Muddy walks

I went back to work today.
Mrs D picked McGrew and Cuthbert up from school, and then decided to go for a muddy walk with doglet and Dibble.

Here are the results...





They had loads of fun... but you should have seen the bottom of the bath once they were finished! I hate to think what the inside of the car is like!

Morpeth

One of my ongoing projects at work is designing improvements to the flood defences in Morpeth.
This weekend saw the worst floods in more than 50 years in the town.
Hundreds of people have been directly affected. Homes, possessions and businesses ruined.

Even more reason to press on at work and make sure that this kind of thing happens less frequently.

First day at school

All seemed to go well today.

McGrew and Cuthbert were both really excited to be going. Mrs D was a bit wobbly in the playground as first McGrew and then Cuthbert went in to their classrooms... they both seemed so little in their new uniforms and expensive shoes! Too young to be starting school, surely...

Cuthbert finishes at 2 for a few weeks, but even with the early finish, he was shattered this evening. We asked both of them how today went, but we haven't managed to glean much comprehensible information... other than they've both made some friends, though they can't remember the names. Oh, and McGrew had hedgehog and playgrounds for lunch!?

Mrs D and I had big plans for getting stuff done round the house today, but 2 o'clock arrived before we had time to blink...! There's always tomorrow!

Daylight robbery?

We went shopping today with McGrew and Cuthbert for school shoes.

We found some.
We're now £60 worse off than we were!

I'd be grateful if anybody could explain to me how a wee pair of school shoes for a 4 / 5 year old can cost £30! Could it be the toy incorporated in the sole? Or perhaps the lights in the heel and the wee button to turn them on or off?

Is there anywhere you can get just a pair of black school shoes without gimmicks?

When I was young.... (no, I won't go on any more!!)

Happy birthday Cuthbert

A great weekend has been had by all - first time meetings with Auntie J, Uncle M, Granny and Grandpa G - a trip to the local soft play - a fabulous Mr Tickle birthday cake made for us by good friends J & L - and everyone singing 'Happy Birthday' to Cuthbert at church (while he stood on the stage, arms folder, grin on face, all by himself - 'no daddy, I want to go up by myself'), and it was the first time we'd been to church together!

He's had loads of lovely presents which he's been playing with all day (thank you to all of you very generous people...). The biggest hit was a keyboard from Uncle M and Auntie C (thanks for that - but you forgot to include ear plugs!) which he plays while dancing in his seat - so cute! The bubble machine from Granny and Grandpa G has also been a great success in the garden - he runs round among the bubbles shrieking and dancing!

Seeing in your sleep?

Me: 'Cuthbert, would you like your night light on tonight?'
Cuthbert: 'Yes, please, daddy. Otherwise I wouldn't be able to see when I'm asleep!'

Home together

Just a quick update - we all got back safely yesterday late afternoon. It was an emotional goodbye for the boys, but the journey improved quite quickly with the distraction of Roald Dahl's 'The Enormous Crocodile' and 'The Giraffe, the Pelli and Me' on CD!

The boys settled really well last night, with all asleep before 8.30 (Dibble was last to close his eyes). Cuthbert was quite upset and wanted to speak to his foster carer on the phone to say night night - but after that, Mrs D sung him to sleep quite quickly.

Mrs D got up once in the night to untangle Dibble from his blanket, but an uneventful night otherwise. McGrew had a dry night, which is absolutely fantastic! Small heads popped round our door at 6 this morning, and we had a mummy, daddy, doglet, McGrew and Cuthbert bed cuddle for half an hour.

We're off to Nana and Grandpa's for lunch later, and perhaps a walk in the park with doglet too.

It's only 9.30, but seems more like lunchtime already!

Shoes

A photo from our hall today...

We've had a great weekend - the boys have been with us most of each day, returning to a local hotel to sleep... we've played football in the garden ('mummy, try and save this'), run around the house playing hide and seek ('daddy, you come and find us now'), been to local parks to walk doglet and visit the playparks ('look how high I am, daddy!'), watched Peter Pan on DVD and eaten lots of yummy food. And McGrew and Cuthbert have earned lots and lots of stars for their star charts!

Back down to their foster carer's house tomorrow and then home on Tuesday forever!

First day at our house

The boys visited us today for a few hours. McGrew and Cuthbert were so excited to see their new bedrooms, they ran round and round shrieking... normal house rules were suspended for a while!

Dibble was in his element, speed crawling from room to room and looking longingly up the stairs through the bars of the gate! He was intent on investigating every corner of every room, and seemed exceptionally happy!

McGrew spent quite a bit of time testing the boundaries, as we thought he would. But he was almost inconsolable when it was time for him to go, with real tears of distress at having to leave. It must be so confusing for them all. Having seen their bedrooms and their beds, but not be allowed to stay and sleep in them. But McGrew loves doglet - he gave her a huge cuddle and a kiss before he left, and told her that he loves her.

Cuthbert was his usual happy self, with only the occasional grumpy face when Dibble did a good impression of demolition man with the wooden railway track.

They're back tomorrow for the day - hopefully the rain will stop long enough to get out for a walk in the park with doglet.

Back home

Mrs D and I got back home this afternoon - it's nice to be back, though a bit strange to be without our boys...

They come up tomorrow with their foster carer, and we get to see them for a couple of hours as they explore their new house and garden! Then we have them all day Saturday and Sunday (but not overnight), before they go back to their foster carer's on Monday.

Then we bring them home on Tuesday.
I can't wait!

Happiness is...

1. your son running up to you in the park, throwing his arms around you for a huge hug, just because you're daddy
2. the expressions of sheer excitement and delight on your sons' faces as the train goes through a tunnel
3. your youngest son falling asleep in your arms
4. your eldest son calling Mrs D 'mummy, darling'
5. catching headlice from your children (!)
6. realising that star charts will get your children to behave impeccably in the car (so far!)
7. listening to your youngest son singing ‘Frere Jacques’ at the top of his voice on a swing in the play park
8. showing your middle son how to climb up the cargo net in the playpark, and then watching him do it all by himself
9. kissing your sons good night and telling them that you love them
10. being a daddy (this should perhaps be number 1)

Mummy and Daddy

Things still going really well...

We took the boys to the farm on Friday with their foster carer - they loved the calves, particularly when one of them licked McGrew's tummy! McGrew and Cuthbert both climbed to the top of a wooden fort in the playpark at the farm, and then shouted at the top of their voices ' mummy, look at me!' - Luckily Mrs D had her sunglasses on, to hide the tears of joy!

Yesterday we went to the local park by ourselves and spent ages playing football, going down the slide (and reminding McGrew that you go up the ladder and down the slide, rather than up the slide!) and generally having fun. Then to the duck pond to feed the ducks and pick brambles on the way back to the foster carer's - though I've never know ducks to have been fed cherry scones before! One of the highlights of yesterday was both McGrew and Cuthbert shouting to me 'daddy, can I go on your shoulders?' - which of course they did, though one at a time!!

We ended yesterday by bathing the boys and then putting them to bed after reading them a story.... It's great!

