Just a quick update... the thing that came from upstairs was a piece of wood. Which 2 seconds later was followed by something else... which turned out to be a cat...! I opened the window and grabbed him, because upstairs don't let their cat out and I didn't want him to be hurt - and I could hear footsteps running from upstairs.
He landed on all 4 feet, and was fine! Needless to say, Pippa was very interested in this article... his owner held him up to say hello, and I am ashamed to say that it was Pippa who jumped backwards... clearly my dog is the biggest wuss in the block!!
Monday, 26 April 2010
Kate, Jane and the Cats!
We spent a delightfully fun afternoon yesterday at David and Jane's house.
David was the chef, and we had a lovely joint of Lamb, with roast potatoes and lots of yummy vegetables - followed by some of the most amazing ice-cream I have ever eaten (I have to write that incase Jane ever reads this blog :D)
Kate and Tess came to dinner with us, and Kate has a wonderful relationship with Jane where they are like sisters (by that I mean they squabble ALL the time) however with the best intent and will in the world, and it's very entertaining to be around them :D
David and Jane have 2 cats, and although I'm afraid I will never be a cat person, I am an animal person and they were cute cats. I don't think Pippa will ever be introduced to them though.... hmm! Jane and I are agreed on one thing, that they are of course surrogate children. It was also interesting to find out that David thinks she loves the cats more than him... as this is what Jon thinks about me with Pippa- I think they might need to start a support group, as it's clearly a man thing :D
Roger, Jane's brother, came to lunch as well, he is a very nice man and has some interesting stories to tell, especially about Organs! There is a lovely pipe organ in the church at Bulkington and I hope to hear him play sometime, as he plays properly - feet as well as fingers!
Zoikes! While I'm writing, someone's just thrown something out of an upstairs window... Pippa is currently looking out the window at the disturbance... I can't wait for the day we don't live in a flat.. although the downside of that is that if something falls past my window, it's either part of a plane or a piece of guttering...
David was the chef, and we had a lovely joint of Lamb, with roast potatoes and lots of yummy vegetables - followed by some of the most amazing ice-cream I have ever eaten (I have to write that incase Jane ever reads this blog :D)
Kate and Tess came to dinner with us, and Kate has a wonderful relationship with Jane where they are like sisters (by that I mean they squabble ALL the time) however with the best intent and will in the world, and it's very entertaining to be around them :D
David and Jane have 2 cats, and although I'm afraid I will never be a cat person, I am an animal person and they were cute cats. I don't think Pippa will ever be introduced to them though.... hmm! Jane and I are agreed on one thing, that they are of course surrogate children. It was also interesting to find out that David thinks she loves the cats more than him... as this is what Jon thinks about me with Pippa- I think they might need to start a support group, as it's clearly a man thing :D
Roger, Jane's brother, came to lunch as well, he is a very nice man and has some interesting stories to tell, especially about Organs! There is a lovely pipe organ in the church at Bulkington and I hope to hear him play sometime, as he plays properly - feet as well as fingers!
Zoikes! While I'm writing, someone's just thrown something out of an upstairs window... Pippa is currently looking out the window at the disturbance... I can't wait for the day we don't live in a flat.. although the downside of that is that if something falls past my window, it's either part of a plane or a piece of guttering...
He who strolls to the end
Matthew 10:22
But the one who endures to the end shall be saved.
We were challenged yesterday morning to check our Bibles and see if our version read "He who strolls along happily to the end will be saved" or "He who takes life easy will be saved".
We were really challenged and reminded that life should not be comfortable for the Christian, how often to we pray for oppurtunities to witness, how often do we speak out for the Lord, because if we do, we will get the persecution that Christ talks about in Matthew 10.
I was certainly challenged, I know I try and live my life according to His word, and yet if I live a good life, I simply look like a good person, and what use is that if we're not pointing to Christ?
I often get praised for my self control in not swearing, and yet I was brought up in a Christian home, swearing is alien to me like eating meat is to a child brought up with vegetarian parents - I shouldn't be praised for self control over that - I often lose my temper and get upset and do things very wrong - which demonstrates a lack of self control. And ultimatley the world are comparing me to the worst of men, while I can see how far I am from Christ's standards.
I know I need to speak of Him more than I do, to not force it down people's throats, but always be ready to give a reason for the hope that is within me. I need to take oppurtunities when they're given to talk of Jesus Christ (Oh that wonderful name!)
