Daviestribe Advent

It's busy here as usual! Christmas festivities are under way & it's all rather exciting! We all LOVED the carol service we attended at Trent Vineyard Church last Sunday. Such a magical atmosphere combined with the best singing of Christmas carols I've ever experienced (amazing music including classical instruments as well as Trent Vineyard's usual drums, bass, guitars & keyboards plus fabulous Gospel choir who sang lovely arrangements) as well as great dramas & video clips. We were served a cup of tea by Annie-Joy's school teacher & the kids enjoyed eating the chocolate cake at the start of the service. Perfect!

Timmy & Luke had a Roman Day at school. I had fun making them some togas & Emperor garlands. They had a really good day with the other children in their year.

Jordan's year group had a similar themed day earlier in the year too when they all dressed up as Victorians. Jordan was a chimney sweep! I did dirty up his shirt with black facepaint but he still looks rather too clean in this picture! The boys all really enjoy their new school- it's so creative & exciting for them! They love it!

Father Christmas came to visit at the college family Christmas meal where they all received a gift before the whole college community gathered for a service in the chapel. Jordan is still enthusiastic about the whole thing (as were all the older teenage kids who were there). It was quite special actually!

The Davies house is full of Advent calendars of varying kinds. I love the numbered tea lights we have this year. We light them at tea time & have a candle lit tea!

It's been lovely & frosty here lately. The downside is that it has been very icy. I came off my bike on black ice a couple of weeks ago & a friend of ours from the same street as us slipped & broke his ankle! We are all taking extra care now!

The Christmas DVDs are out of the box in the garage & we are all enjoying a bit of festive nostalgia.

The Playmobil nativity (which we also use as an Advent calendar taking pieces each day out of the little numbered stockings that hang on our fireplace) is helping us all retell the Christmas story. This year's nativity has an increased number of Roman soldiers included as the boys were keen to consolidate their knowledge. AJ is looking forward to the arrival of the Wise Men & their camel (she can see its legs sticking out of the top of the stocking!)

I made a festive hat for the college spouses Christmas party. It's a Christmas pudding! I made the pompom while watching the kids having their swimming lessons. I'd forgotten how much fun making them is- and so simple too! I won joint second place for my efforts!

Lee & I got dressed up for the college Christmas ball. It was such a fun night! Great food, fab company, lots of laughs & a chance to dance and have fun together with all the other students & staff.

This year we have only been to watch one school Christmas play- Miss AJ's. It was a very slick, professional performance by the youngest members of the school. Annie-Joy was a fantastic musician, very enthusiastic especially with the coconuts! The boys have enjoyed carol concerts & the school Year 3 nativity without us which has been a mixed blessing for me. Next week we shall put up the Christmas tree & decorations! The boys are happy that our new house has a real chimney because Father Christmas has a way to get in to deliver their gifts! I hope everyone else is enjoying Advent preparations too.

Moshi Birthday!

And then they were nine years old! We have two very excited boys in our house today. They are over the moon with their presents & the Moshi Monsters cake that I made them. It's lovely to see them so happy. :0)

Dotty Spotty!

The kids went to school wearing spots in aid of Children in Need. It's the first time they've done something at school to raise money for Pudsey so they were quite excited! It turns out boys don't wear spotty clothes so the school secretary brought 1,200 dotty stickers in to decorate the clothes of any children who were spotless, in return for 50p! Jordan put his on his jumper while the twins decided to decorate their faces! What a laugh! The school raised £222 from cake sales & spotty clothes fees. Jordan enjoyed helping to sell the cakes at break time too. Great work!

Robin Hood! Robin Hood! Running Through The Glen!

Today Jordan & I took part in the Robin Hood Adventure Challenge Races in Sherwood Pines Forest.

Jordan did the Little John 2k fun run with a large mix of children of all ages. The start was a little crazy so none of us saw him go past us after the klaxon sounded which was a little worrying! But my tactic to shout 'Go Jordi!' worked because he heard me & it spurred him on.

