Trily Cottage

Where oh where did the last 5 months go?

2011-08-16T18:00:00.002+10:00

Evie is just past 5 months. Where the hell did the time go? I can not believe how quickly she is growing up and changing. My little pixie is now rolling over and experimenting with solids (eating my food!) and getting more adorable every day.

Thanks to her presence things on the homesteading front have been a tad quiet. The winter garden is plodding along producing some spinach, lots of parsley and plenty of scallions but unfortunately I was late getting my seedlings started so they are all STILL sitting in their seedling trays at a grand inch and a half high. After months. Next year I definitely need a better greenhouse set up, perhaps something with an automatic mister as remembering to water them for days at a time probably hasn't helped things much.

We also had a bit of a setback the week prior to last when something, presumably a fox, took our three hens. The chooks hadn't been roosting in the hen house for ages, instead choosing to camp out near the back door and we had given up on trying to get them in. The past few nights they had finally been going back into the coop after months of only using it to lay but I had the door off to use as a compost sieve. I guess we had gotten a bit complacent and figured that if they had been safe for this long, there must not be any foxes around. When we went to feed them in the morning there was no sign of them. We finally found one in shreds up the back and never found any sign of the other two. I miss them so much :( We will get more soon, but this time I will be very careful about making sure they are locked up safe at night.

One happy event though was my recent trip to Jamberoo for the Joel Salatin workshop held by RegenAg. Evie and I travelled down on our own, staying the night before and after at my Dad's house nearby. The workshop was great with some very interesting ideas brought up and lots of new people to meet and talk to. Evie was amazing and quiet as a mouse almost the entire time. I was so proud of her! Although his ideas definitely couldn't just be transplanted here, it certainly gave me lots of food for thought and is more encouragement to think outside the box of traditional agriculture.

Oh yeah, and the other thing - I finally finished my PDC so now I can hopefully start getting some clients to design for. I even have business cards and everything :D I just need to get enough confidence in my own skills to promote myself, instead of feeling like I am not worth people actually paying me for my services. Oh well, all in good time. For now I am loving being a mum and making the most of my life in this gorgeous town!

Cooma Community Garden

2011-05-29T11:36:00.006+10:00

One of the biggest challenges of growing food in this climate is the short growing season. Unlike much of Australia we have four distinct seasons with the best one for growing food, summer, being relatively short. Despite this, with careful planning and a protected location it is possible to extend the season and create beautiful productive gardens.

These pictures were taken a couple of months ago at the height of their productivity.

And this here was my addition to an art installation we did. I was pregnant at the time, thus the little pink egg representing Evie :)

Announcing the Arrival of Evelyn Michelle

2011-03-15T17:33:00.002+11:00

Our beautiful daughter arrived in this world one week ago, at 7.35pm on Tuesday 8th March. Labor was 12 hours and I am very pleased to say, completely drug free!!! She weighs 8lb1 (3660g) and is 50cm long. We just came home today and are both doing well, although I am incredibly tired! Very much looking forward to sleeping in my own bed tonight and not being disturbed by nurses/lunch ladies/cleaners etc!!!

The Urban Homestead

2011-02-21T10:49:00.002+11:00

So, I am far too pregnant and whale-like at the moment to bother with a proper post, although I will mention that the garden is growing fairly well despite massive neglect. The chooks have been taking turns going broody and moulting, so we are only getting one egg every day or two but hopefully this will pick up soon. Bubs is due in 3 weeks and I am eagerly awaiting her birth if only so I can pass her big boofheaded self over to her father while I..I dunno. Touch my toes, or sleep on my stomach or do one of those other things I haven't been able to do for ages now!

Anyway, the point of today's post is just a little bit of activism, to protest the absolute ridiculousness of the Dervaes family being, well, idiots. All respect for them is now completely gone! See Sonya's blog at http://permaculturepathways.blogspot.com/2011/02/urban-homesteading-or-pr-101.html for more information.

x Em

Looking Backwards, Looking Forward

2011-01-01T22:26:00.003+11:00

Despite never having been one to really get that excited about the whole NYE celebrations thing, I do tend to become rather reflective at this time of year, much like most people. This post is going to be more for my records than anything else, so feel free to skip it ;)

The past year has definitely been the most memorable of the 25 I have lived so far. We became engaged, then married and in between found out that we were going to become parents. I am sad that the wedding for me was rather overshadowed by the horrible morning sickness I was suffering but then, it was just A DAY and what matters more is every other day of our married life together.

The past year has also been a good one in terms of meeting new people and building friendships and networks in the local area and really settling in to life in Cooma (which we love more and more the longer we live here!)

On the personal achievements front...well I got my Aged Care cert - a requirement for work - which while incredibly easy and boring is still something to add to my resume. For me the most valuable part of it was getting my First Aid certificate again, having let my last one lapse by ah...a few years. Oops. The past few weeks has also seen me digging in and being close to finishing my PDC - it will be very nice to get the actual certificate given that with all my reading and designing previously I know I definitely have the required knowledge and skills! The next goal I am contemplating is to do a Horticulture certificate and work on my knowledge of specific plants - this is definitely my weak area!

On the health front I was starting to do well by increasing my exercise and eating better until bubs and the morning sickness hit! Thankfully as a result of that and my lack of appetite since (my diet these days mostly consists of fruit and milk! yum!) I have continued to lose weight throughout the pregnancy so I have a bit of a 'head start' on the weight loss for once bubs arrives.

So...on to this year. For the first time, I find myself struggling to identify solid goals because what with the little one on the way, I just can not plan anything nor predict what is to come. This year is going to see our life change in the most amazing ways!!! The only thing we CAN accurately predict of course is that there will be many, many sleepless and exhausted days and nights!

Some generalised goals I do have however are:

to continue to improve my health by eating better and exercising more
to increase my knowledge of plants and the local environment
to continue to develop the garden and produce more of our own food
to be frugal and save us enough money as possible by making more things from scratch
to explore alternative employment options including starting my own small Permaculture business
to be the best wife and mother I can be and to cherish every moment with my husband and daughter :)

So here is to 2011, and all the exciting things to come!!!

Our Little Princess

2010-11-04T14:13:00.003+11:00

We took a (rather uncomfortable) trip to Queanbeyan a week or so ago for the 20 week morphology scan. While I didn't enjoy the drive at all (every small bump in the road is noticeable when you have a full bladder in prep for an ultrasound) the result was well worth it. We got to see a very healthy and active bubba with everything where it should be. The most exciting part of course was confirming my gut feeling since we first found out we were expecting - that we are, indeed, having a little girl :D

She was spot on size-wise for dates and we were able to see all her little fingers and toes which was very reassuring.

And here she is!

Now we just have to survive the next 19 or so weeks to actually meet her and see her properly! At least I am past the halfway mark now but I am sure the rest of the pregnancy is going to drag as I get more and more excited.

On the news-other-than-baby front, not a whole lot to report. I have only just started a bunch of seeds but am hoping that they will 'catch up' quickly in the warmer weather. I am really struggling to keep on top of the wedding and bed preparation because I am still so tired from this gorgeous parasite. I got a big pile of bark mulch delivered yesterday though so will be using that and weed mat to try and tidy up out the front around the veggie beds to make it lower maintenance. Hopefully the weather will be nice over the weekend so I can get that done.

On the chookie and duckie front, all is well although we have decided to adopt out the quackers, as cute as they are. There is a local lady who has other poultry who is interested in giving them a home so that is good. She even has a dam so I am sure they will be happier with her :)

Well that is it for now. Off to work, if I can remove this grey kitten from draped over my arm!

Em

Mr and Mrs

2010-09-30T12:53:00.004+10:00

Last Friday was our wedding day and I am glad to say it all went well! The weather was absolutely perfect with warm sun and just a light breeze, the ceremony went well (although there was a bit of giggling on my part because I kept having tears run down my cheeks - blaming preggo hormones lol) and the reception was a success with plenty of yummo food and good company. The only downside to the day was a little bit of "morning" sickness on my part and a cold I am still trying to shake after 3 weeks! Thankfully we had a gap of a few hours between the ceremony and the reception so I was able to rest for a while.

On the baby front, all is going well. I am 16 weeks now and starting to actually look pregnant, not just fat! The morning sickness has finally eased in the past week. I havent been sick in days! YAY! Only a couple more weeks till our next scan when hopefully they will be able to tell if it is a boy or a girl.

The best thing about feeling better (and our week long honeymoon-at-home) is being able to get stuff done in the garden. I am sheet mulching one side of the front yard to put down potatoes and will start planting out a whole bunch of things shortly. I plan on growing lots of corn and spinachey things for the birds to keep them happy. The other side of the front just has some self sown stuff from last season so far. I am yet to plant anything else but that will start in the next few weeks.

Unfortunately the birds seem to be well aware that it is spring time - one of the ducks went clucky and was determined to sit on her nest up in the back junk pile where she had hidden her eggs. After a few days of taking her off the nest she has given up thankfully. One of the chooks however is far more determined! We keep taking her out of the nest box and leaving the lid and doors open so it is bright but she keeps going back. At least we are getting her off long enough that she is eating and drinking.

Well I am off to enjoy this perfect spring weather we have today!

Em

Busy Growing...just not in the garden!

2010-08-25T16:20:00.002+10:00

Troy and I are proud to announce that come March next year we are going to be a family!

I am currently about 11 weeks along and have been doing well with the exception of some rather unpleasant morning/all day sickness over the past few weeks. Thankfully it is starting to ease so I might soon be feeling well enough to get outside and get the garden ready for spring!

I had originally planned on doing a big garden out the back this season but now, keeping in mind how big I will be over summer and how hard bending will be, I have decided to stick to the same front area we used last year as well as the other half of the front yard which I will use for a no-dig potato bed. This will save me spending too much time weeding, plus will keep it safe from the vandals. And by vandals, I mean ducks, of course.

