Saturday, 14 February 2015
Determined
If there is one part of my personality that I am developing it would be my determination. I love to start things, but I rarely follow through or push through the difficult times.
I have a new example of determination in my life to give me encouragement....
My Children.
Their eagerness to be the best that they can be is amazing.
Hanisi is someone that will see someone else do something, that she thinks is just AMAZING, and she will try and try and try until she is able to do the exact same thing.
Last year a significant challenge for her was cartwheels and monkey bars. She spent hours trying to perfect the art of a cartwheel. Every time I was lucky enough to pick her up from school I was summonsed to the monkey bars to see her latest trick, or how many bars she was able to skip.
I have seen this in her with her reading and writing, swimming, learning to be an announcer on the radio. Most of all I have seen a huge improvement in her behaviour. She is learning to control her excitement and frustration. It has been an amazing couple of years for Her.
Milly - Well Milly is very vocal at expressing her determination to achieve goals. When Milly faces a challenge, in particular a physical challenge, she has a couple of common phrases that she uses.
"I Believe in myself."
Milly has been learning to ride her bike without training wheels this year, and I have heard Milly say "I believe in Myself" a lot when she has attempted to push through the difficult times.
I am not sure where she picked up on it. It is not something Mariah and I say. Maybe school or something she watched on TV. Knowing Milly is is probably something that she saw on TV.
I do enjoy watching my children be successful in the things that they do. Even the small things. I am proud of them all and what they are doing.
Maybe if we all 'belived in ourselves' a little more we would be as happy as our children.
Wednesday, 7 January 2015
Christmas 2014
I made contact with the bishop of the ward in Fiji to see if he was happy to help us out again.
He was thrilled to assist.
Last year we shared what we had done with our family and some were touched enough that they wanted to contribute in 2014.
The funds were sent and the wait began. I trust the discretion of the Bishop to delegate the funds to those that need them the most.
This year we were able to assist a family with paying their school fees, a single mother have the windows in her home replaced, and provide some needed food and essentials to families who needed the help of others.
The first lot of news came through while we were eating dinner. The Bishop and his family had called in to visit the family that needed help paying for their school fees. When the gift was presented the father, a man in his 40's-50's cried. He was amazed that someone from across the globe would be thoughtful enough to share this gift with him. He revealed to the Bishop that he had been praying that somehow he would be able to pay the debt and allow his children to attend school in the coming year. He, nor I, ever thought that this act of giving would bring such great joy to each other.
This is what Christmas is about. Knowing that we have in some way made a real difference in someone's life. Christmas has a greater meaning to me now than ever before. I no longer am concerned that I have or have not purchased something for every person that I interact with in one way or another. It is more than all the retail hustle and bustle. It is hearing and seeing that we have become someone's Christmas miracle.
Last year we received photos of the gift giving. This year we sent and received videos to and from those that we assisted.
This idea of the Maiwiriwiri family was brilliant. It allowed us to get the kids more involved, and feel as though we are actually there participating in the giving.
I am not going to post the videos on here as I believe that they are a personal communication that does not need to be shared on the WWW.
I will share pictures of the kids that we took while making our video.
We look forward to 2015 and hope that we will be blessed with the same opportunity.
Radio
Living in a small community means that you have a lot of opportunities to serve. Well that is what I thought any way. But each community is filled with opportunities to serve as a volunteer. Living in a small community just means that you are more aware of the opportunities that arise.
When I first arrived in St Helens, one of my colleagues, who is involved in just about every organisation in St Helens mentioned that she was a volunteer Ambulance Officer and also worked at the local community radio station. I mentioned that one of my goals was to become involved in the community. She said that the radio station were looking for new board members and she offered to put my name forward as a potential member.
It was approved by the board and I now attend regular meetings and help out where I can. It was from my involvement with the board and fundraising efforts that I was approached to become an announcer for the station.
I was not confident about the offer, but deep down inside I was thrilled that I would be able to have my own radio show. I came up with the name “Breakfast with the Big Fella” as the name for my show.
I started doing a regular Saturday morning show 7:30-11am, which I thoroughly enjoy. I then went on to pick up an extra shift on a Wednesday morning 6:00-8:15. This one I am not so fond of. Particularly if I don’t get a good night’s sleep the night before. (like last night).
It has been very enjoyable getting to know different people, being part of the community, a voice of the community and showing my children that you can do anything.
Hanisi has visited the station with me on a number of occasions. So much so that she has her own on air name and a small following of supporters. I have been stopped in the street on a number of occasions asking when ‘Little Chick” will be back on air. She started off by reading parts of the weather and now she reads some of the adds with me. She wishes she could have a whole show of her own, and who knows, maybe one day she will and I will be her co-host/special guest?
