More wedding excitement

One of my close friends is getting married one month from today and has asked me to be a bridesmaid. I’ve been spending some time with her and the other bridesmaids this evening, trying on our dresses, getting them pinned where they need adjusting (as usual, mine is far too long!) and then getting to see her trying on her beautiful dress which has brought back lots of lovely memories from the run-up to my own wedding. Our wedding DVD arrived this morning – I’m really looking forward to Michael coming home tomorrow so we can get to watch it together.

Leading worship

Last Sunday’s service was down on the circuit plan as being “local arrangement” which usually means that we have a local lay preacher take the service. A small group of us from the church took part in a leading worship course last year, and our minister felt this was an ideal opportunity for us to use those skills and organise the service. There were four of us leading different parts of the service – I was leading the final part and was really nervous beforehand. Despite the nerves, I actually enjoyed doing it and would definitely do it again if asked.

Opportunist thieves

It was Michael’s 30th birthday yesterday and he was off to watch the Grand Prix with his dad as a birthday treat. Unfortunately, the tram going to the track was incredibly crowded making it ideal for pickpockets who stole their wallets, the tickets, his dad’s camera and washbag containing his diabetes medication so instead of getting to see the race, they spent it at the police station and cancelling cards. On the positive side, they did at least get to see the qualifying yesterday, they still have their passports, his dad had some medication elsewhere and they are both fine.

Beetle drive

Walking into the room and looking across at all the blue rinses, I wondered why I had agreed to spend my Saturday night at a beetle drive. I was younger than most people in the room by about half a century and resigned myself to a dull evening. How wrong could I have been? I had some fascinating conversations and was quite surprised by how busy everyone’s social lives seemed to be. They were swapping phone numbers and addresses, discussing coach trips and other activities organised by local groups. It turned out to be quite an enjoyable evening after all.

Beading

I’ve been spending the day at a beading workshop at church making another beaded necklace. It’s something that gets organised about twice a year at church and is always very popular. Anne-Marie, who runs the workshop, always brings along a good selection of beads to buy and use, and has quite a few patterns ranging from fairly easy designs that take a couple of hours to make, to more complicated designs which take several hours. It means that the workshop can cater for a range of abilities – from those who have never tried beading before through to quite experienced beadworkers.

Packing the suitcases

After six weeks of marriage, I’ve already done it. I’ve packed Michael’s bags and sent them off to his parents. It’s okay though – he’s heading off to Spain tomorrow to work on another event with his dad and the suitcases are travelling with someone else on the truck. Michael’s still in Germany at the moment – he’s due to get back around 7.30pm this evening, will have a few hours at home, and then has to be back at the airport at 4am tomorrow morning. Fingers crossed that the pager stays quiet tonight so I can spend some time with him.

Fabulous friends

One of the nicest things about close friends is being able to be relaxed in each other’s company. There’s no feeling of having to entertain each other, of having to constantly talk – if we have things to talk about, we talk; if we have nothing to say, we’re equally comfortable sitting and being quiet or else just rambling and talking nonsense (which probably happens more than the silence to be completely honest!) Being with Michael, my family and my closest friends is when I truly feel I can be myself and know that I am still loved despite my flaws.

Resilient roses

I’m pretty rubbish at gardening. My few attempts at growing flowers or herbs have generally been unsuccessful – mainly because I end up forgetting to water them, or weed them. I have managed to kill off some fairly resilient plants – my rosemary seemed to be immune to my neglect for a while but now is brown and withered, and most of the other herbs went the same way some time ago. So, it has come as a pleasant surprise to discover a rose on my long-neglected rose bush which clearly has managed to survive the lack of watering, weeding and pruning.

Living with a Messie

I once had a housemate who was so untidy that I bought myself a book entitled “When You Live With A Messie” and left it lying around. I don’t think he actually took the hint. Michael is nowhere near as bad as my former housemate was but still has some definite ‘Messie’ tendencies. Despite the fact that he has been away for three days, the house still looks like there is a Messie around – I’ve spent so little time at home over the last few days that the flat looks pretty much the same as it did when he left.

Quality time with family

My dad spends a few hours at the day centre on Mondays and Thursdays so my mum and I ended up having a girly shopping trip. I can’t remember the last time I had an afternoon out with my mum – it was so nice to have some quality time together. My parents’ flat can feel like Piccadilly Circus with various family members popping in and out so having a quiet afternoon with just my mum was lovely. Plus it’s good to know that my dad is being well looked after and seems to enjoy the activities at the day centre.