Woodcraft Buildings

This is a bit of a "show and tell" of the first term at the woodcraft club conducted usually during two lunch recesses. Sometimes Peter receives special "orders" for something. Otherwise the children make their own out of the materials they find on a particular day. Peter always endeavours to provide basic cut blocks so that all number of buildings can be constructed. As a consequence, a number of children band together to make their own township.

For confidentiality reasons pictures of the children have been altered with a pastel or water colour filter, enough to obscure the characters but allow you to see the action at the club.

Tyrannosaurus

It all started when a boy and two girls asked for wooden dinosaurs. They knew Peter could somehow do it if he wanted to. Peter was always up for a challenge and so the period of the dinosaurs has now begun. Later, six more kits were made because has proved very popular. Peter has stuck with the Tyrannosaurus-Rex form even though he now realises that other dinosaur forms would be no extra trouble. The sharp teeth are certainly an added attraction with the T-Rex.

Dragon Craft

A boy asked for a dragon kit. That was a challenge that Peter could not pass up. It took a little more cutting. And there were the wings to consider but it did come together well enough. The boy was very pleased. Since then five dragons have been produced all just a little different in character.

The odd thing about boys is that even with a dedicated "dragon" to play with, one can still work out a way to transform it into a rifle!!

Bunnings Truck

Earlier in the year, Bunnings gave the school a gift of timber and white glue. Peter wrote and thanked them for their support of the woodcraft program and proceeded to provide a small number of Bunnings Trucks for some of the children to assemble. Since then, there have been more requests for a "Bunnings Truck".

Pocket Battleships

Peter has received a number of requests from the younger children at the school to make battleships for them. After doing some research on it he found that the simplest type to make was the convenient WWII Pocket Battleship. And he was able to use up numerous timber scraps for the superstructures.

Labyrinth

We had the good fortune to drive to Rye, a town (distant Melbourne suburb) on the bottom edge of Port Philip Bay to share in a house warming. Close by was an Anglican Church and in its grounds was a partly overgrown labyrinth. We had to follow the lines of embedded bricks very carefully to keep to the circuit on the way to the 'contemplation' centre. When we reached it, Piper and Jasper each said a prayer. So did we and then we traced our way back out again. What a lovely invention.

After that we relaxed in the afternoon sun. Piper wrote a note at the labyrinth centre seat with Jasper watching her. Barb and Bec soaked in the warmth. Jethro found a position away from us all and watched quietly from there. It was one of those very free and relaxing times that helped make the day a memorable one.

After Peter walked the labyrinth, he made notes on the configuration of it (above) and wondered if it followed the same design tiled into the floor at Chartes Cathedral, France.

Piper's Birthday Moments

Piper has had a number of celebrations for her eighth birthday this year. One was even at a swimming pool where she and her friends played water games. This celebration happened almost a week later because we were not able to do it with her any sooner. We are very thankful to Bec to do the trip to our place for an overnight stay.

Additional highlights of the visit include a walk to Savers Second Hand Superstore where the kids pick out something they like, and a special moment at a cafe afterward.

Jasper Cafe Moment

Jasper enjoyed the moment with a juice drink and some impromptu craft at the table. Later on he assembled a number of hand puppets from a kit he found at the Savers Second Hand Superstore. 

Jethro Cafe Moment

This two pictures show Jet in full swing enjoying the moment with his juice and getting a generous scoop off the top of his mum's cup.

Daniel Sized Breakfast

This picture was too good to pass up. It is called a "Centre Point Breakfast" at Centre Point Greensborough Shopping Centre Cafe. We have lighter stuff to eat but Daniel downs the large place with ease between coffees.

Second Cousins

It is not every day that a second cousin stays with us. Second cousin might not be right but whatever it is, Daniel is Peter's cousin's son. Daniel and his wife Bec stayed a few nights with us. We were blessed to have them stay and we had great chats.