I gave a small part of my testimony yesterday afternoon, and what a joy it was to remember that feeling of knowing I was alien to God, that I wouldn't go to Heaven. What joy it brings to remember when the light first crept in, when I realised that if I asked the Lord Jesus into my heart, He would bring peace and forgiveness and bring me safe home to God. What joy to remember the first time I realised that He died on the cross for ME! What joy to remember the first time I realised that He ever intercedes for us! What joy to remember the first time I realised Christ prays for me!
I have missed in recent years the joy of my faith, and I am so grateful to God for bringing us to this place where we hear and are revived week after week with His word; it truly is like water to a parched throat!
But the one who endures to the end shall be saved.
We were challenged yesterday morning to check our Bibles and see if our version read "He who strolls along happily to the end will be saved" or "He who takes life easy will be saved".
We were really challenged and reminded that life should not be comfortable for the Christian, how often to we pray for oppurtunities to witness, how often do we speak out for the Lord, because if we do, we will get the persecution that Christ talks about in Matthew 10.
I was certainly challenged, I know I try and live my life according to His word, and yet if I live a good life, I simply look like a good person, and what use is that if we're not pointing to Christ?
I often get praised for my self control in not swearing, and yet I was brought up in a Christian home, swearing is alien to me like eating meat is to a child brought up with vegetarian parents - I shouldn't be praised for self control over that - I often lose my temper and get upset and do things very wrong - which demonstrates a lack of self control. And ultimatley the world are comparing me to the worst of men, while I can see how far I am from Christ's standards.
I know I need to speak of Him more than I do, to not force it down people's throats, but always be ready to give a reason for the hope that is within me. I need to take oppurtunities when they're given to talk of Jesus Christ (Oh that wonderful name!)
I gave a small part of my testimony yesterday afternoon, and what a joy it was to remember that feeling of knowing I was alien to God, that I wouldn't go to Heaven. What joy it brings to remember when the light first crept in, when I realised that if I asked the Lord Jesus into my heart, He would bring peace and forgiveness and bring me safe home to God. What joy to remember the first time I realised that He died on the cross for ME! What joy to remember the first time I realised that He ever intercedes for us! What joy to remember the first time I realised Christ prays for me!
I have missed in recent years the joy of my faith, and I am so grateful to God for bringing us to this place where we hear and are revived week after week with His word; it truly is like water to a parched throat!
Ziklags
Pastor Pete preached yesterday evening on 1 Samuel 30.
David returns from marching with the Philistine army to find that the camp at Ziklag had been destroyed by the Amalekites. All their wives and children had been captured, and taken. The men in the army were so upset, they were angry and wanted to stone David. David himself could empathise with their anguish, his own 2 wives had been taken from him and he mourned for them.
Yet, "David strengthened himself in the Lord his God".
What a wonderful reminder we had that in trials we need to strengthen ourselves in the Lord our God! We all go through Ziklags!
Pastor Pete brought out the wonderful parallels between this passage, and Christ's prayer in John 17. David strengthened himself in the Lord, and we had a wonderful reminder that none of us are lost. As David in 1 Samuel 30 v 18-19, David brought back all, the same in John 17 "None are lost".
What a wonderful comfort it is to know that all things do work together for our good, even when we can't see it, and that when we go through our 'Ziklags' we know that Christ promises us that none will be lost - we will be saved to glory!
David returns from marching with the Philistine army to find that the camp at Ziklag had been destroyed by the Amalekites. All their wives and children had been captured, and taken. The men in the army were so upset, they were angry and wanted to stone David. David himself could empathise with their anguish, his own 2 wives had been taken from him and he mourned for them.
Yet, "David strengthened himself in the Lord his God".
What a wonderful reminder we had that in trials we need to strengthen ourselves in the Lord our God! We all go through Ziklags!
Pastor Pete brought out the wonderful parallels between this passage, and Christ's prayer in John 17. David strengthened himself in the Lord, and we had a wonderful reminder that none of us are lost. As David in 1 Samuel 30 v 18-19, David brought back all, the same in John 17 "None are lost".
What a wonderful comfort it is to know that all things do work together for our good, even when we can't see it, and that when we go through our 'Ziklags' we know that Christ promises us that none will be lost - we will be saved to glory!
