Another beautiful sunset!


28th April 2009

This morning was very nippy. Nothing, I’m sure of what’s to come though. I looked out the kitchen window and there in the back garden I saw T-bone and Mince happily munching on my hedge! T-bone flashed me a smug look of satisfaction! A quick look around showed the gate closed and I am really at a loss as to how they escaped????? I quickly threw on a jumper and gumboots and charged outside before anymore of my beautiful hedge was demolished. Armed with a stick and shrieks I chased them back out to the big paddock. I sure wish I knew how they got out????? Silly cows, they have a huge paddock to graze in but the want the places out of bounds. I suppose it’s the age old human problem all over again. We want what we can’t have. Blondes generally want to be brunettes and brunettes want to be blondes. If we have long hair we want short and visa versa. Okay I’m rambling now but you get what I mean. It appears the cows are not exempt from this dilemma in life.

19 years!

27th April 2009

This is a very special day to Johnny and I. Today we celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary. Being a Monday it was routine as usual with getting the kids off to school and general chores around the house. My “to do” list never get any shorter. The moment I cross one item off - at least two more are added. The morning passed without any eventful news and then mid morning Johnny arrived home to surprise me.

Our weed eater is finally working again after Johnny tried to start it according to the instructions. Never in my life have I seen such a lengthy start up. We have to turn the lever to 2, pull five times, turn the lever back to where it was and then pull the chain. It started. Now the strange part is that up until two weeks ago, Johnny was starting it with one pull of the chain? Strange, but none the less I am ecstatic that we do not need another one for awhile. Who says you’re too old to learn new things?


I finally worked out that my car can fit into the garage and is not too high as I anticipated. I guess it’s taken me awhile to get around to this part – it just wasn’t that important a few weeks ago and if it wasn’t for Johnny’s accurate eye, she would still be outside. It’s a tight squeeze but will suffice for the meantime. I’m glad that the girl is out of the elements at long last.

Going back to my anniversary meal, I decided to set a table and cook a home cooked meal. My table came out really nice. I made sosaties, chips and farm fresh eggs. Okay, I know that’s not too romantic but convenience is nice. I would have liked to had prawns and a fantastic desert but hey I settled for being at home with the rest of our family. We opened a bottle of bubbly and celebrated 19 years watching the sun go down. Ah, the good life.

My anniversary dinner table.

26th April 2009

“People with goals succeed because

they know where they're going" - Earl Nightingale

Johnny didn’t work today and being Saturday this was awesome. With the above inspiration we decided that the projects on the cards for this weekend were two fold. We decided to work on the duck pond and eradicate the pile of pruning which has been lying on the side for so long now I’m sure the cuttings have grown roots! Thank goodness for the tractor. It was used to build up the walls of the pond. Johnny dug in to use some soil and he hit clay. The children and I sat on the side lines making clay objects with the bits that were tossed out which was fun. They didn’t last too long as Johnny rode over them with the tractor pretty soon after we left them out to dry. What a pity as I didn’t get to take a photo. I suppose the clay in the ground is good as not much water will get through. Johnny got busy with the backbreaking work of hoeing the ground in the pond, as there was grass growing in it. After that we laid some plastic on the bottom of the dam, which proved useless as we were to discover later on. After that my clever husband remembered that Paul (previous owner) had mentioned that he thought there was a pump and pipe at the top dam which would feed the pond now. Now to find the pipe was going to be a challenge. Johnny sorted the pump out first and by sheer luck located the pipe which led all the way down past the pond site. Hooray! We were in business. It wasn’t long before the pond was filled to the brim.

Now the next thing I’m about to tell you will make your hair probably stand on end. My beautiful children decided they would like to snorkel in the pond! Out came the snorkeling equipment and flippers too! My first thoughts were “oh no you’re not” but after whining and wearing me down which seemed like forever, I confess I gave in. After all it would create a funny memory and as Laura Ingall writes and I quote

“It is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all.” – Laura Ingall

What’s more simple fun than a swim in a newly laid pond on a crisp autumn morning!

Sunday morning we had our first double yoked egg. I was so pleased. After breakfast, the men in my life went off to complete the pond. They discovered the plastic had lifted and water had gotten underneath. It wasn’t doing much good so we decided to lift it out, fold it up and hope for the best with the water. The ducks swam in the pond most of the day and enjoyed every minute of it. They sure appreciate having there own water hole after all. We are still to put a gate up and clear out the chicken hutch which is currently storing what must be a hundred logs of wood.

The pile of cuttings was burnt to a cinder and at long last the ground is clear of pruning in that spot. It sure does look good. We made so much smoke that I thought Iris would call the fire brigade at one point. But she didn’t and this afternoon she waved vigorously at me. She’s obviously very please that the eyesore is gone too and was quite willing to put up with the smoke. Bless her heart!

Just look at Michaela's expression.... How could I say no to that! -26/04/2009

26/04/09 -Seperating the pile of tree cuttings!

24th April 2009

The animals are amazing to watch. They all have what I would call them own pecking order. You can distinguish the main hen from the rest immediately and then the duck even though they are almost as big as the hens now are bitterly afraid of the hens. They won’t come near the food if the hens are about. Even the pup knows its place. I’ve been taking him with me each morning as I tend to the animals. He’s rather comfortable with the hens and ducks by now. He gives them a run for their money but seems to understand he mustn’t hurt them. He chases them around and even got a peck on the back of his neck from the one black hen once when he wasn’t watching. It didn’t bother him in the least. He just has to charge the hens and they scatter. Yesterday I introduced him to the cows. It was a magical moment. He knew instinctively that the cows could hurt him. It was a classical photo moment but I was unprepared. I’ll have to explain it the best I can. We were standing on the one side of the gate and the black cow was on the other. The cow was looking intensely at the pup with his head down to the ground and the pup was gingerly reaching up to smell the cows’ nose.

I’ve started working on my rose beds clearing the weeds and ground cover. Each day in the late afternoon the pup and I spend a quarter of an hour or so gardening. It’s a wonderfully quiet time of the day and a good opportunity for Spot to romp around in the garden. He loves it and isn’t too eager to come inside after this. I’m horrified to find my roses being eaten by something. So I’ve done what I know best to do. I’ve pruned them right back and treated them each day with soapy dishwashing water. On the weekend I will ask the nursery what she can advise too. The one rosebud was covered with a web of sorts which was so sad.

22 April 2009

The last few days have passed peacefully. The pup has settled at last (in the laundry) and not crying all night. I think it had something to do with the big fluffy blanket I relinquished in the hope he would think this it’s the bed! The chickens are well and they’re all just going about their chicken business, doing chicken things.

The children have happily gone back to school after a very quiet holiday. We spent the last few days visiting friend back in the old neighborhood and was nice. Yesterday Jonathan decided to take the ducks into the big dam for a swim. Michaela eagerly joined him. Unbeknown to me they planned on taking the tinny out and then release the ducks in the middle away from the dangerous reeds. Jonathan however forgot to check the plugs were in place in the boat. If he had he would have seen one was not there. Oblivious to what was about to transpire, he pulled the tinny into the water and they proceeded to climb into the boat. You can imagine that it didn’t take too long before the boat started to fill. Michaela had realized by this point what had happened and in typical girl fashion started to yell on top of her voice. I’m sure the whole farming community heard her voice.

I raced down to the dam fearing the worse and I must add didn’t have time to put on the boots. I found Jonathan drenched, with Michaela crying her eyes out. “Mom” she yells, we’re sinking and I have a wet bottom! I can see the funny side of this scenario now but at the time though I was fuming at their ignorance. My feet had got so sore from running down there and I was not impressed! Well Jonathan managed to get the boat out – don’t know where the missing plug got too! After chasing the ducks around the dam he finally retrieved them and came back up to the house sulking and sopping wet. The ducks were none the wiser to the commotion.

The past few nights we have been painting the kitchen. It looks wonderful! I’ve decided to change the splash backs to difference tiles and will go looking for tiles soon. The kitchen is slowly coming on.

This morning the garden looked like an aviary. I must have had about 15 cockatoos and lorikeets flying around in the garden and in the surrounding trees. It was so beautiful.

19th April 2009

I nearly caught the stray cat. It was such a close call again. Saturday afternoon as I was cutting the verge grass I spotted him hiding in the long grass along side the fence. He took one look at me and darted in front of the ride on down the drain which led under the road. I thought it would be rather easy to trap him now that he was in the drain – how mistaken was I! I yelled for Jonathan and got him to block the other side of the drain and sent Michaela to collect the cat cage while I guarded the first entry. Talk about strategy!

As I was setting the cage up and fiddling with the door, Jonathan who was on the other side of the road laying down in front of the opening making all these silly noises to scare the cat my way, happened to notice about two mm from his face a group of cane toads. He let out a blood curling scream as he jumped up and the cat darted out the drain spiked with adrenaline. I wasn’t quite ready yet with the cage open so he escaped by the hair of his chinny chin, chin… again! This cat is so agile. Never mind he should return to the hiding place sometime and perhaps next time will be more successful.

