Saturday 24 February 2018

All About the Boy....!!!

My G-boy turns 7 next week....it's hard to believe how quickly time goes and how fast they grow up.  He's currently into bugs, insects and all assorted creepy crawlies.....I caught up for an after school date so he could see me on my birthday....took his GG (great grandma) along for the trip.

My gorgeous grandson and his new friend......

Milkshakes and iced coffee after school...
and a catch up with my favourite little guy.
I couldn't resist sharing the pictures of his cubby house reno.....my daughter has moved to their new home and the old cubby in the yard was in need of some TLC.....amazing what a bit of elbow grease and a huge slice of imagination can produce !!!....

Poor tired old cubby that hasn't been played in for quite a long time....

His cubby house post renovation.......amazing what a few old bits and bobs can do..


Wednesday 21 February 2018

The Week That Was .....!!!

Last week my man and I took a few days away...first holiday in 12 months !! .... after a beautiful 4 nights in Robe, SA, which truly is an absolute gem to visit...breathtaking scenery with a great coastal vibe in the town, we headed to Cape Bridgewater, just 10 minutes from Portland. What an amazing place to visit with its fabulous stretch of beach and absolute tranquility.  

The Doorway Rocks along the Robe coastline, part of the limestone coast...walked the coast trail...just spectacular.

The house we stayed in at Robe was fitted out in 1960's retro - ....50mts from Glass Beach..with ocean view !!

Cape Bridgewater - we stayed in this cute as a button historical stone cottage, with fab views of the beach.

Cape Bridgewater beach which runs for a few kilometres...surrounded by wind farms

The fluffy girls had a blast on the beach....no one around so they were off lead and into it.
My ancestors come from Portland so we visited the grave of Samuel Proudfoot Hawkins..his historical home is listed by the National Trust as he was fairly prominent in the area and also the grandfather of Vida Goldstein who you can read about here ... she was a feminist, a suffragist (along with her mother) and the first woman to run for Federal parliament in Australia.

Samuel Hawkins is the brother of my great, great grandfather.
 I have blogged previously about my love of old cemeteries...there is just something incredibly moving about reading old gravestones...so much history retold in the names and ages.  I came across something you don't see everyday....while it is a bit hard to see in the photo a man called John Pitcher buried his beloved wife Mary Ann aged 32 years in 1867...then proceeded to bury his next beloved wife Charlotte Elizabeth aged 26 years in 1872 in the same grave!!!  Maybe it's just me?


The garden went riotous while we were away and there are eggplants popping up everywhere...we are exhausted with all the tomatoes....passatta, relish and sauce even frozen some (apparently you can do that !) and given many away..  But it was so windy here yesterday that now the garden is in uproar and tomato plants are all over the place...so it may well be the end of the season for them :-( 

Not really an eggplant fan....need more recipes I think....but the sheen and colour is so beautiful
My lovely neighbour looked after the garden and the feathered girls while we were away....but this is the first Isa Brown I have had who has gone broody....I didn't think they did that....I haven't been able to get her to stay off the nest for over three weeks...she sits even when there are no eggs under her and squawks like a mad thing when I move her off the nest....any suggestions gratefully accepted !!

Broody girls wont get off the nest....Oh Dear !!

Some of the other girls who don't know what all the fuss is about.

Thursday 8 February 2018

Travelling from Joy to Heartbreak........!!

A very busy time this past week......a wonderful celebration on Saturday at the engagement BBQ of my daughter and the lovely  man in her life...a beautiful day that they had both spent so much time and energy preparing and everything... even the weather...was perfect. They now live up country so we stayed the weekend at a lovely guest house in Benloch with my eldest daughter and her family...such a nice break.

Check out the bride to be's new blog here ..hopefully she learns to cook..!!

The engagement sign my eldest daughter and I created....she did the fab lettering and I did the chalk flowers...
made to match her engagement invitations..

The oh so cute cake and a snippet of the pink DONUT wall....delicious !!

The happy couple....can't wait for November 
Sadly my man and I then had to travel to Sea Lake for the funeral of my much loved auntie who passed away unexpectedly from a stroke....she was an integral part of the small community there and it was so wonderful to see well over 300 people at the service in the community hall...she was an avid supporter of all the town activities but the sporting clubs in particular..she sold the tickets on game day, volunteered behind the club bar and prepared meals for the teams after training..at 81 she was fiercely independent..spent most of her time maintaining her beautiful lush garden..a rarity in the dust bowl that is Sea Lake..and visiting and taking care of 'elderly' town residents...the funeral cortege drove down main street to the cemetery and shop keepers lined the street......to know her was to love her and the town will sorely miss her vibrant personality. 

Rest in peace darling Joyce...the world shines a little less brightly with out your amazing sparkle .

This poignant wreath in club colours hung in the ticket shed where she sold tickets every game day.
I always like to finish on a positive note so I thought I would include a picture of the basket of goodies delivered to Aimee yesterday....includes a jar of my man's beetroot... I have finally gotten him interested in getting involved with the produce !!!
Eggplant, celery, rhubarb, cherry toms, passionfruit, spring onions, zucchini, pears & Bonza Beetroot !!