Life Update!

Hey guys and girls,

Whats happening on your sides of the world people? Haven't heard from some of you for while! Do pop me an email, coz I am interested in what going on at home just as much as you are interested in my life here (I assume that's why you are here checking my blog! There is 3 new lovely posts for you to enjoy today!)

Ive been away from home 6months now! Wow, that went fast! I feel like I am settling into this place a little more, though for me it still an overwhelmingly crazy place! Ive came back home to London twice now after being away. Once from Edinburgh and then just yesterday from a overnight work trip in country England. I tell you as soon as your train arrives in any London station you get sucked straight into the most insane whirlpool of busyness ever!! i feel myself looking around and going 'is this really my home?!'. Its not that I don't enjoy some of the things here, London has its good points, its just I am aware more than ever of the things in life that make me happy eg quiet, nature, feeling free and safe and a sense of community. These are the things I miss here the most, or maybe its more true to say I am learning to have to 'find' them in different ways then at home.

A bit of an update maybe as I have not done one for a while

1 - Work
Well I am finally in full time permanent work, have been for about 4 weeks now. I work in a place called GFS Platform an international charity that has been working with young women since 1875. They are connected to the Anglican Church and do work in Australia. Some of you may have heard of them (though I hadn't!). My friend Bec who was just here with me and who I went to Edinburgh with, used to go to a GFS branch when she was young. I suppose you could liken some of the work to stuff like guides or childrens ministry etc.

Here in London however, they have two wings of work around England and Wales. One wing is called young mothers Projects and these support young women 15 - 25 who are pregnant or have children (big issue here!). There are 4 of these. They provided antenatal, sex education, school education, postnatal classes and support. They offer a fully operating nursery where the mothers can leave there children so they have time to focus on the class work. I visited 2 projects this week and they are really special.

The other wing is the branch work, which is run in church halls or community centres and is more preventative, working with girls from 7 - 15. They have a strong faith based content and work to provide a friendship group for girls where they can learn self esteem, skills, and educational stuff in a prevention theme. They are run by volunteers. There are 43 branches around England and Wales and it is my job to begin to revamp and oversee these branches! As you can imagine that is a huge task with the distance being insane! Add to the fact that most of the volunteers are really angry at head office (where I work) as they have been pretty much left to fend for themselves for years. So I have a lot of relationship and trust building to work on before we can more forward at all in increasing the quality of work and training being done in the branches. I feel pretty overwhelmed at the moment with it and am unsure of how much I will be able to accomplish at all. But I will give it a shot. I think it is a good job for me as it incorporates my faith (thought i am the only christian in head office!), as well as my heart to work with people as well as the fact that I do like problem solving and this whole area is a big of a massive mess! Only thing is my office is in north London and takes me 3 hours a day to travel there! (1.5 hours each way!)

2 - Home
Our little flat and house share family is going ok, but you wont believe it but we still don't have blinds or a working washing machine! Our landlord leaves a lot to be desired in terms of taking responsibility for his property and he has actually gone AWOL. We have not been able to contact him for 7 weeks and he does nothing we ask of him! Its a bit of a mess, but we are getting close to the time we can break lease so we will. But, now that that is getting close I am starting to like it here more and it feels more homely. Maybe its the knowledge that everywhere we go will be hard and at least this place is clean and new!. I really dread making the decision to search for a new house as well as deciding what area to move to (as i said I am travelling a lot from where I am to work). The area we live in is quite safe, no stabbings for a long time, where as other places closer to London and north are not so nice. So we need prayers as we make this descion.

Also, it meas our little 'friends TV sit-com' set up with Bron, Rory, Dave, dish, Leonie and Al living downstairs will be disbanded and we will all go our separate ways. Problem is the man I love goes with them! So we need a plan to figure out how we can still be close enough to see each other (as right now we are a set of stairs away from each other!)

3 - Church
Still not found a church which is a pain. With Dave working weekends its hard to go along alone. I mean I can and do at times, but I would like us to meet friends together you know. I am listening weekly to Mars Hill Church in USA, and feel a part of their growing online community. I really enjoy it and feel I am learning alot listening to the pastor there Rob Bell. So that is my interim church for now!

4 - Future stuff
Its now on the cards that my daddy and bro Ryan will be coming out here which so sweet! I am so excited. We will travel to Paris and the south of France to have some time with my Uncle Karl and Auntie Helen and my cousins who will be here too!! So exciting for me to know there will be family around!

Also, the French's (Daves parents) will be over for a big European holiday and I am lucky enough to join them on their little family holiday in Belgium with Bron and Rory and Dave, which will be totally fab!

Lots to look forward too.

5 - Prayer points
If I can just ask that you pray for Dave as he is has applied for a job which is really sweet. This job is really full time, varied and exciting for him and will allow him to free up his weekends. God has been good in providing more work at Apple Computers in the intrim, which he enjoys!

Also, we are suffering from hay fever here like you wouldn't believe. Its actually quite disabling and we are really concerned about the drugs we are on for them. I thought it would only last 3 weeks or so but apparently the hayfever season lasts for the whole of the summer. We really need some wisdom on what to do for it coz I just don't want to be popping pills all the time!

Thanks for reading through all my natter. I miss you all and hope life is keeping you well. Remember to make time to love each other and your families. They are so important and when you aren't with them you realise that more than ever! God Bless

Mel x

Bath Time

Again, some photos from a while ago when we used our bank holiday to take a day trip to Bath. It is a lovely place, small enough to explore on foot and full of lots of lovely architecture. Truth was,in English tradition the day we went it rained!!! but we have a nice time all the same.

After getting lost on the first two steps of the directions we had ( i was responsible for that!) we arrived 2 hours later in bath. Its a gorgeous place, surrounded by 7 hills and filled with cream coloured Georgian terraces.

The history of the place dates back to Celtic times when a natural spring with 46 degree water was found. It was believed to have healing powers when apparently a herd of leprous swine where healed. As such when the Romans rocked up a bit later on, and they liked to worship pretty much everything, so they built a temple to the God there (who did the healing) and bathing complex on the site for the people to bath in, that still flows with natural hot water today. We were able to walk through the temple and see the bathing complex. We even touched the water and its really is warm!

We had high tea in the Pump Room, which over looks the baths and checked out the french markets and pretty buildings that were there.




The Bath Abbey Church




Roman Bathing Temple Complex








High Tea at the Pump Room Restaurant




And NO I didn't eat all that!!!

Take care, thanks for popping by

Mel x

London by Night

Hello! A few pics from a while ago. I travel on the bus every day past Big Ben, St Paul's London Eye and all the sights, but realised I had not seen London by night! So we headed up to town for a bite to eat in Soho and a wander round the streets (Piccadilly circus, Trafalgar square and embankment) by night. It was lovely to see everything lit up and looking pretty! Hard to take photos of though if you shake around like I do!