Nice little story DD .. and congrats !
I no longer fly for reasons various but it inevitably reminded me of my own triumphant QXC flight : Manchester (Barton) - Halfpenny Green - Hawarden and back. Mine, flown in 1975, I am sure was a whole lot less demanding than yours. I think using EGPK would have freaked me out way back then (!), though I have used all 3 of your QXC airfields since. For me, waiting for suitable weather was my main stumbling-block to progress and I consider myself lucky that I did eventually get a good day in November, like you, to actually complete the flights. I had waited about 3 months for decent weather ! No GPS comfort in those days either, of course.
Best of luck with the rest of your training !
SI