THE MARRIAGE

Had to include this great shot taken by Mark Gunter of the happy couple. Peta went through school with Mark the photographer. Check out his beautiful galleries by clicking on his name above.
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Peta said, "We're not having a wedding cake, Mum!" Fay had other ideas which turned out to be spot on. Ice cream cake complete with their 2 dogs, all their cars and the happy couple as well!!! All specially colour co-ordinated! The cake was a hit and didn't last long at all.

The event was a beauty!

It was a privilege to be able to witness the marriage of our daughter Peta to Jon Eke on Friday 22 February 2008. It took place quietly, solemnly but without incident in downtown Newcastle. Jon's parents - Chris and Rhonda - were also there to witness the happening.

Afterwards, Jon and Peta joined about 30 close relatives for a feed at The Brewery down by the water in Newcastle. What a beaut spot. All Jon's and Peta's siblings were there, with their families. I was pleased my sister and 2 brothers were present. They come from Sydney, Narrabri (NSW country) and Canada.

The next day, Peta and Jon had invited a bunch of their friends to celebrate the marriage in their backyard. A pool party! People came from Sydney, Cooma, Dubbo, Cairns and Canada. It was beaut to catch up with quite a few of their friends from different eras.

Do you like the shot of Peta with her cousins (minus Jemma) and of course her Canadian Uncle Bill! Think Alan took that one. From left: Deb, Nathan, Peta, Jeremy, Stuart. Other photos are by Alan and Bill. Thanks guys.

Sunday was relax, recover, tidy up and relax some more. Jon was thrown into the pool at one stage. Peta laughed and was then selected to join her husband in the pool.

Fay and I said farewell and headed to Taree to spend a few days with Bill and Alan (and Nathan briefly) at a resort Seashells at Hallidays Point. Very easy. It's 2 hours north of Newcastle. My Dad used to live in Hallidays Point till he died in 1992.

We expect to be back in Dubbo on Thursday 28 Feb to relax ourselves. Guess church camp is on this weekend! Hope you like the photos. Did you check out Gunter's photo site? Absolutely great. Thanks Mark.

LOGAN JACK'S BIG MOUTH

So, who does he get his big mouth from?

He loves bikkies (cookies), Weet Bix, baked beans, grapes, nectarine, cherries, peaches, spag bol and even sultanas that his father has rejected from the Just Right packet! And, as the above photo shows, he likes Arrowroot biscuits too. We haven't tried him on Iced Vovos as yet.

LJ is now 16 months old. This guy just makes so many people's lives richer. You've just gotta wonder about his future eh?

Sorry about the carry on; he is my only grandchild!

Next post will tell you about the marriage between Peta (our #2 daughter) and Jon Eke. It happens 22 and 23 Feb. Stay posted. (Or come back later!)

DECEMBER

December is a month like no other. For starters it is the start of summer (although November stakes a bit of a claim here usually.) It includes the festive season, or as I like to call it the anniversary of Jesus’ birthday. It includes the start of the summer holidays, usually late Dec. It includes Fay and I heading to the beach to enjoy some sand, surf, sun and relaxation. When you are holidaying in a caravan or cabin about as big as two rooms of a house, there’s not a lot of housework to do. We read a lot, catch up with friends, watch the cricket and tennis on TV, swim, paddle, beachwalk, bushwalk, bush bash on mountain bikes etc. What a great time we have during the summer.
Our retreat is 600 km (360 miles) from our home in Dubbo. Lucky we’ve got mates Dicko and Sue and neighbours Richard and Shirley to look after our house back in Dubbo while we’re away for 6 weeks. Just remembered we left Dicko a blank cheque! Oh well!
Enroute to the beautiful South Coast, we’re spending a few days in Sydney enjoying our grandson Logan Jack who can now WALK! What a difference that makes! Especially when he walks straight into the TV (yesterday’s trick) with obvious consequences. Thanks for having us sleepover for several nights Bren and Deb. Photo above is Logan Jack and Tiger. Can you pick which one is the real Tiger?
We haven’t caught up with son Jeremy as yet, but hopefully he’ll come down to visit us at the Retreat later this month.
Plans are underway for a quick visit to Newcastle (2 hour journey) to see #2 daughter Peta and her man Jon. There is planning to be done in preparation for their wedding in February. Brother Bill from Canada is out here now (avoiding the Canadian winter) and he will come with us to visit one of his many favourite nieces.
Fay and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Billy Elliott the Musical on Friday at the Capitol Theatre. Music by Elton John. What a fabulous show! Man, what a great show. Don’t miss it if you get the chance. That's a promo picture above.
Then by Friday we’ll head for the south coast – a 2.5 hour drive. Third photo above was taken at our retreat. Just gorgeous! Want to come join us one year?
If you’d like a 1 page summary of our activities in 2007, drop me an email to keasty446@gmail.com – no charge.