Not long after the race had started the first children began to head back up the trail to the finish line! They were fast!! And Jordan was there with them! I lost count of how many went past us but Jordi may well have been in the top ten finishers, but was certainly well within the top twenty. A fantastic effort!

Our training runs have paid off! Jordan even got a finishers medal to go with the t shirt he received at the finish line. He is very proud of himself, as are we!

And then it was my turn to run! The start was also a little crazy as the 5k race and the 10k race all began together. Some of the Evil Sheriff Duathlon competitors were still finishing in the same space were about to start in too! I've never run in a race before, well not since I was a kid & ran in the Stevenage Fun Run that is! It's very different from competing in a triathlon. It was quite an amazing experience running along side hundreds of other people all with the same purpose, focused, silent except for the thudding of feet upon sand & the sound of controlled breathing, surrounded by beautiful forest scenery. It was a very hilly race but I finished with a personal best time of 35 minutes. I crossed the finished line with my usual Cheshire Cat grin! The announcer, who welcomes the finishers by name as they cross the line, said over the PA system 'Here's Emily! She's always smiling! She's a lovely lady!' I asked Lee if they said something about everyone who finished. He said 'No, just about you!' Nice eh?    

I was very pleased with my race prize- this lovely red t shirt to match Jordan's! All in all, we had a really great day out together, despite Lee being poorly. It was good to be out in the forest in the winter sunshine. Sherwood Pines is full of amazing hideouts & adventure play areas for children so I know we will definitely be going back there again!

PS The man who won the 10k race finished a few minutes before I crossed the line! He ran 5k in 16 minutes! Wow!

Shoe Box!

It's that time of year again when we fill a shoebox with soap, toothpaste, stationary & other exciting gifts! It's something I always look forward to doing each year. Not sure AJ was as enthusiastic to give away the neon plastic recorder, cuddly teddy bear & the shiny butterfly stickers we bought for the parcel! It's all part of learning & growing I guess. And a little girl somewhere will be delighted with her gifts. :0)

Not Quite Torville & Dean!

A lovely lady gave us a gift of some money recently so that we could do something as a family. We decided to go ice skating! Much fun was had slipping & sliding on the ice with the help of penguins Percy, Pearl, Preya & Pen!

We were all rather impressed with the elderly lady who could figure skate exceptionally well & delighted in showing the youngsters how it should be done! Everyone in the Davies tribe has improved since the first time we skated back in April. I still want to realise my childhood ambition of being a speed skater. They do lessons at the rink so maybe.....

Jordan Does Cyclocross!

 I went for a run round a different park this morning to discover a cycle race being set up. As I came to the end of my run (4.5k if you're interested!) the park began filling up with children on bikes dressed in cycling gear. Intrigued, I decided to go & ask what was going on! After a brief conversation with the lady at the registration tent I found out that there were several children's races, as well as the adult races, & that it wasn't too late to take part. I rang Lee to see if Jordan wanted to take part, which of course he did!

 An hour later we were both back in the park with Jordan's bike & gear. I paid the entry fee of £1 & filled in the relevant paperwork. We both had no idea how a cyclo race works so we had to ask! The under 12's race consisted of a winding, undulating grass course with the competitors completing as many laps of the course in 15 minutes as possible. After completing one lap of the course as a warm up, all the children were lined up to start the race in age order. The judges checked race numbers were positioned correctly & a race briefing was given. The mass start was a little scary! Even Jordan thought so!

 Jordan did brilliantly....

 ...competing against a lot of very accomplished young riders....

 ....all wearing the proper gear...

 ....with very competitive parents, some of whom were more like coaches calling out which gears the children should be using, or what pace they should be keeping! They were all very friendly though. I cheered Jordan on with lots of encouragement as I ran around various parts of the course taking photos!

He got tired towards the end but finished strong! He was very proud of himself, and rightly so! He really enjoyed his goodie bag at the finish line which included a little badge bearing words & pictures that read 'I love my bike'. Nice! Jordan can't wait to do his next race! :o)

At Home

We have had a busy few weeks settling into our new surroundings so today, as several of our children have lost their voices & all of us felt in need of some quiet rest, we stayed at home & pottered around doing nothing in particular! Just what the doctor ordered!