The little escape artists manage to get out every time the wind blows (our gate doesn't latch) and of course as soon as they are free they waddle off down the street, across the road or into the neighbours yard... it is beginning to get frustrating having to herd them back in all the time. I wasn't too concerned when they stuck to our front yard but I worry about them crossing the road. They must be getting some good forage in their wanderings though because the girls are laying like crazy. Unfortunately due to the morning sickness I cant bear the thought/smell of eggs, especially the duck eggs so they are mostly going to waste. I have had a chat to the bloke at the health food store and he is happy to try and sell some of them for me so we will see how that goes.

The chookies are happy friendly little munchkins, also laying well. The only problem we are having is that Gerald, the drake, keeps hassling them. Apparently the two ducks arent enough to satisfy his manly needs. He doesn't seem to have done them any harm yet but I will be keeping a close eye out...

Oh yeah, and less than a month till our wedding. Woot!

2010-06-23T09:43:00.002+10:00

Once again I have been absent for too long but I have a few good excuses. One is that my computer isn't working - am using T's laptop for now. The other is that our darling Ginger Ninja, Loki died and I haven't wanted to come on here and have to write about it. It happened two months ago and I still cant think about it without crying. He was our baby and we both loved him so very much.

As for the good things in life - well, wedding planning is going well but I am starting to get the panicky feeling like I havent done enough yet - we still have 3 months and 1 day to go but I am sure it will pass by before we know it.

The animals are all going well. We adopted a new kitten, Zac, from the RSPCA to try and fill the hole Loki left and to some extent he is succeeding. He is such a cute crazy ball of fluff and every bit as affectionate as Loki was (it must be a boy thing - my girl cats have all been snobs). The chookies are laying well and we got our first duck egg on monday, smack bang on midwinter as Mrs Duck Herder had said they would start laying. What smart ducks! Gerald, the drake, has grown up into a big handsome boy and is doing a good job of looking after the girls. The neighbors all like the birds and I have heard the bloke next to us quacking in response to them when he didnt realise I could hear him haha.

That is about it for now. Hope everyone is well.

Em

Long Time Gone...

2010-04-10T14:46:00.004+10:00

Finally, what everyone has been waiting for... piccies!

Well, here they are, the worlds cutest little vandals. They are well and truly settled in and getting along just fine with the cats. In fact, I think they take a little bit too much pleasure out of chasing Loki and watching him run away. Hehehe. Naughty ducks!

This was taken looking out the back door...they know where the food comes from!!!

The chooks are also going very well with one laying, and the other two not far behind. I think we will get our first eggs from them this week. In the meantime, we are loving the fresh delicious eggs from our one special girl... it doesnt get any fresher than cracking an egg into the fry pan, still warm from being laid!

Our very first egg on the left, next to a full sized egg from the shops.

The extension to the chook house went well and the ducks seem quite happy with their new abode. It took them a few days to get interested in it but I suspect the cooler weather helped encourage them to make the move away from their open-plan living area into the cosy new room!!!

The garden - that which is out the front, and therefore out of reach of clumsy duck feet and hungry bills - is still going fantastically giving me more tomatoes than I can eat, a tonne of spinach and a few other goodies, like butternut pumpkins. I will definately plant a tonne for tomatoes next year though as these have barely given me enough to can. I have put 4 jars up, preserving them in my brand new super duper electric Fowlers unit. SO much easier to use, and as a bonus there is no risk of breaking the new flat glass cooktop, unlike the old stove top preserver.

What else is news? Not much else going on... went up to Picton last weekend to my mums new place which is in a very pretty spot on a few acres. Had fun with the family and our niece and nephew and got a good bit of exercise carrying our 2 year old niece all the way up a very big steep hill and back down again!!! As well as being easter, it was also the first time I had seen the family since the engagement, PLUS it was my 25th birthday so there was much in the way of presents and feeling very spoilt. The drive was also much more tolerable, not having to go anywhere near the city and cutting a good hour and a half off the trip compared to where mum was previously living.

In closing I shall leave you with a very content Gabby, enjoying the sunshine and lush grass a few weeks ago :)

And Loki, knackered after a hard days work supervising me and guarding the birds!

I think we need a boat...

2010-02-15T12:23:00.003+11:00

This is a picture of the creek at the end of our street taken about half an hour ago. It is still rising and with this rain continuing I imagine it is going to get a lot higher before it starts to recede. Thankfully we are far enough up the street that I think we would need rains of biblical proportions before it affects us. We have probably 2m elevation from where the water is now.

This is the googlemaps view to show how far we are from the creek...Currently the whole area spanned by the blue line is under water. You can see the willows in the photo and in this pic...

Hard to believe but I am actually starting to wish the rain would ease up!!!

Homegrown Goodness

2010-02-14T14:08:00.004+11:00

Well I have again been slack in my blogging but I have a good excuse! I have been spending all my time playing in the garden!!! The past few months it has really started getting productive and with the constant soaking rain in the past week everything is going crazy. We are eating meals from the garden regularly now with corn, spinach, silverbeet and carrots featuring heavily. I also had a nice meal of blackberries from down at the river last week. I got maybe a punnet or twos worth - not a lot given the scratches I received but YUM. I also tasted the first (single) raspberry off our canes out the back. Again, absolutely amazing! I could happily live off berries of all types. We shall very shortly have our new chookie and duckie additions to the family and will hopefully begin getting eggs from the chooks within a month. The tomatoes are all covered in green fruit and the pumpkin is getting some small fruit on it as well. The couple of vines out the front are certainly doing their best to take over the garden, rambling across the path and all through the tomato bushes as well. It is such a beautiful mess! I cant wait to turn the rest of our space into garden :D

This is the front vegie patch at the moment. You can see from the grass on the kerb just how much rain we have been getting!!!

And this is part of tonights dinner. I wont pick the corn until the water is boiling away. I am thinking a spinach and ricotta lasagne plus the other vegies and we have ourselves a cheap, delicious, nutritious and mostly local meal :)

Who Killed Dave? Book Review

2010-02-02T11:55:00.003+11:00

I was recently lucky enough to be one of a number of people who recieved a copy of Linda Cockburns latest book 'Who Killed Dave'. At first I was a bit unsure if I would like it or not because I have never been interested in the murder mystery genre but, well, I finished it in two days so that says something for it!

Who Killed Dave is a hilarious account of a typical Aussie street thrown into chaos when one of them winds up dead. It follows one of the residents, the quirky Robyn, as she becomes a suspect, is seduced by the investigating cop and helps discover the truth behind the murder all the while managing to get into all sorts of trouble and embarrassing situations. If you are looking for a good laugh and some light reading, do yourself a favour and grab a copy!

Announcement!

2010-01-06T10:35:00.003+11:00

I am engaged! Troy proposed to me yesterday and I, of course said YES. We are both crazy-happy and I am still grinning from ear to ear. We havent set a date yet but have a timeframe in mind... :D

Em

Happy Holidays!

2010-01-06T10:33:00.001+11:00

I think I am just about recovered from Christmas now – it was a rather tiring couple of days. We left for Sydney on the 24th, arriving there in the afternoon. Christmas eve was spent at Troys mum and step dads place overlooking Lavender Bay. Except for the brightness of the lights and the noise, it is a pretty spot there. We went for a walk across the road in the park and down into the ‘Secret Garden’ which was absolutely amazing. It has been built on railway land by the ex wife of Australian artist Brett Whiteley. I felt like such a kid, wandering along the paths which curve in and out and around through the gardens. The thing I liked about it the most though is that the bottom area has been designed in the style of a food forest. There were fig trees, citrus and what I think may have been a Davidson Plum as well as strawberries and other herbs scattered around the place. It was a little patch of paradise and gave me some great ideas for designing our gardens down here.

Christmas morning we headed up the road to my mums place where we had a nice lunch with my side of the family then over to Troys dads place for a couple of hours with that part of the family before heading for home. We had a good run getting out of the city and then a nice easy drive all the way back home, arriving here a bit after 10pm. It was tiring, especially for Troy who was driving, but well worth it to be out of the city after 24 hours! It was good to see our families but I have no desire to go back to the city any time soon. It was such a huge relief to drive back into town and of course, to come home to our cats who we have never been away from overnight.

So now we (and the garden) are enjoying this gorgeous weather and a little bit of a holiday feeling before I go back to work tomorrow.

Hope everyone else had an enjoyable and safe christmas!

Busy Little Bee

2010-01-06T10:33:00.000+11:00

Just a quick update – once again life gets in the way and all the things I plan on posting about on the blog are forgotten or I dont have time for. The past couple of weeks have been very busy between work and the community garden (of which I am now the Secretary by the way!). When I havent been at work, a meeting or a workshop I have been ’spring cleaning’ the house, washing doonas etc. It has been pretty warm and having evening shifts means I dont get much time in the garden as it is either two hot, or too dark when I am home!

Despite my neglect it is all coming on just swell. Troy has been faithfully watering it so except for a few seedlings which werent happy being transplanted, we havent had any losses. We are harvesting a handful or two of snow peas each day and a meal or twos worth of spinach and silverbeet a week. The lettuce are all big and green and healthy looking and we could be eating a salad a day easily with what we have growing. Only one problem though – they are bitter as hell!Oh well, at least the worm farm will benefit… We have also started harvesting the first of the small tart plums from the trees on the nature strip which is quiet a novelty although I think I will be chucking most of them in the freezer to make plum jam when I have enough.

Hope everyone is well and not wilting in the heat!

More Photos

2009-11-21T11:05:00.007+11:00

Time sure flies by when you are busy! The past month has seen me spending FAR too much time at work and not nearly enough in the garden. Damn our reliance on money! :P

Everything in the garden (mostly) is coming along well provided we dont miss a day of watering. It has been so hot and dry here that the plants are all regularly wilting and the spring garden which should have had at least another month to grow and produce is already finishing up with the ruby chard and coriander bolting to seed and the snow peas producing despite being all of about 20cm high! I have thus changed my plans for the garden and will dedicate the whole front area to a cottage garden where flowering early is a good thing, and turn the back area where it is more shaded into the main vegetable patch.

