This Christmas, I asked Paul for one present – have our data recovered from our damaged external hard drive (the one thing broken in the move to Musselburgh).  Paul came through big time, with some help from both sets of parents.  We now have all our digital photos back, yay!!!!  So, better late than never – our photos from the trip home to Boston last May are now finally up on our flickr site which you can look at via the photos section on this blog.  The photo sets include Bethany and Jeff’s wedding day, visiting with Boston friends, being touristy in Boston and Paul’s random folk session in Cambridge.

Yay for happy memories – thank you Broon!

We are looking forward to a relaxing Christmas and New Years after a very busy December at our two churches and at work too.   This year I left the afterschool club job for a temporary position as the maternity cover for the Youth and Children’s Officer for the Diocese of Edinburgh.  It’s been an excellent experience filled with new and exciting challenges every week.  I’ve learned quite a bit and met some lovely people in our Diocese as well as visitors from other Dioceses around the world too.

At the end of February, Paul and I had the great joy of visiting my family in the states once more.  This time, during Fawcett birthday season – so we managed to be there for Aunt Barb’s birthday and also to celebrate my birthday and dad’s birthday too.  On our visit home, we took a road trip to Maryland to meet Pat and Patrick Costello – two wonderful banjo players who share their love for this music online daily through free banjo lessons.  As Paul had learned to play from watching them online, it was a great joy to see him finally meet them in person.  We were treated to excellent hospitality by both Pat and Patrick along with Pat’s wife Miss Trudy.

For my birthday, Paul and our family chipped in to get me a digital SLR camera!  I’ve had loads of fun this year trying my hand at digital photography.  Paul has enjoyed the new gadget as well and has become quite the nature photographer too!

In the spring, we helped as leaders on the Easter Vigil and a youth retreat for St. Philip’s youth group.  Once again the Breakfast Club and our co-leaders David, Carol and Lesley continue to inspire us.

Yay Broon!

In May we traveled home to Boston for Bethany and Jeff’s wedding. It was excellent to be back to see all our great Boston friends, especially Lisa, Matt and Melissa.  We realised just how much we miss Boston and are sure that when we eventually move back to the states, it will be to Boston.  One of the highlights of the trip home was meeting Tommy, Matt and Melissa’s baby boy. He was quite impresssed with Broon’s banjo playing, repeatedly saying “Yay Broon!” We enjoyed a fun a trip to Cabot’s with the Sagendorphs.  For me, it was especially wonderful to be able to visit with my best friend Lisa and we hope it won’t be too long before we see her again.

In July, we made the big move!  We moved out of Edinburgh to a nearby seaside town called Musselburgh (although we officially live in Fisherrow apparently…).  We are renting a flat for just the two of us and it’s lovely.

We celebrated our three year wedding anniversary on the 26^th of August.  Paul treated me to a lovely meal at the Glasshouse in Musselburgh and we finished off with ice cream from S. Luca. (So thankful to be living closer to our favourite ice cream parlour now!)

In November, Mom and Dad crossed the ocean for a visit to Musselburgh to stay with us.  It was so nice to be with them again and to have time to see more of Edinburgh.  The highlights were definitely sharing High Tea at the Balmoral Hotel, climbing Arthur’s Seat with Dad and sharing in an early Thanksgiving meal with the Broons.  During this week, we also were thrilled to celebrate Paul’s Baptism day.  There was a quiet service at St. Philip’s followed by drinks at the Dalrieda with family and a couple friends.

We’re looking forward to seeing what 2010 brings and hope to catch up with you soon.   Many blessings for you and your family this year.  With Love, from Mish and Broon.

This summer was a busy one for Broon and I.  We started off in May going back to Boston for a visit to see a great friend of ours get married and to see loads of lovely people we miss in Boston.  We took sooo many pictures as it was our first big holiday with our new camera… and then when we got home, we uploaded those photos to the external hard-drive on the computer and deleted them from the camera to make more room for work photos I needed to take at the church that weekend.  Three weeks later we moved to Musselburgh.  The move was smooth and all went well…. except our hard-drive has gone bust so sadly, no Boston photos to share…. but plenty of Boston memories.

Thanks soooo much to Lisa, Matt, Melissa and Tommy for looking after us.  Thanks to Bethany and Jeff for including us in your big weekend!  (Paul had the chance to sing in Bethany’s wedding – a Rascal Flats song I love – it’s the same one Bethany sang for us at our wedding…)  We also loved celebrating Pentecost at the Watershed worship service at our friend Rob’s church in Waltham.  It was lovely to be home in Boston again and definitely confirmed for us that when we move back stateside – it will be back to Boston.

My favourite part of the flat

But in the meantime, Musselburgh has definitely become our home sweet home.  We moved here in June and have loved having a summer by the seaside.  This is our first place we rented on our own since we were married three years ago and it’s been so lovely to be in our own place.  We have a guest room which doubles as Paul’s music room.  He can quite happily be heard strumming the banjo there.  The living room is my favourite place to be – loads of light and now all of our books are no longer piled in cupboards.  We actually have bookcases!  Late in summer we had a flatwarming party which was lovely to share the new place with our friends and family here.  For a look at the flat and the nearby seaside/harbour – have a look in the photo gallery.

