A Reminder from a Previous Post.

Quiet Moment.

I found this whilst browsing in a Life in Skunk Hollow. This is a good thing to ponder on in my quiet moment.

This truly is a good reminder of what we hope to achieve:

Home - it's such a beautiful word! It's the center of our lives, the place that holds us with invisible strings of love within its walls. Home is the place where the delectable smells and tastes of "my favorite food" linger; where the comfort and beauty of "my room" and "my bed" can be enjoyed; where "my dreams" are inspired and begin to grow; where bedtime routines, prayers, and blessings give comfort; where the intimacy of deep relationships - unconditional love, grace, forgiveness, encouragement, unselfishness, laughter, and memories - is shared with people who have made us a priority in their lives.

It's where appetites for favorite music, movies, books, games, art, and traditions are shaped from infancy on up.Home is a haven from a world that is swimming with challenges and difficulty. It is a school where one learns how precious life is intended to be. It provides the context of learning to know and love my Creator, the beauty of the world he made, and his Word, which guides me.

And it is the environment where direction and purpose and values are passed from generation to generation, protecting and preserving all that is precious in life.The task of building our home into places of beauty and life that will feed the hearts, souls, and minds of our children is the most comprehensive task to which God has called us as mothers. We are called quite literally to be "home makers" - to plan and shape a home environment that provides our families with both a safe resting place and a launching pad for everything they do in the world."--

From "The Mission of Motherhood - Touching Your Child's Heart for Eternity" by Sally Clarkson

I am reading this book at the moment (for the second time) and this post was written on June 28th in the Life in Skunk Hollow. It truly is an inspiring book.

I was going through my blog trying to find a photo of the entrance area with all the photo's in it (which we have now changed).  I did not have any luck, but I did find this above..

http://hilluponhill.blogspot.com.au/2008/09/quiet-moment_03.html 

Winter is Here!

Fiona has sent me this lovely card as we both love Autumn and Winter so much. See what she is up to as she enjoys Winter.

Our Street: Thunder and Autumn Leaves.

I love Autumn. It is my favourite time of the year. Sadly we have lost our beautiful tree from the front of the driveway which always put on a glorious show at this time of year.

This morning, 4 year old daughter and I walked down our street to photograph the beautiful colours. Unfortunately, this happy time was clouded by an angry lady who took exception to me photographing the street and accused me of being "... that person who carries a camera!" I was very confused by this, but later enquiries yielded knowledge of a feud between this lady and another in our street, perhaps involving photographic evidence.

I am fatigued by the fact that I had to edit this photo, ensuring that no registration plates on the vehicles showed; in case someone was to use that information inappropriately. I am fatigued that I had to photograph my daughter's feet to preserve her identity and I am fatigued that my happy stroll with our little daughter was clouded by this thunderous outburst.

Bring on heaven!

Oblivious.

We had a national election yesterday. I voted at 8am as a very busy day lay ahead of us. At the end of the day, we headed to the lake. There is no phone, TV or oven. Ovens don't tell us about election results, but phones and TV's do. We arrived home late today, and it was wonderful wondering who the winning party was. The result; noone won. A most interesting time in Australian politics.

Clearing Paperwork.

Today I plan to clear some paperwork, rather I am hoping to read through magazines that have been lent or passed on to me. A day of resting I hope.

I also hope to bake banana cake, and there is laundry, dinner, dusting and cleaning of floors!

However, only baking and dinner preparation are now left to be done and it is 10:30am.

The Computer: Help or Hindrance?

This post from Aimee, was just what I needed to read today as we are later and later in the morning.

My hours of productivity are compromised as well.

The computer and emails are not in themselves bad though and for me are my link with friends, neighbours and family. It is also the basis for organisation for the soccer team and the Community Fire Units.

I need to consider which hours are invested here.

The Three LIttle Pigs.

This was a version of the "The Three Little Pigs" which I read as a child. Our now four year old daughter took it into preschool for news. The teacher read it out. The children were astonished. "Does the fox die? Did the other pigs die?" Yes the teacher said. Apparently the version that children read today has pigs that escape and foxes or wolves that run away. No death!

