Welcome to 2019

So the title of this blog post is a bit outdated as we are now well into 2019 as I sit here at my laptop.

I just wanted to stop by to acknowledge the end of 2018 and the launch of a new year with new opportunities.

My post at the start of 2018 talked about what a year 2017 was and once again I am laughing as 2018 was also a year that slapped me up the side of my head too but for quite different reasons.  

2018 was a year that I was forced to face some really uncomfortable home truths - and I walked out of it feeling like my "big girl pants" had been worn with purpose and pride across the year.

2018 was definitely a year of growth - it was one of those years that you realise how much work God has been doing on you, as you find yourself navigating some of the most challenging issues you have ever faced and surviving!

I am feeling hopeful for 2019 - I have big plans for the year and feeling expectant that God is going to come through on my behalf.  I have walked into this year with no idea of how it will end but feeling assured that I will be further ahead than I started.

This year, we will be celebrating 10 years of the Sanctuary - I can't believe it!  Yesterday, we celebrated 6 years since Babygirl came home.  I want to use 2019 as a year of celebration - being thankful for the little milestones as well as the big ones - I am learning that I have so much to be grateful for and this year, I intend to celebrate!

Until next time,

Cece

Learning At Home

2018 has been flying by and as a family we have been adjusting to doing life in a very different way.  I have been a little apprehensive about sharing this recent change to our lives, primarily because it can prove to be an emotive subject and I have been somewhat taken aback by the responses I have received from some people.

In September, DH and I started home educating Babygirl.  Babygirl started Reception class in September 2017 and completed a full year of school.  It wasn't a positive experience and many of the fears and worries I had about putting Babygirl into the school system started to surface in her experiences.  In reality I will probably write a whole post about our experiences of her year in school, but for now I will just share that by the end of Easter term, Babygirl was crying daily and increasingly becoming convinced that she was not smart and unable to learn.  By the summer term, it was clear that Babygirl was not flourishing or enjoying the school experience.  The obvious decision would be to look at other schools but I just felt that was not the solution but that we needed to consider something different.

Let me be clear that I am passionate about education and I am not "anti-school" however I have my questions about whether the school system is really educating our children and catering for all types of learners that walk through their doors.  I don't blame the teachers (as an ex-teacher, I know how hard they work), but I do feel that the school system is not able to effectively meet the needs of all their learners.  I have always been interested in home education and always felt that it was something that I would want to do but I felt that it would an option only for those who were very wealthy etc.  As I watched Babygirl become more withdrawn and anxious, I knew that it was time to evaluate our options.  I discussed home education with DH and was astounded to discover that he was totally up for it and actually preferred the idea of us taking over her education fully.

So at the start of year 1 instead of Babygirl putting on her school uniform and heading back to school, we settled down to start learning at home.  We are now in our final term of home education and whilst it has been a steep learning curve for all of us and challenging at times, Babygirl is flourishing! 

This post is really my announcement to the "world" that we are home educating Babygirl but I would like to share much more.  I am thinking that a series of blog posts explaining our detailed journey into home education, how it has affected us as a family, dispelling some common myths about home education and much more.

Please leave questions or topics that you would like me to cover!

Until next time,
Cece

What's your word for 2018?

The past week has been an interesting one.  It has been intense, hectic and challenging at times but what has probably been most refreshing is that I chose to fully let go of 2017!

It started from last Sunday, when as I sat in church listening to the preacher, I found myself have an internal argument with what was being said from the pulpit.  It was an encouraging and timely word but I felt like I was struggling to receive it.   As I reflected, I realised that I was feeling so battered and bruised by my experiences in 2017 that I dare not believe that 2018 may have something good for me!

I felt tired of "believing" and being battered at the end of it ... or so I felt and whilst I had learnt the lessons of 2017, I failed to realise my need to let go of some of the junk from 2017.

I met up with a friend during the week and as I poured out my feelings of despondency and disappointment, she said some really quite poignant to me which forced me to stop in my tracks and re-evaluate.  She said that the words I used for 2017 were not necessarily the word that God has for my 2018.  She said that if I was not careful, I would end up carrying my 2017 words into 2018 (I'm paraphrasing!).  It struck a chord and I instantly knew that she was right.

