New Additions to My Family

When we come to every weekend, Andy noticing my tiredness will say, "You've had a big week!" Sometimes it feels like every week is choc-full of things going on: working full-time, netball, squash, study, Andy, friends (and not all in that order, either!) I get so busy that I have to deliberately stop and talk with Andy about making sure we are putting our marriage first before others and that we are not getting lost in the busy-ness of life.

Last weekend was Nathan and Melanie's wedding and it was a lovely time catching up with old friends and new, family, celebrating the love that Nathan and Melanie share and enjoying beautiful weather too! Our plane trip going there took longer than expected but we arrived safely and came back home without any problems. I am so thankful and proud of Nathan and Melanie.

This week I have been aiming to keep up with study. I passed the quiz I had to do a couple of weeks ago and now I have to work on my assignment due in less than three weeks. I sometimes have to remind myself that it's just for a short time and then I can relax. Today, Andy and I are playing in the grand final for our indoor netball team. It has been a fun season and I am looking forward to playing again next season.

Now for some big news. I have bought myself a horse called Lucky. Lucky is a thoroughbred who looks a lot like the horse I owned back in the States. (Dee) He is only 14.3 HH and is 13 years old with personality plus and a gentle, wanting to please nature. I bought him from some friends and I will continue to agist him at their place so they don't lose him completely. It all fell into place. A few months ago, Andy and I were at their place for dinner and I mentioned that I wanted to buy a horse but not until September. They said that when I found a horse, I could keep him at their place and as M knows a lot about horses, I found that reassuring as she will be able to help me learn to take care of a horse, the "Aussie" way. I had looked at a couple other horses but they were not within my price range. My friends had not planned on selling Lucky but when they did, they sold him to someone else who decided that Lucky wasn't for them. Anyway, it all fell into place nicely.

Yesterday, I went shopping with my friends and in some ways, as we looked at bridles and halters, Ariat boots and Wrangler jeans, it was almost like taking a trip down memory lane with Dave. It is very exciting so now into my busy life, I have to add taking care of my horse. I drive past my friends' place every day on my way to and from work so it will be easy to drop in and play with Lucky. The other good thing about having my own horse is I find it therapeutic to ride and groom a horse.

Life is good and I have a lot to be thankful for. Even in the busy-ness and challenges, there is always something good  (or someone special) to balance out the difficulties.

P.S. Our indoor netball team won the grandfinal. I think we did really well since we only started playing as a team at the start of this year!