September!

A month to remember!

My eldest grandson turned 5!

My darling mother turned 84!

Here are my three sisters, their husbands, two of my brothers

 and me with Mum.

My youngest grandson turned 2!

He is very cute and sweet ♥

Mush! Mush!

Harnessing the dog power to save the legs!

Trick rider

These holidays from formal school have been a wonderful opportunity to take a breathe in our very hectic life.  I have got a lot done at home and been able to spend time with the family.

My youngest son's life is still turbulent and we are dubious to send him back to school

although he is determined to go.

My older son had a great break away with his Gold Coast friends.

Another week of holidays

Will it be enough!

The New Normal

I have been reminiscing about the "good old days"!

There was a time, back when I had only two children and we lived a little out of town on acreage, when we had a very routine but carefree life. Oh, it seems so long ago.  My older daughter learned to read and the two little girls played endless dress up and make believe games. No TV or internet but we spent a lot of time in the garden and we had chooks and geese. We got up early and went to bed early and all sat at the table for all of our meals. It was so idyllic.  I like to think of those times because it was fleeting and the storms of life since then have really given us a belting....

My younger son is at school now.  He has settled in very well.  Where the teachers had been concerned about his "social" life going to school after 8 1/2 years of being home educated  I felt all along that he would have no trouble fitting in but that keeping up with class work would be a challenge.

He has managed to find his way around easily, picked up a regular hand ball game in the lunch break, and signed himself up for the football team :-(

It is a school of almost 1200 students so I think it must be quite daunting.

Whether his mental health issues will be a thing of the past is not clear yet but he is

certainly dealing with things in general a lot better.

He is exhausted at night which is good.

My older son is struggling a little to get motivated doing his school work at home alone.

My having to be out of the house quite a bit at the moment is not helping but also

he would like to ditch school and start working.

(Lots of attitudes to deal with in both boys and sadly myself.)

So with a new home and with all the hectic-ness of our new schedules we

have found a new normal.

It is quieter and more orderly at home but we don't seem to be "at home" 

quite as much.

The twins!

It is difficult to grasp that my grandchildren are growing so quickly.

The twins were two a month ago.

They are both speaking well and very bright and energetic!

The youngest of the bunch will turn two in September.

Oh, where did the baby go?

A Day to Honour Mothers

To all the mothers out there.

Mothers of children

and those who mother and share

their love and compassion

with others
in many different ways.
Often unrecognised.

xoxoxoxoxoxo

The single, unflattering photo from our Mothers' Day lunch.

My mother and I with my daughter and her daughter.

Love you Mum xo

Of Babies, big boys and limitations.

Our "baby" turned fourteen last week!

I am constantly amazed at the accelerating passage of time!

He was such a huggy, happy baby.  In many ways he still is.  Life and the journey through it moulds and shapes us. Sometimes in good, great even, ways and sometimes it seems to take the stuffing out of us.  I see that in his life just now.  He is still the same eager, helpful, sensitive lad but he can be a young man with the cares of the worlds on his shoulders.

We pray.

We encourage.

We wait on the Lord!

oo0oo

At times I feel like a young child myself :-)

As I spend time with my parents I seem to still regard myself as their little child.

My Dad is very weak and frail.

He believes he is dying.

Alas, aren't we all?

But as I drive away I don't remember the fragile, white haired man

snuggled up in foetal position.

Blind, almost deaf and dependant.

I let my mind travel back to those long ago golden days..

I see the hero of my childhood.

Broad shouldered and laughing.

Hoisting strainer posts effortlessly to his shoulders.

Chopping wood with strong, even strokes.

Patient, dependable.

Again we pray.

We encourage.

And wait on the Lord.

oo0oo

Old age limits my parents greatly.

But they accept, for the most part, with dignity and acceptance.

I feel limited by my lack of health and strength

yet I know and rejoice that

"The joy of the Lord is my strength"!

and

"Godliness with contentment is great gain."

Isaiah 40:31

But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

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"

Our United Nations

Hubby and I and the boys are home from a great weekend in Brisbane.

We travelled by train and managed to catch up with lots of people even though it was only a four day trip.

On Brisbane trips we always stay with hubby's mother. (You may remember she was eighty in October).  We got to relax and chat with her as well as a nice little shopping trip and coffee for us ladies.

No kids around, so the boys spent the first two days very quietly.

Here they are on the train but the ear phones got a good work out during the trip down and back and when adult conversation just droned on for too long!

The reason for our visit was my Father-in-laws eightieth birthday.

Hubby is obscured but this is him with his sister and half brother and spouses.

Despite ongoing illness, Papa was very enthusiastic at his party!

Coming home from the celebrations, I couldn't help but ponder

about the contrast between

my own family and background and my in laws.