All of the chickens are laying eggs now, as of this morning and it is wonderful to collect four eggs each day. I asked them this morning if they couldn’t synchronize there deposits so as to save me a trip or two. I’m not asking so much am I?

Sunday morning we visited a nursery in the area. I’m looking to get some fruit trees in as soon as possible. I’m hoping in two or three years from now I should have an established orchid going. I found a great variety at the nursery we visited and am working on getting perhaps apples, plums, pears and peaches. I’ve done my research on ready made turf too and have almost settled on a place which happens to be just around the corner from home. Yay, for the convenience of the location. Coming home I saw the dreaded site – a brown snake on top of the verandah wall. Why did it have to be there of all the places? It was busy shedding its skin. It was very long! Nobody besides me seems to care much about the snake. I sure hope it stays outside and doesn’t show it’s face when I’m on my own.

Jonathan played his first rugby game this afternoon and I decided to stay home to baby-sit the pup. Boy he’s active and so noisy and busy at night when it’s supposed to be sleeping time! I have to watch him like a hawk during the day and he keeps us all up at night. I suppose he’s just being a pup. None the less I decided tonight his quarters will be moved to the other side of the house in the laundry where he can make as much noise as he likes and we can sleep as much as we like!

The clan got home rejoicing, as Johno’s team won. First game he’s played and its victory right up. This club is so much better that the previous one. I think they won only one game last season in the other club. It’s done wonders for Jonathan’s morale. Keep up the hard work boy!

Spot’s been placed in the laundry as I promised with the tumble dryer going. Hopefully the noise and warmth will lull him into a deep sleep. The house is so peaceful and quiet now.

Rain rain go away come back another day!

14th April 2009 - part two of chapter four.

I have forgotten how intense having a puppy is! It is like having a baby all over again. Jonathan spoilt him the first night and so when we settled down for the second night, he didn’t take to kindly to being separated from human touch. I’m sure he just about cried the whole night. Johnny had to go back to work this morning and we all felt like a train had run over us. With little sleep, I’m a cranky lady! Not to mention the rest of the family. I moved slowly into the kitchen this morning to find the pouring rain had stopped at long last. It rained not stop from yesterday morning. I am going to rejoice when the sun eventually shows it wonderful face. It makes having a pup harder too. Oh, the day he sleeps and goes to the toilet outside on his own – bliss, this is the day we look forward too. Ah, the joys of puppies….

Yesterday we took the children to movies and spent a wonderful rainy afternoon watching “mall cop”. It was excellent. A real funny one to relax with. Unfortunately due to the rainy weather, we were very limited on the renovation front. Johnny did fix the front porch light though, which looks wonderful. I lifted the hems of some curtains and hung them at long last in the main bedroom. I haven’t seen my curtains hanging in almost two years and it looks and feels great.

16th April 2009

This morning was clear and beautiful. Not a rain cloud in sight. The suns’ permeating rays bringing a sense of peace and tranquillity. This morning I received three eggs, one was early this morning and almost double the size of the others. It came from one of the brown hens. At last the hens are fulfilling their purpose. Just one more hen to lay now. The ducks are able to move around freely now and are not being harassed by the hens any more. They have grown in size and are becoming very vocal. “me thinks” the hens are actually getting scared of the duck now.

The children and I got stuck into a section of soil around the back porch which was bugging the living daylights out of me. I had some paving stones lying around and so decided to lay them in this area to cover the bare soil. I have plans to fill in the spaces in-between with some of the white stone crush. It should be a good improvement. Perhaps a few colorful flowers too.

I have a contact for a Dexter breeder here on the south side at long last. I’m really hoping to get a heifer soon. It starting to look like a milking Dexter cow will not be an option to start with. We will have to get a heifer and she will have to have a calf first. We could find another breed of milking cow that might be ready to milk now but Johnny is against this option. He says the Dexter is a smaller cow and easier to handle when it comes to milking which is logical I suppose. I just want a milking cow yesterday and don’t care much for what breed.

12th April 2009

We might not watch many soap operas, but we have plenty of drama right in our own backyard. This morning I was awaken to Michaela’s shriek of “Mom the toilets not flushing again”. Now you can just imagine what was going through my mind. Being Easter Sunday and I must add I was expecting some guests later on, I think I might have been jumping up and down by this point. Johnny resolved the blockage but it’s still not working 100%. We couldn’t do much about it today and will tackle the problem tomorrow. I busied myself with the cleaning chores of the day and preparing for my guests.

I have a wish list and on my wish list I would like some kind of vacuum for my husband and children to walk through before entering the house. It would suck out the dirt, dust, leaves and anything that is not meant to live indoors. This wet weather is not playing the game with my cleaning frenzy.

The day was filled with laughter and good conversation. After dinner we lit the fire in the lounge and sat eating left overs from lunch and toasting our toes. It’s not even winter yet but it was fun none the less.

The hen laid her egg in her box this morning which is such good news. No more hunting the whole garden for her nest. Hopefully she continues to lay there.

11th April 2009

Today we welcomed our beautiful new beagle puppy home. He is just the most adorable pet yet. His ears are as long as his face and he has the saddest expression around.

With the excitement of the long awaited puppy arriving behind us, Johnny and I started with the high pressure water machine on the back porch. We moved onto the paving and I wapped away all the stains and discovered different colored tiles beneath the stains, pinks and oranges which had been covered over the years. The paving had been laid in a pattern which you couldn’t see before. It looks wonderfully clean now and almost new again. Johnny attacked the dying bougainvillea with the tractor and managed to clear a lot way. The hens nest was destroyed in the process which means now I have to hunt to find her new one tomorrow – fun and games…..

The ducks are changing. I hear the noises they make now are different. After doing a bit of research on the net the other day, I picked up some good tips on how to tell the sex of a duck. The most accurate tell sign is the sound of the quack as they differ from male to female and the second sign are curly tail feathers indicating a drake. I do hope we have one of each, but I guess time will tell. The ducks are such sociable creatures and they become quite frantic if they are separated. The morning and afternoon swims are rather entertaining. They splash and dive and love to swim under the water at a great speed. They are fast approaching the time when they will need their own water hole and so we must complete the proposed chicken and duck area soon. The hole as I think I previously mentioned has been dug but now needs to be sealed off and the edges concreted. I need to build a gate for the front of the run. The fences are all still in good condition and will be fine.

The house is quiet at last. The puppy is comfortably laying in Jonathan’s arms and the rest of the family’s in dream world. This was a good day. Every family needs a puppy at one stage or another I reckon. It makes me think that our family is complete again. It was such a terribly sad day when we said goodbye to Roxy and Treasure in SA. My heart felt like it would never heal. Today it feels like the last puzzle piece has been found and is now in place at long last.

10th April 2009

Today was so nice to sleep in. Thinking about the true meaning of Easter, I lay in bed silently counting my blessings. No school for the children, no leaving early to get to work for Johnny. It was going to be a great day.

Finally the day had to start. Michaela and I hunted high and low for the missing egg. We found one but still don’t know where the other is. I saw evidence of a bird being killed while looking for the egg –it must be the cat!

Johnny and I have been sanding the back porch down for most of the day. It really looks lovely. A shimmer of its former glory, yet still a way to go. It’s sure dusty even though the machines both have bags on. It will be great once it’s done.

Okay I’m so done with this sanding! My nose is so itchy and I’m sneezing constantly. The dust is everywhere. I suppose the one blessing is that it’s outside though. I’ve decided this project is worse than the silicone job. It feels like we’ve been going forever, and there is still so much more to do. The hire sander must be returned tomorrow and the light of day is already starting to fade.

Johnny saw T-bone goes down to the dam and then disappear into the water. This could either mean he’s gone for a swim, or he’s fallen in. So we took a breather and walked over with a great deal of trepidation to see what had happened. There T-bone stood in the dam flicking his tail as if he was on holiday. Johnny poked him with a stick to see if he would move and sure as daylight he ambled out of the water like nothing was wrong depositing a big fat poo on the way out. Shame, the poor fish! Do cows usually do this? Go right into the dam to drink, I mean. Perhaps somebody can help me out. It seems real strange to me as it’s not even a hot day.

Coming back up to the house, we found a berry tree filled to the brim of these red cherry like fruit. I can’t remember the name but I do remember them growing in bushes on the side of the road back in South Africa. My friends and I used to enjoy picking the fruit walking home from school. I haven’t had one of these cherries in years. I picked a few and munched them. All the lovely memories of childhood days came flooding back. It’s incredible how association of certain things bring memories of long ago to the present. These cherries are sure to attract the birds to the garden, which is a wonderful thought. It has begun to rain again. Hopefully the rain will settle the dust in the air.

Okay it’s time to return to our labor…… My head is pounding. I think I need an industrial size bottle of pain killers to get rid of this headache!

We didn’t completely remove all the paint but decided to call it a day at last. I would say 98 % done. Enough was enough. The rest will have to be done another day.

At long last - my eggs!