Today, we were up at the crack to make sure we were with the boys for breakfast... then we took them out in the car ourselves to a maize maze! Despite losing McGrew for a few minutes, we did get them all back in one piece... And then lunch, which went better than we had thought it would - so well, in fact, that McGrew and Cuthbert were both allowed pudding for behaving so well!

We've three days left now before we go home, and the boys come up to see our house and get to know where we live next weekend.... The plan is they'll then be at home with us for ever from the 26th....

We can't wait!

First meeting

We met McGrew, Cuthbert and Dibble yesterday morning.
Words just can't describe how we felt.

They were so excited to see us - well, Dibble had been up all night being unwell, so he slept for most of the first half hour... but McGrew, Cuthbert, Mrs D, the SW, the boys’ foster carer and I all sat round on the living room floor playing snakes and ladders.

Cuthbert was the first to move towards Mrs D, sidling up and then ending up on her knee. McGrew then went round the back of Mrs D and stroked her hair for a bit!

The two older boys were really keen to show me their bedrooms, books and toys, and then we had to go out the back to be shown their bikes (I had to put their shoes on for them, as they seemed to have forgotten how to do it themselves!). Despite foster carer’s protestations, McGrew was adamant to show us he could ride without stabilisers!

Then we had some more time playing on the floor – both older boys becoming more sure of us, and wanting to sit on our knees. Cuthbert is very tickly!

Then Dibble woke up a bit, and started investigating. If there was an Olympic sport of speed crawling, Dibble would win gold in Beijing – guaranteed! He’s pulling himself up on furniture and using that to walk round the room – it won’t be long before he’s walking by himself!

Our time with them seemed so short – and after an hour and a bit we left – but we’re seeing them again this afternoon…

We also met the boys’ birth mum yesterday – it was a really helpful meeting – she gave us permission to be the boys’ mummy and daddy and said that she wanted the boys to be loved, and hoped they would fulfil their full potential. That is more meaningful then any court order. It was emotional, but I’m so glad we did it – and have a photo of us with her which we can show our boys in years to come.

We then met McGrew and Cuthbert’s teachers – it was really good to hear their thoughts on the boys – what they’re good at (McGrew loves investigations, and has excellent coordination, particularly in football!), and how they are with class mates and friends.

So – the planning meeting today (setting out the timetable for the next fortnight), then a couple of hours with the boys this afternoon, and the whole morning with them on Friday.

Let’s hope we get a wee bit of dry weather so we can go to the park!

Matching Panel says yes!

The last hurdle has been cleared...

After what has been reported to us as a 'gruelling' panel - with our social worker and the boys' social worker being given a 'grilling' - the panel has recommended the match between us and our three boys: McGrew, Cuthbert and Dibble.

So full steam ahead!
We meet them in two weeks.
But before that, a well-earned holiday!
And some champagne tonight!

Rooms are ready

Dibble's room


McGrew's room


Cuthbert's room

* not their real names, in case you were wondering!!
To protect their identity online, I thought I'd name them after three of the firemen in one of my favourite TV programmes... Can you guess which one?!

Washing machine crisis

Our washing machine has just died. Not slowly or gracefully, but in a cocophany of bangs and shakes, culminating in a shower of burnt plastic from its gut being dumped onto the nearly clean washing within.

Better now than in a month's time, mind you... and it's served us well for 11 years.

off to Comet I go...

What I learnt at the weekend

I have learned that:

Mothercare staff are very helpful

There are hundreds of different types of push-chairs
Stair gates come in different colours, sizes and styles
Stair gates have extension pieces so they'll fit wide stairs

Mothercare store cards are called Mothercards
Mothercards are pink
Mothercards get you money off :o)

No matter how many different combinations are tried, it is impossible to get three car seats in the back of a Skoda Octavia...
Mothercare staff are very patient!

Having three boys means having to buy a people carrier
When compared to the cost of a people carrier, car seats aren't actually that expensive

The Citroen C4 Grand Picasso comes in some very suspect colours, like 'anodised gold'
The Citroen C4 Grand Picasso has a panoramic roof so you can watch the sky (not while driving, of course!)
Our new car will be a Citroen C4 Grand Picasso... in anodised gold...

The panel - they say yes!

Just back from the adoption panel - so excited!
We went in early, and were introduced to the 12 people round the table - a mix of legal advisors, medical advisors, adoptive parents, social workers from other agencies...

They made us feel really at ease, and then some of the panel members asked us questions they'd prepared in advance, having read our report.

There were questions on church and our busy-ness, about why we were thinking of up to three children, about how we and our church would value diversity, and about our resilience as a couple.

We left for them to deliberate, and within a couple of minutes, the chair person had come out to tell us that they'd said yes.

So we'll be approved to adopt up to three children - which is just as well, considering!

Next stop is the matching panel on 30th July... and before that, loads to do, loads to buy, and lots of effort needed to stop Mrs D spending all our money in Mothercare and ELC!

Panel tomorrow

It's all done.
Nothing more we can do.

Interviews held.
Answers given.
Reports written.
Signatures signed.

Tomorrow we face the panel.
Excited. A wee bit apprehensive. Mostly calm.
Sure in the knowledge that God has gone before us.

School places available

Just a wee update - we heard yesterday from the head teacher of the school we'd like the two eldest to go to, that although she didn't strictly have spaces, she'd phoned the local authority and explained the situation - they've told her to give us places! How fantastic is that! God is so good!

We're still unsure which years the boys will go into. The eldest should be starting year 1 in September, but he may benefit from going into reception, given all the change he's going to be facing - and he has a late summer birthday making him one of the youngest in his class at the moment (the cut-off for school years is the end of August). The middle one will then either go into reception (full-time) or nursery (part-time), depending on what we decide (with their social worker) for the eldest. We don't want them both in the same year.

But the head teacher has said she doesn't need to know what we're going to do until the end of August - which again is fantastic, and gives us a bit of time to consider properly.

Jobs this weekend include completing the matching report for the boys' social worker (questions like 'why do you think these children are a good match for you' - this will form the basis of the information available to the matching panel when they meet to decide on the match at the end of this month. We also need to think of questions we want to ask the boys' foster carers, as we hope to be able to speak to them next week.

There's so much going on - lots of phone calls, emails, forms to complete, lists of things to do, lists of things to buy... but through it all, we have peace. A peace that it's right. A peace that God is completely in the driving seat.

Our new family

We had a great meeting with the social workers yesterday.
We had loads of questions.
They didn't!

We saw photos taken on Friday, as well as a video of the boys feeding the ducks at a local pond!

We're as sure as we can be that they're the ones for us! Wow!
Words can't really describe how we're feeling - but 'excited, overwhelmed, apprehensive, anxious, can't wait' go some way...

We've been to see the headteacher at the school we think is the right one for the two older boys - but there may not be spaces - we're praying hard that spaces would appear!

We've lots to do over the next few weeks - not least the purchase of 3 beds, 3 wardrobes, 3 car seats, a high chair, stair guards... you can imagine!

