An ultimate weekend

Apologies for the light blogging over the past week or so, but strange as it may seem at this particular political juncture, I've been taking a break from following the travails of Mr Gordon Brown to organise my daughter Clara's dedication, which took place on Saturday.

Rather than have her baptised, we held a simple but moving service to say thank you to God for her and to ask His blessing on her life. Hopefully she will come to baptism when she is old enough to explore the claims of Christianity for herself.

Highlights of the service included a perfect solo rendition of John Rutter's setting of All Things Bright and Beautiful by my nephew Myles, a reading from Proverbs 3 vv 1-18, which contains all the advice necessary for a happy and fulfilling life, and some beautifully written and heartfelt prayers from her four godparents.

It was followed by a barbecue in the garden of our Derbyshire home for which we were blessed by the best weather of the year so far. When we bought the place last November, we hoped it would prove to be a "party house," and Saturday certainly bore that out.

Over the past week, my wife and I have also celebrated our seventh wedding anniversary with a trip up to Grassington in the Yorkshire Dales, which included some wonderful walking in Wharfedale and a shopping trip to Harrogate.

Never fear, though....I'll be back on the Brown stuff before long.