Work in acres not hours

Even the cat recycles

This week just gone has been a little different, time does fly when your having fun… G day you bunch of wonderful fun friends.

I had done a lot of cleaning up in & around the dam, to be shown off later. haha. Yes it was a little heavy, but you know me, it’s what I love.

After say about 2 days work slogging it out, chain sawing, dragging branches, cutting up logs, creating piles ready for mulching. I come inside on completing that part of the job. Excited as the next day I get to play with the mulcher, funnerer….

I open the fridge door as the cat & dogs & native birds were asking for dinner. I bend down to get a spoon full of meat, for the inside oldies, Princess & Turbo. BAM!!! I’m done. My lower back grabbed me like a vice with a knife in it. Thus causing the muscles on either side of my spine to go into a complete immobilizing spasm. I’m thinking, great now I have to live in the fridge & I hate the cold….

I stretched through the pain to release the spasming muscles. Who does that? Your kiddin? the job I had just done outside would fill a 1ton truck with debri, but pick up a spoonful of pet meat?????

This is where the human body does baffle me. Anyway don’t panic I have muscle relaxants, crucial to the healing process & the pain killers just for sanity. Without relaxed muscles that joint ain’t gonna budge. I could feel the joint in my lower right side, not where it was supposed to be. I have a back brace that I wore just loose enough to allow me to breathe, as I still have to look after my menagerie. 3 days later, which was yesterday. I did my morning stretches & a very audible clunk, the pain is gone, the joint is back where it should be & I can move a little freer. The area is still a little inflamed, that will settle with lots of comfrey ointment. 3 days behind in my chores but I can function & nothing is permanently damaged. I do so & have always considered myself hugely fortunate & blessed that I am not in pain like that constantly as some people are.

I will continue to take it easy for the next couple of days. I did grin a little though as my back unlocked as local lockdown unlocked as well, haha.

I think I will be finding a lighter jobs to do for a few more days. In the meantime here’s a couple of projects I completed a few weeks back, that wont break your back or your budget.

Did you know a picture frame screwed to the screen door makes a perfect doggie/cat door. You can get as ornate as you like & whatever size you need.

The frames $2 from a thrift shop, a few screws, 10mins of my time & wella.

The front door was the first one I did, my owners worked it out quite fine after a little disgust at the change, you see this meant that we, their pets, no longer had to serve them by letting them in & out by opening & closing the doors, they can come & go at their leisure, such lazy pets these owners have.

The back door was the second one, we have 4 screen doors like this, which I will be doing like the back door. I decided to remove the ugly metal piece in the middle, screwed support pieces in the corners, this gave Mum & I uninterrupted views to the world outside. You see if any of our native friends landed on the veranda rail for a chat, we couldn’t see them through that metal piece. By removing it, we can now sit & chat with them all, anytime of day & It’s amazing how much light comes in just by removing that ugly metal piece. The biggest expense was the new screen gauze. I bought a roll off eBay for around $20.

Onto the Princess beds, to save the lounges. 2 pillow cases again as fancy as you like. $1 from thrift shop, an old doona insert cut to size, rolled & tied. Tuck the rolled doona into the inside edge of the pillow case, creating a nice little snug surround. Stitch the corners to hold the insert in place & wella a doggie bed not $20 or $50 just $5. Princess approved immediately.

Don’t worry about any left over bits & pieces you have to clean up. You have to wait till the cat says you can. She’s really the recycle Queen.

Thankyou for being you.

Dunny door done.

Beyond ecstatic is what I was when I discovered these on gumtree internet site? page?, I don’t know what its called. haha. Anyway I shouldn’t look really as there are always awesome, fun, beautiful, sweet things to be found. The best thing ever, well maybe? is things are usually well within the budget which is even dangerousererer. This is why I don’t have a 70 room chateau on 92000 hectares. Then again…..? no, I am content with what we have there will be more land in the future somewhere(not 92000h)lol . My cotton socks are sufficiently blessed always, really truly.

Hi, everyone it has been a while. I love you all & have missed everyone. I needed to have a little time out, from a lot, which is important to do at times for our over all health. Life over load for me causes my whole body to shut down, I can loose days, time & it gets harder to form a thought, let alone trying to put it into a sentence which is not like me really. I can carry on like a galah at times & often have to ask my friends to slap me off the branch I’m swingin on.

