(not so) expert guide to punting

 If you don't know what punting is you should come and visit us. If you have never punted you should come and visit us. 

Cambridge

We live just outside Cambridge in the UK and so when Natalie came to visit on her way back from the Ship we took a little tour of some of it. Cambridge is a beautiful city and Tommy gets to cycle down past these sights on the way to work each day...

lego and other things

I was thinking there must be a million things to blog about the boys - so much has happened since we got back. The boys are settled in school, Tom has started football training and been in a school play. That was quite strange for us - there are 3 classes of 30 children just in his year group! That really made us miss the ship too - the kids mixing with children of different ages, Academy productions, that you knew your kids' teachers...anyway...that wasn't really the point of this. Josh has settled into school too - his a much smaller school and I admit the one I much prefer going to. He has started swimming lessons and I am not sure made much progress yet, but loves his opportunities to be a little fish. Tom has been given a bike so we went for our first family cycle to the park today. There is still a bit of snow on the ground, but much of it has gone now. Josh needs to practice more with his bike as his school are running a session to help them ride without the stabilisers/training wheels soon. We are getting used to him on the tag-along with us though and haven't 'almost fallen off' lately!

snow

 concentrating

creating

was it all a dream?

We're sitting in the same bungalow we rented three years ago before we headed out to the Ship. We're living here for a month before we move around the corner to house-sit for some incredibly generous people. We've had Christmas - twice, been to Ethiopia for a few days, settled the boys in school, caught up with friends, been back to our church, the local parks and to the movies and and it all seems a little strange, like we never left.

We just spent the evening with friends talking about the Ship, friends from our Cambridge based support group who have been through all the ups and downs with us every month - from a distance - who have loved us and supported us for the last three years and to whom we are incredibly grateful.

We have been thinking of the Academy (school) starting the new semester as it goes through a lot of change, thinking about the hospital being set up ready for the patients coming, thinking about the crew exploring in Togo and it all feels a little strange to be sat here, in some ways that we should be there with them, helping them, being part of the community and yet almost like it was all a dream.

I think it is a little early to really have done much processing of the last three years, but we know that we have been blessed beyond what we ever could have imagined being able to serve as part of the Ship's ministry. We are thankful for so many things, people and experiences. So to our Ship friends - we are thinking of you and will keep partnering with you from a distance in whatever ways we can, and to our friends here - thank you for the support you have given us over the last few years and for welcoming us back. It is good to be here for this season and we just keep trusting the details of each crazy day to Him who has a plan for us here for this time.