Little blogging break this week - travelling north

 Hi all, I hope you have all being ok these last couple of weeks during these stressful times. We have been away travelling north from where we live in Western Australia these last two weeks, trying to escape the southern winter, which is why I haven't been able to visit your blogs. To give myself time to catch back up on life I have decided to take a blogging break this week, but I will be back next week with some stories from our trip. 

There will be:

Rain..... not fun to drive in all the first day of our trip

Beaches...this is Coral Bay

Cruising in gorges....in Exmouth...

Unique wildlife...black-flanked rock wallaby

Amazing views... the new Skywalk in Kalbarri 

Gorgeous wildflowers... the Kalbarri spider orchid...

Stunning sunsets...

and lots more....

so till then, thank you for stopping by, take care, stay well and safe, do whatever makes you happy, hug someone, and enjoy the rest of your week. 

2019 - and that's a wrap!

Hi everyone, and welcome to my last blog post for 2019. And the time of year again to look back over the past year. I don't look too far forward into the future and make New Year resolutions. Do you? Though it is nice to maybe have a bit of a plan about things I might like to do or achieve during the coming year.

2019 was a mixed year of illness, with two bouts of the flue in the first half of the year, and a broken ankle in September. Still it could have been worse. I mourned the loss of two friends whose deaths came far too early for these two wonderful souls. Over the last few months there have been bushfires burning all across Australia, and I send my thoughts and prayers to those battling the bushfires and to those who have sustained losses.  There have been many homes lost, and a few tragic deaths. These things put my life in perspective and make me feel grateful for all I have.

Here is a brief look back at some of my life's happenings over the year. If you click on the links they will take you to posts about these.

In January I attended a couple of Summer School classes at the Stirling Street Art Centre, and spent time with my sister.  I think my watercolour and calligraphy skills have a long way to go.

In February I attended a Fringe Festival performance by local group "The Roof Goats" 

 In March I had a market stall at the Tree Street Art Safari. It was a fabulous day meeting lots of people.

 I also attended a workshop to learn how to make paints and inks from plants. This is something I want to learn more about.

In April we visited the Field of Lights in Albany dedicated to those who lost their lives in World War 1.

In May I participated in a weekend Portrait Photography workshop with the Photography Group of Bunbury

In May we walked a short section of the Cape to Cape track in the Boranup Forest region

In June I danced at the Eisteddfod with Sol y Sombra Spanish Dance Company,
where we won the "Any age - National Troupe" and the "25 and over theatrical style".

I was privileged to provide a piece of botanical eco-dyed cloth to be included in the "Peace Cloth" for the "How Far Does the Hand Reach" project as part of a bigger exhibition in England, Botanical Signatures, by artist Maria Clarke-Wilson.

 The latter half of July, all of August and early September we took off on our half lap of Australia - 13,329 kilometers in 7 weeks and 3 days, 16 caravan parks and 11 free camps. 

 In August we walked on country in Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory, and got up close to the wildlife.

 In late August we continued down the center of Australia and we explored the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia for the first time, and I met a blogging friend, Marion from Redz Australia. We had been following each others blogs for a few years so it was fabulous to finally meet in person. 

After returning home in early September it was wildflower season in our corner of the south west, so we went hunting for wild orchids. Unfortunately I broke my ankle while we were out taking photos, which put an end to my wildflower season.  But we did find some beautiful orchids which we had never seen before.

In late September I ran a food photography workshop at my house for participants from the Photography Group of Bunbury

In October I was involved in a photography exhibition with the Photography Group of Bunbury at the Bunbury Regional Art Gallery
And one of my photos was used as the cover of the South Side Quills 10th Anniversary book. 

 In November I was awarded second place Photographer of the Year (awarded on points earned at the monthly competitions of the club), Highly Commended Mono and Colour Image, and Most Consistent, with the Photography Group of Bunbury.

In December I celebrated the beautiful summer colour in my garden.

 In between all of this I looked after my family and helped out with my grandsons when needed, and volunteered at our local primary school library. I photographed, wrote, had some magazine articles published, held a couple of market stalls and indulged in my passion for botanical eco-printing. 

When I look back over the year it has been a busy one. 

Thank you so much to you all for coming to my blog for the past year, for the link ups to various linky parties, and for your comments. Without you my blog would just be a way of recording our life through my on-line diary. But through your participation I can share some small part of my life with you. Thank you. I hope you have enjoyed it.

Also a huge thank you to my family, friends and members of "Ladies who Lunch", South Side Quills Writers Group, Sol y Sombra Spanish Dance Company, and the Photography Group of Bunbury. You keep my creative juices flowing!  And my dear husband who is my driver across our amazing country, and everything man.

I wonder what 2020 will bring. We haven't any plans as yet, but I am sure the year will evolve. 

As Australia continues to burn, I worry about the future.  The fires started in August and are still burning. Everyday we hear on the news about another flare up, another fire which has started, about the thousands of people that have had to evacuate or lost their homes, about the injuries and death of people, wildlife and ecology. Another firefighter died in the fires yesterday. Our country is so dry. I pray for rain. this is the latest map which I've just downloaded tonight. 31 December.

