I know that my devoted readership have strong opinions, so I would love to hear them!
4/22/10
I Want to Go to There and Hair
Also, I am going here in June. Oh yes.
And I am going to need a haircut soon, my ends are getting super dry. So, I am considering my options. I know it's a bit dated, but I was thinking about getting 'The Rachel'. Or maybe I will go for something a little more textured, like Alexa Chung's do. Heck, I could give it the chop a la Katie Holmes! Or maybe I will channel a little bit of Selena Gomez and go for a curly version of my former haircut. Or maybe just my former haircut.
I know that my devoted readership have strong opinions, so I would love to hear them!
I know that my devoted readership have strong opinions, so I would love to hear them!
Books and Television
I am now re-reading C.S. Lewis's 'The Chronicles of Narnia' from beginning to end. I am almost finished the second installment, and most popular chronicle of the series, 'The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe'. As a child, I never saw the Biblical references, but I am getting them now, bahaha.
I am enjoying Glee at the moment. Check it out, if you haven't already! Also, there is a show airing now on SkyTV that just entertains me completely. 'Pineapple Dance Studios' is a completely (sometimes unbelievingly) true documentary that occasionally has some staged dance numbers. It centres around the lives of some of the studio's key players such as Artistic Director, Louie Spence (who reminds me of one my my ex-roommates from uni), choreographer Mark Battershall, and dance instructor and wannabe popstar, Andrew Stone. This show is hilarious… especially any bits related to Andrew Stone and his band 'Starman'.
Tonight in small group, we talked about the message from Sunday, when we read a bit of the book of Esther. We talked a lot about living for today and the situations we are in now. One person said she had read somehwhere 'wherever you are, be ALL there'— this is definitely a good saying for me to have tucked away in my head. I spend so much of the time planning for next week, or this summer, or next year… sometimes I'm not planning, I'm just daydreaming about a future that will surely not happen the way I imagine it. I think I will adopt this mantra and try to live it. Another person said 'know your season and do it well'. So, for me, I am working as an au pair and experiencing life in another part of the world. Instead of doing a half-ass job looking after the kids and cleaning this house, I will try to do it to my best ability. Instead of wasting my £ on sweets and eating out, I will save it for travel. And I will keep a look out for opportunities God is giving me to live the life he has for me today… not the life he has for me a few months down the line.
I am enjoying Glee at the moment. Check it out, if you haven't already! Also, there is a show airing now on SkyTV that just entertains me completely. 'Pineapple Dance Studios' is a completely (sometimes unbelievingly) true documentary that occasionally has some staged dance numbers. It centres around the lives of some of the studio's key players such as Artistic Director, Louie Spence (who reminds me of one my my ex-roommates from uni), choreographer Mark Battershall, and dance instructor and wannabe popstar, Andrew Stone. This show is hilarious… especially any bits related to Andrew Stone and his band 'Starman'.
Tonight in small group, we talked about the message from Sunday, when we read a bit of the book of Esther. We talked a lot about living for today and the situations we are in now. One person said she had read somehwhere 'wherever you are, be ALL there'— this is definitely a good saying for me to have tucked away in my head. I spend so much of the time planning for next week, or this summer, or next year… sometimes I'm not planning, I'm just daydreaming about a future that will surely not happen the way I imagine it. I think I will adopt this mantra and try to live it. Another person said 'know your season and do it well'. So, for me, I am working as an au pair and experiencing life in another part of the world. Instead of doing a half-ass job looking after the kids and cleaning this house, I will try to do it to my best ability. Instead of wasting my £ on sweets and eating out, I will save it for travel. And I will keep a look out for opportunities God is giving me to live the life he has for me today… not the life he has for me a few months down the line.
4/19/10
Volcanic Ash
So, some volcano erupted in Iceland and now the airspace above the UK and other European countries is closed. So… there have been NO flights in or out of the UK since Thursday! The past two weeks have been the Easter holidays over here, so that means millions of people are stuck abroad! Aussie's cousin is stuck with his classmates in China! Radio and television shows are lacking guests, concerts and comedy tours are being cancelled. And… the Mum is stuck in India.
Babysitting and… I Love Roller Coasters!
