31st December
Stayed in in the morning and watched the Christmas episode of Lark Rise to Candleford with mum and had a cheese and marmite toasted sandwich. Then went round to Lewis’s and we wrapped up the presents we hadn’t yet and ribboned them and sorted everything out. We then went round to Sarah’s and met Mum there for our New Year celebrations! We had dinner, exchanged presents and played my new Buzz game on the playstation until 11.50pm when we switched over and watched Big Ben chime 12 and the fireworks etc…then went home about 12.45am! Such party people we are!
30th December
Left Lewis’s parents mid-morning and drove to Manchester. Eventually found somewhere to park and spent the day in the centre of Manchester, wandering round the shops and surrounding roads. Had a pasty from Greggs while sat watching the trams, saw the giant ferris wheel, saw a Pasta Hut (oooh!), had a coffee and muffic from Starbucks and left to come home about 4pm. We predicted what time we would be home, which changed several times en route with final predictions at 8.36pm from me and 8.41pm from Lewis. We arrive at mine at 8.38pm…I win!!! Spent the rest of the evening showing Mum all the presents I had got!! So nice to sleep back in my bed again!
29th December
We stayed in during the day as neither of else felt particularly well, then went out at about 4pm into Huddersfield for a wander round. When we got back, Lewis’s Auntie Jackie and Cousin Beth had arrived. We all had dinner and then in the evening Dave, Beth, Phil and Louise came round and we played games including Girl vs Boy Special Edition Trivial Pursuit…the boys whooped us by answering girl questions!!
28th December
I stayed in bed while everyone went to church because I really wasn’t feeling well. Had a lovely Sunday lunch and a very lazy afternoon. Went for a walk later on into Huddersfield just to get some fresh air and then had a lazy evening!
27th December
Went into Leeds today. We parked at Lewis’s Dad’s offices and had a wander round the centre. It was absolutely packed so we didn’t really do any shopping, just wanted to see Leeds! We had a sausage roll and hot chocolate in Baker’s Oven and then went home late afternoon and relaxed in the evening.
26th December
Boxing Day. Stayed in in the morning and Lewis and I drove out to a reservoir in the afternoon for a walk along an old railway line which was nice! Came back early evening and spent the evening in.
25th December
Happy Christmas!! Was woken up by Stuart knocking on the door at 8am to tell me that Santa had been and we all went downstairs and had big stockings from Santa! Mine was full of lots of girly toiletries and slippers and tights and nice stuff! Had breakfast and got ready and went to Church for 10.30am. The service was looking at James Bond vs Jesus which was brilliant. Had a sketch in it and everything! Chatted to a few people after and went back home for a very yummy Christmas dinner! Spent the afternoon with everyone, chatting, exchanging presents and just having fun! Late night!
24th December
Very sleepy when Lewis woke me up at 9am. Slowly got ready and we left for Huddersfield at half 11. Started off going the wrong way down the M11, then turned the wrong way round the M25, but then turned round and finally started going the right way! Stopped for a Burger King at services on the way up and got to Lewis’s parents about 5pm. His Grandpa and Auntie Felicity were staying there for Christmas too. We spent the evening chatting and then went to bed early in preparation for the festivities! I stayed in Lewis’s room while he slept on a lilo in the lounge!
23rd December
Last day of tour! We spent the morning at mine and David’s host, eating the lovely food she kept giving us and just relaxing! We all had lunch together and then went to the church in Fareham, about half an hour away. It was an auditorium above some of the shops in the High Street. We had to load into a lift and carry the gear up the stairs so was quite exhausting! Rachel timed it nicely to arrive just as we’d finished unloading! Was a lovely big hall with a wide stage so set up was great. They already had a good rig of lights so Dan just added a couple and used theirs! Set up was very relaxed as was dinner. The audience turn out was great, about 250 – our largest! Lots of Rachel’s family and church friends were there which was great. I finally got to meet Ian, my pen pal of about 6 years, so that was kind of strange but really cool at the same time! We packed down , loaded the van and then David left to go to Wales, Rachel went home with her parents and Dan, Ollie, Mike and I drove back! We had a fun journey back and then met Lewis at the office to help us unload and then drove back to Braintree! Got to bed about 3am!
22nd December
Drove to Cowplain, not far from Southampton. Was a nice little church with gorgeous Narnia style street lamps in the audience which made lovely house lights! Set up was very relaxed – David and I went to the shops and bought sausage rolls and crisps and chocolate and pistachios! We had a nice room backstage and the show went very well. Had some interesting conversations afterwards and packed down and went to our hosts. David and I were staying together. Our hosts made hot chocolate and we stayed up for a while chatting which was nice before getting some sleep!
