Category: places to visit

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#blogjune Blogging challenges Christianity family anecdotes places to visit Work

Sipping from the saucer #8

I work at a Christian school. The pastor of the church which established our school has a saying: “The LORD has blessed me so much, my cup is overflowing (taken from Psalm 23) and I’m sipping from the saucer.”

I like the visual, so I’m using it here, in this month-long blogging challenge focusing on the blessings God has poured out on me.

Today: blessing #8… and it’s the reason why this post is late! Check it out:

Not one, not two, but FIVE tickets to SeaWorld, courtesy Hubby’s work and his colleagues. So that’s where we were yesterday – and a BRILLIANT day was had by all 🙂

Here’s wishing you a blessed day too, dear Reader!

– KRidwyn

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family anecdotes Life momentous events places to visit Uncategorized

Of beachworms and psychology

Fraser Island, in Queensland. One of my favouritest spots in the world.

Hubby and I have visited dozens of times, and explored pretty much everywhere, however we’ve never managed to get past Ngkala Rocks, and so have missed out on the view from the northernmost tip of the largest sand island in the world.

Not so on our most recent holiday. There with close friends, we made it past Ngkala Rocks, and kept on driving.

And made it! Photo below as proof!


On the return journey, we stopped to catch some beachworms for bait. Miss12, who’d been snarky all day because she’d wanted to go south to Eli Creek, instead of north to Sandy Cape, was surprised to see the length of the first worm Hubby caught – 80cm, at least.

She and I were sitting in the car, with everyone else outside, when I thought I’d try a psychological trick.

“I reckon you’d be good at that,” says I. “You’re good at catching lizards – catching beachworms is kinda the same thing.”

Cogs whirred. The arguments poured out ‘they’ll bite me instead of the pipi’ ‘it’s cold’ ‘I don’t want to get my feet wet’ but meanwhile we watched Hubby catching more – all a similar size. The focus of the arguments changed. ‘There’s no point now; there’s not much time left’ ‘I don’t have a pipi’ and then I let loose with the clincher.

“I’ve only ever caught maybe one or two beachworms in my life. I’m not very good at it. Oh well.”

I know my kid well. There was nothing for it but Miss12 was out of the car and into it. She even let me teach her how to get a pipi out of its shell!

Close on an hour later, the beachworm hunters returned; Miss12’s face wreathed with smiles.

Clever Mummy, says I. Perfect day indeed.

Have a great week yourself, dear Reader!

– KRidwyn

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Life More about me places to visit Work

It’s almost here…

Hubby is a Business Manager. Each year, all the BM’s in his organisation have a end-of-year event, a mini-conference somewhere nice. Last year, it was the Gold Coast. Jet boating was more fun (and wetter) than I’d imagined. And that night, thirty floors up, we could hear the Surfers Paradise revellers as if they were right outside the door. Their cacophony finally settled down at around 4.30am.

This coming weekend, the BM’s end-of-year event is on Moreton Island. I’m ecstatic! Hubby and I have never, in twenty years of marriage, been there together before; in spite of my regular, and strong suggestion, that we go and snorkel around the Tangalooma Wrecks – something I did once on a staff retreat and have wanted to do, with Hubby, ever since.

But this weekend, we’re going! Grandma will be collected Thursday evening; both work and school have been notified of absences, and the weekend is ours! (Well, mine, anyway. Hubby will be attending conferency-type things while I’m sure there will be a pool there I’ll be able to sun myself next to…)

It should be absolute bliss. I cannot wait. Now, all I need to do is pray for fine weather!

Have a wonderful week 🙂

— KRidwyn

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my novel-in-progress places to visit Writing

My favourite #writingplace

This is my favourite spot in the whole world at the moment. It’s on the beach, the very northern tip of Bribie Island, in Queensland (Australia) looking across the passage to Caloundra.

Just now, the weather’s warm enough to be perfect too!

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The cherubs play happily and I get to sit and write.

Bliss!

Do you have a favourite #writingplace? What do you love about it?

 

 

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Christianity family anecdotes places to visit

The importance of air

Hubby took the kids and I camping on Fraser Island last week. Yes, in a tent. Yes, it’s barely just out of winter, and we all know how cold temperatures and I don’t see eye to eye.

