My Diary Of 2025

I usually like to end a year with reflections - looking back over the year gone with a thankful and grateful heart and looking to the New Year with fresh hope. 2025 has certainly been a year of blessings, and has looked very different from 2024. And yet, as I shared in my end of year blog post last December, despite the pain, grief and hardships of 2024, there was still much to give thanks for.

About three years ago, I shared the year I had had almost in a diary format, with highlights and sometimes lows from each month, and I want to do that again this year, especially as so much has happened.

January

We enjoyed a beautiful start to the New Year, starting my new job (which I love!), celebrating my father-in-law's birthday and some positive news back from Genetics after having genetic testing done last year after losing our little boy. Another highlight for me was discovering a lovely little Italian restaurant that we had never eaten at before where Tom and I enjoyed a really romantic and utterly delicious meal one evening. I even went to London with a friend on an impromptu trip to see the new musical Benjamin Button in the West End one evening after work. I feel so blessed to live close enough to London to be able to do that. January was truly a promising beginning, and felt like the fresh start I felt we so desperately needed. Thank You Jesus!

February

The beginning of the month saw us hosting our friends from Austria for a week, and we enjoyed fun days out to London, Oxford and Cambridge. Tom and I also booked a rather last-minute couple of nights away for a little spa break in the Cotswolds, which was absolutely lush. It was so special having time away just the two of us and completely relax. This was also the month that Tom and I visited my family in Northumberland for the first time, staying with my parents in their new home that they had moved into a few months previously. We had a lovely time seeing where they now live and enjoyed a hearty pub lunch one day with my parents, sister, brother-in-law and his parents, too. I also got my sister to sign my copies of her new debut novel, Nephthys, which was so special! It was truly amazing to go into bookshops like Waterstones and see a novel written by my very own sister on display (hashtag proud sister moment!).

March

This was a month where I feel I finally got my social life back into gear properly. With last year being so difficult, I mostly kept myself to myself, spending my time writing a novel and reading. It was what I needed to do to process. Due to this, my social life was sorely lacking, and it felt so good to fill my calendar with coffee dates with friends, hosting grandparents for meals and Tom and I being hosted by friends for meals, too.

April

April started with a bang with the launch of our new cosmetics business, Galini. It was such a proud moment to launch something we had been creating since the close of Spring 2024 and finally showcase her to the world with our online business, selling products we had made ourselves by hand. You can check out our website here. It was also a big month for us, as it marked the first year of the passing of our precious baby boy. Tom and I determined to mark his first Heavenly birthday in a special way, and so we started the day visiting his grave and tied balloons to his cross, gave him a little birthday gift and spent the day at a heritage railway, in honour of our little man. Sadly, we didn't have the best Easter this year, as over the Easter weekend, we lost another little one to a miscarriage almost seven weeks into the pregnancy. I felt devastated losing another baby in the same month we acknowledged the year mark of our son's passing. It felt so cruel. And yet, God had graciously already prepared the ground in my heart through the loss of our son, and as a result, He had equipped me to trust Him that much better, and hold onto Him that much tighter throughout this miscarriage. I remember sitting up in bed one morning and telling Him, 'Lord, it feels such a cruel thing to be in hospital being told I have lost yet another child on Resurrection Sunday of all days!' And He gently said to me, 'But what better day to find out that your child is resurrected with Me and has new life in Heaven?' It was such a beautiful and profound moment, that I will never forget. In that moment, my Heavenly Father's closeness and kindness really cut through the pain and helped give me a whole new perspective.

May

Another fun month! A real highlight was Tom and I visiting my family in Northumberland again. What fun we had, with coastal walks, going for a paddle in the sea at the beach, seal-watching, enjoying an absolutely fantastic day out stepping back in time at Beamish, 'the living museum of the North' and just enjoying time together as a family. To close the month, Tom and I saw 'Taylormania' at Milton Keynes Theatre, which my beloved husband did for me but ended up having an absolute blast himself as we sang and danced along to Taylor Swift's music and enjoyed Katy Ellis' performance as Taylor Swift. It was the next best thing to going to the Eras Tour.

June

Without a doubt, the best day for Tom and I this month was Father's Day, and this will always live in our memories and have a special place in our hearts. It was the day we found out that I was carrying our precious daughter, who is due in February 2026! We are so thankful to God for this precious gift, and it certainly turned out to be a very special day for Tom as a Dad on the day we set aside to really honour fathers.

