halting the procrastination

So I don't even really know where to begin. I cringe to think how long it has been since I last posted something. Days turned into weeks and weeks have now turned into months, and I'm quickly realising that if i don't act soon, it will become years.
I still have a few draft updates waiting to be finished.. but you know how it goes, you don't want to post anything else until you've caught up on other news, but then so much builds up that you don't know where to start. This is me now.
I thought I would get into the blogging swing of things once I was pregnant (which I am now 18 weeks) but.. yeah. anyways. this is me saying hello again. And I intend to be posting frequently once more.
:)
xxx Sonya

the process.

I work in a childcare centre, and sometime in July this year one of my bosses asked if I would be interested in painting a mural on one of the walls. The paint was peeling a bit and it looked slightly tacky. So for about 2-3 ish months I'd been meaning to get onto it and paint, but with the wedding and settling into married life it kinda got pushed to the side. 

Anyways. I'll write more on it later. But I wanted to show you the process. It took 10 hrs to do, and Carter stuck with me and helped me the whole way. Thanks babe.

Enjoy the pictures.

love love

- Sonya B.

with red and white scribbles.

We each have special numbers. Some you choose, but most.. are chosen for you. They remind us monthly that time is passing quicker than we realise. Some numbers make people weep, other numbers make people rejoice. Born with few, it seems rather unavoidable that we gain more with age. Set forever within the range of 1 - 31, these numbers mean different things to many different people.

Almost 10 weeks ago, Carter and I had the incredible joy of choosing one such number. With an "I do" and a kiss, we sealed the 15th of August into our life, forever concreting it as a milestone to our marriage. And just last Thursday, Carter and I joyfully woke up to a beautiful 15th of October. Two whole months had flown past!

Thankfully I had the day off and Carter didn't work till 3:30pm, so we had some time. A few days before our anniversary we decided that we would use that time to visit the Point Moore Lighthouse and do some drawing. Recently we've begun sketching together, I need to brush up on my skills and Carter wants to learn. So on Thursday morning our pads and pencils were ready to go.

We hadn't planed to go too early cause we wanted to relax at home a bit. But for some reason during this time of chillin, we both started craving an extravagant breakfast (like bacon and eggs or something). So in a moment of tummy-brilliance, we decided to head out 'early' (it was almost 10am) to eat breakkie at a restaurant we'd noticed near the lighthouse. I'm sure you know how it is.. you get all excited inside over the food you're going to eat, there is a build up of anticipation.. and then, you taste it!! yumm! Although sadly for us, the "yumm" never happened. As we pulled into the restaurant car park we noticed an unusual number of balloons and party hats inside, we soon found out it was booked for a birthday party, go figure. So after a quick cruise through town we, somewhat ashamedly, headed to the beach with two Hungry Jacks meals. They were tasty, and the birds liked us.

two big pacific gull's dwarfed the crowd of seagulls

[note the orange blur between the 2 seagulls, it's a chip in motion]

About 15mins later with full tummies and regret setting in, we headed back to Point Moore for some sketching. We sat in the car for quite a long time, just drawing the lighthouse from where we'd parked. As we scribbled away, we quickly noticed we had different styles. For someone that seems to have no 'real' drawing experience, Carter continues to impress me with his artistic ability. Watch out future children we're gonna give you awesome genes! =O

Carter's drawing

one of my scribbles

When we had our dose of drawing for the day, Carter and I decided to take a bit of a walk along the beach. Here are a few snaps. Enjoy.

typical Geraldton off-shore view

It was such a beautiful way to spend time together. I always find myself falling more and more in love with my husband. Sometimes it's just a simple glance, or something he says, other times it's just the wonder of making memories together. It was by Gods leading that we found each other. And I'm noticing that Carter an I are growing closer and deeper in love as we continue to follow Him.