If everything goes well, we'll be approved by the matching panel on 30 July, go on holiday for a week or so at the beginning of August, start introductions with the boys mid-August, and have them at home with us in time for the older two to start school at the beginning of September. That's only about 8 weeks away!

8 weeks till we're mummy and daddy.

24 hours

What a lot can happen in 24 hours.
It feels a bit like we've been through a full spin cycle in the washing machine!

A few weeks ago, our social worker sent us details of three boys who need to be adopted. They're aged nearly 5, nearly 4, and 14 months. We expressed an interest, and their SW said she'd speak to our SW when he got back from holiday. They spoke to each other on Tuesday afternoon. Our SW sent the boys' SW the report about us. Which she read. And then got excited.

Yesterday, the boys' SW sent our SW the reports about the boys. Our SW came round and gave us copies of the reports last night. I've been away in Sussex, and didn't get back till tonight. So Mrs D spent 2 hours last night on the phone to me reading the reports down the phone! Not easy reading. Lots of difficult stuff to come to terms with about their past.

The boys' SW wants to come and meet us. She's coming on Monday afternoon. She's postponed some of her holiday so she can come.

Our SW is coming round tomorrow to go through the boys' reports with us. To discuss the issues / points he is unsure of. To discuss what the boys' SW may ask us on Monday.

We have questions about what we've read in the boys' reports. She most likely has questions about what she's read in our report. Monday will be for getting some answers.

As I see it there are two outcomes from Monday...
1. We or the boys' SW (or both of us) don't feel there's a match - so nothing more happens and we go on looking for our children.
2. We and the boys' SW feel there is a match - assuming we're approved on 10 July, we'd go to the boys' agency's matching panel at the end of July, with introductions to the children soon after.

It's not really supposed to happen like this. We're supposed to go to our panel and get approved. Then we start to look at details of children. Then a SW might want to come and visit us to talk about a child / children. A few rounds of this - then we come across the 'right' ones. Then matching panel. Then introductions. A more leisurely time-frame. Time to take stock. Time to get used to things.

I'm not sure that we really know how we feel.
Terrified? yes.
Excited? yes.
Apprehensive? Anxious? probably.
And how do we know if these are the ones for us? How do we know?
Unfortunately God doesn't send emails!

Looks like the weekend will be spent praying / tidying / praying / cleaning / praying / gardening...
All help gratefully received!

That's My King!

Do you know him?

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day...

...as written on the beach by our number 2 godson, aged 4.

Three boys on the beach

We had a fantastic time yesterday at Druridge Bay.
The sun shone despite the weather forecast, and the three boys loved it.



Paddling.
Big waves.
Bigger waves.
Wellies overtopped.
Wet now.
Might as well sit down in the water.
Much wetter now!
Much giggling.

Stones were thrown into the waves.
Doglet ran like a thing possessed.
Castles were constructed.
Castles were demolished.
Castles were reconstructed with bigger and better moats.



Picnic lunch.
Cherry tomatoes. Cucumber. Ham. Bread.
Grapes.
Half grapes for doglet.
Chocolate muffins.

Waves getting bigger.
Closer to the castle.
Water in the moat.
Castle destroyed.

Happy days!

Three boys and me

I survived.
More importantly, the three boys survived.
No lasting adverse effects, as far as I know!

It was with some reservation and a certain amount of arm-twisting that I agreed, some months ago, to look after our three god-sons for a day all by myself. My dear wife, Mrs D, would go off to work, I would take a day's leave, and all would be well. Or so she assured me.

The three boys arrived on Thursday evening, their parents bathing them and putting them to bed, before disappearing back home to pack before their trip to Madrid for a wedding.

We woke on Friday morning to singing and chatting from the middle boy... Mrs D helped get the boys dressed and ensure the appropriate cereals were consumed before heading off to work.

I was alone.
By myself.
Nobody else but me. And the three boys of course!

First task - get the oldest one to school and the middle one to nursery.
We left plenty of time.
We all got into the car.
We arrived at the school.
Far too early. The lollipop lady hadn't even turned up yet!
Better early than late I thought.

It started to rain.
We had to park 5 minutes walk from the school.
We had no coats.
We got a bit wet.
Lesson number one - remember the coats even if there aren't any clouds in the sky!

Back to the car with the youngest. Home.
We played train track and cars.

Then back in the car - parents and tots at church.
Played with cars and play-dough.
Then back in the car to get the middle one from nursery.
I took all the coats. It didn't rain.

Middle one collected.
Back to the car. Home.

Lunch.
Youngest's nappy changed - not poopy - hurrah!
C-Beebies...
OK, OK, I gave in - but only for 30 minutes - Iggle piggle is very strange!
More train track and cars.

Then back in the car to get the oldest one from school.
I took all the coats. It didn't rain.

Oldest one collected.
Back to the car. Home.

More train track and cars.
Lego.
Mrs D arrives home.
I survived!

Then KidzKlub, for a rest.
(Now I never thought I'd find myself saying that!)

Adoption - the journey continues

This is the text of an email Mrs D and I recently sent to many of our friends and family - as an update on where we've got to, and where we might be going over the next few months...

Apologies for another group email, but we thought it was about time we updated you on where we've got to so far. It was last May when we emailed you to let you know of the journey we were embarking on - so much has happened, and yet we're still not there... but we're heading in the right direction!

If we had to describe the past year in one word, it would be - waiting!
But we know that God is directing all of this - however frustrated we have got with the speed of things (and we have been very frustrated!), we know that His timing is perfect!

July 07
In July we visited our GP for a medical examination - this is standard for people applying for adoption.
No problems there, as far as we know!

August 07
We had a fantastic 4 week trip to western Canada to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary - we found ourselves saying 'wow' just about every day - scenery, open spaces, wildlife, and the oh-so friendly people!
A real blessing and an opportunity to leave the waiting behind for a while...

November 07
We waited until the end of November before anything else much happened - we attended a series of four preparation days with 4 other couples, and were taken through the process of adoption, what kinds of things children who need adoption may have gone through, and the special parenting required to help these children deal with their past and enable them to flourish as adults.

Having successfully completed these four days, we then waited some more!

February
The formal assessment started at the beginning of February, when our social worker (let's call him SW) came to visit.

February to May
SW then visited us about once every 10 days until the middle of May - in between we've had homework to do, writing about our house, the things we like doing and how we get on with each other. At each of the meetings, SW has probed and prodded into just about every area of our lives - to the extent that at times we've felt as if we've been turned inside out and shaken until everything has fallen out. SW has also met with my sister, two of our friends, and Mrs D's parents. He's spoken to Mrs D's deputy head teacher, and has even visited us at Kidz Klub (SW explained afterwards that it was the most surreal experience of his life - but in a good way!). SW has also visited us when we had our three wonderful god-sons to stay - to see how we interacted with children... thankfully that visit went well!

Right now
The assessment is now complete, and SW is in the process of writing it all up. He's coming to meet us again on Thursday this week to go through the draft report with us - we'll then have the opportunity to correct all the mistakes and make sure we're happy with what it says - it'll be a bit strange to read a 40 page report all about us!

