A Full Weekend

The end of this week was very welcomed! 

After some much needed grocery shopping and stocking up at Costco on Friday evening... (Yes, they have one of those way down here... although... it is a bit different than in the States)...  We spent our Saturday on the beach!



I enjoyed  sitting in the shade of a large evergreen tree...reading a favorite book by Sally Clarkson, "Season's of a Mother's Heart" on my beach blanket... looking up every once in a while at my little ones swimming in the ocean and playing in the sand.  I savored the moment... 



Daddy took life guard duty as he instructed Sarah on the art of the Boogie Board.  She took to it well and was riding the waves in one after the other!

 Beach side flowers always catch my eye...

 

Whale Watching just south of Palm Beach

Sunday, we enjoyed a quiet morning... church at home... listening to our favorite Pastor at HBC.  We then prepared for a reunion with an old friend all the way from Ridley Park, PA and her Australian husband...


 

We had a great time catching up on 20 years of  life... she was only 12 years old when we first met her!  Her mom and dad were so good to us... we were the young married couple then.  They always made time to visit with us and had us over for dinner often.  It seemed only fitting to take advantage of the opportunity to return the favor... my only question is... where does the time go?

Making a Home with Homeschool at it's Heart

Over the past couple of weeks I have been working to unpack our surface shipment and bring some semblance of order and a sense of "home" to our new place.   All of our life possessions were packed up by the movers in the beginning of July.  While most are in storage, we finally did receive a limited shipment of household goods at the beginning of October!  I am still in shock how much we fit into our limited shipment... The kids and I have worked to unpack, put away, and decorate our little cottage to resemble our personalities a bit...   What a difference a little bit of "home" makes to a blank canvas of white walls and hardwood floors!

One of my first priorities, after the kitchen, was to tackle our "Homeschool Nook".  I knew that we would be needing to start our official school year within a couple of weeks after our shipment arrived... and, I worked to make this room one of the coziest and desirable places to be.

The children seem to enjoy this room the best...as well as their own...

Having a home... a place to rest our head... to be comfortable and at peace... is such a blessing.

Schooling at Home is also a blessing beyond measure...

Proverbs, Chapter 3, has been such an encouragement to me this new school year and I am making it my goal to keep it close at hand and on my heart... reminding myself to TRUST...

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths strait.  Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil.  This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones..."  Proverbs 3:5-8

Many things happen in this world... it is constantly changing and life is not certain from one day to the next.  Yet, one thing is for certain... we can place our faith and hope in Christ.  He will direct our paths and lead us straight through.

I am so thankful for the opportunity to disciple my children at home in knowledge and life skills... but most importantly, training their hearts to understand the wisdom of the truth and reality of God's Word in their lives.

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.  These commandments that I give to you today are to be upon your hearts.  Impress them on your children.  Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up..." Deuteronomy 6:5-7

Preparing for a New Season

The past two weeks have been good for us.   We have been getting more comfortable in our new surroundings and are finding it easier to get around...

We had a lovely opportunity to get together with new friends... a picnic at the beach!

What could be more fun than digging in the sand along the seashore on a lovely spring day...

  Treasure found in the sand...

 New Friends are a Blessing!

We are slowly setting up our little home and getting ready to start our school year in October.  Yes, we are a little behind schedule this year...  Yet, in Australia, Spring is just around the corner... so, I feel a bit out of sorts.  I find myself longing for warm spiced tea and Pumpkins...when Tulips and Daffodils are in season instead.    It is interesting how we come to associate events in life with the changing of the seasons...

Trying out the new oven!

Oatmeal Cookies with Dark Chocolate Chunks and Almonds

 
Today we headed to the library to find a few books to keep our minds occupied as we await our shipment of  household goods any day now... We came across a lovely little children's book, "The Muddleheaded Wombat" written by Ruth Park.  We began reading aloud this afternoon... Thomas loved it!



I am reminding myself to be thankful for this moment... finding joy in this short season of rest as I prepare my heart for a new school year... and the busy days that are ahead.

A Trip to Canberra

This past week we spent in Canberra, the Australian capital city.

While my husband worked, the children and I explored...

We made a trip to the National Botanical Garden... a wonderful learning opportunity, as well as, a beautiful and soul filling day.

