A Meme: My 8 Best Memories Over 8 Years

This year marks 8 years of me living in the UK.  As much as I moan about the weather, rhubarb and rude commuters, I do love it here.  When spring arrives and the days grow longer it becomes an entirely different world.  There is an amazing feeling of happiness and bliss as everyone soaks up the warmer weather and lives the days to their absolute fullest.  Light reflects off corners that you had forgotten about and the warm touch of sun on skin seeps right down to my soul.  I come alive again at this time of year.

I inspired myself to create a Meme reflecting over my nearly 8 year stay in the United Kingdom as I was walking into work earlier this week before my brief stint of acute tonsillitis.  Even more reason to be positive now as it's now passed.

I have nominated and tagged 5 wonderful individuals to take part in my Meme, listing their top 8 memories over the last 8 years and then tagging 5 other people, just like I have done.  The next 5 that they tag simply repeat the process.  Once the post is complete, copy the post URL and paste it into the linkey widget at the end of this Meme so that it can be shared, so you will need to put a link to this post into your Meme too so people can find my page.

Without further ado, these are my 8 best memories in the last 8 years.  Enjoy!

15 October 2004 - 12 December 2004

I landed at Heathrow on an extremely cold morning having just left 30 degree weather in gorgeous and sunny Cape Town, South Africa.  Who was the person that came to meet and greet me on the other side at just after 6 a.m.?  My amazing and truly inspirational cousin, of course!  If she wasn't my cousin, I'd want her as my older sister and if we weren't related, I'd want her as my best friend.  I could spend hours with her just listening to her positivity and creative ideas.

I left for Scotland 2 days later...

After many phone calls and texts with my parents and sister across I decided to move closer to London as the area that I was staying in Scotland was simply to isolated for me at the age of 22.  I was given the opportunity to live in a house share closer to London with my sister's boyfriend's friend.  Little did I know at the time how much this move would change my entire life.

May/June 2005

Bali!  A holiday was arranged with myself and my boyfriend (housemate had been upgraded) and my sister, her boyfriend and two others.  This was the fist time I had seen my sister since October and getting to share this time with her and everyone else was incredibly special.

12 December 2005

As a birthday present my boyfriend treated me to a surprise birthday meal, so after a train and tube journey we arrived at our destination which turned out to be Jamie Oliver's restaurant, Fifteen.  I had no idea where we were going so was lost for words when we arrived at the restaurant.  Just before dessert my boyfriend got up from the table and went back to his coat.  He came back, sat down and placed a small black box on the table and asked me if I would marry him, and I said yes!  Perfect end to the perfect evening.

22 June 2006

Our wedding day.  My husband and I were married in a registry office in the morning, him in board shorts and t-shirt and me in a skirt and top which was followed by a formal afternoon blessing where I wore a beautiful bridal gown and him in tops and tails.  He looked so handsome and I just remember feeling incredibly lucky to be married to such a wonderful man.

November 2007

We purchased our first family home!  Hoorah!  We are still here and will be for quite a few years.  I love the area we are living in and have met such wonderful people that I couldn't imagine ever moving from here to tell you the truth.

5 July 2009

My husband completed his first Ironman triathlon in Frankfurt!  Words couldn't describe how proud I was of him as he stepped over the finishing line.  To have the drive and determination to train for an event like this is one thing but to actually combine all three disciplines on one day and complete the event is truly inspirational.  He has done one more since then in 2011 in Lanzarote and made me just as proud.

21 July 2009

We had decided to try for our first child after my husband had completed his Ironman in Frankfurt.  After Frankfurt we headed to Canada for a 2 week holiday to visit one of my best friends who I have known since I was 10 years old.  Imagine our surprise when I found out I was pregnant 2 days after we landed back in London!

2 April 2010

On a rainy Easter morning and a relatively short labour of which the final stage was 18 minutes in the birthing pool, our daughter Isabella Joyce was born.  I remember sitting there holding her in my arms and thinking "she's here, she's our daughter".  I love this little creature with all my heart and thank God for her every day.  What a blessing to have this beautiful little girl in our lives who brings so much joy and laughter into our home and hearts.

Click below to see who I have tagged.  There is no method to my madness as to how I selected these individuals.  I read their blogs and enjoy them and think (hope!) that this would be something they would like to take part in.  Fingers crossed!

A Twenty Something Mum

Stay at Home Mum Loving It

Mummy From the Heart

Making it Up

Emmys Mummy

and I've added my cousin too, because I can! - Inspire Being

Ax