me but apparently not according to L. (It's navy blue. Her latest one is rainbow with sequins). H's swimming bag. And swimming shorts. And towel. Nearly didn't open that one - it must be three weeks since he went swimming. However, it was fine. Probably hardly dried himself! Bag for the airbed when deflated. Bit manky. Hs green jacket (Ha! Now I don't have to buy him a new one!) A random towel. Two of H's tee shirts. An old backpack that might be J's. I have also removed: H's old lunch box from earlier this year - asked myself about opening that one too. Contents: two chocolate bars and an empty carton. Ate one of the chocolate bars - I'd forgotten how nice those particular ones are. Might have binned it if still accompanied by sandwiches though! Lunch box is waiting to be washed. Mars Bar wrapper. Pen. White cat mask. Silver Stetson. L's Girl's Brigade hat - I don't care if it's not supposed to be washed. I'm an experienced washer of things that aren't supposed to be washed and I say it needs it - desperately! L's old watch. A knitted hat belonging to J. Small bag of hay!!! (My fault). Dud umbrella. Assorted bits of litter. Large set square Geometry set Pack of coloured pencils Empty deodorant Stray orange pencil Pen Pair of gloves Mysterious black plastic circle with a bar across the middle J's old homework planning book Carpet tack with attached fragment of carpet Pink plastic hairbrush School newsletter Insole Strip of purple foam Bag of 'stocking filler' gifts (me again) Coat hanger Small bit of electrical wire H's older old lunch bag (chucked out the choc gems from inside) Hanging basket containing seed packets, dinosaur stencil and ring box (okay, that's mine too) A Barbie lunch box - L is fourteen and hasn't used a lunch box for years A carrier bag with someone else's school shirt that came to us by accident. Phew. It's now cleaned up and I'm reinstating: H's backpack and current lunch box (minus four wrapped chocolate biscuits, an empty juice carton, two fruit bars and some litter) J's current backpack L's sequinned rainbow school bag J's boot bag (and footie boots, but they need a clean) Three folders of L's. Another old backpack of J's 'cos it's still usable at a pinch and I don't know what else to do with it That's all. There isn't a lot of room for anything else. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
We had one of those weekends where one thing after another was an unexpected blessing! N has been offered an extension on the post he's acting up into - now until the end of the year (a bit of a mixed blessing in some ways as it's more stressful, but he's pleased and it's a compliment to him). I'm down to two days a week which is excellent, but you know about that! On Saturday morning we went to a car boot sale and bought some lovely curtains - not that we had been planning on buying curtains - I just saw the fabric and commented on how much I liked it, then to my surprise N not only agreed but had a closer look. The upshot was beautiful lined curtains that could have been made for our bedroom: they fitted, they are exactly the right colours and the pattern is gorgeous (Art Nouveau) - our old curtains let a lot of light through and were very old. What's more they only cost £5! On Sunday morning a few Mums got together after church to talk about possibly restarting the children's work, and with God's help we are hoping to have something going by the beginning of October! That, on top of an encouraging home group leaders' meeting recently, has made me feel much more optimistic. Not so long ago I was in tears about the situation there - over the last few years nearly all our friends have left and we are very torn whether to follow them - the church where most have gone is somewhere that has a real heart for pressing on to follow the Lord. However, we have responsibilities where we are. Another really good thing is that the floods in Gloucestershire and other areas are now receding and they are beginning to get tap water back to houses that have had no mains supply since the flooding reached its worst. Finally for now (it's late and the keyboard is playing up!) I have been looking for a companion for my rabbit Sable since H's rabbit died a few weeks ago and she is lonely. Unexpectedly, N agreed it wasn't fair to leave her on her own. I started to look for rabbits from rescue centres but because of where we live they were all too distant, then I saw an advert for a rabbit and guinea pig free to a good home. Long story short, we went to have a look on Sunday afternoon and got on very well! It's a family who have moved to a house with no lawn on which to put a rabbit run. It turned out they had been told to be careful who answered in case we were going to sell the animals on for drug testing or somesuch, but we chatted and I suggested they come and see the animals at our house, so they realised we were genuine. Not that we actually have the animals yet - they were happy to hold on to them till after our holiday so that there aren't too many changes of carer to get used to. I expect that if all goes as planned and we get the animals, I shall forget to describe them, so I'll do it now. Flopsy is a grey dwarf lop rabbit ('dwarf' is a mis-nomer - whatever his ancestry, he's the biggest dwarf you can imagine!) with a white stripe on his face - confident and tame, but not cuddly. Squeaker (or 'Specs' as she used to be called) is a shy guineapig - mostly white and covered in rosettes, with dark patches over her eyes. We didn't see so much of her as I didn't want to haul her out when she was obviously wary of strangers. I hope all goes ahead and we can assure them of a loving home, while their first owners can be happy about where they are. H was delighted - he misses his rabbit very much but this has given him something to look forward to. And one more 'one more' - L rang from camp ( she's with some friends at a Christian camp for the week) - to say she has a job there and is earning her meals! I wonder if that's partly 'cos I was cross when it cost a fortune to give her enough food for the week, and a lot of it was junk. Anyway I'm very proud of her, though I haven't mentioned it to J, who is annoyed he hasn't got an interview for a job he applied for. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
Not all that horrendous, as it turned out, just coulda-beens. Firstly, there was the drive back from Mum's: two hours, mostly through dense fog. Scary. Secondly, the following day a tire blew while N and the kids were driving. Thankfully they weren't going fast and no harm came of it except the price of a new tyre, but that's a small price to pay for safety. Lastly, we were nearly ready to go out for the day, all day yesterday when N smelled smoke. We almost put it down to neighbours doing DIY... so glad we didn't. On investigation we found the timer on the water heating was smouldering. If we had gone out it would have been left to catch fire. It's now out of use and N has asked an electrician to come and look at it. Brrrrr! Anyway, we're all all right, thanks be to God. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