But he wanted me to come (and lets’s face it, looking after three excited cherubs is always easier when there are two adults instead of one) and so I did.

screen-shot-2016-10-02-at-6-11-20-pmIt was a better holiday than I had expected it would be. It was warmer, for a start! I was mentally preparing for ‘freezing’ and so to not reach below zero was rather pleasant. Yes, the nights were chilly but only one of them was decidedly uncomfortable. One is manageable.

But the title of this post is ‘the importance of air’ and that’s exactly what we had too much of.

In the tyres, that is.

You see, driving up the western beach on high tide, on the world’s largest sand island, towing a VERY heavy trailer, isn’t easy at the best of times.

And Hubby decided to test how well our Pajero could do it with 30 PSI in the tyres.

Needless to say, the soft sand got the better of us. We bogged. Up to the axles, with the incoming tide lapping at the tyres.

There was LOTS of praying happening, let me tell you!

Within a minute, good Samaritans were there to help. Giving advice, helping lower the air pressure, and even snatch-strapping us out of the soft stuff before the tide could get us any more than it already was.

Praise God for answered prayer!

Moral of the story: don’t try running the beach at anything less than low tide, and if you have to (as we did) for goodness’ sake, LOWER THE TYRE PRESSURE TO 15 PSI!!!

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#AtoZchallenge Blogging challenges Christianity places to visit

26 lessons from God’s metaphors: #3

A couple of weekends ago, Hubby and I took our three cherubs to Rainbow Beach for a long weekend. It’s one of my favourite places in the world.

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Being there, in bright sunshine with sandy toes and wind-swept hair, I could relax. I could breathe deeply, and know that things would be okay. That everything *would* eventually work out for the best. That the God who could make such a perfect place, could also look after little ol’ me with my little ol’ problems.

And I feel that way every time I take a moment and look out at the wonderful creation that God has made for us to live in. I look at the ‘rainforest stream’ on my computer background, or at my wall-calendar featuring a photo of the Great Barrier Reef, and know that He’s an all-powerful God with an incredible imagination. [One of my favourite Facebook videos recently was the chameleon walking past coloured sunglasses. Absolutely spectacular!]

Colossians 1:16 says, “for through him [Jesus] God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see – such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him.”

Which means that I can relax. God created everything, including creating me. He has the perfect plans for me; he created them! I don’t have to worry about my little ol’ problems; they’ve already been taken care of. That’s NOT to say “I can goof off now”; not at all… but instead the little amydala inside my brain doesn’t need any more of a workout than it’s already getting. Amy Grant’s “All I ever have to be” springs to mind 🙂

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And that’s my takeaway lesson for Day 3 of this A to Z blogging challenge. God is the Creator of all things. Which means I can ‘Keep Calm’ – for real; because God’s got it covered!

Have a great day, dear reader!

-KRidwyn

 

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#Springinyourstep family anecdotes Life momentous events places to visit

Exhaustion? Check. Holiday? Check. Straight back into a 7000 word proposal? Check!

Well it’s been a while… sorry about that!!! So over the last little while I’ve been rather busy. On the work front, I’ve added a client and lost another with Bloxham Marketing; I’ve taught Preppies, Year 1’s and Year 4’s. On a personal note, Hubby and I have flown to Gladstone and looked at property (LOL!) and we’ve taken the family to Fraser Island in the first week of the school holidays. It was absolutely beautiful, and exactly what I needed after the exhausted state I was in. I mean – check out this view that I woke to each morning!!!


Plus, both Misses 7 and 4 caught their first ever beach fish, so they were pretty stoked.

Miss 7 is holding her second Tailor (she also hooked into a heap of Dart); Miss 4 with a (very yummy!) Whiting. They were so extremely proud of themselves – as were their Mummy and Daddy! Even Mr 4 joined in on the fun, ecstatic that he’d also managed to catch one. And nobody had the heart to tell him that he was looking at his lure!!!

But the week went quickly, and views of the beach were all too quickly replaced by the view out the window of the drive home. But home was a welcome sight, and the washing / unpacking was out of the way within a day.

Which was good, because I had a proposal to complete for Uni. I submitted a claim for Advanced Standing, on the basis of Professional / Work Experience… so hopefully that’ll be granted, and there’s another 12 credit points done towards this Masters in IT. Yay!

And now it’s Term time again. Back into routine. Back into school lunches, ECDP for Mr 4, SpeechTherapy, and of course, work.

Maybe  it’ll also be back into routine for Hmmm… too! (Just had a look at my calendar of posts below, and I haven’t posted in over a month – whoops!!! Sorry, dear readers!!!)