I Don't do Pretty.

All was going well, I baked my usual gluten free chocolate cake, but I could not do my usual 'line the tin with baking paper' thing. So I greased and dusted with rice flour (gluten free) and ladled out cake mix into each. They baked beautifully and I was looking forward to an afternoon of creativity-making them look lovely for the preschool stall tomorrow. Well two have stuck to the tin and broken. I am too scared to remove the rest. I have put the cakes in the fridge and I am waiting till husband E comes home. I am very disappointed.

Inspirational.

Ann's blog has some inspirational thoughts on the following.

Prayer.

Gratitude.

Preparing our families for Easter.

Special Family Memories.

http://memoriesoncloverlane.blogspot.com/2009/09/making-memories.html

Excellent, excellent.....a balm to my thoughts! This lady raises some refreshing thoughts to the pressure we place on ourselves to create 'special' family memories.

I might think about what I like doing and how this influences our family 'memories'.

P.S. I like eating, sitting, reading, laughing,watching: people, movies, views...

walking in the breeze or cold (but not too cold mind you...).

I like worshipping with a quiet mind.

I love looking at our family's photo's and love slide nights. I love hearing about life for my parents and previous generations.

I like reading home magazines, but only where the furniture/house has character and elements that have been recycled. No modern extreme minimalism for me.

I love moving furniture around and a good clean out- yes, even as a hobby......

I love travelling, the planning that is needed for a trip and then the actual trip......I look forward to staying in nice places that give you a window into some other life and of course good food.

Now where does the family fit into all of this?

The Bare Essentials For a Day.

I will be thinking through a few things out loud if I may and using my blog to do it. After all, I view this blog as a journal, one that comes to life a bit more than a pen and paper type, especially as I can download photo's and cross reference to other things on the internet that I have found helpful and inspirational.

It is also easy to compartmentalise the development of ideas etc. One poor friend of mine who also has a blog has had to put up with some of these thoughts already! Another good friend who reads my blog quite regularly had also done so. For them and others who find it tedious, skip down to the next entry of interesting books and holiday snaps!

If I had a simple list of what I really value and would like to occur in our day or couple of days: (Bare Minimum, not wish list), they would include:

Activities for Me:

-Bible/prayer

-exercise

-time with husband E, listening

-Healthy eating: juicing, vegetable intake, portion size, chewing and eating slowly.

Activities with Chn:

-Bible/Prayer

-Story reading

-Chatting at bed time and after school

-O.T. exercises with 5 year old daughter.

Jobs Completed

-Making beds

-Dishes

-Laundry

-Floors

-Packing toys away

-Dinner, Lunch, Breakfast, Healthy snacks

-Bathroom wiped over.

Are there enough hours in the day for these basic hopes?

There are also other commitments to factor in: homework etc. and what about darling Noddy the cat? ........

2010.....

New Year's Resolutions:

-Realigning priorities of God, husband, family and then the rest....

-Not planning too far in advance,

-Exercise.

I have just read this and found it helpful and peaceful.

Real Life.

A little hiatus, as I am busy with many, many things:

Occupational and speech therapy for one child, rugby league and high school orientation for another, choirs and ballet concerts for a third and trying to keep up with the interests of the fourth.

The extended family is going through memorials for deaths, births and birthdays. We have overseas visitors too.

It is hot and Community Fire Unit training begins today.

I have not bitten off more than I can chew, this is life.

Freedom/Schedule.

My issue today is the involvement in organised sport/activities that can override life. We try not to fill our weekends with such although we do do soccer in the Winter. Weeks ago, people were asking me what our Summer sport would be. Tennis is something we are interested in and did last Summer, but I am inclined to leave that till after Christmas and enjoy the time that will now speed towards Christmas with no sport on Saturday.

If we do not organise sport, we are also more likely to be able to go to the lakehouse, where swimming, sailing and kayacking are possible. The above pictured activity was great fun last weekend, but we set it up after we had done with the day's sport and in the end only had one hour of daylight to enjoy it.