Friday night, I had a babysitting job with the kids next door. There are 3 boys, all with awesome Scottish names, aged 14, 13 and 7. The older ones, being teenage boys, spent our first couple of hours in their rooms playing computer games. So, I got out my awesome tat-kit and made custom tattoos with 7. He LOVED them! I had to stop him after his 6th tattoo because I wasn't sure his mum would be too happy if he had full sleeves. I applied quite a few tats myself… some pink paw-prints, a bunch of stars, a rainbow stegosaurus and a little blue icthus (Jesus fish). After 7's bath, 13 and 14 invited us both to play a game of footy with them. Well… they played football and I stood on the sidelines, kicking at any stray shots. It was so nice that they tried to include me! After football, we played on their trampoline. I'm sure having me bouncing them around was fun for them, since I probably weigh, like, 50 pounds more than the heaviest of them! I haven't been on a trampoline in ages— it was so much fun!
Saturday was a big day! I picked up Aussie at 9 and we drove to nearby theme park: Drayton Manor. We met up with our friend Gordie and some of her buddies to celebrate her birthday! Now, I am a lover of rollercoasters, so I was excited to get on all the big rides… but the others were hesitant. They weren't scared, however, to go on the log-flume ride! That was the 2nd ride of the day… and I wore jeans. So, needless to say, it took the rest of the day for me to dry off! We had some very American-tasting fried chicken for lunch and some ice-cream cones for dessert. I had to go on 'Apocolypse' (like the 'Drop Zone', except for this one tilts you forward!) and 'G-Force' by myself, but I did get some of the other girls on 'Pandemonium' (like 'Jet Scream')! It was a great day— but it made me miss Wonderland! And for some reason, my body ACHED the next day from hanging upside down!
On Sunday, I went to church in the morning. At the moment, we are going through the book of Esther. We read through chapter 4, in which Esther's uncle Mordecai asks her to go before her husband, King Xerxes, to plead him to save the nation of Israel from genocide. At first, she is afraid to go before the king, but Mordecai asks "Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for such a time as this?" So, the message focused on each individual in the congregation being in our unique places so God can use us where we are now, not int he future.
After church, I went shoe shopping in the city centre with Aussie. We were there for, like, 3 HOURS and I DIDN'T BUY ANYTHING!!!!! Frustrating. I did decide on a pair of Tom's… but they didn't have them in my size!!!
Saturday was a big day! I picked up Aussie at 9 and we drove to nearby theme park: Drayton Manor. We met up with our friend Gordie and some of her buddies to celebrate her birthday! Now, I am a lover of rollercoasters, so I was excited to get on all the big rides… but the others were hesitant. They weren't scared, however, to go on the log-flume ride! That was the 2nd ride of the day… and I wore jeans. So, needless to say, it took the rest of the day for me to dry off! We had some very American-tasting fried chicken for lunch and some ice-cream cones for dessert. I had to go on 'Apocolypse' (like the 'Drop Zone', except for this one tilts you forward!) and 'G-Force' by myself, but I did get some of the other girls on 'Pandemonium' (like 'Jet Scream')! It was a great day— but it made me miss Wonderland! And for some reason, my body ACHED the next day from hanging upside down!
On Sunday, I went to church in the morning. At the moment, we are going through the book of Esther. We read through chapter 4, in which Esther's uncle Mordecai asks her to go before her husband, King Xerxes, to plead him to save the nation of Israel from genocide. At first, she is afraid to go before the king, but Mordecai asks "Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for such a time as this?" So, the message focused on each individual in the congregation being in our unique places so God can use us where we are now, not int he future.
After church, I went shoe shopping in the city centre with Aussie. We were there for, like, 3 HOURS and I DIDN'T BUY ANYTHING!!!!! Frustrating. I did decide on a pair of Tom's… but they didn't have them in my size!!!
4/14/10
My Favourite Toy
Today I went to an awesome shop called 'Home Bargains', which is kind of like an outlet store for everything. There are all kinds of brand-name skin-care products, hair products, toothbrushes, etc. There are cleaning supplies and pet foods. There are all different kinds of candy and food and even alcohol. It is a great place— and the prices are so reasonable. I popped in today when I went into Harborne to the bank (the Moseley branch is randomely closed on Wednesdays). I just wanted to get some facial wash, but I couldn't resist when I saw this:
4/11/10
A Lovely Long Weekend!
Hiya! I've had a busy few days here in Birmingham!
