Surprise!

We flew from Melbourne to Dubai (dreadful airport if you have a baby) and then onto Manchester and Matthew did really well; we got quite a lot of sleep on the first flight but the second was more tricky as there were 4 babies in a row and they set each other off. I really don't mind the long haul flights but it was nice to know we wouldn't be repeating it in a month's time.
Matthew enjoyed the free reign to crawl in Melbourne and made his way through the tunnel created by the rows of chairs - so many of our pictures of him are of his behind because he's so fast he's gone past before you can take it!


Now was the time for the most exciting/nerve wracking part of our journey and the culmination of a month's scheming (but not lying, which is good!); to completely surprise Neil's mum and dad with our arrival!!! The Shepherd parents are very good at surprises and secrets and we thought there would not be a better opportunity than this to show them how well they have taught their children the necessary skills! And this was the main reason that we've not blogged as we didn't want to give anything away - I even stopped speaking to my in-laws on the phone in case I put my foot in it (my track record of keeping surprises is not good! I think it's good because it means I can't lie!). I really hoped we could pull it off but not at the expense of their health, hence being rather nervous. Due to Alastair and Helen being away (a brilliant and legitimate excuse for the grandparents to babysit) we were met at Manchester by a kind neighbour who was only too happy to take us to Liverpool and have a role in the plot!
When we arrived Tom went to the door and asked Sylvia to come out and look at her car - and there we were! She was totally shocked and surprised but in a nice way (I think!).
Ken had not been able to get to Liverpool until later in the evening so we had the opportunity to do the whole thing again. We were feeling incredibally tired and almost had to go to bed but the reminder of the lunar eclipse made us rush outside and the cold night air woke us up enough to keep us awake until Ken's arrival.

So we had a few days in Liverpool catching up with the Shepherd side of the family (as well as a brief visit to Sheffield to see Susie and meet the very cute Oliver!)and then we headed to Bristol. We're staying with Andy, Debs, Sam and Adam Woods in a very cute village called Pucklechurch where King Edmund lived (and was murdered!) in AD946! The house is just over the road from a very small 'village green' and there are enough old, stone buildings even to satisfy me!


Two days after our arrival we came down with a tummy bug which we managed to pass around to others quite effectively too - it takes friendship and community to a new level! And within four days Neil had been offered a full time maths job in Bristol to start after Easter - completely the opposite scenario to NZ!
We're enjoying getting to know the area and Matthew absolutely loves having big boys to play with/chase/laugh at! It's great to be catching up with the Calladine family and making new friends too.