Winter sun

30.7.2023

 

We are getting lovely sunny days this winter and the sun floods the house from early morning to night fall.  We have not needed any additional day time heating this winter. There is not enough sun light to heat the water, but a wood fire in the stove after the evening milking, every third day is enough to keep us going.  Traditionally this time in July is the coldest stage of the year.  We have had a few frosts, but they have been mostly really light.  Winters like this can be very pleasant. Yesterday we had lots of family here for a joint birthday celebration. There are lots of birthdays this month so we thought it best to have one main party and with the good weather the farm was ideal as a venue.  I was hoping to save Bo from the work by having the party here, but there is no stopping her.   She came and did the milking for us whilst I cooked and prepared and did heaps of work anyway.

 

I am very grateful for the help. Edd got knocked over by a goat last week and we think he may have a broken rib. I have a sore knee and hip so a rest from the bulk of farm work has been good.  Al, Pip and there three kids came up from Ocean grove and Pip’s parents came from the city.  Indi came with Alice and Wayne and Danni brought their girls. All the children played happily together, and Edd took them out for a ride on the carry all of the tractor.  This is the big treat they can only have on the farm.  It was a lovely gentle party and Edd and I felt really privileged to have so many of the family here.

 

In the week Stevo has been working here with Josh repairing the veranda on the donga.  The gutter from the big shed roof emptied onto the donga roof before draining to the small tank near the old dog run. They redid the roof drainage so that the pipe went across the front of the big shed and into the concrete tank between the goat shed and the dairy. This is the tank we all get our drinking water from so extra water in summer will be good. The veranda roof had collapsed due to the water pressure so it dropped rain onto the floor and rotted away the wood work which had to be repaired.  We hope everything will work better now, and CB does not have to worry about falling through the rotten floor.  Stevo says the roof needs repair work too so there is more to do before restoration is complete.

 

The multi coloured Persian sheep has had a little black and white ewe lamb.  Edd helped me get them into the shed with the other sheep and lamb so they are safe from predators. The black lamb has grown a lot but she will still be safest inside for a bit longer. We now have 4 Persian female sheep all very different colours and markings, so it is easy to tell them apart.  Sev has cut the fencing for the drive up into sections and the next job is to put them up.  Once this is done, we can let the sheep graze over the roof area which will save an awful lot of mowing and still allow us to drive off the property without opening and shutting gates.  The Persian sheep have hair instead of wool so they never need shearing, they are also not too big and heavy and are really easy to handle.  Both our lawn mowers are out of action at the moment.   Morgen, Josh and Edd have all been struggling trying to get them repaired but not with any success yet.   Grass is going to be a problem if they don’t get the mowers working soon.

 

The puppy has finally grown large enough that she can’t get through the house fence.  I have been taking her for a walk most mornings through the creek area. Sara runs round and I walk slowly, or scramble is a better description, because there are lots of large fallen gum trees to navigate over.  I take tools so I can cut down blackberries and dig out thistles as I go.  It is a lot of fun and the puppy gets exercise.  At least once a week we take her to visit her sister at Bo’s house. The two puppies row for hours and really enjoy playing together. This is another way we can get her the running time she needs when Edd and I are disabled with injuries.