We are right in the midst of the autumn term, a term that always seems to flick past like one of those books where the picture appears to move as you flick. Everyone has Activities, with a capital A. J, as usual, isn't a member of anything except the Music Group at church, where he's taken to hanging around strumming after services. I've got so used to him doing this at home that I let him get on with it; in fact, I asked my friend this morning if she'd seen him - while he was a few feet behind me, playing the guitar! It's autumn, but whilst it's very damp (washing takes a couple of days to dry and in consequence is hanging all over the house), it isn't cold. J went camping last night! As I have had the first reports of snow from the States, this is a testament to the power of the Gulf Stream/North Atlantic Drift. I hope we don't lose that to global warming as some reports think we might. L has taken to going to Girls' Brigade again. Yesterday her friend talked her into going to a lecture on food hygiene which counts towards her Girls' Brigade work. According to L, it was a couple of hours of a large man reading notes and apart from herself and her friends, it was all a 'Grannys' club'! However, she sat through it and took the test at the end, which has now gone to be marked. She showed me the papers, which she had ended up involved in more-or-less absentmindedly - and it turns out to be a certificate in food hygiene! It will be a plus if ever she wants to get a catering or similar job. She's still doing various other activities. School is going well apart from certain teachers - I'm sure a lot of us can remember that! She was off sick one day last week and asked me to help her with her French. It took us about 45 minutes (between coughs and sniffs) but we made it all the way through the translation and I was pleasantly surprised at how far she's come since I was teaching her. I had had a conversation with her teacher (can't remember whether I wrote about it) in which I expleained she hasn't been studying French as long as the rest of the class, and the teacher is giving her extra work to help her - though I'm not sure L is happier because of it! The teacher also added that she is taking the class at quite a pace in order to have them ready to start a GCSE course next year if they want, so I think L is doing brilliantly just being able to follow a lot of what's going on. H left Cubs and started Scouts, which he loved for a week. Last week he didn't want to go again. (Sigh). He loves football club at school, which I guess is something social, and he spends quite a lot of time going out with friends now. He has also been invited to a Maths group at secondary school for those in the top year of primary school who are doing well and would benefit from extra opportunities. It hasn't started yet. He seemed to be looking forward to secondary school but now he's been for a look round it looks pretty big, so the Maths group would be good in more ways than one - the school would become familiar. They had a system in the past where a lot of the children went for a short time each week, which was excellent, but for whatever reason, they've stopped doing it. So there we are: our week is full enough without being crowded out though next week, with N away overnight and two parent consulataion evenings for the boys, will be quite busy. I haven't caught up with my friends' blogs for some days - partly 'cos of time spent ebaying things and partly because, without current involvement in home education, I don't feel I have as much to write about. I am going through Charles E. Hummel's book, 'Freedom from the Tyranny of the Urgent' again - homegroup did it last year. I am hoping to get a clearer idea of how to spend my time, but that's never too simple. I still have to keep a little in reserve in case I have to go over to help Mum (she can't leave the house and her health isn't good at the moment) but we could do with more income, so I am half-heartedly looking for work. We have just said 'no' to J over a school trip to Germany costing £450 - he really wanted to go and has had a few tries at persuading us but we really can't afford it. Thankfully he seems to have accepted that - we did offer to allow him if he got a job and earned half the money, but there aren't many jobs for someone his age and he wasn't willing to get a paper round or suchlike. Perhaps if I do get a job it will give me more to write about - watch this space! |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
It seems to be autumn at last, cooler and rainy too, and one person after another is going down with colds or bugs of one sort or another. My turn today!  Other than that I've been listing things on Ebay (L had a bag of outgrowns she wanted to turn into cash, then I found some more of hers in the attic form a coule of years ago). I don't know how many of them will sell, but listing them has been fun. I made damson gin for the first time and keep forgetting to shake it, but it's already gone a glorious colour. I also made a tiny drop of sloe gin from sloes I gathered on holiday. I know they are available locally but don't know where to go for them. Well, L has gone to take part in a gymnastics display for the school and H has just come back from football practice, having scored a hat trick and suitably muddy! And I think that's it for now. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
...to everyone who prayed for my friend's mother following my prayer request last month. The lady died peacefully last week: her funeral is this afternoon. Please remember her daughters as they grieve, and her son in law and grandchildren. It is hoped they will be able to have a holiday later in the year to recharge their batteries after the shock and the physical demands of nursing Mum at home. |
Posted in Family, friends and Church
|
... starts tomorrow! Everyone's back at school now - and all are looking forward to it! That's a great relief as L was so stressed in the Autumn term last year. Today she's been out with friends and bought pens and suchlike for the new term. (It isn't that we don't have pens. We could probably rival WH Smiths. It's just that they are pens we already have, and new pens are special. We al know that. Plenty of prayers for the new term, whether at home or at school... as for me, until I know for sure that L is staying at school, I'm planning a few days out and about for me, hoping to get some shopping in early and so on. N has a weekday off shortly before our anniversary so we are thinking of doing a day in York for the two of us (gasp!) What parents get up to, huh! Oh, and - J has his first GCSE at the end of this term. Eek! |
)