I was so busy being wrapped up about how I felt about 2017 that I was running the risk of missing what God is saying to me now!  She told me that it was OK for me for mourn what I felt I had lost in the previous year but that I then needed to get up, dust myself off and move on.  I needed to find out what my word for 2018 is..... so that's exactly what I have been focusing on over the last week.  I have had some honest heart to hearts with God and expressed my disappointment, pain and fears - it has been refreshing and healing.  And now, I am standing up and tuning in to hear what His word for me for 2018.

I encourage those of you who need to follow a similar process to do it now.  Reflect on what you learnt, mourn the losses that need to mourned and then get up, dust yourself and tune in to see what He is saying about 2018.

Until next time,
Cece xx

Lessons learned from 2017

Happy 2018!

Before I wrote this blog post, I read my last post which was about a year ago and I couldn't help chuckle to myself.  I predicted that 2017 was going to be a stormy year but I still walked into it rather unprepared.

On the 31st December 2017, I found myself looking back at 2017 with a sense of great disappointment and big questions about 2018.

The personal storms that hit me in 2017 caught me off guard and left me in a head spin!  It was an emotional year for me and I must admit that by the end of it all, I found myself asking, "What's the point?"

I am pleased to say that over the last few weeks I have moved considerably from that position in my mental state.  I realised that if I didn't focus on learning the lessons I needed to from my 2017 experience, I would end up repeating the same mistakes again.

So these are my top 3 lessons from 2017:

1.  Don't neglect your quiet time with God - towards the end of 2016, I found my stride with spending time with God and it was awesome!!! It transformed my life considerably and brought such clarity in my decisions.  Early in 2017, I lost that regularity and it had a significant impact on my year.  I have always known the importance of regular time with God but having got into a rhythm in 2016 and then losing it, I have learnt a greater appreciation for this time.  It really does make all the difference!
2.  Dare to be different - 2017 was the year we started to home educate "Babygirl".  It was not something we had planned to do and there are definitely times when I wonder if we've made the right decision, because it isn't easy but when I see the progress she is making I feel convinced that it is working for her.  If you would like more information about how we ended up being home educators, let me know in the comments and I will do a post.
3.  Learn how to deal with disappointment - I had hoped to launch a major project in 2017 but it didn't happen and I was quite frankly devastated.  All my decisions in 2017 were based on fulfilling this project, and as the end of the year approached, I realised that I was going to have to make alternative plans.  As we start 2018, I am still reeling a little bit from the experience but I am learning how to get on with life and continue to find purpose where I am, in spite of my disappointment!

So those were my lessons from 2017 - what did you learn in 2017?

Until next time,
Cece

Are you ready for your "suddenly"?

Last Saturday we had our first Sanctuary meeting for the year.  The title of the message was "Are you ready for your "suddenly"?

Let me start by putting this message into some context.

At the end of last year, God gave me a vision of a tornado of fire in a room.  It was tearing up and consuming the whole room and yet I did not feel any fear.  I knew it was the Holy Spirit and that God was showing me that some "tornadoes" were going to come into my life to throw up everything.  The process would consume the parts of my life and character that needed to cleaned up to prepare me for the upcoming season in my life.

Picture from hdwallpaperia.com

I felt compelled to share this message at the brunch and so we took a closer look at tornadoes which was eye opening and brought a greater understanding of what God is saying in this season.

This is the video we watched:

We observed the sheer power of a tornado, it's impact on the Earth and the period where heaven is quite literally connected to Earth through this destructive and yet beautiful natural phenomena.

In summary, we considered the following:

• A tornado not only signifies change but a moment when God touches down on Earth to make an impact and shake our foundations.
• A tornado is visible to all but not all will be prepared.
• Meterologists can recognise the signs - they are trained to see the signs but they cannot predict exactly when or where it will hit.  Hence, a tornado occurs "suddenly"!
• If you are tuned into seeing the signs, we will prepared but if we fail to tune in, we will be caught off guard

The tornado will come and it will be sudden but the question remains:  "Are you ready for your suddenly?"

