Sorrow and Joy

This time last week I was feeling sad as I had just learned that The Lord had taken home a much loved and respected member of our family. Elmer was ninety-three, and had lived a full and happy life, but his passing still leaves a space that touches us all with sorrow.

However, today The Lord has sent a new life into our family. My first great-grandson was born at 7.55 this morning. Isaac Michael Edward Breeze bounced in at a bonny 8lbs 2ozs, keeping up the family tradition of larger than average babies. Both his mum and grandad (my son) were nine and a half pounds born, but Emma is only a little slip of a lass, so I am glad he wasn't quite that big! Here is his first photo taken by a doting Grandad when he went to the hospital this afternoon.

Of course I had made a card in readiness for his arrival. We knew he was a boy so I could confidently work with blue, and I am safe showing it here, as Emma does not follow my blog. Jim and Jo took it back to UK with them after their recent visit, but it will have to wait until after the bank holiday to be posted now. If anyone is interested, I will be posting details of how I made it on my craft blog. (I always write my blog first and then add the photos, and having browsed all my folders several times I simply cannot find a photo of my card. The only one I have is this one showing it in the process of being made. I can't believe I didn't take one of the finished card but maybe I forgot. If not then I have deleted it by mistake but I can't find one in my recycle bin either. So if you click on this to enlarge it, you will just see the card, finished except for the addition of the flowers in the foreground which were still drying. I am very cross with myself. I used such a lovely image, but I can't do anything about it now!)

Because of this combination of events, I made the decision to move my planned autumn visit forward by about six weeks. Originally I was combining a visit to see the new baby with a trip to the big craft show in Birmingham in November. My sister Jean and I used to go together when I was living near Birmingham, and we thought it would nice to go together again. However, when it comes to a choice between family and craft, family wins hands down. So I am now flying to Manchester on Thursday 8th September, collecting my son Jonathan (Elmer was his Godfather), and he will drive me down to Bournemouth for the funeral the next day. I will then spend a week down there, staying with Jean and hopefully visiting my brothers and sisters who live in the area. Then I will go back up to the midlands to see all my boys. I'll be based in Wolverhampton and Birmingham, but on Saturday 17th, we hope to have a gathering of the 'Perry Massive' as Jo calls it, which is all five of our boys with their respective partners, children etc, at Jim and Jo's house and I will travel back to Oswestry with one of them so that I can visit Emma, John and the baby. They were very lucky that the imminent birth bumped them up the housing list, and they were offered a council flat just last week. Apparently it is recently refurbished and is really nice. John's dad is a decorator and he has helped them to paint the main rooms, so she is keen for me to see her new little home as well. And as an added bonus Jean tells me that there is an alternative craft show at the Alexandra Palace on 24th September, so we are going to try to get to that. Then I fly home from Birmingham on Monday 26th, exhauted, in need of a holiday to recover, but with mission accomplished! I can't wait to see everyone again.

By the way, I must remember to pack some winter woollies. It's going to feel cold after Spain! We actually had a tiny shower of rain last night, the first in about three months. It was barely enough to wet the ground but it did lay some dust, and tonight the clouds are gathering again, so maybe we are in for some more.