Join Me

These little fellas sit under a tree in one of the gardens here.  See no evil was broken quite some time back and I cannot get another one to match.  So instead I will concentrate on speaking no evil and hearing no evil.  It's a choice we make really don't you think?

Missy you've met before, she is sweet and a little neurotic, the fault of Danielle, who has pampered her and treated her like a human.  On the other hand Boston who would not let me get a good shot of his face yesterday and literally turned his butt in my direction is just like Ashleigh, his owner.  She is quite independent, has a couple of tattoos, I am sure Boston would get some too if he could, Ashleigh no getting any ideas here ok!!  It is strange isn't it how much like their owners animals are.  Danielle is not neurotic mind you, but she is a lot more cautious than Ashleigh is.  She has one tattoo on her foot, which she regretted getting the day after she did.  Ashleigh on the other hand has two.  One on her butt cheek near her hip, a southern cross, which is a star formation here in Australia, to remind her how to find her way home.  And a swallow and italian words on her foot.  What to do when your children grow up and make their own decisions.  Some you agree with and some you don't.  Shrug I have no clue sometimes.  I choose to love them regardless and how could I not they are wonderful.  Just like Missy and Boston, who make me smile so often and make my heart overflow everyday, just like my family.

We brought little angel boy with us from the other house, we had to I love him.  He actually looks so much more content in his new surrounds.  He is nestled in between a couple of trees in the front yard.  He watches us come and go and enjoys the sun and breeze he is truly adorable.

Paperbark trees are wonderful, the bark is used for making bark paintings.  The artists use layers and layers of different coloured bark to create images.  Often Australian scenes, houses, landscapes quite amazing.  We have several paperbarks in the yard, the leaves are thin and long and similar to a weeping willow in appearance.

See the incredible bark, it is soft to touch almost silky in feel and so many colours in every layer.

Bottle brush trees, native to Australia, we do have some weird and wonderful things here.  The yellow brush will become the brown pod on the right.  Equally beautiful in its own way don't you think?  This bush sits at our entry near the fish pond.

Gum nuts, the remainder of the gum tree flowers after the bloom has gone.  like little pottery jars aren't they?  There are so many of these on the trees along the border of the land, I cannot wait until the spring flowering to show you.

So another little tour is over, you'll be true blue Aussies before I am finished with you.  Only 15 days to go till France.  I had a wonderful email from Helene whom we are meeting in Cannes on the 29th May.  I met her blogging, isn't this world fantastic and she has offered to show us around Cannes for the weekend we are there.  How marvellous, is that!!?  The best part of travelling is meeting the people who live there.  Seeing their favourite spots, how generous and kind is she to take the time to meet us.  That is why I say you are welcome, to visit us.  Truly truly welcome.  With open arms I wait to greet you.

And Gretchen, my travel buddy from our Europe tour last year is taking the first tour with us as well.  She lives in Ohio and we have stayed in contact since we left the tour early last year.  She has inspired me as I have gotten to know her and I cannot wait to see her again.  So yes I am excited, to show you round my corner of the world, through this little blog and to meet you in your corner too.

I took this picture early one morning when Adrian and I went for a walk.  The clouds just look so pretty to me.  Yesterday we went to a funeral.  A lovely man we know and have known for years now.  We had kids in school together and at one stage we were either looking after one of their girls for the weekend or they had our twins for the night.  He got pancreatic cancer earlier this year and passed away last Thursday morning leaving his lovely wife and 7 children.  How do I register this in my mind.  How do I get an answer to its all part of the perfect plan.  I just don't know really I don't!!!!  I feel like I am having a crisis of faith.  Nothing is as it seems, nothing I thought was true seems to be anymore.  So I am challenged to find new answers, new ways, new depths of true.  It is interesting I must say.  For years as a family we attended a pentecostal church, where we were told it wasn't ok to drink alcohol so we didn't, we shouldn't read, watch or listen to a whole list of things and we didn't.  We should believe that God heals and speaks through his people to day and He will heal and save us if we ask Him to.  So we did and He didn't.  Our baby grandson passed away on the 23rd June this year at 7 weeks of age.  He was our eldest daughters first baby, our first grandson and the second male addition to our family after his father, our son in law so he was very special.  He carried my husbands name as his middle name, you don't get much more special than that.!! 

Lucas Adrian Middleton was a treasure and we loved him very much we still do.  But after all our prayers and all our believing he would be healed and live he didn't and neither did the man who was buried yesterday.  So I am asking the question today does God still heal today?  If so why is He so selective? Why is it that we hear of great miracles happening in 3rd world countries but not so much here.  I wonder.  Anyway the sky was beautiful that morning and I know that the wonders of this world we live in didn't just evolve from pond scum, so there is a creator out there, He might not do what I thought he would, but he is there somewhere.

Ok so now I am off my soapbox let's get to something wonderful, my family.  Yep there isn't a photo shoot that doesn't end up with someone pulling faces, the group disassembling before I am finished shooting, a whole heap of laughing and mucking around and generally just a good time. Honestly you would think by now these mob would know when a serious photographer is hard at it and just pull their weight in helping get the perfect shot.  Actually I usually get a whole string of pics I love when they muck up.  The big tall gorgeous guy is my son in law Paul, and the little cutie with the bob is my No. 1 baby Alicia.  Queen of hair colour and shoes and not in that order either.   The other two munchkins are my jetsetting twins, Ashleigh & Danielle 20 in a few weeks and  already been to the USA and Europe and the Uk, they lived out the dreams I had as a teenager and made Adrian yeah he's the other hunky one in there, and I take off ourselves twice in the last 12 months.

And here they are again, the day before Fathers Day which is the first Sunday in September here in Australia, doing the usual lets make silly here.  None of them wear glasses, well Adrian does, but we have a whole heap of spectacles laying round this house for some reason and after a few Pina Coladas last Saturday they all decided they needed to wear them.  It was a fun day.

So family where would we be without them?  They drive me nuts sometimes, lots of times actually, but hey I love them, all of them, all of the time.  They make me cry, laugh, angry, confused, nervous, concerned, weepy, glad, delight, long for more of them, annoyed, anxious, delirously happy and they make we want to live.  And after seeing the pain of losing one of your family twice in the last 3 months, first Lucas and then yesterday Greg, I love my family and cherish every moment, good, bad and wonderful that I have with them.