In my next post, I will share the rest of the message as we consider how "suddenlys" can occur and how to live life after your "suddenly".

Big Shoes to Fill

I love this picture.  It makes me smile for 2 reasons - firstly because it reminds me of Babygirl.

Babygirl has always loved shoes and this appears to be a trend that will continue for the rest of her life.  She has an eye for high quality shoes and thinks nothing of stopping a complete stranger to tell them how marvellous their shoes are.  The picture reminds me of the many times I have watched Babygirl try on my shoes and attempt to strut around my bedroom.  When I arrive home and find my shoes in a dishevelled heap, I know that Babygirl has been entering herself with a private fashion show in front of my mirror with my shoes being the key highlight of the whole event.

The second reason it makes me smile is because it reflects how I am currently feeling about 2017.  As I mentioned in my first post for this year, 2017 is looking like it is going to be a big year for me.  Whilst, I know what is ahead, I think the reality of it all has only hit me over the past week.  I've been battling butterflies for the whole week and to be honest, I can't remember the last time I had butterflies!

Actually I can - I just took a look back through my blog posts and I believe that the last time I documented butterflies was 2011 (how sad am I?!).  But my main point is that I am juggling a challenging combination of emotions - primarily excitement and hope with a huge dose of sheer terror.  I can't disclose the details of the project I am referring to yet but I will as things become more concrete (annoying I know!).  Anyway, back to the picture!

It sums up how I am feeling - I feel like I have big shoes to fill.  This year is a year that I am being challenged to grow up and step out into the next new phase of my life.  This is a phase that I have thought about and dreamt about for years and part of me can't believe that it's here.  I am also struggling to digest just how big a step it is and as I pray about it and try to tune in to what God is saying, I find myself quaking at the thought of what He is asking me to do.

I know that I'm not the first person to be thrown by what God is asking them to do and I know I won't be the last, but I am doing my best to respond appropriately.  In my mind, my response is somewhere on the spectrum between Moses and Mary, mother of Jesus.  These two characters show the realities of how we can respond to God's requests.  At one end, we have Mary who whilst initially afraid at the sight of the angel was quick to respond with the gallant statement, "Let it be to me according to your word" (Luke 1:38).  At the other end, we have Moses who enters into a lengthy discussion with God about the pros and cons (ok - primarily the cons!) of sending him to face Pharoah (see Exodus 3 & 4 - yes, 2 chapters - it was a long "discussion"!).  Whilst my heart seeks to be like Mary, in reality, I am probably positioned a bit closer to the "Moses" end of the spectrum, but I find comfort in that regardless of the different initial responses from these 2 characters, they both went on to obey God.

And this takes me back to my over-sized high heeled shoes.  I know that I'm going to do what He is asking me to do, but I can't help wondering how shaky and tentative my first steps will be.  What I do know is that if I focus on following His directions and remain determined to be obedient to His call - it is only a matter of time before I'll being strutting and striding down my own catwalk!  Although between you and I, I think I'll always feel like the shoes are still just a little too big!

Until next time,
Cece xx

Daring to Dream Again in 2017

For those of you who know me in real life, you will know that I love to plan.  I am a planner through and through, and I love spending time planning, developing and working on projects.  This teamed with my mild obsession with stationery means that I own a ridiculously large number of notebooks and have tried almost every planning system going!  If you would like to know how I plan my life and keep myself organised, please ask in the comments and I will write a blog post or perhaps even film a video.

Anyway, I have digressed a little - I love to plan.  People who plan are not just people who like to organise but fundamentally we are dreamers - our plans involve looking at what we want to see in the future and organising the steps to get there.

Last year, I planned and led a mission trip to St Kitts - the planning started one whole year in advance.  The plan involved putting together a team, coordinating flights and accommodation for the team, arranging training sessions, organising prayer meetings, liaising with churches and developing an itinerary for the 2 weeks.  It also involved ensuring that the team knew what their roles & responsibilities would be on the trip, as well as ensuring that our host church was kept up to date with our day to day plans throughout the trip.  It was exhausting, stretching and awesome - I loved it!!!  There is very little that compares with the satisfaction of seeing something that started as a dream in your mind come to life.

