Sunset Sunday and Happy Birthday

Well wouldn't you just know it, I actually have a sunset to post for sunset Sunday... hooray! Sunset Sunday is inspired by Scott, he posts some phenomenal sunsets; if you haven't ventured over to his blog as of yet, I highly recommend you do, his photos will not disappoint.
 

When I see a sunset this magnificent I can't help but give thanks.

Back home my son is celebrating his 28th, I want to take this time out to wish him a very special Happy Birthday.

(Thanks for the photo Shayne, hope you don't mind I 'borrowed' it).

My children all got together today and I was able to Skype with them for a bit, being out in the middle of the desert it's not at all surprising that the video was lagging, but at least I got to chat with everyone and that made my day.

Derek, Happy 28th Birthday. I love you for exactly who you are, you have a kind heart and a warm soul, and please remember that you'll never win a debate with me... just because I'm the Mom and I said so! lol  Cheers, enjoy your special day. I love you.

A Walkabout

Ahhh, the weekend. Today was a wonderful, lazy sort of a day; I was on my computer catching up a bit, doing some homework and then I decided to take my camera on a walkabout. I ventured a bit into the countryside and stumbled upon some beautiful flowers. 

 There's one store here:

I love the artwork, the hours of the store are not too long and the truck only comes once a week. When the roads were closed due to flooding that meant a missed delivery, the shelves were getting rather bare. 

There's also an Art Center, this is where local artists come to work and their paintings are sent to galleries to be sold. There are some amazing paintings, when I was visiting a school one day I watched a young lady painting, she was doing a phenomenal job. 

A little better look at some of the colorful painting on the building...

Yup, it's been a fantastic Saturday... and here I thought I might be bored, not in my world, there's a lot to explore even though this is a small community.

Shopping

Today we went for a visit to the neighboring school; they have the most amazing gardens and orchid.

 These are mandarin oranges, I've never seen these growing; there was also pomegranate and cantaloupe and so much else I've never had the pleasure of tasting fresh. The pomegranate was amazing, as was the cantaloupe.

 We were invited to help ourselves after we did a bit of work for the school, so shopping we went.

We came home with fresh grapes off the vine, tomatoes, bok choy, chives, cantaloupe, pumpkin, fresh eggs, (they also have a few "chooks", two of which are layers) and I didn't even realize we were going shopping.

Sometimes blessings show up when we least expect them, I had heard that it's extremely hard to get fresh veg and produce out here... I suppose that it depends who we meet in our travels which really makes a difference in life.

D O N K E Y

I think that it's rather funny, there's donkeys wondering throughout the community and I find them cute... some people don't though. To a degree I can understand why; the donkeys get into the garbage, the make messes all over the place, but just put the garbage away, lock it up or something and put fences around where you don't want these creatures getting in to. There problem solved. :-)

See how cute!

Bluest Skies

The skies in Pukatja are amazing, for three days (I think it's been three days) I haven't seen a cloud in the sky. This photo is SOC, no edits needed at all.

"I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes."

 ~e.e. cummings

Let sleeping dogs lye

... it's easier to get their photo.

On The Road Again

We finally made it out of Alice Springs on Sunday, I got on the Greyhound and my colleague got in with a few others who were traveling out this way. The 4x4 was almost overflowing full with the others gear and ours as well. 

We all met up at this old roadhouse in Kulgara; these old roadhouses are so full of character. 

The fella who is putting us up came to meet us, we still had a few hours drive in front of us...the roads were interesting to say the least. 

Darn near needed a boat to get through in some places, but this 4x4 (aka troupie) got us through just fine.

What lies in front of me,  I have no idea, what lies behind me is history... so I'll wait and see what happens next. I have this funny feeling that I will learn the world of patience out here... maybe. :-)

With this limited internet I'm not going to be able to visit your blogs as often as I'd like to but I'll still try to pop in and say hello from time to time and I'll try to keep up to my posts as well.  Cheers.

God's Country

Today we went out exploring the countryside, I was in awe of the magnitude of God's handiwork and experienced a small piece of paradise.

Simpson's Gap

An amazing way to end a beautiful day...

Alice Springs

Alice Springs is a beautiful town to visit, the scenery is phenomenal. It's nice being able to take in the sights and enjoy some time in this quaint town. 

One good thing I noticed, there's always somewhere to park your horse or camel... cars well I'm not too sure about that. 

Rain and More Rain

It rained...

and rained...

and rained...

All the rain caused flooding, which caused the roads to Pukatja to be closed so we waited it out. We met some fantastic, hospitable people and settled in for the stay. A natural disaster can't be avoided, so we might as well make the best of it.