Kelli reached this milestone and we took her out to a Chinese restaurant. Afterward we had a quiet and relaxed cuppa with little cakes in our home. These little cakes were part of our gift to Kelli. Actually they looked one hundred times better than they tasted. Still, because they looked so cute they gave a classy edge to the event.
On different occasions on the same visit the three kids all had something to do with the exercise ball, even if it was just to be lent against. It got rolled on, bounces on, lifted up and thrown. It rounded out the morning.
Jasper is going from strength to strength with physical prowess. On this occasion he was bouncing the ball and coming in to catch it after the bounce and clearly improved on his catching and timing skills in the process. Well done Jaz.
Earlier Barb and Jasper had played a fun ball game along the floor. The action was caught many times so it was worth making a matrix out of the snaps.
We had the pleasure of minding Abigail over a weekend and the time went very well. There was a bit of everything. The action involved a DVD (Shark Tale) twice, PIT gymnastics, out for a drive, games, Children’s Church, fine eating at a restaurant, and fine art while we waited for the food to come. Thank you Abigail for the good person you are.
This picture shows the view we saw on the port side on our flight back to Melbourne. As though separated from the sunset is the Tasmanian coastline, blending its land mass into the clouds that have begun to glow gold. But there is no photo editing here. It is a powerful combination and it was continually changing as the minutes rolled by.
Rabbit township is still going fine at David Street. The girls are mostly together and the boys are in their own hutch to keep the population under some sort of control for the present.
It seems like David is also into rabbit hypnotism like his mother... or that is a very casual rabbit.
This is a short blog to state that we all got dressed up for the occasion of Donna's 50th and went to a top restaurant in Devonport that evening. We dined in style and took loads of photos to remember the time. We all shared a memory of Donna, something funny about her, and she reflected funny things back on us. It was a superenjoyable night and John made it his gift over and above the small sized birthday 'yacht'. Seems like Donna is going to have to renew her boat licence.
Donna and John purchased new chooks a few months ago, from a traditional breeder. They are laying fantastically and we were able to bring some very fresh eggs back with us when we returned. 
Donna and John live in East Devonport across the Mercy River from Devonport 'city'. Unfortunately the little ferry was in dry-dock for the winter months so we had to drive round via the bridge. Pity. We were looking forward to crossing to town (and a coffee) by ferry. Maybe next time.
From the walk down to the ferry we could see the mouth of the Mercy and the horizon over which is the Australian mainland. The angle of the sun reminded us that were were truly over 40 degrees from the equator.
The crossing would have added a romantic touch to our day. In the distance past the cargo ship is the bridge we crossed later in the day.
This picture was secretly snapped in an antique goods warehouse on the edge on the city side of the Mercy. Where all that old nautical stuff was laid out for sale was this amazing three dimensional and life size pirate ship as an inspired and scary back drop. Very impressive. 
Shaun the very cute teddy was our gift to Donna. He had just the right kind of 'look' in his eyes to cause us to decide on him as a fifty year birthday gift. Madonna has reached the big (5)(0) and we flew down to make the occasion special for her, and us too for that matter.
Here is Shaun staring into Heather's bouquet that arrived on the day. Madonna had taken the day off and was enjoying each gift and memory that came along. 
John and Madonna getting acquainted with Shaun. He has the potential to be a very low maintenance resident of the David Street community.
Before Shaun took the flight down to Tazzi with us, we were able to introduce him to Daniel. This gesture helped to give a wider family link to the new teddy. 
This is Shaun's first 'dignified' car ride. The first time it occurred he was in a compressed state amongst the contents of our suitcase. He has found a home at last where he may experience many such outings. 
Though we have no snaps of Bec this time, we took one of her lemon cake. It was a fine cake and enjoyed by all. That was morning tea. We brought some arty things and a few books... as if we needed to... and did drawing with them or read stories to them. Piper is beginning to read so she read her little reader to us as well. 
The paper "walls" were constructed by Jasper to house "prisoners". Piper came over from reading with Barb to see that he was doing. 
The books lead to more play as it happens. We later played a character role game with Piper as an offshoot from one of the books we read. Here she is a ‘bat’ hanging in a cathedral bell tower... hence the pull of gravity on her hair. It is starting to get long again.
And then there is mister cuddles. Jethro is still not walking yet. I think he wants to break the family record on that one. 
It was cold and we had hail for a time, but was cosy inside. The hail melted and the sun returned and Barb took the two older ones for a walk to the shops for a treat. That was a real tonic for Barb and the kids always love it. Look at Jasper run!
At a recent seminar we both attended we became intrigued by a larger than life portrait on the wall of the old lecture hall. We also photographed the name plaque at the base of the frame, a Rev. John G. Paton (1824-1907), interestingly a missionary pleader. The internet provided the necessary information, as might be expected, and we discovered an all too familiar story about mission outreach in the nineteenth century. A sad story.
Paton was raised in the strict doctrinal confines of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of Scotland and did it really tough to be educated. Every spare moment outside of gruelling work was devoted to serious study. As he reached adulthood he embarked on ten years as a city missionary in Glasgow where he organised outreach in the district and created a needed school. All good so far.
The Reformed Church was searching for missionaries to break new ground in the southern part of the New Hebrides (Vanuatu today) in the tropical Pacific. No one was volunteering so even though he had just married Mary Ann Robson, he offered himself and was accepted. At 33 years of age he was ordained and with his young wife (already pregnant) he left for the South Seas. The young Scotsman with his wife without any experience of the world outside their small community, arrived and settled on a remote island (Tanna) inhabited by naked and painted natives, cannibals, already irritated by the aggression on the part of white traders who occasionally visited. A difficult and foolish move.
A few months later Mary gave birth to their child and tragically both died a few days later. Paton was alone and left for four years to ‘convert’ the Tannese to his way of belief. There is no record of a single conversion and after that period of time he had to escape the increasingly hostile population with just his Bible and some language notes. A sad and foolish loss.
He arrived in Australia where he knew no one but the Australian clerics could see that he was a good preacher with plenty of potential, and God opened the door to the next 45 years of his life. He generated mission interest and built up mission resources that were lacking before this. His experience and knowledge of the New Hebrides allowed him to create a realistic vision, and he was able to communicate this vision well. He was also able to return to Great Britain to encourage additional mission support. A purpose driven man.
He married again at Edinburgh (1864) to Margaret a woman of strong character who shared a passion for the same mission work and of writing about it. They had two daughters and three sons. Two of these sons became missionaries in the New Hebrides. Margaret was a great organiser for the Australian Presbyterian Women’s Missionary Union. She died in 1906 two years before John himself. These last years were spent mainly in Melbourne. Mission calling redeemed?
