Good Friday

Good Friday holds special memories for me. I am a church goer and Good Friday is significant in the church calendar. I do think it a little sad that many people don't actually know the significance of the day - but just enjoy it as a bank holiday. However, in my own personal life it has also been hugely significant. In 1971, I was a student at Brighton College of Education. I was coming towards the end of my second year of a teacher training course and returned to my family home to celebrate Easter. We were fortunate to live in a very big house and often enjoyed big parties with family and friends. Good Friday 1971 was another such day. With members of the church family, we embarked on a Good Friday ramble. It was a fun occasion with lots of fun and laughter. Not wishing the fun to finish too early, my mother decided to have an impromptu party at our house to round off the day. We went back to prepare whilst other members of the rambling party went home to get out of their rambling gear and don their party clothes. 

It should have been simple but of course as many of you know, there is very little in my life that fits into the "simple" or "normal" category! The  house had been tidy before we left so it was just a matter of going back and popping on the kettle - (dad had popped to church to borrow the urn!) Oh shock horror! We were greeted with mess everywhere! We had been BURGLED! Not a very nice feeling! Well the police were called but the party went ahead. Mum felt that it would take the edge off the burglary if we continued as normally as possible. Not a lot was taken but I had  £7 of my wages stolen. I had hidden it in my undies drawer but the drawer had been turned out and the contents strewn down the stairs (my bedroom was small and my drawers were on the landing outside! and then my draws were on display for all to see :( ) Well as those who have been following me for any length of time will know, I always try to make good out of bad! Well on this occasion the outcome had a very happy result. I had to be interviewed by the handsome young policeman who came to investigate the crime. Funnily enough - he kept coming back to ask more questions - The headline in the Ealing Gazette  the following year was, "PC went to probe crime and found himself a bride" Yes I married that handsome young policeman and on our wedding day (1st July 1972) - the good Friday ramblers  presented me NOT with the usual horseshoe (I told you I don't do normal!) but with a Giant hot cross bun on a silver board complete with ribbon to hold it by. Not many brides, I am sure, carry hot cross buns - but it was fun. Unfortunately we had to give it away as we were off on honeymoon the following day and weren't sure we would be allowed to take it abroad with us!! 

As if that wasn't good enough, I produced my second of 3 gorgeous children on Good Friday 1978. Toby had arrived in November 1975 and Natasha decided to hang on in there! Due on March 5th - she finally made her entrance on March 24th (with a little hospital help as she was clearly too cosy inside!!!) I was running a nursery school at the time so she decided it would be a good plan to hang on until the Easter holidays so mum didn't have to stop work - and what better day than Good Friday! Two weeks later, at the start of term I was back with baby in carry cot! We completed our family with the arrival of Tristan in October 1981. 

Although my marriage to Ivor only lasted for 16 years, I have many happy memories. (including my now dearly departed dad practising how many different ways he could say "I do" when he gave me away at my wedding) and  from that marriage,  I have three gorgeous children who mean so much to me and ARE my world as are the grandchildren who have now arrived to enrich my life further.

So now to Good Friday 2012. Many of you will know my life as a granny and award winning mumpreneur, and award winning shining star has become very hectic (but I love it) I am now drawing my pension but absolutely no plans to "retire" What is the retirement lark anyway? One things I have learnt is to have "me" time and today there will be plenty of that. I had a long, well deserved lie-in and am now pooteling about my flat enjoying a very lazy day - catching up on a few things for me. In fact I'm going to spend most of the weekend doing that and enjoying it!! This will give me renewed vigour to start next week afresh and ready to go again - My network group Wightbuzz is growing rapidly and I am now working hard on building my Lyn's Biz. Meanwhile, I will relax and enjoy and maybe plan a few things for the next year. Then Good Friday 2013 - what will that hold? - I have HUGE dreams and I WILL make them happen. 

Video Blogging

Finally, after having video blogging on my to-to-list it is now ta-dah!! I have been out and about and have recorded quite a few clips which I will be sharing with you over the coming days and months. Let me share one I did promoting the Isle of Wight - the Beautiful Island on which I am lucky enough to live! The council closed down our tourist board. Strange idea when our industry is tourism!!!! Never mind, I have a flip camera so who needs the tourist board?? and here are my first attempts  

Networking - my top tip!

Networking is key to any business. Word of mouth is by far the best recommendation and my top tip would be to make sure you always have your business cards with you. Opportunities pop up all over the place, especially when you are least expecting them. I seize opportunities every day to give out my cards for Lyn's Biz and Wightbuzz. Maybe that is why I have been labelled a networking guru by my local paper. It certainly works for me.

What a fabulous day - Reaching High for Autism

Well what an amazing day. I was lucky enough to attend the Reaching High for Autism day held at the Ryde Fire station. 

Across the Island, for some time, children had been building rungs to go on the lego ladder. Each rung was made of 50 lego bricks and the idea was to get £50 sponsorship for each rung. Today these were all put together to make a 50 foot lego ladder during a family fun day. I hadn't fully embraced what was going on until yesterday. It was yesterday evening, in fact when I suddenly realised that Sunday was THE day - well I had been mega busy. I was preparing to take part in Earth Hour so had run my bath, lit the candles and was ready for a soak during which all my lights and electrical appliances were going to be turned off for an hour. Well the best laid plans of mice and men........ I was about to get in the bath when I suddenly started getting responses to the appeal I had out out to my Wightbuzz members. I had, a short while earlier sent an email and posted on facebook an appeal to members to sponsor bricks for the rungs of the lego ladder. The messages were coming in thick and fast. The offers of £5 here and £3 there  etc were coming in and I HAD to respond and update Lousie Foley who was the creator of the fundraising day! Well what a fantastic result in a short space of time - sponsorship for two rungs of the ladder. I was delighted at the response of my members - but 8.30 had come and gone!!! never mind - I did get my soak - I just celebrated Earth hour slightly off beat to others - I did mine form 9 - 10 pm!!! 

So on to today - I was planning to arrive at the fun day after church but very kindly my mother invited me to lunch - an offer I graciously accepted as it would be rude not to! As we got to the restaurant early , we were served early so we finished early which still gave me plenty of time to attend the fun day and WHAT FUN IT WAS! 

I interviewed Louise Foley (well it had to be done now I have my new flip camera!) I also did a short introduction to the day  There were lots of families who came along to enjoy watching the lego ladder being put together

and then of course there were other things to enjoy like the bouncy castle, the hog roast, the fire safety demonstrations, the chance to sit in the fire engines and then of course there was the ice cream!

and of course as a networking guru (as labelled by the County Press) I couldn't help but network my way around the event. It was lovely to meet Julie and Fred of Jules Ices - A good time was had by all and to top it all off Jo of Wightcakes gave me a lift home (my van is still out of action!!)

It was a truly amazing day - one where the sun shone all day and the skies were blue. Perfect for a fantastic day of fundraising.