On Friday, I took Oldest, Middle and one of Middle's friends to the 'CSI Experience' at the Bull Ring in the city centre. On our way, we saw this surprise ballet dance at the Bull Ring!
The 'CSI' thing was cool. First, you investigate a crime scene and make notes on your clipboard about what you notice. Next, you go to the 'lab', where you learn about different methods that CSI's look at blood spatter, bullets, drugs, etc. The next step is a visit to the coroner, where you are told the COD (cause of death). Finally, you enter your findings into the computer to determine who the killer is! It was cool, but I think the girls would have enjoyed it better if they were a bit older. It's probably more fun for fans of the show, too. I'd recommend checking it out… if it wasn't so expensive. We also got our picture taken:
Saturday was GORGEOUS! The sun was high in the sky and it was actually quite warm! Aussie and I donned our wellies to take a stroll in the Moseley Bog. Did you know that JRR Tolkein, author of 'The Lord of the Rings' grew up in Birmingham? I didn't. Actually, he grew up right around my neighborhood. He spent many days in his childhood playing in the Moseley Bog and around the nearby Sarehole Mill, which we also visited. The Bog and the Mill are supposed to have inspired Tolkein's 'shire' where Bilbo and Frodo and all the other Hobbits lived. Aussie and I had a great time exploring the streams, fallen trees and sinkholes in the Bog. I felt like a little kid in my Grandpa's sugar bush, climbing trees and ducking under fallen branches.
Saturday night, I was invited to a birthday dinner for one of my friends at church. We met at 'Pizza Express', which is this really great pizza chain that they have all over Birmingham. The pizza is very Italian and they even have gelato. It was really nice to spend a nice evening with the ladies and get to know everyone a bit better.
This evening, it was my turn to help welcome people to the evening service at church. Because this service is right in the middle of the Easter holidays, instead of a regular service, we had a Q&A period with the church leader. I can't remember what the question was that sparked this particular response, but one thing he said really resonated with me. He said that to go through life saying "God loves me, so I'm just going to live my life the way I want, because He'll always love me" kind of belittles the sacrifice God made in order for us to know his love. When I watched 'The Passion of the Christ', I was able to put some meaning behind those words I hear quite often: 'Jesus died for our sins'. I saw how brutal and barbaric and humiliating crucifixion is and the extent to which Jesus suffered while he died. To just live life thinking 'oh, whatever, God loves me anyway', without acknowledging and accepting what He did so we can know His love just trivializes his sacrifice.
Well, there's one more week left for Easter break and the girls are attending a sports day camp all week. I'll let you know how it goes!
On Friday, I took Oldest, Middle and one of Middle's friends to the 'CSI Experience' at the Bull Ring in the city centre. On our way, we saw this surprise ballet dance at the Bull Ring!
The 'CSI' thing was cool. First, you investigate a crime scene and make notes on your clipboard about what you notice. Next, you go to the 'lab', where you learn about different methods that CSI's look at blood spatter, bullets, drugs, etc. The next step is a visit to the coroner, where you are told the COD (cause of death). Finally, you enter your findings into the computer to determine who the killer is! It was cool, but I think the girls would have enjoyed it better if they were a bit older. It's probably more fun for fans of the show, too. I'd recommend checking it out… if it wasn't so expensive. We also got our picture taken:
Saturday night, I was invited to a birthday dinner for one of my friends at church. We met at 'Pizza Express', which is this really great pizza chain that they have all over Birmingham. The pizza is very Italian and they even have gelato. It was really nice to spend a nice evening with the ladies and get to know everyone a bit better.
This evening, it was my turn to help welcome people to the evening service at church. Because this service is right in the middle of the Easter holidays, instead of a regular service, we had a Q&A period with the church leader. I can't remember what the question was that sparked this particular response, but one thing he said really resonated with me. He said that to go through life saying "God loves me, so I'm just going to live my life the way I want, because He'll always love me" kind of belittles the sacrifice God made in order for us to know his love. When I watched 'The Passion of the Christ', I was able to put some meaning behind those words I hear quite often: 'Jesus died for our sins'. I saw how brutal and barbaric and humiliating crucifixion is and the extent to which Jesus suffered while he died. To just live life thinking 'oh, whatever, God loves me anyway', without acknowledging and accepting what He did so we can know His love just trivializes his sacrifice.
Well, there's one more week left for Easter break and the girls are attending a sports day camp all week. I'll let you know how it goes!
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