Christmas Day 2012

We were again blessed to have our family and friends join us on Christmas Day.  It was not as joyous as other years because of the passing of Wayne's mother Coral in June and she was sadly missed by all of us, today.  However, we know she was with us in spirit and so we all did our best to celebrate the day together.

The Christmas Tree looked gorgeous, as usual!



It was great that Torie and her boyfriend Nick could join us for lunch, even though they had so many others in Nick's family to see on the day!  But, even more than that, they left their home at 8am to travel down to Phillip Island to pick up Mum and Dad and bring them to our house.  Such an amazing effort and so very much appreciated by all of us!




Wayne's dad, Geoff and his sister Debbie & hubby Phil were also there, although understandably much quieter, this year.


 


Dad went into permanent care in November, due to his Alzheimer's Disease.  So, we gave him a picture of the family to put on his bookshelf.

Mum was with us for Christmas too, but somehow I didn't manage to catch a snap of her this year!


It was lovely to have Lizzy's boyfriend Adam join us for this first time, this year!

The Christmas lunch table was a riot of food and noise, as usual.  Thanks to Wayne, with the help of Phil, we had the most wonderful Christmas feast!

Everyone had fun with the Christmas crackers and it was lovely to be able to welcome Adam's mum, Nebbie to join us today (although I didn't get a photo of her either!).



I felt it was important to acknowledge our losses, as well as our blessings during this past year, so I did a little research and came up with the following Grace, which I read out as everyone held hands, before we began to eat:

God of all gifts, we thank you for the many ways you have blessed us

and we thank you for bringing our family and

friends together on this wonderful day.

 

We are grateful for each of those who are gathered around this table

and we ask you to bless us and our food

and to bless those we love who are not with us today.

 

In our gratitude and love, we remember your humble birth into our lives

and pray for those who are without enough to eat.

 

We remember the stable in which you were born

and pray for those who have no place to live.

 

We remember your challenging message of caring and giving

and we pray for peace in families and nations throughout the world.

 

Despite the hardships of this past year,

we are grateful for the unity and grace you have bestowed upon us.  

 

As we celebrate your birth Lord,

we will remember countless blessings in our lives which we are so thankful for.

 

Let the gift of your peace come into our hearts and remain with us

and may we rejoice in your blessings for all our days.

 

Amen.



Farewell to Tintern Schools

I had the last day of my job at Tintern Schools today.  My role as Co-Curricular Administrator was made redundant, so I have had to finish-up after three years.  I have really enjoyed my time at Tintern and feel I have contributed well to the school.


My office at Tintern

My role was to coordinate all the co-curricular activities of the students and ensure they were all staffed and administered properly and then to create the students' Co-Curricular Reports twice a year.






I was also required to organise all the overseas and interstate trips and tours for the school, which included UK/Paris, China and Central Australia.

It was a very busy job, but I still found time and energy to be part of the Staff Association Committee, run a Well Being Club for the middle school students, Yoga Sessions for the staff, a Glee Club and lunchtime Meditation Sessions for the senior school students.

The Tiwi girls, their elders and me
at the MCG on their last night in Melbourne

One of my most satisfying projects in 2011 was to arrange for a hosted one-week visit to Melbourne by ten students from the Tiwi Islands, along with their teachers and elders.  The girls were quite shy and anxious at the beginning of the week, but by the end they were really enjoying their time here and there were some wonderful relationships developed.


It is sad to be leaving Tintern, but I see it as just another very enjoyable chapter in my life and am ready to turn the page and see what comes in the next one.

Vocal Vibes Christmas Concert

The Vocal Vibes Chorus had another wonderful Family & Friends Christmas Concert this evening.  It was such a lovely time of celebration and song with all of us in the Chorus dressed up in our best Chrismassy clothes

There was quite a large audience gathered and we sang a number of songs from our repertoire, including Ain't Misbehavin', One Fine Day, The Moment I Saw Your Eyes and Candle on the Water.

It was lovely to have so many of my family and friends there!


Torie, Richie and Nebbie (Adam's mum)

Lizzy & Nick

Richie & Nebbie again, this time with Adam

All the kids together ... so happy!

Ayden, Lea, Les and ....

... Bailea!

I cannot put into words how much enjoyment I get from singing with this lovely bunch of women, but perhaps this photo gives some indication ....

Then Santa arrived and gave gifts to all the children.






Wendy handed out musical instruments (tamborines & bells) to the children ...






... and we all sang Christmas carols, lead by Maddie ...




There were such a lot of children there, even a young boy dressed up as an elf!





This little one's gift was bigger than he was!





Faye received the inaugural Brenda Smith Achievement Award (and well deserved, too!).

Then we "sang-in" our newest member, Sophia (our form of induction) with the Sweet Adelines anthem How We Sang Tonight.


Then, after a couple more songs, including An Irish Blessing, it was time for a lovely Christmas supper before we all went home.  Such a wonderful way to end the year with my lovely Vocal Vibes!!