Some homework was completed, baths were enjoyed, telly was watched, toys played with, naps taken & several loads of washing tackled! I even went for a run in glorious autumn sunshine too. After lunch Annie-Joy & I made a delicious apple cake together which we all enjoyed eating as an afternoon snack.

Being busy & social is fantastic but I'm also very grateful for the chance to relax today. :o)

Batman's House

When handing us the first post at our new house the very friendly postman welcomed us enthusiastically to the area. He was obviously immensely proud of his home turf because he spent some time standing on our doorstep extolling its virtues & informing us of various local attractions that we must visit forthwith! One place was Wollaton Hall, the film location for Bruce Wayne's mansion in the recent Batman films. It is an awe inspiring building set on the top of a hill & surrounded by a vast expanse of parkland complete with deer. They wander freely, apparently oblivious to the fact that the local golf course is interwoven through their pastures. In turn, the golfers also seem unconcerned about their proximity to such large numbers of stags as they strive to achieve a birdie at the ninth hole. It certainly makes for a comical sight!

So the Davies tribe passed a very pleasant, hot & sunny afternoon at the park with a large group of people including Lee's parents, a college friend of mine & her family as well as a family who live a few houses down from us who have recently moved here from my home town of Stevenage! It's certainly a small world. We are looking forward to exploring Batman's estate further over the next couple of years. Maybe we will find the Bat Cave one day?! Or perhaps we might stumble across the well.... ;-)

A Little Princess

Today Annie~Joy celebrates her 5th birthday. It seems no time at all since we were in Liverpool Women's Hospital very early on a sunny Monday morning waiting for her to be born. In contrast, today we were dashing all four Davies children to school before Lee & I went for a run together! When we picked AJ up from school at lunch time (she is easing her way into full time school for a couple of weeks) we went off for a birthday meal at Frankie & Bennie's just the three of us. The boys have school dinners so we have been eating a main meal at lunch time so that we can all eat sarnies at teatime & save on washing up & faff! When AJ's ice cream arrived at the table it came complete with a candle in the top! The whole restaurant sang happy birthday to her as well which was lovely!

Afterwards we headed to the Disney shop to buy our little princess her very own princess! She was over the moon with Aurora! And to top it all off at teatime she saw her princess cake which she spied in the cake aisle at the supermarket almost a year ago & has dreamed of having as her own birthday cake since then. I have to say, the cake tasted delicious even though it wasn't homemade! AJ was delighted with her sleeping beauty cake but there was some confusion from one of her brothers about who the cake was of. A certain boy thought that there was a princess sitting on top of a huge pink pumpkin! Time to get re-aquainted with all those fairy stories for that boy I think! Gave us all a good giggle anyway! ;o)

All in all, Annie~Joy has been well & truly spoilt today! But she deserves it. After all, it isn't every day you turn five is it?

Tabernacle Insipration!

The kids came out of Sunday School, sorry I mean JAM & Frij, this morning armed with cool bible magazines. Jordan was inspired by today's reading (all about the Israelites building the tabernacle) & as soon as he came home from church began building a den with AJ. I was summond into the living room to see their handy work when it was almost complete. I exclaimed 'What a lovely tabernacle den!' to which AJ said 'It's not a tabernacle it's a house. Look! There's the fridge!' Sure enough in the corner was a pile of play food & a stack of plates & cups. Well, you can't argue with that can you?!

As with any major building project there have been many alterations, changes of plans, negotitaions about site location & the use of particular building materials (Luke wasn't that keen to give permission for the builders to use his blanket but consented in the end so long as he was allowed in too!). But at last the magnificent den was completed! Now our house is filled with the sounds of excited children deciding where cushions should be placed & how to make the den even better. So far the construction hasn't collapsed but my bag of clothes pegs is getting emptier by the second & there is a load of washing almost ready to go out on the line......