Saturday
So we went to Sarina's house on Saturday! She and Neil have a lovely house in (for some reason I want to type Boston but it's not!) Burton (I think?! I've just had a mind blank!)
They've got a lovely garden and the weather was nice enough for us all to be able to play outside. The girls have a trampoline in the back garden, which Georgie and I went on with Emily and Lucy. They persuaded me to jump up and down and do the sit down jump back up - which was a lot of fun, however I really did feel it the next day!! (and still can feel aches in muscles I didn't know I had!)
We left there about 5.30 and went on to John vdr's where we had a bbq, which was much enjoyed by all! Burgers, Sausages and cakes all round! Throw in some Pringles and some ice-creams and we were all very full at the end of the day!
Thouroughly enjoyable!
They've got a lovely garden and the weather was nice enough for us all to be able to play outside. The girls have a trampoline in the back garden, which Georgie and I went on with Emily and Lucy. They persuaded me to jump up and down and do the sit down jump back up - which was a lot of fun, however I really did feel it the next day!! (and still can feel aches in muscles I didn't know I had!)
We left there about 5.30 and went on to John vdr's where we had a bbq, which was much enjoyed by all! Burgers, Sausages and cakes all round! Throw in some Pringles and some ice-creams and we were all very full at the end of the day!
Thouroughly enjoyable!
It's April!
I know this will seem rather strange, however I realised as I walked into work today that it's still only April...
At some point, in my head, it had already turned into May...! In my head I was thinking "This really is lovely weather for May" ... however ... it's April, not May.
Maybe I am going slightly insane (according to Alice in Wonderland - all the best people are - thanks Mad Hatter). Anyway... it really is lovely weather for April isn't it!!!
At some point, in my head, it had already turned into May...! In my head I was thinking "This really is lovely weather for May" ... however ... it's April, not May.
Maybe I am going slightly insane (according to Alice in Wonderland - all the best people are - thanks Mad Hatter). Anyway... it really is lovely weather for April isn't it!!!
Friday, 23 April 2010
The weekend!
I am so so glad that today is Friday!
The weather is good, it's been a tiring but good day at work, and I have a lovely weekend to look forward to!
Tomorrow we are headed over to have fun with some friends during the day, followed up by a bbq in the evening, which should be lovely as the weather looks to be great!
On Sunday, we are going back to a church we have been visiting, Bulkington Congregational Church. Jon and I left our place of worship at Chelmsley Wood Reformed Baptist Church, after discussions with the Pastor and the Deacons. We are hoping to move house later on this year, and with several other things that have happened over the past few months, we decided that it would be wiser to look for a church sooner rather than later.
Bulkington is a lovely little church, situated in a lovely village, where Jon and I have fallen a little bit in love with and would love to live. The average houseprice is unfortunatley above what we can afford, however there are areas near Bulkington which are slightly cheaper, so we will keep our eyes out and our hearts upward and pray that the Lord leads us to where we're meant to be.
We were invited to lunch to Jean and Tony's house last week, and spent a lovely afternoon with them. This week, Jane and David have invited us over for lunch, so I am looking forward to meeting them properly and getting to know them a little bit.
We have only been at the church for 3 weeks in total, and already the fellowship have crept their way into our hearts and we have really felt this is where God wants us to be.
I am looking forward to Wednesday next week as we will be able to go to the Bible Study at Bulkington for the first time.
All in all, the weekend stretches before me with all its prospects, and I am looking forward to it very much :o)!
The weather is good, it's been a tiring but good day at work, and I have a lovely weekend to look forward to!
Tomorrow we are headed over to have fun with some friends during the day, followed up by a bbq in the evening, which should be lovely as the weather looks to be great!
On Sunday, we are going back to a church we have been visiting, Bulkington Congregational Church. Jon and I left our place of worship at Chelmsley Wood Reformed Baptist Church, after discussions with the Pastor and the Deacons. We are hoping to move house later on this year, and with several other things that have happened over the past few months, we decided that it would be wiser to look for a church sooner rather than later.
Bulkington is a lovely little church, situated in a lovely village, where Jon and I have fallen a little bit in love with and would love to live. The average houseprice is unfortunatley above what we can afford, however there are areas near Bulkington which are slightly cheaper, so we will keep our eyes out and our hearts upward and pray that the Lord leads us to where we're meant to be.
