SkyWatch & Nature Notes ~ 3rd. Blogaversary!

It is exactly three years since my darling daughter bullocked me

into starting a blog. Insecure and mainly computer illiterate, I made

my first tentative posts mainly to have somewhere to show some

photos of my way of looking at the world.

I don't know how it happened but over 600 posts and 300 followers

later, I am humbled to have so many friends around the world and

more grateful than I can possibly say to have been welcomed into

the blogging community with such open arms.

I wish to thank you all for having taken me to your hearts. You all

have made this old lady with a camera, a very happy bunny indeed!

All of you have been like this shining cloud for me, pure joy.

The seasons this year are very confused, like this spider outside

my room with his stash of food bundled up to feed her babies.

Our lovely English Leicester ladies smiling after being 'crutched'

( having their backsides shorn to prevent fly-strike).

One of the chores when the grass greens up in autumn.

It is two weeks to mid-winter here and my garden not only

is bursting with spring flowers but roses as well. How on

Earth am I going to get them all pruned when they look like

this?

Certainly not something one expects at this season of the year.

My Hyacinths are popping up like Johnny Jump-ups.

Violets are flowering everywhere,

Jonquils smile from hidden nooks,

and Snowflakes are ringing their little bells earlier than ever.

Although the sheep got into the garden and trampled the broad

beans, they have set and ripened at least four months early.

Luckily, we have had no bad frosts so our lettuces are doing

well, also very unusual for this time of year.

Most plants are well in advance of their season except these

apples, which were late in ripening and are still being enjoyed

straight off the tree.

The biggest anomaly is this flowering cherry tree which has

swelling buds when it has never in 40 years, flowered before September.

SkyWatch and Nature Notes, Memes that wave been kind to me, click on

either Logo on my side bar to join in all the fun.

MY WORLD ~ English Leicester Sheep

Our intelligent and beautiful English Leicester sheep at sunrise.

Historically Lincoln and leicester lustre longwool was used for

wig making and worsted outer wear. It is remarkably water

and dirt resistant as well as having a lovely sheen.

On top of all that, they are great and caring mothers the one

below even had triplets.

Now click on the Logo and visit everyone else.

*

Thanks to the MY WORLD team for keeping this great meme going.

MY WORLD ~ 2 Why I live where I live

In 1983 in a massive bushfire, we lost our historic
house and 3 acre garden on the ridge of Mt. Lofty
overlooking Adelaide, the capital of South Australia.
Nine years later, after having partly rebuilt our house
we finally received some compensation for our losses.
The steam for rebuilding, which to a great extent we
had done ourselves, had been knocked out of us, and
we never again wanted to see another workman, who
damaged what the last set had just finished.
At this point my husband who was overstretched at his
work gave in to my urging to aquire some rural land to
replace our lovely 60 acres on the Murray river which
we sold to National Parks to finance some of the rebuilding.
We bought our first piece, ninety one or thereabouts acres,
I loved the thereabouts!, a freestanding almost tree bare
block with bore, windmill and small shed, bordered by four
roads.
Thus started our Odyssey. Other people were carving up
land into ever smaller parcels, we were the nutters putting
a farm back together, planting thousands of trees along road
verges and in paddocks for wild life corridors.
We bought the block across the road, our Moon Hill paddock
which our cows love since the bore water is rich in minerals.
We had by this time a flock of sheep needing shearing and the
larger property with a farmhouse of the 1850's, shearing, hay
and implement sheds abutting Moon Hill was for sale. With the
sale of our daughter's house in the near by township, and my
mother-in-law's help, we managed to buy it. Our daughter and
three grandchildren moved to the farmhouse and were happy.
With time the block at the end of our dirt road we also acquired.
All four blocks are congruent and total 200 hectares or almost
500 acres, which for local conditions is a small subsistance farm.
When my mother-in-law could no longer manage, she moved in
with our daughter into purpose built additions to the old house.
We were four generations happily enjoying hard work and
togetherness. My husband and I inhabit the "hovel", a 70's
grey brick barracks of a place meant for 3 single jockeys.



A frosty morning with crab apple blossom Malus
floribunda, in the garden I carved out of a rocky
paddock



the pine roots at the garden end of the house were
invading my garden 50m away and sucking out
the last drop of moisture, so they had to go.



Part of the spring garden beds which repaced them.



The front yard with stables and sheds and grass for
the grandchildren to play on.



Isabella and her lamb, one of our rare breed English
Leicester flock.



A view across our paddock yesterday to the tree
lined back road and our back block beyond.



Happy cows on a lush spring paddock.

My thanks to the My World team for the great
work they do on all our behalf.

The Logo on the right will lead you to many more
interesting isights.