Tag: Children

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family anecdotes places to visit Random thoughts

32/52 sunset

I did the big car-trip-weekend with my Miss 20 back when she was on her Learner license. Then again with Miss 17 earlier this year.

This weekend it’s been Master 16’s turn. Not Yeppoon, nor Agnes Waters, but this time it was to Emu Park… in the rain!

Back on the Sunshine Coast it was forecast to pour all weekend. And my boy drove through over 4 hours of it. But by the time we got to Rockhampton, there were blue skies above us. And check out the amazing photo he took when we finally arrived at Emu Park!

Oh, what a privilege it is to be spending such quality time with my cherubs and watching them learn to drive at the same time.

I love it! Thank you, Lord, for my children!

Have a blessed week yourself, dear Reader 🙂

KRIdwyn

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family anecdotes Random thoughts

18/52 on childhood films

I watched ‘Christopher Robin’ this week. You know, the Ewen McGregor one?

I had the time and not much energy and not enough headspace to get work done, and it was there.

I was hoping for some light entertainment, maybe a return to the fond memories of when I’d watch animated films with my children (The Tigger movie etc).

And boy, did I get all that – and more! I had not realised how analytical I’ve become… having two daughters in the field of art / animation / films has led to a lot more knowledge than I’d previously had, I guess. And I really LIKED this movie!

But what made it most enjoyable for me, I think, was the voice animations. They were just perfect!

So, a BIG thank you this week to

You made my week!

Have a fond memory-full week yourself, dear Reader!

KRidwyn

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Random thoughts teaching Technology Work

4/52 Gen Alpha

I was blessed, Monday just gone, to listen to a couple of AMAZING speakers at my new workplace’s staff retreat. Now I’m not one of those people who points her phone at, and takes photos of, a speaker’s screen… but this week, I did.

This one because it’s kinda funny (and true of not just Gen Alpha!):

But this one because it’s really indicative of how society is changing, and the trajectory of this change. It’s not difficult to predict what will be next, yes?

Anyway, these are some thoughts I’ve been pondering over the past week. How my generation influences others… and how they will influence others on turn. No wonder God says to “teach your children” (intentionally!) – Deuteronomy 11:19 and Proverbs 22:6 spring to mind – because it’s so important!

Without intentional teaching, things change unintentionally. And that may not necessarily be a good thing for society at large. Humankind is far more well known for its greed and selfishness than its compassion and altruism.

So: I wonder what this coming week will bring? And how I can go about being more intentional in it?

Have an intentional week yourself, dear Reader!

  • KRidwyn
Categories
momentous events Work

3/52 thinking on dogs and libraries

It sounds like the start of a riddle, doesn’t it? “What do dogs and libraries have in common?” And I must admit to not being witty enough to solve this one, sorry… my blogpost title just refers to these as the two main themes of this last week’s photos!

You see, my girl Kiya turned 2 on Wednesday. This was her on the beach the day before:

And then on her birthday itself (photo taken by Miss17, on whose birthday Kiya was born!) Check out that tongue and the ear curled back 🙂

It was also the week that I started, officially, back at school. New year, new job – Head of Library at Nambour Christian College! So I’ve been thinking all things ‘library’ this week, as I’m out and about, both online and IRL. Proof from my camera roll:

I’ve been back on Pinterest and saving inspirational pins like this:

And from Facebook, an idea that will mean I can keep a ‘live’ plant in my office without potentially killing it:

And for the library floor itself, check out these plants I saw when in Cooroy Pharmacy on Monday afternoon. Don’t you think they’d look good spread out around the library floor, near shelving or book displays?

Anyway, that’s been my week. And today it’s Bloxham Birthday Party day, to celebrate Hubby and both daughters… it’s our eldest’s last day of being a teenager today… now is that a milestone or what!

Have a wonderful week, dear Reader 🙂

KRidwyn

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places to visit Random thoughts

49/52 on Maths and hammocks

Okay, okay. My Maths skills are woeful. If there are 52 weeks a year and this is the second-last week then *surely* this should be 51 not 49. Sigh. Mathematics? Not my strong point. I guess I got mixed up doing #blogJune or something? Oh well. I can always try again next year.

Speaking of trying things again… this is my view while blogging today:

It’s been years (maybe even a decade?) since I last relaxed in a hammock. And this one – a Christmas 2024 present that I’m getting to use early!) is absolutely perfect! I forgot how much I enjoy having my feet up at pretty much the same height as my head. Now to watch my heat-swollen feet reduce, or something?

Since Hubby and I lashed out on a Stockman Rover back in August, I figured we’d better get lots of use out of it. So the kids are at home (have I mentioned how AMAZING it is to have 2 out of 3 graduated from high school already?!) and we’re HipCamping for the weekend… because we can! Hence the $41 Bunnings hammock. So far, my favourite Christmas present!

Speaking of Christmas, it’s this coming Wednesday, so my next post will be after all the celebrating.

