Afternoon, Lord.  I’ve finally found five minutes to sit down with my journal and spend some time with you.  As you know, I seem to have spent the majority of my day soothing other people – Nathan with his itchy spots, Emily on account of her cancelled play date (while she has already had chicken pox before Nathan was born the family where she was due to go have not and didn’t want to risk it), and Linley who was like a cat on a hot tin roof as she dressed and redressed (and redressed) in preparation for her job interview.

Anyway, that interview should be on at this very second so I pray that your hand would be on proceedings, that you would give Linley clarity of thought as she is asked skilfully prepared questions, and that the interviewer would be suitably wowed.

I must admit it can be a bit frustrating having the kids (and Linley) permanently around since it does make any “me” time hard to come by, let alone “you and me” time.  I was complaining about this when I was talking to Libby yesterday, and she said something quite interesting.  She said she had been given a book at Christmas called Mothering Heights and that the authors talked about the principle of intentional mothering and the importance of knowing and understanding the purpose of being a mother – that spending some time truly coming to grips with our purpose as mothers will enable us to sustain the value of what we do in times when things are difficult, when the demands and daily responsibilities seem both menial and endless.  This seems very true to me – and if I get five minutes, I really will give this some more thought!

In the meantime, I continue to pray for your patience, for healing for Nathan, and again, for Linley’s job interview…Amen

Oh dear…not the most auspicious start to the morning what with Nathan coming to see me to say,  “Mum I think I’ve been bitten by a killer mosquito” then lifting up his pyjama shirt to show at least fifty million spots!  Well, fifty million is probably a slight exaggeration but unless I’m mistaken (and I’m pretty sure I’m not) those look incredibly like chicken pox to me.  I can only think he must have picked it up playing with some of those boys at the beach.

Alas that means quarantine for at least ten days – which means no trips to the pools or the beach when it’s now so hot, the chances of him staying cool and not scratching himself to ribbons are zip, and I’ll struggle to get out for shopping and to do all that much needed school preparation stuff.  Great.

Linley looked as though she was about to pass out when she saw the spots.  She immediately insisted on us introducing a strict hand-washing policy, announced she thought it was high time she started washing her own clothes (since hers could be infected if washed with Nathan’s), announced a hither-to unmentioned appointment and was out of the door so fast you’d swear her tail was on fire.  If she comes home wearing one of those funny white facemasks, I won’t be surprised.  Hopefully this will be all the motivation she needs to try extra hard at her interview tomorrow.

Meanwhile I am supposed to be catching up with Libby today re the whole Caroline situation (not to mention just catching up for the sake of it) but I’ll have to call her now and put her off.

My poor boy!  At least I now know what was ailing him with all that ratty behaviour we’ve been experiencing.  I pray for your healing hand to be on him and for him not to suffer with it too much.  I also pray for a truckload of patience because I suspect I’m really going to need it…Amen

Okay, Lord, I’m beginning to think that the school holidays are officially too long, as both of the children (but particularly Nathan) seem grumpy and irritable.  Granted it has been very warm these past few days with humidity levels that would give even an equatorial country a run for its money, but really, I think I have had enough.  If it wasn’t for the fact that I’ve not done all the pre-school jobs like buying stationery etc. etc. I would phone the school and insist they open.

Mind you, I suppose I can’t talk since I have been just a tad grumpy and irritable since I got home myself.  I am still feeding washing into the machine in an attempt to catch up from being away.  I am also finding myself feeling unhappy about being the one that has to do all the post-holiday jobs while Andrew has done nothing.  He’s still fishing things out of his bag while I’ve long unpacked not only mine but Emily’s and Nathan’s as well.  Lord, I know man was made in your image, but somehow I suspect there are no unpacked suitcases in heaven!

I’m also increasingly concerned by the whole Caroline/Logan situation.  As you know, Andrew went to see Logan yesterday, hung around outside his clinic after work until he emerged, and convinced him to go and have coffee.  Andrew was frankly appalled with their conversation.  Logan complained about how hard Caroline was to live with on account of her perfectionist ways, what hell all three children are to be around with their various demands, how he just couldn’t cope with the constant reminder of having a special needs son (Andrew was horrified when Logan described Christian as little better than a wild animal), how they’ve overextended themselves financially and lost invested money in folded credit finance companies.  He even (and perhaps unsurprisingly) complained about his and Caroline’s sex life, with it all being her fault (obviously).

Suddenly, what seemed like a bad situation now seems like an irredeemable situation.  And if what Logan says his true, the lack of finances could be a real problem, especially since Logan has now set up house with his little floosie (of course, according to Logan she really understands him!) which ultimately is more expenses not less.