Now I know that we're still very new to this, and that there are more 'experienced' married folk out there. And perhaps I'm just a naive newlywed, but when people tell me that "it will fade" I can't help but turn my nose up. I accept the fact that things change, it's part of life, but I can't accept the fact that our romance "will fade". I refuse to expect it, and I've set my heart to pursue Christ in this matter. And I pray that by His grace, I may ever increase in my ability to serve, honour, and love Carter as his wife. 

So far on each anniversary, we've been blessed with little rostered work. Getting to spend quality time together on the 15th is wonderful, and it obviously gives us a greater freedom to celebrate. I understand that there will be many days where we have work or other things on. I understand that we might not get to do something ' special ' every time. But celebration isn't confined to what you do, it originates from within the heart, and that's where it's most important. So I believe that no matter how busy life gets, you will find us Bandy's rejoicing every time the number 15 rolls around.

love love - Mrs Bandy

xxx

pedaling out

When Carter arrived back in Geraldton, one of the first things that we did was get him a bike. Sadly not a motorbike as he'd like, but what we did find was really good. And just like most of the things we now own, it came from a second hand store. Carter and I couldn't believe our luck when we stumbled across it.

I've always loved riding bikes. When I was younger I used to zip about the block with my sisters and next-door neighbours playing cops and robbers. It was always for leisure and play, never really for 'transport'. So what I did with Carter a few weeks ago, was a first for me in my life. I rode the furthest I've ever ridden. With packed bags we jumped on our bikes and rode all the way from our house out in Strathalbyn to the beachfront along Chapman Road (about 5km).

It was so much fun! We plan to do it more often. It's really good exercise and I found that I saw a lot of things I otherwise would have missed if I was in car. The weather was gorgeous, not a cloud in the sky, it felt like summer.

During the hour and a bit we spent down at the beach, I discovered something really exciting (for me) that I never knew about Carter before. He enjoys beach-combing! It's one of my favorite things to do when I'm at a beach, and he likes it too! So we ended up spending most of our time wandering all over the shore filling our hands and pockets.

My favorite thing to find on a beach is pretty shells.. but seeing as this was not really one of those beaches, what we ended up with was heaps of sea-smoothed class. I'd never really taken too much notice of them before, but for some reason while walking beside Carter they suddenly became prized beauties.

Now I've found myself sitting here for a while reading the line I just wrote [above] over and over. And as I'm reflecting on it I'm beginning to realise that Carter has this affect in many many areas of my life. The very same can be said for a relationship with Jesus. When we consciously walk through life with Him beside us, things do increase significantly in beauty. It's not that they were less valuable before, it's simply that our eyes were not open to the depth of it. When someone experiences love, now I mean true Godly love, it will change them.

Right now I find myself being loved constantly by a wonderful husband and an incredible God. And It's changing me. Love is redefining how I see myself, my gifts, and my past... all that surrounds me has somehow become more vibrant. It's like being under the Eiffel tower rather than looking at a photo. It's like discovering an amazing story behind the creation of a song you enjoy. It's like finding out how your great grandparents met. Life becomes something of greater significance when we see it's history, and purpose.

.. just something to think about...

Looking back over our time at the beach, I cant help but get the feeling we accidentally started a 'Carter and Sonya thing'. And I'm sure that collecting sea glass is fated to be a life-long romantic gesture between us. What we'll end up doing with the glass... I'm not quite sure. But I do know that special memories will, and are now forever bound up in the simple beauty of glass tossed to and fro by the sea.

xxx

third time's the charm

For the past 21 years there's something 'important' that I haven't quite gotten around to doing yet... that is, until last week. As my older sister Louise put it I have "FINALLY" gotten my learners license to drive a car! So yes. I am now on the road, and yes. it is hard for my feet to reach the peddles. hehe.

All my friends from highschool have been driving around for years, but little 'ol me was never really interested. Now I think I've got a few reasons for this..

1. I watched my dad teach my older sister.. and that kinda scared me off. (not that he was a bad teacher, it was more how he handled mistakes that did it)
2. My mum wasn't too keen to teach us. (for a valid reason) =)
3. Most of what I needed was in walking distance.
4. I was out of the country for about 2 years...

