19 July 2010

Photos - old and new

I am in a bit of a rush this morning so I'll just share some photos I took on the weekend as well as some I have taken recently but have not yet shown.  As you know we celebrated Shane's birthday at Shane and Sarndra's home on Sunday.



Sarndra is smiling brightly for me while the others are more interested in the delicious lunch they made for us.


When we finished our steak and salads, there was rich chocolate cake and lemon meringue pie to have with coffee and tea. Lemon pie recipe is here.  It was a wonderful afternoon.  The flat that Shane and Sarndra share in Brisbane reminds me of flats I shared with Hanno in our early marriage. There is furniture passed on by family members, as well as pieces from thrift shops, and not enough bench space for food preparation in the kitchen. But it's clean and tidy and there is a feeling of contentment there; they know small steps and sustainability are important and haven't gone into debt to get everything they want immediately.  They have each other, they're working hard on the rest, and they're very happy.  It makes me happy to be a part of it.


When we were ready to go home I took this photo of Shane and Kerry in the flat's cark park.  Right at the back, Shane has built a little vegetable and herb garden.  He's growing tomatoes, lettuce, strawberries and an assortment of herbs.  Naturally, the chefs have to check out the fresh produce.

Now I have some older photos taken in the past month.


First we have these two old boys who just happened to wander by late one afternoon.  I was sitting at my laptop, writing, I looked up to see two peacocks!  I think they two young brothers.  They hadn't yet grown their spectacular tail feathers, but they very beautiful nonetheless.


And this cute kookaburra was sitting on our back fence last week.  He looks young too.  That light patch on his wing is blue. He is one of the famous laughing kookaburras that sound like mad laughter when they call.  Kookaburras are in the kingfisher family.


I took this photo when my sister Tricia was staying with us last month.  She was making a beautiful quilt that, in this photo, she is piecing together - backing and wadding to the front.


And finally, we have Hanno making sandwiches with last week's rye bread.  Avocado and tomato on rye with a cup of black tea - a plain and honest lunch, but very tasty and available because of the work we both do.  I will be writing a post on making rye bread tomorrow.  I hope to see you again then.

I am looking forward to a bright and productive week for all of us.

SHARE:

15 comments

  1. Thanks for sharing your pictures! I especially love the kookaburra!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for posting all those photos. I'm so glad everyone had a good time celebrating your son's birthday!!! I remember a children's song about a kookaburra sitting in a gum tree that I used to sing when I was a child...and the quilt your sister, Tricia, is working on looks lovely. I'm partial to the color red ;) :) Have a great week!!! Oh, I love you your son Shane and his wife Sarndra are waiting for stuff and not getting into debt. That will serve them well in their marriage if they can keep that up :) :) :) That's wonderful...and very smart and wise!!! Lots of love and hugs from Oregon, Heather :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. It is so refreshing to see a young couple that believes that all things come with time, instead of the 'need it right now' mentally. The lunch looks wonderful!

    I have never seen a kookaburra before...and I too remember the song! Thanks so much for sharing the pictures! And the sandwich looks absolutely yummy!

    Take care,
    Cheryl

    ReplyDelete
  4. Love the kookaburra photo! The song I learned in Brownies instantly popped into my head. :o)

    Nothing I love more than an avocado and tomato sandwich. YUM!

    ReplyDelete
  5. What alovely way to start the week.Lovely photos's. The cake and pie look yummo!Will have to try the recipes.Hope your week is great.Take care Linda

    ReplyDelete
  6. What great photos! Thank you for sharing such special times and such special visitors - the kookaburra is wonderful!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Reading your blog is so great. We get hit with so much bad news (I try to not take in too much of it, for my own sanity) and then your blog is read an my confidence in the basic goodness of life, people, the world, is restored. Thank you so much, Rhonda. (Never knew that young male peacocks don't have the long tail feathers.)

    ReplyDelete
  8. postscript: The kookabura reminds me of being a girl scout leader in 1976. We represented Australia on World Friendship Day. We made a little tape of the girls singing "kookabura sits in the old gum tree" and this played all afternoon. We also wore hats with ping pong balls attached which our pamphlet on Australia said people wore to keep bugs away when they were working outside. (Gosh, Rhonda, why do I never see you and Hanno wearing these hats!) And we sold some small thing which I can't remember to raise money for girl scouting. But mostly I DO REMEMBER going slightly mad from the music and the ping pong balls in my face all afternoon!

    ReplyDelete
  9. LOL Kristie, what wonderful memories. In the old days, people in the bush used to wear hats with dangling corks to keep the flies off their face. {{Hugs}}

    ReplyDelete
  10. Good morning Rhonda, how pretty and happy Sarndra looks! Lovely to see Shane's vegie garden, good on him for starting it.

    ReplyDelete
  11. It looks like you had a lovely day with Shane and family. I love that he has a little patch at the back of the car-park, every bit of earth can really count for something can't it.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Love the picture of the Kookaburra! So neat. Love the pictures of the peacocks, one of the homes we use to live in, in the country we had two peacocks who always came in our yard and opened up their feathers. They are so beautiful! Use to drive our dogs nuts though, they would chase them at the fence line and it never phased the peacocks, i guess they knew the dogs could get to them LOL. Thanks for sharing! Have a great week!
    Blessings, Jill

    ReplyDelete
  13. Lovely photos. Looked a brilliant family get-together. Glad you enjoyed it. Here is to many more. Thanks for sharing the pictures.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Nothing beats time spent with family.

    -Brenda

    ReplyDelete
  15. Very nice photos, looks like a very happy family and very nice flat too, loved the kookaburra, lol that is a mouthful, have a great day. Barbara

    ReplyDelete

Blogger Template by pipdig