Tidying our house to be!

Dear friends, we have been very busy those last days looking after our house in Civray, south of France. First Steven had to mow the lawn or should I say the 'field'. It was a big job because the grass and weeds became thick and long, in fact it took him ages to do one part of the garden and now we are waiting for some good weather to do the rest.
Then woodworms; we knew that there were some in the shelves in the basement so Steven bought the gear and the spray in England, getting ready for the onslaught!
...later
the lawn s been cut, and the woodworms hopefully exterminated
I battled with the ivy only to realise that this poor bush was really struggling under the sap sucking ivy so we were wondering if it was worth 'saving' one of the main branches was covered with thick layer of ivy all around it..
Hope you are having a blessed day..
A few photos

We went to Ruffec, a lovely town not far from us and on the way back we stopped in a wood full of sweet chestnuts trees and we had great pleasure to pick them up, they were pretty easy to open up and we were grateful to the Lord for this unexpected bonanza.
Much love. N.

Easter in Southport

At Easter, Steven booked us in a new CL as the one we used to go had shut. So we arrived at Marshbank farm at about 2 p.m. and were impressed straight away by the site! From a practical point of view, the grass was well cut and dry, the owner welcoming. He insisted that we should park our car outside the grassed area which was fair enough!
I just loved to look at the small family of lambs, ewes and rams. Further on the bank before the marsh, dozens of shell ducks were gathered minding their own business...at time being pretty noisy :)

 

On the Wednesday we met up with auntie Wendy and uncle Peter, cousin June and cousin Franck and had lunch. It was an emotional reunion as we spoke of Dad and remembered the good times when he was around.

These are a few photos I took as we went to the center of Southport. Steven went to visit his old school, Christ Church Higher grade School. It has been partially converted in a sport shop The rest of the week went fast. We also visited Churchtown botanical gardens and were appalled at the state of a few birds looking pretty sad and bored!

 We enjoyed meeting up with our friends  Cuan and Jeff at the Christian bookshop . I found enough books to keep me busy until half-term and I will review them later. On Sunday, we attended a lively service St Simon and St Jude with All Souls Church is situated on Old Park Lane

 How was your Easter break? I went back to work yesterday for 2 inset days and it feels surreal to think that last Friday we were admiring a beautiful sunset over the Banks!
Have a peaceful or exciting week-end! Yours in Christ. N.

The advantages of caravaning..

Don't worry, I am not going to advertise caravaning as one of the best way to go on holidays but it has its advantages.

First, mobility; though you have to book in most C L and certainly abroad, if the weather goes for the worst, you can just mention it at the office, pay your due and go. If you are in a hotel or if you have booked in a B and B, it is more difficult. The second advantage is cooking. As you are able to cook, you do not have to eat in the hotel restaurant or march in town wherever you are to find a suitable restaurant. Of course we do go to the restaurant during the week but it is nice to eat your own food. Thirdly, comfort; depending on the make and size of your van, you will agree or disagree. After the daily excursion, you come back to a nice hot cup of tea or a cold drink depending on the season and you have the freedom to do whatever you feel like, discussing, reading, watching a dvd.

Last week-end, we went to visit some caravans. 

Some of them had a microwave, some didn't, some had a fitted bed, others had bunk beds. So are you tempted? Let me know.

Kindle, what's in it for you?

I downloaded my free kindle app from amazon.co.uk for my P.C. some time ago and in a few clicks I was reading one of my favorite books. Since, the number of books available on kindle has increased so much, and the choice is vast. I haven't had time to set it up on my laptop but will do soon. 
Now I am not sure about buying the actual kindle itself. When I attended the last deanery meeting, kindles and i-pods were there too! 
Prices vary from £89 for a basic version to the top of the line e-reader Kindle Touch at £169 and then there are accessories. Ideal for a birthday gift? However, it is easy enough now to buy a laptop i.e. a notebook. 
Let me know if you have been tempted and if you love it...

Talking about family, Chennai and Napoleon!

We've just come back from spending a week caravaning in Heacham in Norfolk where we visited my father-in-law Laurie. We were pleased to see that he is keeping well even if his breathing is difficult. 
On Sunday, we went to the Methodist church (Heacham) as Steven was invited by Mike and Kim to preach there.
During the service Imogen talked about her charity Chennai Challenge and her trip in India for a few minutes and also thanked everybody for their support. We then stayed for a chat over a cup of coffee.

At the beginning of the week, we took dad bird-watching with us. He stayed in the RSPB coffee shop at Titchwell. Imogen kept him company after taking a walk to the sea (about 1 mile). We saw our favorite waders, i.e. avocet, sandpiper, golden plover (photo below)...

On Monday, we went to Kings Lynn to the Orange shop to sort out his mobile, it failed to charge. While the boss and his dad were discussing the problem, Imo and I went round the shops. 

There were some sales but nothing exciting so we came back half an hour later only to find them still talking through.

Eventually, they told us that dad would get a new phone on the following day and we had to be home from 9 to 1 pm. Guess what, they brought the new phone at 12:50! 

That evening, Imogen asked if we wanted to watch a dvd at dad's and she chose Napoleon Dynamite. I don't know if you have seen that film. Here is the review I found in IMdb: A listless and alienated teenager decides to help his new friend win the class presidency in their small western high school, while he must deal with his bizarre family life back home. To cut a story short, dad watched the film but the boss did not...I realised that I watched it before but it had not made a big impression on me then..
Imogen was not allowed to choose any more films for the rest of the week!
Blessings to all. N.

Jesus is my rock

We are back from Snettisham (Norfolk) where we have been since last Saturday. That night, Alan a friend from dad invited us to a chinese restaurant nearby and we had a great time. Alan and dad are catching up with old time stories. Alan sings in a choir and in the evening we listened to one of the choir cd. Great stuff.

On the Sunday, we met up with June and her husband Frank; June is dad's niece and Steven's cousin.
They came all the way from Leyland and installed their caravan next to ours and we had a bbq that evening. Our sister Pauline arrived a bit later, all the way from Wales. She was caught in a huge traffic due to an accident and went the wrong way. Finally Steven gave her directions on the phone and she found us! It was a little bit blustery.
Monday morning more people were to come, auntie Wendy and her husband Peter, Colin and Peter, Colin is a very good friend of dad. Steven and Franck put up the gazebo and at about 1ish, the birthday party started. 
Late in the evening Steven started to play the guitar and this was brill!
We had such a good time. Praise the Lord!
More to come!