Travelling

Hi all,

After a busy day at netball and work today, I think I'm ready for our trip tomorrow. It was quite a bit easier than I thought actually. Netball went really well, my team won by quite a bit and they all played very well. I stayed at the club for tea with Robbie, as he was rostered on to help with dishes. The teenagers are all rostered on once or twice a year to help with dishes and clean up.

So now I'm home and the packing was surprisingly easy. I got the washing up to date last night so that made it easier. I have checked Pink's bag (which is twice the size of mine) and I'm going to have to get her to re think that tomorrow morning. Being a school trip the kids are all expected to wear school uniform. Pink has packed one pair of school pants, two school jumpers and two school shirts. She has also packed about 6 changes of casual clothes. I'm pretty sure she will need more than one pair of school pants for a whole week, and more than two shirts. I'm also pretty sure that she doesn't need 4 pairs of jeans, countless jumpers and casual t shirts and several sets of pyjamas. She has no socks either, and it could be just me, but I thought they were pretty necessary!

I was going to post a photo blog tonight about my day. I did remember to take some photo's this morning at work, and a couple around the garden but once I got to the football/netball I forgot all about it. Memory span of a gnat. So that will have to wait for another day.

Pink will have her camera with her during the next week so hopefully I will have some photo's to show everyone when we get back.

So, now I'm pretty tired and thinking I should turn in, since I have a 6 hour drive ahead of me tomorrow. I won't be posting for a whole week (how will I cope?!).

Dear Lord, please grant us safe travel tomorrow and a good nights rest for me tonight. I pray that the coming trip will be beneficial and enjoyable for Pink. Please watch over Robbie and Fisherman as they are left at home together.

Careers Trip

Pink's school has had a long held tradition of sending the year 10 class each year on a "Career Observation Trip". This tradition has been going so long that both Fisherman and I remember our trips fondly.

This year it's Pink's turn. On Sunday we will drive to Adelaide (about 6 hours drive) with my friend Sharon and her son who is in Pink's class. Sharon and I were also in the same class, and went on Careers Trip together. Then next week the kids have lots of visits to workplaces, uni's and TAFE colleges to give them some sort of idea of what they would like to do with themselves when they leave school. They had choices and got to have input into the places they visit and Pink is pretty pleased with her options.

She will visit the SA Health Education Centre on Monday morning to find out about courses and careers in massage and natural therapies, and then the Adelaide Zoo in the afternoon. She loves animals but isn't really interested in a career around them, she just thought she'd like to go to the zoo! On Tuesday morning she will visit Clip Joint which is a hair dressing academy, and the Australian Institute of fitness in the afternoon. The Australian Institute of fitness looks at careers in personal training, nutrition and sports massage. On Wednesday morning she will visit the Australian College of Natural Therapies where she will see Acupuncture in action and learn about careers in Homeopathy, Naturopathy and Chinese Medicine. Wednesday afternoon the whole class will tour the Law Courts followed by shopping and a movie. On Thursday we are off to an architect who also does interior design and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in the afternoon to look at medical careers. Friday we will all drive home after a bit of shopping in the morning.

Pink's interests at the moment centre around Natural therapies and massage so she has chosen really well there, and will see a wide variety of careers in action.

I am completely disorganised at the moment with regard to getting ready for this trip. I have just discovered that it is my turn to work tomorrow (Saturday) morning and then I have football and netball commitments in the afternoon. Looks like the tumble dryer will be getting a workout tonight! I have to get all of Pinks school uniform washed and dried ready to pack Saturday night.

Robbie will be staying home with Fisherman, and he goes on school camp on Wednesday next week, so I also have to think about making sure everything he needs is ready. I think I'd better make myself a list!

A day in the Life.....

I've been meaning to do a post like this for a while now, so this is how my day panned out yesterday. I've skipped over what I do at work as it's not really very interesting to anyone else!

5.15am - Fisherman gets up and goes out to work. I sense it more than anything. He knows better than to speak to me at that hour, I am not a morning person!


5:20am - Fisherman lets Boris the cat in. He licks my nose and snuggles under the covers, purring loudly. I adore this cat which explains how he gets away with this behaviour. Like I said, I'm not a morning person!

6.45am - My alarm goes off. I listen to the weather report (no rain), then talk myself into moving. I drag myself out of bed, disrupting Boris in the process, he glares at me as he stretches. Cats can frown you know.