Sandwich Suggestions Please.

I am hosting a "Welcome to Spring/September Sandwich" gathering. Could you all put your thinking caps on and send me some wonderful ideas for fillings pretty please?

You should check out the comments as the suggestions in are delicious.....Did you know that by sprinkling alfalfa on top of prepared sandwiches, they retain their moistness? A dear family friend's secret!

The Box is Almost Empty....

I wonder what sort of day was had here?

This 'Blogging Thing'.

This 'blogging thing' is interesting isn't it? So many connections with faces not physically seen. Susan at High Desert Home is moving and not continuing with her blog anymore. I feel as though I have lost a neighbour. So many things she talked about on her blog are things that I feel or value. She advocates healthy eating, simple pleasures, joy in her surroundings and days dedicated to God. I loved her snapshots of life as they were warm and reassuring. I will truly miss her.

Easter.

I read in a blog that Easter was a really special time for that author as it did not have the huge run up to Christmas, yet was a very special time in the Christian calendar. I agree but also find that I have neglected to bring the lead up to Easter into our discussion and preparation with the children. Time to fix it.


I found our books............I bought unleavened bread ready for a Passover meal.............we are not doing Easter eggs en masse, I don't see the need. We have a little bag to share. If eggs feature in a large way for you, I remember a church service explaining to children to check if the egg was hollow or filled. If hollow, it was a real egg as the tomb was empty when Jesus rose again from the dead.


One tradition we do have each year is to give family members bulbs to plant so that we have new life in Spring in September. Quite frankly, I think if we buy chocolate it has to be the good stuff and I am afraid that it does not come in the shape of an Easter egg for me..........

Rhythms and Rituals.

St. John.

I have enjoyed learning more about a family in Israel by reading Domestic Felicity. I am struck by the rhythms of life in the Hebrew calendar that a Jewish lady, Anna describes.



Also Elizabeth, a Catholic lady writes about prayer that is rhythmic much like a call to prayer for five times a day in the Islamic faith. The Angelus, a rosary; uncomplicated practices that direct one.



I also read last night in the Sydney Morning Herald's "Good Living" guide about an Orthodox Greek family who are preparing for Easter with cooking and the very specific foods that are eaten after church as we remember Christ's death and resurrection.



These rituals are excellent prompts to help us be still and to reflect. I am not thinking of these things as being beneficial if done without thought and meaning.



Today I am thinking about the meaningful rituals that are in our life that help us to be still and draw us to God throughout the day.

A New Day...

Not my photo.

A new day. I think a bit more direction in my day is necessary. That is besides meal times for the children, school starting and finishing times and after school activities. I think I will adopt a Flylady concept and do an activity for a period of time and then move to the next.



This will include blogging. I am going to reduce the amount of blogs I list on my sidebar so that I am only reading a few over my coffee break. If I have a chance later in the day I will check in to the blogs that I have marked as favourites. I am sure you all understand this; blogging is like having a never ending pile of magazines or a never ending telephone conversation!



I will set aside time for stillness and prayer. I will exercise. Husband E and I chatted about this last night, we will keep this aim in mind for me.



Today I will have quite a bit to do at any rate, no time for lack of motivation. I like to get jobs done on the Friday as it gives us more chance to relax and be together on the weekend. Also first born son is coming home from camp today. We have all missed him so much. His laundry bag will be full, wet, muddy.........



Also, we are off to the lakehouse this weekend with two cousins, we are coming to the end of the season for swimming, so hopefully the children can enjoy that this weekend.



I will know that it has been a successful day if baking happens today. It would be nice to welcome 10 year old son with choc chip cookies (his favourite) and have some to take away with us.



OK, and present hobbies are going to be sudoku and reading. Easily interrupted, I have all necessary requirements at home, library or bookclub, it is portable and a good activity to do alongside children who want to sit with me! I was able to zone out of contractions with our fourth child in labour by doing sudoku, so what wonders could it do for my mind today?



Well coffee needs to be "espressed"..........