Tea & Biscuits in England

Yesterday was a long day. Up at 3 a.m. (British time) to sneak out of Neil & Helen's house after gorgeous time with their family, to head to Heathrow for an 8-hour flight back to Chicago, then a bumpy, short flight to Indianapolis (with me scared and Storly, Hannah & Esther sleeping). So when I got into our own bed at 6 p.m., I was ready for a long night's sleep. Not long after, I woke up, looked at the clock and had a momentary panic - what time are we supposed to be up/on our way to the next destination/flight/car rental place/meeting....ahh, the after-effects of five weeks of lots of traveling around the U.K., where we've been sharing the stories of what's happening in and through the ministry that we're part of.

But we had a lovely time. Simply LOVELY. Lots of meeting new people, who were (for the most part) interested, even excited to hear what we had to share about radio ministry in Haiti. And plenty of seeing old friends, family, loved ones.

And lots...LOTS...of tea and biscuits. (Hot British tea with milk, and Digestives, Ginger biscuits, Pink wafers, Custard Creams, Hobnobs and other lovely biscuits). "Fancy a cuppa?" is a question we were asked a lot, that or the more polite, "Would you like a cup of tea?" The classic British invitation to chat, to relax, to sit down for a while and be refreshed.

And our whole trip, while pretty exhausting, has been so refreshing. Here's some photos:

Happy to be back at Nanny's house!

Dad came up for the day, and we had a great time out at Hatfield Forest.
Sunshine, ice-creams, ducks. 

Love or war?? Hmm...

Hannah racing with Grandpa

GORGEOUS!

Three monkeys!

First stop for church, Stony Stratford Community Church near Milton Keynes, where we got married in 2004. GREAT to be back there. We enjoyed a good catch-up with Rev. Jacqui the day before, then during morning worship, gave an update on Radio 4VEH and us. Lovely to feel encouraged in person by them all. And an added bonus - to hear that what we shared, what Storly preached, was in line with what they're experiencing in other ways right now. Hmm, God using us to continue the themes He's speaking to them about. Wonder why I was surprised by that. 

A gorgeous day with the gorgeous Beaton family! Lovely to catch up with Kate B. (my salsa-dancing girl) and Kenny (crazy Scotsman who Kate B. met around the time Storly and I started going out). The girls had great fun with Harriet and Elijah too, while we drank tea and caught up on each other's lives. 

It was beautiful to be able to stay at Andi (my former flatmate) & Gareth's house while they were away on holiday. Thanks, guys! It was a real treat. (But we missed them!)

Saw this picture of a loo in the loo at Stony Stratford Community Church, and in a few other places since. It's a great idea, Toilet Twinning - giving money for a toilet so that people in areas with no sanitation can benefit from having a toilet. You get a certificate with photo & GPS co-ordinates of the toilet you've helped pay for, to hang on the wall in your own toilet (or wherever). Then every time you go, you get a great reminder. Love it. Check out toilettwinning.org for more info.

And LOVELY to see Sarah D., good friend from Uni who I haven't seen for about 12 years. My, we needed a good catch-up (which required several cups of tea, oh and a box of Roses chocolates :)

Hannah & Esther were excited about slush puppies from the Stony Stratford Spar, for some reason!

Then I got the Eurostar train to Brussels for a quick visit to my sister Ruthie's. LOVELY to see my lovely tongue-sticking-out nephew & niece too! They've since moved back to the UK, and we were glad to be able to see them last week in their new place.

And a quick visit to Cafe Nero in Bishop's Stortford, where we spent plenty of time when I was heavily pregnant with Esther.

Our next stop - Northern Ireland for a week.