April 16, 2010

It is amazing how things can change in the space of a week or even a day!
Yesterday started a little flat with a little anonymous comment that was well just not necessary! I headed to the place I know best to find a lovely quote to cheer me up – Simone’s place “The Bottom of the Ironing Basket”. I said hi and mentioned to her that I was going to borrow one of her quotes – Thought Thursday began. Well little did I know that the wonderful Simone would not only come back and say hi but create an entire post about my home and send her beautiful readers over to say hi and leave me some lovely comments – bing Fairy Blogmother Simone turn Thoughtful Thursday into Thankful Thursday. I am truly amazed by the wonderful people in blogland so today a little post about some other special people who have helped me to see the dream of building our special house.


The first special person is Mr A – my hubby (that was a little journey in itself but I will leave that for another day). The wonderful Mr A had the insight some 14 years ago to spot this little red brick run down home in a cul-de-sac on the edge of a golf course with a for sale sign out the front! Lucky for us his great judgement all those years ago gave us this amazing location – the house was rented out for 12 years while we went about our business in another house – his father would say to me that he had purchased the best block of land in Sydney to which I would smile and roll my eyes – to me it was a nice spot but was it really that great?

Here is the house “before”

The second special person in my life is my dad – my dad was a very inspiring man. A quite and humble man who had an alcoholic dad, that divorced his mum when he was just 7 years of age. Dad became the man of the house and by the age of 14 had left school and was out in the work force. My dad however had an incredible determination to be successful. By 18 he owned his first business. By 22 he had married my mum and a year later I arrived. My dad also had wonderful insight and guts. Over the years he would put his heart and sole into various business all of which were incredibly successful – he would see something different and give it a go because he thought if you didn’t try it you would never know – he had his ups and downs and even a heart attack at 33 because of stress but he never gave up but went on to bigger and better things.

My dad had a love for nice houses and went about building the first of many homes when I was 8. He got into the property developing business. He gathered as much knowledge he could from other builders and would do some parts himself and finally when he was 55 he decided to get his builders licence (a not so easy undertaking for an uneducated man in his 50’s) so he could do it all himself . It was at this time that I started working beside my dad – I did everything from his ordering, to bookkeeping, to driving the truck to the tip to picking up supplies to picking the kitchens and paint colours. We were a great team and he taught me that if you don’t know the answer you find it. Thankfully he taught me about never giving up as it was just 3 short years after starting work with my dad that our family suffered the worst year of our life – in March 2003 I lost my much wanted and loved first born daughter Laura after a difficult pregnancy followed 7 short weeks later by the loss of my beautiful dad to bowel cancer at age 58.

I did consider falling in a heap but my dad had other plans – he had set it up so that there was no time for me consider such things – we were in the middle of building 4 brand new homes and I had to finish them. So it was with my dad’s spirit that I set to work completing these homes. My dad also was one of the kindest people I ever knew. He would go out of his way to help others and never expect things in return. Well dad I am pleased to say that the kindness you showed others came back three fold while I was building those houses – my dads friends and colleagues were there whenever I needed it. I could ring one of dad’s builder mates and ask advice about exactly where a pipe should go in the ground and they would be there to help!

So here we are now in 2010, after numerous years of planning, the spirit of my dad, the memory of beautiful Laura, the insight of my husband and the determination to realise a dream that I am now proud to have the lovely home I live in today.

While to some the kitchen may look to be the most boring they have ever seen to me it is very much a place of joy filled with the laughter of my 3 georgous girls and husband and the numerous family and friends that have shared a meal around in it in the 5 months we have been living here. I am pleased to say we are just a normal family who leads a simple life in the suburbs but is fortunate enough to have a lovely home to live our simple life in (I have discovered that simplicity is the key to happiness!)

It is the also proof that a little bit of kindness can go a long way in someone’s life so to my fairy blogmother Simone and all the lovely visitors in blogland I say thank you for all the kindness today. May today be a fabulous Friday for you where you make someone smile and they return the favor to you.


13 thoughts on “Fabulous Friday – Fairy Blogmothers and all …

  1. So so so lovely. Your girls, your story, your home, you. Simone sent me over and I am so happy. I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Marsha from Texas

  2. Hello Leanne; it was such a pleasure to read about your wonderful, inspiring family. Hard not to shed tears but those were quickly replace with tears of positive, good thoughts. Your home is so stunning but the story of your beloved father was even more. What a magnificent man & I am so sorry for your loss and of course the loss of your Laura. Having lost both my mother & mother in law since Jan. I know what it feels like to loose loved ones to cancer. Thank you for sharing with us and I look forward to following along your journey. Your daughters are the sweetest. xx

  3. Such beautiful babies, don’t blink they grow up way to fast. Mine are 21 and 24 now and it only seems not so long ago……

  4. Hi Leeanne I have been reading along for a few weeks and this is my first time to comment, what a beautiful post, it broguht tears to my eyes. I lost my dad 4years ago he was also only 58.

    I also have a question, where did you get the pink buckets from your post the other day. I had a brief look today but didn’t see pink.
    thanks jill

  5. You are truly inspirational!! I am very glad to have you as a dear friend!! II love showing Sara the pictures of her friends!! keep up the fantastic work ! You have me hooked on your blog!! Love Rxx

  6. Hi – how very good for you. Firstly I am so sorry for your losses, I too lost my stepmother to bowel cancer when she was just 55. Its a brutal disease. And for Laura – I guess there aren’t really words.

    Your post also makes the point that whilst there are 1000s of blogs that seem not to be personal, they are all infact deeply personal and there is a reality behind them and many deep feelings. How could one presume that your house wasn’t representative of lots of other things? Soooo – glad I found your lovely blog – with your equally lovely girls. And as for Simone – fairy blogmother! That just came to me in a flash yesterday – but she so is! We must find her a virtual wand! Louise x

  7. Hi Leanne 🙂

    I am so happy that so many people came over to visit and said so many complimentary things about your fabulous house….yippee!!

    I loved reading this post, you wrote it beautifully. I actually didn’t realise that 2003 was such a heartbreaking year for you….I am so sorry. Your Dad sounds like a wonderful and really inspiring person….and I am sure he would be so proud of you and all your accomplishments….lovely family, beautiful home (a huge achievement in itself!) and just being the amazing person that you clearly are.

    I am very glad that yesterday ended so happily for you 🙂 Am laughing at Louise’s idea of a magic wand….oh, the things I could do with that!!

    Thank you so much for all the kind words,
    Have a lovely week-end,
    Simone xo

  8. What a touching post. Your girls are just adorable. You said it well, a house is just a dwelling, a home is heart…

    Have a love-filled weekend!

  9. Bravo to you dear Leanne for finishing the week with such a touching, heartfelt & positive post. You are your Father’s daughter, & I’m sure he’s given you an 11/10 for your stunning home! Gosh Mr. A’s a whizz isn’t he, seeing the potential in your block all those years before. I’ve always felt he was a sweetheart, but your post has set that in stone.
    Millie ^_^

  10. Hi Leanne, what a journey you have been on! What a beautiful post. You have a wonderful spirit – I don’t have the words, but I feel like I know you when we’ve never even met!! Strange hey? 🙂
    Thank you for sharing your life here…I pop in all the time! xo

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