Out in nature....

 With four days to rest and recuperate from over-work and health challenges, Mr E and I spent quality time over the Easter break out in nature with our cameras close at hand.

Good Friday night we drove up the mountain to capture sunset pics, but got side-tracked by the kangaroos feeding around the grounds of the Heritage Tea Rooms. It wasn't till we got home and I was transferring the pictures from camera to computer that I discovered the little joey sitting in his mama's pouch so I've enlarged those sections for my dear overseas readers who don't get to see kangaroos the way we in the countryside of Australia regularly do.

On Easter Sunday we packed fresh baked muffins, drove through Zarraffas to grab a couple of delicious cappuccinos, and headed north to Saunders Beach...

 

These few days of holidaying-at-home have lifted our souls, refreshed our spirits, and relaxed our minds so well that we've been out and about in the early morning or at dusk with our cameras every day, a hobby we'd almost lain aside over the long hot spring and summer. 

Taking the focus off work, and letting your eyes rest on the beauty of nature is a tonic that cannot be purchased over a counter. It's a free gift, we just need to close the door at home and go exploring.

hugs

He bought a Jeep...

One day I shall share with you all the miraculous workings of God that brought about the purchase of a new-old car for Mr E last week.

To be honest, we are both still in shock. Only God could do what was done. Only God could provide above and beyond what we could ever hope to ask for.

As you know, our 21yo Pajero resisted all efforts of revival last month. Affectionately known as Luigi, that 4WD has taken us up mountains, through rivers, along paths deep and wide, narrow and impossible - we have had adventures we'll never forget, and it was very sad to say farewell to such a faithful car. 

Accepting this however, we turned to the Lord. You see, getting out and about off the beaten track, cameras in hand, is our way of unwinding from our six-day work weeks. It brings us into God's glorious creation and our minds rest on Him, in Him. It's a gift to leave work behind and pursue nature, praising the Lord along the journey, drinking in of His earthly delights, expectant of some surprises along the way - for He surely never disappoints!

And the Lord provided.

Mr E's new-old 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee...

We flew down to Brisbane on Saturday afternoon and picked up the car at the airport.

Marvelling at what God had done, we filled the tank with fuel and headed north a couple of hours to Gympie where we stayed the night at a lovely little motel.

Up and on the road again early next morning we still had another 1200 kilometres of driving ahead of us, but we stopped by a creek outside Gympie to take these photos of the fog  because we don't often have a fog in the tropics.

And besides, it was the first daylight photo shoot for the Jeep...

 

Our short adventure is over and we're back home again now, but work has piled up in our absence so I'm going to take a few days break from blogging while I catch up.

And the wonderful thing about that? The Lord is with me still...

“Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”

Ephesians 3:20

hugs,

A new day, and my granddaughter...

I've not introduced you to my sweet little granddaughter Frankie before.

Our family is rather private so I don't share a lot about them, but my daughter Aisha has two gorgeous daughters - Ebony & Frankie - and little Frankie has been accepted as an entrant in the Bond's Babysearch 2015 and we thought you might like to meet our cherub, and hopefully vote for her...

Go HERE to the voting page, ok?

Honest, she's adorable...and as I have not yet been able to hold her (we live a long way apart) having regularly updated photos to swoon over is a true blessing, but in a few months she may well be wrapped in Nana's waiting arms and my gushing will move into overdrive. Be prepared. 

As promised yesterday here are some peeks at my 'work in progress'.

The first is where I'm at on a design by my friend Cori Blunt of Chitter Chatter Designs. This will have it's full reveal during Mdm Samm's blog hop in April....details soon.

The project below is a progress peek at one of my own new designs, also being prepared for a blog hop (in June), but the full reveal will be late in April. I love spotty curtains and apple pie, don't you?

I'll close out this week on the blog with some photos I took at sunrise today.

Mr E and I rose early before work and headed towards the beach and port with large coffees and our cameras.

It's still very hot in the tropics and the forecast is for a sweltering autumn so dawn in Townsville is alive with activity before the sun makes sport and exercise too hot to handle.

Enjoy...

hugs,

Old ways and breathless beauty...

A Sunday drive through nearby farmlands is in many ways a step back in time.

Abandoned homes, cars and old machinery are left to rust and weather out in fields, a reminder of old times, old ways, simpler days...

A sabbath day of rest for the farmer? Not really...

I chuckle over the bemused looks I receive from cows when I aim my lens at them...

...such serious personalities!

But this sweet pony and her companion didn't bat an eyelid when I drew close to capture their quiet lunch on film...

Mango farms line the country roads around Majors Creek, so we stopped a few times and noticed that some plantations had trees still pollinating...

While a few kilometres further on the next farm had fruit appearing on every branch...

I wish we'd been able to throw down a blanket under these ancient trees and rest in their shade with tea,  biscuits and lazy Sunday conversation, but it was private property and I respect their space...

It's lime season in the tropics now as well...

This farm had literally thousands upon thousands of limes fallen to the ground as far as the eye could see...

...and a new crop on the way!

We passed a lily pond far off in the distance and this was as close as my zoom lens could get. It wasn't till I got home and began editing the photos that I noticed a duck nearby...

Further along we drove, down one side road and track after another, occasionally discovering remote residences amidst the tall ghost gums...

...and even a creek (the Major's Creek perhaps?)...

...where I stood still and breathless long enough not to scare away this butterfly. I had all of a few seconds to take the photo when she alighted on a leaf near me. As soon as she heard the camera's shutter off she flew!

 I've saved my favourite photograph of the day for the end.

You may have noticed by now that on my photo adventure days with Mr E I often find a "Lord of the Rings" scene - normally this is in the rainforests or beneath the many waterfalls we discover. 

But last Sunday it appeared in the middle of a mango orchard, and it simply took my breath away...

May your day be filled with beautiful things too,

hugs