Finding joy in the everyday

Sometimes some ordinary day will come,  A busy day like this - fill to the brim With ordinary tasks - perhaps so full That we have little thought or care for Him. And there will be no hint from silent  skies,  No sign, no clash of cymbals, roll of drums; And yet that ordinary day will be The very day in which our Lord will come. Author unknown My mum gave this to me ages ago and I stumble across it on the weekend. A very timely reminder in our very hectic world. ~oOo~

Ten years ago I would visit book shops and buy books. Due to rising costs of books in Australia I switched to borrowing books from the library or buying second-hand. More recently I discovered online shopping and my whole way of shopping changed.  There is now very little I don't buy online.  It saves me time and money, I can do it at any time of the day or night and there is no need to find a car park.  I use both Australian and overseas sites. And in the last 12 months I have started to buy e books, these are even cheaper. The evolution of book selling has changed rapidly in a very short time . . . for me, this has been exciting.  I can now buy books (many books at one time) from overseas and save.  One book overseas can be a 1/3  in cost compared to a bookstore in Australia. This means I can buy 3 books for the price of one in Australia.  As a consumer this is excellent news.  I also have access to a wider chose of books, some we simply can...

 I did one thing on Friday that I really enjoy doing . . . second hand shopping. I love looking for bargains. My first stop was to St. Vinnies, where I bought: Two hardly used handbags. The red one will be perfect for evening use and the black one has no scratches and in excellent condition, looks almost brand new.  $3 each! And one long skirt, doesn't look as good in the photo and looks lovely on, slimming! Cost $2. Then I went to the Lifeline book fair and filled my granny shopping trolley to the top with books: As I am a collector of old cookbooks, this will be added to my collection - 1941 version Katey Dicksons was the daughter of Charles Dicksons, the author. I almost bought (new) the Father Brown series, glad I didn't as this was a bargain at $5.  Mao's Last Dancer is an excellent read, wanted to own my own copy. I have never read Uncle Toms Cabin, now I can. Three novels on those days when I want lite reading. The Flying Doctor sounded very interesting. I ...

 Did you know . . . facts about pet ownership 12 million Australians are associated with pets. 63% of the 7.5 million households in Australia own pets. Australia has one of the highest incidence of pet ownership in the world. Typically, the major carer of the pet is female, married with children, living in the suburbs and most likely employed. 91% of pet owners report feeling 'very close' to their pet, reinforcing that pets are an integral member of the family unit, however constituted. Pets were a normal part of childhood for more than 83% of Australians. Of the Australians who do not currently own a pet, 53% would like to do so in the future. The pet care industry contributes $4.74 billion to the economy annually.  In total 44,700 Australians are employed in the pet care industry. And I am the proud owner of 2 Dobermans (Brenin and Gaia) and 2 cats - Charlie the Tortoiseshell and Ruby the Ragdoll. In the past I have owned, cats, dogs, rats, rabbits, mice and fi...

I was reading on another blog about the struggles of marriage and how difficult it can be, I couldn't agree more.  Marriage can be tough, really tough.  I found this list by Nancy Leigh DeMoss which I thought was a good reminder -  things I ought to remember. So this is more a message to self than telling other people how to create a solid Christian marriage.  You may not need it as you have already reached this wonderful position but I have some more areas of improvement! “ Every wise woman buildeth her house:  but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands ” (Prov. 14:1) 1. Am I building up my house or tearing it down? 2. Am I investing in my marriage? Am I nurturing the heart of my marriage? 3. Do I frequently express admiration and gratitude to my husband? 4. Am I reserving the best of my physical and emotional energy for my family? 5. Am I creating a climate (through words, actions, and attitudes) that makes my husband want to be at home? 6. Am...

Chalk art (or Pavement Art) takes hours, and only for a few hours.  After all that hard work, the only evidences left is a photo. I do wonder why they don't do murals instead which is permanent. I have selected two chalk artists today, one is known as "The Chalk Guy" or Edgar Mueller and the other is Julian Beever an English artist.  Both are amazing.  The thing that makes these works so clever is the uniquely three-dimensional anamorphic drawings. According to Beever, his paintings are drawn in perspective and distorted so the subject can be viewed properly only from one particular viewpoint. For those who are standing in the right place, his chalk drawings invite them to step right into the scene or, in the case of the artist's well-known Swimming Pool in the High Street, dive right into the water.  Beever says that "Weather and police officers are the main obstacles to work around when doing pavement art. The Chalk Guy - Edgar Mueller Julian Beever...

When I hear somethings on the news that is misleading I get annoyed - and this is one topic that really annoy me. Do men earn more than women in Australia? I’m sure you have seen this in the newspapers.   The statistics say yes and the unions say yes. But what does this really mean? I earn the same as my male colleagues, male and female teachers, police, librarians, nurses (at the same level) earn the same and this is the case in almost all sectors.  There may be some differences at the very top of the corporate ladder, however most (almost all) are not at that level.  Basically men and women are taking home the same pay package - equal work for equal pay, I completely agree with this and it is happening. So what are the unions talking about and what is their fight for EQUAL PAY? If you look at the statistics, in particular average weekly earnings — men certainly earn more than women . . . why; More women are employed in lower paid employment e.g. such as ...