New Beginings

We've exchanged blue uniforms for red & now Miss AJ is old enough to join the boys at school. How time flies! We are all learning new routines, a new route to school, new rules, new everything! I think we all like it so far but it's all very different & a little bit alien. Here's to a good start to the new school year!

Pastures New

The Davies Tribe are busy settling into our new surroundings. Today we have been for a lovely walk around the nature reserve. It's been a welcome break from unpacking boxes & organising our new home. Our computer isn't set up yet but hopefully 'normal' blogging service will resume shortly! Hope all who read are well. :-)

Sent from Samsung mobile

Festival Farewells

This morning we went for brunch at Tavern Co. For the past few years it has been Davies Tribe tradition to go there as a birthday treat. We decided to go there one more time as a farewell before we move to Nottingham next month. After spending a pleasant morning there munching doorstop toast, free range eggs & pancakes with maple syrup we went for a lovely walk around the newly restored Festival Gardens. We had a fun time running up & down the 72 steps by the Japanese gardens, watching the newly hatched coots & mallards, watching the water boatmen skate across the lilly filled ponds & pretending to be little billy goats gruff trip trapping over & under the many bridges.

As with most of our adventures the walk was not without a bit of drama. Much of the grass land was very boggy so it wasn't long before a certain little girl fell & got rather muddy! She soon forgot to stay grumpy when she saw the waterfalls & ornate Chinese buildings though & was then content to explore with her bottom half almost completely cover in black goo! Super Mum came to the rescue clambering up the rope ladders to save Luke who got in a panic at the top of the climbimg frame & was clinging on upside down for dear life! As I grabbed him from the top beam & rested him on the net below he exclaimed 'Praise the Lord! I didn't die! Praise the Lord!' His genuine gratitude was completely heart felt & spontaneous! Beautiful!

On the way back to the car I introduced the kids to 'Grandmother pop out of bed' much to their delight. Annie~Joy could be heard in the backseat saying to the huge white bell she held in her hand, 'It's ok I'll look after you! I'm taking you home to a new bed little Grandma!' Sweet!

And now we are back home, ready for a cuppa but in no need of food thanks to the hearty brunch at Tavern Co! AJ has a new set of clothes on & Lee is loading up the washing machine again. Soon we shall start making the teachers their end of term thankyou gifts together. I can't believe the school year & this part of our Liverpool adventures are nearly at an end......

Liverpool-Chester Bike Ride!

 Jordan, Anne & I completed the Liverpool-Chester Bike Ride this morning! We cycled the 4 miles or so down to the tunnel start. It was very very busy!

 Jordan was very excited to be doing his first big bike ride. We were interviewed by North West Tonight as we lined up at the start to begin the 25 mile ride to Chester. The start was rather dramatic- not for us but for many other people who crashed or got punctures or had bike chains fall off even before we were through the 3 mile tunnel section! Thankfully I don't think anyone's injuries were serious more a case of dented pride I think!

Jordan did a sterling effort of cycling all the way to the finish line. Some of the ride was along horrid busy roads but most of it was along quiet, idyllic country lanes & some beautiful bridle ways & Route 56 cycle path. About 8 miles from the finish we saw that some kind people in a big posh house had left free chocolate biscuits & drinks out by the roadside for the passing cyclists. Jordan really enjoyed the chocolatey boost! Bless that household for their generosity & thoughtfulness! We completed the ride in 3 hours & were met by the Davies support team at the Countess of Chester Hospital where we ate a lovely picnic made by myself before we left! My friend Anne also accompanied us which was great having someone in front as well as behind Jordan to keep an eye on him as we rode. We are all extremely proud of Jordan & his effort. If you fancy sponsoring him please go HERE Jordan cycled in memory of his favourite Great Uncle Ben raising money for MacMillan. Well done Jordan! :o)

Edit: And the icing on the cake for Jordan was seeing himself on the local news being interviewed about the bike ride! 3000 people rode the routes today & only two were featured in the news item. He was very proud & announced 'I never knew going on a bike ride would get me on the telly!' He can't wait to tell his friends at school tomorrow! :o)

My First Triathlon!