Hubby's dad migrated from Italy in the early fifties. His mother has a wonderfully chequered background with French and Scottish forebears.

The story of how his French great-grandparents ended up in  

Australia is fascinating and I

hope one day someone writes a book about that!

They are part of the history of early Cairns remembered by such place names as

Frenchman's Creek and Josephine Falls.

My husband's parents separated way back when he was about five. 

After that he didn't see his dad again for twenty five years!

He was raised by his mother (and grandmother).

His father remarried a much younger Philipina and had a son.

Can you imagine the scene in the restaurant where the party was held?

The excited high pitched voices of the Philipino ladies and the rich rolling

depth of all those Italians.  What a babble!

Many of their friends we had meet on other visits.

Michello, Giorgio, Mario, Giovanni.

Aurora, Rosalinda and Maria!

After the luncheon we spent the rest of the afternoon and evening

 just with the family members.

As we sat to share dinner we noted that there were we few "Aussies" with an Italian,

a Philipina, a Korean and a German! All of whom have arrived here as adults.

Before eating, hubby's half brother commented "Bon Appetit" and we all roared laughing.

All those languages to choose from yet he used French!

"Bon Appetito"

The eighty year old corrected in his beautiful throaty accent.

It is almost 25 years since we first re-established contact with my husband's father.

This weekend we realised how blessed we have been to have that

area of life "resolved".

Looking on, I believe my father in law must be very pleased to have been

re-united with the children he left so many years ago.

It's Wednesday!

It's Wednesday and we had pizza for tea.

Not exactly a blogging head line snatcher but big news in our house as we usually only ever have pizza on a Friday.  Friday is Dad does tea night.  Today however was one of those days when 6.00pm rolled around and although I had meat out nothing was even started for tea.  The babies and toddlers were tired and cranky and I might add so was the cook. Just a little.  Frazzled perhaps describes me better, so my daughter's suggestion of pizza went down very well.



The "Utopia" 150 year celebration was a great day out!

About 200 people crowded into the Library for the launch of a book recounting the life and voyages of the "Utopia" and  the passengers and crew of that first migrant ship to arrive directly to Rockhampton.  Though I know the history of my own family it was great to see them there among the interesting stories of others who settled here at that time.
My Dad's cousin at 91 was the oldest descendant present and got to cut the cake, along with one of his distant cousins who had travelled the farthest for the event.  (From Canada)

The lunch was made interesting for me being able to sit with the mother of two of my friends.  Knowing them since the eighties we never realised then that our great, great, grandparents had travelled together to the land down under way back in the 1860s.
 A maritime historian gave a very interesting talk after lunch on shipping and immigration at that time in Australia's history and the actual happenings around the arrival of the boat. Including a stoush between the indigenous people and the new settlers. The Durrumble people were acknowledged on several occasions throughout the day.

Then about 150 descendants took the bus tour around the original part of town.  This was commentated by one of the local history buffs and he not only knew his stuff but painted a vivid picture of old Rocky town, what little there was of it in 1862.  This tour ended with a wander through the old cemetery where both my Bond and Rattenbury great, great grandparents are buried as well as later members of those families.

The Utopia

If the Brits who came here thought this would be Utopia then perhaps, or no doubt, they were sorely disappointed.  Many scattered to other parts of Queensland and the rest of Australia.  Judging by the turn-out at this reunion and the enthusiasm among the attendees I think many have found Rocky to be a great place to be.
The local news paper slogan is "We live here because we love it"!!!!!


Off to Brisbane again this weekend.

This time to celebrate my father-in-law's eightieth birthday! You may recall from past blogs that I am not a real fan of Brisbane.  It is a rat race!  But seeing family is always good and I don't mind these trips when hubby is with me as he can deal with the maps and chaos much better than me.
We have certainly had a lot of family celebrations this year.  Only another oh, six or seven weeks until I hit the big 50!

This will be like a mid term break for the boys and I. When we get back we will be into the final few weeks of school for the year.  We are hoping to be finished end of November but.......

"UTOPIA" Revisited

Well, lovely readers, I have given you a short break after the wonderful Centenary Celebrations of my family, from my dabblings in history.
I love history, though I admit it is a love I have developed as I've become older and in the broader sense have enjoyed learning along with own children.

But Family History has become something of a passion for me:-)

• 
  

Therefore, in this 100th year of my father's parents settling at Jooro, I am excited to also be celebrating the 150th anniversary of the landing of the migrant ship "Utopia" in Keppel Bay.  The passengers of which then came up the river to Rockhampton.  The year was 1862 and this was the first ship to bring immigrants directly to Rockhampton. The 324 passengers swelled the population of Rocky by about 50%!

