Our New Place: Becoming home

Every house where love abides
And friendship is a guest,
Is surely home, and home sweet home
For there the heart can rest.
~Henry Van Dyke

Sunset viewed from our lounge room window

It has been a whirlwind: these past three months.

Yet we finally made it.

Some old roses discovered under the canopy
 of the weeping cherry.

We have finished the contract,

we have purchased a house, 

we have moved into it,

we are making it home.

Two of my cherubs pruning their natural cubby
 - a weeping cherry.

There are still many, many boxes to unpack, 

things to sort out and decide whether we really need and want.

After having lived in quite meagre situations this year, 

we have a renewed perspective.

A full rainbow viewed to the east - over our backyard.

Yet there are many things we will treasure and hold on to, 

many things we will use once again when we settle.

I am particularly missing knowing where all my craft things are,

so I can easily access my scissors, my fabric, my patterns...

It became a double bow!

As we sort and store, and rejoice in the discovery of things

 we have done without for most of this year, 

we make our home.

Sharing the unpacking days with the children

means little is achieved at once, 

but we make our home together.

Another sunset viewed from our front porch.

So enjoy these picture of the surrounds of our new place,

and if you are ever nearby, do pop in to say Hi!

Tiny Pillow for playful little heads

 I really like the Bobble-Shell Edging devised by Lucy at Attic 24.

 It was the perfect finish to this little pillow I made for my precious little Eee to use for her little toys as she lays them to bed around the house each day, every day.

 I had just finished making a tension square for a new top I plan to knit for myself this summer.
Not bothering to frog it back, I couldn't see the sense in throwing it out when it would be a simple job to crochet around the edge to join them, stuff with some poly-fill, then finish with the bobble-shell edging.

It makes such a precious sweet pillow for little Emily (I think that's what her name was today!).

Look who's One!

My little baby J has turned one!

We celebrated with a delicious Lumberjack Cake by Not Quite Nigella.  You must explore her site if you haven't already.  Her work is delicious.

We enjoyed a ride on the Carousel in Civic with friends who have made this a family ritual to celebrate birthdays.  Indeed it was such a sweet thing to do, I think we should also make it a birthday ritual.

If indeed we last that long in this part of the country.

Meanwhile, we are currently in a contract to purchase a house.  All is proceeding OK but we are not doing so without extreme caution.  Neither of us could say we are excited.  Neither of us can see that it is actually going to happen.  The events of this year have knocked it all out of us.

iPhone brings us together

“I think if you do something and it turns out pretty good, then you should go do something else wonderful, not dwell on it for too long. Just figure out what’s next.” ~ Steve Jobs, Apple CEO [NBC Nightly News, May 2006]

Bird on the Wire
at our home

I've been thinking about writing this post for such a long time and with the very sad loss of Steve Jobs, Apple CEO, this week.  I thought I should make the time to write again.  

Since my life became transient this year and with a need to purchase a new mobile phone I decided I could go with nothing less than the iPhone.  I found the deal with Virgin to be very good and suitable for our needs costing just $49 per month.  Allowing us internet access on the go as well as $300 worth of phone calls each month.

Peace and Serenity at Lake Burley Griffin

A greater pull towards the iPhone however was the fact that my brother and sister-in-law in Belfast have iPhones, along with my sister and brother-in-law in country NSW.  I knew they were texting each other for free and phoning for free and I really wanted to be part of their lives in this way.

Reflections at Floriade

Is there a more beautiful flower than the Tulip?
Floriade

And so while my life has been turbulent this year, I have found that connections with my family have been much greater.  Connections via iPhone have been enhanced and time taken to enjoy them has been to the detriment of this blog and for that I am sad.  So I would like to ask you to follow me, if you will.  I twitter more these days, search for me @ceelewis if you twitter also.  I'd love to follow you and connect with you there.

Silver Birch leaves as lacework
at Commonwealth Park

I am also an avid Instagramer.  Do you Instagram?  Search for me there if you do, I'm @ceelew.

Tulips of Floriade

Nerang Pool, Commonwealth Park

All the photos you see here in this blog post have been well liked on Instagram and I very much enjoy sharing and connecting with that community. It consists both of family members and other great photographers.

Nerang Pool, Commonwealth Park

So enjoy this little glimpse of Canberra and pop over and join me at Twitter and Instagram.

Thankyou to Steve Jobs for his wonderful creativity and inventions which serve to connect us in new ways.

You know I really am just a bit lazy, or tired with my young family.  Call it what you will! Using my iPhone I can lie down on the lounge and relax while I twitter and instagram, in order to write my blog posts and share photos here, I need to get up to the iMac.  It's a great machine - but it feels like work ;)

So my dear friends and followers, please continue to follow me and connect.

Floriade

Free digital slideshow made with Smilebox

Celebrating with Red Roses

Each day, awakening, are we asked to paint the sky blue? Need we coax the sun to rise or flowers to bloom? Need we teach birds to sing, or children to laugh, or lovers to kiss? No, though we think the world imperfect, it surrounds us each day with its perfections. We are asked only to appreciate them, and to show appreciation by living in peaceful harmony amidst them. The Creator does not ask that we create a perfect world; He asks that we celebrate it.  ~Robert Brault, www.robertbrault.com

Four roses from my four sweethearts celebrating the fact that in this imperfect world we live in,

 justice has been accorded us.  Yes, our case has been heard in our favour. Yay!  

Now we await restitution and pray it comes swiftly.  This is such a huge relief - words escape me.

We have all changed over this period of time.

Lessons have been learned.

One of the most important we want to share is this:

don't be pressured to settle for less, 

particularly when wrongs are being done,

action can be taken, 

justice can be carried out.

God holds us throughout this entire journey.

Blossoms and Birds

Break open a cherry tree and there are no flowers, but the spring breeze brings forth myriad blossoms.  ~Ikkyu Sojun

There are a number of things we are truly enjoying in our new, albeit temporary, home.

We enjoy a visit from a pair of Crimson Rosellas every afternoon.

They are enjoying foraging in the apricot tree blossoming in our back yard at the moment.

I was fortunate to be able to capture them this afternoon, 

so engrossed were they in the myriad blossoms.

They leave a carpet of blossoms under the tree, 

aided by the sulphur crested cockatoos, magpies and other friendly birds.

These delicate blossoms are full of romance.

The little dancing ladies here remind me of the dancers of a mystical Swan Lake, 

tiptoeing delicately upon a lake of snow and ice.

Then they are transformed into a most beautiful ballerina dressed delicately in a beautiful pink bodice with billowing white skirt, layering upon tassels of gold and silver.

The Apricot Blossom - 

the current delight of my heart

and joy of my days.

Sounds like my precious little girls really.

 ;)