We were invited to lunch to Jean and Tony's house last week, and spent a lovely afternoon with them. This week, Jane and David have invited us over for lunch, so I am looking forward to meeting them properly and getting to know them a little bit.
We have only been at the church for 3 weeks in total, and already the fellowship have crept their way into our hearts and we have really felt this is where God wants us to be.
I am looking forward to Wednesday next week as we will be able to go to the Bible Study at Bulkington for the first time.
All in all, the weekend stretches before me with all its prospects, and I am looking forward to it very much :o)!
Potatoes & Salad
So we did have a summery 'ish' meal last night, I went shopping and got Peppers, Lettuce, Cucumber, Celery, Grapes, Potatoes, Pop, wine.... so we had baked potatoes and salad for dinner which was YUMMY, and a little more summery than a casserole!
It was all on sale in asda as well - bonus!
We are going camping next weekend, which I'm looking forward to, and the place we're going allows bbqs, so we might just have to get a disposable one to take with us.
It was all on sale in asda as well - bonus!
We are going camping next weekend, which I'm looking forward to, and the place we're going allows bbqs, so we might just have to get a disposable one to take with us.
Thursday, 22 April 2010
Sunny food....
So, for some reason last night, I really fancied having a bbq... all the food in the house is great for winter meals, ie, shepherds pie, casseroles; food you'd curl up in front of a fire with. But I have no 'summery' ingredients! No salad, no nice veg, no potatoes big enough to bake... and when the weather is like this, you really have to adjust your thinking!
So, today I am inventing a new menu (we live by a budget and shop to a menu - when I'm organised enough!), with lots of summery ingredients on it. Okay, so I can only think of Salad off the top of my head - but that will do for now! It's a work in progress!
Anyway, we didn't have a bbq last night, and we're not going to have one tonight, we are however going to have one on Saturday over at a friend's house... yippee!!
So, today I am inventing a new menu (we live by a budget and shop to a menu - when I'm organised enough!), with lots of summery ingredients on it. Okay, so I can only think of Salad off the top of my head - but that will do for now! It's a work in progress!
Anyway, we didn't have a bbq last night, and we're not going to have one tonight, we are however going to have one on Saturday over at a friend's house... yippee!!
Tuesday, 20 April 2010
Check...
Invoices all done - Check
Desk tidied - Check
Shredding put into sack - Check
Filing Trays cleared - Check
Boss where she's meant to be... who knows
Leaving early now - CHECK!
Desk tidied - Check
Shredding put into sack - Check
Filing Trays cleared - Check
Boss where she's meant to be... who knows
Leaving early now - CHECK!
Bleurgh
The title indicates how I feel about invoices.
I hate invoices. Or rather I hate the process with which the NHS asks me to deal with invoices. Scans and e-mails and approvals and raising requisitions.... snooore. I loathe it. It is one of the most tedious, boring and constant parts of my job. No-one else likes it either, and somehow I have ended up sorting out invoices for the whole department, yes, they all come my way... woo hoo..
I am blogging about this because I currently have about 10 sitting infront of me and 1 chaser e-mail... okaaay okaaay I'm on it I'm on it....
Bleurgh
I hate invoices. Or rather I hate the process with which the NHS asks me to deal with invoices. Scans and e-mails and approvals and raising requisitions.... snooore. I loathe it. It is one of the most tedious, boring and constant parts of my job. No-one else likes it either, and somehow I have ended up sorting out invoices for the whole department, yes, they all come my way... woo hoo..
I am blogging about this because I currently have about 10 sitting infront of me and 1 chaser e-mail... okaaay okaaay I'm on it I'm on it....
Bleurgh
Monday, 19 April 2010
Religion and Politics....
Politics bore me
There I said it out loud.
What happened to that rule that we’re not allowed to talk about religion or politics?! Suddenly everyone’s talking about who’s going to win the election. Ok I know I know, it’s a big thing, who gets in, how we exercise our vote, which Party’s manifesto is the best.]
For a start, I think they all lie. Yes the manifesto’s give us a vague idea of their party politics and agenda, but once they’re in and realise the problems of the country are their’s to own – things start changing, and everyone’s disillusioned... my solution to this problem? Don’t read the manifesto and if you do – don’t believe everything they tell you anyway!!