July

Tom and I enjoyed a lovely week off together this month, with an exciting trip to the North Yorkshire Railway just before Tom's birthday, and an impromptu couple of nights away in one of our most special, happy places - Norfolk. We stayed in a really cute cottage, or what was a converted stable, and had a beautiful time away just us as a couple, going for long walks that took us across a Nature Reserve and by the North Norfolk Railway, delicious breakfasts in a pub overlooking the sea, fish and chips on the beach . . . what more could you want?! We also found out this month how well our precious little baby was doing and showed no signs of Anencephaly (which was the condition our son had), and so there was much rejoicing and happy tears as we finally shared the news with our family that we had a little one on the way!

August

Really struggled with tiredness and my hormones this month of my pregnancy, although it gradually started to calm down towards the end of the month. We had a really special time with my parents who came to stay with us, enjoying a BBQ all together at my in-laws on one occassion and then a super fun day out in Windsor on another, where we walked the Long Wak, drank coffee at a coffee shop, enjoyed a picnic on the grassty verge along the Long Walk, strolled by the River Thames and enjoyed a drink and some rather delicious pub food overlooking the river. A really special day, and one of the highlights of my year.

September

A month of midwife appointments, scans and vaccines! I have been so well looked after by the hospital in my pregnancy, making sure I have extra reassurance scans and giving us that extra support as a couple. I feel very blessed and so thankful to God for the care we have been given, and that our darling baby is doing so very well. We also found out the gender of our precious little one this month, and it was such a joy to host a Gender Revel in our home, celebrating the news that God has blessed us with a beloved daughter. Such a joyous time of celebration! God is so very good.

October

One of my favourite months, and not just because I fall in love with autumn afresh every year . . . but it also happens to be my birthday month! And once again my beloved Tom really spoiled me, taking me to London for a few nights, where we enjoyed exploring, eating good food, a fantastic visit to the Tower of London (something we had both wanted to do for a while) and an unforgettable night out at the theatre to see the very first premiere preview performance of The Hunger Games on stage. In fact, this was the month of theatre productions, as we also saw River Dance and the truly spectacular musical Mary Poppins, which was 'practically perfect in every way'.

November

It was an exciting time for us, as we attended our very first Christmas market as sellers, showcasing our beautiful products from our business. And a very encouraging first market we had, too! I am definitely looking forward to getting involved in more markets in 2026, God-willing. And of course, Tom and I had our special annual Christmas Decorating Day, where we really made the most of it, turning up those festive tunes, decking out the house with all our Christmas decorations and enjoying a delicious home-cooked dinner of Roast Duck with a homemade sticky orange sauce and all the trimmings. And of course, we had to conclude the evening with a movie - The Holiday - one of our festive favourites!

December

A month of festive celebrations, from baking cookies and Christmas Pudding Scones, to watching cosy Christmas movies and taking part in our Carol Services. And what a beautiful time we had over Christmas as well, with my family visiting from Northumberland. It's been so lovely creating more special memories together. There have been some challenges this month, too, both of which came to us only a few days before Christmas. But despite these, it has been a beautiful reminder that Jesus is our Emmanuel - God with us! Whilst I still have a long way to go, God is teaching me bit by bit the true secret of keeping my eyes on Jesus and not on the circumstances. He is the One who brings us true peace in the midst of our storms. Yes, I have my wobbly moments, I really do; but every time, just when I need to hear it most, Jesus brings my attention to something that speaks to me in just the right moment to quieten my troubled soul. I love how He speaks directly to me, encouraging me! And this is what I am going to take forwards into 2026: that my Saviour loves me, communicates with me and speaks to me directly into my situation.

Looking back, I am so grateful for everything that has taken place, both the highs and the lows. I'm so thankful for the lessons God has been teaching me this year, especially in listening more to His voice and being still, trusting in Him despite not understanding what is going on at times (especially in the painful moments) and just getting more involved in church activities. It has definitely been another year of learning even more about my Heavenly Father's character, leaning into Him more and drawing closer to Him. There is no greater peace than in pursuing Him, and allowing Him to pursue me.

I am also so incredibly thankful for all of the many bountiful blessings God has so kindly bestowed on us this year, and for all the good things we have enjoyed and continue to enjoy. His kindness really blesses my soul, especially knowing I have done nothing to deserve it - it's all of His grace and loving-kindness.

As 2025 closes, and 2026 dawns, Tom and I look forward to it with so much hope in our hearts, especially as we await the soon-arrival of our beloved daughter, but also with the everlasting Hope in Jesus our Saviour. We close another year with grateful hearts, looking forward to seeing what God has in store for us in 2026.

I pray that 2026 is a year full of blessings for you, and that you might also know the love of our Heavenly Father, and enjoy a close walk with Him at the centre of your life. Happy New Year everyone!