Also like my brain, my old computer seemed to be having the same problems connecting to anything & the new phone I have is decent photo taking challenged, so I apologize in advance for the photos. we are Slowly getting back into the swing of things. From what I have been able to take in everyone seems well, which is just bonza.

So much happening on the farm, which keeps me afloat & my Faith of course. A few of you know I haven’t had much success with Indian runner ducks. The first 3 were stolen, so I purchased 3 more only to have a local dog bust into the yard & take my 2 females, leaving poor Doug all alone.

Being done with all this cruelty, I purchased 2 geese they are fantastic guards & Doug is now an honorary goose or the geese are honorary Ducks I haven’t worked them out yet, which is which, at times they seem a little confused too. Just adorable.

Oh hang on, that’s right, so back to the story. On Gumtree a gentleman bless his cotton socks was selling…. you guessed it Indian runners really cheap. I couldn’t help myself.

Hang on I will be back I’m just gonna feed everyone I’m a little behind today.

Ok so where was I? Oh yeh, well I had 2 days to organise a little enclosure for the new family members. Done.

This was the old set up the chooks spent more time in the shed. The cage kind of became wasted space really.

All I did was move the front cage to the side of the shed, great summer shade & winter protection. An old futon lounge base, covered in wire netting made a great new chook pen door. I am yet to hang the door bell. I don’t want to be rude.

An old dunny seat made for a great henhouse back door which can be hooked open or drop & locked to protect the gang from nasty intruders.

I am not sure if I have ended up with 1 female & 4 males or 2 females & 3 males? I know you are supposed to be able to tell by their quack or squeak, they all sounded different. I am just too excited to care as they are just the sweetest & as they mature I will sort them out. So far it looks like one female & 4 males, lol.

I am not one to follow trends when naming, I am thinking fruits, you know haven’t people named their children after fruits? like there will be Apple, Cherry, Persimmon, Guava, Mulberry & Banana…. I will decide when I know whom I will keep here forever.

From Frolic & Feed Farm, Thankyou for being you.

If an animal eats a red bug does it make the animal hyperactive?

You can tell the tanks are low when the birds attack the house & cat starts licking the sheets.

Not sure where to begin today, give my brain a minute it may or may not flow into some sort of sense.

We need rain again we’ve had dribs & drabs just enough to keep the 9000ltr tank just above half full. Are you a tank is half full person or a tank is half empty, when comparing to life? That’s about as deeply philosophical as your goin to get from me about life there is too much fun to be had.

So it’s hook the little red wagon up, a gift from one of my besties & her husband, fill it with containers & buckets. The reason for this is the pump at the dam isn’t working, admittedly it’s been a couple of years since it was needed. I wonder if farmers in drought affected areas are having the same issues with their pumps? I’ll keep at it. For now it’s off to the dam on the trusty old Greenfield mower, Betty Boop, cause she goes boop whenever we hit a tree stump left by the power line guys, followed closely by the little red wagon.

Once at the dam I unhooked the wagon & mowed a path right around the dam, the grass was so thick, awesome issue to have. When mowing grass like this in our area you need to be cautious of snakes as they will actually skim out & over the top of the long grass in fright. A mate of mine had a snake skim across his lap whilst he was mowing, stories like this are common in our area. Anyway so no snakes freaked, not that I saw.

I did notice teeny tiny jumping things in the grass. On closer inspection, oh no! I hoped they hopped out of the way quickly?

I stepped down to the dam with the containers ready to fill & wow that’s an odd worm? UH, No, it was the cutest little baby brown snake, by the time I got my phone to take a pic it had slithered off. Too cute, hang on, mmmm where’s the rest? I only ask this question as a few years back I walked into a nest of baby browns, maybe about six or seven, if I include the adult, I managed to sneak away without us all freaking out. I know flamin nuts right? No more snakes to see but the dam was alive with

Teeny tiny fishes keeping mozzie larvae away.

Little bugs complete with their own oars.

Sweet little Kermit cousins.

Many more hovering buzzing things, too quick to pic.

Where was I? oh yeh, all those containers of water are for the menagerie, horses, chooks, geese & dogs. I love my life, there is never a dull moment always something to admire, be in awe of or freak out at.

From the garden.

I almost missed it, first rose off this plant just stunning, can you smell it? Ok so we can’t scratch & sniff yet, but Dreamy right?