These pictures were taken on our penultimate day in St Kitts.  We are enjoying one of my most favourite views in St Kitts at the top of Brimstone Hill (we went up there to have our final debrief for the trip) - I remember thinking "You actually did it Celeste!".  I could not believe that what had been a dream for almost 10 years had finally come together and I was now sharing parts of St Kitts I loved with people I had bonded with in a new and special way as we "wrapped up" our mission trip!  It was an overwhelming moment!

So I love to dream and I have always prided myself on being a dreamer but recently in a discussion with a friend I began to realise that I had closed down my dreaming ability in certain areas of my life.

Daring to dream is exciting and exhilarating but when you are having to wait for the dream - you can start to become reluctant to get your hopes up.  As someone who automatically starts to dream as soon as a new idea crosses my mind, it can be difficult when you have been dreaming, planning and mapping out your future in faith and you get to the point where you start to question the whole process because it hasn't happened yet.  This laying down of hope can be a dramatic decision to stop dreaming, or a gradual fading away of enthusiasm and focus until suddenly one day, you realise that you have lost hope.  The interesting thing about the gradual fading process is that you can still appear to be on the "faith" walk  - you continue to say all the right things, but when you look deep down you know that the hope is gone and you're not really standing in faith any more.

So my recent discussion has led me to look at going back to dreaming and hoping in those areas again.  It is a challenge and as I can still remember how painful the disappointment felt.  But I know that God is challenging me to go back to walking in some crazy faith, so I'm going to go for it.

This blog post is a special shout out to all who have become weary in waiting and stopped hoping due to being beaten down by disappointment and delay.  Maybe it's time to get back on the faith walk - will you dare to hope again?  Hebrews 11:1 says "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."  - faith starts with hope so are you willing to get your hopes up?

Let's make 2017 - a year of hope!  Dare to dream again for with Him all things are possible!!!

Until next time,
Cece
xxx

Happy New Year

Happy New Year!  It is 2017!!! 

There have been many commentaries towards the end of last year, outlining how terrible 2016 has been - Brexit, Donald Trump, War in Syria and celebrity deaths filled our TV screens and office chit chat.

For me personally, 2016 has been a whirlwind year!  That's part of the reason why I have been so absent on social media this year.  Having decided that I was going to"go for it" and push hard for 2016, I found myself consumed with key projects and found little time to sit in front of the computer to blog or my camera to film.  I would love to say that 2017 is going to be different but as I sense it is likely to be another big year for me, I can't guarantee that there will be much improvement.  However, what I can say is that I have missed keeping in touch with you guys and so it is my hope to be get back to blogging and filming on a more regular basis this year.

I wanted to drop by to say hi and wish you all a happy new year and also do a basic debrief of 2016.

As mentioned in my previous post, the mission to St Kitts was a huge project that was completed last summer.  It was life changing and I still hope to share with you a series of diary style posts to take you on the journey at some point in the next few months.

Other highlights of 2016, include a job promotion, the Sanctuary Retreat, the Sanctuary hosting monthly events, the Colour Conference and a breakthrough in being consistent with my prayer life (I'd like to share more detail in a future blog post on this point).

Towards the end of 2016, I went through a rather low period where I really struggled with my desire to fall pregnant.  In some ways, it felt like I had returned to the start of my journey where each pregnancy announcement was unbearable.  I found myself talking to God a lot and struggling to understand why I felt this way.  I had wanted to share it on here but feared that I would sound ungrateful or moany!  The reality is that the struggle is still real but thanks to God I am feeling much better and more positive about the year ahead.

In terms of goals, my overriding goal for 2016 was to develop habits that would sustain me, and whilst I have made some progress in certain habits, there is still some work to do.  For this reason, I am carrying over the goal from last year and continuing to focus on developing key habits.

2017 is looking like it going to be a big year for me and I am hoping to be able to share more of the journey with you via my blog and YouTube channel.

In the meantime, happy 2017!  I pray that this year will be a great year for you and you will be able to withstand and overcome any challenges that may come your way!

