Cleanup.

Well, we have now removed most of the tree. Only the root ball and a few branches remain.

A few minor repairs will be needed as once all the clutter was cleared it became obvious that some slight damage was caused.

Veggie patch damaged

The root ball actually pushed the chook palace slightly sideways.

So despite the above, we got away with limited damage. I don't think we will be trying to push the chook palace back into place. It weighs heaps! Added to all of this, our computer decided to do a dummy spit. Windows very kindly said it would save all my programs - it did, in name only. Needless to say I have spent my Sunday trying to reinstall my preferred browser, security etc etc. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!! Damn technology, good when it works................................

Meanwhile, Gertrude, our oldest chook was found dead this morning. Old age finally got her. She had a great retirement. I think it is time to get some more layers. Our two remaining girls seem to lay eggs when they are in the mood, which is not for days sometimes. Maybe it has something to do with constantly being barked at??

Bailey!!!!

The Winds of Destruction.

The other day a storm passed over our town packing destructive winds. Now I did not give it much thought as we are quite used to land gales. There is a reason we have all our roof tiles tied to the roof frame.
Came home  in the  afternoon to be confronted by Hubby wearing a cheshire grin. He declared that from now on our luck can only get better. Oh God, what has happened I thought. Turns out our rather large Gum tree down the back decided to give up the ghost. No.2 son said he just heard a crack and down it came. Now, when Gum trees come down, they usually hit something, like your house. Hubby was right, our luck has to improve as it managed not to hit fencing, neighbours property or destroy the chook palace. Our friend now has some extra wood for next winter.

Timber..............

So close

Only pushed the trailer to the ground.

Start of the clean up

More next post.

The Other (better) Half.

Well, now it is my turn, middle aged crisis or whatever you like to call it. I call it doing my own thing.Yeehaaaaa.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Spring has sprung and my garden is waking up. My poor old apple tree looks like it has given up the ghost, so we replanted it in another spot hoping that some sign of life shows itself. Here are some springy pictures, don't ask me what the plant is as I bought it from the throw out pile at the nursery. The damn thing is growing like a weed. Wish the plants I paid good money for would do the same!

Stages.

Sometimes in life you do things that are completely out of the box. Well, hubby and I decided that we were going to do something different. And we did. We decided to get a tattoo. I decided on a flower, hubby decided on a samurai back piece. He had no idea of the pain involved, nor of how many sessions would be involved. Three sessions later it is still a work in progress. I have the flower, but my idea of a back piece is now on hold. I know that most people see tattoos as normal now, but hey, got to keep the family on their toes. I think they are cringing at the thought of what we might do next. We might let them sweat for a while!!

Still more colour to go.

Car Ride

Went out to visit my grandson today. Like grandmothers  the world over, I am going to show you my latest photo of him in his 'Elmo' suit. Too cute by far, not that I am biased.

He now gives the the most amazing smiles. No, it is not wind!

Flower Pot Heaven.

Bailey has fallen in love with a flower pot. He runs riot around the front yard with his head half in the pot. It is quite amusing to watch him try and hide it.

She will never think to look here.

Unfortunately, he is not very good at hiding his flower pot.

Darn it, she found me.

He will then spend 15 mins or so racing around and around looking for a 'safe' spot.

I'll take it somewhere safe.

Only to end up back where he started.

Trying to chew his pot.

Such is life.

Love at First Sight

Well it seems that I have let time run away from me again. I do however have a good excuse. I'd like to introduce my utterly gorgeous, adorable, cute and lovable Grandson who was born on the 8th of July.

Kieran with mum.

Congratulations to my son and his  partner on the birth of their  beautiful son.

Succession Plan

About 2 weeks before Baxter passed away we got him a playmate. Little did we know how poignant the timing would be. His name is Bailey and he is a 7 month old Staffordshire bull terrier. He is the Ladybug of the canine world, and wants to share his love continuously. He loves snuggling into you or, as in most cases, sitting on you.

The one and only Ladybug.

He snores, oh boy does he snore, and his toilet training certainly tested our patience, the floor, the carpet....... However now things are chugging along nicely... for now. Did I mention that he loves chewing shoes?

A face only a mother could love.

