Half Term has been and gone

We have had an interesting half term break. It started badly on our first Friday night when we had to take Emily to A and E at 3am with a temp of 39.9. We stayed for 4 hours and went home to see if we could get her to pee in a pot. (Have you ever tried that with a 19 month old who is not potty trained?! Messy!) Well we took the sample back and continued to try to get her temp down and failed so ended up back there again from 3 pm to 7pm on Saturday. She was given antibiotics and started picking up on the Tuesday. Meanwhile a rash developed all over her body including her head. (Have you ever tried to stop a 19 month old from scratching? sore!)

My parents came to visit on Monday and Emily, despite being unwell had a great time with them. We visited Bramhall Hall and Spring had sprung!

We have been busy trying to clear our loft whilst I can get up a ladder and whilst we have someone to look after Emily. We took 6 bags of books to the charity shop. I was sad, Jamie was relieved!

We went to Chill Factor E on Friday with some friends and their kids to play in the snow. Emily has never seen snow before. She was bemused but seemed to enjoy being hauled around in a rubber ring.

Auntie Sara and Uncle Greg and Auntie Deirdre will be pleased to see that Emily is getting to experience a little of the winter life they know so well being Canadians! (Do you like my boots and helmet? Sadly the helmet was a little wobbly and didn't quite protect her nose from a fall!)
I have been sick since Thursday and really sick since yesterday. I am sure it is not pregnancy related sickness as it is often related to food, which is a real shame as food is good and not just for me! Poor baby is living on a diet of bagels and jam. I am not well enough to make it to work tomorrow as I have been to sick this evening and don't want to carry it to school. It is only 5 weeks to the Easter break!

All change in our house

Old House New House?

What a busy couple of weeks we have had (again I hear you say!) We have accepted an offer on our little 3 bedroomed one room downstairs house in Manchester and bought a four bedroomed 2 rooms downstairs house in Stockport. Well... when I say bought, I mean the lady has finally accepted our offer and now all the legal stuff is in motion including builders surveys etc. We are cautiously optimistic and excited as we have been in this little house for 6 years on 8th February and have slowly outgrown it. We have had so many good times here it will feel strange to leave as this is the place were we have spent most of our married life, brought Emily home to, celebrated birthdays and enjoyed times in the garden and in the cul de sac with our neighbours. BUT..... we are moving to space.... space... and a little more space. Emily will be able to slide down her slide without bumping her feet into the fence at the bottom and swing freely without the worry of crashing into the fence behind if she goes too high! The lady who is buying our place is really excited to have gardens and 3 bedrooms as she is moving from a flat and has as much joy at buying our house as we do selling it.

We have even more reason to move to a bigger house because our family is getting bigger. Not a new pet, although Emily may drag it around as much as she does our cat; we are hoping to welcome a new little McCulloch into this crazy, mixed up world in August. The hospital tells us that he/she is due on August 10th but I think it is due on August 15th. We will wait and see. We had our first scan this week. Wow, is God amazing or what?! I know we have seen it before but as we watched this tiny little thing, 5cm from head to bottom with this heart beat pumping away we were struck by the amazingness of life and God's hand in it. So, we need to move and move soon, as Baby is on the way, I am going on maternity leave again, Emily needs to be registered at a Nursery school, the sooner we move the more hands on I can be in moving and because Jamie and I are mega fed up with the vandalism to the side fences at our house and really cannot be bothered fixing them anymore and that is not a good attitude to have! So just to remind you all. In June, my sister Judith is due on the 10th, our sister in law Nicola is due on the 13th and my sister Emma, is due on the 24th. And in August we are due. (Imagine the excitement for my parents with their 3 daughters all pregnant at the same time and in the McCulloch house... 2 daughter in laws pregnant at the same time!)

This weekend my sister Emma, Paul and Ellie May arrived to visit. We had such a great time and Emily just loved having her cousin to play with. We had a great time in the mud at Didsbury Park, soft play, shopping and playing. It was great to see them and to show them round our town.

Well... I think that is enough news to break today. We are so, so thankful for prayers and best wishes from all as well as the feeling of God's presence in the midst of waiting, as it has been a long time since we began thinking about moving. We are relieved to have an offer accepted and to be ont he first rung of the moving ladder. Hopefully we will stay on and not fall off before we get the keys to our new home.