Doors

It feels like there are a lot of doors in our life at the moment…
Most seem to be closed (although they might not actually be….). Some are there, just out of sight, waiting for their time…

I like doors. They’re a sort of little mystery – what’s behind them? Where do they lead? What are their stories?
I was going to find some images of doors online, and then realised that I could use photos I’ve already taken..

Some doors are old… they’ve been there for years, welcoming people into peace and comfort. They’re a little weathered, but still solid.
Sometimes a door worked well years ago, but it’s changed over the years… you can look back to see how it used to be, but you can’t use it anymore..

There are doors that promise new adventures, new experiences… some deliver on the promises, some are disappointing..

Others start from a different direction, but lead to the same place… they’re just quieter and you can sit and ponder on your journey first..

Often a door looks too big – too imposing. It seems as if it would take too long to get to it. It’s worth opening it, just to see what’s on the other side..

A door might open up, but seem to lead to rain and darkness..

… you can’t yet see the one on the other side, or the sunshine that’s waiting..

An open door is exciting – walk through and see what’s waiting there!

The best doors are the ones that welcome you in… and you know you belong there.

Published in: on July 9, 2012 at 3:08 pm  Comments (2)  
Tags:

Random..

Today, I had all sorts of ideas on what to post – I was going in all different directions, and couldn’t make a choice… we had a disappointing day, in one respect, but still are blessed and loved.. there was so much I could say..
In the end, I went on a ramble round the block, taking random photos as I went… nothing too fancy, just what cught my eye.

Here they are.. 😀

My sweet boy..

My Sweet Boy 🙂

Cheeky Face!

A Friend Called “Puppy”

Biggest Boy

A Shy Dandelion

Cheery Red

Hello, Sunshine!

Veins On A Random Seed..

Random Signage

All The Threes

Nasturtium Leaves With Starburst Veins

A Ruffled Feather

Random Driveway With Late Afternoon Shadow Legs..

On The Fence…

 

Carpet Of Leaves

The Sun Shines On Afternoon Branches..

Deep Purple

Acacia Of Many Leaves..

Lichen It! 🙂

 

 

Published in: on July 7, 2012 at 8:23 pm  Leave a Comment  
Tags: , ,

Sing Joyfully!

Published in: on July 6, 2012 at 8:18 am  Comments (1)  
Tags: , ,

The Comfort Of Jelly And Icecream…

Just back from the doctor… littlest bean has been moaning and groaning the last few days about feeling “icky”, and finally refused to eat (or drink) at all today… we wanted to check that there were no serious problems…
Seems he has a viral infection.. red, sore throat… and general “ickiness” (that must be a real medical term 😀 ) Got him home, fed him Panadol, put him to bed…. he’s very wary about any sort of food, but we got him to eat a bit of icecream, and will get jelly to go with it. He’s not convinced, but willing to try….

Source: catchmyparty.com via Carrie on Pinterest

………………………………

On another note, it seems we haven’t been to the doctor in years (6 years, in little bean’s case) – they thought we’d been going somewhere else… Good to know how healthy we generally are!

Published in: on July 5, 2012 at 11:12 am  Leave a Comment  
Tags: ,

Mud And Oranges

Spent the morning with some friends yesterday, at Robelle Domain in Springfield… there’s a cafe there, too, which seems to be open late… might have to check that out..

It’s a lovely place. The playground is pretty impressive, and the kids all loved the water feature… after we’d explored the waterfall and the trails we went back to the play area, where they stripped off their shirts and proceeded to get drenched… Good thing kids don’t seem to feel the cold..

Here’s the  kids… I took a few photos, but I couldn’t get one with everyone smiling..

There was a grassed area further on; a sort of hill/tiered seating arrangement.. perfect for running up (and maybe rolling down?)

We stopped a bit further on for a snack of homegrown oranges, chopped up and eaten straight from the skin… there were water bubblers nearby to wash off the juice.. then it was back to exploring..

One of the highlights of the day (besides the water play) was the mostly dry stream running alongside the trails. The kids scrambled and climbed along the rocks, testing their “parkour” abilities 😀


If you look closely, you may see small people…
There they are! 😀

 More climbing…..

Littlest bean wore his nice boots, so I was not overly impressed when he slipped into the muddy stream and got soaked up to his knees… he didn’t seem too worried..

My camera battery ran down, so I didn’t get any photos of the water feature… they played there the last half hour or so, while the adults had coffee… it was a fun morning.
We will be back!

Published in: on July 3, 2012 at 8:44 pm  Leave a Comment  
Tags: , , , ,

Talk To The Sock…

We had a ventriloquist called Natalie Miller at church today, which was fun, and very funny. It was a different way to experience Bible stories, and the kids loved it….
Here’s a little promo clip, to give you a taster..

As part of the service, she called up three people to have a go with some sock puppets…. Biggest Boy was called up 😀 I was so pleased that he went up on stage (He’s thirteen… he doesn’t like being looked at..) He behaved very well, and he seems to have a bit of a talent for puppetry 😀 I’m not completely surprised – at our place, the soft toys have distinct personalities and voices… He really enjoyed it, so we got him a puppet and an instructional DVD …. I don’t know anything about ventriloquism, but we’ll see how he goes with it..