Mariah says that we work well together.
All the kids have been to the studio and have a look around. Milly has done a little on air time, but is a little shy to talk through the microphone.
So that is one way that I have assisted the community of St Helens. I keep them entertained and informed. (I hope).
Annie Mariah Terry
Annie is about to turn 1 in a couple of weeks and I have not even completed a post about her arrival.
I realised yesterday that I had not kept a record of the events of 2014 and there were so many that needed to be reported.
Annie was a baby of choice. Mariah had felt for some time that she had wanted to have another baby. Me, on the other hand, was not feeling those same feelings. I was content with what we had. Chester was just starting to sleep through the nights and the girls were settled and becoming more independent. Why would anyone want to spoil that?
Well we did.... and this is what we were blessed with. They say "sacrifice brings forth blessings."
I would say that we have been blessed beyond our comprehension.
I know that this is a blog about Annie, but I have been looking at Chester the past couple of weeks as I have spent time with him and I have realised that his is such a handsome little fella.
From the first appointment that we had with the doctors we knew that the Drs had their dates wrong. What they were saying just did not make any sense. I felt that Annie would come earlier than expected. We were so fussed with the dates because we now lived 2 hours from a hospital that had the ability to deliver a baby.
I must admit this was my biggest concern as Mariah's past labours had been very short and I was sure that this was not going to be any different.
I had reviewed my training through my volunteer involvement with the ambulance station and had a plan in my mind if it all went wrong.
As the day drew closer, we had parents on stand by, and Mariah's mother booked in to come and be with the kids. I was lucky enough to have 6 weeks off work from the third week of January. The time had come and we had been spending a lot of time at the beach and exploring the East Coast of Tassie.
It was Australia day long weekend coming up, and I had considered that Annie may be born on Australia day. If that was to happen, I thought that it might be nice to call her Matilda. No sure if Mariah was sold on the idea.
Australia Day (Sunday) came and went with not even a hint of a birth. I was a little disappointed with that, but it was just not meant to be. But that was ok, because we had a big day planned at Bridport the next day. It did mean that was the name Matilda out the window. Oh well, back to picking another girls name... It was not easy.
Monday came and we were all excited about the day at the beach. The weather was as it should be on any public holiday - Hot and Sunny.
The kids were so excited. We love the beach. We live on the coast and still feel like we don't go to the beach enough. We packed the Patrol, loaded the kayak and thought at the last minute that we should bring the labour bag and extra baby seat. We thought that we should pack it just in case.
We had a blast at the beach. It was a beautiful day for swimming, kayaking and being told off by old ladies for not wearing a life jacket. We spent the day with a lot of friends doing what we love to do.
At the end of the day we went back to the camp site of a friend and just sat a talked. They invited us to stay for dinner, which we did. When we got back, I noticed that Mariah had gone missing. She had gone off for a walk. When she came back she was eager to get going where I was happy to stay. She kept making up excuses as to why we had to leave and I just kept ignoring her requests. In the end I gave in and we decided to leave
I was debating if we should go home via Gladstone, long and straight, or Scottsdale, shorter winding through the hills. I sat at the intersection and debated. I tried to get input from Mariah, but she "did not mind." About 5 mins from the Bridport turn off, Mariah tells me that she has been having some pains. I asked what they were like, how far apart, and when they started. She then tells me that they started back at the camp site. I asked if she felt like we should go to Launceston or keep going home. She said she didn't know. I said she had until Scottsdale to let me know what she wanted to do. It was just as we were coming in to Scottsdale that the huffing and puffing started, and she was grabbing at her knees.
I knew it was on, and we needed to go to Launceston. I got on the phone to mum to let her know that we were coming as quickly as we could and expected to be there in about half an hour. We arrived in Launceston and Mariah wanted to have a quick shower before we went to the hospital. By this stage the labour was well underway. I unpacked the car and put the sleeping kids in to their beds. Mum was fussing as a mother would and getting towels etc for the car. But there was no time for fussing.
I don't recall if I called the hospital or not. I think we did, because a grumpy old nurse told me off for not calling when we turned up to have Chester.
I think we got to the hospital about 8:00pm. I really don't recall what time it was but it was about then. Soon after Annie was born.
Trying to think back I don't recall too much. I do recall that the nurse was telling Mariah to push and Mariah kept saying I am so tired, I just want to go to sleep. I explained to the nurse that we had just had a big day at the beach and are all exhausted. Poor Mariah just wanted it to be over. Lucky for her it was a quick delivery and we were introduced to Annie.
Annie was not a name that we had both decided on. It was a name that we had discussed, I liked it, Mariah not so much. But, here she was, she needed a name. So we quickly decided Annie Mariah Terry would be just fine.
