The Castle

"What'd you call this love?"
"A meat pie".
"And it's got something on it..."
"Tomato sauce".
"Tomato sauce! Looks like everybody's kicked a goal". 


My name is Andrea Cross and this is my story...

Do you remember that 1997 movie, The Castle?  Most of the Australians reading this blog probably will.
Well, one of the most precious things about being home in Australia has been spending time with both Dave's, and my, parents in their "castles".  
Now I'm not calling them castles because they have moats, thick walls or towers but I am referring to the dictionary meaning that says a castle is, "A place of privacy, security, or refuge".
We've had a busy, jam-packed schedule this past month and if we hadn't had our parent's homes to come back to (some times very late at night), it would've been a completely different trip.   The moments of refuge and rest, for us, have made the difference between a good trip back and an absolutely FANTASTIC trip.  We just love our parents so much and they have been so incredibly wonderful to us!  The five of us have made some precious memories and enjoyed the unique characteristics of both the 'Lewis' and 'Cross' families.
Just like Darryl Kerrigan in The Castle, we too have made many compliments for our mother's cooking- especially their efforts to include as many of our favourite dishes as physically possible in such a short space of time!!  
Our kids have also accumulated various treasures that would be going "straight to the pool room"... if we had one!!
So, to our mums and dads, you haven't let us down. 
"I don't know what the opposite of lettin' someone down is... but you've done the opposite".
Thank you!

Everyone has a photographic memory… some just don’t have film.

And that would be me!!  Hahaha. My memory is shocking!


So, how is it that I find myself away on holidays and I having barely taken any photographs?  I guess because so much of our life in Thailand is photographed (and blogged about) that it feels kinda nice to just simply "be".


Sometimes, I think, beautiful moments of play, interaction, humour or affection can be spoilt once the camera comes out.


And so, with only about ten days remaining, I apologise because I have no amazing pictures to share with you and yet we are having the most wonderful time.


Okay so here's our family's top ten things we are really loving about being back in Australia:


1.  Spending time with family and close friends.
2.  The food: meat pies, good tasting fish and chips, Barbeque Shapes, Cadbury chocolate, yummy Australian home-cooked meals... (this list goes on and on LOL)
3.  Understanding the language!
4.  Some sleep-ins!  (It's gets light at 5.30am in Chiangmai!)
5.  Looking through the shops... and being able to read the labels and the signs!!
6.  For Dave, watching the Australian football.
7.  Seeing friend's new houses, renovations, new babies and catching up on all their news.
8.  Blending in and looking (relatively) "normal".
9.  Open fires, carpeted floors, hot drinks, snuggling in warm pajamas...
10. Being spoilt with love!


Thank you to our amazing family and friends. We feel so overwhelmed with your hospitality, kindness and generosity.  We are really enjoying seeing you and will cherish these last 10 days, each and every second... I might even try to get a few happy snaps before we head back too!! 


Andie :)

ZOE Children's Home? Why?

If you've never heard about how Dave and I found ourselves living overseas, volunteering at a children's home and doing 'life' in a completely different way to what we'd imagined... Read About- How It All Began.

I believe that we have a responsibility to reflect God's heart to the poor and less fortunate.

"Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves…defend the rights of the poor and needy." Prov. 31:8-9.

I continue to be amazed at how God is bringing forth His plan for our lives and how He is providing wonderful people to assist us in such practical ways.

Thank you so much to those who have been willing to support us with your finances, your prayers and your practical assistance.

We feel truly grateful and a little overwhelmed at how God orchestrates everything just as we need it.

I’m reminded of that High School Musical song “We’re all in this together..” LOL but seriously there are so many different aspects to making change happen and making a difference.  

Don’t ever think that just because you’re not on the “front line”, that what you’re contributing is not as important.  That is just not true.

By showing your support you’ve become passionate about making a difference in the lives of children. 

Is it easy? Not always. 

Is it time-consuming? Yes. 

Will you be put out of your comfort zone? Probably. 

Does it come at a cost? Yes. 

Is it worth it? Most definitely!

I read somewhere the other day that instead of being discouraged by the size of the task, we should be encouraged by the limitless power of God.  

Thank you for joining us in fighting for these children.

Blessings,

Andrea 

Half Way Through Our Trip Back...

Many people have asked us when and where we will be sharing about our work at the ZOE Children's Home while we are back.  

We are so happy to have been asked to share at schools, small groups and churches as well as spending precious time with our supporters, family and friends.

Here's where we'll be sharing/ visiting on the weekends:

Bayside Church                 Sunday July 3^rd         

(Big Buddies children's ministry)

Berwick Baptist                Sunday July 10^th        

(Sharing at the morning service)   


Antioch House Church      Sunday July 17^th    

(Sharing at the morning service)
     

Winepress                        Saturday July 23^rd      

(Sharing at the night-time service)        

Village Church, Dingley    Sunday July 24^th                

(Sharing at the morning service)                 

We'd love to see you there!

Have You Checked Out the ZOE Children's Home Blog yet?

Well, if you haven't... now is your chance!

Check out the latest post "Keeping Culture Alive".

This new blog is a great place to go and read all about the recent activities and events occurring at the children's home from camp updates, missions trips, latest news, child trafficking statistics and information regarding child sponsorship.

ZOE Children’s Homes is dedicated to ensuring that our children know their culture. 
We encourage our house parents and staff to pass down to the children the customs,
history and traditions of their people.

Andie :)

**The Cross Family are currently in Australia.  To hear David and Andrea share about their work at the ZOE Children's Homes, their current speaking engagements (open to the public) are listed HERE.

They are also speaking at various schools and small groups.  

To enquire about their availability email:

daveandandie@hotmail.com

Mu Ping... Australian Style!

My mum and dad are so sweet.  Knowing that we might miss some of the tastes from our Thailand home when we were back, my mum had been perfecting the process of making 'sticky rice' for weeks in anticipation of our arrival.  

Well, she has it mastered now and we have been really grateful for the effort she's gone to, to appease (especially Spencer, Dave and Eli's) rice cravings.  Mind you, Tobi and I haven't been refusing it either!

Yesterday morning we were spoilt, once again, with not only sticky rice for breakfast but "mu ping" our favourite road-side breakfast treat in Thailand.

Dad rugged up in about 4 jackets and withstood 100 km/hour icy, cold winds to crank up the barbeque and get the pork skewers cooked  to an authentic "mu ping" taste.
And what was the verdict?
Delicious! And not a scrap left-over.

They had recreated our favourite breakfast perfectly!!
I think Spencer's face says it all.

We Made It!

We are so grateful to be here in Australia.  Our flights were smooth and our children all travelled really well this time... yay!
We are enjoying catching up with our family and friends as well as sampling many of the tastes from home.
Dave particularly enjoyed digging into his mum's delicious lamb roast on the day we got back...

We spent the morning out at Bayside Church this morning out in one of the kid's church rooms teaching a Thai song, sharing stories and letting the kids try on some Thai clothing.


We are looking forward to the next week with more family catch-ups and some time to relax.  We will try to keep you posted over the next few weeks.  To see where we'll be speaking, click here!

Take care,

Andie.