Thursday 10th July 08
Our application to be adoptive parents will be presented to the adoption panel on 10 July. This panel is a group of up to 12 people, with various experiences of adoption - some social workers, a medical advisor, a legal advisor, and some people who have themselves adopted children. They'll have all read our report before the day, and will be meeting to discuss us and hopefully approve us as adoptive parents. We'll be going along too, and they'll probably want to ask us some questions - but SW will be there to support us and help us answer!

July onwards
Assuming we're approved on 10th July, we'll then proceed into what they call the 'matching' stage.
Our thinking at this stage is that we will consider adopting two brothers or a brother and a sister, with the oldest being under 6, but hopefully younger.

SW will be on the look-out for children awaiting adoption, and will be speaking to other adoption agencies about us - in fact he's already started to do this, and has shown us details of some groups of brothers and sisters - although for various reasons, we don't think they're the ones for us.

When we think we've found a possible match, SW will contact the children's social worker and request the children's report - describing the chidren's background and current situation, including medical reports and evaluations - pretty much everything known about the children, written down in black and white. Once we've read that, and still want to proceed, the children's social worker will probably visit us at home to see where we live and what we're like - and to ascertain whether or not we'd be suitable to adopt those children. The children's social worker may be visiting a number of potential adopters at this stage, to find the best ones for those children.

If the children's social worker decides that we're right for those children, then we would go forward to a 'matching panel' at the children's adoption agency. Again, we'd probably be asked to attend that, and it could be anywhere in the country, depending on where the children are from. An approval from that panel would mean we were matched with those children. A programme of introductions would then be planned, probably over a period of a few weeks - this would involve us meeting the children for a few hours to start with, slowly increasing the length of time until we were getting them up in the morning and putting them to bed at night. Once everybody is happy with how things are going, we'd take the children home to live with us...!

If everything proceeded well, we'd then look to apply for an adoption order about 6 months after that - but that's a way off yet!

And so...
We're really thankful that the assessment has gone well, with many positive comments about us from SW.
We'd value your prayers and support over the next few weeks - as we wait and prepare for Panel on 10th July, and as we start to consider possible matches with children.
One of the most difficult things for us is reading the short profiles of children who are awaiting adoption - and then trying to decide if we want to request more details. Please pray that it would be abundantly clear which children we should enquire about.

If you want to keep up-to-date with how things are going, please have a look at my blog (that's here!) which I update from time to time with our latest news about adoption and other random things!

Thanks for reading this far - and for your support, love and prayers for us.
x

Just10 - week 5

One of our Kidz Klub mums made the front page of the Just10 news sheet this week.
Click on the image to read Karin's story...

Before adopting kids - 15 quick training sessions - Part 1

On our last assessment visit, our social worker left us with 15 quick training sessions to undertake....

I share the first of the sessions here with you...

Session 1
Go to the supermarket. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their head office.
Go home.
Pick up a newspaper.
Read it for the last time.

Session 2
Before you adopt your children, find a couple who already are parents and advise them how to improve:
1. their methods of discipline
2. their lack of patience
3. their appalling low tolerance levels
4 their practice of allowing their children to run wild
5. their child's sleeping habits, toilet training, table manners and overall behaviour
Enjoy it.
It will be the last time in your life that you will have all the answers.

Session 3
To discover how nights will feel...
1. Walk around the living room from 5pm to 10pm carrying a wet bag of old lentil soup weighing 6kg, with a radio tuned to static playing loudly
2. At 10pm, put the bag down, set the alarm for midnight and go to sleep
3. Get up at midnight and walk the bag of lentil soup round the living room until 1am
4. Set the alarm for 3am.
5. As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2am and make a cup of tea
6. Go to bed at 2.45am.
7. Sing songs in the dark until 4am.
8. Get up. Make breakfast.
Keep this up for 5 years. Look cheerful.

Session 4
Dressing small children is not as easy as it seems.
1. Buy a live octopus and a small bag made of loose mesh.
2 Attempt to put the octopus into the bag so that none of the arms hang out.
Time allowed for this - all morning.

Session 5
Forget the BMW and buy a practical 5-door saloon or people carrier. And don't think you can leave it out in the driveway spotless and shining. Family cars don't look like that.
1. Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment. Leave it there.
2. Get a coin. Insert it in the CD player.
3. Take a family-sized packet of chocolate biscuits and mash them into the back seat.
4. Run a garden rake along both sides of the car. There. Perfect!

Session 6
Get ready to go out.
1. Wait outside the bathroom for half an hour
2. Go out the front door
3. Come in again
4. Go out
5. Come back in
6. Go out again
7. Walk down the front driveway
8. Walk back up it
9. Walk down it again
10. Walk very slowly down the road for 5 minutes
11. Stop, inspect minutely, and ask at least 6 questions about, every piece of used chewing gum, dirty tissue and dead insect along the way
12. Retrace your steps
13. Scream that you have had as much as you can stand until the neighbours come out and stare at you
14. Give up and go back into the house
You are just about ready to try taking a small child for a walk.

Session 7
Repeat everything at least 100 times.

Walk the path I've paved for you

My good friend, TheWeeScottie, has penned a poem...

‘Walk the path’, my saviour said,
‘The one I’ve paved for you
And you will see the wonderous things
I’ve laid in store for you’

You can read the rest here.
Inspired words, I feel, in these uncertain times.

Garry's coming to Just10

Garry Brotherston is coming to tell his story next week at Just10 in Gateshead and Stockton...
...a journey from imprisonment and condemnation to grace and freedom in Christ!

It should be another fantastic night - with J John explaining the 5th commandment - and talking about controlling our anger.

Let's pray that the many thousands attending would hear God speak to them in a new and powerful way through Garry's and J John's words...

Here's one of Garry's songs - powerful words.

Roll on 10 July

Hurrah!

Whooopee!

Woo-hoooo!

Much jumping up and down, waving of arms and shouting!

Our home assessment is complete!
We saw our social worker this evening for the last time (well, last time for a few weeks!). He's visited and spoken to all our referees. He's seen us on at least 12 occasions. Hours and hours. He's completed our assessment and just needs to write it all up now.

And he's so positive. He talks about there being no 'contra-indications' and of us having a very strong application... Mrs D thinks he means we're marvellous!

Our application will go to the adoption panel on 10 July, all being well.
We'll go too.
By 5pm on 10 July, we should be approved as adopters!

Then the matching begins. The social worker's already keeping his eye out and ear to the ground (sounds a bit painful to do both at the same time!), and he's even mentioned a family in the north-east that may be a possible match...

It's all starting to get very real and very scary!
We know that God knows our children, even though we don't - he knows who they are, where they are and how they are... he knows what they like and don't like... and he's looking after them, preparing them to come and live with us...

Amazing, perplexing, intriguing, and truly awesome, come to think about it!

I'm still here!

