Well it's been ages since I last wrote. Life has been very busy - wonderfully busy. We have had friends from England staying for three weeks. Not the same friends. Jon and Oli were here for a week - so the house was full of the life and laughter that fun twenty-something chaps bring, and the kids loved them. Next was a visit from Mary and her daughter Joanna. I lived with Mary and family for a while before I got married, and we have been very close since then.

We did such a lot - Museum of Science and Industry, the Art Institute, shopping, the Botanic Gardens, a tour of Chicago neighborhoods, shopping, breakfast at an all American 24-hour diner, the theatre (Pirate Queen - very good), a Cubs game (they lost - are you surprized?), a high school football game and of course shopping. Phew!

Now I'm busily involved with VLI (Vineyard Leadership Institute) trying to look like a responsible would-be leader! (that's hard work!) I'd never needed to know the significance of a suzerain-vassal treaty before - and now I do! Aren't you impressed? I've been doing so much reading- wonder whether any of it will stay in my brain which, like Winnie the Pooh, does tend to be filled with fluff! Oh well, this is the direction I believe God is leading me, and I am just trusting that He will get me through.

I've started teaching Pilates classes at church, which is interesting. However, of all those people who were so excited and keen to attend many have very valid reasons why they can't, so I am questioning whether after the initial promise of 10 weeks this will continue. I will be disappointed if that is the case, it is such good experience for me because I don't get the opportunity to teach a mat class regularly. Oh well, we shall just see what happens.

Onward and upward!! I have to get back to reading - I'm trying to get through Numbers and Deuteronomy by tomorrow evening's VLI class - racing to catch up as usual!!