AUSSIE DAY SWAP

Remember the Australia Day Swap that Jewells Australia Day Swap? Well with Julie's blessing Anthea from Hibiscus Stitches is running it this year.

This is the link to the sign up and information post on Anthea's Blog:

http://hibiscus-stitches.blogspot.com.au/

Closing date for signing up is the 6th January.

Let's show our love of our great country & have a good fun Aussie themed swap!

Best way to Spend Boxing Day!!

Christmas lunch was 10 minutes from home, at our daughter in laws mum's home - seafood lunch - so light and easy! Christmas dinner on the other hand was 3.5 hrs away - at my son's between Pretty Pine and Moulemain - hot drive for Christmas afternoon. Bbq dinner (fish, steak and snags), light salads and drinks. 

BUT........ Boxing Day lunch beats Christmas day by far this year!!

Fresh caught yabbies, cooked and eaten with salt and homemade seafood sauce as an accompaniment!! YUMMO!!!

Our son, Adam is an assistant manager on a station between Moulimein and Pretty Pine where there are some good damns. Our grandson Lachie put the yabby nets in one damn last night and collected this little haul this morning - well this is what remains after 6 of us had been eating for a while!!

Claws of the medium size ones. Big and old yabbies - haven't seen them like this since I was a child visiting my uncles farm at Tullamore. That first bite brought back a lot of childhood memories!!

It is serious business getting to the meat!! A great lunch to finish our visit.

One family member is so organised - that didn't last long when others helped themselves!!!

Cousins together for the first time - Abbey and William.

Ollie does love the blonde girls!!  Adam has been putting his hat on Ollie every time he sees him for months - this time he accepted it - 'Yeehaa' was what he said.

Lachie and Ollie having some fun together.

He did enjoy wearing that hat for a while.

Two cheeky cousins - William was a bit dubious about that camera Ma-ma had in front of her face!

This one is an observer and thinker.

Homemade gingerbread men - my favourite Christmas present!!

We had a simple but enjoyable and relaxed Christmas this year.

Now to spend some time at home and get into some gardening each morning, take more photos for more posts (the only goal I have set myself for the next 12 months is to get back into my blogging - have somissed reading what everyone is up to!!)

Merry Christmas everyone!!

And Winter is Gone...

Winter has come and gone and spring is here.

And I have been hibernating - well one would think that because my last post was wayyyyyyy back in April. I haven't been really - just very busy with the everyday things in life and trying to stay dry and warm!!!

There as been colour in my winter somewhere - beautiful leaves or

bright little splashes of flowers and fruit

now though, they are hard to find among the weeds! (and the weeding cycle continues - this is a big long task this year because I have been hibernating inside away from the rain, cold wind and sunless days!)

not much crafting as been done but it has been colourful and fun

finally using some of my 'yarn snob' yarns

outside it has been wet and dreary, rain is now a weekly event!!

no time for the ground to dry out.

a lot of time spent with winter family

and a little bit of winter preserving and getting ready for spring and summer preserving.

an end of winter family addition - William Eric Brill born 23rd August

William and Oliver - a very proud big brother

and the nicest part of winter

Spring of course has brought with it some warmer sunny days, flu bugs and a sick Karah - hopefully she will start to be on the mend over the weekend.

And of course this weekend is the Bathurst Bloggers Meet and I of course couldn't go - I KNOW the girls will be having a fabulous time and look forward to seeing many blog posts and heaps of photos!!

Time for this little beaver to hibernate for the night - lots planned around the house tomorrow and maybe a little stitching on Sunday!!

Filling my Days...

 

Another 2 weeks since my last post ..... same old thing....... the weather has changed for the better though........ except today is back up to 30degrees...... have even put the cooler on ..... was just a bit hot when I came in from the yard.

 

 

garden resurrection begins - those bloody weeds - my nemesis at the moment.

 

 

weeding, planting and mulching! The white pile around the plants is shredded paper - I shred whatever I can inside and use it outside.

 

hard to believe this garden bed was full of lovely green wanted plants 18 months ago.

 

getting there....

 

newspaper or cardboard - whatever I can get my hands on - followed by mulch - nice and thick to get the plants through winter. Then I will be mulching heavily again to get us through summer - hopefully by the end of next summer the plants will be well established - in amongst all that mulch I have 25 geranium cuttings (my favourite garden filler).

 

 

This disaster is what my eldest grandson calls the 'Desert Garden' - it is the next one I am going to tackle.......

 

Bit of a sad mess isn't it!! Well, it is going to be enlarged and filled up with all sorts of succulents and cacti.

 

 

Of course when I want to mulch there isn't any mulch to be seen - so action was called for. This machine belongs to my wandering wild child and was parked beside my house. So over I went and tried to start it (YAY for me) - it started. Now to drive it (YAY for me again) it drove, no spluttering, no stalling, no kangaroo hops!!! belonging to my wandering wild child you generally gamble with your life when you get in it - this time though there were working brakes, no dicky clutch and an engine running as smooth as gliding your hand over a baby's bum skin!! Near blew my undies off that did!! As you can see I found some mulch, probably not what I wanted and probably full of grass seed or some such thing....... but then there is 'round up' if one is desperate!!!!

 

 

I have been potting too...... (and probably gone potty as well!!)

 

I do need mother plants to get more baby plants for the Desert Garden don't I!!

