List of Happiness...The Beach

A quote that hit home...

Sunrise on Palm Beach, Qld ~ my local

Bench of contemplation & focus


Time is a wonderfully confusing thing ~ it bends, confuses, distorts and also heals
 It has been almost 10 months since we returned home to Australia from living overseas. This was a decision that was essentially made for us, not by us.  A decision that has been both a blessing and a curse... In the past couple of weeks that I have noticed a shift in the energy around me ~ opening up to the  lessons that are there to learn from and grow. Everyday on social media I see quotes that are sprinkled along my path to "be inspired by". But it is the above quote that I borrowed from one of my dear friend's Facebook page that actually hit home. And being a lover of lists - this was an eye opener! The simple instruction to compare two lists: one that makes you happy and one that fills your day.  Sounds simple right?
But it is often within simplicity that we find the magic we need to transform. At the top of my list of happiness was the BEACH, so off I went to enjoy the sunrise before launching myself into my day. Being from the East Coast of Canada - the ocean is in my blood. It has healing, meditative properties for me.  I know this ~ so why don't I make it a daily priority if it can make me happy? We all know and worship those two ugly words: too busy
Well I am choosing happiness as my new mantra instead. How about you...what simple acts can make your lists more compatible?  What do you do to banish the "I'm too busy" mantra to replace it with your search for happiness?

The Open Road...

The ultimate view...

Wandering, Wonderful & Wild...

Rusted Beauty...

**SWOOOOOOON***

Wandering in style...

***SWOOOON***

Textiles in motion...

Sunset...

Nightfall and the lights are glowing...

I have been called "The Gypsy" by many of those around me,  especially by my husband.  I love to be in motion, to travel, explore - experience new places and its people...

However, life threw us a major wrinkle in our 'life plan" in October when we had to leave Malaysia and return back to Australia. 

It seems that the universe must have had other plans for this gypsy...time to set down and create some roots.

But my feet are already itching for the next adventure. So I find my self dreaming of buying a holiday home on wheels...

Natural Transformation...

a mix of patterns

glass, ceramic & organic

A clever display method...

Colourful Cacti...

Cactus + Basket...

More Baskets

Gorgeous Hanging Fern...

Overflowing Fern + Books...

I love the simplcity + beauty that plants bring to a home.

Plants are natural elements that create transformation within your space & spirit.

Goodbye to Ethiopia...a list of our "last things"

The Donkeys and the the Jambos The Mountains and Macchiatos The Ladas and the Salamnos Dinich Tibs and Shiro!!!
t The view from our house in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia... One last misty walk around our neighbourhood... Playing during Ethiopian Kiremt (rainy season) Our final fire with Eucalypt Timber which grows wild in Ethiopia thanks to The Emperor Menelik's importation over a century  ago...I still remember our first day in Ethiopia and the smell of the cooking fires and my Aussie husband looking bemused as he said "It smells like Australia?" My last organized running event in Addis Ababa,organized by the worlds greatest ever runner Haile GebrSelassie... Our first and final Toga Party in Addis...(Thanks Beth n Ralph : ) My husband The SunBard's farewell gig at Enya's Kitchen supported by the Moonbeams..it was a magical musical night. Big thanks to Enya! Going out for our last date night in Addis... One more cup of buna (coffee) with Girma... We packed up our life...again.
Leaving Ethiopia on a 2 am flight to Brussels, Belgium.
Ethiopia...wow...what a journey that was!  It was the most EPIC experience of my life It taught me another level of humility, gratitude, heartache and love I will never forget its people, culture or landscape
As expats we are on the move...every time we travel my kids amaze me. They are so flexible and patient throughout the whole process...often calmer than my husband or myself!
We left Ethiopia and had our first stop in Brussels to visit my brother and his beautiful family. It had been too long since we had been together. We had such a wonderful visit and  even managed to squeeze in a quick road trip to Luxembourg, the Saarland and  France.

Now we are in my hometown, enjoying all the sights, sounds and of course, tastes of Nova Scotia. I am relishing this blessed time I have to slow down, be with my children and share my country with them.



In two weeks we will hit the road again. This time our first stop will be Taipei, Taiwan to visit good friends who are starting out on their 'new' life there - then we will arrive in Kuala Lumpur to begin our next chapter...

Farewell to Harar...

Zoe & I outside the Traditional Harari Guest House we stayed at...   Zoe exploring the formal sitting room decorated from floor to ceiling in traditional arts & crafts...     The boys will play Football (Soccer) anywhere and anyone is welcome to join in!    Harar beer...in our opinion the best beer in Ethiopia....   So of course being in Harar itself we HAD to have some...     Walking in the rain...   Leaving Harar...   Local huts made from different materials collected...  On the road again...  
Small town camel...     View from a tukul... Ethiopian Highlands - farmland...     My blessed tribe...  

These are the last pictures from the Harar part of our journey last July. From Harar we headed east back towards Addis Ababa with a stop at Awash National Park. 

It was such a great journey together...memories made.