Work

Well, the recession has hit UK hard and jobs are hard to come by! Gary has spent many hours looking through job sites and praying for direction.
Last year he volunteered for 3 months at Aspire, an organisation that helps long term unemployed - possibly ex-convicts and drug addicts -  young people (ages 18-24) get back into the job market. They do that by "employing" them for 6 months (the govt pays their salaries), teaching them skills through the painting and decorating, gardening and window cleaning divisions and then trying to help them translate that into full time jobs elsewhere.
Gary had an immense influence on the young people there and had the opportunity to speak to them about the Lord and other aspects of their lives. They really allowed him in - at the their Christmas dinner he received a standing ovation when he walked into the hall :)

Gary also spent 2 weeks sorting post at Royal Mail just before Christmas.

This year he is back at Aspire in a paid 3 month position (possibly extended to 6 months). However, now he is in the office organising mainly the admin and window cleaner. He finds it hard as things have been left to slide. They would like for him to stay on permanently, but we are still waiting on the Lord to give us clear guidance.

This has probably been the most trying time of our time here - knowing we have heard the Lord to come, we have been obedient and still believe we are in the right place - but waiting (patiently and often impatiently!!) for Him to show us His will. We have learnt so much from Him - not always pleasant but always necessary and afterwards good (but maybe we can leave the character training till next year again...? - lol

Christmas

Christmas is really a big deal here - Christmas trees, markets, gluhwein...We went to 3 carol services - one at the Bristol cathedral and one at the Lord Mayor's chapel. People invite each other for coffee and mince pies and pre-Christmas dinners. And everybody sends cards! - We sent for the first time too this year.

Our tree went up early as we decided to follow Advent - we read the book "Jotham's Journey" - a lovely advent book by Arnold Ytreeide. Next year we'll read Tabitah's Travels :) A lovely way to keep focussed on what Christmas is really about!
 
On Christmas eve we went Holly Hunting with friends - well, really just a walk in the forest and a snowball fight:)
Christmas day was not technically a white Christmas as it did not snow, but everything was still white from the previous week's snow.
We had a delicious Christmas dinner with friends, then a walk in the snow and then spent the afternoon with them playing games. We were so blessed that they included us in the day:)

Homeschooling

We are still homeschooling. Here Sarah is already year 8 - school year starts in Sept - but we are carrying on as usual. Both still use Bob Jones for English and MathUSee and Singapore for maths. Sarah has started using Apologia - General Science as well. For the rest, we are completing South African History - studying the Anglo-Boer war (Vryheidsoorlog) - watched Bok van Blerk's "de la Rey" yesterday and felt quite homesick!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esnz_hhsZXo&feature=fvst

We need to start deciding what route she wil take for high school so we are praying and trusting the Lord to show us His plan and purposes

We have made some h/e friends but do not meet on a regular basis as we did in SA - miss our h/e friends!

Snow

                                         Freezing frost

Well, winter came early to Bristol and we had our first snow in December - nothing in January yet. We have had fun walking in the snow, throwing snow balls and sledging down the hill behind our flat - all very exciting. But watch out - one the snow starts compacting into ice, it is very treacherous - had a fall myself just before Christmas and had a sore back for a week after!

Alexandra's birthday

Alexandra celebrated her 10th birthday in December. We went to the open air skating rink with friends - she literally walked onto the ice and started skating! We bought her cake at Sainsburys:)

Birthday

I celebrated my 40th in August. My birthday fell on August Bank holiday. We invited friends to a picnic at Ashton Court - an old estate that used to belong to the Smythe family - now belongs to the council and is open to the public. We had a lovely, sunny day with our friends.

My mom

An added bonus was that my parents came to Bristol for 2 weeks - we did some travelling to Bath and Wales and they were here to celebrate with me!

Roman Baths in Wales

On a barge on the Avon River, Bath

My folks - listening to an organ recital in Bath Abbey

Famous Clifton Suspension Brisge designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel

Closest "beach" - Weston Super Mare (or Super Mud!)