Apologies to all of you who thought I'd perhaps dropped off the face of the planet...
No, I'm still very much here, alive and well - there just doesn't seem to be enough time in each day for everything that needs to be done!

We had a fantastic week away in Derbyshire in the middle of April with a great friend of old, and his new wife (great friend of not-so-old!). The sun shone and then the hailstones came and then the sunshine again, followed by snow, then sun, then rain... you get the picture! But lots of good walks with the doglet, and lots of fun by the fire in the evenings with a glass of wine and some silly games!

Just10 has started now -taking up another of our evenings each week - but so worthwhile - J John is such an inspirational speaker - presenting the 10 commandments in such relevant ways for today... Along with the 5000 other people in the canvas cathedral each week, two of our KidzKlub mums have been coming along and both have made commitments - and we're only 3 weeks in!

Along with all of that, we've been meeting with our social worker once or twice a week to complete our home assessment...

I hope that things will calm down a bit for the next few weeks, so a more normal blogging service should be restored!

April showers

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow....

God-daughter number one is one

Mrs D and I had a lovely time yesterday afternoon with our wonderful god-daughter, Alice, celebrating the first anniversary of her birth.

Despite her feeling poorly, she did manage to open her pressies (courtesy of Calpol) before needing to go to sleep... And we all enjoyed the fantastic birthday carrot-cake.

I fear that her parents may soon be needing the Calpol to banish the headaches induced by Alice's new drum kit...

A grand weekend

We've just said goodbye to our three fabulous godsons, having had them to stay for the weekend, while their mum and dad went to climb something high in the Lake District and indulge in some well deserved them-time...

We had the boys over last summer, but it was good to have them at a weekend so I could spend more time with them as well as Mrs D.

We had a fab time visiting seven stories (Peter Rabbit and Horrid Henry, amongst others), and then to the play park... We had to be home for late afternoon, as Mr SW was coming to see us with children.... Turned out the boys were so tired after our afternoon out that they were really chilled... so Mr SW saw me reading with them (The smartest giant in town - fab book), and then sat with us while we had dinner. Things seemed to go OK, and Mr SW said that we seemed to be the kind of people who were really relaxed about doing stuff with children, and took things in our stride - so that was positive!

It was nice to take them to church this morning - though interesting to see a service through small peoples' eyes... the littlest one started singing 'postman pat postman pat postman pat cat cat cat cat' during the prayers, and the middle one started a burping competition during the all-age comunion!! Children and church services, eh! Wonderful!

The boys' mum and dad returned at lunchtime to much joy...
It was great to have the boys with us for the weekend - but nice to have some quiet after they left... though the place seems strangely empty without them!

46 days to go

46 days and counting...


Just:10 is coming...

Whirlpools, eagles and fantastic views

Mrs D and I returned on Wednesday from a wonderful few days in Argyll - staying beside Loch Melfort with my parental parents - we used to go there every October holiday, but I've never known such fantastic weather!

We walked and took in views north over Seil towards Mull, and south towards Scarba, the Garvellachs and Jura.

We ventured out on the sea from Craobh Haven on Farsain with Duncan, our skipper and wildlife expert, for a circumnavigation of Scarba.

Apart from the currents, waves and whirlpools of the Corryvreckan, a highlight must have been seeing a couple of golden eagles soaring high overhead. Then later we saw sea eagles - one flew past us, landing in a tree on Scarba - this was joined by another, and then we spotted a third in a different tree, higher up the hillside. An unforgettable sight!

A selection of photos...


Corryvreckan - standing wave


Corryvreckan looking south towards Jura


Looking north towards Seil and Mull


Looking south towards Seil, Scarba and the Garvellachs


Sunset over Loch Melfort

Druridge Bay

We love this place...
It was lovely to visit again, this time with two wonderful friends - Roz and Mark, who came up to the northeast for the weekend. Mind you, I don't think I've ever seen anyone as excited at seeing the sea as Roz was!


Cloud swirls at dusk


Where has all the sand gone? Highest tide I've seen here...


Heelan coo!

Winner!

Thank you Facebook

I had my first Facebook reunion on Thursday evening. A friend I had lost touch with about 10 years ago asked to be my Facebook friend a few months ago... And then I had a note to say he'd be in Newcastle to visit his parents this week...

It was great to meet up again - catch up on 10 years, talk about old friends, new families, hopes for the future... An unexpected joy in the middle of a really busy week.

Thank you Maik and thank you Facebook.

What a week

D'you ever have those weeks when the first time you sit down is Saturday morning?
We've just had one!

Nothing particular has made it like that - just lots of little things all contributing to one huge mountain...

Late Monday afternoon our social worker (I think we'll have to call him 'Mr W' on here) arrived for the first of our assessment meetings. It went well. We showed him round the house. He asked us some stuff about us, gave us some stuff to read. One in particular has really made me think... lots to think about... We also have some forms to complete - one for doglet (has she ever bitten anyone, what is her temperament, does she like children,...), one for health and safety (have we got saftey glass in the windows, blind cords within reach, fixed fireguard, rusty car at the bottom of the garden...), and one to fill in with our history from birth to now - everything which has had an impact on us, in chronological order... that'll take some time methinks!

We've been promised more to do, but that hasn't yet arrived (email problems perhaps?). Next meeting is booked in for 21st February.

Mr W is really keen for the process to go as quickly as it can, obviously not jeapordising on quality of the assessment - so we're glad about that. His best esttimate is that we'll be going to Panel for approval in June, so the assessment will need to be completed by the beginning of May.

He wants to see us with children, how we interact with each other, whether we get onto their level. I think we'll have to borrow some of our god children for an afternoon... But only if they're going to behave (don't they always!?)

Mrs D wants to get Mr W to come to Kidz Klub as well - not sure he's ready to have green custard thrown over him, mind you!

London

Mrs D and I are just back from a fantastic 36 hours in London, courtesy of some free return 1st class tickets on National Express East Coast.


Lunch at Covent Garden with string quintet...

...then off to see Billy Elliot at the Victoria Palace Theatre - the way the show manages to capture the grit of the miners' strike and 1980's Co Durham, with the magic of a boy's dreams and ambitions is fantastic... the language is unsanitised, but adds to the reality.

Dinner at a lovely little restaurant in Smithfield - special thanks to our waitress who saved me from a fate worse than sweetbreads! One of the other waiters had helped us with some of the menu items (all written in French), and wrongly told us that rognons de veaux were veal steaks... how wrong he was! I'm still reeling from the shock of what might have been on my plate!


A short after dinner stroll along the Thames near our hotel at London Bridge.


Sunday morning after breakfast - and onto the river heading east towards Greenwich on the river boat from London Bridge...


Tower Bridge, looking west towards the city


The Traitors' Gate hasn't been used for a while...


The Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich


The structure formerly known as the Millennium Dome (now the O2 arena), with Canary Wharf in the background


The roof of the Millennium Dome

Then inside the dome to see 3000 year old treasures from the tomb of King Tutankhamun and some of the other Egyptian kings and queens - an amazing exhibition... I couldn't quite believe that the stuff was so old - much of it looked like it was made yesterday, particularly the wooden items... Well worth the trip if you can - it runs till August.

