Saturday, May 30, 2009

Birthdays







It was three of my friends' birthdays last weekend. I ended up with a very sore head on Saturday but I was by no means the only one. I learned my lesson of having a glass of wine before after a busy day at work before eating dinner. It was a lovely evening. Anne and I had a massage. I had a glass of wine while getting ready at her house, we got a bite to eat at the pub, then we headed into town for the party. Fun fun fun!

Bee's Hen Night








I am gutted - I was really pleased with the one photo that I had of the beach, but somehow it has got corrupted. Boo! Never mind I will put the rest on. We went down to the beach for Bee's hen night. It was a really good laugh and very relaxing - just what I needed in the middle of reports and general school craziness. We chilled in the day, swam and had massages then partied at night. I am looking forward to the wedding this summer!

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Rosie





Congratulations to Gemma and Tim. I am so proud to write here that I am an auntie to Rosie Smith! Gem and Rosie had a bit of a tricky start as mum and daughter with a surprise arrival but they have both been amazing. We went out last night to make a toast. Rosie is so cute. I know I am biased but she is really beautiful and the Payne genes have once again shown their strength. The curly, dark hair looks like it's well on its way! I now am so excited for summer when I can have cuddle.
I am also so ready to move back to the UK. I know that next year will fly by because we have so much to organise - wedding, house buying and getting jobs. I just booked our flights for Christmas so we will be back for the first time in 5 years!

Saturday, May 09, 2009

Rainy Saigon





We were sat in The Refinery - one of our favourite brunch places. It's an old opium refinery and is in one of the few lovely old buildings in the centre of town that they haven't knocked down to make way for big city developments. It was a good reminder of the reason that we are here - it was like being on holiday sat outside in the warm. Suddenly the heavens opened and it packed down with rain. The rainy season storms are amazing here. I just love sitting in the shelter while it pours like crazy then stops just as suddenly. A Sunday morning well spent.

Sunday, May 03, 2009

Only in Vietnam










Last week we had a fire drill. This means that we had pink smoke streaming out of the building; the guards got out the hoses and started spraying the building until the fire brigade arrived (almost didn't get here as they were stuck on the bridge in a traffic jam) then they continued by showing how high the water could go and soaking us all. All this for a practise. The kids thought it was brilliant.