A very special hectic week

Last week seemed like a very long week! But a week filled with blessings just the same...

On Sabbath evening we had made the decision to travel to Sydney the next morning, to pick up the dining table we had bought three months before, and which one of Cherith's very obliging relatives was keeping for us till we could make the trip. But the real reason we were making this last minute trip was because Cherith's uncle was moving house, and offered us the piano that was in the house he was vacating, as he couldn't take it with him.

That piano caused us a little bit of agonizing, as we tried to decide if it would be worthwhile. Cherith loves to play piano, and is fairly accomplished, so it was obviously a fair inducement for us. The piano in question however, was approximately 110 years old. I had to wonder if it was in good condition/playable, and whether it would survive the rigors of a 500km trip without serious damage. Then again, pianos, especially very old ones, tend to be back-breakingly heavy (anything up to 450kgs for an upright piano like this one), and the question of how we would get it unloaded at our end was a bother too. With all this in mind, and after Cherith's brother, who had seen the piano, said it looked in fantastic condition, we decided to travel down on Sunday.

So on Sunday morning, we went to Cherith's parent's house to borrow a trailer, helped get the trailer shipshape, (which included rewiring the trailer's lights, and welding one of the support braces underneath), and just after midday we were on our way to Sydney.

On the way down, we were still trying to organize one or two people to help us load the piano onto the trailer, with very little success. We finally arranged to stay overnight in Sydney, at the same household that had sheltered our dining table for the last few months, and as it was 7:30 by the time we arrived there, didn't stay up long before going to bed...

110 years old. Sounds beautiful.

The next morning we loaded the table into the trailer, and the 6 chairs that go with it into the car, and set of to meet up with Cherith's uncle to see what could be done about the piano. We met him, took one look at the piano, and fell in love :D... It is a beautiful piano, which in spite of it's age is well preserved, and plays quite well. It didn't take us long to realize that we were NOT going to get this piano into the trailer with just two of us to do it. He left to pick up a friend of his, who in miraculous coincidence happened to be in the neighborhood waiting for his car to be serviced and had nothing to do in the meantime. With his help, and a lot of groans and strains, we managed to slide it onto the trailer, and then had to work out a way to put the table into the same trailer. Not the easiest feat, as the table is a 1.8 x 1 metre solid timber extendable table. In the end we had to stand the table upright to fit it in, strapped everything down, and started the trip back.

In Cooranbong we stopped in to show Cherith's grandma the piano (she had been very keen for us to be able to pick it up). It was after 3PM by the time we left Cooranbong, and the trip home, which usually takes about 6 hours, and with a heavily loaded trailer on would take even longer, began.

I had been planning to go back to work the next day, but wasn't sure that would eventuate now, considering how late we would be getting home. In the end run it was about 10:30PM when we arrived at home, tired, having done 18+ hours of driving in the last 32 hours.

The next morning we tried to see if we could get Cherith's father to come over and help unload the piano, and the neighbor also agreed to help. A lot of push and shove ensued, before we realized that one door was slightly (about 8mm) too small...The neighbor had some tools handy, and quickly modified the doorway to fit the piano through, and finally it was in our lounge room. Then the table and chairs were put into the dining room, and we promptly celebrated this feat by having breakfast around our new table with Cherith's family...

Finally we have a dining table in our dining room.

I tried to go to work that day... But I couldn't work for very long. In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have tried it, and just rested. But that's me. But the blessings for the week didn't end there.

On Thursday, Cherith had her appointment for an ultrasound. We got to see the baby for the first time, and hear it's heartbeat again. It was surreal to see him (or is it her??) kicking and wriggling on the monitor. It was just such a special moment. Cherith was a few days short of 14 weeks pregnant, and it was interesting to see the level of development evident even at that stage of pregnancy. It was easy to see the heart beating, and hear it ticking away...

And just when you thought surely that has to be all for one week...

Our next door neighbor, who had helped us move the piano (and is our landlord's son), finished installing the chimney and sealing the roof up, just before it started raining on Friday afternoon. So now we can enjoy our cozy fireplace even when it's raining :). God's goodness and ability to provide never ceases to amaze me.

Oh, and he even provided the fuel money for our trip to Sydney... We could never have gone otherwise. Isn't He good?

A thousand ways to provide. And a thousand opportunities to provide. A thousand reasons for me not to stress. A thousand reasons for me to learn to relax and leave things in His hands!