God bless,
Cece x

Mission to St Kitts 2016

So this year has been amazing!

God has done so much this year and I am excited about what He has planned for 2017.  Check out the video to see all that took place!!!

Keep an eye out for some more posts and videos over the next few weeks!

Until next time,
Cece xx

The Sanctuary turns 7!

This month marks a very special milestone for The Sanctuary.  For those of you who don't know, The Sanctuary is a ministry for women that I launched 7 years ago.  We host brunches, workshops and retreats, as well as provide mentoring and coaching.

It started as a morning brunch in my home and has now grown to minister to several women through our commitment to restore, empower and release women into their God given call.

To celebrate we will be hosting a Thanksgiving Service on Saturday 22 October 2016 from 6pm.  All are welcome to attend - both male and female.  It will be an opportunity to find out what we have been doing as well as where we are going for 2017.

You can get full details and register for the free event via this link:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/thanksgiving-service-tickets-28373731595

Hope to you see you there!

Until next time,
Cece

Still Waiting......

I started a new project about a month ago that has caused me to take some time to read through my previous blog posts.  It has been interesting reflecting on my journey and seeing how far I have come.  It also has caused me to realise that this whole journey has been eight years - WOW!

I have been waiting to have a baby for 8 years!  I am sure that some of you may be wondering if I still consider myself to be "waiting" and the answer is yes.  I know that we have been blessed with Babygirl through adoption which has completely transformed and brightened up our lives.  However, we still would like to have some birth children as well.

I have been thinking about it a lot recently primarily as Babygirl is now constantly taking about having a brother or sister.

I thought I would sit down tonight to just share my thoughts.

I still believe that God is going to bless us with birth children. I feel so expectant that it seems just around the corner.  In the meantime, I look at Babygirl and wonder if we should adopt again.  I wonder if she would benefit from having another member of her immediate family who has been adopted and whether there is another child waiting to join our family.

Hmm.... all these thoughts. I just wanted to drop by to say that I am still waiting and although I may not cry with each period that comes, or consistently talk about wanting to be pregnant, it is still very much on my prayer list.

So I thought I would use this as an opportunity to send a "shout out" to all of those who are still waiting and a huge "thumbs up" to all who have already seen the answer to their prayers!

Until next time,
Cece xxx

Where have you been?!

It's been just over six months since I've blogged or posted a video on YouTube and quite frankly.....I'm ashamed!

It has been a hectic year and I haven't been keeping you guys up to date.  So here we go.....

The last time I posted was in February so I'll pick up from March.

March

In March I started a new role at work.  It was a busy time as I adjusted to the new responsibilities and tried to get my head around new ways of doing things but it was good.  God has blessed me with an amazing team who have made it so much easier to transition.  However, I found my time becoming increasingly busy as I tried to juggle a range of demanding areas in my life!

April

By the start of this month, I was exhausted.  The transition into the role was full on and in hindsight, I wish I had taken a week off before moving into my new role.  I took a week of during this month just to try and have a break but in some ways it made the work more intense on my return as I returned on the same day that a new member of my team began.

May

This month was awesome! It brought the Sanctuary Retreat.  This was well attended and I felt great!  I was obviously tired after the whole weekend but I was so moved by how God used a few days away with a small group of women to impact their lives.  It also brought the Colour Conference in London!  For those of you who don't know - this is a women's conference that is organised by Hillsong.  It was another life changing experience for me.  One of the most special parts of the conference was worshipping with 11,000 other women - sometimes, I would just stop to listen to all those voices worshipping God and couldn't help but think "this must be what heaven is like!"  It was also at this event that God started to stir new ideas and directions for the Sanctuary.  Watch out for some them in the new year!

June

By this month, I was fully focussed on the big project I had planned for the following month.  My brain was full of plans, prayer lists and packing lists.  It was quite a blur and to be honest, I can't quite remember what I did through this month!  I do remember that there were further changes at work as one member left, another returned and a member who had only started a few months prior submitted their resignation.  Just call me HR queen - I learnt a lot about HR procedures this month at work!