First social worker visit

Our first meeting with Mr S-W will be on Monday afternoon...
The first of many, no doubt!

Now I'm 25!

Well, 25 not counting Saturdays and Sundays! It sounds much better than the alternative halfway to my three score years and ten, don't you think?

I had a lovely day yesterday, despite having to go to work! The day started with Mrs D getting up early and bringing me my presents in bed! A huge box covered in holographic blue paper turned out to be an espresso machine...! Fantastic!

Breakfast was cooked for me (pancakes and butterscotch sauce) but alas there was no time to try an espresso... work beckoned!

I got home early for an espresso. Running it with just water to flush the system, working out how to get the coffee holder attached to the machine.... then all was ready! A fabulous cup of espresso with just the right amount of froth on top...

The evening turned out somewhat differently to how I had imagined... Mrs D had, unbeknownst to me, arranged for almost the entire contingent of our housegroup to come round for dinner... I half thought something was up when I was banished to the sitting room and told in no uncertain terms to stay there...

The first I knew of the impending dinner party was when the doorbell rang - and the first of many people arrived carrying various bottles, salads, cakes, cards and presents!

A lovely surprise! Thank you Mrs D...

We have a social worker!

If you'd told me a year ago that today I would be rejoicing over the allocation of a social worker, I'd most probably have laughed you out of town.... but there you go... the adoption journey seems to have a habit of changing our perspective on things!

Today I am rejoicing! DFW phoned today and told us that we'd been allocated a social worker, and that he'd phone us next week to arrange our first meeting...

We'd only just been praying in housegroup yesterday evening about the length of time things were taking. Isn't God amazing!

Dr Who expired

I'm not at all happy.
You see, I love Dr Who. And I missed it on Christmas Day. And I didn't set the video to record it. My fault, I know. But all was not lost!

I thought I would step out into the bold new world of TV on the internet, and decided to download the programme (all 600Mb of it) from the BBC iplayer site just before New Year.

3 hours later, and all seemed well. The programme was now on my PC, and available to view until 24 January, at which point it would spontaneously combust or something.

So, this evening, I settled down on the sofa, Mrs D having gone out for a few hours. Dr Who beckoned. I was getting excited (OK - call me sad if you want!).

I opened up the iplayer download manager on the laptop, and clicked on 'watch now'.

Imagine my utter horror, over-powering disappointment and sheer disbelief when I was greeted with the words:

'This programme has expired and will be deleted'

I can still hardly believe it.
No Dr Who for me.
From a quick check of the internet it appears this has been happening a lot with the iplayer. 'Teething problems' according to the BBC.

I'll just have to wait for a repeat.
And console myself with Primeval from last week which has definitely recorded and is waiting to be watched....

Grand Balloon Race

While clearing leaves from the lawn this afternoon, I happened upon a small white piece of paper. I was about to throw it in the rubbish, when I noticed it was a tag from a balloon which had taken part in a Grand Balloon Race, in aid of Hebden Green Community School in Winsford, Cheshire.

It would appear that the tag was affixed to a balloon which was released in the school grounds, along with many others (mine is number 17906). And it ended up in our back garden! There is a prize for the person who finds the balloon furthest from Cheshire.

I have completed my details on the tag, and will send it to the address stated, in the hope of winning. Who'd have thought a balloon would have made it so far!

Possibly the best advert ever?

Or click here.
Can you name all the Scottish landmarks?

Happy New Year!

Some late afternoon photos from Druridge Bay on the last day of 2007...

Happy Easter?

The following greeted me at the till of our local convenience store.
I nearly dropped my clubcard in astonishment!



Over-efficient foward planning? Or maximising profit potential?
Either way - less than 12 weeks to go!

An evening with thathideousman

Mrs D and I had a lovely evening yesterday with thathideousman, his wife and children, Boris, Noris and Doris. The evening started well, with coffee and good chat - we hadn't seen thathideousman for about 7 years, so lots to catch up on. Boris, Noris and Doris were a tad shy, but understandably so, having never met us before!

As the evening went on, young Boris and Noris decided to threaten us both with decapitation, prompting Mrs D to hide in the cupboard under the stairs. This led me to tell a slight untruth to young Noris, and explained that Mrs D had escaped and gone home. Noris was having none of this explanation, and proceeded to hunt for Mrs D, so the beheading could be done.

Mrs D was eventually found by Noris, but before the execution could proceed, I was accused of telling lies. My sentence? 5 minutes on the naughty seat!

This seat is in the porch, and there was no escape from my punishment! After 3 minutes, the door was opened, and I was reminded that 2 minutes remained. It was then suggested that I ask whether the time was up yet... I later learned that had I posed this question, I would have been subjected to an additional minute on the naughty seat!

After a good 5 minutes, I decided to get up and join everyone else in the kitchen - to much horror from young Noris, who promptly sentenced me to an additonal 10 minutes for getting up without permission! I was luckily pardoned by thathideousman! It would have been interesting to have seen the expression on thathideousman's wife's face as she returned from work to see me on the naughty seat!

Later I was forced to the underworld by Boris and Noris, with all manner of cushions, blankets and coats piled on my head - there was no use in protesting - there was no escape! Thankfully bedtime called and I managed to find my way back to this world!

It was lovely to spend the evening with thathideousman's family - catching up and sharing stories of old times... here's hoping we don't leave it another 7 years before we meet again!

Yea, Lord - we greet thee!

Christ is born in Bethlehem!
Hurry now to see him lying in the manger...

Merry Christmas!

Invitation to proceed

The letter from DFW finally arrived today...
We've been invited on to the next stage in the assessment to be adoptive parents. There's a dotted line on which each of us have to sign, and then home assessment will start in January. Sounds so easy... we know it won't be!

We have no way of knowing what 2008 will hold - I suppose none of us do... but we get the feeling there will be more joy, tears, frustrations and excitement than would normally be expected in a typical year...

It's good to know that God has it all in his hands - as one of our dear friends keeps telling us, 'the matter is settled in heaven'. And that's good enough for me!

Mrs D has a very sore ear

Mrs D has returned home today from the consultant with rather less ear than she had when she left this morning.

The consultant decided that the only way to stop the pain in the cartilidge in her ear was to cut some of it out... so he did.... and now Mrs D has a rather fetching white dressing on her ear... and 10 or so stitches! The stitches are to come out on Monday... Till then she's not supposed to wash her hair. As Mrs D said - some chance! Hair is apparently being washed tomorrow - perhaps a plastic bag over the offending ear?!

We've now started calling her 'Vincent'!

Mary, did you know?

Words to make you think...

Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy would one day walk on water?
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy would save our sons and daughters?
Did you know
that your Baby Boy has come to make you new?
This Child that you delivered will soon deliver you.

Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy will give sight to a blind man?
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy will calm the storm with His hand?
Did you know
that your Baby Boy has walked where angels trod?
When you kiss your little Baby you kissed the face of God?