Descendants and History buffs are invited to attend the celebrations being held next weekend (3/4 November).  The launch of a book by a local Historian at the Public Library, Lunch at the North Rockhampton Bowls club which is along the Fitzroy River not far from the arrival point and a bus tour of historic sites. These include the memorial stone to mark the arrival of the "Utopia", other old establishments along the river and the old cemeteries.

Several of my own family will be enjoying the day with me and many of my more extended relatives.  My father's maternal great  grandparents, (on both sides) were passengers on the "Utopia".  Two young couples, the Bonds and the Rattenburys.  Each with two small children arrived here among the adventurous souls who travelled from England's fair shores to the blistering heat of our Australian summer.

Each family had quite a few more children after coming to Australia and my  great Grandfather, Charles Bond went on to marry Sarah Rattenbury.  As you can imagine in a large country town like Rockhampton there are still many descendants of those first pioneers who lay claim to this wonderful piece of Aussie history. 

If you would like to read a little about the ship, her voyage and arrival and the good folk who travelled on her , follow the link:

The Arrival of the Utopia

The article concludes with a photograph taken at the fifty year celebration of the "Utopia" and my ancestor, Richard Bond is in it.  He is the gentleman with the bushy beard.

(Hahahahahahahahahhahahaha)

Great great grandparents
Richard and Mary Bond

In family folk lore, and also other articles, it is told that the crew of the ship mutinied and that the able and willing men on board performed the crew men's duties to aid the captain to bring her to her destination.  It is mentioned in this article that the men were hand picked according to their skills and trades.  This was a great boon to the newly settled area.

The Bonds became dairy farmers. 
A friend of mine now lives in Bond road close to the place where they once lived and worked.

The Rattenburys were also farmers and Dad was telling me recently that they also dabbled in mining. There were several mines in the area in the early days including 

gold at Mt Morgan.

More on this after the event!

Haha, if you missed the joke I know you didn't look at the link!

   Two special people♥

21 October, 1972

My eldest sister's wedding day. 

Happy memories even though I am bawling!

Looking Back....

You know what it is like.  You plan and organise every detail for a big event, like your wedding, and then blip.....in the blink of an eye it is all over.  There's a high, then a sort of deflation right afterwards.  Then, as time goes by you remember the great event with happy satisfaction and it is stored away in the archive of happy, golden memories that will always be treasured.

So it is with the great family Centenary Celebration!  We've had lovely thank you emails from many of the travelling relatives.  I notice this is mostly the older generation, and remind myself to be more diligent in sending Thank you notes and encouraging the children to do so. I wrote an article for the Local Paper and was thrilled that they edited it very little and printed all four photos that I sent.  It was a full page article on Saturday, so everyone was very thrilled!

Our littlest grandchild had his first birthday on the day of the reunion, so we celebrated jointly with his dad, on the Monday public holiday.

He is such a cute little fellow and despite being a little off colour

had a wonderful day being the centre of attention!

Birthday Boys!

My two boys had a great week  with their friends at the Gold Coast.  As they all get older, start jobs etc.  it is becoming more difficult to plan times when they can all meet up.  They really enjoyed it, as always, and also got to meet more of the boys new friends.  The reality is that over time their lives will diverge more and more.  "Jasmine" their mother is a special friend of mine and I relished the short space of time we had to catch up on Friday when we collected the boys.  She is one of those rare to find friends with whom I can immediately fall back into conversation.  It is almost as if we just took up where we left off about 12 months ago! I pray that our children will enjoy the same closeness of fellowship in years to come.

Friday was my mother-in-law's 80th birthday!  She is a very with it woman with a lot still to offer and enjoy.  She still teaches music students (piano) and I think she will do so for as long as possible.  It is her great passion and I think it keeps her going!

We had a lovely family dinner at a Community Sports Club in Sunnybank.  Everyone was there except my two girls and their children.  I loved meeting two great nephews who we had not met before. Hubby and I made a very quick two day trip for the occasion but we hope to go back again soon for a longer visit.

Nana had a wonderful 80th surrounded by her family.
Here she rides happily back to the car park and enjoys the well wishes.

So, after all the excitement of the September holidays we have now to get back into school mode.  I can scarcely believe that Term 4 is on us already.  We always find the heat of first and fourth terms challenging.  This will be the first summer term for many years where we are not doing swimming on Fridays.  Perhaps I'll incorporate that anyway.  There are end of year events to think about and school work returns and .............

Have a great week everyone, especially if you too are back to school.
Remember to hug your children. Try not to  let those precious opportunities pass, when you can show your love, grace and forgiveness to others.  Life is so short.
I am reminding myself to send that note of thanks or comfort and share a little of the blessings which God bestows.