A change of plans

Freshly drawn comb

 Yesterday my plans for today involved a fair bit of fencing and marking lambs but none of that eventuated. The lambs can keep their tails a day or two longer. Today was pretty near perfect for hive checking and maintenance so that is what we did. It was sunny but not too hot, a breeze was blowing but it wasn't windy. Sounds like pretty good conditions for almost anything really but the hives really are best checked when the bees are active and happy. All was good and there is a lot of new comb being drawn out in the new supers and some honey being made too. Just as it should be. I did manage to get a bee in my bonnet but thankfully both bee and me were unharmed.

 The bees have been busy in the kurrajong tree which is amass of these bell shaped flowers. They remind me of Christmas bells but it could be that I am just seeing Christmas everywhere because of the ornaments I have been making. Right now I am making a few crocheted baubles using this pattern which is I'm glad to say easy to follow. No pictures tonight because the light is not right for photography.

 I'm looking forward to the agapanthus flowering. They are however quite enchanting before the flowers open fully if you have time to look.

Morning tea

 Changing plans and reducing todays to-do list allowed us to have a proper morning tea rather than a quick cuppa. Scones for elevenses is always nice and extra good today because I made the strawberry jam just last week.

I even enjoy washing up after morning tea. Looks much nicer than the pots and pans from a dinnertime cooking spree.

All in all, a great day even if there was no rain despite the forecast being for wet weather.
tracy

Sewing time

Dolly in bits and pieces.

I have really been making an extra effort to spend time doing things that I like to do, not just the chores that have to be done. Even just a few minutes a day adds up to a project completed. I used to make quite a few dolls but haven't done it for a while so I thought why not (and in the process, I have realise dhow much I have missed it). This one might not stay here on the farm but I am enjoying the process of making her for someone special and I am inspired to make a few more things for Christmas and birthday gifts.

I have always just used the dining table as my sewing area but now I am set  up in Tom's room. It has taken me eight months to claim his desk as my sewing table(and to claim his empty book shelves as well).

The sewing zone with assistant.

And guess what? In two weeks time, I will have to relinquish this space because he will be home for the summer. Hooray. When he returns to university next year, I won't delay in setting up shop again, it's great to have a place where the maching can be set up ready for those spare moments when a seam or two can come together.

No sewing tomorrow. It's a shepherding kind of day planned. Marking lambs and a spot of fencing.
Tracy

Olive Bread Rolls and another ornament

 Saturday the wind was brisk and the temperatures were low for this time of year so I made soup. We still have about a dozen pumpkins left so, pumpkin soup it was. What I made to go alongside was olive bread rolls and they were pretty good. A crunchy crust with a nice soft crumb... just right. I cheated and used the breadmaker to knead the dough but that's what is for and it left my hands clean for more ornament making.

 Olive Bread Rolls

 

Ingredients

1.5 cups milk

25 grams butter(softened)

500grams plain flour

10 grams yeast

pinch of salt

1 tbsp sugar

1/4 cup chopped kalamata olives

 

Method

Place ingredients in bread maker according to your machines instructions. My machine takes them in the order above and set the machine to dough. Then let it do its thing.

If you made them by hand, you would mix the ingredients in a bowl then knead until smooth and allow to rise for about 1 hour.

When the dough has risen, remove it from the bowl/breadmaker and knock it down and divide into 12 balls.

Place the balls of dough on an oven tray lined with baking paper and leave to rise for 30- 45 minutes. Preheat oven to 220deg C.

Brush the bread rolls with milk and sprinkle with seeds if desired.

Bake for 15 minutes or until golden and sounding hollow when tapped.

They are tasty but don't have an overpowering olive flavour. Too good to feed the leftovers to the chooks, I make them in to breadcrumbs and store them in the freezer.

I made another ornament yesterday. This one was a real test but turned out ok for a first attempt. The instructions are here and  they are comprehensive enough to allow someone who finds origami type things a little challenging. I made another this morning without looking at the instructions so believe me, that means it isn't too difficult at all.
Tracy

Sweet afternoon

                                 

The strawberries are coming in in enough numbers for a batch of jam even if it is a small one. Our jam supplies are down to a jar of unopened plum jam which is almost two years old. It will be fine to eat but that freshness of the strawberries will beat it hands down. I am waiting on a lemon which will come home from work with Tim and then they can bubble away and I can bottle them up. I think scones will be on the morning tea tray on Wednesday when Tim is on his days off from work.