Bailey annoying the chooks. Baxter taught him well.

Where has the time gone?

It has been a stressful few months since I last posted. Hubby having no job, and the loss of my beloved Baxter. As you know, Dachshunds have quite long backs. It is common for them to rupture disks or end up with paralysed back legs. It happened so fast, one day he was running around creating the usual havoc, then the next day he could barely move. It got so bad that within 3 days, he had to be carried around. So for the second time in 12 months or so, I have taken a dog to the vet to see if something could be done, only to leave alone. His passing was particularly hard as he was my lapdog and I loved him, loud barking and all.

My adorable Baxter.

Anyway, I am slowly making my way back to blogging. Hopefully only good news from now on.(fingers crossed).

Dig Girls,Dig.

Autumn is here thank goodness. Hopefully no more horrendously hot days. The down side is the shorter days. My poor gum tree does not realise that it is Autumn yet and has burst into flower again. The parrots think this is a fantastic turn of events and are making the most of it.

Can you see him?

Meanwhile, the 'Ladies' are happily de-weeding my vegie patch, while Baxter runs the perimeter trying to terrorise them. Needless to say, the 'Ladies' are not too bothered.

The Boss ( Gertrude) keeping an eye on proceedings.

Bums up, digging away.

Technologically inept.

I think some fine tuning is in order.

I am trying out my phone's camera. I think I need some practice.

Why is it so?

It should be simple enough. The aim-: change internet providers and change our e-mail. Simple!.......Wrong!!! Let's just say that in trying to change my e-mail, it would have been easier to remove my liver. Still, these trials are sent to test us. Hmmm where has everyone gone?

I am not coming out till Bonsaimum calms down.

In the eye of the beholder.

Ok, so maybe I need to lose some weight.

After all, I do tend to take up quite a bit of space on the bed and Bonsaimum can barely move.

That's ok, I will just move over to Hubby's side and settle on him for the night.

PlayStation Cat.

Who said humans can have all the fun?

That's it... more to the left.

He would get a higher score if he listened to me!

What's that noise?

I think that there would be thousands of women out there who would understand what I have gone through. What is it you ask?   The answer = SNORING!!  My other half snored so loudly that most of the street would hear him on balmy summer evenings. Now I may not have been the most understanding of spouses when 2am in the morning I elbowed him, but I needed some sleep. I perfected the falling asleep within 10min routine, but should I not fall asleep, a long, long night followed. 30yrs of it. I told him that felons get less time for murder!

Well, about 3 weeks ago, he finally went to a sleep specialist. The result:

CPAP machine.

It turns out he has severe sleep apnea and stops breathing  over 70 times a night. This little machine should be given a medal, I'd marry it if I could. For the first time in over 30yrs, he just breathes, no snoring and it is truly heaven. I have suggested that if his life insurance is raised substantially, the pipe could be hooked up to.......
So if any of you have a hubby that snores so loudly that he can be heard from the top of Mt Everest, get a CPAP asap. It could save a life. Hmm, now where did I park the car.......................?

Who's stressed?

Good thing I don't smoke. However....

From thoughtful friends.

They are being burnt rather quickly!

Now where is that bottle of wine?

And so.....

Well it is now official. Hubby is unemployed.  Management-1, Hubby-0.  At least the heat here has subsided. The fires were pretty bad again this year. We still have the fire burning in the open cut mine at Morwell. It has been going for weeks. As you pass the mine you can see water jets trying to extinguish the fires in the coalface. I think it will be a long time till the fires are completely put out. In the meantime, the air quality as you can imagine is horrible. People who have not had asthma attacks for years, are now seeking medical attention. The fire also made it to the outskirts of the town, and quite a ways down the highway.

Fire damage along the highway.

Dead and burnt trees on both sides of the highway.

Sand in the eyes.

Well it's a lazy Sunday. I decided to take no.1 son down to Frankston beach to see sand sculptures. I was paying of course. It took us about an hour to get there, but it was worth it. Hope you all like the pics.

Peter Rabbit

Harry Potter

Angry Birds

Where the wild things are

The lion,the Witch and the Wardrobe

Of course there were many more, and the turnout was good, in fact so good that I was lucky to find a parking spot.