Catch-up

An apology again for very few (not very entertaining) blogs but my life is running away as fast as an Ethiopian Olympic Long Distance runner. The posts from the past are gone I’m afraid. As...clever me...accidently tipped a hot cup of tea, complete with one sugar for added stickiness, over my computer and it is now in the morgue awaiting an organ transplant to my new laptop. I’m hoping to recover most of the data on the hard drive but feel it is all but gone. Anyway now I have this new machine and can take it to bed (I’m not a geek it’s the only quiet time I get!) without leads trailing everywhere I think I may be able to churn out a few more updates more frequently.

I left you at having passed my first lot of Access grades. I have since scored myself a job as a Learning support assistant, after three separate interviews at different schools. I will be working 25 hours a week with the year 6 teacher. The students are aged between 10-11, which is a nice age before they hit puberty and think they rule the world! To say I’m excited about this job would be a serious understatement as I have been bouncing off the walls ever since the phone call from the head teacher and now I’m champing at the bit to get started. Unfortunately I got the job at the end of July, which is the end of term and will be starting in the new term (September 08). The only down side is I won’t be able to attend college this year as my employment clashes with the course times, but the school are keen to train their staff so I will be pushing forward as much as I can. The work based experience is a highly crucial part of the degree anyway so I would rather have that at the moment.

Other interesting events have been the start-up of Workboat services Ltd (check out the website for more details www.workboat.co.fk) Dan nipped down to the Falklands to assist with the initial start-up period for the Concordia bay arriving in the Islands. I personally think it was an excuse to just stroke and snuggle his hunk of steel, but he will never tell J After a few minor problems I believe everything is working well now and the Concordia Bay is settling in well to her new home.

When Dan returned from his brief Falkland trip we had a frantic week of re-organising and cleaning the house before my parents arrived. They are now here on a 6 week holiday and having a great time as far as I’m aware. The kids leaping on them in the morning is probably wearing thin by now though. The best part about them being here (apart from seeing them again of course) is all the cool gadgets they buy and test in the house – It’s going to be bare when they leave that’s for sure!

And finally probably the most exciting piece of news of all is we have sold our house in the Falklands and are in the process of buying a run-down detached cottage (a rarity in the UK...believe me!) here in Gosport. I’ve lost count of the number of times Dan and I have been to the house, tape measures in hand, and studied every element of the place. The very first day we braved a call to the estate agents for our first look inside we were almost wetting ourselves with excitement at the potential of the place. We laughed when we got back home and realised both of us had mentally knocked down walls, replaced doors and furnished it before even making an offer on the place. The ear to ear smiles and rapid heart beating in our chests has been going for three weeks now and I’m convinced we will go to cardiac arrest when we are handed over the keys. We are simple souls and delight in seeing even the tiniest thing like the “Sale Agreed” sign going up across the For Sale sign outside the house. Now to get the small mortgage, finalise the sale of 11 Short Street (which I should add has gone to a really nice family so we are happy there too) and get cracking on some renovation!*

And that’s about it in a nutshell – my whirlwind life in five paragraphs. Doesn’t seem like much now I suppose, but don’t forget we are juggling three little monkeys in amongst this lot! That reminds me I must order the ‘Kids Tool Kits’ for Christmas.

*P.S If anyone fancies coming and helping with renovations then sign up to www.Dan-and-Marie-are-mad.co.uk We will supply food, beer and a sleeping bag in amongst the rubble for free labour.