Victorian Pier in Clevedon

Bath Cathedral

Ashton Court

 While my parents were here, they also watched Sarah and Alexandra act in a summer theatre workshop production of The Wizz (Wizard of Oz)

Church

Before we left South Africa I said to Gary that I didn't think we would find a church where we could both be happy - as most of you know we have quite different views on what we like in a church :)

Well, our first Sunday here found us boarding the train at Backwell to Temple Meads in Bristol. We went to an Anglican Church called St Phillips and St Jacobs - or better known as Pip 'n Jay. Wow! What lovely people! They were so welcoming and we were even invited to lunch. We have kept some contact with a couple from Pip'nJay who live in Backwell.
The next Sunday we went with our landlady to her church in Clifton, Bristol - also Anglican called Christ Church. This is a very big church with a wonderful youth programme - 2 weeks after that Alexandra went camping with them in the Forest of Dean (Wales) - she had a ball! But the church is a bit too big for us.

The following week we went with a homeschooling lady we had met (she has become a good friend) to her church. They have an early morning breakfast service - breakfast served at 08h30 and the service from 09h00-10h30. By the end, we knew we had found a church and we were both happy!
See www.woodlandschurch.net

We still prefer the early service and try to attend it at least once a month but mostly we go to the later service at 10h30 as they run a children's programme then.

Sarah, Alexandra and I help out once a month at Cake and Flake - a weekly get together for moms with little children. I help with the tea and the girls play with the babies:)

We have joined a home group, but mostly Gary attends that as they only meet every 2 weeks and from 8 - 10pm (they do everything later here!!).
The group has been involved with an Anglican church in the area, running an Alpha Course - Gary lead a table there.

One of the churches in Long Ashton, Hebron Church, also has Bible studies on a Tuesday evening - I try to go on the alternate evenings when Gary doesn't go to home group himself.

Gary is also involved with the age 9-11 sunday school.

Sarah has found a home at Devotions - Youth group at Woodlands. She has made friends, been to her first ball and going camping mid February. We are so grateful as she really started settling after she joined.

                                                    Sarah ready for her glitter ball

We have met a Slovakian family - he is a doctor, they have 3 little children and they arrived in Bristol last June - because they believe the Lord wants them here...something is about to happen in Bristol!

Long Ashton

Well, we have found our home - for now at last. A little closer to Bristol than Backwell, in a village called Long Ashton. We are in a three-bedroom flat. Small, but enough for us for now.

It has a library, co-op (bit like a Spar) and a lovely little sweet shop the girls like to frequent called the Little Tipple - owned by an old couple, Mr and Mrs Grover. It is great as the girls can walk to the library, co-op and Tipple by themselves - freedom at last! :)

Long Ashton is the village attached to Ashton Court - the wokers from the estate used to live in the village.
The Ashton Court grounds are now open freely to the public for walks, mountain biking, picnincs, etc. It also hosts the famous Bristol Balloon Fiesta

Unusual shapes

Mass ascent

Night Glow

First month

Well, we've landed - managed to catch a plane in between the flights being cancelled due to the volcanic ash. We rented a car - Vauxhall (Opel) - and drove out to Bristol. We have rented a self-catering house in a village just South of Bristol, called Backwell.

 

                                                 Our self-catering cottage in Backwell

Out towards the country but close enough to the city itself.

                                                  In Goblins Coombe

Mendip Hills

Our landlady was lovely - she's a mix of Welsh and Canadian with none of the typical English reserved nature we were expecting! We were told not to ask Iola about English taboos as she's broken them all! - LOL. I think she thought we were not quite all there but went to a lot of trouble to show us around and introduce us to people! The best place we could have found for our intro to the UK :)
We have bought another Volvo -  a second hand V50, silver, with heated (front) leather seats - would come to appreciate the heated seats soon!!

Last days in South Africa

Well, we moved out of our house at the end of March 2010 - we were there for 12 years and both girls have only ever lived in that house so it was a real sense of the "end of an era" for us - but we left with peace.

 We stayed in Stirling for 3 weeks and then we were off to PE for Ironman 2010 - Gary did so well and the training paid off - finished in just under 15 hours!

After that we spent just over a week travelling in the Eastern Transvaal (sure it's not called that anymore, but not sure of the new PC name) - a lovely time at Kruger Park, although Gary as not well, then a couple of days at Blyde River Canyon and Pelgrimsrus.

                                         

                                          Bourkes potholes

                                          3 Rondavels

  

Pelgrimsrus - Gold Rush town

We spent the last night in SA with my cousin and her husband in . On the 5th of May we handed in our car rental and caught our BA flight out to Heathrow, London. A new chapter has started!