Happy Mothers Day

It was with pleasure and pain that Mothers Day dawned on May 9th, 2010.  The day was a beaut, bright and sunny which was great, hasn't Autumn been grand?  I had spoken to Mum on the phone on Friday as she opened the box with the bouquet of carnations I had sent her by courier.  It wasn't as good as if I had delivered them but pretty much the next best thing.  On Mothers Day I txt her with more best wishes.

We surprised the Hunky Hubby's Mum with lunch at Sequoia 88.  Along for the meal was Hunky Hubby's eldest sister and afterwards we caught up with his baby sister and her baby Alex.  He's a real bubbly younster and even though he had just woken from an afternoon nap, he still had his cheeky smile for his Nana.  The meal was nice but I don't think it was the best choice of venue.  The room isn't acousticly designed to absorb noise and it was really noisey.  It didn't help that one wee youngster screamed the whole time we were there until finally the staff suggested his Mum take him out, thank goodness.  Hunky Hubby's Mum confessed she had never been taken out to lunch for Mothers Day so we were really blessed that we had that honour.

The highlight of my day as a mother was a txt from Taiza " Happy Mothers Day Mum, love you lots, thankyou for being my Mum.  Lots of love, Taiza xoxo"
His previous owner, Serena in Dunedin, sent the txt on behalf of our cute little bundle and I was just blown away.  Serena and I both raised our boys on our own, I am past the worst of it now but she is still struggling to understand an aggressive, pubescent male and hasn't had the best time of it.  It blessed me to bits that in the middle of her own troubles she had the time and inclination to think of me and Taiza on Mothers Day.  Thank you Serena, you have no idea how much your sweet gesture touched my heart.

On the flip side of that, my  own son had nothing for me on Mothers Day except verbal abuse.  He can be so sweet when there is something he needs and then he can be turned in a split second and be the kid from hell.  No hugs, no best wishes, not even a cup of tea.  I had gone to bed when I remembered my mobile in the kitchen and got up again to retreive it.  He was in the kitchen having a late snack.  I thanked him for the day 'oh yeah, happy Mothers Day' and that was it.  I didn't think my heart could sink any lower.  Two days later I was still feeling unloved and unappreciated by my family of one son.  I know Serena would share my pain, as do many others but what did we ever do to be treated with such distain?  Obviously this Mothers Day, it just wasn't about me!

Harvest Time

Finally the day arrived to harvest the pumpkins.  I still think they were planted a little late but after saving six seeds from a particularly nice supermarket pumpkin, we have a yeild of 14 fruit.  Yes, it's a fruit, by definition because the seed is on the inside, or so I learned at school.
The walnuts are also dropping for collection and are now piling up on the terrace to join the pumpkins for storage.  The terrace was a treasure in the summer as the sun was high enough in the sky that it always provided a shady spot for a cuppa.  Just the opposite for the cooler months but that in itself is a bonus as I now have somewhere for the fruits of my labour, out of the weather but also far enough away from the rodents that sneak around in the garage.  Well at least the larger ones.  I have found a couple of tiny wee mice visiting Lacie (rabbit) on a regular basis and then clinging to the wall behind her hutch trying to hide from me, which obviously failed.  Although there is rat bait in abundance in the shed, I haven't had the heart to lay it for the tiny nose twitching visitors.  I know, I know!  They are disease carrying pests but they are soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo cute!!  Soon ok, I will lay the bait soon!

Back to the harvest.  It's my second season at trying to grow onions.  All the gardening mags say you need patience but they are easy to grow.  I say 'CRAP'!!!  The sum total of my onion harvest was an earth staggering ..................................ONE!!! but having said that, it was a very healthy one, and of generous proportions.  Another four that have played possum all summer have started to grow again.  I don't suppose it really helped that the three girls (chooks RIP ) would be in the garden scratching up whatever I had planted within moments of doing so.  For all their antics, we miss them terribly.  Houdini, Blackie and Ben are interesting and usually up to no good, but they just aren't family like our girls.  Whenever we would turn over a rock or a piece of wood, the girls would be under our fingers trying to devour whatever bugs/worms had been disturbed.  Gardening was always a delicate affair for fear of lifting the fork or shovel with a chicken impaled because she was far too nosey for her own good.  The back door had to be kept closed or all three would make a bee line for Monster's (resident feline) tucker or they would disappear into the bedroom or office for an afternoon siesta.  Although the

three new chooks, of which I include Ben, also like the cat biscuits, they don't rush me with wings flapping to enjoy the delicacy.  I could always rely on the shaking of the biscuit container to bring the girls running post haste from any direction.  They never caught on that on most occassions it was a lure back to their enclosure.  As I said, we miss them dreadfully, perhaps it was the breed.  We are contemplating getting more but first we have to wait and see if Blackie is male or female, the jury is still out.  If it's a girl, it is very aggressive so we wouldn't be able to bring in point of lay chicks for fear of them being injured or killed.  If Blackie turns out to be male, it will have to go, Ben has already taken up the position of resident rooster and practises the crow at 6 am every morning.  Unlike the rooster down the road, Ben crows at a respectable hour thankfully.