After Annie had spent some time with Mariah and the nurses had completed all their checks, I got Annie dressed and then came home so I could get some sleep and so could Mariah.
12 months on and Annie is doing great. It has not been an easy 12 months. It has been difficult for us to adjust to a new baby. Well for me it has been.
Annie is such a happy baby, and really, has been a good baby.
This is Annie.
I realised yesterday that I had not kept a record of the events of 2014 and there were so many that needed to be reported.
Annie was a baby of choice. Mariah had felt for some time that she had wanted to have another baby. Me, on the other hand, was not feeling those same feelings. I was content with what we had. Chester was just starting to sleep through the nights and the girls were settled and becoming more independent. Why would anyone want to spoil that?
Well we did.... and this is what we were blessed with. They say "sacrifice brings forth blessings."
I would say that we have been blessed beyond our comprehension.
I know that this is a blog about Annie, but I have been looking at Chester the past couple of weeks as I have spent time with him and I have realised that his is such a handsome little fella.
From the first appointment that we had with the doctors we knew that the Drs had their dates wrong. What they were saying just did not make any sense. I felt that Annie would come earlier than expected. We were so fussed with the dates because we now lived 2 hours from a hospital that had the ability to deliver a baby.
I must admit this was my biggest concern as Mariah's past labours had been very short and I was sure that this was not going to be any different.
I had reviewed my training through my volunteer involvement with the ambulance station and had a plan in my mind if it all went wrong.
As the day drew closer, we had parents on stand by, and Mariah's mother booked in to come and be with the kids. I was lucky enough to have 6 weeks off work from the third week of January. The time had come and we had been spending a lot of time at the beach and exploring the East Coast of Tassie.
It was Australia day long weekend coming up, and I had considered that Annie may be born on Australia day. If that was to happen, I thought that it might be nice to call her Matilda. No sure if Mariah was sold on the idea.
Australia Day (Sunday) came and went with not even a hint of a birth. I was a little disappointed with that, but it was just not meant to be. But that was ok, because we had a big day planned at Bridport the next day. It did mean that was the name Matilda out the window. Oh well, back to picking another girls name... It was not easy.
Monday came and we were all excited about the day at the beach. The weather was as it should be on any public holiday - Hot and Sunny.
The kids were so excited. We love the beach. We live on the coast and still feel like we don't go to the beach enough. We packed the Patrol, loaded the kayak and thought at the last minute that we should bring the labour bag and extra baby seat. We thought that we should pack it just in case.
We had a blast at the beach. It was a beautiful day for swimming, kayaking and being told off by old ladies for not wearing a life jacket. We spent the day with a lot of friends doing what we love to do.
At the end of the day we went back to the camp site of a friend and just sat a talked. They invited us to stay for dinner, which we did. When we got back, I noticed that Mariah had gone missing. She had gone off for a walk. When she came back she was eager to get going where I was happy to stay. She kept making up excuses as to why we had to leave and I just kept ignoring her requests. In the end I gave in and we decided to leave
I was debating if we should go home via Gladstone, long and straight, or Scottsdale, shorter winding through the hills. I sat at the intersection and debated. I tried to get input from Mariah, but she "did not mind." About 5 mins from the Bridport turn off, Mariah tells me that she has been having some pains. I asked what they were like, how far apart, and when they started. She then tells me that they started back at the camp site. I asked if she felt like we should go to Launceston or keep going home. She said she didn't know. I said she had until Scottsdale to let me know what she wanted to do. It was just as we were coming in to Scottsdale that the huffing and puffing started, and she was grabbing at her knees.
I knew it was on, and we needed to go to Launceston. I got on the phone to mum to let her know that we were coming as quickly as we could and expected to be there in about half an hour. We arrived in Launceston and Mariah wanted to have a quick shower before we went to the hospital. By this stage the labour was well underway. I unpacked the car and put the sleeping kids in to their beds. Mum was fussing as a mother would and getting towels etc for the car. But there was no time for fussing.
I don't recall if I called the hospital or not. I think we did, because a grumpy old nurse told me off for not calling when we turned up to have Chester.
I think we got to the hospital about 8:00pm. I really don't recall what time it was but it was about then. Soon after Annie was born.
Trying to think back I don't recall too much. I do recall that the nurse was telling Mariah to push and Mariah kept saying I am so tired, I just want to go to sleep. I explained to the nurse that we had just had a big day at the beach and are all exhausted. Poor Mariah just wanted it to be over. Lucky for her it was a quick delivery and we were introduced to Annie.
Annie was not a name that we had both decided on. It was a name that we had discussed, I liked it, Mariah not so much. But, here she was, she needed a name. So we quickly decided Annie Mariah Terry would be just fine.