So all that combined with my general lack of enthusiasm resulted in me being license-less... well until now. :) When Carter and I got married I knew I couldn't put it off much longer. So when Carter and I approached the transport/licensing/whatever place about a month ago, I was there out of necessity more than desire.

I'd actually had my L's before -but never used it- so I thought I knew the drill. Do a 30 question test (I got 100% last time I did it), do an eye test.. then fill out a form and get your license...We expected it to be simple -it wasn't. As it turned out they didn't need me to do the quiz test again (which was a shame cause I studied hard for it), but what they did need was a medical. Go figure. So it was 1 week till we had an appointment, then 1 week till the license place received the medical, and then another week till they updated the system.

Although this was rather irritating it did serve a good purpose in the end. It made me WANT to get my license really bad! It was taking so long, that for the first time I was enthusiastic in a big way. =D I was very happy last week to walk away from that building with my special piece of paper in my hand. Even the lady at the desk smiled when she handed it to me (she's seen us coming in for it every week for about a month).

We'd already hunted out a secluded patch of road in a new development area, so that's where we headed. When I jumped behind the wheel of our manual Barina... I quickly realised that I needed the seat allll the way forward (+ a bit) to push the clutch in comfortably. hmmm...

glasses over sunnies.. hot look hey?

having the love of my life sitting beside me makes it hard to keep my eyes on the road
=P

Allll the way forward (it's hard to put the seatbelt on)

I drove around for about an hour. Occasionally experiencing the 'joys' of stalling and NO power steering. But aside from collecting a few plants in the back seat I didn't do too bad. And although it is a bit of a surprise... at the same time it isn't, cause Carter is a very good teacher! One of the things I like best about having my husband teaching me is that when I do well I get a big kiss!! How much more motivation do I need? haha!

Carter and I have only been out driving a few times, so this is still just the beginning. I'm not confident around other cars yet, I suck at reversing, and I haven't quite perfected hill starts -but I know it'll all fall into place. And until then I'll keep doing my best, I'll enjoy Carter's kisses, avoid plants by the curb, and find a cushion to put behind me as I drive. haha!

chya!

So hopefully if it all goes well, there will be a road savvy Mrs Bandy cruising about the streets of Gero in the next year or so.
xxx

old news and wild flowers

the wind farm in the rain

From personal experience I've found that the greatest enemy of keeping a blog or a journal is time. I find that once a few days go past, it feels silly to write about 'old' news. So we put it off. And then more stories build up, but because we hadn't written about the 'older' ones yet we feel we have to wait till we get them done... etc.. basically you end up with no journal = sad day.

So to combat my long lasting journalistic battle with the 'old story syndrome' I will now proceed to write about something from a few weeks back. Ha!

About two weeks ago Carter and I celebrated our 1 month anniversary. Even though we're well aware that in the long run 1 month is really small.. it's still heaps of fun to celebrate each and every significant milestone in the beginning. Every day being married to one another is a blessing. :) anyways so it was a Tuesday, we both had the day off, and planned to make the most of it. We kicked it off with breakkie in bed, then packed our picnic bag, and jumped in the car. It was nearing the end of wildflower season, and we were out to catch the flowers before they all died. Someone at Carter's work had told him about a place called the Coalseam, about 1.5 hrs drive out of Geraldton, so off we set into the country.

Here are a few pics from our trip :) enjoy

the road out was lined on both sides by wattle bushes heavy with yellow flowers

Carter gave me some driving lessons in an empty parking lot...      

 ...But sadly this is the only legal driver in the Gero Bandy clan.. 

although if next Monday goes well it won't be for long! 

wildflowers! a lot of them were closed cause it was wet :(

a cocky in mid air as it jumped to another branch. hehe

(Carter was so excited when he captured this picture)

the last of the season

two very happy Bandy's strolling down a riverbed

Obviously it wasn't the best weather to go out and look at flowers, but we made the most of it. Playing spoto with bunnies along the road, waving at truckies, running about the flowers with a blanket above our heads.. It was great. Carter and I went for a nice long walk down a river bed, and made it back into our little car just as it started pelting with rain. hehe. perfect timing. Feeling hungry, we sat in our car for a while eating hummus wraps, and other random goodies we had packed. While we enjoyed our picnic in the car, we felt kinda bad for a van-load of elderly people who'd just arrived and were scrambling to get their picnic out of the rain.