 This Sunday morning saw me braving the wet & wild weather down by the River Mersey preparing to compete in my first triathlon! Alone in the transition area after my friend Kate & I had registered I felt a little small & lost! (Kate was in a different race distance to me that started half an hour before my wave). My bike felt like a 'cheap' bike next to the Cannondale & Claude Butler bikes & my Aldi wetsuit was entirely inferior to the Orca wetsuit wearing competitors who knew exactly what they were doing & where they were going!! I couldn't do my wetsuit zip up so had to ask the man stood next to me for help. My mobile phoned refused to send or receive texts for some reason so I didn't get all the messages of support until long after I had completed the triathlon! But all was not lost! I am never truly alone because God is always with me. As I stood in my wetsuit, bare feet on the wet, cold tarmac, the bells of Liverpool Cathedral peeled out across the waters. I felt as though God was reassuring me that His Spirit was there washing over the whole area. I felt peaceful.

 I made my way down to the swim start, barefoot. several of us wished the race organisers had told us that there was quite a walk over cobbles, stones & gritty tarmac from the transition area to the swim & that flipflops would be a good idea! I know for next time. Still, I took my time & made it to the start in time to see my friend begin her swim (although I have no idea which one she was as everyone was wearing black wetsuits & yellow swim caps!). My wave wore blue swim caps & included the youth supersprint racers. Some of them looked very young & extremely nervous! The water was freezing! It literally takes your breath away when you jump (or plop in as I did!) in. When the claxon sounded I hung back to let the fast swimmers go so as to avoid being crushed or kicked. Slow & steady was my plan, 'Don't compete, just complete!' was my race moto. Within moments of the start several swimmers either side of me backed out of the race & were towed to dry land by the water safety canoes. I just kept swimming, slow & steady! Half way round my goggles steamed up & I could hardly see anything! The safety canoe men either side of my little group of swimmers were fantastic, encouraging us all along & keeping us motivated. The water was choppy because of the windy weather, something I had no experience of when swimming in the docks even though I have done several training sessions in there over the past few weeks. I completed the 400m swim in 14 minutes (although the official time is 17 minutes due to the fact that the time chip sensor is way up the top of the ramp so we all had to stumble out of the water & climb a hill before the time chip on each of our ankles registered that we had completed the swim).

 From there it was back over the stony ground, barefoot to take off my wetsuit, dry my feet before putting on my socks, running shoes, jumper & bike helmet. I was pretty pleased to discover that this took me 4 minutes. Not bad! I unracked my bike & ran to the cycle mounting line which was, again, quite a long way! I was still very soggy from the swim but I really didn't mind at all! Lee & the kids plus some friends were all waiting to cheer me on. What a blessing it was to have them there encouraging me! I grinned all the way round the 20k bike course. It was a LOT of fun! I did enjoy overtaking folk even though most of them then overtook me before I overtook them again a little later on & so forth! My legs felt like lead by the time I got back to the bike dismount line. The ride took me 30 minutes.

 I walked as quickly as I could back to transition to rack my bike again before heading out to the run. This time I was only in transition for 1 minute 59 seconds! I had already decided before I got to the triathlon start that I was going to mostly walk the run section because I had spent most of the week running up to race day in bed with a nasty cold. I didn't want to pull out of the race, but nor did I want to push myself so hard I would regret it. In hind sight I wish I had pushed myself a little harder as I feel that I had it in me. Still, no matter! A 2.5k walk in 22 minutes it was. I was still grinning from ear to ear like the Cheshire Cat & so pleased with myself for nearly completing my first triathlon!

 I ran the last leg up to the finish line to see & hear my family & friends cheering me on. I was over the moon to see the time on the clock said 12:15 because that meant I had completed the triathlon in 1 hour 15 minutes (official time chip total says 1 hour 16 minutes). Not bad at all for a first attempt at less than full health I reckon!