This is the spot which will become to next vegie patch. As you can see there is a fair bit of work to do on it! The branches need to be moved/disposed of (anyone wanna buy me a mulcher for xmas?) and the compost is being used to fill up the raised bed, after which the compost pile will be relocated so we can make the most of the shady green patch under the tree. The old bbq is currently being used as a potting bench but hopefully we will have it fixed and working eventually (it needs a new bbq plate and such)

To the top left of that pic you can see a patch of green which is the apple tree (with a bunch of young trees underneath it). It is covered in fruit so I think we will be eating a lot of apple pie this winter!!!

That tree is one of the only patches of green in the side paddock. This is looking towards the front from a bit further up, near the plum tree. The grass/weeds are so dry it hurts to walk around barefoot now because they are so hard and crispy.

Now for the side and front where we actually have some green stuff!

These are the recently transplanted beans, starting to work their way up the bean tepee.

Behind them you can see the lettuce and silverbeets I planted 3 weeks ago - they are coming along quite nicely and only one died. They are surrounded by tiny lucerne seedlings which will hopefully create a nice green cover in a while to shade the soil and keep it cooler.

The front garden is starting to look pretty good now with the left side mostly mulched and the number of weeds slowly being reduced.

Out of the picture, bottom left, is what remains of the corn after the frost a month ago knocked them back. I have a few more seedlings out the back in the greenhouse which are big enough to join these older ones now as well. It wont be a big harvest but hopefully we will get something!

As you can see the snow peas are producing but with the plants being so small I am not expecting a feast!

I am however looking forwards to a glut of tomatoes, with a tonne of seedlings coming along nicely in the green house and this single mystery tomato out the front. This has come up from seed that was scattered in the pots many months ago in Sydney so it will be either reisentraube, tiny tim or grosse lisse.

And as our final pic, a little bit of pretty! This is one of the lovely old roses in front of the porch. Isnt it lovely? There is also a smaller one of what I think is the same rose on the other side of the stairs.

Until next time, take care and stay cool!

The Growing Garden

2009-10-26T12:46:00.004+11:00

Just a quick picture update today...

Here are all my babies in their cozy new home. Dont they look happy? Some are waiting to go out, I just need the weather to improve and to build some climbing structures for the peas... oh yeah, and work out WHERE I am going to put them.

This is the progress on the side garden - first path dug out with the topsoil going onto the beds. Once I have finished the other paths I will try and get my hands on some saw dust to line them all.

I have already planted out some spinach and lettuce I brought home from the swap and the strawberry plants in their pots here were planted out this morning.

And this is last nights dinner - the most freakishly yellow pasta I have ever seen! This was made using the free range eggs I bought from one of the ladies at work. The yolks are just amazing!

Till next time,

Em

Just Like Christmas...But BETTER!!!

2009-10-24T21:31:00.004+11:00

Well it has been a busy couple of weeks here at the Itty Bitty Homestead. Well, not so much here, as up the road where I work. 4 days last week and 5 this week (all 7 am starts) makes for a very sleep Em. I have however survived and am getting used to the hours and routine. Of course just to keep things interesting, all my shifts for next week are 3-11pm. Oh well, at least I get to sleep in.

Except for the early starts, the new job is going really well. The clients are lovely and (most of) the ladies I work with are too. Plus, how is this for an awesome day at work - on Wednesday myself and another carer took two of our clients down the coast for lunch. Fish and chips by the beach in the sun, lovely spring air AND to top it all off, we saw a whale! Very cool but of course, no one had cameras. It was showing off and having a good splash around....I love my job :D

Continuing with the theme of the busy week, Wednesday arvo we had a visit from Troys mother and step dad who were passing through town on the way back to Sydney. They stayed in town overnight and Thursday we went out to dinner to one of the nicer places here. It was a pleasant evening although I felt the ache from the tiny bit of wine the next morning. Oh and they got us a lovely housewarming gift - a mini greenhouse! So now I can have my kitchen bench and windowsill and dining table and mantle back.

The house is being somewhat overtaken by seedlings at the moment but some are about ready to go outside. Also, we had the seedling swap today so I got rid of a heap of the peas and beans I was raising (and I gotta say, they looked to be the healthiest seedlings there - go me!). In return I bought home 2 raspberries, 2 strawberries, a loganberry, a tiny plum 'tree', a bunch of rosemary cuttings, some basil, broccoli, a few different flowers, lettuces, chards and maybe a few other things, plus some red wiggler worms to start our worm farm! Yay! I have them all set up in their new home and ready to start doing their thing.

Tomorrow I will be digging out spots for the berries and planting them out and more pottering in the side garden. It has taken a lot of work but I am getting there. Pictures to come of the progress of course. For now, here are some I prepared earlier!

This shows the weeding in progress - the entire patch was foot high grass and weeds. You can see the pile on the right which I had already ripped out at this point.

Here we have some baby plums, I think, on one of the fruit trees.

Kitten practicing being a tiger amongst the weeds up the back.

One of the many 'weeds' around here - a pretty little Poppy

This is what I brought home from the seedlings swap today. Arent my new babies so cute?

And these are most of the seedlings I am raising at the moment, sitting in the sunniest and warmest spot in the house. Good thing I have been too tired to make pasta all week!

So there we have it, another week, another plant or hundred added to our little 'stead. Stay tuned for more updates!!!

Seed Raising Frenzy

2009-10-09T17:04:00.004+11:00

Despite the fact that it is still FREEZING here, it is apparently a great time to be starting seeds - inside at least - so I have been busy cutting up milk cartons and so on in order to get enough containers to start all my seeds in. I now have beans, peas, corn, tomatoes, eggplant, kale, sunflowers, rockmelons, squash, luffas and maybe a few others I have forgotten, plus a bunch of flowers, all happily sitting on the mantle above the fireplace. Hopefully the heat rising up will keep them warm enough to germinate and grow happily until they are ready to go outside.

These ones are near the fire - the mantle isnt big enough for all my babies!

All lined up, nice and cozy :) The ones down the far end are the seeds I am raising for the seedling swap in a couple of weeks.

This is why they are INSIDE! Check out the pictures Troy got the other day while I was at work.

Looking left from the front of the house.

Looking right...

My vegie patch...

Looking out the back at the neighbours wood pile...

It was very pretty and I felt like such a kid getting so excited over the snow but it is only the second time I have seen snow actually falling. It was all gone by lunchtime but was a real treat while it was here. I was very happy to see when I got home that the seedlings already outside weren't bothered in the least by the cold white stuff falling on their heads.

On the work front, I had two full shifts this week, one morning, one evening, and have met some great ladies and some lovely clients. Next week I have been given four shifts which is great in regards of the money I will be getting, but I have a feeling I will be very tired by the end of the week - they are all 7am starts! I picked up my first pay check yesterday and of course it was burning a hole in my pocket so I toddled off to the hardware store to pick up some more seed raising mix and of course a few seeds. I tried to resist! I really did!

I got a call while I was there from the lady I met at the gardening workshops so ducked in to say hi to her as she is just around the corner. We had a great chat and I got to see her garden set up and get some local advice from her. It has given me a few ideas for this place. She has just gotten a few chooks too so hopefully I will be able to learn from her beginners mistakes hehe. One of the things they have done is build raised beds to plant their fruit trees in, which can be unscrewed and taken with them when they move out to their property. I thought this would be a good idea for us as well - by taking the structure apart the dirt will fall away and you will essentially have a bare root fruit tree which can be moved easily, instead of having to dig a big hole to get it out of the ground. So brilliantly simple! And it will make the trees much happier than being in pots. Now to beg or borrow a trailer and head up to the tip recycling centre one weekend for materials :) And of course a visit to Mr BVVF to see what manure we can scrounge! Whoever woulda thunk I could get so excited about the prospect of getting my hands on some free sh!t!!!

Spring...for now

2009-10-01T10:28:00.005+10:00

I think it is finally spring proper here now - perhaps. The other week we had some lovely warm weather which had me feeling very optimistic however a cold snap and a bit of rain put a bit of a dampener on that (bad pun intended). Yesterday was a bit warmer and today is warmer still with lovely clear blue skies although a bit of wind blowing still. The flowers are continuing to bloom although my little apple tree is still totally bare. It IS alive though - I scratched the top of one of the buds and there is green underneath. Perhaps I need to knit it a little jumper, poor sooky plant. The other dwarf fruit trees are mostly coming along ok. The two citrus arent growing, but they arent dying either. The mango is looking very unwell with no leaves on it and the main stem is looking slightly...wrinkly...instead of firm and green. I have given it a good dose of seasol which will hopefully perk it up a little.

The seeds I have planted in punnets are coming along nicely as are the seedlings planted into the garden. There are also a lot of seedlings popping up in the garden although at least half of those are weeds I am sure. I will have a lot of work to do once they get their adults leaves and I can actually identify them! I have also planted out a number of seed potatoes which were just starting to put out shoots so hopefully in a week or two they will start popping up through the mulch. The lucerne seeds I scattered have also sprouted so with luck soon they will be nice and big and shading out the weeds!!!

The broccoli and cabbage seedlings.

Other than the garden, I have been spending some time working on my crafts - sewing (and a lot of unpicking stitches), patchwork/applique, and a cross stitch for my nieces christmas present. I originally bought it a little before she was born. She recently turned two so I figure it is about time I get stuck in and actually finish it!!! It is amazing what one can do when there is no pesky work to get in the way!

I admit though that I have been missing the social intereaction and satisfaction that comes with the job, as well as having some structure and something to DO so I very happily toddled off to my induction yesterday and have my first shift today starting at noon. It will also be great to have some money coming in so I can pay off the credit card and then buy the materials for the chook pen :D I had a call the other day and was given a few phone numbers for locals who might have RIR's or Australorps available. YAY! Hopefully by the end of the month I will have some cash spare to get them.

Well, not much else to report so I shall end this post with a couple of photos of the lovely spring flowers, and a big Happy Anniversary to my darling love. 3 years he has been putting up with me...what an angel :)

Blossoms of some sort. Perhaps purely decorative, but certainly very pretty!

The lilac bush just outside the kitchen window.

Remembering the Good Ol' Days

2009-09-22T21:31:00.002+10:00

Today Troy and I took a drive down to Jindabyne to visit the father of my best friend from high school and for me to show Troy around the farm. From year 9 onwards I spent most of my school holidays down there with Kate and I have a million fantastic memories so I was really looking forward to going back and being able to show my sweetheart around.

