A Half Century

Yes, I've made it!

Tomorrow is my fiftieth birthday!

Thank you, Lord, for a wonderful life. 

For an extraordinarily fantastic family. 

For the blessing of faithful, prayerful and supportive friends.

For healthy, beautiful children

For thriving, inquisitive grandchildren. 

And most amazing of all I am thankful that  ~

You have called me and redeemed me.

Amen

For everything there is a season

And a time for every purpose under heaven

I woke up early last Saturday morning and drifted back to sleep with happy thoughts of my family gathered in Melbourne and a prayer for my gorgeous niece who was to marry later that day.

When I actually got our of bed a few hours later I was greeted with the tragic news that there had been a shooting in a school in America.

Sometimes, all  the seasons seem to happen in one day.....

So while I spent the afternoon waiting for pics to come up on Facebook and visiting my parents, there was a very sombre cloud over the day, even here so far away.

Ecclesiastes 3

1 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

² A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
³ A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
⁴ A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
⁵ A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
⁶ A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
⁷ A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
⁸ A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

And so it has been for most of this year.  A season of casting away but also gathering and regrouping.  A time to keep silence on some issues but with others to voice our opinions. And we have had lots of times of weeping and sadness and trial but also many memorable happy times ♥
And so it seems, it has been all my life, as I look back from this high pinnacle of fifty years.  The ups and downs, the good times and the bad, sickness and health.

The one constant in my life?...............My Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!
For even before I knew of my need of Him, I can see now that He was always leading and guiding my steps.  Before the Lord became the centre of my life, the love of my life, through many "dangers, toils and snares" He knew me and was working all of my life together for good and for His glory!

This is great consolation for us when we are travelling through dark valleys. And when life is going well and we are able to see all the wonderful blessings and glimpses of Glory that God has bestowed on us, we can also look back and see that the same faithful Jesus led us through that difficult time.

I know now that my niece was an enchanting bride. She  and her lovely husband are honeymooning and everyone is talking about just how special their nuptials were.

My heart aches for the the families of the sweet children and their teachers from Newtown.  I selfishly hold my children and grandchildren close, unable to fathom what pain they feel.

We do indeed "Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep."
As we come to the end of another year, when there is a lot of rejoicing and thanksgiving, I want to give praise and thanks to God ~ for His mercies endure forever! "The JOY of the Lord is my strength" and no matter what comes our way in 2013 "Nothing shall separate us from the love of Christ which is in Christ Jesus"!

Thank you all for your friendship, encouragement and entertainment during this very eventful year.  God bless you  xo

Rawr!!!!!!!!!

"Three little words"

You know from my blog that I am a genius ~ mwhahahahahhaha!!!
Truth is I am often ditzy and unco-ordinated.  It goes without saying that I don't read maps well :-)

So last week I ordered a new bed.  One of those bunks with double on the bottom and single on top.  The boys have been back to sharing a room since our daughter and family have been here and it was very crowded, so this seemed to be the best solution to give them some space.  The picture looked so nice!  The salesperson was very accommodating and we bargained a good price - alas, those "three little words" that I dread -
 Ready to assemble!

All you Ikea loving, allen key toting readers may well laugh...  But for me, this is no laughing matter.  It strikes fear in my heart even looking over the instructions!!!!  Fortunately, other members of the household are not deterred by such confusing pieces of paper and the bunks look just fine.

                                                              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My third grandson turned three today! They are all growing up so very quickly, it is hard to fathom where the years are racing to.  GS 3 is one of those absolutely gorgeous cute little boys who is into every conceivable mischief he can find!  So I can finish this brief post with those other three little words ~  "I Love You" ♥♥

Three Amigos!
Birthday boy in the middle.

The twins check out the new quad bike

We're Done!

We are officially on holidays!

It has been a typical Rockhampton week weather wise - hot and humid.  This has made it hard to buckle down.  But here it is, lunch time Wednesday and the last of the school books are packed away.  Such a great feeling!

2012 has been a year of many highs and lows. I guess that makes it a very typical year.  We've had a few good break throughs with the boys reading.  S2 particularly has improved immensely in this department.  S1, though he finds anything academic tough, has really shown maturity and applies himself to what ever  task is put before him.

Sadly, my boys do not enjoy the formal side of schooling and I am trusting that they will find what it is they love and want to do in life and then go for it with gusto!

Come on ~ it's not that bad!

We have some unfinished books which I will attempt to get read in the next few weeks.  Have you found as the children get older that it is much harder to make times to sit and read together, especially on holidays? One of the books we have almost completed is my Uncle's family history, so that is a great read together and conversation starter.

We ended the year with a bit of a bang last week (another reason why we have been sluggish this week). We had the Groves Presentation Night on Wednesday last, both boys receiving certificates for effort and character.  Then on Thursday, my older son's fifteenth birthday, he and I attended the Graduation Dinner.  This is held each year in our little home school group to celebrate the completing of Year 12 or in some cases 10, of some of the students.  This was a lovely night out for the older students.

The graduates and guest speakers

My handsome birthday boy, second right, with mates

 at the Graduation Dinner

Then on Friday we had a Break Up with all the homeschooling families.

This was a fabulous event with slip and sliding, water fights, family challenge and a shared evening meal.

The Capricornia Homeschoolers are a terrific bunch!

It is wonderful to see so many young and enthusiastic people getting involved.

This week, apart from finalising our formal work, I have a number of appointments and taking my mum to one as well.  Then it is time to really enjoy the holiday break!

I thank God for the many blessings and mercies he has showed to us this year.  We have faced many challenges but we have come through. We have enjoyed many family occasions and we are blessed to have all of the grandparents living and contributing so much to our lives.

We have learned to trust God more as he had enabled us through difficult times as well.

"The joy of the Lord is my strength"