I was only thinking the other day how quickly our media moves from one disaster to another, but often doesn't revisit to give us an up-date.  And I don't mean a sensational up-date, just the facts (ok, I might be asking for to much from the media).  An example of this was the Christchurch earthquakes. I had been wondering if all the bodies had been recovered  as I was thinking about all those families still waiting.  By this point the news had moved onto Japan, and now of course, Libya. After Libya, it will be something else. My thoughts about this was so beautiful written by Jeanne at " A peaceful day " - who was devastated by the floods in northern Victoria.  While we all move on, thanks to the media who cleverly move us on to the "next big story", families like Jeanne's are still picking up the pieces.  Their road to recovering will be long and painful.  Sadly most of us will forget all about their stories once they have been removed from our TV sc...

  What kind of a face did you wake up with this morning? Gloomy  Frowning Weariness Sunny  Happy Joyful  Proverbs 17:22  says,  “ A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones . ”  What your face looks like is your choose!   Even if you feel miserable, put on a smile! Your heart will change to cheerful and your family will start smiling too! It is amazing how quickly you will start to feel better. And, don't forget to smile when you walk past someone, you might change their day beyond what you could imagine. One happy, smiling face can make a difference in a crowd of grumpy faces. Idea from Above Rubies (slightly modified) Sending you all a smile - from me to you May it brighten up your day ~oOo~

Why does my cat like to lie in the empty bathtub - which is cold as it is made of metal? She completely trusts us that we won't turn on the taps - crazy cat.  Maybe she is fluffy enough not to feel the cold! Bathtubs are really good taking photos of black cats, thanks to the white background. Would you pay $1.5 million for this dog?!?!? This is a Tibetan Mastiff, 11 months old and bought buy a Chinese breeder dog.  You wouldn't want to loose it would you?  You can buy these dogs in Australia for between $3,000 - $12,000. Anyone interested!  Genghis Khan is believed to have kept them and I bet he didn't pay such high prices for them.  And they only live for 10-12 years.  Made-It website If you live in Australia and like to buy handmade crafty goods, this is a great site.  It is like Etsy , but based in Australia so postage is much cheaper.  It is also a great site for ideas if you like to make crafty things. http://www.madeit.com.au/index.asp ...

Ladies - I need you help. I have a four beige coloured skirts - just bought one from eBay for $5.00 (like this one) and I never know what colour tops to wear with it - I usually stick with black but that is getting boring.  What colours would you wear with beige/cream/wheat?  Thanks ladies, much appreciated. PS to those ladies who do not sew and like to wear longer skirts, were do you buy them?  I use eBay, where I have bought the majority of my skirts from (many are brand new). ~oOo~

When I saw " Starry Night over the Rhone " (1880) by Vincent Van Gogh on loan at the National Gallery of Australia I was amazed at its beauty.  I had seen it in books and found it rather flat and not very interesting, but in real life it comes alive - with its brilliant blues and yellows. The painting captures the reflections of the gas lighting in Arles across the glimmering blue water of the Rhône. In the foreground, two lovers stroll by the banks of the river. Vincent Van Gogh (1853 - 1890) Dutch Impressionist painter Although Vincent van Gogh eventually became the most recognizable name in nineteenth century art, he didn't always seem destined for life as a painter. Indeed, it wasn't until the age of 27 when, after brief sojourns into different professions -- including those of art dealer, teacher, and lay minister -- van Gogh devoted himself to painting. In a short period of ten years Van Gogh made approximately 900 paintings.  Vincent only sold one pai...

After writing about how painful (some) modern teenager are these days, I was interested in research undertaken by Jean Twenge at the San Diego State University.  She studied 16,000 university students across the USA and found that showed "30 per cent were narcissistic in psychological tests, compared with 15 per cent in 1982. ''They are all 18 and 19-year-olds, so this is clearly a generational shift,'' she said ”.  The article goes on to say “ Professor Twengel said that permissive parenting, celebrity culture and the internet are among the causes of the emerging narcissism epidemic ”. Narcissists had an inflated sense of self, lacked empathy, were vain and materialistic and had an overblown sense of entitlement. Some resulting social trends were a greater interest in fame and wealth, more plastic surgery, and an increase in attention-seeking crimes - for example, ''beating someone up at school and post it on You Tube'' .  This is very true — ...

DH came home on Saturday afternoon with these gorgeous red roses. No reason, he said he was feeling romantic:) "Mum, between me and the flowers - who is the prettiest"? "Ruby, you are the prettiest of them all...." "Mum, do you mind if I lie here for a while and just look at the roses" "that's fine Ruby, but no touching" "of course not . . . " "who me" "RUBY" "yes mum" "what are you doing" "mmmmm . . . .  just having a um, mmmm taste" "is that ok, it's only one petal?" " NO " "ok" "Mum, why have the roses been moved to the kitchen" "becuase Ruby, sometimes you are naughty and play with my flowers at night when we are asleep" "who me???" "yes Ruby, you" "and if you do knock the vase over, it is better in the kitchen than in the living room" "but please be a GOOD GIRL, and leave me roses ALONE...