A good day for a Royal Wedding.

G'day. I, along with millions will be watching the Royal Wedding on the TV when it is broadcast tonight our time, here in my part of Australia. I have heard so many people here talking about it over the last day or so and while I was in the supermarket this morning I overheard two ladies telling the cashier that they were going to get dressed up, have the champagne at the ready and generally settle in for a good night to see a piece of history in the making. My friend at my work told me she was going to put a bow tie on her dog and together they would be comfortable on the couch and that her hubby could get his own tea, she wasn't budging. I thought about the bow tie, my hubby has a bright red one here and I wondered if our little dog would like to wear it tonight as it will just be him and I  on the couch as my hubby definitely won't be sitting with us watching a wedding, Royal or otherwise. Though unlike my friend I will be cooking us a meal. I have decided to mark the occasion with Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding. I have never tried the puddings before, either to eat or to cook. Hubby has been to the U.K  in the past and has told me about them, so I thought I would give it a go. I figure there is no harming in trying, mind you, it may be the first and only time I make them. As for the bow tie on our sweet little dog, I think I will give that a miss. I am sure he would look cute, but I know my hubby would be calling the men in white coats as he would think I had fallen of my perch!!. The photo has nothing at all to do with weddings, out of my store of pics I could find nothing suitable, so decided to stick with my garden. This is at the back part of the house. I have raked these leaves up numerous times over the last week or so and as I am doing so, they are falling of the trees to pool around my feet, so I have given up for the time being. Our little dog enjoys romping through them, he is just about the same color as the leaves, now, maybe if he had that lovely red bow tie on ..............
May William and Kate have a wonderful marriage and live happily ever after.. Take care.

Tilly, she's a great chook, sometimes!!

G'day. I love my one remaining chook, well most of the time anyway. Since the sad demise of her friend Molly, Tilly has been very subdued, not getting into any mischief and generally staying up near the chook house most days, but oh, how that's changed lately. For some time after the attack on Molly by the hawk, Tilly wouldn't come out of the hen house,or if she did it was only to peek outside and then run back in. It took some time for her to be game to run out into the paddock and when she did she would run from one bush to another,then run under a trailer, and then run behind the wood box. She was very scared to be in the open. But then she became gamer or as hubby said, maybe she just forgot about what happened to Molly. In any case she is now back to normal, with a twist. She would never try to fly across into the house yard, which was just a matter of her flying up onto a fence and then hopping down to feast on any number of gourmet delights that might have been lurking in the garden beds, so I never worried in that regard. Well, let me tell you, that has now changed. Within ten to fifteen minutes of being let out of the chook run she is over the fence and in the garden. I don't know how she does it because last week I got hubby to hold her while I clipped the feathers of one wing, which is suppose to stop her being able to fly up to get on the fence. She knows she is not suppose to be in the gardens and when I try to grab her she runs off and the chase is on. Usually she wins.Now if she didn't make such a mess I probably wouldn't mind, but she doesn't play by those rules. Those chooky feet of hers really go to town when she is scrounging, the roots of young, small plants have been exposed, mulch is flung out all over the place, the soft soil is dug up and flung around with her looking for worms or grubs and she has really learned the art of hide and seek, she hides I seek. This was a very timid docile chook that I could pick up at any time and handle with ease. I can still do these things, but not when she is in the house yard, she won't let me anywhere near her. I really don't know what has gotten into her. It must be quite comical to see me chasing a chook around the yard, even better value when hubby is in on the game as well, just as well we have no really close neighbours to see the spectacle. I have enquired about buying two young chooks so that she will have company, but they won't be available for a few weeks yet and just to be narky I am sure she will teach them at first opportunity to fly over the fence and sample the delights that await them.The lady who has bought our property is very happy to keep Tilly and her mates when she moves in. I don't think I will warn her of what she is letting herself in for. The above picture of Tilly was taken last week, in the house yard, yet again. Our only neighbour said she thinks Tilly's behaviour is her way to get back at me for letting her mate get killed. I wouldn't have thought a chook could think like that, but now I am not so sure. Oh well, it's time to let my one smart chook out of her run and time for me to be prepared for more fun and games. Take care...

