Boxing Day and Wednesday

We had guests for lunch yesterday but my top oven failed just as I was trying to get all the food hot at the same time! That was frustrating. I had such a lovely meal planned. I think this is all part of God's masterplan for me to work on my perfectionism!

The kids all had a nice time trying out W's girls' scooters outside and Jack used his new hemet whilst roller-blading. Even Grace got some fresh air, which she enjoyed! We enjoyed having W and family over though and the afternoon came to an end too quickly.

Because Boxing Day is a national holiday here, Jamie wasn't able to tackle the oven until the shops all opened today. He bought a new element and successfully fitted it. We tried it and so far it seems to work!

I dragged Jamie out to a nearby town with a fair-sized mall today to buy new clothes. Oh dear, he has been looking so shabby lately. (Shhhh, don't tell him I said that!) For the last 10 years or so Jamie has always managed to find what he needs in second-hand shops which is great, but those clothes are now starting to look old-fashioned and worn. He is a wonderful husband in that he puts himself last, always preferring that the children or I get something new that we need. And I am thankful for that.

But it has become an ingrained habit now that he is very reluctant to buy anything new, thinking of it as a waste of money. Fortunately, he has the kind of job where it is expected that the guys are not 'suited and booted' but very casual, but I think there is a limit to casual even there. Also, when he is leading worship upfront at church he has only a couple of shirts which are good enough really. Soooo....

I made him go to the sales today and *told* him he needed to buy 5 new shirts, 2 pairs of trews (Scottish for trousers, which is English for pants, hope that's clear!) In the end, he also got a jacket which was 1/3 of its original price. These clothes make him look so much younger and less ...tired! He was in the changing room and the kids and I darted around the store finding things in his size we thought might suit him, taking them to him and insisting he try them on and show us all!

I called out when he first went into the changing room, 'Now remember, Jamie, we want to see EVERYTHING!' All the old ladies in the nearby in-store cafe turned and looked at us. Not that sort of everything!!!

On the way home, he thanked me for making him buy new clothes. Most were on sale and we had been given some vouchers (coupons) for that store, so it wasn't too painful financially! {g}