6th April 2009

The rain continued to fall throughout the weekend, heavily at times, drizzling at other times. Our tanks can not contain all the water which is wonderful and sad both at the same time. I’ve decided that lots and lots of bubble baths are the order of the evening for awhile. Rather than allow it to fall to the ground wasted, we shall enjoy it instead. One of many good things resulted from this large amount of rain is that I was eventually forced out on Sunday afternoon to buy a tumble dryer to cope with the ever falling rain. Watching the forecast for this week, I saw rain expected for most of the days. This seals the deal for me and we went to buy one.

The ducks have been taken to the cow’s water trough for swimming lessons about three times a day and they love it! This afternoon we noticed the hole that was dug in the anticipated chicken run was fill of rainwater. We took the ducks there to try it out. This was a real treat for them. They kept pecking at the water eating the soggy leaves as they appeared. At one point we got a huge fright as the white/yellow duck dived under the water and got stuck in the reeds. She didn’t come up and Jonathan’s quick eye spotted her struggling under the water. He stomped through the reeds and rescued her quickly. She continued swimming around without a worry in the world – like hey girl, you just nearly drowned! While the ducks were being babysat by the kids we took the opportunity to do some cleaning. The sun had shown its wonderful face for a short while and it was time to muck out the stalls. We moved the ducks quarters to a small section (less to clean) and completed the roosting boxes for the hens. Now they had no excuse – I WANT MY EGGS!

When the sun does eventually come out again to dry everything up, I was thinking of using the mowed dry grass to lay at the bottom of the two stalls which will make it easier to clean. I need to learn quickly how to make use of natures produce. Why buy costly wood shavings when I have all this dry grass to use? It makes sense doesn’t it?

I put my secondhand/brand-new dishwasher in the kitchen over the weekend. It looks good and will help me heaps. I’ve gotten so dependant on this piece of kitchen equipment since being in Australia and have missed it terrible since arriving on the farm. There is certain equipment a girl can’t do without. This farm girl’s list of “can’t go without” is growing! I’ve decided, convenience = happy lady!!! Homesteading can be fun and convenient I say.

7th April 2009

This morning, my “hen of distinction” laid an egg for me – I am delighted! I heard her making extraordinary noises and looked out the window. She had of course escaped the coop again and the noise was coming from the centre garden. I tiptoed down there listening for her noises as I could not see her anywhere. There I saw her sitting down on the ground. I lifted her up to take her back to the coop and too my great surprise found nine eggs underneath her. She must have been laying for a few days unbeknown to me.

8th April 2009

Every day holds the potential to seeing beauty in the ordinary. You just have to open your eyes. The air this morning was crisp. I took the ducks for what seems to be their morning swim and as I stood watching them I saw the most exquisite bird in the tree behind me. They looked like huge budgies. Brightly colored and beautiful. I need to look in my bird book to identify them. They were collecting nectar or some of the brightly colored flower that the tree was supplying.

This afternoon I thought the ducks were finally ready to come out into the open air and get some exercise. They will have to be watched as they can still squeeze through the bars in the gate. Hey! This is sounding like preschool…..

I though I would put them in with the chickens for some other company. The brown hens didn’t seem to care one way or the other about who the newbie’s were, but the black hens marched over to the ducks. To me they seemed rather aggressive. Perhaps they were just curious but I wasn’t willing to see the ducks getting pecked. A little longer and they can fight their own battles. For now this momma will protect them. I swiped them up quickly and took them back to the safety of their cage.

9th April 2009

Today was filled with the normal chores of keeping a home afloat. Paying bills and shopping. I got back rather late and rushed to unpack groceries and then to pick Michaela up from the bus stop. The day to start horse riding lessons had finally arrived. She was so excited. After getting horribly lost, and a large downpour of rain we finally found the right address although half an hour late. None the less “madam” was over the moon with excitement and the lesson was very successful. Kristy the riding coach was wonderful and she was very pleased with Michaela’s abilities. She mentioned that there was a horse she had in mind for Michaela, but she wanted to see Michaela’s level first. Hopefully our horse will come soon! I thought getting a horse through a riding school would be safer seeing that we’re not very experienced in this area.

By the time we got home it was dark and I’d completely forgotten about collecting the egg. Maybe it will still be there tomorrow morning.

Superman watchout!

This is Jono and his pals Eric and Chris

Flying through the air!

Grass diving!

Baby chicks!

Mr Toad!

Our first bonfire.

Trying out the new tinny. Boy its hard work on the arms!

Our baby ducks - minus one!

Paying our respects! A sad day this was.

Micky and Bug's eating breakfast!

Meet T-bone & mince!

Our new tractor!

Our acreage visitors.

MY HEART, MY HOME

CHAPTER THREE

17th March 2009

Today I went back into suburbia for a day out with the girls. I’m getting quite used to the peace and quiet out here now and am falling in love with it but I still enjoy a day off. Getting home this afternoon, I received a wonderful surprise in the form of three big kangaroo’s in the paddock by the bottom dam. They were quite large and just as curious to see me as I was to see them. I managed to snap a few photos but the closest they would let me was on the opposite side of the dam which was still a distance away. There they stood with there little arms and powerful legs watching and waiting to see what I would do. I expect the previous owners dogs kept them away, but now they have returned. My vegetable garden will have to be close to the house or it’s sure to be there dinner. Talking about veggie growing, I’m thinking of growing some pumpkins and beans as my first vegetables. Yay, no monkeys, like in South Africa to destroy them. I wonder what “pest” I’ll have to watch out for though?

The cows are doing a marvelous job of keeping the grass nice and short in the small paddock that they are in at the moment. Johnny politely moved them into another area tonight which is fenced off, to carry on munching there. I mean who needs a lawnmower when you have T-bone and Mince around???? They really are doing a remarkable job. They seem to like the long blades of grass up along side the fence which is wonderful. It is an awful job to cut there. The cows are so placid, they chew grass, flick there tails and lay down most of the day. What a life I tell you!! It’s a reminder of how good a slow pace of life can be.

Our neighbors on the other side were out walking their dog tonight and stopped off to chat. They were so impressed with all the hard work Johnny is doing. She asked me am I using Eveready batteries as Johnny never stops. We all laughed at that comment. We said goodbye and went back inside as it was getting quite dark. The mosquitos were coming out for dinner too. Johnny replaced the fly screen on Michaela’s window tonight. That’s another window done.

18th March 2009

This morning I just could not wake up on time. Perhaps it had something to do with going to bed at pumpkin hour??? So, I dragged myself out of my nice warm comfortable very soft bed and yawned my way to the kitchen to make the kids there lunches and get some caffeine in my body. It’s going to be a cooler day today by the looks outside. I said goodbye to the children and remembered suddenly that the chooks were still locked up and rushed down to let them out. They were patiently waiting at the door and very politely moved out to the grassed area to start pecking in the dirt. The cows are clearing the grass faster than it can grow. Boy they are real good grass cutters. I’m looking forward to letting them out into the large paddock soon. T- Bone came right up to me while I stood watching the chickens scratching around and gave me a good sniff. This was a first; I guess they are learning to trust me now. They are much more comfortable around me. I watched him put his long tongue around a tuff of grass and with a mighty yank removed the blades of grass in one foul swoop. A butcher bird came down to see what was going on and sat on the fence watching carefully for anything that he could eat. The birds are truly masters of opportunity.

20 March 2009

I finally made a decision about the curtains today. I found a wonderful shop with a very helpful assistant. She helped me decide on fabric and color. I wasn’t too sure on blinds or curtains and have been wrestling with the choice since we arrived hence the delay. Today I settled on some beautiful drops and a lovely rod to hang them on. I have to wait until next week Wednesday to get the second window drops as they were out of stock. It’s okay though, I’m just happy that I finally made a decision and have them in my sight. The house isn’t open and visible to the road which is just as well seeing that we haven’t put anything up on the windows yet – shocking! I know. I think it’s high time though that I put some up now. The end is in sight!

On the way home I saw a new stock supply store and of course could not just drive by. I ended up walking out with a very cute and fat little guinea pig for Michaela. I know I said we shouldn’t get another right now but if only you could have seen her face! She was calling out to me really…. She’s healthy, very timid though and not as friendly as Bug’s but she’ll settle down I’m sure. I saw the most adorable baby ducks too in this shop and had to tear myself away and leave. I dare not come home with baby ducks without consulting with the farmer! I told the shop owner I will be back on the weekend to collect these baby ducks so he better save them for me.

I’m convinced I was born to live with animals. They are part of my make up and I just love this part of farm life. I called the beagle breeder yesterday to get an update on our awaited pup. Three more weeks to go, before they have injections and then finally we can view them. More than likely it will be a male pup that we will get but that is good. All good things come to those who wait, I hear.

I tried with all patience’s to direct the cows out into the big paddock once I got home but stubbornness seems to part of there makeup! After making an array of different sounds and looking like a total idiot I gave up and left them to mow the grass around the washing line which they seems to find rather juicy. Johnny will just have to shovel the cow poo tonight – what a thought! Ah, farm life…..

Tonight Johnny started clearing the wood that has been stacked in the stable. We made a bonfire and burned some of the wood, not much but at least it’s a start. We can’t afford the fire to get too big, so will have to do a little each night until we are through. It was good to see some of the wood lying there, disappear into ash and smoke.