So, Lord, if this is possible, I am upgrading my request for help for Caroline from concerned prayer to fervent prayer.  Please intervene and somehow (not sure how!) make this situation right.  And Lord, for me, I pray for patience for these last two weeks of the holidays because I think I’m really going to need it…Amen

Morning Lord!  I’ve told Linley to keep an eye on the kids while I sort some things out in the bedroom which was a slight stretch of the truth – in fact, what I want is to sort out some things with you.

I’m afraid the holidays are already well and truly over in a way that seems sadly consistent with the end of holidays – piles of washing, bags that need unpacking, a pile of mail to sort through, and more than anything else, people to be dealt with.  So, at this point I want to remind myself I actually did have a holiday and to thank you for the blessing that it was and to pray fervently for the blessing of another one soon – perhaps tomorrow??  I’m ready to go again!

It’s been all go since we got home.  Linley was waiting when we arrived and pounced on us as though she’d been marooned on a deserted island for longer than Tom Hanks and proudly showed us the tidy house (hmm) and the still-alive cat.  The house had that funny smell when the vacuum cleaner has been run too long so I suspect there was little done while we were away and a big panic at the end.  Anyway, she was quite upbeat and seems wildly optimistic about this job interview she’s got lined up on Thursday.

Five minutes after we got home Caroline was on the phone to say that things have got really nasty with Logan in our absence, that she had gone to try and access some of their funds in a bank account in order to pay a specialist she’d taken Christian to in the hope of finding some help, only to find the account closed.  When she called Logan about it he said the money in the account was needed for other things and that since he had not authorised her decision to take Christian to see the specialist she could jolly well pay for it herself.  Needless to say Andrew and I were both shocked to hear of such behaviour.  I think Andrew in particular, who’s always been quite friendly with Logan, couldn’t imagine him doing such a thing, especially when it involves help for his special needs son.

After Caroline called my parents showed up for an unexpected visit while we’re still trying to get the kids organised and calm (the scent of home seemed to drive them wild) and unload the car (without the benefit of being able to do so in our own garage!), then Ma Copeland was on the phone wanting Andrew (her precious boy) and it just felt like a three-ringed circus.  Oh for the peace and quiet of the beach…

Yesterday was no better.  We decided to go to church since it’s been a while (and I suspect Claire pointed this out to Andrew in no uncertain terms while on the phone) but getting ready to go was a mission since the bags were not unpacked and the kids were floppy and the washing machine needed feeding.  Anyway, as you know, going turned out to be a big mistake.  I don’t know what got in to Nathan but he was unbelievably naughty, wriggling, talking loudly, then whining and complaining, then kicking the pew in front of him and even at one point stating loudly, “I’m bored!”  Thankfully Daniel was quite understanding but Ma and Pa Copeland looked as though the boy had danced naked on the altar.  Daniel’s talk was on John 9 and he spent quite a bit of time talking about the Pharisees and their false judgements although I’m sure their attitude was nothing compared to Claire and William’s.

Then, back home, I thought we would have a quiet afternoon only to have James and Jasmine turn up.  During their visit Jasmine confided in me that she has been offered a job in Wellington at some firm who specialise in providing unusual forms of art for the likes of museums, movie studios and the like.  Apparently their current calligrapher is leaving, knows Jasmine and recommended her, and suddenly she’s got a job offer.  Of course she doesn’t know what to do and I can see what she really wanted me to tell her was whether or not James might ever get serious enough to want to settle down.  I was a bit flabbergasted really since James probably last confided a thought to me in 1986 and even then it wasn’t over anything important.  I’m afraid that brother of mine is a complete enigma to me, and I couldn’t think of anything to say that would be of help.  I just thought that suggesting a) she have a frank talk with him about the future or b) make up her own mind or c) convince him to go too were all a complete waste of time since a) James has never had a serious talk in his life b) she wouldn’t be telling me about everything if she could make up her own mind and c) James can’t get out of his own way to do the supermarket shopping let alone move to another city.

Anyway, I have no idea what to do with all of this stuff so I can only hand it all over to you and pray that you would make sense of it all and give me the wisdom to know what to do and when to do it.  I had better go since I can hear Nathan whining and Linley’s voice getting shrill.  Honestly, if I didn’t know better I would have to question the wisdom of going away at all!  I pray all in your mighty name…Amen

Feeling a bit wistful this morning, Lord, because sadly today is the last full day of our holiday.  It has just gone by so fast!  Not only that, tomorrow we have to pack up and also tidy up under the terms of renting this place which won’t be easy.  We seem to have spread ourselves around in an alarming way – and if the authorities are looking for the missing half of the beach we seem to have brought it home with us and it’s all over every floor.