July

This month was the month I had been anticipating all year.  At the end of July, I led a group of 4 women on a mission trip to St Kitts.  We went to work with a local group to impact the lives of women in St Kitts.  It was an amazing experience which cannot be covered in just a paragraph.  If you are interested, I would like to post a series of blogs about preparing, leading and recovering from a mission trip. Let me know in the comments if you would like me to do this.

This was also the month that I went  to Legoland with Babygirl.  We went with a good friend of mine and her daughter.  It was so nice to spend a day doing all things childlike and Babygirl had a fantastic time!

August

The first two weeks of this month were spent in St Kitts.  The remainder of the month was a time of recovery for me as I tried to assimilate all that had happened in St Kitts and adjusted to being back in the UK.

And now we are in September, so far it has been focussed on helping Babygirl adjust to school life, and preparing for the remaining events in the Sanctuary calendar!

So that's me!  It's been a while but I'm back.

Let me know in the comments what has been the highlight for you in the last 6 months!

Until next time,
Cece xxx

New beginnings, new challenges?

After an amazing time at the Sanctuary Writers' Brunch last weekend, I was ready to face a week with new beginnings!

This past week has been a significant one as Babygirl began her first complete week at school.  On Sunday evening, I laid out her uniform for the week.  As I ironed her school shirts, I found myself reminiscing of my school days.  The new Sunday evening routine felt familiar and in many ways helped me to feel more organised and focussed for the week myself.

Babygirl handled her first week well.  There were points where she seemed a bit withdrawn, but by the end of the week she came out of school with a big smile and declared that she liked school.

On my part, the week started out a little stressful, I felt under pressure at work with impending deadlines and the feeling that I was falling behind.  However, by the middle of the week, I had implemented some strategies and I was feeling much more positive!

On Thursday, I spent the day on a workshop which is part of a women's leadership development programme that I have been enrolled onto which is run by the organisation I work for.  It was lovely to have the "head space" to reflect on my personal and professional development and what struck me was how much I had grown but also how much of that had been due to what I had learnt in church.  As I listened to various women talking about building self esteem and self awareness, I realised that the years of repeatedly hearing that I am made in the likeness and image of God had gradually built up my confidence and for the first time, I felt ready to start talking real steps towards my next goal rather than just talk about it.  I briefly spoke to the facilitator of the course who confirmed what I had already been thinking - it's time to start moving forward!

So it felt apt that in the evening I was heading to the launch of Christian Business Networking Group called "Training Kings".  The host of the group had spoken at the Sanctuary Brunch last weekend and I was heading down to show some support.  What took place was a phenomenal evening of networking, motivational talking and a series of divine connections - I was blown away!  It was evident to me that I had come to this event for something that I had not expected but as usual, God knew what He was doing!

Me with the host of Croydon Training Kings, Alison Johnson

I left the event pumped!  Full of energy and ready to take on the world!!!  I went to sleep with a smile on my face.

The next morning I was tired.  Not surprising as it had been a busy week. As I got Babygirl ready for school, I thanked God that it was Friday and then headed out in a rush to get her to school on time. As we walked up the school path, I chatted with Babygirl and noticed her delight in stamping her feet and kicking the small stones on the path.  I pointed out that her lovely school shoes (which had cost me a fortune! - who knew that tiny feet could cost so much?!) were getting covered in dust.  She looked down at her shoes and then glanced over at my feet and said, "Well, your shoes don't match". I chuckled at her ridiculous remark that she had made and was confronted with this.....

A new level of confusion for me!

Yep!  I had walked out of my house, driven across town and headed into school with odd shoes.  I WAS MORTIFIED!!!!  How had I got here?  This mighty woman of God who is getting ready to conquer the world - couldn't even manage to dress herself in the morning!  I hurried her into school and headed home to rectify the situation.  As I drove home, I laughed at myself and just knew that I had to share this with you guys!  It's amazing how you can be brought back to earth with a thump - LOL!

So after this comical moment, I prepared for a weekend of relaxation and family time.  As I sit here writing, I am enjoying the delights of staying home with Babygirl and DH.  This is something that I have missed for a long time due to booking so many commitments on the weekends but one of my goals for the year was to have habits that will sustain me.  I have been working on this.

