Starting in September the Australian magpies began feeling amorous and decide to perpetuate their species by breeding. Now normally my interest in ornithology extends only to those wonderful avian species which can be eaten with gusto. However the magpies were not content to leave me to my own interests and very aggressively made their presence a waking nightmare. These fiendish pests swoop down on unsuspecting pedestrians with the violence of lioness protecting her cubs. Now I was fully aware and prepared for the dangers presented by the numerous venomous snakes and spiders but I had no idea about the vicious song birds. One little girl in Mandurah (a southern suburb of Perth) nearly lost an eye to a particularly nasty magpie. A word to the wise, if you are going to visit King's park in September then bring an ice cream tub with eyes painted on it for your own protection.Spring is also the time of blow flies in Australia. I have to say that they are almost as annoying as mosquitoes. You can be walking around town and see someone waving and mistakenly believe that they are waving at you but in reality they were just swatting away a fly. (Maybe the Aussies don't like me as much as I thought they did.) Thankfully they don't bite just aggravate.
In the final week of September Amanda had the opportunity to visit Sydney with her oldest sister Racheal. They both landed in Sydney on the 28th of September and stayed until Oct. 1st. This meant that Amanda had to fly across Australia all alone and I got to care for the kids by myself. (One of these things is not like the other one, one of these things just doesn't belong) Amanda and Racheal had a great time in Sydney and I got a cold. Thankfully, God has blessed me with wonderful children that really helped me through the worst days.
During Racheal's visit we drove to the Pinnacles National Park, John Forrest National Park, and King's Park. John Forrest is one of our favorites as it allows visitors to get up close and personal with the Kangaroos that live there.
Pinnacles National Park was about a 3 and a half drive north of Perth but it is truly one of the most unique places that I have ever visited. Contained within this large park you have both an extreme desert and ocean vistas. It is incredible.
Racheal helped us celebrate Amanda's 35th birthday and made it unforgettable. Thank you for flying around the world to visit your baby sister and her family. You made all of us feel very special.
October also brought Brandon's 13th birthday. He decided to celebrate by going to a climbing center down in Perth. It was a blast. We spent the afternoon climbing, rappelling, and belaying one another. Even Izzy and AJ got the opportunity to climb. I cannot believe that I have a teen aged son but I am so thankful for him and what God is doing in his life.October is also my birth month so on the 23rd I did something I always wanted to do, I attended an October baseball game. It was opening night for the Perth Heat as they hosted Adelaide. It was a beautiful evening filled with bad food and good (not great) baseball. I was rather shocked to find out that Australia has its own professional baseball league but I was delighted to take Brandon and Mikayla to see this wonderful sight. We ate nachos, hot dogs, and meat pies while we took in the spectacle that is America's past time. While I may never have the opportunity to catch a postseason MLB game in person, I can say that I have attended professional baseball games on two different continents and that is pretty cool.
The work at Avon Valley Baptist Church has been enjoying a great month as well. We have had 6 first time visitors in the past few weeks. Even better is that one of the couples has returned a couple of times and even joined our Wednesday night Bible study. I am so thankful for this opportunity and I am humbled that God has blessed us in such an incredible manner. Thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement. We love you all.
