Morning garden stroll..

Today dawned grey and rather overcast with a decided chill in the air.

I quickly hung the washing out in the breeze and hoped the sun would soon turn its face to my clothesline!

The joy of seeing how abundantly my Banksia Rose bush has flowered this past week sent me rushing back indoors to grab my camera!

Last year my wonderful hubby built this lovely arbor for the bush to spread its beautiful flowers over, and we've been keenly waiting for Spring to come so we can sit beneath it and be surrounded by its delicate perfume.

It has grown exhuberantly and we are delighted to see how the canes have arched above the arbor and draped it with gorgeous creamy roses!

If ever there was a plant that gives back generously it is this one - I recommend it if you are looking for something lovely to cover a fence or garden shed.

Our nectrines are looking good so far, and have sweet baby fruit forming along the branches.

Not to be outdone..the peaches are prolific with young fruit too!

We will need to cover these with netting to keep the birds at bay!

And the fruitbats and possums!!!

I spied the shy curling bud of a tiny dianthus as I walked back to the house.

It was chatting to the geranium about the weather :-)

These two were "all ears".. as pansies are wont to be!

But the white lilac was quite unconcerned as she sheltered sleepily against the verandah frame at my backdoor.

What a joy a garden is.. no matter how large or small it may be..no matter how green or brown the thumb of its carer may be..no matter where it is situated - in the city country desert or tropics.

To nurture and tend a growing plant is a "God-thing" to do..after all He planted a garden with fruit and flowers before He planted us :-)
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I'm joining Kathy for..

Simple Joys~ challah

The rhythmic kneading of dough after it's risen for the second time..

the plaiting and twisting of golden strands into whatever shape I desire..

the satisfying aroma of freshly baked challah straight from the oven..

the preparation of the table and anticipation of the blessings..

the familiar warmth of Friday evening candles and "Shabbat Shalom!" greetings as we enter into rest and remember him who said ..

"the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath." (Mt 12:8)

A mother whispers prayers for her husband and children

a father protectively prays for his wife and children

the blessings are spoken over loved ones and family

and once again the weekly cycle of time and memory brings it's peace and blessing to the home.

Why do we do this?

Because my husband and I like to keep this connection with our Jewish ancestry.
We do it to remember our Father-God and Creator, Who has blessed our days with His precious grace and holy Presence.

 And as commited Christians and followers of His Son, our Messiah Jesus Christ, we look forward to the marriage supper of the Lamb, when we shall sit at table with our great Saviour and Redeemer and Prince of Peace - when we shall all enter into the Eternal Shabbat and Rest that He promises to all who put their trust in Him!
And that my friends, is something that we long for and so we rehearse in simple joy while we wait for that awesome day to come!

Do you have any family traditions that you cherish and want to pass on to your children..and even your childrens' children?

I'd like to hear about them :-)

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Have you got some joy today?

Do you want to say thanks and give God the glory for it?

If you'd like to share about something that made your heart smile

link up your Simple Joys post here and we'll rejoice together!

God bless you... Trish

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Simple Joys~ singing chooks

My chickens have been watching too many ABBA music clips lately!!

They want me to change their names to Frida and Agnetha for goodness sakes :-(

AND...they think they're the pretty ones !!!

I just couldn't help thinking of this song while my chooks were posing for me the other day.

 Can you see why? lol!!

My Simple Joy today is watching the silly antics of my hens :-)

Thank You, Lord

for my feathered friends who give me so much fun and pleasure!

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Friends, I hope you have found some simple joy this week too.

I'd love to hear about it!

Have you got some joy today?

Do you want to say thanks and give God the glory for it?

If you'd like to share about something that made your heart smile

link up your Simple Joys post here and we'll rejoice together!..

God bless you... Trish

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Simple Joys #5 ~ Roses

The Rose

"You love the roses - so do I.

I wish the sky would rain down roses,

As they rain from off the shaken bush.

Why will it not?

Then all the valley would be pink and white

And soft to tread on.



They would fall as light

As feathers, smelling sweet; and it would be

Like sleeping and like waking, all at once! "

George Elliot

Welcome to Simple Joys #5

Aren't these yellow roses beautiful?

They are my very special simple joy this week!

My thoughtful husband plucked them for me from our rambling old rosebush yesterday.

They were climbing high up into the Crepe Myrtle - way out of my reach.

Don't you just love how the deep pink hues tint the edges of their soft gold petals?

 They look just right sitting on my old kitchen dresser where I can see their sweet faces.

Such a  lovely little vase of rosey sunshine to brighten up my day!

Thank You Lord, for the blessing of lovely old roses..

and thoughtful husbands.

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Friends, I hope you have found some simple joy this week too.

I'd love to hear about it!

Have you got some joy today?

Do you want to say thanks and give God the glory for it?

If you'd like to share about something that made your heart smile

link up your Simple Joys post here and we'll rejoice together!..

God bless you... Trish

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Simple Joys #4 ~ Soap

Hello friends, welcome to week 4 of Simple Joys!

Something very simple that continually brings joy to me each day is soap! 

Ever since I was a very small girl I've had a love for gift-boxed soap.

