here it comes....

summer that is... I think I am not alone in this part of the country to be really really dreading this summer. They are predicting hotter and drier weather than last year (and therefore probably bigger and worse fires than last year - which killed about 200 people and wiped out townships).

We have had already a few days of over 30C temperatures, and we are only in mid-spring. I am crossing all my fingers and toes that we get a cold snap, and some good rain, before it really hits us early next year. Its hard for us (time and money) - you can only do so much in a few months to prepare (we ideally need more water tanks, pumps, roof catchment to catch the rain when it falls etc etc.). The garden is already drying out, and I will have to water (or not, we don't really have the water to spare...), so decisions have to be made, keep the garden alive and hope we will still get some decent rain before summer is officially here, or try my 'hardening' method, and just see what lives and what dies....


So, the garden. I have been propagating vegetable seedling, and now have 35 tomatoes almost ready to go into their (dry) beds. Pumpkins ready to go into a pile of horse manure that I just have to collect. I have been buying herbs and flowering plants (to attract the bees which hopefully I will be able to get next year) and cutting lots of long grass for mulch. Its all a slow process, made slower when you have a few 'helpers' (especially when now I have to watch my 'helpers' to make sure they don't get sunburnt or find a snake to 'play' with etc).

The hens are laying well. I am still (not so patiently) waiting for my new girls (the young Barnevelders) to start laying - can't be long now... One of our girls - a leghorn x light sussex is an amazing layer. Here is one of her very large eggs compared to a 'normal' egg.


We had a bit of a party to celebrate Brad's birthday yesterday, which was lovely, and we finally started up the trusty pizza oven. There is something simply beautiful about pizza cooked in one of these ovens, and the company was good too! We all had a wonderful time, even though it was a bit hot. Our daughter gave some family the 'guided' tour of the gardens and the chickens, and impressed her aunties and uncles on her knowledge of the plants in garden. She asked her aunty if she had chickens, and then said 'oh, so you have to buy your eggs?' LOL

So anyway, here is a picture of me and the 'kids' (human and goat!). Little Gypsy is a real sweetie, and so full of energy. The poor alpacas that share her paddock don't know what has hit them (well literally its Gypsy!). She jumps on them while they are sleeping and head butts them. Poor boys! At least there are 4 of them and only one of her!

Perfect

How else can you describe pizzas cooked in an oven you built by sheer physical labour and mud (plus just a little straw and sand)?

We had a great day on sunday to celebrate our daughter's second year. The weather was pretty good for August in this part of the world, the food was great and so was the company. Unfortunately 'granddad' couldn't make it, so I hope he likes the photos.

Our little girl is not real used to crowds so at one stage she was a little overwhelmed by it all, but she did enjoy her self, and loved taking her cousin to see the animals. Now we are looking forward to her second birthday in only a few weeks.

Brad being the perfectionist that he is made her just a fantastic birthday cake - a wombat. She just couldn't quite believe her eyes in the morning when we showed it to her, she then tried to pat and kiss it!


I didn't quite finish her top that I'm making her, but its not far off being finished.

Well, its lovely day here today - first fine day in ages, so I'm madly washing clothes, tomorrow I'm planning on planting out as many trees as possible as I'm worried that spring is here, and the poor things wont have time to get their roots in the ground before summer comes.

We are planning an extravagant vegy garden/greenhouse/chook tractor system. No doubt we will start on that before we finish off some of the other started jobs! Ah the joy of being dreamers!

Two

Can´t quite believe it, but our little girl turned 2 yesterday. The terrible twos are now upon us, and we will have to wait and see how it will all go. I´ve read that 3 is worse, so we are in for a fun filled next few years. Our little girl is now in a ´real´ bed, can say 3 word sentences, says lots of words, especially useful for demanding food etc. I think she demands more of my time now, than as a newborn, although she has always been a needy child, we now realise this, since the baby is just the opposite. Very calm, chilled out, and patient.

We are having a bit of a party for her on sunday, and we will be cranking up the pizza oven - SO EXCITED! We fired it up again, and it heated right through this time. No major cracking (cracking is a normal part of a clay oven, as clay shrinks and expands). Pizza trays and peel (the thing to put in and pull out the trays) are ready, now its just a matter of days...


A bit of stress at the farm at the moment is that there are 2 vicious dogs killing sheep on nearby farms. These dogs appear to be similar to Rottweillers, big and good at killing. There is going to be a bit of hunt for them this weekend, as they are decimating sheep herds. Hope they catch them. I am the last person to want to see an animal dead, but I worry about my 2 alpacas and my arthritic old goat Archie. They would not have any chance against such dogs. I am losing sleep over it, and my heart stops when I go and check on them, I don´t want to find them all mauled... Here are my beautiful boys.


Our scythe finally arrived! We ordered it from Scythe supply in Maine USA. We can´t wait to use it. Its been custom made to fit Brad, but I should be able to use it too, but with the kids around its not really a child friendly thing to do, so I guess Iĺl have to wait till they are bigger.


I´m frantically working on a top for our little girl. But I really want to have it done by her party on sunday. No way though, I would need some sort of miracle! Its a modified version of the standard top down raglan, but below the arms, I´m doing a feather and fan lace pattern. Its knitted in some handspun and dyed mohair. Depending on how much yarn is left, it will either have long or short sleeves.


I also have to sit down at the spinning wheel, its been too long now, and since I got some new books on spinning I want to have a play... Soon I hope.

Anyway, lots of food prep to do before now and sunday, will post pics of pizzas (well if they turn out that is)...

Fun with mud

Well, typical to our methods we have gone off and started a new project (we have been working on our other started projects too!). We decided to make a mud pizza oven for our daughter's birthday in mid august. On saturday we mixed up the first layer of clay to put over the oven. It was fun and a bit of a practice run for when we start making mudbricks for the house.

First we built a dome out of sand and shaped it how we want the oven to be.


Then we mixed clay, sand and water on a big sheet of plastic, till it changed consistency.

Next we applied the clay mix to the sand dome, which we had covered in wet newspaper. Our mix was a bit wet, so we were not able to apply it like little bricks.


This first layer ended up being about 2-2.5cm (an inch) thick.


We will add another layer of clay of a similar thickness after a week or so. After the photo was taken we put finger indents all over the surface to help the next layer stick, and also increase the surface area so that it will dry better. Then there will be a thick layer of clay, sand and straw, and then a render. Once its fairly dry we can dig out the sand, and hope that the whole thing wont cave in.... Then it'll be yummy wood fired pizzas every weekend (until the novelty wears off!).

Not much crafting lately. Have spun and plyed 2 bobbins worth of grey mohair that was given to me, and have been contemplating doing some dyeing. But the garden is calling to me, despite the horrible weather today. Now I had better go and take the dog for a walk...