Mary did you know?

The blind will see.
The deaf will hear.
The dead will live again.
The lame will leap.
The dumb will speak
The praises of The Lamb.

Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy is Lord of all creation?
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy will one day rule the nations?
Did you know
that your Baby Boy is heaven's perfect Lamb?
The sleeping Child you're holding is the Great, I Am.

Christmas according to Linus

I found this on Living Stones, and thought I'd share it with you all...

Difficult to get your head around

I've been reading a book this morning on adoption, written by an adoptive dad, for adoptive and propsective adoptive dads.

Some quotes...

"You're being assessed for a role you have no experience in, to take over from someone who demonstrably can't perform that role - and that's difficult to get your head around."

"Reconciling yourself to the fact that no-one is entitled to have a child is a tough process. But the even harder proposition to get your head around is that you are entitled to make a commitment to someone else's child."

Give me words to speak

Aaron Shust - Give me words to speak

Preparation Day 4

The fourth and final preparation day...

What really stood out today was listening to three adoptive parents talking about their experiences adopting. It was a privilige to hear their stories - the good and the not so good - the waiting, the frustrations, the tears and the laughter. They had very different stories, but some common threads... the intrusion of the home assessment; the frustrations in waiting for a match; the heartache of being truned down by a child's social worker in favour of another couple; the range of emotions when you visit your new child, and eventually take them home...

So, what now?

We now wait for a letter from the adoption agency inviting us to make a formal application - hopefully in the next few weeks. We then formally apply.

We're then assigned a social worker, who will come and visit us over a 4 or 5 month period - to get under our skin, find out what makes us tick, and measure us against the national competencies - and hopefully come to the conclusion that we are suitable to be adoptive parents...

So come late spring / early summer, we should be going to the adoption panel for approval as adoptive parents. Then the matching process starts - which could take weeks, months, or longer...

So, I think it feels like we've taken another small step on the journey towards parenthood. But there is a long way to go yet... one small step at a time!

Preparation Day 3

Another preparation day, and lots more to think about.

We had an encouraging morning discussing issues of attachment - what kind of problems children may have attaching to adults and forming trusting relationships, and what kinds of things we as adopters can do to help children form good attachments...

One of the adoption social workers then talked to us about child development, with the help of a giant Bob the Builder...! We discussed the different stages of children's development, and likened this to building a wall, with foundations formed at an early stage. We discussed what would happen if some of the foundation bricks were missing, as can be the case in children who are looking for adoptive parents. And we thought about our role in rebuilding these missing bits of foundations, to give the child the best possible chance in life. A bit of a scary prospect!

In the afternoon we discussed issues surrounding an adopted child's identity - and the struggles many of the children have - 'where do I come from', 'why was I not wanted', 'do my birth parents think about me'... and the struggles many adopted children have with birthdays - and the memories these bring...

Then we had the privilige of listening to an adopted person talk about their experience of being adopted - though adopted in the 60's when the process was very different, his thoughts and feelings were really useful to hear... and gave us loads to think about in terms of parenting style and the need to be really open with our future children about their adoption.

On reflection, a positive day, but lots to think about!
Day 4 tomorrow.

Dreamy Spires

Some photos from our visit to our friends Rose & Andy in Oxford last weekend...
It was so cold... but we found a lovely coffee shop on the corner of Queen's Lane!


Andy, Mrs D and Rose outside Christ Church


Christ Church


Bicycles...


Spires...


Bridge of Sighs... not the original though!


Martyr's Cross


Burnt for their faith...

Preparation Day 2

A tough one today. Mrs D and I are totally drained emotionally...
We had four sessions.

The first was lead by a lady from CAMHS, talking about separation, grief and loss - we thought about the losses a child has - at a time when we are thinking about a gain (having a new child in our family), the child is experiencing grief and loss - of their foster carers, their bedroom, their friends, etc... We thought about how the child would be feeling, and what their behaviour might be as a result - and the various stages of grief. We also thought about other losses the child might have experienced in their short life - many moves, places where they've stayed and people looking after them - and the effects on them.

The second session was all about health issues - it was lead by a community paediatrician. We thought about health issues for the children who are currently being looked after - effects of neglect, alchohol and drugs during pregnancy, possible inherited conditions from birth family. We also thought about our health and things which could affect our ability to adopt - and the effects on our health post-adoption!

After lunch, we looked at issues relating to the children who are waiting to be adopted - what kinds of experiences they might have been through to mean they are in the position they are... we had to think about different types of abuse - neglect, emotional, physical and sexual - and what kind of things these children may have experienced under each heading... this was particularly difficult to do - some things really don't bear thinking about... And then we had to start to think about what kinds of problems / issues we would be able to manage - would we consider a child with mild learning difficulties? What about a child whose mother has schizophrenia? Or a child with hearing problems? Or a child with ADHD? Or autism?

Then we looked at what kinds of behaviour a child may exhibit, having been through these experiences - and how things we may do and think are totally normal may set off reactions we don't expect in children... We finished off looking at 'safe care' and what that means - making sure that we care for the child in a sensitive way - sensitive to their previous experiences. And also that we are safe as we look after the child - particularly thinking about the possibility of a child making allegations against you - and ways to make this less likely.

All in all a really difficult day - lots of difficult issues to think about. It would be easy to let it all become overwhelming... but we need to keep it in focus - these are all the worst possible things / experiences / issues / behaviours - and no child is going to have all of these!

We now have the rest of the week to reflect and think about what we've learned and discussed - so a bit of breathing space before next Monday / Tuesday when we have the rest of the preparation.

Preparation Day 1

Well - Mrs D and I have survived the first adoption preparation day.
We joined 4 other couples for the day in Durham - all of us a bit apprehensive and wondering what it would be all about.

We looked at the adoption process in England - the journey children go on from first coming into contact with social services, through care orders, placement orders and finally adoption. We were told about the different types of care for children, including special guardianship, long term fostering, and adoption really as a last resort.

We looked at what the journey would be for us - after the prep days comes home study, which will be a series of about 12 or so fortnightly visits - in parallel our social worker will visit our referees, and also will want to see us interacting with children (do they really want to come to Kidz Klub??!) - this all gets written up into a large tome which is presented to the adoption panel - hopefully to approve us as adoptive parents - around late spring / early summer next year. We then wait for the match - which takes as long as it takes!

We thought about what a child would say, having been with their new family for about a year, when asked how they knew that they were loved.... words along the lines of 'they spend time with me', 'they do what they say', 'they help with my homework', 'they're still there even when I'm naughty', 'they kiss me better when I'm hurt'...

And we thought about some of the things which were specially important when parenting an adoptive child - the importance of praise and encouragement, of being reliable and consistent, and the need for a constant shower of warmth, love and affection - all things which would apply to any child, but even more so when they have experienced loss, grief and huge upset in the past.

We thought about what our lives were like now by apportioning a typical 24 hours... and then thought about that same 24 hours with a child in our family - very different!

There's lots more to come tomorrow and then next week too. But it feels like things have finally started to move forward, albeit slowly... but there's a long way to go!