Anzac Day

G'day. It's Monday morning the 25th of April, just past dawn in the morning as I write this. Today in Australia we celebrate Anzac Day. The day our troops landed at what is known as Anzac Cove in Gallipoli in 1915 during WW1.  Anzac stands for Australian, New Zealand Army Corps. My hubby has gone to the dawn service here in our local town. He goes every year in remembrance of his grandfather Richard, who fought in that great battle. Richard landed about a week after the initial landing as part of a reinforcement battalion and sadly Richard never came home. He lost his life at Lone Pine only a few days after arriving there. Hubby never knew his grandfather, but over the years has collected much information about Richard, from his working life as a Blacksmith to when he joined the Army. Through effort, he has the records of his grandfathers life in the Army until that fateful day at Lone Pine. Richard was not a soldier who won medals for bravery or did anything outstanding that would merit him a place in history, but in some regard he did find a place in history, he fought and died for his country. So as I sit and type this, dawn is just breaking here and I try to think what it must have been like for those first troops that  had just landed on a far away beach in a foreign land, scaling the cliffs, already under fire from the Turks. I cannot imagine what must have been going through their minds, what ordeals they faced, but in our own way here, today we remember them. Hubby and I have never made the trip to visit Lone Pine, it is something we have talked about doing, something that for hubby, I feel that we should do and I hope that in the next year or so we will do.  The picture is of a beautiful and stately gum tree in our front paddock. It is about Australian as you can get and today was a good day to feature it. Take care...

Earth Day 2011

G'day. Earth Day seemed to pass me by good and proper this year. Usually we plant a tree and have done so for many years and some of the trees planted in the past are quite big now. We have always planted trees that are native to our area and only missed out one year because we were in New Zealand on holidays. My contribution to Earth Day this year was only to rake up some autumn leaves that are covering the ground, these leaves are used as part of the compost and at some stage always end up back on the garden as mulch. Oh well, I can console myself with knowing that I was at least outside in the fresh air working with nature to a certain extent. I look around here and never fail to realise how lucky we are to live in a beautiful part of the world and it won't matter when we move from here as beauty can be found in anything if one tries hard enough. I was told once many moons ago that by simply taking the time and looking at a tree each day and appreciating the beauty of it, could do wonders for the soul. We have trees here that have the most beautiful bark and trees that no matter what happens to them, they continue to sprout new growth. I can't in all honesty say that I do look at a tree each day and admire it's beauty. I did try this when it was first suggested to me and I think it lasted maybe a few days and then I simply forgot about checking out trees, the mind had other things to think of. I have just had a look at the large maple that is outside the  window , half of the branches are bare now, the leaves a carpet on the ground. It is a beautiful tree and I am pleased to be able to see something so fine. I don't know that I feel any better for looking at it, but I for sure don't feel any worse. I am not going to go out and hug it, but I do appreciate it for what it is and for the years that it has stood there, long before we moved here.The earth is a truly beautiful place. I hope it forever remains that way. The picture is of hubby relaxing on the couch after a hard day on the land trying to read a railway magazine (he loves steam trains as well as classic cars and motorbikes). Our gorgeous little dog "Lucky" decided that there was a comfortable spot to be had between hubby's legs. Hubby  eventually dozed off and Lucky stayed where he was for quite some time and dozed also. Man and his best friend!!! That certainly applies to these two. Take care...

Happy Easter

G'day. Happy Easter to everyone who reads this. I hope the Easter Bunny brings you lots of yummy chocolate eggs. Hubby and I don't usually buy them for each other, but, last Easter he tricked me and bought me one and of course I was left with egg on my face (pardon the pun) because I didn't have one for him, but I did share. So this time I have bought him one and we will see who has the last laugh so to speak!! It's Good Friday here, late afternoon and hubby is in the machinery shed having a big cleanup and I have been in the house busy packing. We have come to realise that a lot of stuff has to go because we simply will not have room for it. I have sold my mothers beautiful old dressing table to a good friend who I know will look after it. She insisted on paying me for it and wouldn't take no for an answer. She did say that I can visit it anytime I want. She also offered to buy my grandmothers treadle sewing machine. After my nan passed away my mother became the keeper of this and she actually taught me to sew on it. She did have an electric machine but thought it would be fun if I learnt how the treadle worked. Well, I have had the treadle since 1980 when my mum passed away and it takes pride of place in our lounge room here, with various old sewing paraphernalia on it. It is still in working order and is looked after lovingly. Despite not knowing where this will go in our new home, I declined the offer to sell it. It would have broken my heart to part with it as it holds such lovely memories, especially of my mum and I laughing as I tried to  coordinate my feet to work the treadle and to sew something. Mind you I was only about twelve at the time, but the image of mum and I in front of the machine is still strong today and I can still hear our laughter. I have a very vague memory of my grandmother using it also. I know my mum wouldn't have minded about the old dressing table and oddly I wasn't that worried about parting with it, but the treadle is a different matter. My daughter will inherit it one day, though she has no desire to learn to sew on it or any other sewing machine for that matter. So as much as this move is much anticipated for various reasons, I am sad that there are things I cannot take with me. Many of the old farming implements that  we have collected over the years and have strewn  in the garden or in  the front paddock have also been sold, a few of these items were well over one hundred years old. I have been quite pleased though in some respect as everything has gone to owners who appreciate the heritage of some of the pieces. I can only hope they look after them as we have. The rose in the photo is Pierre De Ronsard a stunning climbing rose. We planted this on a trellis wall on one side of the house some years ago and it has just bloomed and grown year after year and is simply glorious when in full flower. I will have to find somewhere at our new home to grow one. Take care...

