Revenge

Season 1 of Revenge finished last night.

For those who haven't watched the show, it's about a young woman whose father was framed, convicted (and later murdered) for a heinous crime he didn't commit back when she was a girl.  Years later, she returns to the Hamptons under a new name to exact revenge on the people who were behind it all.

The series had me hooked, yet left a bitter taste in my mouth at the same time.  Duncan remarked that he's so glad we're not part of society's elite where kisses are bestowed, but everyone secretly plots to destroy one another.

I can understand why Amanda/Emily would want revenge.  I've never been grievously wronged as she had and had my whole life destroyed.   I would be sorely tempted to take matters into my own hands as she does.  But it disturbed me when one of the main characters says vengeance is justified if the person deserved it, and if they didn't, then you just have to forgive yourself.  Watching this show made me more determined to trust in God and leave things in His hands, even if my sinful nature is screaming for me to take revenge.

Did anyone else watch it?

Diary of an Incubator: FAQs

Five years ago, I started the series Diary of a Wedding Planning Machine to record the highs and lows of engagement and wedding planning.

Now that I'm pregnant, I'm starting a new series....Diary of an Incubator.

Doesn't that sound exciting! ;)

One similar thing about getting engaged and being pregnant is that you get asked a lot of questions.  Mostly this is fine; people are just curious.  But five minutes after we got engaged, I was being asked about our wedding plans.  Where were going to hold the ceremony and reception?  How many people were we going to invite?  Ummm we got engaged five minutes ago!  Let us enjoy the moment.  Patience, people, patience.

So, I've decided to answer a list of common pregnancy-related questions...onces I've already been asked, and ones I'm anticipating in the near future.

Where are you having the baby?
You can't have babies in the hospital near where we live so we're going to have the baby in Perth.  Country women get asked to go away two weeks before their due date, so I'll be heading to Perth in early January to do the 'countdown' (in case the baby comes early).  That means I'll need to stay with someone for at least a fortnight.  Hmmm I'll be seeking out someone with airconditioning.

Public or private?
Private for the first.  We're very grateful to be able to go private.  I doubt we'll be able to afford it if (God willing) there's a second.  But finding an obstetrician was hard.  It's like some women book before they're even pregnant!

Are you having a boy or a girl?
Don't know and we won't be finding out.  We like surprises.  We thought we might be having twins since Duncan's mum is a twin and there are numerous other sets of twins in both families.  But, no, the ultrasound revealed there is only one (Duncan is very relieved).  The ultrasound revealed it IS a baby...not a monkey...or a dog...although the baby did look a bit like an alien.

Are you excited/nervous/*insert some other emotion here*?
Yes, all of the above.

Have you had any morning sickness?
Yes, although I haven't thrown up, thank goodness (I HATE vomiting...it's a phobia of mine).  I just feel nauseous on and off most days.  It's at its worst just before I go to bed (it should be called night sickness).  Having the flu made the sickness a lot worse.

How are you going with the low starch diet?
I'm not.  I'm off the diet.  I'll write a post about pregnancy and arthritis later.

Have you had any strange cravings?
Nope, nothing weird like icecream and gerkins.  I've just been craving dry, salty things like chips, pies, toast and vegemite etc.  I liked all of these things in my pre-diet days, and now I can have them, I'm making up for lost time.

Do you have a bump?
Yes, it's starting.

No doubt there will be more questions to add to the list as the months go by...

I Did It...Eventually

Back in 2009, I mentioned that I had started studying towards Certificate 2 in Business at TAFE.  This was part of my aim to find administration work after I quickly learned there are no opportunities for librarians in small country towns.

The plan had always been to do it slowly...three units per semester (towards a total of 12) and one semester per year.  Coupled with numerous stuff ups with my enrolment (they sent me no books on one occasion, and double the number of books on another, then they nearly made me repeat a unit because of a problem their end), it's a miracle I completed it.

To some people, it may have seemed ridiculous that I was taking so long to do a very basic course.  Just cram as many units into the year as possible, a friend suggested.  No, I did it slowly because I was studying externally and determined not to get stressed over it.

It took three and a bit years....but I did it!

Jethro

We had the privilege of meeting our friends Emma and Peter's new baby son, Jethro, a few weeks ago.  He was born on the 21st June.

He is a seriously cute little dude!

Big sister Eleanor was more interested in poking him in the face while he was sleeping.

Here is the little fella at eight days new.

Which camera do I look at?

Practising for January

Killer Flu

I've been sick quite a few times over the past two years, but this is definitely the worst I've felt.  Day 8 of the flu!  Friday and Saturday were shocking.  My whole body hurt.  I was shivering violently, then sweating profusely, couldn't eat, couldn't breathe properly, kept coughing, and felt lethargic.  Duncan took me to the hospital on Saturday afternoon to see if there was anything they could do.   But unfortunately pregnancy rules out taking the usual drugs that give some relief.

Now the symptoms are finally starting to ease.  I can actually get out of bed and eat a little bit (and type a blog post).  However, returning to work still seems like a long way off.  In many ways, the recovery is as bad as the flu itself.  Getting back on my feet will take a while.  My immune system is so low at the moment.

Bored?

I really don't understand people who constantly complain about being bored.

How can anyone be bored when there is so much to do?  How can any Christian complain about being bored when there is an abundance of good works out there to do?

Our culture is so focused on entertainment that we have forgotten how to entertain ourselves.  Why can't people just learn to make their own fun?  Why do they constantly need other people to organise things for them?  It really annoys me how people complain there are not enough fun activities on, then when someone organises something, they don't come!  If we stopped focusing on ourselves, there would be no time to be bored.

I'm a big fan of what I call 'redeeming the time'.  I know some people's situations are certainly less than ideal (unemployment, sickness etc).  It's tempting to just wish they were over.  But guess what?  We are just going to complain about the next situation we find ourselves in.  If we complain about unemployment, we're just going to complain about having to go to work when we do get a job.  It's human nature.  So, let's redeem the time.  Right now, I have the flu.  Having all-day pregnancy sickness and the flu at once is not fun.  I haven't been able to work all this week, and I have two events I'm supposed to be organising for a fortnight's time.  I can't do much around the house (I'm very glad I don't have kids to look after).  But I need to ask myself how I can make the best use of my time?  Rather than complain about being bored, what opportunities do I have to do things that I wouldn't normally get to do...like read the Bible more, watch movies, get stuck into that bookcase of books I haven't read yet.  Although I need to spend a lot of time resting, I can use this time for good.  If I'm using it for good, then I can never be bored.

So, text or email a friend, create something, finish a project you never got a chance to do.  If you're well and complaining there's nothing to do on the weekends, how about you be the one to take some initiative and organise something?  Join a community group.  Do random acts of kindness.  Stop expecting everyone to drop everything and entertain you.

I often get asked if I get bored on the farm.  My answer: not at all.  I've always been the type of person who can exist quite happily with my own company if I need to.  Sure, some personalities find this easier than others, but it's a skill everyone should learn.

Still bored?

I don't get it.  Please explain...

Quirky Birthday Presents

Amanda and family sent me this bracelet all the way from Sydney.  Hahaha how true!

My friend Rianna sent me this very cool tea towel.  She thought it would remind me of the many afternoons I spent playing Scrabble with my Nan.



Thanks guys!