Is this the end of the long dry period?

April 8. 2014

It id raining, only softly, but it has been so dry for so long that any bit helps. The campers packed up and left on Friday but they are not forgotten because they did so much work. Today Al’s eldest son is busy raking up the remains of the blackberries they cut down and taking them to the burning pile below the dam. It will now be possible to mow behind the large old water tank and fence off the gully.

We had what was probably our last summer party on Sunday. Our friends from our trail riding days came for a BBQ in the ruins. Our relations ships go back well over 30 years and sadly more people die as the years go by. To balance this some of the trail ride children brought their own children to the party. Becky has two delightful kids and she still screams with laughter all the time. Beni brought her grandson and he helped all the other kids by taking them rowing on the dam and for rides in a cart behind the mower. Everybody seemed to be enjoying themselves and the weather was beautiful, which was lucky as someone who shall be nameless, fell in the dam!

Next week Bo and family will be back from their overseas holiday. They have had a bit of a set back when their youngest broke her leg skiing. It has made travelling much harder and there have been hospital trips to fit in as well, so they will not be able to do everything that they planned. Josh is busy working out a move to Cairns. He and his lady are moving up there to run a clinic together. He has had a lot of moves recently and does not think he can get down for the wedding.  We are all really sad about this but we understand how difficult it is. Cairns is a really long way North.

The hour has now changed but we are back to once a day milking so the evening feeding time can happen before dark. It is mating season and after a few failed attempts we have the bucks in separate paddocks and unable to get to each other or the does unless we open gates. Some of the does are hopefully pregnant already, and all the goatlings are in with the young buck Jondy. He has injured a back leg but it not broken and is getting better.

Our chooks are now enjoying the freedom of their new paddocks and laying lots of eggs. I am getting the vegetable beds clear for winter crops and the lawn has turned green! The tomatoes have not ripened and even the capsicums are not fruiting well yet. It is odd because it has been a long hot summer. Bush rats have been eating some of the vegetables and rabbits have not helped.  My next project is a rabbit proof fence all round the garden. I started on new walls today.