The colors of Autumn are beautiful.

G'day. I was just looking out of the window in my sewing room at the beautiful big trees that are along the fence and realised that autumn has really snuck up on me this year. The leaves are turning that gorgeous shade of red/orange and falling from the trees and covering the ground like a mottled carpet. I usually rake the leaves up in the lawn areas and use them for mulch because leaving them in big clumps on the grass results in having brown patches where the grass has died off under them. I have been a bit slack so far and haven't started raking yet. It's a great time of the year, the garden still looks good and the roses are still putting on a reasonable show, all in all, a lovely season. I am also amazed at how quickly the time is flying by. This coming Friday is the start of Easter and before we know it half a year will have rolled by. Does time really fly because we are getting older or do we lead such hectic lives that it gallops along without us realising it? I go to work Monday morning and before I know it Thursday morning is here and once that day is finished, I know I have another three day weekend and then start the cycle all over again. It just seems like it's all happening too fast. I can think back over the last few years and know that they have flown as well. I hear of something that happened ten or twenty years ago and it only feels as though it were a few years back. We sometimes wish our lives away, like wishing for the next lot of holidays to hurry up and come so we can have that break from work, or wishing of a Monday morning that it was Friday, or in my case Thursday. The list goes on and on. I don't want the time to move along so fast, but I sure know that I can't do a jolly thing about it except make the most of it and enjoy it as much as possible. The picture has nothing at all to do with autumn, but, it does show our gorgeous little dog on the banks of our creek. We had some heavy rain here a week or so ago and the creek was flowing ever so slightly, of course this is nothing compared to the raging flood it was in some months back and we couldn't get in or out of the road. I was also just thinking what pics I will put on this blog when we leave here and thought about all the pics my son and I took while in Europe last year. I won't tell you how many of them there are as it would be enough to frighten anyone. I will say that the Eiffel Tower featured heavily in the French ones!!!! Oh well, I haven't run out of photo's from here just yet... Take care...

Change is on it's way.

G'day. Today we have had the pleasure of meeting the new purchaser of our property. Even though our settlement is not for some time, the lady who has bought our little slice of paradise wanted to come up early and learn all the tricks of the trade etc. To say the least, she was gobsmacked about how all the pumps worked should she need to pump from the dam to a tank or from one tank to another and all those good things that one needs to be able to do. We have a large firefighting pump and tank mounted on a trailer for ease of use and when hubby started explaining it all to her I could see the cogs in her mind ticking over with all the info she was trying to take in. Even I had a headache by the end of it all and I know how to use it. She did say that a few more trips up here will be a must do and I had to laugh as after three and a half hours of being here she looked slightly dazed to say the least. I bet when she got back home she went and had a good lay down. Luckily she has lived on acreage before, though not quite so large and  really did have a decent grasp of what was required, which is a relief. She said she is so excited to be moving here that she is counting the sleeps and can't wait for settlement day.Her enthusiasm was great for us as we have put so much work into getting this place like it is and another bonus is that she just loves the gardens which I am pleased about. I asked if she wanted my poor lonely chook as I didn't know what to do with her and she jumped at the chance to keep her and was planning to get chooks anyway, so I have said that I will buy a couple more because I have been concerned about my girl being on her own and chooks like the company of other hens around them. I can tell she is lonely, the poor love, she has no one to snuggle up with on the perch  and the nights are getting cold here now. She also said that she hopes we visit her quite often as we are always welcome out here, so that was really nice of her. So for us now we will start packing, the house that we have been interested in passed a pest inspection during the week, which was a relief, so it's all systems go now and the time will pass very quickly. The picture is of our front gate leading up the drive to the house. I won't have a drive like this soon, so I am making the most of it all now by enjoying it as much as I can. We were going to put a cattle grid here and remove the gate, but, never got around to it, sometimes it's been a bit of a pain in the bottom when in the rain you have to get out and open and then shut the gate again after you've driven in, but we have survived it and we did make a point of telling Robyn not to leave this gate open or she will be chasing cows and possible the odd bull or two out of the gardens which I just know they pine to get into. I did this only the once some years ago as I quickly had to run up to the house to get something that I had forgotten and thought I would be too fast for the cows that were loitering a short distance away. I pulled the gate shut behind me, but didn't put the chain through and one very smart and fast on her feet heifer managed to open it just enough to get through while the others stood quietly by watching. Well you can imagine my horror to see this ever so lovely Hereford munching in the garden, but she was so dainty on her feet and it was almost as if she was careful not to trample anything, that nothing got damaged. Needless to say she took a bit of persuading to head back down the drive and out of the gate. I never left that gate unlocked after that, if the cows were in sight or not, for a large animal sometimes they can be so quiet sneaking up it's scary. Take care...