The end of summer brought even more change – I’ve got a new job! For the next year I’ll be the Youth and Children’s Officer for The Diocese of Edinburgh covering the maternity leave of a good friend. I started a couple weeks ago and it’s brilliant.  Loads of new challenges and new connections.  This job is part-time so I’ve left afterschool club and now work full time in ministry between the new job and my other job at the church.  It’s a real joy to get to use my degree more and have the opportunity to spend more time thinking about the theology of children’s ministry and youth ministry.

As fall is quickly approaching, we are discovering a new season by the seaside and are enjoying seeing the sunsets and walking along the blustery harbour. We’re very much looking forward to mom and dad’s upcoming visit in November.  There are times when the Atlantic Ocean seems bigger than before – now is definitely one of those times.  While I love living here, I continually miss my family.  Right now, my Aunt Barb is fighting cancer for the second time.  I would give anything to be back by her side in New Jersey as she goes through the treatments. I wish it were possible to live nearby both our families at all times.  For now we will appreciate every moment with the Browns whilst we live in Musselburgh and when the Fawcetts come over for a visit we will spend as much time as possible with them and we will save up to go home soon for a visit again.

Last week was a wee bit exhausting… as one of my part-time jobs is working in a church as the children’s/youth worker and Paul goes to a different church for which we both volunteer with their youth group as well, I was a bit busy with church events spread out across the two churches.  All in all, I worked 24 hours at OSP, volunteered about 20 hours at St. Philip’s and worked 21 hours at the holiday club for afterschool club.  Meanwhile, most of the commuting between my two jobs was on foot – so I put in some serious walking miles last week too.  Alot of the work was preparing for church events, but by Saturday morning – it was all go!

We ran a children’s stations of the cross at OSP in the morning.  There is so much preparation leading up to such an event, but as the children learned about the Last Supper and planted flowers in the Easter Garden, it was such a joy to see their smiles and hear their questions as they tried to understand the Easter Story.  It was particularly amazing to see our youngest participant really grasping the liturgy as he planted his handmade cross in the garden next to Jesus’s cross.

After that, I ran about getting supplies and things ready for the Easter Vigil youth event at St. Philip’s.  At 9:30pm, as Paul and I sat outside the church waiting for the other leaders to arrive, I paused to enjoy the night sky and just sit in the quiet space before we were busy again.  I knew that this was the last leg of the Easter Week Marathon and if I could just stay awake for another 17 hours…. I’d be able to get home to my bed and sleep and relax for a full day since Paul and I had Easter Monday off from work!

Soon enough, the leaders arrived and soon after that the young people too.  Throughout the night we were busy with craft projects, acting, faith discussions, games and finished up with a beach campfire complete with smores!  It was a busy night, and we were so tired, but it was so worth it to see the expressions on the teenagers faces as we gathered around the campfire for the sunrise Easter service.  Yet again, these young people taught me far more than I could possibly teach them.

Two hours later, Paul was home for a nap and I was back at OSP to help with Easter Sunday Godly Play and creche time.  As I worked with another volunteer to help the children decorate Easter Eggs, I was once again struck by the beauty of the moment as we talked about the symbolism of Easter Eggs with the youngest children of our church.

Lent was a busy time and Holy Week was definitely the busiest yet, but in the moments when I put away the “to-do list” and stopped thinking about the details, then I finally stopped trying to minister, and instead was ministered to.  The saying I’ve heard so many times is so true -  “Let Go, and Let God.”  I really believe God did such amazing work this Easter with the children and young people we’re privileged to get to work with at both churches; and in the work God was doing for them, he also ministered to us as volunteers and leaders.  This Easter, despite the amount of work and lack of sleep, I’ve come away feeling refreshed, inspired and with renewed hope and purpose.  Thanks to God!

Happy Easter everyone!!

We’ve been back in Edinburgh for just over a week and it’s almost like we never left – we just fell right back into work and the regular routine.  It’s only now that I’m posting up our trip photos on flickr that I’m realising just how quickly our time at home went and just how much I already miss my family.  I absolutely love living in Edinburgh and am thrilled to be building a life here with Broon and my amazing in-laws, but it’s so hard to say goodbye to my family whenever we’re returning to Scotland.  Two weeks a year with my family is just too short a time… if only the ocean was smaller.  Check out our photos page for loads more Fawcett family photos from the trip home.

Just posted up the photos from our time back home in the states up on the flickr site.  More soon to follow…

Paul and I drove down to Maryland yesterday to meet Pat, Patrick and Miss Trudy.  It was a lovely road trip – much thanks to Dad for letting us borrow his car!  The Costello’s were absolutely wonderful and we’re so thankful for their generosity in meeting up with two strangers from Scotland to chat about banjos over tea and scones.  Paul had a good banjo playing session with the guys while I had a great chat with Miss Trudy – sharing a common interest in children’s ministry.

The drive was about 5 hours each way and we were back just before 10pm – to an absolutely ecstatic poodle.  Apparently Cody sat by the door waiting for us the entire time.  Even when Mom, Sean and Dad arrived home, he only visited briefly with them before returning to wait for us by the door, so sad… but then we were home again and Cody came to life.  His wee tail wouldn’t stop wagging and he pounced about the living room waiting to be picked up for a cuddle.   He then promptly retrieved his favourite ball and dropped it at Paul’s feet expectantly, backing up ready to chase it down wherever Paul threw it.

12 hours later, Cody is finally calm again and adventuring out into the snow filled backyard.  We’ll totally miss this dog when we fly back to Scotland on Saturday…