Little Paris carrots, grow in any soil, first ever purple carrots not full size but too cute, teeny tiny beetroot, lettuce & our morning eggs. Even without enough rain they still grew! Tiny but grew none the less. We do have very considerate chooks. Give us 3 eggs for brekky & 3 or 4eggs for dinner.

Oh yeh, as for the cat cleaning the sheets. Is her latest thing as we settle for bed, silly kitty we’re not that grotty.

At $20 a pop to use the large washing machine at the laundromat(more than what the sheets are worth)lol. No biggie I’m not a complete grot no matter what the cat thinks, I managed to do a load of sheets & it’s way cheaper to take the cloths to the laundromat when needed.

She doesn’t look too distressed, really?

Todays adventure is trying to find a water cartage company that delivers real water to top up our tanks. For the sake of the cat is all.

A funny phrase.

Ok, last week in a nut shell, “in a nut shell” that’s a funny phrase isn’t it? Hang on I’ll look up it’s origin. Apparently first seen in 77A.D. In the work of Pliny the Elder. Cicero recorded the poem of Homer called Iliad, was written so tiny it was either enclosed in a nutshell or described as being written so tiny it would fit in a nutshell? Anyway it was tiny, Cool! Well my antics whilst not poetry & probably wouldn’t fit in a nutshell, let me think for bit?

My maybe a little nutty last couple of weeks.

Our winter temps are here a little early, is the talk of the town. It’s been 1c, 33f at night. To some of you that may be ok, usually we’re eased into this kind of cold, but no “BAM” here it is. I’m a beach bum country chic & up with the birds does not fly with me in winter at all!!!! My whinge out the way.

As a result our days have been slow, I am getting at least one project done a day & better yet getting use out of the projects completed & tweaking them in the process.

You remember the one I did for Mothers Day, I have added an extra to it. The big pot has the dog food in it, Chicken rice & vegies & I drop the pot into the barrel of hot coals to complete cooking & when it’s cooled, I bag the food up into portions & freeze it. Cheap as, & I know what our Walter & Princess are eating.

The hot plates are standing at the sides as there was a slight breeze that day & with our surroundings there is no such thing as being too paranoid. I may cut a piece out of the barrel to slide the metal frame further in, Looks like a perfect set up for a smoke oven????. The red pot has coconut milk curry chicken cooking ready for dinner that night YUM. The hot plates fit on top of the metal frame. Where did I get the metal frame from? That was what the motor of the woodchipper was packed into. I am a rockin recycling Queen I know! haha

Oh & Mum & I toasted & ate Marshmallows whilst all this cooking was going on, cause you can have dessert any time of day, right?

As you all guessed I love animals & have always had a great repo with them. You know the kid in the neighbourhood who everyone brought animals to, yeh I was one of them, ok this is freaking me out a little now. Mum & I having lunch at riverside park, hello, first on Mums side then mine. There were 3 of them, thankfully we ate what birds eat apparently. I asked if they heard about us through the bush tweeting telegraph they wouldn’t tell me. Too sweet

It was great chatting tweets & sharing lunch.

If there was ever a time to steal a trailer, it’s ok I am not that silly but can you see why I would be tempted. I was in the car on my own & talking to it in the hope that it could lip read, I wonder why my friends often shake their head at me, I gave it my address, told it the pen is almost ready, you never know it may turn up on our doorstep. I think it was even smiling at me don’t you?

It is so missing a pink bow between it’s ears.

I mentioned how cold it was, well it became urgently necessary to get PJs for Walter. They are ridiculously, rudely expensive new. What to do? Danny’s old rug, perfect. I cut the neck piece of the rug off, with a little extra skirt more. Stitched it at the front so it slips over his head . Machine stitched around the edges so the quilting wouldn’t fall out. Cut a belly strap off the rug & attached one end on the top of his back, that way when it is done up the buckle wont dig into him when he’s curled up & “tada”. I may pretty it up for him, I think he looks sufficiently humiliated but happy for the moment.

His tail wag is a blur of uncertain gratitude.

Meanwhile our Turbo is obviously psychotically deliriously warm & snug under the blankets with me.

She’s actually hugging my arm. Too funny.

Well it’s probably more likely to fit in 2 coconuts & a duck egg, than a nut shell. That’s my joyous frolicking fun of late.

Have a awesome time in alll that you do this week & beyond. Thank you for being you.

