Maddie Turns 15

Yes, it's true. Maddie is now 15!

Wow, time flies.

She was always our accident,

looking for a place to happen,

but thankfully, she has grown out of that somewhat:)

Now, she is constantly reminding us

that it is only a year from now, and

she will be getting her learners!

HAPPY  BIRTHDAY MADDIE

EAST TIMOR TRIP

Recently, Dave was able to take a trip

with our Pastor and Pup and Lydia Cotton

and Lauren from South Australia,

to East Timor to help out the missionaries

Chris and Margie Smith, with some building work.

In all the madness of wedding preparation

and Dave arriving home a week before the wedding,

I somehow forgot to post some photos of his trip.

I was unable to go because of the wedding,

but I'm hoping to take a trip in the near future

to help finish up some of the projects with Dave.

It was a great blessing to those who went

and also to the Smiths.

A lot of building work was able to get done

despite the container that held a lot of the building

materials, not being released before they left.

They all worked some very hard and very long days

but the blessings outnumbered the sore backs.

God is working in East Timor and there

are many souls in need of a Saviour.

They all came back refreshed and encouraged

that they could be a blessing to others

and excited at what God is doing in East Timor.

Drinking Iced Tea and eating chocolate cake

on the beach in Dili with a family from the church

There is a lot of spiritual blindness in this country

and so many souls that need to hear

the gospel.

Isaiah 6:8

Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying,

Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?

Then said I, Here am I; send me.

Oh that we would all have a heart to see

others saved and a desire to reach out to

our neighbour and to the ends of the earth

for the furtherance of the gospel.

Matthew 9:37

Then saith he unto his disciples,

The harvest truly is plenteous,

but the labourers are few;

Speaking from experience,

visiting a mission field with your family

is one of the greatest blessings you will every

experience and will change your view of

missions for ever.

2 Down and 3 to Go

and a ROOSTER steals the show!

Well, our house is a lot quieter after this weekend,

and there are only 5 of us sitting around the table

wondering where the time went..........

In only 3 short years of living here,

we now have 2 daughters married

(to awesome son-in-laws, of course)

and 3 left. Which by the way, don't come

calling, for any boys out there, because I'm over

weddings for the time being!!

After washing countless loads of washing

and trying to get the house back in order,

I am finally posting a few photos.

The ones from the photographer, you'll have

to wait for, as James and Abbi

need to see them first!

It was a beautiful day out at the Katherine Museum

complete with chickens, kangaroos

and the odd rooster hanging about.

One of which managed to steal the show!

For those who haven't heard or seen on social media,

we had a lovely black rooster that decided it wanted

to be a flower girl, page boy?? and calmly preceded

Dave and Abbi up the aisle just after the bridesmaids.

(I think it even walked in time to the music)

In looking at the photos afterwards, I noticed that

most eyes and cameras were focused on the rooster

instead of Abbi and Dave, but it was classic!!

It then walked around behind Abbi and

concentrated on the train of her dress,

which had me getting ready to

pounce the moment it pecked one of the beads off!!

(or pooped on it)

And not having had enough attention already,

it crowed throughout most of Grandpa's prayer!!

Not sure if he wanted him to stop praying

or was saying "Amen".

Well, if you want to feel old really quick,

just get 2 daughters married off in 2 years

and start the slippery slope down the other side

of 40, and you'll soon see why I have more

grey hairs than I used to.

God has really blessed and we are excited

to see what the Lord has in store for

our daughters and son-in-laws

and the future of our whole family.

Once you take away the army pants and knives,

they polish up pretty well.

And of course, you couldn't wipe the smile off Hannah's face!!

The girls with 2 of our beautiful youth group kids

A moment with Grandpa

Lauren and I created a masterpiece for the wedding cake

So the happy couple has driven off into the sunset

in their trusty old 60 series,

and as long it keeps running, they should return

excited and ready to start a new life together

(if it doesn't, we'll go and rescue them)

Either way, they'll be excited and ready to

start on their new adventure, facing it together!

EDITH FALLS

Here are some photos Emilee took

while out at Edith Falls yesterday.

(courtesy of Lauren's camera)

KATHERINE RODEO

Well, we just had the Katherine show/Rodeo

and enjoyed watching all the action.

Here's a collection of photos from the day.

National anthem and getting ready for action

And...............ACTION!!

Cute kids.

All of them, of course:)

And a couple of ouchies!!

Landing on the rails, not sure that's how it's supposed to be done

Oh, and face first! Hmmm, not the best either.

Horse:  I'm getting you off, if it's the last thing I ever do..........

And...........done, and dusted!!

Do you like my hat?

Oh, yes, please let me try it on!

Recent Camping Trip

A couple of weeks back,

because of Dave's work schedule

and not being able to go away

for any length of time,

we headed out of town a short ways

to have an overnight campout.

We were all missing a good campfire,

the crystal clear skies,

the billions of stars in clear view,

the taste of billy tea,

the smell of wood smoke,

the warmth of a swag on a cool winters' night,

and of course, tasty roasted marshmallows!

The girls recently bought their own swags,

and Dave and I have our rooftop tent,

and Abbi has the back of her ute,

so we were all set.

Now, I know we could do all of this

in our backyard, but it's just not the same!

There's always the noise from the neighbours,

ranging anywhere from laughter to all out brawls,

sirens from a passing police car, or two,

annoying loud music from someone who needs a

hearing aid, lights from houses

and car headlights, fireworks randomly going off,

and the list goes on.

Oh, and of course the visit from the

fire department wondering what we're doing

with a roaring bonfire in our backyard

possibly spreading and setting the town on fire.

Bah! Spoilsports!!

Anyway, even tho it was brief,

it was wonderful and we look forward to

doing it again soon. It was also Abbi's last

chance for a family campout before

she gets married:)

And of course, it gave me a chance

to take some photos.

As you can see below, I tried getting

some pictures of the girls together,

but Chloe, in her element, had to ham

it up with her machete.

(and no, they haven't joined the army

reserves, ok. Op shops are handy places.

Now to find me some that fit!)

Some star shots (which actually show a shooting

star which you of course can't see

because the photo is too small,

so just trust me, ok, it's there),

glow sticks jewellery and sparklers

And some firelight portraits

JUST DO IT!