We headed off a bit before 11, taking some bread rolls with us and timing it to be in Jindy for lunch. It was a pleasantly short drive through some gorgeous country before we got to my favourite part - coming around the bend in the road and seeing the lake spread out below. VERY pretty. We drove down and I attempted to park down near the lake. Attempt being the operative word. Unfortunately I underestimated the depth of a rut in the dirt and managed to get the car somewhat..ah.. stuck. Oops. The front wheels were so low that I couldn't even get the jack under to lift the car and stuff sticks or something underneath the tyre. Thankfully with Troy driving and me pushing from the back we managed to get the front wheels up out of the ditch.

THEN we had lunch. We had to shelter behind a row of bushes to escape the wind which was whipping across the lake. The entire surface was covered in white foam from the chop. I see what Mr BVVF said about the 'September Winds'. After lunch we spent a few minutes collecting sticks and small branches and managed to fill in the rut enough to get the car back over it, then off we headed out to the farm. Thankfully both the road and the driveway (all 3 km of it) were it pretty good nick and we got the car up to the house without incident...just a few bumps and jolts.

It was very strange being back out there, 10 years after I visited for the first time. I have so many memories, it's somewhat bittersweet to return and see how it is now. Kates parents have since split up and are both living in Sydney (as is she) with her dad only visiting the farm every few weeks or so, so all the animals are gone. The horses, the sheep, the chooks, the dogs... Only the cat and one goat are left. Rather sad when I remember how we used to be followed by a train of animals wherever we wandered and around our 'cubby' - now collapsed and covered in debris from the surrounding bush. The whole place has a rather sad, abandoned feel to it, not helped by the sound of the gusting wind and the way it played the metal pipes hanging in one of the trees like a far off flute. Sad, but beautiful.

The scenery is still just as gorgeous as ever although the trees across the valley are looking a bit more sparse after the '02 fires burnt through there. Troy got some photos looking out across the valley which I will post when I get them onto my computer.

We spent the rest of the afternoon there just enjoying the peace and quiet and walking around the property a bit, chatting to Kates dad. We headed off about 4 and once again enjoyed gorgeous views driving back in to town. The country is so overwhelmingly beautiful around here although it looked a little eerie as we hit Berridale - there was a very strange misty fog in the air which gave the landscape an interesting glow. It was so nice seeing the lights of Cooma as we got close to town - it already feels like home. Have I mentioned that I love this town? :)

So, back home with the heater on, us and the cats fed and a whole lot of memories revived. I am sure I will sleep and dream well tonight. And maybe shed a tear or two for good times past.

Pictures of Our New Home

2009-09-15T17:24:00.007+10:00

Here they are, what you have all been holding your breath for... ok, well, what you have thought about for a split second the last time you were reading my blog before you got distracted by something more interesting :P

PICTURES!!!

Let us start the tour at the front gate. This is our pretty new garden arch (all of $10) with the Hardenbergia potted next to it. Hopefully this will grow quickly and cover it with lovely green foliage and pretty white flowers :) I also want to get a purple flowered variety to climb up the other side. The Hardenbergia, also know as Native Wisteria is a tough climber/rambler with pretty sprays of flowers in spring similar in look to a regular wisteria but these are much faster growing and a real hit with the bees. Oh yeah and it is leguminous as well, always a bonus :)

If you look to your right as you walk down the path you will see this lovely open view - this is the front of our 'side paddock' and our rather potholed driveway. Must fix that some time...

Now group, look back to your left where you will see our lovely little vegie plot. The path in the middle is still a work in progress thanks to the old fence palings I am using being alllll the way down the back. And we dont own a wheelbarrow yet! The middle bed is surrounded by a cement barrier - down the left between the plot and the fence is an old rose bush, recently pruned, an itty bitty rosemary and two small half dead comfrey plants I got from the el cheapo table at the nursery. The black pot at the end in the middle is the passionfruit which I am HOPING will recover and grow well over summer. The strip of weeds at the end and right side have this afternoon been dug, scattered with lucerne seed and mulched. I am hoping the lucerne will outgrow all the weeds and I can slash it as mulch for the herbs and flowers which I will grow in that strip later.

The whole plot has been planted with various seeds as well as these seedlings along the edge in one corner - ruby chard, coriander, red bunching onions and some wombok.

Ok, enough of the plot, lets keep moving people!

Ahead of you as we walk up the front steps is the prettiest plant. I love the delicate little flowers and will definitely be encouraging this one to keep on growing!

Now look to your right and you will see where we have been spending all our mornings. The chairs there are the perfect spot to soak up the early morning sun as we watch the finches playing in the bushes and have our breakfast and coffee. Just perfect!!!

If you walk to the end and look over the railing you will see a few of these little darlings. They are little grape hyacinths. Another existing plant I will be helping along and keeping around for my pleasure.

Right, that is enough of the front for now. Inside the front door and to our left is a pic just for Alyson. As you can see, the cats have settled in rather well! SUCH a hard life being a cat!

Next let us all scootch down the hall past the unpacked boxes and clothes on the floor (hey, we dont have a wardrobe or any shelves yet okay! Sheesh!) and out the back door we go. Looking to the right is the great expanse of weeds and granite dust which is the backyard. Out of site to the left is the junk pile that the owner has no desire to remove so we are working at. Plenty of wood to burn and some nice scrap iron which I am sure I will find a use for. Hmmm I do need a potting table and a green house and ah... ahem.

And of course I saved the best for last. This is our view to the left looking out the back door. Not bad huh? Sure beats apartment blocks and the bright lights of the shopping centre!

And that, ladies and gents, ends our tour for today. My tummy tells me it is dinner time so I am off to get lost in my wonderfully huge kitchen :D

See ya!

Our New Home

2009-09-11T19:54:00.003+10:00

Well we survived the move, just. It was a bit stressful but nothing major went wrong so I am very thankful for that. The only hiccups involved the removalists arriving much later than they had originally said both for pick up and delivery which resulted in some inconvenience for us, but mostly for Troys mum who kindly hung around at the apartment to supervise the packing while we headed off early with the cats in order to get to Cooma before the real estate closed for the day so we could get the keys to our new house. While I had previously been advised the truck would arrive between 8 and 11am it didnt turn up until about 5pm!!! It arrived 24 hours later - thankfully there is a street light directly out front because we were helping unload the truck long after the sun had set.

The first night we were here we had a kettle and some blankets and not a whole lot else. Our bed was a pile of doonas on the floor, so we were determined to at least get the bed together after the removalists left on our second night before we passed out. The first priority the next morning of course was getting the kitchen set up and the books unpacked. I'm afraid to say we havent gotten much further than that... we got distracted.

The gardens here are hardly worthy of being called gardens at all. It is nothing but weeds everywhere with a few overgrown roses in the front and some shrubs and cherry-blossom type trees down the side between the house and the side paddock.

We have done quite a bit of work so far which I will prove with photos, ah..sometime. I have given the roses a hard pruning and cut the dead wood out of one of the bushes at the side as well as a lot of trimming and tidying. We have constructed a nice big compost heap to collect all the garden waste which hopefully I will be able to get the recipe right for, and create some nice sweet compost for the garden. We also have spent a lot of time clearing out a rectangular bed in the front, loosening the soil and removing all the weeds and digging in some mushroom compost and chook poo to get it ready for immediate planting - which I did today. The rest of the front we will sheet mulch and I will probably put in a green manure crop to build up the o.m. in the soil and get it ready for autumn plantings.

I have already sheet mulched down one side of the veggie plot between it and the fence to suppress the weeds but there is still a lot to go - think I might need to ask the neighbours and the newsagent for any newspapers they dont need!

I have so many plans for this place so I really hope we will be able to continue renting it until we buy our own land, but if not we will have gotten fit and tanned and learnt a lot in the process :)

Well, I am falling asleep at the desk now so I think it is time to curl up with a good book and refresh myself, ready for a busy weekend...details to come ;)

Em

Time flies by when you're having fun...

2009-08-26T14:52:00.002+10:00

Well here we are a month and a bit later and it is all happening. We have found a house, removalists etc are booked, packing is almost complete. Moving day is next Tuesday, 1st of September. I am still excited and nervous and getting a bit fidgety. I just want to be in our new home already!!! The unit doesnt really feel like our home anymore with everything packed away, just the furniture and a lot of boxes! I think the cats are a bit over it too as each weekend we have had to pack them down into the garage while complete strangers walk through our house and look at all our stuff (open house inspections). One of the upsides to this is that they should be used to the car by the time we are heading off - I really hope so anyway. I dont particularly like the idea of two cats freaking out and whining for 5 or so hours!

Not a lot else has been happening, just working although not a whole lot. Bad because it means I have no money, but good because I have had plenty of time to prepare for the move!

The garden is coming along nicely with the mulberry covered in new growth and fruit, the lemon has little flower buds and the peach, fig, cherry and plum are all either bursting into leaf already, or showing signs of activity in the tiny green tips of the buds :) I do have some sad news to report though - there have been two fatalities in the garden - the new lavender plant from Diggers which I accidently let dry out too much and never recovered, and the grape which I thought was just dormant but when I pruned it back, discovered it was in fact dead. I still think I am not going too badly though, with those two, plus a Tinkerbelle apple and a rosemary bush being my only fatalities out of the perennials/trees. Oh yeah and the blueberry. Woops. That one was definately my fault though, for planting it in potting mix which was far too alkaline for its liking. At least I learnt something from that!

Now my only concern is getting all my green babies to Cooma safely and keeping them protected from the weather for the first few weeks until they adapt to the new climate.

Wish me luck :)

Em

Movin to the Country...

2009-07-18T19:12:00.003+10:00

The other day I got a wonderful surprise call from my mother with unexpected news. Because the value of our unit is right up at the moment she has decided it is a good time to sell and so as that we are not homeless she is lending us enough money to cover costs for the move to Cooma. WoooOOOoooOOOOooo hooooo!