When our bellies were full wet set off home along the muddy dirt track. The next hour and a bit was filled with laughter and smiles as we sung at the top of our lungs. Even with the wet weather, it turned out to be such a wonderul trip. The memories I make with Carter are priceless, and I treasure them all.

I'm so excited and blessed to have Carter by my side. With the name Mrs Bandy arriving on mail in the letter box. I can smile and know the future is beautiful, and totally in God's hands.
xxx

one step at a time we'll joyfully take the future in our stride

the questions of life

The most frequent question I've been asked lately is “how's married life?”.. now really how does one answer that kinda question? umm.. wonderful, great, I love my hubby but I've got more chores..? they all fit but they are only a speck of what married life is to me. Is there even a prudent way to go into details, or to express the deep enjoyment I find in spending every day with my best friend. But more importantly, how much do people really want to hear when they ask that kind of question? Quite often a simple “good” suffices and we move on our merry way. Life is funny like that, we all seem to know the right questions to ask one another.. but do we know how to answer and receive them? Somehow I don't think we really do.

Anyway so the other day I was at work joining together large pieces of paper to make a giant butterfly for the toddlers to paint, and the lady in the kitchen asked me that question “How's married life?” A lovely lady, and I answered the best I could (I think I'm getting a bit better at answering as people are giving me so many chances to practice). Sadly the conversation that followed didn't last very long (we came to an awkward point and never recovered), but it did however get me thinking...

And as i pondered the question, I re-realised that I've gone through a lot of rather significant phases this year. But what's more, is that each stage is summed up by the most frequent question people were asking me at the time:

1- “How was your trip?”
2- “How did he propose?”
(and if a girl asked, the first question was often followed by “show me the ring”)
3- “Are you staying for good?”
4- “How's wedding planning going?”
5- “When does he get here?”
6- “How was the wedding and honeymoon?”
*and now finally the current favourite*
7- “How's married life?”

I wonder how long it will take before question #7 phases out? I kinda get the impression that this is a question people only ask newlyweds. I've never ever heard anyone ask my parents that question. I get the feeling that there's some invisible line that Carter and I are approaching where people will seemingly begin to care less about our married life and thus stop asking. Please don't get me wrong I don't believe that friends and family cease to love or be interested.. rather I think it's just that we don't know what 'new' question to ask.

Thankfully for most, God created the wonder of children. So whenever it is that Carter and I begin expecting our own bundle of joy I'm sure this new and exciting question will arise... “When are you due?” Life is full of funny quirks, and in no way do I despise questions or the repetition of such, it's just amusing how they manage to sum up all the significant moments of our existence.

Personally I can't wait for people to ask me when I'm due. What a wonderful stage of life that will be. My oldest sister gave birth to a beautiful little girl earlier on in the year, and now I can't imagine the world without Charlotte. So I can't even begin to comprehend what it will be like when it's our turn.

I'm loving every moment I experience with Carter right now and I'm so excited about all the steps that lie ahead of us. What questions are people yet to ask us? I honestly have no idea, but what I do know is that I'll try to do all I can to enjoy every moment between them and now. After all it's not just the pieces of a puzzle that make it beautiful.. it's how they all fit together. So although our lives can be summed up in questions, it's really the answers and the in-between moments that define us.

And now speaking of such in-between moments I think I'm going to leave the computer for a while and sit next to Carter as he's on the couch strumming away on his guitar. Maybe we'll read some more of the book we're in the middle of...? who knows. :-) I'm just happy to have another day where I can enjoy being a Bandy.
xxx