It’s winter & all through the house

It’s the first day of winter & all through the house

Not a creature is stirring not even a mouse, there’s no flies or mozzies

The wasps are all gone not even a cockroach put away the cocky bomb

We rug up & snuggle the pets are all in except for the horses & cows the cold they do fend

The tin shed is full, a compost of wood shavings, which keeps the chooks warm so eggs they keep laying

Whilst we’re slipping on our warmest fluffy socks, our toes they will freeze once the gumboots are pulled up

We feed our menagerie in our glamorous pjs, covered in dressing gowns like true paddock queens

Out in the paddock when cold air hits warm dung it causes a steam as if calling out, look here it is warm come try me it’s fun, in go the boots, bed socks, the warmth sinks in, oh there I can feel them my poor frozen tootsies again

Squinting in the wind as I get this job done hopefully aim right as the hammer comes down, please not my thumb, phew there tick that job off

That’s it I’m done.

The tanks run low & ya skin tends to dry, olive oil helps, salad or fries, I find fries my most psychologically warming of flavours.

A reminder for you is it sunny salad you say

At the end of the day it’s a tingling warm bath if there’s no rain it’s the old bucket wash, quick to be done, that last dowse of water could undo any warmth, you may wanna hurry as dinner needs to be cooked

Thank heavens for queen gowns & pjs, oh wait where’s my socks

In my boots in the paddock still buried in dung

Never freeze my dear sweet readers as our home has a fire it kindles a greeting all are welcome please come inside

I’ll leave the old dog & cat here in the warmth as I venture outside,

hang on, my coffees topped up & I am snuggly & warm, outside I’m sure I will be at sometime today

There is toast & eggs on the menu

Truly a great way

To start off this, our first winters day

Come on in the door is always open.

Howdy beautiful people, I hope this read finds you all well.

Mum & I were chillin out watching our favourite vloggers, we have a few now. We don’t have normal TV. During Spring & Summer we have a bumble bee who (whom?), I’m not sure why, comes in the back door, buzzes to us to say hello & of course we say hello too. Then it either goes back out the back door or I follow it to the front door & open it so it can go out. This is pretty much everyday during the warmer months.

Now in the cooler months, Autumn now, we haven’t really had anyone come in to visit. Our butcher birds look like they may one day come in & join us. The newest to have a closer visit is our resident Kookaburras, by nature they are very territorial & a pair have chosen our selection as their own. I am able to get a little closer every now & then. Click through it’s adorable.

I’m not sure why it’s the littlest ones, not much bigger than our bumble bee, that are the gamest, is that a word? hang on, that are braver? Anyway where was I, oh yeh, Mum & sitting having lunch. When the sweetest little bird hopped along the veranda rail, then down to the piggy ear, well hang on I’ll show you. Can you see it, It’s just too too sweet.

A little Jenny wren. It did sit on the back of the lounge, but it started to look a little panicked. I pointed toward the open door & reassured it “you can fly out whenever you like”. To which it replied “thankyou for the company but I will get in so much trouble if the family knew I was here” out it flew I’m sure waving goodbye. I am guessing it got in trouble, as it has been back a couple of times since but hasn’t come in. I am hoping the family in time understands that we are pretty chill. So we always offer “come on in it’s always open”.

I was going to save this for another time but I can’t help myself. My projects for the last month were, well let me show you.

Straight outside the horse gear shed. Finally a post & rail, no more putting gear on the ground, wheelbarrow or what ever other contraption I had invented. Don’t get me wrong I consider myself hugely blessed even to have this issue. I am doubly blessed to have the gear to solve the problem. I started with the tin as I knew I would get cement everywhere. It’s fun to play with & lets face it, I did grow up making mud pies & digging out rivers throughout the vegie patch & any opportunity to play I will take it.

The post are old sign posts that council throw out, it’s grab them when you can. After digging 2 almost 3ft deep holes, I drove the posts another 1ft or so below that. Then filled the holes & the posts with cement for that added weight & strength & also a cement slab for drainage right along the base.

Termites are prolific here, so on removing the tin, once the cement had hardened a little. I cut out the soil for the retaining wall, lined it with plastic & then dropped the timber in. The plastic will keep the timber as dry as possible so it will last as long as possible. If I had the time & energy I would have burnt the back of the timber for more termite protection but “na it’ll be right mate”!