Mrs D's knee - another update

Well, nearly a week since Mrs D had her arthroscopy, and things would seem to be looking up. After a couple of days of her knee being really sore, following the operation, Mrs D awoke on Thursday morning being able to walk better than she has for nearly 3 months. The knee has continued to improve - she can fully weight bear now, and can walk upstairs normally (though coming down is still painful). We went for a walk with doglet yesterday - something we haven't done together for a very long time now...

Mrs D has been poking and prodding her knee, and it would appear that the very tender and painful bit on the outside of her knee is no longer very tender and painful.

Yes, she has pain from the two holes in her knee, but it seems the previous pain is gone. Quite amazing, given that the doctor simply washed it out...

We don't want to get our hopes up, but definitely a large step (boom boom) in the right direction!

Mrs D's knee - update

Well, after much faffing around, Mr P cut a couple of holes in Mrs D's knee.
He looked around a bit, looked some more, poked, prodded and looked one last time.

Nothing.

Well - apart from a healthy knee, that is.
No torn bits, missing bits, stretched bits.
Nothing.

He flushed it out (this conjures up garden hose to me...).

So Mrs D is back home, on the sofa.
Perhaps her knee will get better now. Perhaps not.
She's to go back in a couple of weeks to see Mr P.
And some physio between now and then.

So we have to wait and see.

Any suggestions as to what might be causing so much pain on the outside of Mrs D's right knee, would be gratefully received.
Just add a comment.
There will even be a reward for information leading to a successful diagnosis!

Mrs D's knee

Mrs D has a very sore knee.
It's been sore since the middle of August.
She says it started during white water rafting
on the Fraser River in British Columbia.

She's seen her GP umpteen times,
and eventually saw Mr P.
A consultant - he diagnosed
a torn lateral miniscus -
but the MRI didn't agree!

The consultant
described her
as
a
mystery...

Four weeks of physio followed -
different exercises every week.
But these just made her knee sorer
So back to see Mr P.

Now all of this was on BUPA
Because my company decided to pay...
Mr P decided to operate
But no spaces till mid December!

Now this is quite unsatisfactory
'Enough is enough' said Mr P.
So he found some space at Hexham
On the NHS - much quicker you see!?!

So tomorrow, Mrs D
will have an arthroscopy
to see
what Mr P can see.

Hopefully he'll find the problem
And fix it good and proper.
Then Mrs D will be back at work -
you just try and stop her!

Jesus isn't Christmassy any more

Apparently so, according to one of Waterstone's staff.
I only went in for a book token.

They had some difficulty finding a suitable non-Christmassy card for the aforementioned token... flicking through the pile, the employee of Waterstones stopped and said, 'How about this one - it's Jesus... he's not Christmassy any more, is he!?'

Well, there you go.

So what is Christmassy these days?

• Queuing for hours at every shop from mid-October to get the essential presents?
• Massive debt?
• Turkey? Tinsel?
• The Sound of Music?
• Snowmen? Santa Claus?

These words by Chris Rice say it really well...

Tears are falling, hearts are breaking
How we need to hear from God
You’ve been promised, we’ve been waiting
Welcome Holy Child. Welcome Holy Child.

Hope that you don’t mind our manger
How I wish we would have known
But long awaited Holy Stranger
Make yourself at home. Please make yourself at home.

Bring your peace into our violence
Bid our hungry souls be filled.
World now breaking Heaven’s silence
Welcome to our world. Welcome to our world.

Fragile finger sent to heal us
Tender brow prepared for thorn
Tiny heart whose blood will save us
Unto us is born. Unto us is born.

So wrap our injured flesh around You
Breathe our air and walk our sod
Rob our sin and make us holy
Perfect Son of God. Perfect Son of God.

Welcome to our world.

RIP Virgin Cross Country

After many weeks of travelling to and fro between Newcastle and Leeds, it was with a tear in my eye that I made my last ever journey courtesy of Mr Branson and Virgin Trains on that route.





For as of tomorrow, the route is taken over by no less than the mighty Arriva Cross Country...

Same trains; same liklihood of getting cut in two by the automatically closing doors at the carriage ends; same problems working out whether the toilet door is locked or not; same scrolling digital display above every seat; same staff; same track; same signals; same timetable; same opportunity for delays...

New train colours; new uniform; no doubt new (higher) prices; new script for the endless announcements before and after every station....

Will I be able to tell the difference next week?
We'll see!

4 and 20 blackbirds - OK - just one

What a fun afternoon...
Mrs D and I were sitting in the sitting room this afternoon (as you do after Sunday lunch, letting the roast chicken digest), admiring the newly decorated walls which were finished on Thursday, when we heard a strange scratching sound coming from the direction of the chimney. Doglet started to take an interest in the sound, and we thought we had better investigate too.

We have a flappy lid thing which comes down to close off the chimney and helps prevent draughts. This was flapped down, and so whatever was making the scratching sound was standing on top of the flap.

On analysis of the sounds, we concluded that a bird must have fallen down the chimney and was now flapping about trying to get out of what must have seemed like a very deep dark pit.

So - 2 options....

1. leave the bird to flap around, perhaps find its own way out, or die (possibly roasting it when we next light the fire)
2. open up the flap and try to catch the bird as it comes out

We went for Option 2.

So, armed with an old duvet cover, we 'sealed' the fireplace. Mrs D then opened the flap and tried to coach the bird out. It wasn't for coming, but Mrs D managed to find its legs, and with a bit of persuasion, the bird dropped out, into the duvet cover.

Unfortunately we hadn't sealed the duvet cover properly, and the bird got free.

We now had a blackbird flying round the sitting room, feathers and soot flying everywhere, dirty black marks all over the newly painted walls, doglet jumping around trying to catch it.

Not exactly what we had intended!
We opened the patio door, and eventually doglet chased the blackbird outside.

First task for tomorrow morning?
Phone the chimney man and get a mesh installed over the chimney pots!

Preparing for preparation days

We've just had confirmation from DFW Adoption that our preparation days will be on 26/27 November and 3/4 December...

I'm really glad we finally have some dates to focus on as the next step in the process, but a little disappointed that it is so far off. We had hoped to have had these days already, but things haven't worked out that way.

As far as we can work out, these days will prepare us for what adoption is all about - what the children we might get may have been through, and the kinds of behaviours they might exhibit, and why... I guess it's a bit of a reality check, and is designed to sift applicants to make sure we are absolutely sure this is for us, and for the adoption agency to get a better impression of the kind of people we are...

Then after these 4 days we will be linked to a social worker, who'll visit us for a couple of hours each week for a couple of months - gaining a full understanding of who we are and the kinds of children we could take on...

So lots more ahead of us, but things are starting to move forwards... We're just so glad that God goes before us preparing the way - knowing we're held firm in his hands is so reassuring!

I'm back...

Apologies to everybody who has been checking here for news and insights during September - it has been a hectic month, and I just haven't got round to blogging - sorry!

But I'm back now, and hopefully things will be a bit more regular...