Michaela was so surprised to see the new addition when she got home and straight away christened her “Miss Alice”. Where she comes up with these names, I tell you! Well Miss Alice wasn’t too pleased to be yanked out of her sleep and placed in these strange hands, and so decided to sink her teeth into Michaela’s chubby little finger. Well, Miss Alice is lucky she didn’t land up on the floor. I’m not sure who got a bigger fright, the guinea pig or Micky. I calmed them both down and send Michaela off to the lounge to quietly get to know her new guinea pig once she has bound her finger with a band-aid. “Miss Alice” has behaved this evening and seems to have settled in her new home. No more bites I hope!

21 March 2009

Today is Saturday. Johnny took the day off work which I was delighted about. His internal clock just couldn’t keep him in bed past 5 o’clock which was rather annoying as I in turn couldn’t stay in bed past six on a Saturday morning. I pulled out my bread machine and Johnny and I baked a scrumptious loaf of homemade bread which was completely demolished by my hungry lions.

At ten to seven we set off to a house around the corner that had advertised it was having a secondhand sale. The items I was particularly interested in seeing were the tinny (a small boat) and trampoline. We arrived and immediately decided to take the tinny for a mere $200 – what a give away I think! I missed the very nice trampoline by a few minutes which was disappointing but at least we got a very good price for the tinny. We took it home and straight onto the dam. It was so much fun and a heap of exercise on the arms I might add. My co-ordination in check and off Michaela and I floated. First a little backwards and then forwards until I got the hang of the oars. It was great fun. We just need to get rid of the reeds now and it will be even better. After an exhausting but good row, we finally maneuvered the boat out and up the side of the dam.

I convinced Johnny beyond reasonable doubt that we had to go and get those adorable baby ducks. This was the beginning of the saddest part of farm life yet, even worse that Bugsy death. I’ll explain. We brought two fluffy yellow one day old ducks and one brown fluffy one home. We were so happy and they were running around settling in. It happened so quickly, I never had time to stop it or even imagine how an accident like this can happen. Michaela was in front and the little yellow chick ran behind her and she accidentally stepped back on him. I won’t give you the gory details but I will say my heart broke with sadness. Floodgates were opened and we were both heartbroken. We sobbed about the situation and grieved for the loss of the baby duck. How is it possible to feel such happiness and then such sadness in a matter of minutes? Gee, it was really hard to get over this.

After about an hour everybody had calmed down and the two remaining ducks were swimming in the make shift little dam (a bowl filled with water) quite happily. They were relaxed and oblivious to what had just happens. They are such beautiful creatures.

Jonathan’s friend arrived to spend the day in-between this event which was a good distraction for Michaela and me. The boys went off to the dam and Michaela followed suit taking her mind off the past. Johnny continued to work in the garden pruning again. This afternoon we took two loads to the tip and have a third piled high on the Ute ready to go first thing in the morning. Johnny made a perch today for the chooks to rest on at night and they love it by the looks of it. I’m still waiting patiently for my eggs to arrive. They do a lot of scratching and sitting but no laying I’m afraid. The cows are doing great, getting fatter by the day and have finally been moved out to the big paddock. Tonight Johnny coaxed them back into the smaller paddock with the special feed for calf’s which we bought. They followed Johnny like big puppy dogs. They let us touch them as they nuzzled at the grain. They are growing well.

I almost forgot to mention, we got another guinea pig for Jonathan too along with the ducks. Our family of animals is growing wonderfully. I still feel upset about the event today but for Michaela’s sake must try and not show it. I feel emotional drained and rather tired now. Although there was lots of excitement throughout the day, the death of the baby duck put a damper on everything else and I found it hard to enjoy much else after this. I think a good night’s slept and tomorrow will be better. Nothing lasts forever including this sadness. Looking over at the kitchen glass door and there I see my friend the green tree frog staring up at me. Goodnight Mr. Frog, goodnight.

22 March 2009

Mornings after have a way of washing the previous day’s sadness away to some degree. I think of the bible verse that says “The mercies of the Lord are new every morning”. Grateful that the day before was over, I started out preparing for a new day and new plans. Johnny was clearing, loading and making trips to the tip. He had discovered paving around the build in barbeque that was covered up with sand. Who know how long it’s been that way. Johnny also got onto the roof of the kennels and swept away all the dead leaves, cut back the overgrown trees and the result was stunning. The sun was able to shine through the trees breaking up the shade and it’s looked wonderful.

I got busy cleaning and preparing for a farewell lunch for a wonderful girl we had recently met. I picked a bunch of flowers from our garden again for the centre piece. As I walked around my garden cutting flowers it brought memories back of years ago at my Mom’s house in Mount Vernon. We used to walk around the garden cutting flowers for the table too. Mom always had an array of colorful blooms going. She loved her flower beds.

The afternoon was filled with conversation and lots of laughter as we went boat riding, grass diving and swinging. Okay, I’ll back up and explain the grass diving. Yes, I really meaning grass diving. Jonathan had been collecting the massive amounts of mowed grass and stacking it in a pile. The children had discovered that it was a great soft place to jump into. Nobody complained of itchiness after which was amazing and had lots of fun.

Last night Johnny decided to make a fire using all the grass cuttings. It burnt for what must have been an hour and now all that remains is ash from the mountain of grass before. It was lovely to watch the fire burn under a sky fill with stars. It was a beautiful evening.

23rd March 2009

Alas, those mornings when we were so warm that we had to wear very little is fast becoming a distant memory. This morning early, I woke up shivering and had to close the sliding glass door and turn off the fan. Looking outside the grass looked wet with dew and the mist hung low in the pasture. I suspect from here on, we will be piling the layers on instead of off. It is the beginning of winter and suddenly winter seems to stretch into eternity. I’m not ready yet and still want those long hot summery days for awhile. I pulled out my wooly jumper and Eskimo slippers and headed for the kitchen for a hot cuppa. The cows are waiting patiently at the gate to be let out into the big paddock, but they will just have to wait a little while longer as I am not going out there yet.

24th March 2009

Last night we got three rather large roosters. They seemed to take control of the hens the moment they were let out the box they came in. They are beautiful. Big and white with great big red crowns resting on their heads. They strut around proudly and the poor hens stay right out of there way.

Well today is Tuesday and that means day out. I’m off to do some errands and collect my last two curtains for my lounge. Michaela has to go back to the doctor too, she is still not well and has battled with a cough still. I’ve made an appointment at another doctor for a general check-up for my little/big man and his sister too.

We left the doctor with more antibiotics for Micky and drove through to drop the kids off at school. Hopefully she will shake this cold this time.

Okay, I’ve been home for about a half an hour and that dam rooster has not stopped crowing! He goes off every two to three minutes just like an alarm! I’m ready to put him in the oven. I called Johnny at work to vent my frustration and he didn’t help matter much with laughing his head off. He actually thinks this is funny. On a serious note, even though my neighbors are very far away, I’m thinking they are going to get annoyed too. Hmm…… I was thinking that baby chicks will be delightful but now I’m thinking maybe it might just be easier to just buy the babies instead. I do hope he settles down. A few times are okay but this is too much! The strange thing is the other two are quiet and don’t look aggressive at all.

An hour has passed now and Mr. loud mouth is calming, thank goodness for that. I think maybe he’s a bit unsettled after the stress of moving. Shame the poor thing and here I was talking about the pot! Hmm, it was good he couldn’t understand me.

Johnny got home awhile back and we walked down to see the Roosters and for me to point out the noisy one who had by this stage started up the din again. I walked up to him and he turned on me and pecked my foot really hard! I threw my shoe at him in anger – the silly thing. His days are numbered… LOL. He just put another nail in his coffin. Well, he wouldn’t be quiet so we put them in for the night a bit earlier than usual and all is quiet again at last. Silence is golden!!!

I reckon I’m going get a bruise on my foot from that silly bird.

25th March 2009

I was rudely awakened at four o’clock this morning by that silly rooster. It crowed non stop from then on and I was so irritated! I made up my mind that they were all going – either to the farm store or the pot! So after the children left for school I made my way down to the roosters and as quickly as I could put them into a box and straight into the car. I then made my way to the farm store. They were quite accommodating and said they would take them. I exited the shop so quickly in case the rooster started up again and they changed their minds. I laughed all the way home and could not believe my luck. Yes! They are gone. We will be able to sleep peacefully tomorrow morning with no disturbances.

I spent the latter part of the morning at a reading workshop at Michaela’s school which was good. I gained a fair amount of insight into techniques which will help Michaela. By 11 o’clock I was hiding my huge yawns behind my paper. I was so tired and that was thanks to you know who!

This evening Jonathan started up with his new rugby club. There are mostly New Zealand players in this club. He came home from practice tired and with scratches on his shoulders from the scrum machine, but happy none the less that the season has started again for him. As Johnny was playing taxis tonight, I was left to do the evening routine of rounding up the cows, feeding and locking up all the animals for the night. The ducks are doing so well. They have grown somewhat and aren’t so fragile anymore. I decided that they should graduate into their own enclosure tonight instead of being in with the chooks. I’m a bit worried they will get cold, but they have wood shavings to lie on and each other in a warm cardboard box so they should be okay. The chickens obediently waddled into the night pen and so all was under control with the animals.