There are some Christian’s who believe that it’s our duty to use our vote, and I don’t entirely disagree with that. Maybe it’s leaning towards hyper-Calvinism, but at this time in my life I have so many things to think about in my own tiny little world, that I am glad I can sit back and say that the hearts of Kings are in my God’s hands. That I can tell you who will win the election - the Government HE wants will win! And whether that will be God’s way of bringing this country back to Himself or turning this country over to itself, now that is the most important matter for prayer, because the parties themselves are all as bad as each other really – aren’t they.
How about going along to vote, close your eyes, point and put a cross wherever your finger lands... well perhaps that’s slightly the wrong attitude to have (sheepish grin!)
Maybe I sound like a cynic (maybe I am one!! eek!); however I really do mean it. God is in control and He will have His way with our country. Our duty is to do what’s right, and if that means you are concerned to read all the party manifesto’s and make an informed decision about which party to vote for, whether that means you decide to sit out and leave it to more informed minds to vote – I don’t think either is wrong.
Well would you look at that... I just wrote a whole page on poli..... snooooooooorreee......
There I said it out loud.
What happened to that rule that we’re not allowed to talk about religion or politics?! Suddenly everyone’s talking about who’s going to win the election. Ok I know I know, it’s a big thing, who gets in, how we exercise our vote, which Party’s manifesto is the best.]
For a start, I think they all lie. Yes the manifesto’s give us a vague idea of their party politics and agenda, but once they’re in and realise the problems of the country are their’s to own – things start changing, and everyone’s disillusioned... my solution to this problem? Don’t read the manifesto and if you do – don’t believe everything they tell you anyway!!
There are some Christian’s who believe that it’s our duty to use our vote, and I don’t entirely disagree with that. Maybe it’s leaning towards hyper-Calvinism, but at this time in my life I have so many things to think about in my own tiny little world, that I am glad I can sit back and say that the hearts of Kings are in my God’s hands. That I can tell you who will win the election - the Government HE wants will win! And whether that will be God’s way of bringing this country back to Himself or turning this country over to itself, now that is the most important matter for prayer, because the parties themselves are all as bad as each other really – aren’t they.
How about going along to vote, close your eyes, point and put a cross wherever your finger lands... well perhaps that’s slightly the wrong attitude to have (sheepish grin!)
Maybe I sound like a cynic (maybe I am one!! eek!); however I really do mean it. God is in control and He will have His way with our country. Our duty is to do what’s right, and if that means you are concerned to read all the party manifesto’s and make an informed decision about which party to vote for, whether that means you decide to sit out and leave it to more informed minds to vote – I don’t think either is wrong.
Well would you look at that... I just wrote a whole page on poli..... snooooooooorreee......
It's all in the numbers...
So maybe I rely on statistics too much, and maybe blogging twice in 10 minutes is cheating - but I am concerned that my blogs are going down...
Feb - 18 or something
Mar - 8
Apr - 6... and April's nearly over!!!
I think perhaps I have started to take myself a little bit too seriously, and have lost appreciation for the art of writing about nothing... perhaps I have not wanted to wax lyrical about anything, or have thought that no-one really is interested anyway.
Clearly I've lost sight of the fact that primarily this blog is for me... so if I want to wax lyrical, I can, whether someone's reading or not! So hey - here I am...
(and determined to blog more than 8 times in April.....)...
Feb - 18 or something
Mar - 8
Apr - 6... and April's nearly over!!!
I think perhaps I have started to take myself a little bit too seriously, and have lost appreciation for the art of writing about nothing... perhaps I have not wanted to wax lyrical about anything, or have thought that no-one really is interested anyway.
Clearly I've lost sight of the fact that primarily this blog is for me... so if I want to wax lyrical, I can, whether someone's reading or not! So hey - here I am...
(and determined to blog more than 8 times in April.....)...
Photos, Matt and Car
Weird title for a blog, but then you see before I start to blog, my head just gets filled with all sorts of ideas about what to put in it. It was the same when I was a child and I used to write a short story or an essay... I'd have my head filled with ideas which came towards the middle or the end... of course that meant by the time I actually reached the middle and the end, I had forgotten all the ideas.
So while I was writing, I would have this page of blank paper next to me, and on it would be random things, ideas, sentences (you know the type you can only think of once and then they're gone), and eventually it would all get incorporated into my story/essay/letter...