I am so excited that the move is finally happening, but a little nervous and anxious as well about all there will be to do. We have to do some painting and general cleaning and maintenance to the unit as well as all the usual packing stuff, organising removalists etc... and finding a place to live. Once we have the timeline a bit better sorted I will contact a couple of the real estate agents and tell them what we are after and get them to send us pics of anything appropriate. We probably wont bother driving down to inspect anything because it is a bit of a drive and being a rental it doesn't matter THAT much. As long as we can have the cats there and the roof doesn't fall in on top of us...We also have to find work which is the harder part but I think that will have to wait until after the move, or we at least have a set date. People don't seem keen to hire someone with a start date of 'oh, you know, sometime in the next month or two...'

I now have a to do list as long as my arm but am getting through it bit by bit. Today was a break day though - we went up to my MIL to be's 10 acre block in Kurrajong and had a lovely time. The views to the west are amazing as they are right on top of the ridge. It was also very nice and warm, a pleasant change from the cool air down here in the Sydney Basin! We didn't JUST relax though, we also had some fun playing with the chainsaw hehe. I haven't used one since I did my training 6 years ago but it all came back pretty quickly. It was wonderful being up there in the quiet and fresh air doing a bit of real work. I am so much more 'me' in that environment. I am really looking forward to being me constantly once we are out of this crowded noisy city!!!

Lessons Learnt from a First Time Seed Raiser

2009-06-12T10:31:00.000+10:00

Here are some of the details of seed raising I have discovered this year during my first attempt at raising large numbers of seeds.

#1 – make sure whatever trays or containers you are using to raise your seeds in are sufficiently deep to let them put down decent roots
#2 – if you dont have a sunny spot for them, get a grow light! Otherwise you will end up with a tonne of weak leggy seedlings
#3 – water at least once every day with a spray bottle or the seed raising mix will dry out and your seedlings will hate you
#4 – only grow one type of plant in each tray or you will disturb the slower growing seedlings when it is time to prick out the bigger ones
#5 – if you are going to be transplanting into small pots before eventually going outdoors, have these and the potting mix ready before you expect to need it
#6 – small delicate vegies and flowers are easier to just scatter in the garden and let grow direct. They will not take well to being transplanted
#7 – if you dont have a greenhouse to start seedlings early, just wait an extra few weeks. The seeds sown at a later date will catch up quickly and be more healthy and vigorous than the ones planted earlier
#8 – do not transplant seedlings too early or before they have been properly hardened off or they will just keel over and die, or be eaten.
#9 – unless you want far more than you can eat in one go, stagger your plantings
#10 – USE LABELS! You will not remember what you planted no matter how good you think your memory is.

And that, dear friends is some of what I have learnt this year. Hopefully I will remember my own lessons in another 12 months!

Nervous

2009-05-12T15:32:00.003+10:00

So, today as I was browsing jobs in Cooma as I do regularly to keep an eye on what is available, I saw a position I would be perfect for. So I applied for it! We havent been planning to move for some months yet, in order to save up in case we dont find work straight away but If I got this job we could move asap as we would have an income - enough to cover all expenses while my darling looks for work.

I am keeping my fingers and toes crossed and hoping that if I DO get it they dont want me to start for say, a month, so we can get organised and you know...find somewhere to live! But hey, details, details ;)

In other news, not a lot has been happening around here lately. We are housemate free again and loving having our home back. The cats are both good and ratty. Loki is almost done teething so is settling down a bit again thankfully although I am ready to throttle him because his latest favourite game seems to be 'Getting Past Mums Garden Defenses'. No matter what I do he still manages to get in to the plants and dig around in the pots. Grrr! So tonight I will be cutting out squares of green plastic mesh type stuff to put over every pot so he can jump on top but not dig and harm the roots at least. Hopefully they will do the trick!

Hope everyone is well and making the most of this lovely autumn weather :)

Em

Hippo Birdy to Me!!!

2009-04-06T13:42:00.005+10:00

Its my birthday today :D 24 years old - I reckon I am still young enough that I am allowed to get excited about birthdays haha. Dont have anything special planned except maybe a yummy dinner. We were meant to have dinner with the family on Saturday but my poor little niece was terribly sick so that has been put off till this coming weekend. As a consolation I made myself a delicious (if not so healthy) Tiramisu
(YUM)

...using my very favourite appliance in the whole house - my 60-ish year old Sunbeam MixMaster!

This beauty belonged to my grandmas mother in law. She used it to make cakes for my mum when she was little, mum used it to make mine and my sisters birthday cakes when we were kids and it is only a few years now until I will be using it to make OUR childrens cakes. I love having something still in use with some history and a lifetime of memories attached.

When we ducked into mums on the weekend I had fun going through her old purple plastic sewing box I remember from when I was little and pulling out a few things to keep. I got a bag of assorted buttons, permanent loan of mums solid metal pinking shears (not sure how old but they are SOLID and sharp as anything) and my absolute favourite, this little old pin tin. Isnt it gorgeous!!!

The awesome shears, still in their original box :)

oh oh oh..and I got myself a birthday pressie today :D

Meet the newest addition to the balcony. Peggy, the Bowen Mango. Yes I have named it :P after my favourite client who gave me a little present for my birthday and told me to put it towards my dream :) Here she is posing between the grape and passionfruit.

Aaaand speaking of wonderful clients, look what another one made for me - she knows I am learning to sew and thought I could use a pin cushion. (I am the one who arranged the pins to look like flowers. Yes I am a dork. Deal with it.)

Ok, you are probably all bored out of your minds by now, so here is a cute pic of Loki just for fun. I love that he looks kinda stoned. He had just woken up from a nap draped over the arm of the chair. Poor little munchkin, always waking up to the flash of the camera as I try to sneak yet another cutie-sleeping-kitty pic!

Take care all :)

Em

Slacker

2009-03-29T11:10:00.004+11:00

Things have been a little quiet around the blog lately. Since having a hissy fit and pulling everything out of the garden I kind of lost my blog-mojo. I have been keeping very busy though, with work and study and all the other usual day to day things. I was on a real roll for a few weeks with the PDC but after my computer shat itself and was out of action for a week I lost my momentum. Long hours at work havent really helped either. But now it is time to get back on track!!!

I have at least been slightly productive and continued to de clutter the place and reorganise a bit. Four adults and two cats in a two bedroom apartment...those of you with HOUSES be grateful for how much space you have :P I really cant wait until we are in Cooma and have some more room to move and keep things.

In garden news, for my birthday next week my darling is paying for an order from the latest Diggers catalogue - the early summer fruit collection (self pollinating: 2 peaches, plum, apricot, cherry) plus a fig and lavender. Cant wait till they turn up. I have decided to stick with the trees and bushes for now instead of battling with bugs for the annuals. Also this way I can give our orchard a head start of a couple of years. By the time the trees are too big for their pots we will hopefully have some land to plant them out into. Along with the 2 apples, mulberry, lemon and mandarin I already have (plus grape, passionfruit and coffee bushes) I am getting quite a nice little collection. Not bad for a 6m balcony!!!

So, what else to update about? Well, little Loki is going well and growing up. When he isnt being a little monster-monkey he is an absolute sweety. At the moment it is about a 70/30 ratio of monster vs sweety but hopefully once he finishes teething and he gets the *snip* it will go back to mostly sweety! Just for the awww factor, here is a recent pic:

Now THIS is why I never get any work done!

As you can see he loves hanging around my computer when I am sitting here. Apparently the Wacom tablet is very comfy :P

Oh and I dont recall if I mentioned it or not, but we adopted a 6yo girl from one of my clients who had to go into a nursing home and couldn't take her. Petal (hey, they named her, not me ok?) and Loki are not exactly best friends yet but they tolerate each other although Loki does get the occasional well deserved smack across the face when he is annoying Petal haha. This is one of the rare moments of getting on.

And for more awww-ness, look what my sweety bought me the other day 'just because'. Aren't I a lucky girl?

Well, the boy is up at the rifle range for the afternoon so time to make the most of the peace and quiet and get some study done!

Em

Queen of Procrastination.. and a meme

2009-02-16T16:29:00.004+11:00

If there were a crown and scepter, they would be mine. Today, the day my license expires, I FINALLY got around to doing my green P's test. I have been driving on my reds for ah...4 1/2 years (just kept renewing instead of going onto greens). If I hadn't kept putting it off I would have been on my FULL license a year or more ago. Heh, woops. Well I figure as long as I can drive at all, who cares what colour the licence is? So yes, that is my proud news for today. I can now legally drive at 100km/h :P

Now for some entertainment (debatable!) here is a meme from Alyson over at Laugh in the Sun

List 10 honest facts about yourself and make it interesting...hmmm I think I can do that.