I’m off to watch “Farmer wants a wife” and then to catch the sandman. Goodnight!

27th march 2009

Last night we worked on the next kitchen cupboard. I replaced the edging on the shelves during the course of the day so that Johnny only needed to put the hinges back and finish sealing off with the silicone. We finished that cupboard and it was a good feeling to be able to transfer some crockery into them. Now it looks like my cupboard. Sometimes I look at all the projects to be done in our house and it’s easy to become overwhelmed. Remembering all that has been accomplished helps a lot and makes it exciting to reach the next goal we set.

My bookshelf is up at last and today I will unpack my boxes filled with books. I have so many books and I cannot bring myself to let them go. I mean how can one toss out knowledge? The world book encyclopedias which cost so much back in SA have just sat like ornaments on the book shelf in Australia. With the constant availability of the internet at our fingertip, these books have become obsolete.

The mornings are fresh and cool. Each morning I think about the approaching winter, the warm fireplace and what life will be like in this home during the cold months?

The cows graze all day long and occasionally pause to look around and listen to different noises. They are putting on weight daily. Each morning they wait patiently by the paddock gate to be let out. Michaela enjoys doing this chore and I watch from a distance as she attends to the cows, chickens and ducks. My loyal farm hand!



28th March 2009

Another Saturday morning rolls around. This morning I woke to a soft pitter patter of raindrops on the roof. Looking outside the sun was shining but the sky was grey and ready to open up any minute. I sent Michaela to let the animals out quickly before the heavy rain started. The cows actually galloped out the gate and gave a quick kick in the air, almost as if they were excited about going out into the big paddock. They are strange creatures!

We got to see the first snake tonight. It was just a baby but looked like a brown snake. I will have to look up in my book to confirm. It wasn’t very big. What worries me is that Momma might be around somewhere???? Well, he/she is dead as a doorknob now and hopefully Momma, if around moves on out.

We had another wonderful evening with friends visiting the farm. Saying goodbye tonight, we looked up at the wide open sky. What a beautiful evening it was. The clouds that formed throughout the day had disappeared. I only wish I could capture that view in a painting or photo, and what an amazing one it would be. I have never seen such beautiful skies before.

I got an email from the local horse riding school to confirm Michaela is booked in for this Thursday after school. She is delighted! Things are slowing falling into place and routines are being established again – it’s a great feeling. Jonathan was supposed to play his first rugby game tomorrow but we’ve decided to give him some more time to practice first, hopefully by next week he will be ready.

The kids are watching “Happy Feet”, farmer John is in dreamland and I have just finished making jelly for the children tomorrow. I have unpacked all my plastic ware and am having so much fun re-discovering things. There have been boxes that I hadn’t unpacked from when we first arrived as I didn’t have any space. Well that problem is history now. Last night I made some strawberry yogurt and it turned out wonderfully. It’s Johnny’s birthday tomorrow – my husband turns 43. Hopefully I will wake earlier than him to make him a good breakfast in bed. It’s going to be hard as he’s usually up with the worms!

29th March 2009

Well, true to my word I woke bright and early to make my husband breakfast in bed. After presents were given and coffees were drunk, I headed to the shops and Johnny worked on fixing up the pump for the kennels which wasn’t working. He’s so handy this husband of mine! The wiper sniper packed up too during the course of the week and so he worked on fixing that too. He got the sniper working to finish the verge grass and then it decided to die again. Apparently, something to do with the carburetor??? So annoying, seeing it’s only two months old!! That’s another project for this coming week though.

During my shopping outing I found such a funny candle for Johnny’s cake. It read “over the hill, I’m too pooped to party”. I thought it would make him laugh.

After a nice lunch with friends, we went for a walk to see how the animals were doing. I speak so nicely to the chickens each day and ask for some eggs but am yet to see any. My guess is if and when they start to lay I probably won’t find them in time and they will go off before I see them! Hopefully this won’t happen but I’m bound to have a mishap or two as this is my first lot of chooks. I’ve subscribe to a “chicken keeping secrets” website and they post newsletters out every week. Hopefully I can pick up some nice tips here about chicken keeping. The ducks are the funniest creatures. They are outgrowing the makeshift “dam” so quickly and will soon need a bigger “dam.” They run in and out of the new water and then chase each other around and then repeat the whole process again, quacking loudly. They don’t like to be separated either and quack loudly if you pick the one up and start to walk away. Well that’s another weekend behind us.

30th March 2009

It’s Monday again. We had a very overcast morning this morning and even a dribble of rain. As I expected the rhythm of our days is starting to revolve around the small group of animals we now have. Johnny dipped the cows for various pests this evening. We are not to sure about the weight of the cows. The mix ratio of the dip varies and is decided by the weight of the cow. Now tell me, how does one weigh the cow – I’m thinking it has to be estimation. I suggested we ask the man across the way with the bulls, but Mr. Independent decided he would just try himself. It’s like walking on a tightrope with your eyes closed and hopefully your foot lands in the right place. So, the many roles we assume during the course of our farm experience just expanded to apprentices vets!!!! Johnny and I are really from pioneering stock.

I sprayed some more poison on the weeds that were sprouting again. Was it only last week Johnny had cleared this spot of weeds? It’s hard to imagine how fast they grow! The fire we lit to burn some branches, was amazingly still smoldering this evening. I love the smell of wood burning and it really adds to the ambience of farm life.

Moving on into the kitchen as the dusk grew darker and we could no longer work outside. My window sill is at long last covered with a coat of undercoat after first receiving another sanding. I have just the right curtain to put up in the window and am really excited to see the progress being made. Tomorrow I will start looking for a rod. I’m working on getting quotes for granite tops, and making headway there too. We did some more silicone sealing on the last area in the kitchen. I’ve got a love/hate relationship with that silicone. It is the messiest product around. Johnny fills the gap and leaves me to do the running in. Of course, nothing works better than your bare finger. It is messy. None the less it’s done and dusted!

31st March 2009

Today I have no motivation I’m afraid. My enthusiasm is lacking terribly. Everything seemed a chore to the highest degree. While cleaning the kitchen very begrudgingly, I glanced over to where I could usually see the chickens pecking in the ground and thought I could see them on the wrong side of the fence. Thinking my eyes were playing games on me, I went out to investigate. The chooks were on the wrong side of the fence and after chasing them around for awhile the one chicken made its way back through the fence and thus showing me the hole. A massive big hole, that I’m sure was not there before! How and who made it? Well I was exhausted now chasing those silly chooks so I plugged up the hole and made my way back inside.

This afternoon when Johnny arrived home I was filled with renewed energy much to my delight and straight after dinner we all got stuck into the garden. We finally started moving the great big pile of dried out branches that we had cut down many weeks ago. Iris had passed a comment, that she hoped we were going to burn that pile soon. Well that makes two of us Iris – it a thorn in my side too! We had to wait for the wood to dry out though. Only three trailer loads were transported to the bonfire area but at least it is a start. The fire was the fiercest we had made yet. The yellow flames of the fire licked the air with its tongue. The sky was filled with tiny lights being tossed into the atmosphere for a few seconds. When the dried out leaves fell into the fire it converted into the most amazing and scary site I’ve seen in a fire yet. This massive column of flames stretching up to the heavens, dead straight at some times, almost as if something invisible was pulling or sucking it up. Other times it danced in the air licking any way it pleased. The heat created from the fire was so intense you could not stand very close to it. The good part was that due to the dryness of the wood, the fire burned fiercely but was over quickly.

As it grew darker we headed back to the house. I laid out the protective material over the counters and Johnny sanded the joints in the wall and proceeded to paint the window sill at long last. I’ve settled on a small decorative frill for a curtain here as I don’t want to close off that beautiful view of the paddocks.

So while Johnny worked on the painting, Michaela and I sat on the kitchen floor building puzzles and keeping him company. So for a day that started off badly, it ended off rather nicely.

Ist April 2009

This morning I went down to open up for the cows and in their water trough was the largest cane toad I’ve seen yet. He was at the bottom of the bath at first and so I rushed back to get my camera. Take note of the glands behind his head. These are what store the poison. He sure is strange looking. I took so many shots of him he must have thought he was on the cat walk!!!!

My darling husband caught me out today with an April fool’s joke. He calls me up and says to me “Do you know why the black cow is so fat?” I thought about that and replied no. “It’s because it’s pregnant!” he says…… Well, that statement had me going. Suddenly I thought a baby calf so soon, how can that be and wasn’t the cow a steer????? While I was sorting this lot out in my head, he says “April fool’s.” Ha Ha Ha. He really had me going for awhile. The blokes at work had caught him out with the same thing.

