Nahlia's Swing

Daddy built Nahlia a swing today! Wheeeeeee!

Heute hat der Papa der Nahlia eine Schaukel gebaut! Huuuuiiiiiii!

Seville Water Park

Gestern waren wir im Wasserpark in Seville.

Yesterday we went to the Water Park in Seville.

Das war eine schoene Abkuehlung fuer unsere kleine Nahlia.

Nice and cool for our little Nahlia.

Ohne Angst ist sie zwischen den Fontaenen herumgekrabbelt.

Crawling all over the place, in between the water fountains without any fear.

Currently devouring...

Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers.
- Charles William 

I have found that I am now able to read a bit while Nahlia has her naps.... She sleeps on myseld or Ulf for all of her day naps, so it can feel a bit limiting sometimes, but it's great for making me rest!  Anyway, lately I'm reading during her naps and afterwards I feel like I've had a conversation with the author, which is lovely and reassuring on those days when I'm home alone with Nahlia and Ulf is at work.

I've just finished devouring 'Down to Earth' by Rhonda Hetzel... such a good, honest book about living simply, self-sufficiency, being kind to yourself, your family and your environment.  I;ve been inspired to look at my tasks as home-maker (or home-keeper) in a new light; I've starting making sourdough bread from scratch; I'm making kefir yoghurt and cheese and fermented vegetables; and I'm enjoying taking care of my home and my family.

I'm also enjoying 'Nourishing Traditions' immensely.  It is full of unknown nutritional facts from traditional cooking.

Ulf is enjoying ' Simple Prosperity' and 'A History of God'.

And I hope I get time to get into the others soon!

La La Falls

For the first time in a long time, we made an outing on the weekend!  And it was beautiful!  La La Falls, near Warburton, Vic, was a surprise path into a dreamland of rainforest, stone bridges and ferns reaching out to touch you.  It was refreshing and rejuvenating and peaceful.

It may as well have been an anniversary outing for all we knew - it was that beautiful and meaningful for us!

The path was an old horse-drawn tramway which carried logs from the mountain down the valley to a sawmill.  The path and rainforest were so serene and adventurous at the same time.  Walking the path felt like I was in a movie or a Crash Bandicoot game!

It was the perfect place to reflect on the journey of our life; the paths we have taken which brought us to where we are now; and the paths that lay ahead and all the possible destinations in life that they could lead us to.

After a wonderful five years in Melbourne, the beautiful friends we have enjoyed; the peaceful homes we have lived in; the challenges and joys of life that we have experienced with each other and with others; the birth of our first daughter; our journey with God and the ever deepening revelation of Him in all that we know and experience in life; have all been part of the path that has brought us to where we are now.  We have become a family, and since we received Nahlia into the world, we have experienced a growing desire to be closer to Ulf's family in Germany, for Nahlia to know her grandparents there in a similar manner that Ulf grew up knowing his grandparents - next door.  And it is this desire that has set a new path before us... one that will see us traveling in Australia next year and eventually moving to Germany and settling there.

We don't know exactly when we will leave our beautiful cottage in Lilydale, but we are excited to see this new path unfold before us as we venture out in 2013.

Penelope (Peep-Peep) the Duck

Today Nahlia met Penelope, otherwise known as Peep-Peep, the Duck, new pet of our neighbour Rose.  Nahlia loves animals and is not afraid of them, unless they make unexpected loud noises!  It took her a while to get used to the crow of Angus the Rooster.

But as you can see, she was not afraid of Penelope!

Until she started moving around!