12 Years

No not a prison sentence but the length of time I have been married to my beautiful wife. It has been a fantastic 12 years and I am looking forward to many more.

Aforementioned beautiful wife.

My wife and I. In front of the baptistry where our children were to be (have been) baptized.

Fireworks

We watched the council fireworks from my eldest's bedroom this evening. No rain, no cold and a great view.

Half Term

This is what my eldest is up to when I go to work in half term.

Snow

Its snowing!

Mmmmmm. Burger.

A treat for our youngest. A trip to MacDonalds. (And Laura Ashley's as a treat for his Mum.)

Glam Girl

Our eldest looking very glam at a post christening party.

Climbing Wall

Our eldest climbing a climbing wall. Well that's what they're for.

No computer.

Look no computer- it's now under the stairs...

Four

My youngest is now four. He should have started school today but he won't be going until after Christmas as we don't think he is ready yet. We would have liked him to start school next academic year but the rules won't allow it. Here are some photo's of his birthday celebrations:

Still 3...
Poised for present opening.
young man...
Breakfast waffles and cards.
Burger for lunch.
Hmmm. Cake.

Back to school

Our eldest is back to school. How time flies. She has so much to learn about stuff and so many experiences to have. I hope we can help her grow up to be a lovely adult who can realize her potential.

Peak District

We've had a fantastic week relaxing in the Peak District. Here are a few photo's:

The view from our bedroom. (Photographs stitched with hugin.)
Reflecting at the JCB factory.
Sitting on the patio with my beautiful wife.
Pedaling furiously at Gulliver's Kingdom.
Our eldest climbing muddy rocks.
A big hole.

White

I thought I would have a bit of a blog redesign. But as I can't think of a good design I'm going for just plain white.

Joker

Perhaps we shouldn't have gone to see the The Dark Knight.

Pigeon Disaster

On waking from returning late from New Wine I discovered that there was a fair bit of soot that had fallen down our chimney. On further investigation it transpired that there was a pigeon within the pile. On closer inspection the pigeon moved.

After a bit of thought and with the use of a large but old sheet I relocated the fire grate and pigeon to the garden where it flapped off to the bench in a kind of wonky and half hearted manner. We tried to provide the bird with water and seed but, sadly, it died later that day. Polly, as our eldest named her (for it is a she on account of the egg we found with her) is now buried in our garden. The head stone is still being worked on.

The egg in the de-sooted fireplace. now buried with its mum.

Polly, in shock, shortly before she died. At least we saved her from being savaged by a cat or dieing covered in soot. Hopefully our eldest will fulfill her ambition to be a vet so we will know the best course of action in future. Or even more hopefully it won't happen again.

New Wine 2008 - Kingdom Come

We went this year to New Wine again - after two years break due to fears that camping and a 1/2 year old would not be a good mix. We had a great time - spent time with friends from church, made new friends and enjoyed watching the children have a great time. As usual we went to Bath on our "day off" and to Castle Cary for lunch at the Old Bakehouse. Happy days!

Sharing desert at the old Bakehouse.
Breakfast in the Gazebo.
Up to no good by the lake.
Big bowl of chips.

Trampolining.
Big bowl of bubbles.
Bed time.
Calling for service.
Pig in Bath.

Honeybrook Farm

After seeing photo's on my parent's neighbour's Flickr page we decided to try out Honeybrook Farm.

A day at the beach

We went for a day at the beach. Lots of sun and sand.

The Planes, the Planes!

We have had a great day at the Farnborough Airshow. It was an especially good day as a friend of my wife got is tickets to her companies corporate hospitality day. This was in a fantastic venue with clean toilets and free food and drink. We got to see the red arrows and the new airbus 380 before our youngest's ears gave out. (He was very scared of the noise and spent a lot of time with his hands over his ears!) Here are some photos:

Holidays

We are off on our first summer holiday - starting tomorrow with a day at the Farnborough airshow. I am quite looking forward to it. I'm just a bit worried about getting all our stuff in our (admittedly capacious) car.

Rhianna

Sad news - Rhianna the little girl that my sister-in-law forstered has died. We remember her happy smile and her love of music. We remember how small she was compared to our youngest. We pray that her creator has taken her to a place where she can be well and forever happy.

My Eldest Was An Animal

She was acting and singing in her school production. It was Toad of Toad hall and the quality was very good. It was great to see her singing and performing so enthusiastically and confidently. Unfortunately due to restrictions at the venue we have no photos at this time.

You've been framed

Tree Boy

Both my children love climding trees. Here's our youngest in our silver birch.

Tutor Master Services Goes Online

My Eldest's Godfather now has a website to showcase the work he does. You can find it at: http://www.tutormaster-services.co.uk/. He also has published two books that anyone who wants inspiration and help with writing stories and the teaching of this skill will find invaluable.

Going, going, gone?

It looks like our noisy neighbours have finally gone. Along with their doors, radiators, kitchen and anything that was not screwed down and a good few things that were.

It is finished!

Yes. The loft hatch is now finished:

(You may remember when I started and fitted it.)

Eldest's Bedroom

Before I started the glossathon that is our hall I decorated our eldest's bedroom. Here is a photo before we put all her tat back in it.