Johnny had a safety meeting after work so that meant Mom was taxi tonight for Jonathan’s rugby training. We quickly attended to animals and then rushed off to get him there on time after spending the late afternoon moving some more of the branch pile to the back. It’s going to take awhile to get all of it burnt. Slowly but surely we will do it! Just as Johnny tells me all the time. How does one eat an elephant???? It’s one spoon at a time.

I’m feeling ill right now. I think I’m overtire from a few late nights. Its bath and snooze time for me.

2nd April 2009

I opened my eyes this morning to heavy rain. Did I have to get out of my warm bed? It was raining cats and dogs. I stuck my nose out the door to see my darling chickens had escaped the run again and were happily scratching on the wrong side of the fence! They could just stay there as I wasn’t going out in the rain just yet.

The rain continued to pelt down and the news reported some flash floods up the north coast. It’s supposed to ease off tomorrow or so. Well with the rain set in today that meant no fires, no washing, and no garden chores – what was I to do? Johnny came home early as their workshop was getting too much water coming in and so, we decided to go do some shopping at the local hardware.

Michaela’s horse riding was cancelled due to the arena being a pool of mud. She didn’t take to kindly to Mother Nature spoiling her plans and was in an instant bad mood. Earlier on today on our shopping spree, we had found a net which hangs from the ceiling to cover her at night – something like a mosquito net. She has wanted one of these for awhile so that lifted the sulk and all was forgotten.

This evening the ducks graduated into a new swimming hole – they are growing so fast (from a bottom of a budgie cage to the bottom of the cat cage – much bigger and deeper.) They love it. It’s so great to watch them enjoy the water. The stick their heads under and try to dive. I made the hens some soft roosting boxes too out of an old plastic cat cage that I found in the garden, filled it up with wood shavings and tried to coax them onto it. I’m hoping they will lay the eggs there in the mornings. They are unfortunately not interested in my makeshift boxes and didn’t pay too much attention in this direction. It’s so frustrating. Johnny says they better start laying soon, or they’ll be in the pot! The cows have spent the day in the rain and they look rather somber and sorry for themselves. Hopefully the sun will be out again tomorrow. I miss the sun although all the tanks have appreciated the fill. Even the tanks by the kennels are overflowing.

Tonight, because of the rain I’m sure, our temperature dropped considerable, 21˚ in fact. Now I know that’s not cold, but any reason to light our first fire in the fireplace is good enough for me. My eager son collected wood from the shed and successfully made our first fire inside. The flames warmed the house wonderfully. I look forward to using it more often in the future. We sure will need it.

3rd April 2009

The rain is still pelting down. I am so over this rain now. Nothing is drying on my indoor line, and to top off the situation I discovered I have two leaks in my roof. Glorious! As I look out the door this morning with a scowl on my face, I see one black hen has flown the coop again! The same one as yesterday. This is a hen of distinction. The other three are content to stay together, however she is not. She insists on being on the other side of the fence. Boundary issues I’d say. I decided to let her be. If she wanted to be alone and in the rain, she would get her way as I wasn’t up to chasing her again. I scouted from the porch and saw her through the day. She is well. So what if she is wandering!!!!

I’ve finally caught up with my household chores today but somehow the achievement hasn’t made a difference to my mood. I’m filled with a sense of overwhelming doubt again about how long it will take us to renovate this old farmhouse. Suddenly I find myself longing for busy malls, fast lifestyles, latest fashions and all life’s mod con’s – all the things I wanted to run away from a short while ago. It’s amazing how when things happen –i.e. a leaky roof, you almost get derailed from your goals. It’s like a huge wet blanket that falls onto you and it’s hard to stay focused. I know my mood is sure to change as it always does and my formal zeal will carry me on. Two years from now, I’ll look back on these entries and probably laugh at it all. My thoughts take me to the song that Annie sings. “The sun will come out tomorrow.” I know this is a very gloomy end to chapter three – sorry folks.

MY HEART, MY HOME. – yes I’ve found a title for this diary.

1 March 2009

This weekend has been productive. Today was very hot, 35 degrees at one point. I must be acclimatizing as it doesn’t seem to bother me that much. Apart from having no energy, it’s not that bad. This area is much hotter than Brisbane but the evenings are cool which is nice. People say if you have a wet summer, which we did, you have a very cold winter. Hmm…. I’m not ready for winter yet, but I heard someone say today that today is the first day of autumn????

I finally got around to spraying those ghastly toads with the dettol on Iris’s advice and she is so right. They run a mile. Let’s hope they will stay away too.

Johnny put up my mirror today; it is so nice to have some familiar things around again. We still have heaps to unpack but are well on the way.

Saturday afternoon we got a very disappointing phone call from the lady who was going to sell us the puppy. Well, apparently her niece came around that day and fell in love with both of the puppies left and took them. So we slipped up as we hadn’t put a deposit down. It just happened so quickly and I had spoken to her on Friday and we were planning on going up there today. Sad luck so they say. Perhaps it’s a blessing in disguise. Personally, I’m not really ready for another responsibility yet and a puppy is very demanding. With the children away for most of the day, it will be me left to comfort and play with the pup. The plan now goes back to the previous lady whom I must now phone and find out if her dog’s litter has arrived. They were due to arrive at the end of February.

We pruned more trees today and carted the branches to the mould that is growing at the back. Will these branches ever come to an end……We are trying to make a decision about buying a tractor, but it’s proving to be quite a challenge. Do you go new or second hand???? I think going new is the better choice but it obviously means more dollars at the end of the day. A good investment, no doubt. Decisions, decisions.

Yesterday I saw our first Kookaburra sitting in the Christmas tree. I’ve heard him lots of times but never seen him come so close. I hope he comes back to visit again. He is so beautiful.

2 March 2009

We had a very interesting day today. Johnny decided that we should visit the Beaudesert cattle and pig auction to see what the going prices are for these creatures, and hence decided to take the day off from work. It was lovely having him at home and we had a slow start to the morning. During my morning ritual of making beds I found a huge huntsman spider right in the middle of my pillow! I flipped out, not because I’m afraid of these creatures but because of its location. It could have crawled over us during the night and I wouldn’t have even known. In the rental I grew quite accustomed to these spiders as they were plentiful, being close to a part of bush, however they stayed downstairs and were nowhere by my bedding. They are harmless to humans but they look ominous enough. Oh, I still get cold shivers down my spine when I think about it. Needless to say we squashed him quickly.

As I was contemplating where the spider’s family might be, I saw my new dirt bin arriving on my driveway. This took my mind off the spider for awhile and I forgot about him and his family members.

Johnny took the fly screens off on the sliding doors today which was wonderful. I could finally get behind them and clean the windows. I don’t understand how these people who use to stay here thought. Did they not ever clean the windows????? The fly screens were pop riveted onto the doorframe. There was no way on God’s green earth that anyone could get behind them without taking them off, and clearly they haven’t been in a long while. Johnny changed all the light switch fitting in the kitchen which is so nice. He also started filling sealer into all the tiny gaps that bugs could creep into and use as hideouts. He got quite far.

About 10.30 we left to go to the auction at Beau desert and boy, was it interesting. I think the locals noticed us right off as the new kids on the block. I happened to be the only lady in a skirt too. So feeling like we were sticking out like sore thumbs, we quickly made our way to the pens where the calves were kept. We studied each animal and tried to look like we knew what we were doing but in fact we were clueless. LOL. Glancing around at the attire of farm folk, I made a mental note never to arrive in a skirt to this event again. I mean what was I thinking??? I overheard one of the fellows ask another one how he was and he point blankly replied. “Bloody hot”. It made me smile because it was a stinker today at 32 degrees and it reminded me of the movie recently showing in the cinema’s called Australia. In the movie there was a harsh reminder of the cruel outback and the hardness of the land and how the men drove the cattle under these conditions. I saw a sticker on a car too, which read, “Thank a farmer for your next meal”. These folk are hardy people and they know just what to look for in cattle breeding. It was a stark reminder of how much we need to learn. I need to do a lot of toughing up aswell. I’m afraid I still have a lot of “princess mentality”. LOL.

The auctioneer began and the bidding started. I listened and watched as he sold off each calf, his rambling, his almost trance-like voice urging higher bids while his practiced eye roved the crowd for any new bidders entering in. He rattled off at sixty to the dozen that I wondered if his throat ever got sore. For a calf, a person could pay anything from $4 to $140, depending on what grade they were. He then moved onto the older ones (grass fed ones) and they ranged up to $260 and then the oldest cows went up to 600, 700. There weren’t too many bidders but all the livestock was sold at the end of the auction which is good news. Nobody went home with what they brought. It was sweltering under the roof of the stalls and I couldn’t wait to move on.

So… that was our first official auction and I think we learnt quite a lot. We headed home, visions of cows roaming the empty paddocks in our heads. I still had lots of questions flying around in my brain. Whether to get calves or grass fed older ones is the question??? The younger ones need to be hand fed for awhile thus costing more, not to mention that they need heaps more attention so the older grass fed ones would be a better option I think. Weighing up both sides I guess it equals out in the end but the younger ones are more work.