So to conclude, I can successfully grow potatoes and pumpkins without too much effort.  Everything else is still a challenge, at least it is once it leaves the windowsill.  I will let you know how I get on with the home made seed tape.

The Three Amigos new pond

It isn't the easiest time for us at the moment, Hunky Husband has been temping as a painter and decorator since his local company went bust last year as part of the recession.  Five months working for a company in Ashburton was showing promise for a permanent position but then nothing.  Changing recruitment companies, he then found work in Christchurch but now that has dried up too.  Thankfully when Hunky Husband sold his Harley Davidson, the money was squirreled away in the bank so the bills are still being paid while he is 'on leave'.  However, he may not be gainfully employed this week but idle he has not been either.  After six months, the internet cable that has laid like a dormant black serpent upon the lawn, has now been laid to rest beneath the green carpet.  The extension to the poultry enclosure has been extended virtically in an attempt to keep Houdini, Blackie and Ben within, although Houdini, ever honourable to her name was on the loose again this afternoon in the paddock.  And today, the Three Amigos were treated with a new pond.

My dear friend Flo had decided that her

water garden wasn't all that it was cracked up to be without a pump and so donated it for the watery amusement of the Three Amigos and they were dutifully grateful.  Originally they had a dirt pond but it had begun to seep oil from vehicles that had long since been parked in the vacinity.  Suspecting it hazardous to their health, the plastic pond would work a treat.  Hunky Husband swung on the shovel and it was loaded into the ground and set to overflow into a dirt pond away from the area that was developing the oilslick.  Once filled with water it didn't take long for the nosey chickens to investigate the disturbed soil and then the Three Amigos checked out their new watery playground.

Taiza to the vet

It was a pretty stressful few hours today as it was time for our precious wee pup, Taiza to go to the vet to be neutered. We had affectionately named our local vet Doctor Death, tongue in cheek really as it seemed most times I took a pet to see him, I never came home with one. BunBuns (rabbit)was first, a tumour in his neck. Then it was the first of our three girls, Madam (Red Shaver chook), another tumour. The most traumatic for me was my precious 12 year old Queenie (British Short Hair cat). She went in for routine dental work but due to an undiagnosed infection, died on the table as she came out of anaesthetic. I cried like a baby for days.

So this morning we were terribly anxious, but we prayed, Taiza is young and his heart is strong. I perched him on my computer desk and took photos, just in case.

The good news though is Taiza came through the surgery without any drama and although feeling a little dozey on it and a little indignant, not a real bloke any more, he's fine. He's eaten and is just resting in front of the fire staying warm.

Autumn has well and truly arrived in Southbridge and we had our first frost this morning along with a foggy start. There are calves across the way and I just love the sound of hungry bovine when the farmer is feeding out. On top of that duck hunting season started on the weekend and before dawn, along with the rooster at a nearby farm, in the distance can be heard the call from the hides encouraging the ducks to their demise. We have a new small pond to put in for our own Three Amigos (Pekin Ducks) and it was my hope to encourage a few of their wild cousins down to protect them from the hunters but what I didn't know was that our own farmer had built a pond a few paddocks over from the house and was attracting them for his own fatal pleasures.

A 'RatBag' in Pink

This is the bonnet of the 'RatBag', it's a vinyl wrap done by a wee company in Woodend, 'Motivation Design'. Murray and Coral are an awesome team and I couldn't be more pleased with the outcome. After describing what I wanted, they created the essence of it perfectly. The rear window is done in a product called Window Vision and is a product with tiny holes that reduce the UV light by almost 90% and also reduces the heat from the sun, good on folk like me with very little hair.

The RatBag is still under construction. My builder 'Phil Crocker Builder' from Southbridge had the joyous task of making the farm 'tail'gates and will be installing a new centre console in the next day or two. He'll be very pleased that he got out of making the louvres that were originally planned for the back window. His next task will be the top box so watch this space.