 I'm very proud of the medal I won! I've never won a medal in my whole life so that makes this one extra special!

I reaslised I was still wet from the swim in the docks at this point as the wind was blowing rather strongly around the corner here- it blew my hat off during the run at one point! There was time to pose for a 'Yes I did it!' photo in front of the Albert Dock & the Liverpool Eye with my children before I headed back to transition to get my coat, leggings, soggy wetsuit & bike. I absolutely & wholeheartedly enjoyed the whole experience & I am looking forward to completing my next triathlon very soon! And of course, I didn't just do the triathlon for the fun of competing! I swam, rode & ran (or walked mostly!) to raise money for Stop The Traffik an organisation that helps to bind up the broken hearted & to bring freedom for those who have been sold into slavery all over the world today. If you would like to sponsor me please go to my Just Giving page here  Thankyou!

Three Boys in a Baptistry

 Our lovely three boys were baptised today by full immersion at our Anglican church! It was the first time ever that a pool has been used in the church so it was not only a momentous occasion for us as a family but also for the whole church community. Three adults were also baptised with our boys. The boys all had the chance to say a little bit about why they wanted to be baptised. It was very moving to hear them say how they want to follow Jesus & want others to know they are Christians. They were all signed with a cross after their profession of faith & after questions to their Godparents & Lee & I had been answered. (Appologies for the substandard quality of the photos- I had to take piccies without a flash & I didn't quite get time to get the correct settings for aquatic activity! As always, click on the photos to see them better if you like!)

 Luke went first as he was a little apprehensive.....

 He came up after the dunking gasping for air & much flapping of arms for quite some time before he composed himself & declared 'I'm alright! I'm alright! That was actually VERY good!' The vicar, Malcolm, then prayed a prayer of blessing on him.

 Timmy went next, already to hold his nose & his breath having seen Luke's experience!

 Down he went....

 ....and came up flapping & gasping almost as much as his twin brother had! Lee said 'You can tell they're twins with their identical responses!'

 Prayer of blessing before Timmy climbed out of the pool to find hid towel.

 Timmy & Luke stood, beaming & shivering a little, while their big brother was baptised.

 Down he went in a much more dignified manner....

 ....coming up from the water almost without flinching.

 It's been a dream for Jordan for a long time to be baptised in a pool. So glad he & his brothers, as well as the three adults, had the opportunity to be baptised in this way & at this time.

 Gorgeous, soaking wet boys enjoying watching the other people being baptised by their Daddy & the vicar.

 After the boys had got changed into dry clothes they were given their baptism certificates & lit baptism candles.

 There was nearly a small fire hazard as one candle almost caught it's box alight! It made us all laugh nervously as the curate jumped up from her seat pointing out the fire exits! Lee preached a cracking sermon (which I missed the end of as a certain young lady needed the toilet!). Lee used the poem Footprints & the song by Leona Lewis based on that poem as a focus for contemplation. He invited people to come up to the pool & use the baptismal water as a personal response to the unchanging, constant & faithful God who is with us whatever circumstances we find ourselves in throughout life. I found it very moving to put my hands in the water & feel it cooling, soothing & refreshing my skin as I cupped it in my hands & let it fall back into the pool. I felt it symbolic of God's Holy Spirit washing over me & restoring what life has broken & crushed. It is amazing to think that the King of all creation is interested in all the tiny details of each of our lives & that He longs to bring us peace, healing & wholeness to us all.

We were very blessed to have so many of our friends & family join us for the service. It was a real time of blessing & celebration. Here is a photo of the boys with some of their Godparents as well as Grandma & Auntie Helen (& Joyce playing flute in the background!). It was sad that not all those we love could be there to share the day with us, but we know that they were with us in spirit. The boys were very lucky to be given many beautiful cards, Bible verses & gifts. They are going to remember this day for many many years to come. We pray that it is the start of a life long walk with their Heavenly Father, who is the same yesterday, today & forever & who will never leave them or forsake them whatever choices they make or wherever life takes them. We love you boys & are so proud of you!