Pretty packages of delicately perfumed soap have always appealed greatly to my feminine nature.

I love the look and smell of nice soap.

And I love the feel of a solid cake in my hands.

Now I don't know about you - but personally speaking,  I don't care much for modern watery 'liquid soap'!

It seems to be everywhere and popular these days..

but it just doesn't satisfy me as much as a good solid cake does.

I prefer to scrub with the lather produced from a decent bar of soap anyday.

I feel like I've really washed up properly when I've held that weight and felt that form in my sudsy hands, lol!

We are so spoilt for choice when it comes to soap these days.

Something that was not so easily available in times past - and certainly not as pleasant as today's varieties.

Soap.. we use it everyday but do we really appreciate what a blessing it is?!

Thank You Lord,

for the daily joy a humble cake of soap brings!

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Friends, have you got some joy today?

Do you want to say thanks and give God the glory for it?

If you would like to share a joyful post about something that makes your heart smile

link up your Simple Joys post here and we'll rejoice together!..

God bless you... Trish


Simple Joys #3.. A Flower Barrow

Hello friends, welcome to week 3 of  Simple Joys!

Today I want to share with you the pleasure I'm getting from seeing these flowers in my backyard.

They are such a welcome sight and seem to be thriving in my old wheelbarrow!

My dear husband bought this large wooden barrow for me as a Christmas gift over 20 years ago.

It was simply overflowing then with the prettiest petunias I've ever seen!

I really love it to bits and each year I plant it with lots of cheery cottage blossoms to brighten my view - especially over dull winter days.

A precious reminder of that lovely day when my hubby led me outdoors with closed eyes to surprise me with the beauty of his gift; I keep it close to my back door where I can see it from inside and enjoy it all day long.

Thank You Lord for my thoughtful husband..

 and an old wooden flower barrow that fills me daily with such Simple Joy! 

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Friends, have you got some joy today?

Do you want to say thanks and give God the glory for it?

If you would like to share a joyful post about something that makes your heart smile
link up your Simple Joys post here and we'll rejoice together!..

God bless you... Trish



Simple Joys~ Oil

Hello friends - welcome to Simple Joys!

This week I am sharing a lovely surprise that happened to hubby and me at our local supermarket.

We use quite a lot of olive oil in our cooking and as the bottle at home was almost empty, we needed to replenish our supply.

 We found a few different brands on sale at Woolworths when we did our grocery shopping, and decided to choose the one you now see on my kitchen dresser.

It was reduced from $26 down to $19 for a 4L tin,  which seemed reasonable enough to us so we bought one.

As we took a few steps away after paying, hubby checked the docket and found we had been charged the full price!

So off we went to the service desk to get things sorted out.

We thought they would just refund us the difference between the full price we paid and the special sale price - but no!!

They gave us a full refund and the tin of Olive Oil to take home!

What a great surprise !!

Apparently this brand was not scanning correctly at the checkouts and so the Woolworth's policy in a case like this is.. the customer gets the item free of charge!

And seeing as we had bought a few extras that had already added to our regular bill that day, it was really nice to be able to get our olive oil as a "freebie" :-)

Thank You Lord for giving us oil -

 the oil of Simple Joy and gladness!!

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Friends, have you got some joy to share today?

Do you want to say thanks and give God the glory for it?

If you link up your Simple Joys post here - we'll rejoice together!..

God bless you... Trish

Simple Joys~ Banana Bread

Hello friends,
This is my Banana Bread which I made using some of the bulk bananas I bought on sale recently.

It was so lovely to be able to use them up over the past couple of weeks.
Hubby's favourite way, was cooked up with strawberries and had with hot croissants for breakfast!
The price has now gone up again in our shops and I haven't seen a bargain like that since.

One frugal purchase gave us lots of delicious goodies to enjoy and share with others- and that truly made it a Simple Joy for me!

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If you read our friend  Dayle's  blog you will know that she recently decided to stop her wonderful Simple Pleasures meme after graciously hosting it for so many happy months.
She is still blogging as wonderfully as ever - but I will miss her party and all the lovely ladies who made it so special each week!
 Debbie from Words on Wheels would make a fantastic new hostess for Simple Pleasures and a great blessing, so we are all hoping she'll say yes and pick up the baton from Dayle :-D

I'm personally very grateful to Dayle for the encouragement she gave us to focus on the many ways that we can find pleasure in the simple things. Like an empty dishwasher or a good cup of coffee, cuddling a cute grand-niece or going to a favourite restaurant with hubby etc. She has helped us open our eyes and see how beautiful the 'ordinaryness' of life really is!

It feels strange to me not to post about my simple pleasures any more, after having done it for so long :-( 

So.. I thought I'd just carry on as before...counting the little things that bring me joy and bless my days.
I have so much to thank the Lord for, and I am learning that most of it is to be found in my everyday vocation here at home. I want to give Him the glory for it all!
And you're most welcome to join me if you feel so inclined.
 I'd love to read your short posts about something that blesses you with Simple Joy!

grace & peace..Trish
(N.B. this is not a continuation of Simple Pleasures..just my little way of looking for ordinary joys.)