post script......

It seems like an age since the game last Saturday. Wayman ended up flying to Melbourne, and along with 100,000 people stood in the MCG at the end, with a feeling of unbelief that there was no result. He came home that night, wondering if it would be possible to go back this week. We are still working on that. I think he has now seen Collingwood in four grand finals without a win.

Meanwhile the family watched the game together, with the Taskers on skype watching it in Nashville. Our feeling was that our little junior pies achieved as much as the poor players that afternoon.

They ran.....

and they jumped......

and at the end of the day they just lay on the ground...

the only difference we could see was that our little junior pies seemed to be enjoying themselves!

So we do it all again this week.

Footy fanatics

You know you are a little fanatical when you dress your oldest grandchild like this for the grand final, in a year when your team isn't even playing.

Most of you will you know that Collingwood has made it into the GF this year!

And we have decided to watch the game with our little junior pie and the family.

We felt that tickets at the top of the southern stand would not be a good idea. Wayman's bad eye sight would mean he wouldn't see the ball, and I probably wouldn't even make it to my seat, due to my fear of heights! We are leaving the barracking at the game to others, do us proud Kate!

So we will watch it at home, with C and his cousin [his sister will be in bed].

His 2 and 1/2 year old cousin has an interesting mixture of chants that he is practising.

"Go pies" is often followed by "BUDDY!!!!!"

Granny has forbidden one that is something about crows and dresses. Where do they learn these things?

And this year we will remember not to put the bowl of chips between the adults and the television set.

A word from Wayman

I''m sure that you have all guessed by now that I [Ruth] am the blogger, and that Wayman's input is in a supportive role. We talk about the posts each time, but usually I write them.

But today he allowed me to take a few words from an email he has sent to a friend and post them here.

" I should tell you, that the one thing which has been a constant is the absolute and complete faith I've felt in our Lord. Maybe for no more than a total combined five minutes over the past ten weeks - that is how long we've been on this journey now - have I felt anything but complete faith and trust in His care for me. That assurance and trust has been solid and I've felt great faith in the utter completeness of Jesus, his love for me, and those closest to me. To be so loved by Ruth, my three daughters and their wonderful husbands has taken away any anxiety I might have been tempted to feel. God is in control."

So we continue to live our lives, enjoying family, barracking for Collingwood, and working in our rather large garden.

To weed or not to weed?

Tuesday morning was the first morning we didn't have radiotherapy. We both felt great relief at not having to drive anywhere. The morning started with our home being fog bound.

The cows next door were quiet and not in any hurry to begin the day. Foggy mornings seem to do that to God's creation

Except for Wayman

He decided that it was the day to start weeding the lawn. Now, I am very happy for to him to be enthusiastic about this task, but the fact that he bought TWO cushioned kneeling thingys made me suspicious that I was meant to be involved. This is not my passion. Even when we lived in Sydney with a lawn the size of a postage stamp, I didn't feel the need to rid it of flat leafed weeds that invaded our space.

True, Sydney harbour is one of the most beautiful places in the world, and it is a bit hard to concentrate on the weeds when you could be sitting back enjoying the view!

But the point of this blog is to present my position on weeding. Would you join a man who decides to crawl over this lawn to weed it?

Wayman is the tiny little dot to the right of the gum tree.

I rest my case!

Radiotherapy comes to an end

Tomorrow Wayman has the last of his 30 radiotherapy treatments. Many of you have been praying that he will tolerate this well. God is gracious, and Wayman has handled this daily ritual amazingly. The issue of having his head strapped tightly into a machine has not caused him anxiety, in fact he has often fallen asleep during the procedure. One day the technicians had a chuckle as they could hear him snoring while under his mask!

He has not had any major side effects from this or the chemotherapy and we have been able to deal quickly with any minor issues that have arisen.

He now has a break from treatment for a month before he restarts chemotherapy. A scan in about 6 weeks will give us an indication of the success of his program. Please pray that we will be patient while we wait, and that we both will continue to trust our Father who has shown his faithfulness to us now as he has in the past.

Praise him also for answered prayers in relation to Wayman's ability to tolerate the treatment.

Weekend in Melbourne

Wayman has been a follower of the Collingwood footy club for most of his adult life. In the past he has often been the instigator of family travel so to have our family organise a weekend to see them play was an absolute delight for him. This was the view from our hotel window. A very fitting panorama!

But first the girls needed some retail therapy so the men graciously came along..

The weather was fine for the game, although we walked to the ground in the rain..

And our Nashville family members really embrace the magpies!

But big Shano being a Hawthorn man would not don the black and white.

The pies obligingly won in fine style!

Wayman was thrilled when the Rainbows surprised him the next day to complete his family and celebrate Fathers day together.

So many good memories to store away.

Spring at last!

Wayman has really enjoyed being well enough to get outside. I'm not sure if he is a help or a hindrance to our gardener!

The daffodils are still flowering.

Our trees are starting blossom

and my grape hyacinths are a little treat in the rockery

I know that three posts in one week is a little excessive, but Cassie is here and she is teaching me to add photos.

It also has given me a chance to show you Wayman pretending to work!