World Youth Day 2008

World Youth Day (WYD) is the largest youth event in the world and will be held in Sydney from Tuesday 15 to Sunday 20 July 2008. Thousands of pilgrims will arrive in Australia from all over the world and will be staying in the homes of normal people who are willing to open up their homes and can offer a spare bedroom for the week. We put our name down on the homestay list and had a phonecall yesterday asking if someone could come to our house to get us to sign the mandatory forms and so that they could see that we are (relatively) normal, the house has running water, electricity and a smoke alarm!

I sent the kids racing around before bed last night tidying up and making their bedrooms spick and span. I told them if our house wasn't nice and clean enough we might not be allowed to have any pilgrims. Am I the worlds meanest Mum telling little white lies like that? I think I will have to light an extra candle at Mass this week to make up for it!

Before the kids went to school this morning Rhiannon said she needed to tell me some things that I was to tell Bev, our Homestay lady. Firstly could she send us girls, and please not girls who smoke, not even in the garden and also could she send girls that like playing, especially "my littlest pet shop" !!! I tried telling Rhiannon that we might get anyone up to the age of 35. She just gave me that look and said "Mum, even grown up girls still like to play sometimes"

4 hours later and Bev has been and gone. She ticked all the boxes on her list, got us to sign a few forms and told me to tell Rhiannon she promises we will get two lovely non-smoking girls who hopefully will love playing "my littlest pet shop"

Watch this space!