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Life places to visit

Paradise

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I am a very, very, very blessed person. I live in a free country, and in a very beautiful part of it. I have a wonderful husband and three gorgeous kids. I have a house to protect me from the elements, a vehicle to transport me and my family, a brilliant and fulfilling (although exhausting) job that helps to pay the mortgage and keep food in the fridge, and best of all I have a Saviour who considered me worth dying for.
Thank you, Lord, for blessing me so abundantly. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

(Photo taken this morning, at Kings Beach Pool, Caloundra)

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family anecdotes More about me places to visit

Of op shops and cherubs

Yesterday we visited my favourite Op Shop, Neighbour’s Aide Community Stores at Caloundra. My daughters also love visiting, as the prices are always within their limited budgets.
Yesterday, Miss 4 bought herself a glossy pink duck ornament, and Miss 7 a flower paper holder.
Miss 4 was possibly the more excited of the two with her purchase however. Since it has become her most treasured possession, she has been busy carrying it around, cuddling it, and showing it to everyone. Including the dogs, the grandparents, and of course the passing butterfly that decided to flit past the window this morning at breakfast.
Aren’t kids great!

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#blog12daysxmas places to visit Random thoughts

On the sixth day of Christmas…

I’m getting a little confused. Travel at odd hours, lack of sleep, sleeping at strange times in weird positions, tends to do that to me, I find.

So from what I can work out, it’s now December 30, the sixth day of Christmas. Friday. I’m back at home, and in spite of Hubby’s best efforts to secure last minute accommodation for this weekend on Fraser, it looks as though we’ll be spending New Years at home. Which is good, in a way. I need to get my head straight again!

Not that it’s been bad – I’ve had a blast! Once hubby finished his Gold Coast conference on Dec 10, we left Dec 11 for Goondiwindi on our way to Dubbo. A few days there, exploring the Western Plains Zoo in absolutely GORGEOUS weather (although it was a pity we had to drive through a hailstorm to get there) was then followed by an allnighter trip to Ballina, where we again spent a wonderful few days. New South Wales. LOVE the jumping pillows (never been introduced to the concept before) but found the fact that while driving I was *forced* to restrain my lead foot rather frustrating. Twas good to be back in QLD where the cameras are fewer and far between – not so good to cope with the roadworks and traffic again. Ho hum.

(Jumping pillow. Struggling to insert image, as for some reason Ow.ly doesn’t want to play nice with me at the moment. ow.ly/i/nBhg )

A few days back at home, with time for Speech Therapy appointments (that nodule on my right vocal cord seems to be getting smaller – yay!); a hospital visit to remove the glittery purple cast on Miss 3’s arm, and the wires that were holding her elbow together; and a family Christmas get-together, then it was off to Hervey Bay, minus hubby who was keen to tackle the big surf. (It’s so rare here on the Sunshine Coast, and he misses it now he works such long hours.) So it was me and three young ‘uns headed north amidst the rain. Luckily the weather cleared, so by the time hubby joined us, it was perfect.

What wasn’t so great was the phone call from our neighbour on Wednesday afternoon, telling us that one of our dogs had died. Max. 11 y.o. black lab, whose health has been declining rapidly over the last year or so. He was underneath the Pajero (a favourite sleeping spot) but he apparently wasn’t breathing. So hubby decided to go home early. And take the children, so I could pack / clean / lock up in peace.

The kids’ clothes / bedroom etc was all packed in into the car when our neighbour texted. Max was up and about; it had been a false alarm. But we didn’t really want to unpack the kids’ stuff again, so we fed them dinner and then they all left, Miss 3 screaming all the while. She’s the clingy-est.

So I packed. I cleaned. I locked up, and left around 3.30am. Missed my family too much. But the long hours were more draining than I had anticipated, so I had to pull over at the Arbor Ten intersection and power-nap. Which worked, but boy did it hurt my neck! (I’m pretty sure I’d never slept with my head in quite THAT position before! But I made it home by 6.30 – perfect timing to surprise hubby and delight my children before breakfast. Which was great.

So now it’s Friday. The bags are unpacked, the clothes are washed, and we’re headed to Nambour Hospital this afternoon for (hopefully!) the final time for Miss 3’s elbow – bandage removal.

And we’re not going to Fraser tomorrow morning. Hmmm… maybe we’ll try for New Year’s on Bribie instead? (Ha! Stay still? Me? Not likely!!!)

Til tomorrow, readers!