Lessons from the garden... tomatoes

We started a winter garden last year.  Well, okay, Shawn started the garden, but I did take some pics!  heehee.  It gave us some fantastic veggies... snow peas, lettuce, purple beans, carrots, silver beet, beetroot, to name a few (the ones I remember).  Then Shawn replanted for summer and we had some delicious tomatoes and capsicum (aka green peppers).

At first we were very good at keeping it watered and weeded.  I visited it every morning to give it a pep-talk and watch the baby lizards scurry away at my foot steps.  But after a while other things got in the way.
(and that's a totally different point...)

If you were to look at our garden this week, you'd actually ask... "What garden?!?"  It's quite overrun and jungle-like.  It doesn't resemble much of what it was created for.  There's grass and weeds overtaking the area.

 But here's the beautiful thing... I went out the other day and discovered some tomatoes growing.  Even amidst the neglect and garden sadness, there was something able to grow and fulfill it's purpose.  Some plants produced a bowlful of fruit.  :-)  Plump and round and red. 

I like that.  It gives me hope.
Sometimes life gets messy, or isn't orderly the way we'd anticipated.  But, in the middle of that, something can still grow and thrive.

Thanks, tomatoes.

Brown Eggs -2

A little bit of funny...

A couple days before Griffith Family Day, we were invited to dinner at a friend's house.  :-)  Good fun!  We joined the Tylers and some of their neighbors for some pizza making, mmmm....

While we were chatting in the kitchen, I mentioned my plight (only brown eggs) to the other ladies.  One of them looked a bit pondering, then agreed that Aussie eggs are cream-colored, but was sure they could easily be dyed.  So we chatted a bit then took out some eggs.  After sharing with her that eggs in the States are white like the bowl on the counter, she was surprised at how dark the local eggs were.  She hadn't  understood what I was whinge-ing about until then.

It's nothing big, or surprising, but it so made me smile!  :-) 
I like those moments. 

Brown Eggs

This was our first Easter in Oz.  It was full of new experiences.  Traditionally, the week before Easter, our family celebrates "Griffith Family Day"- a day about and dedicated to our family.  There's not much that's "must-do" that day, but there are a couple things.

It's the one day of the year where the family joins together and eats cookie dough. ;-)  (yeah, i know, it could be hazardous to our health... we survived this year... it's all good)

It's also the day we dye Easter eggs.  That's always a day we enjoy.  There's a lot of creativity and heart that goes into making just the right eggs.  And we often have a bonus guest or two adding to the decorating fun!  :-)  I have many GRAND memories of sitting/standing around a table transforming eggs into bright and colorful gems!

This year we discovered a technical difficulty.  Australia sells brown eggs not white.  I haven't seen one white egg since I've been here.  And, I haven't noticed it till now... when I wanted to make some yellow, orange and pink eggs.

So, we pondered what to do, and thanks to friends on Facebook, had several suggestions, too.  So, we boiled our eggs, and colored them... with Brenna's school crayons!  :-)  They weren't as bright, but they were still fun to do together.

The finished product... 

minus the ones that we'd eaten by the time I remembered to take a pic.

The kids and I coloring eggs... truly!

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Friday Flashback - B & Aunt Katie '05

Aunt Katie and Brenna

sharing some love.

Christmas visit to Pennsylvania.

Brenna's developed several wonderful traits

from both of her aunts. 

:-)

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Thankful Thursday - kids

And believe it or not, not just my kids...
Kids make me smile...  whether we're hanging out w/ friends who have them or I'm wandering the shops... kids and the things they do make me smile!  deep from the inside smiles.

Yesterday while I was in the shops with Darian, a mum was pushing her girls (about 3 years old, twins, in princess dresses) in a shopping trolley (aka - cart).  One of the little girls was chatting away with mum.  Sweet in itself.  But then I heard what she said...  She asked if it was February.  Mum told her no.  Then she asked if it was March.  And mum explained that it wasn't March either, it was April.  The little one quickly responded, "What happened to February and March?"

Priceless.

I'm not sure what mum said next... but shortly after that I heard her say comfortingly, "We'll see them again next year."  Wonderful!

Kids, they make me smile.
So glad they're around... my own and others.  :-)  Yay.

a morning greeting at preschool :-)

Joy in small things.

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Wordless Wednesday - Twelve Apostles

Tuesday's Tangent - Fall

Actually, it's not fall here, the season's called Autumn.

It's beginning to change seasons.  The evenings are cooler.  It's nice to snuggle up to keep warm since the air is getting cool once the sun goes done.  The days aren't so hot... really, I've worn a sweatshirt on several days recently, so it must be getting cold.  ;-)  (heehee... if you know me, you know that's not quite true..)

But it's all feeling a bit odd.... 'cuz my brain is thinking that if the temps are going down and Fall's comin', then there are certain things that go along with that. Like my mum's birthday, but that's not till October.  And I'm craving some fresh apple cider... but I'm not sure I'll find any around here.   And the leaves should change colors any day now... but the trees aren't the same...  (and really, it's probably not that cool yet)

But this isn't fall... it's Autumn... and it's only April. 
and it's all just a bit odd... for today.

(fall in TN)

Welcome Autumn!
;-)

Holiday fun...

A couple weeks ago, Shawn and I were blessed by showing some Gosford friends around the Wollongong area during their holiday.  (Here in Australia, 'holiday' is the term you'd use for a break from work... What Americans would call a 'vacation'.)  I'm grateful they trusted us to show them around a bit and shared their time with us.  Sometimes, it's easy for me to think of times like this as an interruption or a bother, but truly, this was a blessing to me. 

Here's Shawn with Andrew and his mum, Ann

enjoying the view from Stanwell Tops.

Posing for a picture... 

with other visitors and some hang-gliders in the background.

Taking some pics on the Grand Pacific Drive

well, part of it anyway. ;-)

The Drive out over the water...

and the stunningness of God's creation.

Friday Flashback - Early Family pic '95

 Shawn, Darian and I way back when...

seems like such a long time ago.

crazy!

Thankful Thursday - laughter

Nothing brightens the day like laughing with a friend!
...or with the most wonderful hubby ever who's always nearby to share a laugh! 

I don't think I've ever pondered how fabulous, utterly terrific laughter is.  It livens and refreshes my spirit and attitude.  As my sweet sister would say... It's good fun!

And I'm not only thankful for laughter, but for those family and friends who share in the laughter... who make me laugh and laugh with me.  The world is a better place because of a little giggle now and again, because of a wee chuckle here and there.

Oh, and there's just so many types of laughter...  that makes me smile too!
What kind of a laugh-er are you?

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