I know it’s messy but we gettin there, the shed is actually square not skewwhiff like the photo. lol

I bolted the top rail to back of the uprights, added strength if a horse should pull away. I also tied 4 hay twine loops for tying the horse to, if a horse freaks for whatever reason safer to have the string snap than the gear or a leg. They can’t go any further than the house yard, so all is well. The caps on the ends are PVC as our local suppliers of the proper caps are extremely rude & arrogant. There are always ways around issues like that, especially as a woman on my own, just don’t spend money there & tell your friends, well most people I know, know what that business is like. Anyway.

What does everywoman have in their purse whilst shopping in town. Not money silly, but Bunnings vouchers(a gift from my daughter) an elastic band & of course an angle grinder disc, wait what, angle grinder disk? It was the talk of every shop I went into, I don’t mean to be odd, life just makes me that way sometimes. My friends often shake their heads at me in sympathetic fun. haha

I bet you can guess where I went first & spent the most time.

I did say projects hang on, yep. To end, a trellis for the chokos, pumpkins & watermelons or whatever. Tick it off the list. yay.

Done

Sweet as.

Often when preparing for an occasion as I am sure a lot of people realise, there is a bit of hard work involved. You know? How many are coming? how much food to prepare? Who likes what to eat & what they don’t like? Do I need to prep the day before? Extra chairs maybe an extra table? I wonder if I can drop that dead tree? You know stuff like that, oh wait, yes, did you catch that? The what, dead tree?

The reason for the tree drop is that these types of trees as they grow they twist & then when they are tall they twist & drop they are reasonably shallow rooted. Cutting down these types can be very dangerous as they can untwist & flick as you cut, tossing you & chainsaw.

Quite some time back Cuz & I cut it right back to a manageable but tall stump. Mum & I have been doing this all over the property, cut trees usually at hip height. Wait a year & we push the stumps over & pull em out, too easy. This stump was quite an eyesore from the kitchen window, a positive was the Kookaburras would use it as a lookout from time to time. Sorry Kooky it’s gotta go. I can’t find a before pic anywhere.

Well this stump every time I pushed on it just wobbled, you know, like an old lady arm waving goodbye. I grabbed the old bits of tie down rope that I had knotted together, snapped from previous tree stump dragging ventures. Tossed the rope up & around as high as I could get it. Now PULL & LEAN on the rope….wobble wobble, nothing. I had over 10kilos less weight on myself to put into it, which I do feel better for, but really. I could see the ground lift & drop like this thing was hanging on as hard as it could to the earth below. I went for reinforcements, the spade, dug around to get a better look at where the root system was & broke what I could. I tried again. Positioning myself safely it tilted & wobbled & cracked & popped & finally it was down.

I danced & kicked up my heels as best one can when their boots are loaded with wet clay soil(wetting the ground as I dug helped). It was all a little effort but fun all the same.

Dragged & rolled the rusty old drum from under the veranda where it has been stored for years & using the angle grinder cut out 4 stars & a half moon. If I had the right tools I would’ve cut out a whole countryside scene, lol. At least this way we can sit around the drum & toast marshmallows from the stars or moon. Added a new Mulberry tree as well.(air propagated? from main Mulberry tree).

I had a little extra money in the account & bought a cheap pop up marquee, which I will cover the roof in wire & let the wisteria vine go nuts. As the cover rots the vine will create shade at least. Between Mum doing a bit of a clean up & weeding, together we got the job done & the yard looked great.

What was all this in preparation for? Mothers Day of course, just for us oh & the family. My Daughter joined us later in the day & my son rang me at 7:30am. It poured with rain most of the day, so no drum lighting but the little dome barby worked a treat & with one side wall up, that came with the marque it was quite toasty warm. A little hard yakka for the fam is never a sacrifice, always a joy.

Walter was a little distressed that we were burning what he thought was his sticks, once he found his ball all was well.

Oh yeh, the food prep was potatoes & pumpkin wrapped in foil to cook in the hot coals & a couple of snags(sausages) & chopped up onion cooked in a pan on top. Of course no Mothers Day is complete without a heart shaped Pav. I hope all you Mums had a sweet as Mothers Day.

JOYESSNESSNESS

I have been completely stoked at the thought of sharing this one. I don’t know if I mentioned my son came home for a visit? Last week or the week before? I don’t know, it’s May already. Fair dinkum time fly’s when ya having fun.