Well, this is how I work with Blogs! I get an idea, then another and then another, and by the time I reach this point (where the intro and the tangent is over) I've forgoten what I was going to say... hence the title...
Photos
I just wanted to draw your attention to the lovely photos down the right hand side of my blog! Not only am I very impressed I managed to edit them, I also managed to post them permanently to my blog... Win!
Matt
Matt has been here this weekend! We had a lovely time of fellowship, laughs and friendship, including playing Dutch Blitz to minus numbers and picnics in different places. We had a lovely time at the National Memorial Arboretum, which I will write a separate blog about when I am in the right frame of mind! (Sober not silly!)
Car
You know when something happens, and for a while it's just not funny - it's painful. And it's only weeks later you can see the funny side? Well this is what happened with my car.. I got back from having quite a bad day, to a notice from the police through the letterbox, telling me that some youths had rolled (YES- Rolled!) my car, into the middle of the road...
It had been parked up on a kerb, and some kids had decided to push it to see if it would roll... and it did. All the way over and upside down (you can almost imagine it kicking it's little legs crying "Let me up let me up"). Thankfully the police came along and promptly rolled it back upright again, and the nice man from the AA told me it was safe to drive; not a thing wrong with it (apart from some washer fluid needed topping up - but I didn't tell him I'd been meaning to do that for ages anyway... and a perished rubber cap until he looked properly and it was just dirty.. ahum)
So... for a while I have been a little over sensitive... now however I thought I would share the laugh.. I mean it is quite funny when you think about it....!!
So while I was writing, I would have this page of blank paper next to me, and on it would be random things, ideas, sentences (you know the type you can only think of once and then they're gone), and eventually it would all get incorporated into my story/essay/letter...
Well, this is how I work with Blogs! I get an idea, then another and then another, and by the time I reach this point (where the intro and the tangent is over) I've forgoten what I was going to say... hence the title...
Photos
I just wanted to draw your attention to the lovely photos down the right hand side of my blog! Not only am I very impressed I managed to edit them, I also managed to post them permanently to my blog... Win!
Matt
Matt has been here this weekend! We had a lovely time of fellowship, laughs and friendship, including playing Dutch Blitz to minus numbers and picnics in different places. We had a lovely time at the National Memorial Arboretum, which I will write a separate blog about when I am in the right frame of mind! (Sober not silly!)
Car
You know when something happens, and for a while it's just not funny - it's painful. And it's only weeks later you can see the funny side? Well this is what happened with my car.. I got back from having quite a bad day, to a notice from the police through the letterbox, telling me that some youths had rolled (YES- Rolled!) my car, into the middle of the road...
It had been parked up on a kerb, and some kids had decided to push it to see if it would roll... and it did. All the way over and upside down (you can almost imagine it kicking it's little legs crying "Let me up let me up"). Thankfully the police came along and promptly rolled it back upright again, and the nice man from the AA told me it was safe to drive; not a thing wrong with it (apart from some washer fluid needed topping up - but I didn't tell him I'd been meaning to do that for ages anyway... and a perished rubber cap until he looked properly and it was just dirty.. ahum)
So... for a while I have been a little over sensitive... now however I thought I would share the laugh.. I mean it is quite funny when you think about it....!!
Thursday, 15 April 2010
Early mornings
Yawn.
That's pretty much all I have to say at this point!
Jon's car is back in the garage again, which is a bit of a pain as he has to catch the train in the mornings, and they leave from our local station at 6.50... which means yours truly has to get up in the mornings at 6.30 to give him a lift to the station.
Hence.. yawn.
Also hence blogging at 7.35 in the morning!
Yawn
;-)
That's pretty much all I have to say at this point!
Jon's car is back in the garage again, which is a bit of a pain as he has to catch the train in the mornings, and they leave from our local station at 6.50... which means yours truly has to get up in the mornings at 6.30 to give him a lift to the station.
Hence.. yawn.
Also hence blogging at 7.35 in the morning!
Yawn
;-)
Love language
So, I took the quiz again today and my love language is receiving gifts:
Don’t mistake this love language for materialism; the receiver of gifts thrives on the love, thoughtfulness, and effort behind the gift. If you speak this language, the perfect gift or gesture shows that you are known, you are cared for, and you are prized above whatever was sacrificed to bring the gift to you. A missed birthday, anniversary, or a hasty, thoughtless gift would be disastrous–so would the absence of everyday gestures.
