A place to call home

Here it is - our new home!! As you can see there's a bit of work to do before we can move in. There is no gas piped in which means no eating, heating or hot water. Our names were put on the waiting list last week and we have been told it could take 6-8 weeks. In the meantime there is plenty to be done - new kitchen, carpets, paint, cleaning, new doors, new bathroom, tackle the wilderness garden, sand floors, knock down walls, build others...

We are excited but in a reserved way - we realise there is a fair sized mountain to conquer before we finally get in. It is now nine months since we began to pack up our home in Mexico. It's a fairly long transition period and we are looking forward to settling in. The kids have heard that the garden is big enough for a trampoline and little else seems to matter!

It was quite a surprise last week to arrive back to the spot where I had parked our car to find it missing. A call to the police revealed it had been impounded after it rolled back into a bus. We still don't know what exactly happened but our car is now at the garage (the back window was shattered and there are a few dents below it). It was quite a bit of undesired hassle for Andrew who had several calls with the insurance company and the police in a typically busy week and Tabitha missed a couple of days at school. On Thursday I missed the mothers and toddler group, the service at the old people's home had to be cancelled as did the school SU group. The good news is that the insurance will cover the costs and we have a couple of incredibly generous friends who have lent us a car to keep us going. As one of Tabitha's teachers said, "It's a good job the kids weren't in the car at the time." We are always thankful for God's protection even at times we don't know we needed it.

We started a weekly meeting for pensioners last week. It was great to have 2 new people along as a result of the work on the doors. Hopefully it will gather momentum in the weeks ahead. The evening mums event was down in number but subsequently I found out that the playgroup had been running a fundraiser event (a psychic!) which may have involved a few of our mums. It was a lovely night for those who attended. We continue to appreciate prayer for interest from new mums and for busier days ahead.

This week I appreciate prayer for an interactive talk I am giving on personal evangelism on Thursday evening. I'm sharing the responsibility with Karen, our house mate. I feel out of my comfort zone but as a result of my researching and reading I am fired up for the subject and my hope is that some of that excitement might be contagious.

A couple of days later I am taking Tabitha and Oscar over to N. Ireland to visit their grandparents and co. for a few days. My Mum and Dad had a visit to Scotland planned but the Icelandic volcano turned that around and this is the result. It's our first flight since returning from Mexico and I'm glad it's not quite as far!