7am - Head for the shower, waking Pink and Robbie on my way past. I have to turn Pink's light on to have any hope of getting her to stay awake. Takes after her mother.

7:25am - Emerge from the shower, almost human now. Wake Pink again, and again, and one more time before she actually moves. Help Robbie find socks.

7:30am - Prepare kids lunches and breakfast simultaneously (this is where I miss Fisherman, when he isn't so busy he helps with this bit). Referee argument over who has stolen who's socks.

7:55am - we all head out the door. Drive Robbie 10km to bus stop to be taken to his primary school. Pink stays with me as her school is walking distance from my work.

8:30am - Arrive at work. Turn on computer and make coffee. Check my emails, blog and list of tasks to be done today.

8:45am - Pink leaves for school, only to return two minutes later. She wants me to drive her so she doesn't get mud on her shoes (or Robbie's socks). Praise the Lord. We have mud.

9am - Start processing machinery forward orders for 2009. Apparently there is a worldwide tractor shortage and we have to guesstimate how many tractors we will sell in 2009. Spend time liasing between salesmen and management to get a quota everyone is happy with.

12noon - Lunchtime. Buy lunch at the bakery because I was too lazy to pack my own this morning. Head to my friend Sharon's (yes, she is a Sharon too) house for lunch and enjoy a cuppa and catch up with her. We plan what time we will leave on Sunday for the school trip we are going on with our two eldest.

1pm - Back to work and those tractor orders. After a couple of breaks for coffee, email and blog catchups they are all finished and ready to be emailed to CASE IH in the morning. We will order 65 tractors and hope and pray we have got it right.

6pm - Head home, stopping on the way to grab some milk and a DVD for Robbie (he rang, begged, whined, I caved).

6:30pm - Arrive home, light the fire and prepare dinner. Help Robbie with his homework (does anybody remember how to multiply fractions? Hmmm) while dinner is cooking. Monitor Pink's internet usage while she is chatting to friends on Myspace.

7pm - Sit down to dinner with the kids. Fisherman doesn't eat with us at thes time of year since he won't be home til after midnight. Put his dinner in the microwave for him to re-heat and eat when he gets home. Spend time chatting with the kids over dinner, catching up on their day.

7:30pm - Clean kitchen then sit down to do some cross stitch. I'm working on a new one, it's a beautiful picture of a sheep dog pup sitting inside a farmers boot. Cute. Could take me several years!

9pm - Send Robbie to bed, after telling him 15-20 times (ok, maybe 3) to clean his teeth. Pink goes to her room to practice guitar and the song she is singing in an upcoming variety concert. I enjoy the peace and quiet while continuing with my cross stitch. I mean to get up and spend some time reading my bible before heading to bed but before I know it it's 11pm and I'm still stitching. Cross stitch is addictive you know.

11.15pm - Put a load of washing in the dryer, put the cats outside (they are frowning again) and turn in.

2am - Fisherman comes to bed. We briefly chat about I'm not sure what but I try to sound awake and interested.

Sowing

Sowing is in full swing for us. This year we will be sowing wheat, barley, oats and lupins. With two years of drought behind us, and rising fuel and fertiliser prices we considered reducing our cropping program, but have decided against that. I hope and pray we have made the right decision.


We are one of the lucky farmers in our district. While we don't enjoy the regular rainfall that others do, I am so thankful that my husband is a wise farmer. We have managed to maintain quality machinery and not go too far backwards so far. But we can only continue this for so long, at some stage you have to make a profit. We have had to go further into debt this year to put the crop in, so please pray that this drought will well and truly be broken.


At the moment Fisherman is driving the four wheel drive tractor which pulls the seeding unit. His brother drives the smaller tractor with the boomspray and tries to stay a few hours ahead of him so the chemical has time to settle. This means that Fisherman starts work at around 6am, and works until he has sown all the ground that his brother has sprayed (usually he comes home around 2am), and his brother gets up at 3am to have enough ground prepared for Fisherman to start sowing. So, effectively they are working around the clock.

I worry about the hours they work and the size of the machinery they operate on such little sleep.

Please pray for our crop to go in this year with no mishaps. Also pray for continued rain to sustain it and develop strong root systems.

Dear Lord, I pray that as the boys continue to work hard and long hours that you will watch over them and protect them. I pray also for widespread rain across our land to sustain the crops we are sowing and give hope to our community.

Gone Home

Pink's homegroup teacher from last year died yesterday. Pink's class were her last, as she left halfway through the year when she became ill.