Wil led Danny out of Danny’s paddock & Zina flipped out at the thought of being left behind, silly duffa. I stood in her paddock telling her “if she calmed down, I would take her out as well”. Did you know horses speak human? Danny 25yr old has for years now, I speak & point he knows what I mean. As for Zina 10yr old she’s learning to speak us & of course us her. As soon as I told her what was happening & showed her the halter, she lowered her head & walked over to me, so I could get the halter on. She was still excited but behaved. Danny looks at Zina & you can almost see him roll his eyes with a “kid really, calm down”.

We saddled up Danny first, it had been 3yrs since he was ridden. Pony club sporting event, 1st place for his little team.

At the sight of the saddle Danny was a little “what on earth do you 2 think you are doing, really”? Wil is a bit of a light weight but strong, so he rode Danny. First around the yard as we wanted to check Danny was sound. Danny being Danny was quite keen when he realized we were going out for a ride! Mind you there have been some rides out where we have crossed the road to come home backwards, he’s been so keen to get home.

I saddled up Zina & whilst Wil road Danny up to the top of our property(the only flat surface we have to ride, we call it the arena). I led Zina all the way, after all our gates at present aren’t permanent & you need to be on the ground to open them, was my excuse for not wanting to die….lol. No really it’s just another project I need to get done, note to self, fix gates!

You see this would be the first time for Zina up in the arena. I have ridden her out the front of the property, (only place with grass during drought) in the backyard & in the round yard.

She was chilled out to walk up. Then I up into the saddle I went, best feeling ever & I asked her to move forward, walk at first to warm up & get acquainted with her surroundings. Alert but chill. Now a little more please & she said “no”, as only horses know how to say no…lol.

Don’t panic I had a giggle as it really was just a test to see what she could get away with. She slipped & scared herself.

Smaller circles not much better, head down bum up, toss kick flick. Sorry Zina this is hilarious, I’m glued in (truly I would have felt if she was being really serious well before I hit the ground, haha). I pulled her around & had a quick word with her, tried small circles again, she went to try but realized it was just not worth the effort.

Meanwhile Wil is trotting around on Danny so gracefully, Danny’s buck is like a rocking horse & we know its rock around the clock & he’s fine & this only if he hasn’t been ridden for a while.

We always ask with our feet first, flamin show off.

I’m in the middle of the arena dancing it out with Zina, whilst Danny was prancing around the arena with Wil chill & happy along for the ride. I did want to shove Wil off the saddle. lol. We have had a lot of fun in the past playing shove off games.

Soon Zina settled & it was such a beautiful day we cruised around the arena, weaving in & out the tyres I have placed out & going around & around the trees compliments of nature.

Wil wanted to have a ride on Zina. As Wil has a back injury that we need to be careful of & I knew at this point Zina was chill enough for Wil to handle. Wil handles horses very well, so up he went.

I must say my legs did the whole jelly thing & I nearly sat on the ground when I got off the horse, love jelly legs. Wil & Zina had fun it was great to see her ridden & have her work a little more, balance & getting her to actually correct.

It was only a half hour ride but wow it was so great. Wil rode Zina back down to the yard, by this time she had her second wind & tip toed the whole way, Wil handled her beautifully. I led Danny in front to be safe.

It was the perfect moment a time that I haven’t had or felt for the longest time. I am a little teary eyed even writing this, if you are passionate about something & it is a part of who you are, to reconnect with that after a long absence is something that can’t be explained.

Enjoying the time, lol my boots kept getting caught under the side of the saddle, that’s why my boot is sticking out all weird. Note to self wear shorter boots.

Whatever you are up to today may a moment be your soul happy place.

Melted Happy

I don’t even know where to start I have had a bonza time of late. I’m weak & weary but my soul is well.

It is flamin freezing for this time of year, Autumn, so much so that I have had the fire going in the mornings. Which is always a cosy way to start the day.

The chooks are happy in their new nesting boxes. They are such funny creatures of habit, with so many nesting boxes, they first went to the same position that the old wooden box was in. They are spreading out a bit more now & “bonus” !we are getting more eggs. yay. I need to raise the wooden box, as clearly chooks are classy birds & prefer a highrise apartment nest. I’m thinking at this point a reality chook show is on the horizon, “Hen Haven Highrise” or “Featherington downes” “How to Live Eggscellently” a chooks renovating show?

At present its a little more makeshift than magnificent.

Mum & I were having a rest at our Little Tuscany, Walter was extremely content digging into a teeny tiny mouse hole close by.

Then shared his joy as such fun he was having. A heart melting moment.