21st December
Today was the day of 2 shows! We got to Colchester at 1pm, the building was quite new and really nice! Set up went well, Dan had lots of fun hanging his mirror ball and moving lights. There was a bit of an issue with visuals which got fixed at the last minute. We had a nice tea and then the first performance was at 5pm. I walked out onto the stage and saw Lois which was so nice!! Makes such a difference having a friendly face in the audience! Not very many people at the first show. Then time for a quick drink in between the two shows and then get ready for the second show! Lots of people came to support me at this one which was fantastic – Lewis, Wendy, Zoe, Sarah, Mum, Phil, Carol, Tony, Linda, Reuben and Fiona! Was a good performance, really enjoyed it! I think the church were a bit disappointed at numbers. Packed down and drove home!
20th December
The earliest start of the whole Christmas Tour….Southend! The reason for the early start being a stop off at Mike’s house for a lovely cooked breakfast thanks to him and his wife Nikki. We also got presents from Mike. I got ridiculed for not opening mine, but I couldn’t because it was before Christmas Day!! David got some juggling balls so spent some time trying to learn to juggle, while Ollie made paper planes! We got to Avenue Baptist in Southend (really lovely building with lots of corridors and rooms!) set up rather lazily and I discovered if you drink peppermint tea through a chocolate finger it tastes like mint chocolate! The church had a tea on at 4.30pm for all the people who were coming, so we eat and mingled and then the show was at 6pm. This was the show where everything that could possibly go wrong went wrong! For starters we realised we had left our speaker cables in Hull so Dan had to come up with a plan for sound – we ended up hooking up into the system at Southend. The stage was a bit wobbley and there was a big step to get off stage right and in the pitch black it was very difficult! Also to swap sides backstage you had to navigate a large Christmas tree and crawl under the pulpit! During the opening credits, all the lights suddenly started flashing strobe style due to a melted wire, which Dan had to run around to fix. At one point Rachel fell off the stage backstage due to pitch blackness and hurt her ankle and at the end of the presentation one of the flats fell off the stage. Apparently no-one really noticed!! Apart from that it went well and the church were pleased at how many non-church people were there!
19th December
MADDIE’s 2nd BIRTHDAY!!!!! We went round for 10am and Mum and Dad joined us. We gave presents and generally spoiled her rotten! Lewis went off for a meeting and Sarah, Matt, Maddie, Emi and I went to Bay Tree garden centre, met Janet there and had lunch and went to look at the animals. We then went back and got ready for the party! Me and Maddie played with her new toys while Emi played with a party hooter. Party started at 4pm and from then on it was chaos with people coming and going and food and cake and general hyperness! Mum and Dad gave me a lift back to Billericay in the evening.
18th December
Went round to Jasmine’s and picked up Joseph and we went shopping. Bought Lewis’s Christmas pressies! Saw Sarah and Maddie and Emi with their new flowery cosy toes! Went back to Jasmine’s for toasted sandwiches and had a nice chat in the afternoon. Lewis then picked me up and we went to Tony’s to have a look at his house and then have dinner in his caravan. We then drove to Billericay for Taste’s gig. It was awsum (in the words of Andy Keel)! Lots of Taste’s friends and past volunteers there to swell the crowd! Then drove back to Braintree!
17th December
Woke up and the house was empty. Breakfast table was laid so I had some breakfast and then had to use my hosts Ensuite which didn’t feel quite right as no-one was in! He then came back and we picked up Ollie and went to where David and Rachel were staying. We then travelled home! Saw what we thought was some Aeroplane parts on a lorry but it turned out to be wind turbine blades. Not quite as exciting, but still quite exciting! Stopped at Costa and got back about 3pm. Went home to unpack and repack and then got the train home! Lewis picked me up and we went back to his and wrapped up Christmas presents and watched Polar Express. I love that film!! Made me feel all Christmassy!
16th December
Early start as we travelled all the way upto Beverley, just outside Hull. Stopped off for a McDonalds on the way and arrived at the school we were performing at at 2.45. We weren’t due to start setting up til 3.45 but we managed to get in early. Actually it was scary how easy it was to just walk into the hall of the primary school, where kids were walking through and start setting up without being questioned! The hall was a kind of hexagonal shape which made set up fun, but they had a little stage we were able to use. Had to take down their star decorations and mirrorball because they were making shadows from our lights. The performance was quite challenging, it was difficult to gauge the reaction from the audience and there were 3 young children on the front row who talked a lot! However we found out at the end that the family on the front row had seen the advert in the paper and come along. It turned out there were quite a few non-church people there which was great. We packed down and went to our respective host houses for about midnight!