Here’s praying you might have a day full of love and laughter, surrounded by your nearest and dearest, dear Reader. God bless you!!!

KRidwyn

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family anecdotes places to visit Reading Review

37/52 On family holidays

The last time I holidayed with Hubby and all three of my children was pre-Covid. September 2019. My eldest was in Year 9; she’s now just 3 months away from turning 20.

But a family holiday on K’gari is what we’ve all just enjoyed over this past week. And it was amazing! The memories. Seeing my Miss19 repeating “I remember this” and “This has changed so much”… and now sharing the driving load! Wild.

Leaving Kiya at Mum’s though… that was hard. She didn’t look happy to see us drive off 🙁

And it was pretty great to be able to catch up on some reading. I particularly liked this little gem of wisdom:

The bit about tortuous Latin lessons showing how questions anticipate answers: one way to ask anticipates a ‘yes’ and the other anticipates a ‘no’. This was quite interesting, I thought! (The book less so, all things being equal…)

Well, that’s it from me for the week. I hope it was a wonderful one for you as well, dear Reader!

  • KRidwyn
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Random thoughts

29/52 Things I’m grateful for :)

New starts. The fact that I awoke this morning with a wealth of opportunities to enjoy and spend my time on.

The warmth of the sun on my back in spite of the chill in my toes (within  of just socks but also ugg boots – have I mentioned before how much I don’t enjoy the cold?) and the fact that our house was warmed by a fire last night.

I’m listening to my daughters (aged 19 and 16) voluntarily spending time together, talking and playing with Kiya now we’re home after church.

My house is not clean. The list of ‘stuff I should be doing’ is huge. But I am happy. Even with the hedge clippings that my eldest daughter shook off her clothing, yesterday, in the sunroom, which still litter the floor near my feet.

These clippings mean the mock orange hedge beneath my bedroom windows is now looking amazing, and through my daughter’s – and not my – efforts. They’re glossy green, meaning the plants are healthy and have enough water in spite of the lack of rainfall here in this part of Queensland. Again, through no effort of mine. That’s a God thing.

My part to play in all this? Enjoyment. That’s it. (And pick up the leaves in the sunroom.)

What an amazing blessing that is!

Have an amazing week yourself, dear Reader!

– KRidwyn

Categories
Random thoughts teaching Work

28/52 On the return to Term 3

Phew! What a week it’s been!

Yesterday morning, I drove Kiya, with Mum and her dog Trav, down to Brisbane for an appointment. It occurred to me that last Saturday morning (7 days earlier) I had also collected Mum… but instead, to go car shopping. We’d visited a quite rusty Suzuki Jimny, locally, before heading down to Brisbane to look at a 2020 version – which sold en route. We then pulled into Suzuki at Nundah, and ended up buying a brand new Ignis, before stopping at CostCo on the way back up the Coast.

This week was

  • the return to school (that’s right, I have a 0.9FTE teaching job as well)
  • the collection of Mum’s car on Wednesday
  • Miss 16’s trip to QldTransport to have her photo taken for her Learners
  • the (hopefully successful) migration of this website from one host to another
  • Miss 19 job-hunting and speaking with prospective employers, and finally
  • yet another big trip yesterday.

Today, I’m playing violin at church, then spending the afternoon with my parents and godfathers who are visiting from NZ.

Phew! again…

Hope it’s been a productive week for you, too, dear Reader!

  • KRidwyn
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#blogjune

#BlogJune Day 21

Today’s been big. Master15 had his Athletics Carnival, necessitating a 90 minute drive each way, and now I’m waiting outside a fitting room in one of our local shopping centres while Miss16 finds clothing suitable for a week of ‘Uni experience’ next week. We’re going to start the ‘formal wear’ hunt today too, I think.

Phew! Bring on the weekend, I say!

Hope you’re having a great end-of-week too, dear Reader!

– KRidwyn

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Random thoughts

19/52 On colour theory

Take the colour blue. Then add the colours black and white. (Yes, yes, okay. The ‘shades’ black and white. I know.)

Now use them to make the colour red.

Impossible? Nope. Not according to colour theory.

If you’d asked me 3 years ago what ‘colour theory’ was I would have looked at you blankly. I’d never heard of such a thing.

Enter Miss now-16 and her older sister, both dedicated artists for these same three years (well, longer, actually).

And now I know – well, to be honest, I still can’t define ‘colour theory’ exactly… but I know – it exists because it’s the reason why blue and black and white can make red.

So this image in my Facebook feed, although super-cool, is no longer the ‘what? how?! that’s not possible’ reaction that it used to be.

Screenshot

(If you zoom in, you’ll realise that there’s no ‘red’ in this picture. There’s only blue, black, and white. Crazy, hey?!)

Apparently it has to do with the way the brain perceives colours. Place black beside blue, then contrast it with white beside blue, and HEY PRESTO! Red!

Phenomenally cool.

And even more awesome is that my daughters are still happy to teach me stuff 🙂

Have a family-filled week yourself, dear Reader!

  • KRidwyn