If he catches mice he takes them delicately in his mouth & sets them free gently in another area of the yard, great help? Big lovable squishy sod.

It’s this time of year that we love to melt in the sun. You know it’s cold in the morning & everything is cold to touch, by midday the surface of everything is tingly warm to touch, so here it starts. The melting begins.

My son came home for a visit always a beyond joy time, we went to visit a Besty. Besty feeds visiting birds from her veranda, which is always fun to watch. Then plop, it was a literal plop sound, a young Butcher bird( have the prettiest song) landed on the plastic rolled up barbecue cover that was in the sun. All of sudden it melted, not the plastic, the bird.

In turn melting our hearts, even resting its head for a moment smiling at us.

Even the geese in town were melting as they do. I was having a bit of lunch & unwinding from the hustle & bustle of town, ok, so it’s not as busy as most towns, but for us that will do. haha. As the geese were walking across the asphalt of the riverside carpark, one by one, they dropped. Not so much spreading out, as tuning out as geese do. Not even moving for cars passing through everyone had to go around.

You can see where the flood came up to across river, the muddy leaves, on the banks. God Bless that amazing little wharf battered but forever stands.

Don’t you just wanna squish your cold fingers through her warm soft squishy cheeks. She would glare at you if you did, but at least she’d know she’s loved, right?

Whatever your day ahead or week or month ahead may bring. May you forever melt in the warmth of the sun & your nest be full of the love of family & friends to keep your soul squishy loved & happy.

I get a little excited.

If your going to find the bright side of being unwell, (its forgetting to put up a title, call it what you want, lol. I had forgotten to title this blog.) well for me was researching, (when my brain would allow) & the, well I don’t know, the downside to that, if you can call it that? is I get a little spend happy. Don’t get me wrong, I consider us to be hugely blessed to have what we have & we budget, live by faith & have never gone without. Let me clarify here, in some peoples mind a big spend is hundreds of dollars, for us it’s $20 & over or even $5 depending on the budget for that week. Living the inground pool lifestyle from the banks of the muddy dam.

We are trying to establish ourselves as land living for living land & our land is now more alive than ever. Within the next ten years we will truly be on our way to harvesting, processing, drying, jamming, pickling & fermenting & whatever other do my byself methods you can add. If we move everything will be here for the next land lovers.

For years we have been purchasing from a company well & truly south of us, much colder climate. Long story short almost everything we have purchased has been unsuccessful. The company seeds have been hit & miss also. I am pretty disappointed as it is supposedly quite a reputable company that provide a lot of heritage plants & seeds. The only thing I can put the hit & mostly miss down to is climates being so varied??? No biggy we just move on.

On much further research & again through trial & error we have decided to purchase North of us. I have found 2 beautiful nurseries that stock just what we are looking for & produced in a climate much closer to our own. I just purchased a couple of things a few months ago to start with & doing beautifully.

Just one of the purchased plants that are doing extremely well.

Now for the next order I went a little bigger. Blue Java(banana), White Mulberry, Coffee tree & Clumping Bamboo. All boxed beautifully, established well & healthy in size & colour. Is this what all my plants should have looked like upon delivery? I have never had them this healthy before. These were also nowhere near as expensive as our previous purchases. I am beyond excited to get them planted & watch them grow.

I have already potted up the coffee tree & will keep it indoors, the last 2 Coffee trees I purchased from previous place ended up in the compost bin. This one looks 10 times better. The other plants I am so excited, I have since planted the white mulberry down amongst the other fruit trees. The banana I have chosen a place for but I need to collect things for geese protection around it. Clumping bamboo, I will get established in the yard somewhere & then have a go at planting it as a living fence…. Too excited. I have planted tagasaste as a start for living fence, but finding it extremely slow growing.

We have a nursery down the road that can be a little pricey & do & have bought from them with a bit of hit & miss results. Hope to purchase more from them during their sales, we will probably mainly get our natives during their sales. Love supporting locals when we can.

On final news from Frolic & Feed here. I managed to get back in the saddle, yay…. It was so great to take a deep breathe & actually breath. Zina was great, mind you I am not asking too much of her until I am strong enough. Between the ears of my pony is the best way to see our world. I managed to ride her all the way back to the paddocks much to Danny’s delight.

I always love a yarn with my ponies & they always seem to listen.

Thanks so much for dropping by & thankyou for being you.

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