Don’t mistake this love language for materialism; the receiver of gifts thrives on the love, thoughtfulness, and effort behind the gift. If you speak this language, the perfect gift or gesture shows that you are known, you are cared for, and you are prized above whatever was sacrificed to bring the gift to you. A missed birthday, anniversary, or a hasty, thoughtless gift would be disastrous–so would the absence of everyday gestures.
Monday, 12 April 2010
Organic Gardens and Alex
I have had a nice day today all in all. At work this morning some nice people bought me some chocolates as a thankyou for helping organise some meetings for them, and then I left 3 hours early to go and meet Katrina and baby Alex at Ryton Organic Gardens. It's a really nice place with a really nice place to sit and have a cup of tea and chatter away; which we did. Hopefully an experience to be repeated.
I was meant to be going out tonight as well, however as that has been cancelled I am sitting here blogging again instead... why not!
I am in the mood to chunter on to someone, and unfortunately there is no-one around to chunter to apart from poor old Jon, who is currently doing the washing up in the kitchen - a job he prefers to do undisturbed!!
Pippa is once again snoozling at my feet; she is very perturbed as I have her chewy orange ball up here on the sofa and I wont let her have it because she eats it... and leaves little orange things all over the floor. Not good. And I refuse to throw it in the house, because that is lethal - so all in all she is not very happy with me. Humans just clearly don't know how to have as much fun as doggies do!
Nicole walked Pippa today, and apparently let her have a swim, which explains why Pip is so tired. She loves to swim! Especially on lovely sunny days like we've been having.
So; I'm bored at work at the moment... really bored. I mean, there's about enough stuff to do to fill most of my time if I do it really slowly. And there are always those boring boring jobs like invoices which take up a regular proportion of time. But clock watching I hate. There are a few things I have in the pipeline to make a start on, however I have no motivation for them whatsoever! And even when I start them, give it a couple of days, they'll be done and it will be back to clock watching for me... so, how can I fill my time at work... when there's no work to be done? Hmmm what a question!
I have thought about finding another job... but what's the point? I'm not qualified enough to do anything that pays much more than this job...! To go and do a qualification at this point in my life is silly, uni wont pay the mortgage, and by the time I've got a job paying more than I earn now... well the situation might have changed, and I wont want to work anyway?
Ponderings ponderings. Isn't it good that the Bible tells us that the trouble we face today is sufficient enough?! We're not to worry about tomorrow! And - if we're short, Jesus says, will worrying about it make us one inch taller?! Nope. Nada.
God holds the key to all unknown and I am glad. If any other hand should hold the key, or He entrusted it to me - I might be sad.
And yes, sometimes the key opens the door to a sad day... however I'd rather have those sad days given to me by my heavenly Father one day at a time, rather than stepping back and having to see them all at once. He knows the way that I take, and when He has tried me I shall come forth as gold. He will only put the burdens on me that I am strong enough to bear, and in Christ I can bear whatever He puts on me!
One day at a time, Lord Jesus, that's all I'm asking of you. Just help me today, show me the way, one day at a time.
I was meant to be going out tonight as well, however as that has been cancelled I am sitting here blogging again instead... why not!
I am in the mood to chunter on to someone, and unfortunately there is no-one around to chunter to apart from poor old Jon, who is currently doing the washing up in the kitchen - a job he prefers to do undisturbed!!
Pippa is once again snoozling at my feet; she is very perturbed as I have her chewy orange ball up here on the sofa and I wont let her have it because she eats it... and leaves little orange things all over the floor. Not good. And I refuse to throw it in the house, because that is lethal - so all in all she is not very happy with me. Humans just clearly don't know how to have as much fun as doggies do!
Nicole walked Pippa today, and apparently let her have a swim, which explains why Pip is so tired. She loves to swim! Especially on lovely sunny days like we've been having.
So; I'm bored at work at the moment... really bored. I mean, there's about enough stuff to do to fill most of my time if I do it really slowly. And there are always those boring boring jobs like invoices which take up a regular proportion of time. But clock watching I hate. There are a few things I have in the pipeline to make a start on, however I have no motivation for them whatsoever! And even when I start them, give it a couple of days, they'll be done and it will be back to clock watching for me... so, how can I fill my time at work... when there's no work to be done? Hmmm what a question!