We did however fit in one activity this Saturday - Babygirl's ballet lesson followed by a home cooked brunch to celebrate her first complete week in school!

Babygirl's ballet feet!

I am aware that I have been missing in action for quite a while this year.  My next couple of posts will seek to address some of what has been going on!

Until next time, 

Cece xx

Writers' Brunch 2016

This weekend, we hosted our first ever writers' brunch.  It was truly a privilege to hear from published authors as they tackled questions like "what inspires you to write? what do you want your readers to get out of your writing?" and "what do you get out of your writing?"

The panel featured a group of people with a wealth of wisdom and it was so inspiring to hear from their personal experiences!

Sonia Pemberton, author of "The Email" shared her motivation for writing a novel about domestic violence.
Neala Okuromade, author of "What's your financial gameplan?" shared the technicalities of finding an editor to work with and the impact it had on her book.
Alison Johnson, author of "Understanding Your Value is priceless" gave us tips on overcoming writers' block.
Tunji Ogunjimi, book author coach and author of "Glory Realm Worshipper" and "How to write your book fast" told us about the importance of writing a plan and outline for your book.

Check out what happened at the brunch in this video:

Keep an eye out for our upcoming events!

The Sanctuary Story

Many of you will have heard me talk about The Sanctuary. I have referred to it many times in my previous blog post but I have finally managed to film a video giving a bit of a background on what it is and how it all began!

Send an email to sanctuaryladies@gmail.com if you would like to receive more about The Sanctuary and our upcoming events.

Until next time,
Cece x

Book Corner at the Sanctuary

I love reading books so this year, I have decided to complete a Goodreads challenge to read 15 books this year.  Last year, I aimed for 10 and read 11 so I'm planning to stretch myself further this year!

In this video I share my thoughts on a video I read last month.

Please take some time to watch the video and let me know if there are any other books that you would like me to review this year!

I look forward to hearing your recommendations!

Until next time,
Cece

January: Highlights, Favourites and Thoughts

I cannot believe that we are already in February!  January has truly flown by - it has been a good month with a few glitches along the way.

Highlights

The month started with a bang with an amazing Watchnight service - it was refreshing and a great starting point for the year.

Watchnight Service 2015

The next highlight was attending the "Discovering Purpose through Goal Setting" seminar.  I did attempt to vlog but failed miserably (lol!).  It was a great forum to clarify and finalise my goals for 2016.  I left feeling energised and focussed.

The next few weeks were busy with work but the month ended with The Sanctuary Brunch which took place on the 23rd.  At this brunch, we had some great food and enjoyed a discussion on our theme for the year, "Pursuing Vision".  (Keep an eye out for a video on this topic on my YouTube channel).  I love Sanctuary brunches, there is nothing I enjoy more than spending quality time with inspiring and intelligent women!

Final highlight was being successful in securing a promotion in my job too!  Not a bad start to the year at all!

Favourites

Ok, so I have been loving the Bible App and it has been great in helping me to get into God's word on a daily basis.  For some reason I have also become mildly obsessed with creating images on the app and posting them to Instagram.  Feel free to follow me on Instagram (@cece280707).

I have rekindled my affair with Netflix and am currently working my way through The Good Wife (Season 6).

My passion for reading has surfaced again with me reading 2 books this month and starting on a third.  I will be posting a video with my thoughts on books sometime next month.

Thoughts

January has been a month where I have been challenged to stick with my new schedule.  It has not been easier to adjust my pace but I am learning to listen to my body and rest when I need to. 

Facebook has been great at triggering some memories with their "memories" feature.  This week it reminded me that it was just 3 years ago that we first met Babygirl.  It seems so much longer but that's because it feels like Babygirl has always been with us.  It warms my heart to know that just 3 years ago our lives were changed forever.  She has brought such joy and delight to our family!

January has been a good start to the year - I have been trying to embed the habits that will sustain me but I am still floundering on the health habit.  Any advice or suggestions?  I'd appreciate your comments below!

