I'm going back!

China beware! How exciting, my DD N is off to China for work and after she survives a few mine trips we are doing a private tour for 7 days arranged by Glenda at Boutique Tours and Travel. I need to organise my visa for China and flights to and from and no time to do it! RACT travel are on to my flights. A lovely person at N's head office in Sydney is organising my VISA ahhhhh passport needs to go, will I get it back in time!

March Showers

Tried to do a bit of gardening between rain showers and while wandering around found the colchium in full bloom. The common name for these is Autumn crocus and they look just like crocus only much bigger.
The rain didn't put off the bees! This one was out and about and looking for lovely nectar. What else am I missing under all the weeds!
Cleaned out the lily pond, now it is up to the leaves to climb out of the water! Everything was completely covered in a pond weed. I will need to skim it every day to try and get rid of it!

Polar bear in the lounge!

oh excitement my new camera has arrived! Close up of one of my Christmas pressies.

Divi enjoying a lollypop and Mike looking very surprised.

Wow how does this look?

All the lino and carpet is up and how bad do these boards look! BUT this is how they look now, wow what a difference.

Another job done!

Spent my lunch break carting planks for the floor, well some of them. Helped the floorer move them in until his offsider arrived and then left them to it. So exciting

Going, going, gone

Painting is so wonderful, all these decisions have to be made. Alas it is no more.

Busy, busy

Richy and Jenny came for a visit over the weekend. Apart from them having to sit in the airport for 2 hours because of plane trouble we had a wonderful time!

Friday

Richy posting Issy a card at the FAMOUS Dunalley postbox

Saturday
Rob and Richy enjoying lunch at SalamancaFelicity and Ken with Moo brewWill I give Pete a hand?
So many babies on the pond!
The lovely conservatory at the Royal Hobart Botanical Gardens with wedding in process

Jenny and me in the Japanese Garden

Sunday

Alas no photos of beautiful Oatlands or Ross, the weather just wasn't good enough.

The Gardener

Rob is really working hard in the garden, I think we will all be receiving the most delicious vegies from Rob's Patch - move over Peter Cundall!

What have I done!

House is being painted at the moment and I gave permission for these to be painted over AND NOW I DON'T WANT THEM TO BE! Why did I do it??????

Blue is for boys

Great news today, safe arrival of Buddy! Congratulations Cate and Phil.

Sewing

A big sewing day yesterday. My quilt, inspired by my trip to China last year is now tacked together ready for quilting. I attended a class last year at American Patchwork, 91 Patrick Street, Hobart after seeing it advertised and thought it would be a great reminder of my China trip. I don't get much time to do sewing, too many things to do but it is slowly getting done. I wouldn't have got it to this stage without the help of my very good friend who spent at least 4 hours tacking, yesterday. Lucky she is right handed and I am left handed so we could start in the middle and go out to the opposite ends. It would have been a huge job by myself! Now I have to get the machine out and start quilting......

Hurricane Force winds

It was a bit windy last Wednesday night! When I opened the curtains I got a bit of a shock to see the solar dome over the old pool absolutely ruined. Thought the frame was OK if a bit bent but one piece has a big rip in it so I guess will have to be replaced. The local paper has some great photos. http://www.news.com.au/mercury/gallery/0,22927,5030740-5015646,00.html

Home again, home again

This morning was very busy. First Dylan, Nicole and I took down the Christmas tree (and I forgot to take a photo of it) then Nicole and I staked out some trees while Clint put the fittings on the pond ready for the fountain. We all heaved and puffed and huffed and fountain was finally in place. Very muggy day, everytime you move you break out in perpiration.

Quick shower then off to Rebel Sport to look at gym equipment then to the airport. Good flight home but the luggage took 20 minutes to be delivered at the Hobart end, thought they must have lost it all.

Cat's drinking bowl

Nicole and I finished off the grouting for the vegie garden pond. Stalin thinks it is his personal drinking bowl.

Babies

These galahs are providing us with some amusement at the moment. They descend into the trees about an hour before dusk and demand loudly to be fed by their long suffering parents. We are usually having dinner in the courtyard when they come and can't hear outselves because of their wailing.

It's a tough life

Nicole and I enjoyed a dip in the pool after a day of painting and grouting. We were very virtuous and took the dogs for a walk early this morning. Earlyish to bed, we didn't stay to welcome in 2008!

Thank you, Sarah

Thanks to Sarah (Nicole's work colleague) we were able to celebrate the end of 2007 in style. She came round on Christmas Day with this bottle of Moet et Chandon that we stashed away for later celebration!

Dylan marinated some pork fillets and cooked them for us for dinner and we enjoyed the fruits (vegetables) of Nicole's labour from the garden.

Where is Clint?

Well you might ask what Clint was doing while we were so industriously employed? He was just playing farmer, pulling a few olive trees out, moving a bit of dirt, you know just boy stuff :)

Painting boards and more boards

Nicole and I spent a few hours today painting! An absolutely beautiful day with not many clouds in the sky. The boards are to clad the Andrew Gaze Pump house. The name was bestowed on the pump shed because when I was up in October Clint and Frank were building the shed and used left over framing from the house and the house has high ceilings. I snapped Nicole on the last of the first coat, oh no another one to go, better be off!

How to double your trip

We headed off for Sue's place today. Left at 7:30am and arrived about 12:45pm. I think we got lost somewhere along the way. At least it only took 3 hours to get home.....

Sue has a lovely spot out of Taree. It is in an old volcano and you can see the rim all around. We had lunch and met Sue's new man, Ian. Although not new but I hadn't met him before! Seemed quite a nice guy.

Jim was there and he looks really good, although now a bit tottery and it is hard for him to get around outside at Sue's as it is all up and down.

The house is pretty with a lovely vine along the veranda. We went for a walk around the property and checked out the wine cellar. They have a few vines and get about 1500 bottles out of the harvest. Only for bartering and drinking themselves! The cellar is dug into the side of the hill. Each tube has 7 bottles of wine stashed away in it