I had a sweet time this afternoon finishing off a few ornaments for the swap I joined on Christina's blog.

Ornaments on Westringia.

I'm glad I joined because I have found quite a few new to me blogs which are offering up some wonderful craft inspiration. It's great to see different ideas and perspectives from others who it seems might mostly be a bit younger than me (though I am just as young at heart).Edited to add that I meant to say I am older than my two recipients and at a different life stage, not that I'm an old biddy (that I will never be). Besides that, I just love Christmas and have been watching my very favourite Christmas show as I stitch.

It has been a very sweet afternoon indeed. I also made honey joys and a chocolate slice for lunchboxes.
Tracy

Lots to love today

 You just have to be a little in love with the garden when there are enough strawberries to eat fresh and to make some jam too. They are all a good size as well which is another bonus. That drop of rain has really freshened them up.

 The borlotti beans are starting to show some good growth. The snake beans are just popping up through the soil, the climbing princesses are living up to their name and climbing higher and higher. The red kidney beans are a little slow to germinate so I might plant some more seeds just to be sure. And I popped a dozen more yin yang beans seeds in today. The good thing about beans is that even if you get sick of them green, they store well and take on a whole new dimension in the kitchen in the winter.

 The small amount of rain that we had (10mm) might not have been enough to fill the tanks but it has refreshed the plants. The goodness that comes down in the rain does wonders and already the tomatoes are showing signs of improvement.

 I'm really enjoying my poppies at the moment. Because of the dry conditions they aren't as large and lush as usual but the flowers are still bright and cheery. This year I didn't sow any Flanders poppies (and none volunteered) so this is as close as I can come to a red poppy for Rememberence Day tomorrow.

 The poppy is interesting no matter what stage the flower is at. Before opening it could probably be described as borderline obscene by some.
 Then it has the gorgeous and quite short lived flower.

 Before progressing onto the seed head which looks almost alien-like. They look good in a bunch, dried and in a vase for a little while before harvesting the seeds.

 Another thing I loved today was having muddy hands. I do wear gloves when I work in the garden but when I sow seeds I sometimes find it easier to have a more hands-on approach. We haven't had such moist soil for a while so it was truly a treat to be a little bit dirty. It's good clean dirt ...right.

About the only thing I didn't enjoy outside today was these beasties. Those dreaded ladybirds that eat potato leaves like nobodies business. They also seem to have a taste for zucchini leaves and pumpkin leaves too. I did my fair share of natural pest control today and am glad I did.

Now I am going to do something else I love to do, some sewing. I have a few swap items to finish up and package up so no pictures just in case someone who isn't supposed to see just might.

Hope you are having a good day, doing what you love.I'd like to hear about it.
Tracy

A change of heart and mind

Firstly, I want to thank all those who sent me messages and comments last week when I wrote that I was going to stop blogging here. I am not publishing those comments (though they are worthy of being published). I just want to keep them for me. I really should explain what transpired.

 

Last week, I took a bit of a fall whilst out and about on the farm and in the aftermath of a bump to the head (I am fine now although I have looked better), I made the rash decision to stop blogging. What I should have done was rest and let my mind get back in order before logging on. To cut a long story short, I have realised that I do not want to be away from this place. I have many wonderful friends that I enjoy visiting and having visit me even if it is only in a virtual sense. Hopefully with a clear mind, I can be back here with renewed energy and sparkle.



 

 

And in farm news, still no rain although there are clouds on the horizon. It is dry, dry, dry.
Tracy

Due to circumstances that I had not forseen, I will not be updating this blog. I will leave it active for those who visit searching for how to grow rice at home (because it is why most people visit).

Edited to add: Thank you to everyone who has left me comments or written me emails and messages. It warms my heart and has encouraged me to return here sooner rather than later or never. Never undersetimate the power of a kind word.