Watch this space!

Published in: on July 1, 2012 at 9:48 pm  Leave a Comment  
Tags: , , ,

Hope Will Come

It’s the first week of school holidays here… we had a lovely time housesitting at the beginning of the week, and have just been catching up and resting the last couple of days…
I’ve had a bit of a chest infection/not sure what/sick-but-not-sick sort of thing going on the last few weeks, so most days end with me slumped tiredly on the bed, reading or being online. I haven’t been able to walk as much lately as I would like to, so that’s not helping with the energy levels..

I have friends who live and work on the Africa Mercy, a 16000 tonne hospital ship, operated by Mercy Ships, which provides free medical surgeries to the poorest nations on the earth. They are volunteers, giving their time and expertise to change the lives of individuals who would otherwise live shorter, and more difficult, lives.. if you want to read more, here’s their blog.

So… what does one thing have to do with the other? 😀
..On days like today, when I’m about fed up with my body not working to full capacity, I’m reminded (again..) that I live in a country where I can go down to the local hospital should I need to. There are many doctors in this area, and alternative practitioners as well… I have access to clean food and water, and I am not likely to succumb to something that should  be an easily preventable disease, or be eventually  strangled by a growing facial tumour, or become infected with a parasite from unclean water… I do not have to know what it would be like to be slowly dying, or see my children suffering, and know that there is no hope available, and that I wouldn’t have the money to access it even if there was..

Mercy Ships casts a bright ray of light on a dark world. God is honoured, and people are rescued…. and there will be many more stories like this one..

 

 

Published in: on June 30, 2012 at 9:25 pm  Leave a Comment  
Tags: , , , ,

Down The Colour Spectrum

After the previous post on rainbows, I thought I’d create a rainbow from Pinterest images… choosing the ones that caught my eye..

Source: gypsypurpleloves.tumblr.com via Katalin on Pinterest

Source: c-o-l-o-u-r-world.tumblr.com via Christine on Pinterest

Source: likeandshare.info via Bev on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Jimbo on Pinterest

Source: pinterestwomen.org via velma on Pinterest

Source: beautifulllthoughts.tumblr.com via Julie on Pinterest

Source: indulgy.com via Jobita on Pinterest

Published in: on June 23, 2012 at 5:04 pm  Comments (1)  
Tags:

Bohemian Rhapsody. With Chickens.

Published in: on June 22, 2012 at 11:30 pm  Leave a Comment  
Tags: ,

Connecting Rainbows

A few weeks ago, I saw The Muppet Movie for the first time… I remember singing this song as a child, though… it seemed to be everywhere, at one point, although I never associated it with the movie…
..moving right along…

Why are there so many songs about rainbows?

Rainbows are beautiful, so it’s not surprising that people have noticed them over the centuries, and sung/painted/written about them. There’s the technical explanation, of course, but that doesn’t cover the extent of the appeal. Rainbows are a symbol of hope, new beginnings.. they have been used for various causes over the years, and are present in many mythologies. I believe the history given in Genesis. Rainbows are, to me, reminders of God’s constant care of me, and a promise that He will never leave me.

Here is my rainbow story….

About 14 years ago, my Dad was reaching his last days here on earth… he’d been ill for a long time, so it was not unexpected, but… some things you’re never really ready for..
I was living in England at the time, so when I got the call, it was a scramble to arrange tickets, there was only enough money for me to go, and I was looking at a long, anxious flight to get to Australia. I love to travel (as in “see other places”) but I don’t go too well with the process of getting there. Flying is the worst method of travel for me… I tend to get claustrophobic, and there’s no way to step out for a breath of fresh air…
So, I got on the plane, looking ahead to roughly 24 hours of flight (give or take a few hours) Not long in, I had a huge panic attack, hyperventilating, shaking…. I managed not to make a scene, although I probably terrified whoever was sitting next to me… That was a long, horrific flight -easily the worst I’ve been on.
I got home in time to spend time with my Dad, and I was able to stay for the funeral. It was a bit of a blur (I was only there two weeks) and there was no time to think past the moment…. eventually, though, I knew it was nearly time to get on a plane again. There was no getting out of it – I had to go home – but I was getting more anxious the closer it got to flying out.
The morning dawned…
I looked out to see what the weather held, and there, in the sky, was a rainbow. I felt remembered… and I felt secure.
We drove to the airport, which took about an hour or so, and everywhere we went, there was the rainbow…. even when we were driving in a completely different direction, that rainbow followed all the way to the airport. I saw it as I unloaded the luggage, and I saw it as I boarded the plane.
… and, when I’d settled into my seat and we were about to taxi onto the runway, I looked out my window… at the miniature rainbow that was touching down on the wing just outside.

It was the best flight I’d ever had.

Published in: on June 22, 2012 at 10:49 pm  Comments (2)  
Tags: , ,
« Older Entries
Newer Entries »