She will be remembered forever for the compassion, care and love she showed her students. Pink's relationship with this teacher was at times rocky, due to them both standing up for what they believed in, but there was an underlying mutual respect.

So, Jane, we will remember a life that blessed us. Your choices, your character and your love and obedience to the Lord will live on forever. I pray that the Lords spirit will continue to give guidance and hope to all who watched you live out your calling. You have been covered with the blood of the lamb, and have been cleansed from all sin. Now that you have been called home the model of your life will be more than a memory; it will leave an indelible mark on the hearts and lives of all who loved you.

No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him. 1 Corinthians 2:9

See you there.

Teachers

Teachers are on my heart today.

At the moment one of Pink's teachers is living her last hours. I'm not actually sure if she made it through the night last night. She is a wonderful, caring, God loving woman with a husband and three young children. DH went to school with her and her husband (who is also a teacher) we have known them almost all our lives. Currently she is losing the battle with a very aggresive form of breast cancer. She was diagnosed six months ago, three weeks ago she was looking really well. A week ago she was flown to Adelaide in a critical condition, unable to eat, walk or communicate. She is home again now and yesterday they doubled her morphine. She will be missed and grieved over by all the students that she taught. She is one of those rare teachers who really cares. Sometimes she cared too much, and got too emotionally involved and was hurt in the process. People said (and I was one of them) that she took what the kids said to her too personally but that was because she cared so much.

Teachers are such an important group of people. They touch and influence many. They can make or break a child with a single word. Robbie had one such teacher, last term we were struggling to get him to school. It was a fight every day. His report card showed that he was marking time, not moving ahead or learning. That teacher has emotional, mental and a drinking problem and has since been removed from the school. Robbie now has a wonderful, caring, creative teacher and the change in his approach and attitude is marked.

Today I would like to pray for all our teachers.

Father, I would like to pray for those in our church family and the wider community who have children or teenagers in their care as teachers. Raise up Christian teachers for our young people. Help our teachers serve and teach as they are gifted by the Spirit. Help them instruct and genuinely care for the students whom they are responsible.

May our teachers set an example for all the kids they teach through the lives they are living, may they always speak Your truth and not be carried away by or promote the ideas and opinions of men.

May others who have responsibilities over our young people, such as coaches, Sunday school teachers, youth leaders and others who supervise them, never grow tired of doing what's right, for You will not forget their work or the love they show our kids. Keep our teachers strong in the Lord and may Your word live in them.

May our teachers devote themselves to teaching, giving themselves fully to it as the work You have given them to do.

And a special prayer for Pink's teacher, her husband and their children Lord. I pray that she will have peace and rest with you soon Lord, and that her husband and the children can trust in you and look to your for comfort in their grief. I pray that their families can remain strong and support each other in this difficult time. And if there is something I can do to ease the burden, then please show it to me Lord. I also pray for Jane's students. This will be the first brush with death for many. Support and counsel them Lord and show them Your love.

In Jesus' name, amen.

Come as you are

Come as you are is a line from a great worship song called Broken and Beautiful by Mark Schulz.

It's been rattling around in my head for quite some time now, and the whole idea of "coming as you are" has been an idea that I have struggled with. So here are my thoughts on "come as you are".

I have struggled for a long time with feelings of unworthiness. I felt unworthy of being called a child of God, unworthy of being a member of my church and unworthy of calling a lot of wonderful people in my life my friends.

I let these feelings stop me from going to church on a regular basis. I told myself that I would commit to regular attendance when I got it right, when I felt worthy of being there. I would go for a couple of weeks then I would mess up again, and instead of asking for and accepting the Lord's forgiveness, I would tell myself there was no point, I just can't do this Christianity thing, I'm just not capable of being good enough, and I would give up again. I kept this going for a couple of years, going to church, then stopping, then going again. How much do you think Satan was enjoying this rollercoaster ride?

Thankfully with the Lord's help and with some much appreciated support and guidance from wonderful friends I have come to realise that I am never going to be worthy. The Lord doesn't expect me to get it right before I come before Him. He knows that isn't possible, He wants us all to come as we are. We are all broken but the Lord still loves us, still calls us His children, wants more than anything for us to repent and keep coming back to Him.

So, don't try to be worthy, you can't. Just come as you are.

Lord, I thank you that you are always there waiting for me to come back to you, and that you are patient with me as I take such a long time to learn your lessons for me. I pray that I can continue to grow in faith and knowledge of you, and that I can serve you with all my heart and soul.