1 I have never travelled overseas and have no great desire to. When I was 17 mum gave me a choice of two options - I could join her and my grandparents on a trip to Italy or when they got back mum and I would do a trip to QLD and the NT. I chose the latter and have never regretted it. I mean c'mon, history and architecture with your GRANDPARENTS or snorkelling the Barrier Reef, soaking in hot springs in Mataranka and climbing the escarpment to look out over Arnhem Land? Yeah, still not a hard choice ;)
2 When I was little myself, sister and cousins made a 'band' called the Violet Unicorns - we mostly sang tunes from great musicals such as *ahem* The Little Mermaid and similar but we did make up some of our own and I still remember one of them.
3 I am a recorded artist. At about age 11 or so, I was in the Australian Youth Choir for a year (mum wouldnt let me continue because the uniform was too expensive and I had a habit of giving things up rather quickly). At the end of the year we did a concert in Town Hall and recorded a Christmas Carols CD (in a Uni lecture hall maybe?) which was sold in Sanity and probably a few other music stores.
4 A few years earlier, in year 3 I quit ballet because of an impending concert. I also didnt like it because the lovely teacher called me Banana Back and teased me becaause my butt stuck out. If I ever have anyone say ANYTHING like that to my children they will be immediately bitch slapped. I doubt that teacher had the slightest clue what damage she did to my self esteem and body image with that single comment.
5 I despise organised religion (of all denominations) yet I worked for the 3rd largest church in Australia for 3 years. I started working there casually in my mums department just to help out while I didnt have a job elsewhere. The hours got longer then I was offered a position in the national office (down the hall haha) and ended up there full time working as a personal assistant.
6 I have never been fired from a job, but I have walked off two jobs in a rage. The first was when I worked at the horse riding ranch. I was back from 2 months off after having torn a ligament in a bad fall from a new horse whom I had been instructed to ride by the manager (against my better judgement). I was being careful not to strain it but she had a go at me for not 'pulling my weight', I got pissed at her because the fall had been partially her fault, told her where to stick it and left. I missed the horses but not the dogs ;)
The second time was my last job. I had handed in my resignation a week previously, my manager was being a jerk trying to make me do something which was not ever in my job description and I was not comfortable doing, he told me to F* Off if I wasnt going to do the work...so I did. It was very satisfying standing up to that arrogant so and so :) and it meant I got an extra weeks holiday before starting the new job haha.
7 I used to have my tongue pierced. When I was 18 and living away from home for the first time, I decided to be a bit of a rebel hehe. It was done at the tattoo parlour in Dubbo on the way home from Tafe - spur of the moment decicion. I spent the next week or so living off liquid panadol and 2 minute noodles. I took it out after 5 years because now that I am old enough to pay my own dental bills, I finally took notice of all the warnings mum had given me about it damaging my teeth!!!
8 I have voluntarily stuck my hand up a cows butt...repeatedly. I went to an agricultural high school and part of year 9 Ag was doing preg testing on some of the schools dairy herd. Most of the girls and not a few of the guys refused to do it but as with all things gross and animal related I was more than happy to have a go. After the thrill of discovering the first cow was pregnant, I was eager to try on the next in line. Oh and btw, yes we were wearing giant shoulder length gloves.
9 Still on the topic of birth, I was with my sister for the birth of her first child, my now almost 5 year old nephew. She was in a birthing ward with a big bed, courtyard and everything. My mother and sisters partner were both also present. I will never forget the experience and am so grateful to her for letting me be there for such a joyous moment. Watching my nephews first movement outside the womb was amazing and I am sure the only thing that will ever top it is when I have my own children :)
10 I have had an acoustic guitar for about 6 years but never learnt to play it. It was given to me by someone I used to know who was going to teach me how to play it, but when he moved interstate I lost my teacher and got frustrated with trying to self teach. I have never gotten rid of it though because I am determined to learn to play it ONE DAY!

And here ends the facinating tale of me ;)

Just for giggles this is L-R my sister, cousin, me, cousin. The four that were the Violet Unicorns hehe. And no, we didnt all go to the same school. Apparently we considered dressing up in uniform fun!

I QUIT!

2009-02-15T10:20:00.005+11:00

Yes, I am giving up...sort of...and for now. Previously I have suffered from aphid and whitefly infestations. That left me with one tomato plant - see pic below of harvest - and my perennials. In the last week, I have discovered mealybugs, powdery mildew and thrips and/or red spider mite. The thrips destroyed my young basil plants and have even got into the seedraising greenhouse and are damaging the next lot of basil seedlings as well as all the other seedlings I had in there. So, my action plan is thus: rip out ALL the annuals. Dispose. Over autumn and winter I will get some compost and re fill the pots with decent potting mix as I think a big part of my problem was getting in cheap crappy potting mix which no amount of seasol or rooster booster was able to improve, thus creating weak plants which were susceptible to every possible problem.

For now, things here at the homestead will be focusing more on inside jobs - sewing, mending, creating, learning.

At least I had a little harvest from my plants. Two whole tomatoes, Grosse Lisse. Blurry, but yum :)

In other news, The Monster aka Loki is going well. He is growing fast, being a typically curious kitten and keeping us awake half the night with his playing (and destroying). Here he is in one of his rare moments of calm.

Well, off to tear up the garden now. Hope everyone else is well and bug-free.

Em

Life Goes On

2009-02-03T15:08:00.007+11:00

It has been a very emotional time here at the Itty Bitty Homestead lately with the loss of our darling Zoe however as the universe tends to do, we were reminded the very day after she passed that life continues and joy and pain are always coming and going, neither one endures. Zoe was put down on Wednesday last week. The next day one of my clients mentioned her neighbor had been feeding a small stray kitten but was distressed because she couldn't keep it and didnt want to have to send him to the pound. After chatting with the neighbour and checking with my OH, I returned in the afternoon to bring our new baby home.

Meet Loki (named after the god of fire and MISCHIEF!)

Little Loki is settling in amazingly well considering he was a stray and had never been handled or inside. He is a smart little boy and only had to be shown how to use the litter tray once and has learnt what packets the kibble and milk come from ;)

I think he is about 8 weeks old so only a young one still and fairly thin although in the 5 days we have had him he has filled out nicely. It is amazing what plenty of good quality kitten food can do! Loki has also gone from shy and scared to bratty and hyper in those few days. He is learning new abilities every day - like that he can jump the gap from one lounge to another - and is starting to smooch up to us instead of hiding in fear. This is going to be one spoilt little kitten!!! It helps that there is almost always someone home with him thanks to our (other) new housemates, friends A & Y who moved in um..a month or so ago? (Yeah I know I am a bit slow on the updates).

Speaking of which, garden update photos below :)

The tomato from the last post has grown and is starting to ripen. YAY my first home grown tomato! This is the only tomato plant that survived the white fly infestation. Oh yes, I will be saving seeds from this baby.

These are the other two tomatoes on the same plant coming along nicely.

The grape and passionfruit have been growing like crazy and are spreading out more and more. It makes my desk (just inside that window) a lovely place to sit.

The tomatoes and basil which were tiny in my last post are growing well so with luck we will get some fruit from them in a little while.

And of course I have started even more tomatoes plus eggplant, water and rockmelon and some herbs and flowers so with luck we will get a continuing supply for a while. I know it is late in the season to be starting these but our position is very warm so I am not worried about it getting to cool.

And lastly the whole view - see how the vines have grown!!! I am going to try and get the passionfruit across the 'ceiling' and down the front to make a nice shady private area and to stop some of the harsh sun which burns my plants.

Saying Goodbye

2009-01-27T13:46:00.003+11:00

About a month ago, we noticed a lump on the side of Zoe's jaw. Thinking it was just an infection or blocked saliva gland or similar we ignored it for a couple of weeks hoping it would heal itself but then it grew so she was having trouble eating. Last weekend I took her to the local vet and was devastated to learn that it is cancer and she wouldn't have long to live. Even if we could have afforded surgery, because of her age and its location they wouldn't have been able to do anything for her. Since then we have been feeding her mushed mince and cat milk but she cant even get that down now because the tumor has grown under her jaw as well. So tomorrow is the day we say goodbye. I am absolutely heartbroken and this decision, deciding when to put an end to her life is one of the hardest I have ever had to make. Zoe has been my companion for 15 years. We got her as a little grey kitten in August 1993 when I was all of 8 years old so she has been by my side for 2/3 of my entire life.

So goodbye Zoe, goodbye my friend. May you rest in peace. You will always be in my heart.

A Whitefly Christmas

2008-12-28T13:02:00.004+11:00

I always though it would be a lovely thing to experience a white christmas but this was NOT what I had in mind. The past few weeks has seen an invasion of whiteflies in the garden which have decimated the tomatoes and zucchinis. I tried spraying with white oil at first but when it wasn't making the tiniest bit of difference I resorted to squashing the little buggers and all their eggs and larvae by hand. Every day for a week combing over each and every (remaining) leaf on the tomato plants finally did the trick and the plants seem to be recovering. I did however lose all but one zucchinis and a lot of the foliage on the tomatoes died off. On the upside (?) , I am learning more and more about garden pests! While I was battling the invasion outside I started raising some more tomato seedlings so although it will be even later hopefully we will still get a decent amount of tomatoes. So far I have counted less than a dozen developing on the remaining plants and most of those are only a couple of mm in diameter but growing fast now the plants are recovering.

These are the previously massive and lush tomato bushes, now climbing up the hot north facing wall with the help on some twine.

The two biggest of the baby tomatoes. I think this is the Grosse Lisse plant. I thought it was the Roma but obviously not by the shape of the developing fruit.

The one remaining zucchini with some of the new tomato seedlings.

More tomato seedlings with the baby sweet basil.

The lemons are slowly getting bigger and it has just finished a second round of flowering resulting in more baby fruit. YAY! I will have to pick some off if they all survive and keep growing but I will wait a while for that.

And just have a look at this passionfruit :D We need to put the next piece of lattice up around the corner so it has something to grow up! It is sending shoots out both sides now. The ones against the house I will train with string but I think we need something more solid for the front!

And lastly here is the whole garden shot. Less in the way of bushy tomatoes but still going fairly well especially the mulberry which is almost as tall as me.

Oh and the last bit of news... I have started my Permaculture Design Certificate :D I am doing it via correspondence through Permaculture Visions. I finally decided to go ahead and do it, using money from the savings account. Now I just need to get through the xmas/new years period so I can hunker down and get to work!

Step lightly and take care :)

Em

Sewing, Growing and Really Old Tomatoes

2008-11-30T12:08:00.006+11:00

The garden is pretty much taking care of itself at the moment so I have been spending a bit more time on being crafty. I was thrilled to get this dressmakers dummy the other week for...NOTHING. It was going to be given to a thrift store unless I took it so of course I gave it a new home :D Check out the funky 70's? fabric on it.

As you can see from one of my tops hanging off it, it will need a little padding out to make it my size. I am hoping to get some thick batting in the next few weeks to start padding it out. I want to be able to make all my own clothes and have started with something fairly simple - this top:

And this is the fabric I am using - blue for the main part and red for the trim. Isn't that blue fabric so sweet! Hopefully it will turn out well. I have the fabric all cut out and am ready to start sewing. Wish me luck :P

I also had another little find this week - these three fowlers jars, two no.27 and one no. 31. One of the 27's still had tomatoes in it...

Let's have a look at that jar from a different angle! 15th February 1969! Despite its age and the rust on the lid, it was still perfectly sealed and smelled normal when I opened it. Yay for preservation! The contents and lid made their way to the bin and after a good clean to get off the rubber ring, all three jaars have been added to the collection in the cupboard :)

I have also considered doing some more scrapbooking this week, but a certain small furry resident has decided my craft mat is far better for sleeping on (especially when I am at the computer trying to type)!

