Review of 2024

Well, December is nearly upon us and, as this is our last quiet weekend before Christmas, I thought I would get organised and write this year's annual blog before things start to get too busy. 

Brian and I started the year with a trip to see 'The Book of Mormon' in the West End, which was highly inappropriate but very funny.  Later in the year, for Brian's birthday, we all went to see 'Back to the Future, the musical' which was great fun and definitely worth seeing if you enjoyed the film. Still on the subject of shows, Fee spent the summer term helping with the rehearsals for her school's summer production of Matilda, which was good fun, but a lot of hard work.  Adam and Fee also starred in their own shows this year (Adam performed scenes from Mamma Mia in his annual theatre school show and played Noah Claypole in his school production of Oliver, and Fee sang with her choir in a big summer concert.)  Fee's choir also performed a Flashmob at Kings Cross Station; watching the public's reaction was absolutely brilliant and something we'll never forget!

In March, Adam turned 17 and started learning to drive. He has now passed his test and is repaying us in the form of a taxi service. 

April was the month for home improvements, as we decided to change our glass conservatory roof for an insulated one. This has made a huge difference and now means we can use it all year round. Lucy had fun planning the new decor, and we're very pleased with the end result.

In May, we did a fair bit of canoeing, including a 'Big paddle Clean-up' event, where we fished out bag-fulls of rubbish from our local river, including shoes and a fire extinguisher! This Autumn, we've re-joined the canoe polo league again for the first time since Covid and Brian has also done a couple of whitewater trips. Fee stuck to calmer waters and joined a scenic paddle on the Norfolk Broads, finishing at a nice pub for lunch!

In June, Lucy left her job at the café bar in Biggleswade and went travelling for a month. She started with a week in New York, staying with Fee's cousin Clare and family, where she and a friend took in all the sights and had a great time. She then flew to Central America, where she took part in a three week tour of Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.  She had the time of her life, surfing, bungee jumping, white water rafting and becoming immersed in the local culture during a homestay with a Nicaraguan family. 

Brian, Fee and Adam stayed a bit closer to home this year with a weekend to see Brian's brother in their new house in Yorkshire (near Whitby), a few days in Snowdonia (where we climbed Snowdon and rode the world's fastest zipline over Penrhyn quarry) and a week at a beautiful and very peaceful campsite in the Dordogne, France. The latter was a lovely, relaxing week, where we did very little apart from swimming, reading, eating baguette and sampling the local wine.

We've also been to quite a few 'big birthday' parties and weddings this year, including a Bollywood party for some friends' 10th wedding anniversary, several 50th parties, a trip to Bristol for our nephew's 13th birthday, a weekend in Scotland for Fee's Auntie's 80th and a fantastic posh weekend in London for our nephew's wedding.

September was all change for Lucy, as she started her degree in Psychology at the University of East Anglia.  She is loving uni life, having joined the cheerleading squad and cocktail society, and has made some lovely new friends.  Adam has gone into his last year of school and is working hard towards his A levels.  He's currently in the middle of mock exams, as well as making a short film for his Film Studies coursework. Fortunately, this one doesn't involve transforming our kitchen into a fish and chip shop like his last one!  We've spent the past couple of months visiting various university open days, to help him decide where he would like to apply to for next year.  He's hoping to study Film and tv production but is waiting for his mock results to see whether he has the required predicted grades for where he wants to go!

In other news this year, Adam has started a part time job at McDonalds and is enjoying his free burgers!  Bri is still working for Fujitsu and has been involved in Midshires Search and Rescue's busiest ever year, largely due to the amount of flooding we've experienced. Fee is in her second year at her new school and is still enjoying it, despite the fact she is spending as much time dealing with pastoral issues as she is teaching.

The next few weeks are busy as always at this time of year, with Fee's birthday, as well as Christmas concerts, pantos and parties. Lucy is coming home for Christmas and Adam will be dressing up as an elf, helping to look after some reindeer at a local event :)

We hope you all have a lovely Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year. xx