I have thought about finding another job... but what's the point? I'm not qualified enough to do anything that pays much more than this job...! To go and do a qualification at this point in my life is silly, uni wont pay the mortgage, and by the time I've got a job paying more than I earn now... well the situation might have changed, and I wont want to work anyway?
Ponderings ponderings. Isn't it good that the Bible tells us that the trouble we face today is sufficient enough?! We're not to worry about tomorrow! And - if we're short, Jesus says, will worrying about it make us one inch taller?! Nope. Nada.
God holds the key to all unknown and I am glad. If any other hand should hold the key, or He entrusted it to me - I might be sad.
And yes, sometimes the key opens the door to a sad day... however I'd rather have those sad days given to me by my heavenly Father one day at a time, rather than stepping back and having to see them all at once. He knows the way that I take, and when He has tried me I shall come forth as gold. He will only put the burdens on me that I am strong enough to bear, and in Christ I can bear whatever He puts on me!
One day at a time, Lord Jesus, that's all I'm asking of you. Just help me today, show me the way, one day at a time.
Saturday, 10 April 2010
Blogging
So while I'm in the mood to wax lyrical, the other day I was watching an episode of 'House' (I love it!) and they were treating a woman who avidly blogged, she wrote about everything and anything that happened to her... the doctors read her blog, and she blogged about her doctors, she blogged when she had an audience with her boyfriend and blogged about whether to have an operation or not...
It got me to thinking the other day (while I was on the bus on the way home!) about where we draw the line with electronic conversation and what we share on Blogs and Facebook. Blogs are a great way to keep a lot of people up to date all at once.. Facebook is good for keeping in touch with some people I know I would lose track of otherwise...
Yet, doesn't it trivialise the events in our lives when they are reduced to Facebook status??! At what point do we draw the line and say that if we want communication with people we need to speak to them and be spoken to in return. Friendship and Communication is two-sided, you give something and you get something back.
So, I'm still here, I'm still blogging. I'm still hoping that someone is enjoying reading and keeping up with the things I'm up to! I'm still on Facebook, still updating my status.
And yet... when big things happen, it's those who are close to me, those who invite me over to talk, those who come out with me for a meal, those who open dialogue and show an interest in me - those I call my friends.
Those people are the ones who earn the privelidge to share the sensational as well as the mundane parts of my life.
It got me to thinking the other day (while I was on the bus on the way home!) about where we draw the line with electronic conversation and what we share on Blogs and Facebook. Blogs are a great way to keep a lot of people up to date all at once.. Facebook is good for keeping in touch with some people I know I would lose track of otherwise...
Yet, doesn't it trivialise the events in our lives when they are reduced to Facebook status??! At what point do we draw the line and say that if we want communication with people we need to speak to them and be spoken to in return. Friendship and Communication is two-sided, you give something and you get something back.
So, I'm still here, I'm still blogging. I'm still hoping that someone is enjoying reading and keeping up with the things I'm up to! I'm still on Facebook, still updating my status.
And yet... when big things happen, it's those who are close to me, those who invite me over to talk, those who come out with me for a meal, those who open dialogue and show an interest in me - those I call my friends.
Those people are the ones who earn the privelidge to share the sensational as well as the mundane parts of my life.
Spring has sprung!
The weather is truly beautiful, and we have had a lie-in, walked a little, picnicked, met with friends, done some gardening and it's nearly 5 and still shining bright outside. I am sitting with my feet up on the sofa, windows wide open, UCB Inspirational on the radio and the dog snoozling at my side.
Mum, Jo and Nicole are here for tea tonight, we're having a lovely American recipe chicken dish with curried roast potatoes. Yum :o)
We cleaned the fish tank out the other night and the fish are happily swimming around in the clean water. I love clean water, it's so ... clean! and fresh!
So there you go, good things do happen. The sun is shining. Life goes on and God is good. How we need to cling onto that some days!
Mum, Jo and Nicole are here for tea tonight, we're having a lovely American recipe chicken dish with curried roast potatoes. Yum :o)
We cleaned the fish tank out the other night and the fish are happily swimming around in the clean water. I love clean water, it's so ... clean! and fresh!
So there you go, good things do happen. The sun is shining. Life goes on and God is good. How we need to cling onto that some days!
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