And now onto the garden:

The rosemary is looking VERY unhealthy and I am not sure what the problem is - can anyone help? Its i going grey and powdery looking, working its way from the tips down.

We do have at least one type of good bug hanging around at the moment. I have counted half a dozen or so of these little guys who I am 99% sure are assassin bugs. They are more than welcome to stay if they are going to help eat some of the things trying to eat my plants!

The lemons are growing well and there are more flowers getting ready to bloom so hopefully we may get a few more growing.

The zucchinis are all flowering but still no sign of any actually growing.

And the strawberry plants I recently bought are busy flowering and sending out runners which I will let grow so I can get a few more plants.

The grape is still growing well and the passionfruit is growing about 1cm a day. It has also finally started developing side shoots instead of being one long single stem.

And here is a cute pic just for the hell of it of Zoe hunting while I was out there taking photos.

Last but not least, the full view :) Mmmm green...

Step lightly,

Em

The Pitter Patter of Little Feet....

2008-11-10T15:06:00.006+11:00

Thousands of tiny feet in fact...we are currently suffering the (what appears to be annual) invasion of little green caterpillars in the Homestead Garden. Thankfully however this year there is so much greenery that it isn't doing too much damage. A couple of young zuccini plants have been severly munched and probably wont survive and the young sweet basil plants have taken a hit, but all in all I am not too upset by the amount of damage. I do however admit to taking a great deal of pleasure in squishing their tiny jewel-green bodies between my fingers when I manage to find the little b*ggers.

Other than the many-legged invasion, not much else is happening around here. After a lovely visit the other week with the OH's family and finally meeting his only? living grandparent after *ahem* TWO years together :P both he and his little sister got sick. And then (because he loves me SO much and just had to share) I got it. I was not impressed. A few days off work last week to recover, and I am almost as good as new but still feeling tired and sinusey so have been spending lots of time huddled in front of my computer, looking at scrapbooking websites, reading blogs..and thinking I REALLY should update my own.

So update I shall. Prepare for an onslaught of photos!!!

Here is the 'update pic' so you can see how much everthing has grown.

This leaf seems to have taken the brunt of the damage. Look at all those holes! :'(

The rest of it is going ok but am still waiting for it to form a head.

This is the first zucchini flower of the season...

But there are plenty more buds on the other plants :)

The giant tomato and the one at the front are both flowering...

And these next two will probably not be far behind. I can't wait for the first fresh tomatoes!!!

I am hoping with all the smaller plants/seedlings growing and as yet unsown seeds I will have enough tomatoes to get me through the season. Just as long as they dont all get as big as this one or there wont be room for me out there! It is already just about smothering the mandarin and one of the apples.

The mandarin doesn't seem to care though...look at all these babies!

And over on the lemon tree we have these four little cuties which I am hoping will survive until maturity.

There has also been some more growth on the coffee plants - look at all the new foliage! I love watching them grow.

And how about this comfrey? I am so annoyed the petals got blown off the flowers before I was able to get a photo! I saw it when the buds were forming, but missed the flowers :(

And lastly, here is the begginings of my very own scrapbooking 'stash' and my very first page. Not overly impressive but I had fun doing it, and even more fun remembering the occasion (our one year anniversary which we spent overnight at Taronga Zoo). I only stuck things down with post-it type glue so may yet make some changes. Any and all suggestions are welcome :)

Until next time, take care.

Em

See How My Garden Grows!

2008-10-18T17:56:00.003+11:00

I did a bit of work in the garden today, putting up lattice and moving a couple of pots around into better positions. Not much interesting happening, just things growing more and more. The bigger Roma tomato is developing flowers though so maybe we will start to see some fruit soon. Am also hoping we might start to see fruit developing on the lemon and mandarin but I think some strong winds we had recently did a little too much damage so I wont hold my breath.

Here is the new willow lattice in place. the bits on the side will eventually go up at the corners to support the grape and passionfruit at this end and the jasmine at the other, although by the time they are big enough to give us some privacy we will probably be ready to leave the city!

Here is a close up of the grape and passionfruit at the western end. They are just starting to burst with new growth. I will be interested to see just how much they grow over summer.

The Roma tomato which is as tall as my fruit trees! OK, so the trees are, well, tiny...but still!

These two tomatoes are flourishing. They are two that I raised from seed but not sure if they are Roma or Reisentraube. Can you actually tell from the foliage? It all looks the same to me. Below them are some other tomato seedlings which I will spread throughout the garden soon. I just chucked them in the pot because they were drying out too much in the seedling tray. You can also see a nasturtium or two, some sweet basil and ah...something else...in that pot. Aren't I wonderful at remembering what I planted where? lol!

And here is a view looking in the other direction for once :) That is the cats area when the lattice on the right is pulled across, right at the end. Not much space but hey, she is 15 ok? She doesn't exactly move around much! (And spends most of her time sleeping inside anyway). You can see the little fatty under the table spying on someone through the ironwork. (Look for the grey blob!)

That is all for today :)

Step lightly,

Em

Slightly Delayed Garden Update

2008-10-15T16:18:00.007+11:00

These are oh, about a week and a half old now :P but anyway...take a (very short) stroll through my garden with me.

This cabbage is coming along nicely compared to my last attempt which well...the word 'fail' is putting it mildly. I just hope it will actually head at some point. Anyone got any tips on how to encourage this? I wont bother with cabbages again until we have more space because they take up a tad too much room, but I would like at least ONE to taste the difference from store bought.

The two in the other tub I have a feeling wont make it, with the way this weather is going. I think it is going to get too hot for them, too soon. The spinach is growing decently, but a bit slowly. I think I need to remember to fertilize more often. We did have our first meal partially from the garden the other night though - spinach and ricotta rolls. YUM!!!

This is the Gross Lisse tomato..I think..or the Roma? Lol, who knows. Either way, this was rescued from coles as a sickly looking seedling (I take mercy on sick seedling much like other people take in sick animals haha) and has flourished. As you can see, it is catching up with the dwarf mandarin which can be seen getting ready to flower in the background.

And the first apple flowers! Unfortunately I didn't learn until after I had bought it from Daleys that it needs another tree to cross pollinate it. Today I picked up a Pinkabelle which fingers crossed will flower before this ends. If not, oh well, the flowers are pretty enough to warrant them a place in my garden.

Well, that is it for today. If I actually remember, I will post more pics this weekend...

Dont hold your breath.

Em

A New Job and Getting Creative

2008-10-12T09:38:00.003+11:00

After getting completely and utterly sick of working for a typical small business and being stuck in an office 5 days a week, I decided recently that it was time for a change. I started looking for something that would get me moving around, outside more, and be truly worth while. I hit the jackpot! As of this past week I am now a Personal Carer and am loving it. I have met some lovely old ladies and heard some wonderful stories, but most of all, I am making a difference. It makes me feel so good knowing that by going into these peoples homes, helping them with tasks like showering and dressing, meal preparation and housework, they are able to stay in the comfort of their own homes instead of having to go into a nursing home or hospital. The only down side is that with all the driving around I am doing, I am using far more fuel than before when the car got used once or twice a month. One of the big pluses is that I have had more time for myself and my home because I am not spending 2.5 hours a day on public transport! It is already making me feel far more relaxed and I am feeling like I have more time to get creative.

There isn't much that needs doing in the garden at the moment, it is all just growing and growing and growing some more! Instead I have been spending more time inside, painting the bedroom and bathroom ceilings and doors (for some strange reason the previous owners painted the whole house, but left all the doors the original ugly dark brown wood paneling), looking for free clothing patterns online as nothing in the shops ever seems to fit right, and getting started with scrapbooking. So far I have the actual scrapbook, some card stock and a few embellishments but not quite enough to get properly started. It certainly isn't a cheap hobby but I love the idea of preserving our familys memories in such a beautiful way.

I will update later with some pics of the garden in all its flowering thriving glory :)

Patchwork and Preserving

2008-10-03T13:32:00.003+10:00

I bought a canner and a bunch of jars some time ago, but I have never gotten around to actually canning anything. Yesterday however, when I went up to the markets there was a box of 'seconds' tomatoes for $5. I couldn't resist such a bargain and so I carried them home and set about with my first ever canning experience.

I turned this:

In to this:

I was very proud of myself and I have far more respect for people who can regularly. I didn't realise quite how MESSY skinning that many tomatoes would be haha. I was also suprised at how much space there was in the top of them this one being the most obvious:

When I packed them in I only left about a half inch head space and I did make sure to try and remove any air bubbles before processing. Any thoughts? They all appear to have sealed properly at least. I am really looking forwards to our next lot of spaghetti bolognaise made with these tomatoes :)

I have also been keeping myself busy with a new project - a small patchwork wallhanging. My previous experience with patchwork consists of one square I did for my Grandmas quilt years ago when she had cancer. All the women in the family worked on it together while she was unwell. Thankfully she recovered and has been fine ever since but patchwork will always hold a special place in my heart because of that time we all spent together. I want to eventually make a big quilt for our bed - something that will become a family heirloom - but for once I am being sensible and starting small. Isn't it cute?

I had so much fun choosing the fabrics and can't wait to see what it will look like finished! I especially love the background fabric with the hay coloured stripes and pretty little flowers.

And last but not least, here are some pics of the garden I took last weekend but never got around to posting.

You can really see the difference between this shot, and a similar one a few posts back!

The mulberry has a tonne of beautiful glossy new leaves

And the little lemon is in full bloom. The smell out there is gorgeous.

Spring Garden Update

2008-09-16T15:30:00.005+10:00

Finally after weeks of watching and waiting for the lemon buds to develop they have finally burst into flower. The first opened on Thursday and another two have since opened their petals to the sun. The rest of the garden is coming along nicely. The snow peas are on their way out without having produced a single pod - I am wondering if I put them in too late so they were too warm? The stems started turning brown and dry looking and now only the very ends are still green. The garden peas however are still looking very happy and I think are about to flower. The comfrey that was attacked by aphids has recovered well although I am still battling the little buggers who moved on to the asparagus fern and then onto the melon seedling I had started inside. Thankfully they dont seem to be affecting anything else though. This weekend I transplanted a few more tomato, thyme and zuccini seedlings. I also bought and planted out a few more strawberry crowns. Not the right time of year but fingers crossed they will do ok despite that.