  
As I write there are thousands of people sheltering on the beach as the fires engulf their towns. I cry for them. Please pray for them.

Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week. 

I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!

   
All Seasons
MosaicMonday at Letting Go of the Bay Leaf

Our World Tuesday

Pictorial Tuesday 

ThroughMy Lens 

Image-in-ing
My corner of the world through my camera 
Wednesday Around the World at Communal Global hosted by Randomosity.

The Lovin' Life Team over at: Deep Fried Fruit

Hello there! I love reading your comments. If you scroll down to the bottom you can comment too! I would love to hear from you.

As 2016 comes to a close

Can you believe it is nearly the end of 2016 already? 2016 has flown by so quickly. This is the time of the year for looking back over the past year and planning for the future. We've had a few changes in lifestyle in 2016 as my husband retired at the beginning of the year so there has been lots more time spent enjoying time together - a year of reconnecting for us. 

I hope that 2016 has been good to you. 

This time of year I also take the opportunity to thank you my dear readers, as without you this blog just wouldn't be. You have helped me to continue to write down my thoughts and share my photos, and I hope you have enjoyed what I have shared. I have certainly enjoyed our conversations  and connecting with you through your blogs. 

It is eight years since I tentatively started my blog in July 2008. My posts have evolved over that time and I have made many wonderful connections all over the world. I am grateful for the way blogging has expanded my world.  One benefit of blogging for me is that it has become a diary of sorts for me, a great way for me to document, and look about over, our journeys, activities, special moments and thoughts through my photography and jottings. 

This is the way my blog for this week started last week, but then over the last few days as I went about preparing for Christmas my thoughts went in a different direction as I thought about the people in my life who are going through grief, stress or trauma at the moment.

My friend whose divorce came through a few weeks ago, our neighbour whose husband passed away from cancer on Christmas eve 2015, my brother-in-law whose brother passed away a few months ago, two friend's whose mothers passed away this year, a friend who is caring for her very ill mother in Esperance, a friend who is desperate to reconnect with her daughter if only she knew where she was (please make contact), my blogging friend who recently had encouraging medical reports on her cancer journey, and another blogging friend who has had multiple health issues during the year. 

But there has been joy too for some of these friends welcoming new life into their families.

A shared my poem - The Ghosts of Christmas Past - in my last blog. You can click here if you missed it - Christmas is a time for family

 And I realized that I have much to be grateful for. 

Time spent with our family and two grandsons. We are so lucky to live close to our son and his family so that we can be a part of our grandsons lives as they grow up.  They lost their other grand mother not long before our second grandson was born, and I've always felt her absence in their lives.

My husband and I lost our remaining parents in the latter half of 2014, my father in September 2014 and my mother-in law on 26 December, but since then we have celebrated new life within my sister's family -  the birth of three grandsons, a wedding and another baby on the way.  

I read recently that it is very important for us to mourn, but then turn the page and concentrate on the living and celebrate life. How true these words are.

 
 Time spent with friends. We especially enjoyed a couple of holidays this year with friends at Coral Bay and camping north of Broome. 

Being a part of three vibrant groups through writing with the South Side Quills, photography with the Photography Group of Bunbury, and dancing with the Sol y Sombra Spanish Dance Company. Very different groups, with very different people, and all adding something to my life, skills, outlook and stretching my confidence. 

South Side Quills launched their first anthology in August, and Sol y Sombra won their section of the Eisteddfod in June. 

 The opportunity to travel through our magnificent country. We have had various trips from only a few days to 6 weeks this year. If you go to the INDEX in the top tab, you can go to the links there to read blog posts from our travels. Western Australia is so vast and so varied in landscapes. I feel so lucky to be able to explore it.

The opportunity for personal growth through attending artistic workshops, facilitating photography workshops, portrait shoots for family and friends, and a food photography shoot.  I was very excited when one of my portraits appeared on a cd cover.

Since my retirement I've enjoyed attending various art workshops and trying new things, but I have also had the opportunity to facilitate workshops too - which has tested and added to my confidence. It is amazing what we can achieve if we just take that first step. 

The opportunity to photograph our amazing wildflowers, especially varieties new to me. I am passionate about wildflower photography, and with thousands of varieties in Western Australia, how lucky am I?

Grey Leafed Bottlebrush -Dryandra 2016

 In June I experienced the totally unexpected thrill and excitement of having my wildflower photography noticed by a national magazine - Australian Photography. 

 Health, a comfortable home, a loving and supportive family, learning from others and the opportunity and time to connect, indulge passions, and explore learn new skills and pathways.
 
This blog post has turned out very different to what I had at first intended. I thank you for taking the time to stop by and for being a part of my world.  You can connect to any of my old posts through the side bar or via the INDEX in the tabs at the top of my blog. 

 You might also like to visit my travel blog - Tour Western Australia

kangaroo paws flowering in my summer garden

I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week.

I am linking up to whatever link-ups below that are operating this week. . Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!
 

Mosaic Monday 
Life Thru the Lens 

Our World Tuesday
Through My Lens 
Image-in-ing
Wednesday Around the World at Communal Global
Travel Photo Thursday 
The Lovin' Life Team over at Lifestyle Fifty
The Weekly Postcard 
Sky Watch Friday