Sarah and Thomas in front of a Wattle Bush 

The Wattle is the National Flower of Australia

They happened to be in bloom the week we were in Canberra!

Within the Botanical Garden, were sections planted to show off the 
various climate zones around Australia... 

The Rain Forest was one of our favorites.

Kangaroo Paws

Fuchsia Heath

 Banksia

We just happened to stop and chat with a lovely woman who ended up giving us a tour of the garden.  She was a tour guide for the Garden... but was on her day off...enjoying the garden on her own time.  Yet, she could not help but share her wealth of knowledge regarding Australian soil, native plants and birds.

Sarah had a fabulous time naming birds she had been studying in her new Australian Bird Guide.

 Splendid Fairy Wren

 

Crimson Rosellas

We also had our first wild Kangaroo sighting as we were walking about.

The following day,  we enjoyed the National Zoo...  lots of interesting animals.  One particular exhibit allowed us to walk freely with Kangaroos, Wallabies and Emus.

After the zoo, we headed over to the Australian War Memorial. This was a highlight for Thomas.

He enjoyed all of the restored and preserved war vehicles and airplane's from various past wars to present, as well as amazing and detailed dioramas of the battles fought during World War I. 

Another day was enjoyed at a nature reserve known as Tidbinbilla.  It is a nature park that has been working to protect animals that are unique to Australia that are at risk of extinction.  Many of these animals are already extinct in the Canberra Capitol Territory.   



We enjoyed amazing sitings of  birds, kangaroos, wallabies, and emus.

While searching for the elusive platypus along a lakeside trail, we noticed we had a curious Emu following us.  As we continued down the trail, we realized that the trail ended and that we would have to turn back.  Unfortunately for us, the Emu was not going to back up.  It stood right in the way of our path ... starring at us.

My husband tried to "shoo" him away... with no luck.  The children were becoming a bit frightened... this large bird was not going to move and was appearing to show signs of irritation.  Not knowing what else to do, my husband picked up a very large branch on the ground with leaves still attached.  He began to walk toward the bird, shaking the branch and soon we were all chasing the bird down the trail!  That awkward bird ran for it's life!  We all got a good laugh after that experience.

 Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo

Australian Pelicans

As we continued on our bush walk through the Eucalyptus forest, we searched for a Koala... another very elusive creature.  Apparently, there was a terrible fire in the past few years that killed many of the Koala in the reserve.  Only one survived and they are currently working to acclimate a few more into the area again.  They did have one that was fenced off so we did get a good look at our first Koala.
 

 The Kangaroos were plentiful... mobs everywhere we went!

There is so much beautiful countryside to explore all around Canberra... and, lots more to explore in the city itself.  We are looking forward to returning for more adventures!

Exploring

The past few weeks have been both exciting and rather difficult at the same time. As with any move, there is a time of adjustment, setting up, and nesting... with an International move this process is spread out over several months... and so it takes patience and an enduring spirit to walk each day.

Our Little Cottage in Crows Nest

This is not easy when your comfortable bed is floating in the middle of the Pacific Ocean!  Yet, keeping things in perspective,  I am thankful we do have an adequate bed, for now, and a lovely home to keep us safe and warm.  

After three weeks, we finally got our house phone connected!  We are still working on the internet but we are hopeful by next week that will be resolved.    

We have been busy setting up our place... getting quotes for curtains, making appointments with Doctors, learning our way around our neighborhood, making new friends and meeting our neighbors.   We don't have a car... so we are daily walking to the grocery store for our meals... very much like Europe!




This weekend we ventured out to Manly. (A 25-30 minute bus ride from our place).  It is a famous seaside town located near the headlands, just north of Sydney.  It was a fabulous winter day... many people were out sunbathing and swimming in the ocean.

The children enjoyed investigating into the tide pools and digging in the sand... we enjoyed a fabulous lunch overlooking the beach...

A Walk along the hillside in Manly...

 

 

A Sea Dragon

We then jumped on the Ferry and headed down to the Circular Quay (the main Ferry/Train Station in Sydney.)  We got some great views of the city and the famous Opera House as well as the Bridge...

 It is hard to believe this is within a half hour of our doorstep!