Here is the first delicious smelling lemon flower. Look at all those buds!!!

I put these tomato seeds out about a month ago but it has only just gotten warm enough for them to raise their little heads. Now I just have to work out where I am going to fit them all!

Compared to these seedlings below which have been growing on the windowsill - tomato, thyme and I think those two other ones are the rockmelons.

This cabbage plant is a vast improvement on the first lot of leggy things I tried growing. I hope the spinach beside it grows a bit faster or its going to get smothered! And that pretty little thing in the bottom left is the melon? I started inside. Yes, I suck and both identifying seedlings and marking them so I don't have to try and work out what they are.

What makes your Eco-Halo glow?

2008-09-06T08:25:00.003+10:00

Since I have become more aware of and concerned by the impact our actions have on the environment there have been plenty of not-so-proud moments for me - accepting plastic bags because I forgot re-usables, buying conventionally raised meat wrapped in layers of plastic, buying asparagus from Peru (that one was purely accidental). But there are also moments that I am proud of, when I can stand up straight and say 'I am making a difference'.
Like most people I have a habit of beating myself up and thinking I could do so much better, but I think we need to focus more on what we HAVE done, give ourselves a pat on the back and then keep on trying to do even better.
Last night standing at the checkout of the supermarket was one of those Glowing Eco-Halo moments for me. My 'Onya Weigh' mesh produce bags were filled with fresh Australian produce (except the Peruvian asparagus - oops) and the rest of my haul (being packed in to my backpack and re-usable bags) consisted of couscous, dried herbs, free range chicken and a herbal supplement to help my other half sleep.
Looking at the other shoppers with their frozen meals and plastic wrapped sugary snacks I felt proud and yes, just a little bit better than them, because I realised how far I have come. Not that long ago, I was one of them. Shop bought pasta, biscuits and prepackaged individual deserts. I cant really remember now what I used to eat but I know one thing. Fresh produce was a very rare ingredient whereas now it makes up the bulk of our households shopping. From an environmental and personal health perspective, I am indeed very proud of the changes I have made.
I still have a way to go but for now, I can stand up straight, pat myself on the back and say 'you know what Em? You've done good'. After all, making changes for the better, not being 'perfect', is what it is all about.

Garden Update

2008-08-16T11:03:00.004+10:00

My poor coriander post aphid-attack

Seedlings I am bringing on inside, in an improvised greenhouse - a plastic container on the windowsill. Just dont ask me what seeds I put in lol.

The Garden

The snow peas andgarden peas are coming along quite nicely

Recently transplanted lettuce and cauliflower? seedlings with teensy weensy carrots coming up between them

I am still waiting for the lemon to flower. These buds look like they are about to burst!!!

A little neglect goes a long, long way

2008-08-16T09:59:00.002+10:00

It has been a busy few weeks here at the Itty Bitty Homestead. My new position at work and the associated stress and fatigue that follows in the first month of learning a new role has left precious little time for me to relax and tend the home. I finally attacked the kitchen and bathroom the other night when I got home from work as I had forgotten what colour the tiles underneath were meant to be. Ok…so it wasn’t quite THAT bad but you get the point.

The garden has also suffered a little from my neglect – I wandered out on the weekend to discover my comfrey and coriander had both been decimated by aphids. A good spray with pyrethrum later, the coriander is looking like it will recover but the comfrey has a brown ‘crispy’ thing going on with its leaves which I am sure can't be a good sign. Thankfully everything else has survived, even the seedlings outside after I forgot to water them for a week. OOPS! Hey, I am trying to grow tough little buggers ok? If they can’t hack it they don’t deserve to be in my garden. Natural selection and all that…

I have also been slacking off in the kitchen and not baked bread since the 3^rd batch of rolls a week or so ago and I am ashamed to say, I even BOUGHT pasta the other night although I at least made the pesto sauce for it myself. One area I haven’t slacked off in has been my diet – I am now officially a healthy eater! Fruit salad for breakfast and greek salad for lunch every week day is starting to make a difference. I cant wait to be able to wear all my clothes again. Now if only I had the energy to exercise.

So here is to settling into the new role, sleeping better and having more time and energy to do all the things I want to do.

Seedlings, Buns and the Destroyer of Gardens

2008-07-27T15:14:00.006+10:00

This weekend has been nice and productive in the garden. The purchase of 3 new pots into which I was able to finally empty the bokashi bins contents (combined with potting mix) has given me a bit more space the grow things. In celebration I have planted out some (shop bought) seedlings of cabbage, silverbeet and tomato. I also transplanted the seedlings from my trays and scattered some carrot seed into the new pots. I am aiming for a nice jumbled crowded mess which is good because I am sure that is what I am going to end up with!!! I am also starting some seeds in Jiffy pots on the kitchen window sill to give them a bit of a headstart - rockmelon, two types of zuccini, tomato, basil and thyme. I cant wait until the balcony is a little jungle and I have to step through sprawling vines to get to the other end :) I plan on cramming as much into this space as possible - I think the next move will have to be hanging baskets along the house wall! And this time the fatcat is excluded - below are some older pictures of our very first potato harvest and an explanation for why after 10 months here I havent harvested anything else other than herbs... this is what happened when my darling old cat who I've had since year 3 decides the soil in the tomato bed is oh so nice and warm to sleep on!

The not-quite-famine-ending harvest of potatoes.

The bane of my plants existence - Zoe

I also attempted making bread by hand for the first time using a recipe from my new book. They were very buttery and tasted almost like a cross between a croissant and a bread roll. Quite edible though so satisfactory for my first go.

The swirly bundle

Close up!

And lastly, garden progress:

The lemon tree is covered in tiny buds! I cant wait to taste the first juicy lemon!

And what will become the standard weekly garden progress pic showing the tiny transplanted seedlings and the three new pots...I think I will be able to fit another 3 or 4 so room for perhaps another 2 dwarf fruit trees. Mmmmm jungle :D

That's all for now! Off to pop the roast in the oven then curl up with my sweetheart and make the most of the last hours of the weekend!

A lazy LONG weekend at home

2008-07-20T18:30:00.004+10:00

This weekend was absolute bliss. I took Friday off work to accept delivery of our new oven and get the electrician in to install it and have been having fun testing it ever since. The chocolate fudge brownies were ah..not so successful but the baked fish and chips were good and there is currently a nice roast lamb shoulder cooking away. And if you were wondering why an oven excites me so much, the main element hasn't worked for about a year so I am loving being able to BAKE again and makes cakes in a real oven instead of the microwave 'oven'.

Except for baking, there wasn't much else to do. Shopping for a good book on baking bread in celebration of the new oven, watering the garden and feeding the local cockatoos who have discovered that pieces of apple regularly appear on the balcony each weekend. The seedlings I have in trays are coming along slowly and with the amount of space I have (or lack there of) there isn't a whole lot of maintenance to do - something which one day I am sure I will look back on and wish for again! With nothing else to do I decided it was as good a time as any to take a few photos to introduce you to my home so without further ado, I present to you The Itty Bitty Homestead Kitchen Garden.

Some of my seedlings - this tray is mostly lettuce with some leek and something else which I don't recall.

The dwarf fruit trees which I got from Daley's about a month ago

Dwarf coffee, garlic and rosemary

My Garden - this is about half the length of the balcony. The rest has our 200L water tank (filled by bucket from shower water etc) and a small table and chairs which is mostly used as my seedling nursery, plus the cats bed and litter. There is also a fence just out of sight on the bottom of this photo, to prevent my plants suffering a horrible death by cat-squishing.

And last but not least, the water tank. It's not much, but every drop counts right? (Just forget I said that when I am having a nice hot shower lol)

And there you have it folks - the Homestead Garden in all its glory!

Step lightly,

Em

The Circle of Life

2008-07-14T16:53:00.005+10:00

But in all seriousness...catching up on a couple of blogs yesterday made me realise what will be both one of the best and at the same time, one of the worst things about homesteading - life and death. While one blogger was distraught at the loss of a number of her animals from dog attacks, another was enjoying the wonderful birthday present of a couple of donkey births. It's one of those things that makes you take off the rose coloured glasses for a while.

Something I will happily admit is that I DO have all these romantic notions of homesteading and self sufficiency although a part of me also knows it will be hard work and a total b*tch at times. A day like this however, makes me stop and consider the downsides and how I would realistically deal with the losses, the deaths, the sorrow that comes with all the joy. I suppose the trick is just to focus on the good things and remember that everything changes, from good to bad and back again.

As someone who has depression, staying positive is something I have had to force myself to do in order to stay (relatively) sane and I don't doubt it is something I will have to work hard at once we have our bit of land. Luckily I am a naturally optimistic person (except when I fail to take my meds - oops!) so I hope I will be ok. If all else fails, I will try to always have at least one animal pregnant so I will have cute fluffy babies to look forwards to :)

Welcome to Our Humble Home

2008-07-10T13:50:00.001+10:00

I am by no means new to the world of blogging, having been on LiveJournal for the past 5 years, but while my journals over there have been mostly private places for venting and tracking events in my life, this blog will be public and allow all you lovely people out there in blogland to join me on my journey to self sufficiency...in a two bedroom, third floor apartment in the suburbs of Sydney.

In the next few years my wonderful other half and I want to move away from the city to a 20-ish acre property in southern NSW but for now we are working towards our goals in the space we have, reading, learning, and practicing what we can. My interests cover all areas of health and nutrition, homesteading, cooking from scratch, traditional crafts and organic gardening. I also own just about every book on Permaculture available and hope to one day apply the principles to our own block of land.

For now though, I am making the most of my 1.5m x 6m north facing balcony. My next few posts will go into more detail about what brought me here, my views on various environmental issues and what I am growing - and once I have figured out how to include pics, I might even show you my garden so far :)

Until then, keep smiling and tread gently on the earth.

Em