Our prickly friends.

G'day. We have had a busy weekend here, have now started packing a few odds and ends. One of the bedrooms (the one I used to call the guest room) has had the bed dismantled and a space cleared for the boxes of packed items that will be stored in there waiting for our big move. Hubby started on two of the sheds that he has had a lot of stuff stored in over the years. These few areas we have attacked are small change when compared with the huge machinery shed, four car garage, workshop and the horsebox, which have had no horses in it for some time, but is used as a storage area, the old dairy, also a storage area and when I say storage areas, they mainly contain car parts that hubby has collected over many years. Hubby is a very enthusiastic classic car collector and also has had the odd motorbike or two. At one stage he had four motorbikes but thankfully now, only the one is in residence. But, I am pleased to announce to all and sundry that I will be having nothing and I mean nothing to do with these areas when it comes to packing, sorting or clearing out. I will be hiding in the house, or maybe a day shopping well away from here sounds good when hubby decides that he better bite the bullet and sort a few things out. Not that he would want me out there in amongst the engines, gearboxes, radiators, and the other assorted bits and bobs anyway, but just in case, I will have to plan my escape well in advance. It's a scary thought when I look at all we (mainly hubby) have collected. Though to give him credit, over the last month or so he has actually started selling a lot of his collection, not the cars of course, but a lot of car parts have found their way to good homes, hopefully this will continue until a lot of those storage areas are cleaned out, though I suppose there are a few things he will just have to keep for a rainy day. The picture is of two Echidna's that visited our garden a few weeks ago, it is not a very good pic I admit and it's hard to tell one end from the other, but it's the best I have. We used to get one that came on a regular basis, though to be honest we were never really sure if it was the same one coming back all the time or not but we named him Spike, so it was a great pleasure to actually see two of them. Of course they made a mess by trying to burrow under one of the native bushes we have growing, luckily it suffered no damage and because of the nasty spikes these lovely animals have, we have a healthy respect for them and wouldn't attempt to move them. They only stayed a few hours, after they had a bit of rest and relaxation they were on their way.
Take care...

Had a great weekend.

G'day. On my blog last Friday I said how I was going to do some gardening, well that's an understatement. I worked out there for about four hours and was surprised at the time when I finally decided to come inside. I pruned one bush that had grown extremely large and then did another and that led to another and another and another and before I knew it I had a very large pile of prunings that I carted bit by bit onto a section of lawn so that on Saturday morning hubby could hook the quad bike up with a trailer to cart it all into one of the larger paddocks where we will burn it. I was very pleased with my effort and was also very tired by the end of it. Saturday came and out we went, gathered all the prunings which were then thrown onto a pile with some other stuff from a few weeks back and then it was all burnt. What a difference a bit of work in the garden makes. On Sunday we decided to have a day out, so we went to a town about an hour and fifty minutes from us called Echuca, it is on the Murray River, one of our biggest rivers here in the state of Victoria. The air show was on and it was fantastic, weather was lovely, sky was sunny, but the wind was cool and I got a bit sun burnt. Echuca is a terrific town, you can get on a paddle steamer and do a day trip or have a meal on one that has a night cruise, just a wonderful way to relax, cruising down the mighty Murray River watching the world drift on by. We didn't do any of this, other than go to the air show, but we have spent many weekends at Echuca, lazing near the river and soaking up the atmosphere. We have promised ourselves that when we move house and are settled in, we will go back up there and book a day cruise on a paddle steamer and enjoy all it has to offer. The photo is part of our front yard. In the foreground are a few Poplars that we planted and just behind them are twenty fruit trees and of course the huge towering gum trees that are just magnificent. I never tire of looking at these trees, they are so statuesque. Oh, I will miss these sights!!! Take care...