Another new baby

May 11, 2019

Winter has arrived with the usual sudden change. After months of dry heat, we now have non-stop rain and chilly winds.  The good thing is that the water tanks and dams are filling fast.  We were getting dangerously low with our water supplies, but that problem is over.  We were lucky and got the goat shed cleaned out whilst the paddocks were dry enough to drive over with the truck carrying the deep litter. The restored ramps between the goat shed and milking room are now doing their job and keeping the goats feet out of the mud.

I have planted more vegetable seedlings, but we have had a setback. A kangaroo has discovered the garden and eaten all the straw berry plants.  I am really worried it will start on the vegetables next.  Edd and I blocked the openings into the ruins, but we need a whole extra fence to protect the garden on all sides. It has been such a bad time for plant growth that everyone is finding their garden has been under attack.  A friend down the road even had the leaves of her rhubarb plants eaten!

The really big event has been the birth of our next grandchild.  Bo, Sylkie and I drove down to Melbourne to greet her on Monday evening a few hours after she was born. She looked very peaceful and has lots of dark hair and her dad’s eyes.  Indi  , Ben and their baby came to lunch today when Al came with Pele to see me with mother’s  day flowers. Al was very thoughtful and brought Indi flowers too.  Arden, who is staying in the donga, also joined us so we had a big family gathering.  I was not sure how many were coming so I made a big pan of soup and a plate of cheese. Al brought bread, olives and meat so there was plenty to go around.  

Indi’s baby has a little knobbly chin, but Wayne’s baby has the family chin dent.  This is the wrong way around, because it is Indi’s baby we are genetically related to and not Wayne’s! Pele, who is one year old,  is the uncle of Indi’s baby so we are getting a family web rather than a family tree structure.  In the end it is just wonderful that all  the babies are healthy and have arrived safely.