 

A sample of the baby plants that are 'rooted'' (haha - literally have roots and a success!!) Some of these are for Karah's market stall also. I have hours and hours of potting up cuttings to do....... oh well an hour each day and it will soon be done!

 

resurrected an old wheelbarrow in the top photo..... another month and we won't recognise it. I just mix n match when potting and planting now - helps keep the bugs away and creates an interesting garden without too much brain power required!

 

 

This has become my best friend (whether I want one or not) ..... where he is you will usually find me...... if I am close by the house you will usually find the cats (looking for food of course!!)..... but often now I am like the Pied Piper ..... Dogs and cats following me around the yard in a line, or sitting and lying near me, or worst of all ...... there are 2 cats who lose me and commence to wail and meow until I call them and they come running full pelt!!

Well that is it for me today - I won't be able to walk tomorrow as I have been outside again today doing the heavy work .... maybe I will have an inside day and actually have some stitching on my agenda!!

 

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND EVERYONE!!

 

 

 

 



Gone By .....so fast......

Where has that 10 weeks gone............ summer has been and gone............ and what have I achieved.......... not much for myself........... the heat........... how I hate the heat....... I actually hide from the heat.......... and this year, in reality, was a lot milder than previous years............ but I still hid from the heat - when I could.

 

 

lots of time spent with this little man

 

and this young lady - of to high school this year, turning 12 in a weeks time and spends way too much time looking at screens!!

 

the working men!

 

the little brother she doesn't have, and the big sister he doesn't have! - as usual this 'getting along' only lasts a short time just as if they were brother and sister, and they are looking for each other when the other isn't here!

 

heading out to feed the sheep after a day care - the grin is because he is going driving with pa-pa!

 

such an inquisitive little boy - loves sewing pins and sewing machines

 

 

the start of my mulching machines!

 

the first of the homes for the mulching machines. The plan is to have 3 of these moveable pens with chooks/chickens in them - move them each day and mulch with cardboard and straw as I move them - I just might get on top of this mulching drama and beat the weeds yet - at the very least I will have more eggs and fertilised ground! And yes I have put that pen together myself - in the 40 degree heat with the sticky flies as company!! Another one waiting to be done.

 

 

Summer - no feed on the ground

 

twice a day these are my best friends! - that is until the Lucerne hits the ground then I am forgotten - hopefully some temporary yards being put up today and the paddock sewn down tomorrow with some sort of green feed for them

 

Now this is what 'wasted space' looks like!! he terrorises the big horses, will have a 'testosterone battle' with any male of any sort and he doesn't even reach a metre in height - of no practical use what so ever - a typical 'little man syndrome' specimen!! And he doesn't even belong to anyone within these four wall - he is my DIL4's. Ah well he does give me a laugh when the big horses are galloping around the paddock and he is trying to keep up with them - an impossible task mind you - he meets them half way up the paddock on their return gallop!!

 

 

two of my other friends - we would be living in a jungle of grass and weeds without either of them. I don't mind sitting on the mower - good thinking time - great feeling when you look over the completed area. Not so in love with the mulching but it does give a feeling of accomplishment when an area is finished - hasn't happened a lot this year. Cooler weather now so maybe a little more will get done especially with the mulching machine chooks in action!

 

Early mornings and late afternoons have been spent watering, watering, watering - and there have been results.

 

flowers here and there which does make a mess look a little bit less of a mess.

Below you can see the fruit trees in a sea of damned roly poly - a burning job in April; 

the easiest thing to grow here are doing really well - cathead!!! just wish they were something that brings in hesps of money - I would be a millionaire!!! Self sown pumpkins - going great guns with very little care!

 

 

Back in January when I lost my mind for a few days (because there is no other reason that would make me do it) I actually bought trees and shrubs from a nursery that is closing down (great specials - less than half price) - they of course were root bound and in dire need of planting ot - but in the middle of our summer - jeez Kerrie where was your brain that day - left it at home did you. WELLL....... I planted them out, mulched them up and watered them every damned morning and GUESS WHAT - they have all survived - three cheers for me!! Now to just get them through the first winter and the frosts and they should be good!!

 

Crab Apples, Gingko tree and magnolias - yep my brain was replaced by rocks that day - but the magnolias are actually surviving well.

 

I gave up on the vegie garden - sad derelict site it is - starting to work on it now for the winter vegies; the basil however has done really well.

 

some preserving continued when I was hiding from the heat - gave up after a while as I had a year of failure - bottles were not sealing - I have enough to last me through until next year - hopefully will be better organised and set up and have more success next year!!

 

 

Yesterday was mum's 84th birthday ( and the Sydney harbour bridge's 84th birthday - thought you could do with a little bit of trivia). The photo above was from 2 years ago - she does love her ice cream and anything sweet! My sister and I took her to lunch at the local Leagues Club. She loves going somewhere for a meal. She has probably forgotten about it today but it was nice to spend the time with her. We see her everyday but 84 is special and we know we are fortunate to have her here with us still.

 

So that is where the last 10 weeks has gone - no craft or sewing, occasionally I have crocheted a row or two on my blankets - but nothing else creative. The weather has taken a turn to the cooler side which is wonderful - so although there are still busy times outside there will be more time to actually feel like doing some sewing etc.

 

I have been reading everyone's blog posts - but not commenting - I now have a new laptop and fancy schmancy internet thingy so hopefully that will encourage me to make more comments and posts - internet was so slow and computer would shut don for no reason except that it is old and had it.

 

Until later in the week when I do my next post - take care and have a fabulous week!!