15th December
Day off! Had a lie in and then got ready slowly and got the train to Shenfield. Met Lewis and my mummy there and we travelled into London. Had a wander down Embankment, went to Trafalgar Square to see the tree, went to Oxford Street, Regent Street and Carnaby Street to look at the pretty lights and giant inflatable snowmen! Walked into Hamleys and walked out again – crazy busy (hardly surprising I know!). Had a gorgeous hot chocolate in a café looking out over Regent Street, then travelled to Shepherds Bush where we met Lois with her beautiful new haircut! Got a McDonalds as is a must on Delirious Christmas Gig night and went to collect our tickets and queue at the Shepherds Bush Empire. Met Wendy and Aaron there. Complications with tickets ad who sat where but in the end Wendy and Aaron were on Level 1, Lewis and my Mummy on Level 2 and Me and Lois on Level 3. Bluetree were the supporting act…I’d never heard of them but found out they wrote the song ‘God in this City’ which Chris Tomlin has done a version of so everyone thinks it’s his! Anyway they were really good (rumours they may become the next Delirious…oooh), Irish band – one of their songs even had Sunday school style actions – awesome! And they did a rock version of ‘Joy to the World’ – my favourite Christmas Carol so that was very cool! Then was Delirious who were just great! They even had a group of kids to sing in their song ‘All God’s Children’ which was incredibly emotional. They did a lot of their old stuff which I love, and a couple of Christmas songs. It was all very good and a bit sad as it was probably their last ever Christmas concert L
Then we went to Mcdonalds and bought donuts (the guy looked at me funny when I ordered 6 donuts!) and got the train back to Liverpool Street, waited for about 20mins and got a train to Shenfield where Lewis, Mum, Lois and I got off and got in his car and he drove me home and then everyone else home. Aaaah a lovely Christmassy nice day!
14th December
Lovely long lay in as we didn’t have to travel too far…tonight’s show was in Billericay! So I walked to Billericay Baptist, met everyone there and set up was really relaxed! We linked into their system so that we didn’t have to set up our speakers or projector. Also set up their camera so that people sat behind pillars could see what was going on on some screens. It was a good show, with lots of familiar faces including many Viz people, ex-Optimum volunteers, Bob and Julie my hosts, and most excitingly Chris, my geography buddy from school who I haven’t seen for a couple of years. Was lovely to catch up with her after the show! The show was a good boost halfway through the tour, and also meant I got to bed relatively early!!
13th December
Blanche cooked an amazing breakfast, Egg, Bacon, Sausage and Beans and then we picked up just before 10am and went back to the church to meet the rest of the team and chat for a couple of hours in the warmth of the church office. We then travelled to Haddenham. All I can say is big old COLD church. Like proper cold. Colder than I have ever been whilst being inside. My fingers stopped working. There was also people coming in and out to look at the 20 or so nativity scenes dotted around the church while we slowly set up. Fortunately there was a new kitchen which was warm so we ate our chicken casserole in warmth. They put the big fierce heaters on for a while but they had to go off for the performance so as not to affect Dan’s beautiful blackouts. Backstage we were shivering all the time, and I refused to go barefoot on the stone floor as I should have done, for fear my feet may go completely numb and fall off. We did get mulled wine after the show which was luke warm. Had some interesting conversations though, especially with a guy who was very open to chatting about God and went to loads of events, but it just hadn’t quite clicked for him yet. Packed down as quick as possible in the cold! We travelled back, having to go the scenic route as there was an accident on the M11 and I was so grateful to climb into my warm bed!
12th December
We travelled to Enfield (technically Freezy Water, great name!), had a few people help us unload and watch us set up. They provided us with a big plate of biscuits which was great, although I ate far too many as one jumped into my hand every time I walked past. Also caused tensions in packdown over who got the last shortbread…phew. Dinner was a choice of lasagne, shepherds pie or cheesey spaghetti, with various puddings. The show went well and after we ate mince pies and drank tea whilst chatting to some people in the back hall. After packdown we were dropped off at our hosts, Rachel and I were together staying with a lady called Blanche. She was from Mauritius and had a lovely French accent! We chatted with her whilst wearing the slippers she had provided, drinking tea and eating cake mmm! Rachel and I had to share a bed, and for some reason we had a very giggly half an hour whilst trying to get to sleep. It sort of turned into a 12yr olds sleepover!
Poor thing. Then dinner – dessert was Tiramisu which I’ve never had before and it’s quite nice! Then back to work. Have now got all my content, just needs rearranging and sense making! Have eaten lots of dark chocolate today. I don’t like dark chocolate. But i’m discovering if you eat a lot of something you start to like it. Like now i don’t need sugar in my coffee.