Coming home Johnny took me to the tractor shop to show me a similar tractor to the one he’s thinking about getting. We are close to sealing this deal now. I’ll be glad once the machine’s in on our property and we don’t have to weigh up the options any more. The new tractor is more appealing by far and definitely the safer route to go. We stopped off at the vet to get some spray for Michaela’s bugsie. He has picked up one or two flea’s which is so frustrating! The vet gave us some shampoo to use and was very helpful with some tips to catching the stray cat. Apparently I can hire a trap from the council, for a fee of course. I was glad to get some direction on this matter and left the vet with the guinea pig’s shampoo. The cat has been eating all the food I’ve left out for him so that is good that he keeps coming back. He is however coming onto the verandah late at night so we don’t see him.

Bug’s the guinea pig was ever the gentlemen and allowed me to bath him. He looks so ruffled when the bathing was all over. The poor creature. He didn’t sulk this time but shivered for awhile until he warmed up. I used warm water but his little body is not used to the bathing. I’m happy to report he is flea free again. Hallelujah! It will have to be a weekly thing for awhile though so hopefully he doesn’t mind too much.

Tonight Johnny continued working in the kitchen and I made another delicious meal on the gas stove. Hey, I might just like this gas cooking after all. I didn’t take to long to finish the meal which is due to the gas I suppose. It’s much faster. The gas smell isn’t bothering me so much any more.

After supper the last pile of tree prunings was moved to the back and the front garden is clear once again. Tonight I finally found Johnny’s elusive cowboy hat. I went looking in the boxes for a pot lid and there it was staring at me. If it had teeth it would have bitten me. LOL.

3rd March 2009

Today I took some time out to go scrap booking with some friends which was a welcomed change. I’m at long last ready to start my Australian Album. Only 20 months behind now.

Johnny had asked me to stop off at the hardware for some more filler. At Bunning’s I was helped by a very friendly Scottish man who lived in South African for awhile but originates from Glasgow. He was all too happy to chat to me about the beautiful South African landscape and it was nice to talk to him aswell.

The afternoon proved to be quiet and relaxing. Johnny finally put the order through for the tractor and it should be here on Thursday morning sometime. No going back now. 27 hp with a rake, slasher and 4 in 1 bucket, which is used to clamp things and move them around. To think a few months ago this description of a farm machine would have been totally foreign to me but now it’s like I’m an old hat at it. LOL. I know the difference between the horse power and which hp handles what ground. I know all about the slasher and the difference sizes and all the other different attachments one could get. Hmm…. I’m thinking, “I’m not so green anymore, at least with this part”….

Tonight we used the blower to clean up around the paving of the house and Johnny cut down two more trees. These trees are everywhere. We worked in the kitchen for a little while too filling in gaps again and did a little preparation for painting.



5th march 2009

This day was filled with ordinary chores. Cleaning years of neglect was getting me down today, so I decided to have a break from the monotony and read a book instead for awhile. A few days ago I had taken a book from the library on how to buy a horse. I thought I’d do some learning until my mood improved. I was expecting the tractor today as well as the water man. Neither showed and I waited at home all day for them, which frustrated me. Apparently the tractor has arrived but needs a pre- inspection before it get’s delivered, as for the water man, I actually think I got the days mixed up and he might have said Friday. So hopefully tomorrow is the day. On a lighter note I saw or should I say heard a very noisy cookertoo fly out one of the trees this morning while hanging up the washing. They are majestic and I still can’t get over how they fly wild and free in Aussie land. I know people who would pay a pocket for one of them. I will always remember the funny NBS ad on the telly in South Africa.

Even though my mood was dark, I achieved a heap of cleaning and organizing today, but only after my reading session was over, which I thoroughly enjoyed and it definitely helped the cloud to lift. The passage walls and door was attacked with my even growing muscles. I also sorted out a box of paperwork, got some filing done and did some more change of addresses. I phoned the lady with the expectant beagle. The pups were born 10 days ago. I asked if we could come and see them but she said she doesn’t allow anybody to see them until the injections are over with. She told me that she would email me a photo as soon as she could. I hope she doesn’t let me down. I’ve decided that if this deal falls through, it’s puppy world over in Underwood, here we come. We won’t be able to get a beagle but a jack Russell is second choice. I’m also contemplating a sheepdog, but we will see what comes. Jonathan has already decided on the name. It is to be “Rusty”, hopefully it is a male. I also unpacked two more boxes of shoes today. I am running out of space to put the shoes, boy, I have a lot. I need to get ruthless and chuck out the ones we haven’t used in a year. They just take up space anyway. De- cluttering is much easier nowadays. I guess I feel life must be simpler and de-cluttering is therapy in a way.

Johnny got stuck into the pruning again around the kennels and checked out the water tanks down there. It shouldn’t be too hard to convert the building into a guest cottage seeing the electricity and water is all set up. I can’t wait for the day it is complete. It is looking much better down at the kennel now that the trees are all cut back and the sunlight is getting in.

Today I noticed the beautiful roses were all blooming. I have a red, yellow, white and a forth that hasn’t a rose open yet. Somebody lovingly planted these roses and paid a lot of attention to them once upon a time. The stems are thick and the roses all smell wonderful. I really got a chance to “smell the roses” this afternoon.

7th March 2009

What a busy time we had today. Johnny went off to work and I was finally expecting the water man to arrive aswell as the tractor. True to his word this time the water man arrived at 7.30 with an apology for not pitching the other day. He “forgot”. How can you run a business and forget an appointment? I was suspicious immediately. Anyway he proceeded to do the job of cleaning the water tanks which I was grateful for. This should be a yearly occurrence according to him however the council recommends every two to three year. As he was finishing up, the all important tractor arrived at last. What excitement all over a tractor! LOL. Jonathan was longing to ride it but I was a bit nervous so told him to wait until his father was home. Johnny, of course, was leaving work immediately.

The following hours were passed with major landscaping taking place. My, the only word I have in my mind to describe this machine is “brutal”. It knocks everything out of its way with ease. When I think how many back breaking hours Johnny has spent with the wiper sniper only to achieve a fraction of what the tractor has in mere minutes. Oh, what an exhilarating afternoon it was. Iris was so interested in our tractor that she sent her two young grandchildren over to come and look. I’m sure the whole neighborhood knows about our new tractor now. The remaining bush in the chook pen was erased so quickly and we can see the chicken hutch now at last. Jonathan is very comfortable on top of the tractor and loves it. The seat is soft and spongy and to me it’s a real BMW.

Yesterday Johnny replaced the mesh on the fly screen in our bedroom with a new metal type of mesh. This choice is much safer and more durable. I was worried that it would not turn out right (seeing that this was the first time Johnny had attempting this feat); it seemed extremely bumpy and not stretched enough when it was being fitted. Johnny did a fantastic job and it’s up and looking good without any flaws at all. The ripples all came out. I gave the tracks around the sliding glass door a thorough clean and the whole door materialized into its full function at last. No more boxes full with books to block up holes and as the Aussies say “no more worries”.

I’m still hunting for a tree to hang a tyre swing on. Although there are lots of trees, they are not suitable for a swing. I’ll have to take another walk around and another look – there has to be one. Johnny opened up the pathway to the top dam today and it looks just about at deep as the bottom one. I need to get some boats so the children can enjoy floating around on them. We saw some ducks on the top dam, but unfortunately scared them off as we approached. With Johnny, cutting down all the grass the birds think its heaven. To them it’s a smorgasbord of delight. They swoop down behind the tractor and collect the juicy morsels that the machine has revealed. I finally laid my lounge rug down and the house feels more homely today.

9th March 2009

Monday mornings are great. They always fill me with new energy to do what must be done. The children were eating breakfast this morning and the guinea pig was too, I must add. He is adorable – Johnny says Bugsy’s forgotten he’s a guinea pig and thinks he’s human. Looking at this lot this morning, I think the same. When you call his name he cocks his head to the side like he’s listening to you.

The news this morning reported some expected high winds to this area. There is a warning out for the tropical Cyclone Hamish which has developed up north and may threaten a few coastal towns up there. I would really love to know who gets the job of naming Mother Nature’s wrath. Hamish is such an unusual name. We have had some strong winds here but nothing to worry about. Hanging up the washing this morning was great. My wind chimes were finally getting some action and the best part is the washing was dry in two ticks. The sky looks over cast and we possible might get some rain later on. The one water tank is only a third full so this is good news. Johnny replaced the gutters and filters to each water tank this weekend, so everything is good to go. Hopefully we get enough rain to make a difference to the level of the water.

10th March 2009

The wind howled all through the night. I heard a few small branches fall onto the roof, which was a bit hair raising. We had some heavy bouts of rain so the tanks are filling up fast. The weather is really strange though. It can be howling one minute and then all of a sudden stop and then its dead quiet and then the next second the heavens open for two minutes and then its over, and then the whole cycle starts again. When I got up this morning I saw the cat stalking outside my bedroom window, I do hope he’s not eating the birds. I really wish I could trap him. The cage is not working and although he is coming back each day to eat the food I don’t get a chance to trap him. I will have to enquire about the trap from the council.