However, I won’t think about that for now, but will concentrate on enjoying our last day and will just continue to give thanks to you, Lord, for the blessing this time has been.  The kids have had a blast, have been (mostly) good, Andrew is relaxed (although I can tell he’s got mixed feelings about going home because of Linley) and I have even read one whole book and started on a second.  There’s been minimal housework, simple meals, less television and I’ve even managed to find some time for you.  It’s just a shame it couldn’t have lasted for longer, but the budget is the budget and that’s all there is to it.  At least we’ve had a holiday at all.

So, I pray you would bless our last day, Lord, and bless our friends and family at home too.  And, Lord, I also pray for your hand to be on the people of Haiti – we’ve been pretty out of touch but I did see that on the news last night.  It’s always shocking to imagine that level of destruction and misery so I pray for your healing hand and your grace to surround those people in their hour of need.

Be with us as we travel home tomorrow…Amen

Another lovely holiday morning with the whole day stretching before us!  The sun is back shining brightly once more. The only down side to the start of the day is that the novelty of being on holiday seems to be wearing off where the children are concerned and they have been bickering – whatever one wants, the other wants except when it comes to t.v where the opposite is true.  I can see we are going to need to get going early this morning purely as a diversion.

On another positive note, I received a txt from Linley.  I must say that when it came flashing up on my phone I did open the message with my fingers over my eyes just in case she was txting to say that she had burnt the house down/killed the cat/run over the letterbox with her car/left the door unlocked so we’ve been robbed.  But, to my surprise, her txt said that the personnel consultant that she’d gone to see has come good and has recommended her for a position in quite a prestigious law firm and she’s lined up an interview for her for next week.  Hallelujah, Lord!  I mean, I know it’s only an interview, but at least that’s something.  At this stage I can only pray she would make a fabulous impression and soon be re-employed!

Bless our day, I pray…Amen

Morning Lord!  Well, here I am, uncharacteristically still in bed, on account of the fact that today is Andrew and my ninth wedding anniversary, and (also uncharacteristically) he got up and made me breakfast in bed.  So, it was only tea and toast.  It was a nice gesture and the fact that he remembered without prompting – and seems genuinely pleased to still be married to me – is about all a gal wants anyway.

We usually celebrate by going out for dinner and we will tonight too, but with children in tow, and to somewhere a lot less salubrious than I would have chosen, but again, what the heck, it’s just nice to be away and all together.

I can see the weather is a bit cloudy today, just as it was on that Saturday nine years ago, so perhaps we’ll go exploring further afield today and go somewhere with real shops in the hope that things cheer up this afternoon.  Wherever we go, and whatever we do, I pray for your hand to be on us, Lord.  And thank you for the blessing that Andrew is in my life.  I moan to him probably more than I moan to you so that will give you some appreciation of what he has to put up with.  Thank you for his cheerful disposition (that even Linley has tested) and I pray you would continue to bless our marriage – although I do ask respectfully that these blessings not be of the two legged, pitter-patter variety!

I pray in your mighty name…Amen

I’m trying something different today, Lord, because (as you know) I am writing this on the beach…my first ever prayer journal in the great outdoors!  I must say there is something to be said for it – white sandy beach framed with pohutukawa trees, blue sky, sun, a smattering of other people, the sound of seagulls and the distant laughter of my children out with Andrew on their boogie boards.  It’s like a little slice of heaven.

I thought I would try writing my prayer journal outside today, Lord, because there’s just something about being out in your creation that makes me feel close to you…and because I knew this time would come when I would be quite alone, having had my fill of the sea, while the children could easily stay in for another hour without complaint.

I must say that being away on holiday is making me feel rather philosophical.  I’m not sure whether the fact that it’s also the beginning of the year – which makes you look forward anyway – but I have found myself thinking about this year and what it might bring.

Emily will go into Year Three at school this year and is already so much more independent than she was even twelve months ago.  Nathan will start morning kindy five mornings a week and has less than a year before he, too, will start school.  Boy, those pre-school years have gone by fast.  It does make me feel retrospectively very pleased to have been able to be home with them for that time, even though at times the financial constraints have been frustrating…as have the children themselves!

Once Nathan goes to school what will that mean for me?  And in the interim, what is it that you would have me do, Lord?  Apart from being in the Bible Study group once a week, I’m not exactly very involved with church, am I?  Is there some sort of ministry I should be joining or getting interested in?

Anyway, at this point in time I have no answers, just philosophical questions.  I guess it would be good to talk all of this over with Andrew as well since he may already have expectations about what he thinks I might do in the fullness of time.  In the meantime I commit this year to you, Lord, and pray you would lead and guide me into the future.  I do want to be obedient to you and do what you would have me do!  Meanwhile, I continue to pray you would bless our present…and thank you for the blessings of this beautiful day…Amen