Choosing a school for Babygirl

Over the last few months, I have begun the journey of selecting a school for Babygirl.  Yes, I know!  She is going to school next year and time has truly flown.  She has come a long way from the chubby 13 month old that we brought home and has flourished into a loving, eloquent and funny young lady.

As I have started to navigate the school system from the perspective of a parent it has been an interesting experience.

1.  The pressure on parents

I rather naively headed off to my first open day with my mental checklist and in a very relaxed state.  I was heading to one of the local schools that had been awarded the most coveted "Outstanding" category by Ofsted.  I was met by a crowd of anxious and stressed parents whose questions revolved around the likelihood of their child getting into the school rather than what the school would provide for their child.  It was at this point that I suddenly became aware of the pressures that parents are under.  In a world that judges your parenting skills against an extensive list, I had not realised that the ability to fight your child to get into a "good" school was so high on the list!

2.  The myth of "Outstanding"

In my humble opinion, this intense concern about getting their child into an "outstanding" school meant that some parents were missing some of the more important questions like, "what are your values as a school?" and "how do you support less able students?"  As a result, I fear that many parents were blown away by the "outstanding" categorisation and therefore did not scrutinise the school as closely as perhaps they should!  In fact, I was not impressed by this particular school at all.  I found it a cold place and was disappointed by the lack of effort on the part of the headteacher to share their vision for the education of my child.  I got the sense that as they had the "outstanding" label that they felt that they didn't need to make the effort.  Whilst I am a believer in good academic performance in schools, it is my desire to find a school for Babygirl that offers more than that!  Education is not just a process to pass exams but should be a process that helps to prepare every child to thrive in their adult life.

3.  The need to know your own child

As I visited various schools, it became apparent that essentially my choice needed to be based on the needs of my child.  Each school offers slightly different packages and it is well worth taking time to consider what your child needs and whether the school you are visiting will meet those needs.  Some schools spoke of academic rigour and discipline, whilst others emphasised the need to recognise the talents and abilities of each child.  The key message is usually presented by the headteacher which leads nicely into my next and final point:

4.  The importance of the Head

This is crucial and often overlooked.  I am speaking as an ex-teacher and I know the impact that a headteacher can have on the education on each child.  The headteacher sets the tone - their actions can determine what is emphasised in your child's education and how stressed the teachers will be too!  A stressed and overworked teacher is not good for your child's education.  Whilst the education system means that most teachers are stressed and the attitude and work ethic of the headteacher can either reduce or enhance that stress (just a side note!).  Anyway, I found it helpful to listen to what the headteachers said and what their philosophy of education was.

So the decision has been made and the application has been submitted.  Now we wait...... I'll let you know how it goes!

My 2016 goals

So finally I am sharing my 2016 goals.  In a nutshell, they can be summarised as "Habits that will sustain me".

I explain it all in more detail in the video:

So far I've been doing fairly well with my goals - it makes such a difference when the goals have been set prayerfully and honestly rather than a list of things I think would sound good or should be on my list!

How are your goals going?  Leave a comment to let me know how you've been getting on!

What's the plan for 2016?

Welcome to 2016!  How has it been so far?  The way this year started is the complete opposite of how 2015 started.

At the end of 2014, I rather unusually did not have a plan.  I headed out to Watchnight Service with no agenda for 2015.  At the service, God gave me a few pointers and I just focussed on trying to stick to them in 2015.  What followed was an amazing year where I experienced breakthrough, deliverance and a new found direction for my life.

There were some things that I hoped would happen in 2015 (primarily a pregnancy) but it didn't.  Yet 2015 proved to be a life changing year!

2016 has started with a much greater focus.  I headed off to Watchnight service at the end of 2015 with a vague outline of what I would like to see in 2016, and my dear faithful God helped to refine it to a focussed action plan.

There is much for me to do in 2016.  Primarily working towards a big project for 2017 (I'll share more details later), but God has also been challenging me to pour out more of myself into others.  So this year, I will be attempting to start blogging a bit more regularly.  This is quite a challenge as I also hope to be consistent with my YouTube channel as well.

So I am asking for your help! What would you like to see on this blog in the year of 2016?

Write a comment below to let me know what you would like me to write about this year.

God bless,
Cece xxx