Last night due to the rainy weather we couldn’t go out into the garden so we got stuck into the kitchen instead. Painting and cleaning out cupboards. Johnny stripped all the hinges on the big grocery cupboard and I scrubbed them good and solid. We used silicone around all the joins too.

The evening brought more light rain and it’s due to stick around for a few days. No washing to be done I’m afraid. The good news is that the cyclone Hamish has been down grading from a category 4 to a category 2 and is moving away from coastal villages out to sea. Goodbye Hamish!

11th March 2009

This morning was raining cats and dogs. My water tanks must be filling nicely. After taking the kids to the bus stop, I came back to discover the ride on had been left out in the front garden. This surely can’t be good for the mower. Jonathan had been using it last night and had hooked up the trailer on it too.

I grabbed an old raincoat and went out in the pouring rain to see if I could move it under cover. The seat was sopping wet and my behind got drenched! I started it up and for a few second tried to decide on the quickest, safest route to take. This decision turned out to be a wrong one as I was to find out. I needed to make a u-turn and go along side the house to the garage. So, I proceeded to putt along and realized at the last possible moment that it was going to be a very sharp turn and I would probable not be able to turn fully without going into the garden bed with all the very soft soil, I must add. You can imagine the next part of this story…. The trailer jack knifed and the back wheels of the ride on sunk into the garden bed soil and we were going nowhere fast. I was spinning up the sand like nobody’s business! Frustrated and with a wet behind I stomped into the house to call Johnny with my sad case of affairs. He told me to release the trailer or maybe find some plastic to cover it until he and his muscle came home later on tonight. Well, I had already thought of those ideas but it is easier said than done. The trailer was not budging. I gave up after two or three attempts and decided the dam thing can just stay there. I went inside to change my clothes instead. A little while later the sun decided to show it lovely face at last, for a while at least, so hopefully the ride on will not get another soaking.

We seem to be very good at getting stuck in the mud on this farm. Thank goodness, Andrew wasn’t around to see this one. I’m sure he would laugh his head off just like the kookaburra did which was sitting in the tree above watching me.

This evening brought lots and lots of progress in the kitchen and far paddock and the events of the morning were forgotten. Johnny started cutting the grass with the tractor. This would be the first cut with our tractor. The grass was wet and lay in clumps as it was cut. The smell of freshly cut grass is wonderful! The window sill in the kitchen was sanded down and the there was sawdust everywhere. Not a very nice job for sure. I looked out the door just now and saw the most amazing sky. The clouds are cascaded across the sky and a very full moon is sitting in the centre. It is beautiful. There seem to be amazing cloud formations after a bout of extreme weather conditions.

12th March 2009

Today I ran some errands and did some shopping for a dinner party I am planning tomorrow night. I entered a plumbing supplies shop looking for a strainer which sits on top of the entry hole in the water tank. It looks like our tanks size isn’t standard as this was the third place I had tried. They told me I’d have to come back tomorrow as they don’t have stock. With the shopping over I quickly made some lunch and made my way to a memorial service of a dear friend’s father. It’s been some time since I’ve attended a funeral and it was very heart sore. The minister spoke well and the chapel was full of family and friends. I found my thoughts going back to my Mom’s funeral and how difficult those first few weeks after the funeral were. Nothing and nobody can prepare you for dealing with death. It’s a hard, cold fact of life. Life is so short, how important it is to live your dreams make a difference in somebody’s/anybody’s life, love life and follow your heart desires. There is no time like the present and you only get one chance at it. So many times we put off that thing for a better day only to realize that day is elusive and we never reach it. Pondering on these thoughts I drove home in a slight drizzle. The rain is wonderful. It has cooled down the temperatures so nicely. By the time I reached home it had stopped. The children arrived home from school and were ravenous as per usual. I put supper on and then convinced Jonathan to go out and finish the paddock slashing that Johnny had started the previous day, only to discover a flat tyre not too long after he started. How irritating this was! A brand new tractor. I could only think he had ridden over a piece of metal I’d see lying in the paddock yesterday. I could kick myself now for not picking it up there and then. I didn’t understand how this could be the reason though. The tires are large and tough. So being Mrs. Relentless did not want to give up yet and decided to use the ride on and go and cut the front garden – at least we could get that done. Hooking up the trailer, we started clearing more cutting lying around. Jonathan had to get off and so switch the ride on off, only to find it wouldn’t start again when he climbed back on. It truly felt like everything was working against us today. Johnny returned from the garage with the tyre sorted out. There wasn’t a puncture which was great news but still an unexplained leak. It was unfortunately too dark by that time to go out into the paddocks again, so we headed on inside to finish working on the kitchen cupboards. I’m very happy to report one big cupboard is finally complete. I unpacked four boxes and finally have my computer table back for the correct use.

13th March 2009

My dinner party was an awesome celebration and went off beautifully made complete with my very own flowers in the table centre pieces. There were 10 people in total, so in order to cater for everyone, I brought in a second dinning room table for us all to sit around. One of the wonderful facts about living in an old farm house is the space. We were all very comfortable and the food was plentiful.

While there are a few things about living on a farm that I really would prefer to live without (one being the incredible humidity and definitely the flies), I realize that no place is ever going to be perfect, and I wouldn't change a single thing. Alright that is not completely true, I would have liked the pests a distant memory by the time we arrived but I survived didn’t I? Some days have been challenging to say the least but all in the name of growth. Sitting around a full table along with beautiful friends and family last night, my heart was full to the brim with happiness. Our dream was finally being fullfilled. It seems like our whole life we have wanted to get away from the traffic and smog, try and slow down the pace of life, grow our own veggies and just generally improve the quality of life and now the time is here at last. What more could I ask for but to share this amazing experience with friends along the way and have more than enough space to do it on too.

14th March 2009

We woke this morning bright and early, everybody a bit bleary eyes from the late night before. Jonathan and his friend went grass ski-ing. They had found a box and rope and tied it behind the ride-on. Up and down they raced, laughing and having the greatest fun. The heavens decided to open, but this didn’t deter them in the least. I served a full farmhouse breakfast made up of leftovers from last night with all the rest. A real bubble and squeak meal. We ate on the verandah and enjoyed watching a kookaburra who had come to see if there were a few morsels to spare.

Mid morning our calf’s arrived. There was excitement galore. One is black and one is white. T-bone and mince, as Johnny has so apt’ly named them. The old bath was dragged into the paddock and filled up with water. The calfs were dropped off and I mean really dropped off. The delivery man told them to jump off the back of the ute. I actually thought they would injure themselves in the process but all was well and after a few failed attempts at getting off they made it safely to the ground in one piece. We said our “thank you” and “goodbyes” to Tom the delivery man and went to watch the cow’s settle in. They seem quite comfortable but still need to to get accustomed to us.


This afternoon, we went off to buy some grains for the cows and ended up coming home with four chooks too, Annebelle, Angel, Roxy and Lulu (thanks to Michaela) two austrolops – these are black chickens, and the other two are laying hens (brown ones- don’t know the breed). Needless to say, the chook pen isn’t complete yet but I suppose there’s no better inspiration to finish a job that when you look at them each day. In the mean time they can live in one of the fenced off areas. We had great plans to get stuck into the garden again this afternoon, but at last check Johnny was on the couch cutting down a forest. I can do with a little afternoon siesta myself right now as my eyelids are feeling rather heavy too. Johnny and Jonathan are off to watch the Durban shark’s (super 14) play the Brisbane reds tonight. I think Jonathan has been waiting for this game since we arrived in Australia. As for me and Micky, well it’s an appointment with a long over due bubble bath, DVD and a big bowl of popcorn. Nothing like a girl’s night in!

15th March 2009

06/12/08 – 15/03/09

Today was a very sad day for us. We said goodbye to Bug’s. My suspicions that he wasn’t 100% a few days ago proved to be correct.

Johnny dug a grave out by one of the pine trees and after we buried him we said a short prayer of thanks for the short time we had with Bug’s and asked Jesus to take care of him for Michaela. Tears flowed fast and free from Michaela’s eyes and even I battled to hold back. Jonathan was somber and Johnny quickly went out to dig a small grave. Why does death of loved pets have to be so heart wrenching. It almost wants to make you say – it just too painful and I will never have another! But then you do, don’t you because life goes on. Birth and death are part of life and try as we might we can’t stop it.

Farewell Bugs, rest in peace.

The day progressed with Michaela moping around. She was inconsolable to say the least and every now and then would burst into tears. At one point she told me she feels like digging him up just to hold him one more time. So I thought let’s try and do something positive and asked her to help me make a wooden sign to put over Bugsy’s grave. I thought this would give her a focus and in turn offer a means of saying another… goodbye. We made a very primitive, but successful cross to plant above our dearly loved and departed guinea pig. Since then she seems to be more peaceful about the whole situation and the tears have subsided finally.

Johnny’s having another siesta on the couch. These naps are becoming a comfortable habit.

Late afternoon brought more work, but in between we found a suitable tree for the tyre swing at long last. I don’t understand how I didn’t see it before. The swing was assembled in a few minutes and the kids tried it out with big smiles all over their faces. What a weekend this was.