After Annie had spent some time with Mariah and the nurses had completed all their checks, I got Annie dressed and then came home so I could get some sleep and so could Mariah.
12 months on and Annie is doing great. It has not been an easy 12 months. It has been difficult for us to adjust to a new baby. Well for me it has been.
Annie is such a happy baby, and really, has been a good baby.
This is Annie.
Tuesday, 6 January 2015
Policeman's Point.
Wow.. It has been 12 months since I wrote a blog. What a 12 months it has been. I have a lot to catch up on.
I will start with the weekend just gone.
We caught up with Stinky Dan and his family over Christmas and he mentioned a camping trip. I said I was keen and quickly forgot what I had said.
I received a text to make sure that we were still keen for camping. My response... SURE>...
Nothing like a last minute decision. I had other things that I was doing that weekend, some would have to take a back seat, others I could work around.
We went to Policeman's Point. It is located on the southern side of Anson's Bay on the North East of Tasmania. It is part of the iconic Bay of Fires Conservation Area.
When we arrived Annie, (I'll introduce Annie in a later blog) decided to complete some maintenance on the Patrol while the rest of us unpacked.
We knew that Saturday was going to be a HOT day. The forecast was for temps in excess of 30 degrees with a strong northerly wind. As a result a total fire ban was declared from midnight Friday. We made sure that the marshmallow toasting was completed early on Friday.
The Bureau got it right. Saturday was HOT... I had my radio show (ohhh yeah I'll blog about that later) and the temp at the station was 36 degrees before 11am. I could not wait to get back to camp and jump in the water.
We got back to find the kids and adults all in the water and cooling off.
It was a beautiful spot when the tide was out.
There was a lot of sand for the kids to run around on and build sand objects.
Milly, our Frozen fanatic, built a sand version of Olaf. She was so proud and rightfully so. She did an awesome job.
Our cute Milly.
My Dad had decided to come down to visit us that same day. When I told him that we would be at the beach I knew that he would not mind.
He had a ball with the kids.
Notice Milly's hand gestures... My father is deaf and Milly is trying to communicate with him. Her and Hanisi are good with their signing.
Annie thought she was ok to park her pram there for more than an hour. Beach Security had other ideas.
Until he was chased away like a pesky seagull trying to rob you of your chips.
The guard was sent packing. We never saw him again...
The kids went back to playing without a care in the world.
I remember those days. Going from day to day without and thought for tomorrow, just enjoying the moment that you were in.
I like this final picture. To me, this is a representation of a good holiday. Feeling free and HAPPY.
Two nights away, and a life time of memories.
Thanks Stinky Dan for the invite.
I will start with the weekend just gone.
We caught up with Stinky Dan and his family over Christmas and he mentioned a camping trip. I said I was keen and quickly forgot what I had said.
I received a text to make sure that we were still keen for camping. My response... SURE>...
Nothing like a last minute decision. I had other things that I was doing that weekend, some would have to take a back seat, others I could work around.
We went to Policeman's Point. It is located on the southern side of Anson's Bay on the North East of Tasmania. It is part of the iconic Bay of Fires Conservation Area.
 |
| Photos from the Southern part of the Bay of Fires. |
When we arrived Annie, (I'll introduce Annie in a later blog) decided to complete some maintenance on the Patrol while the rest of us unpacked.
She was so proud of the work that she had done.
We knew that Saturday was going to be a HOT day. The forecast was for temps in excess of 30 degrees with a strong northerly wind. As a result a total fire ban was declared from midnight Friday. We made sure that the marshmallow toasting was completed early on Friday.
We got back to find the kids and adults all in the water and cooling off.
It was a beautiful spot when the tide was out.
There was a lot of sand for the kids to run around on and build sand objects.
Milly, our Frozen fanatic, built a sand version of Olaf. She was so proud and rightfully so. She did an awesome job.
Our cute Milly.
My Dad had decided to come down to visit us that same day. When I told him that we would be at the beach I knew that he would not mind.
He had a ball with the kids.
Notice Milly's hand gestures... My father is deaf and Milly is trying to communicate with him. Her and Hanisi are good with their signing.
All of the kids ran and played most of the afternoon.
Others were exhausted from the heat and the excitement.
Annie thought she was ok to park her pram there for more than an hour. Beach Security had other ideas.
Until he was chased away like a pesky seagull trying to rob you of your chips.
They were proud of themselves.
Annie was just glad that she got out of a ticket.
The guard was sent packing. We never saw him again...
The kids went back to playing without a care in the world.
I remember those days. Going from day to day without and thought for tomorrow, just enjoying the moment that you were in.
I like this final picture. To me, this is a representation of a good holiday. Feeling free and HAPPY.
Two nights away, and a life time of memories.
Thanks Stinky Dan for the invite.
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