The Farmers Wife

Jack Takes Over!

2012-01-26T16:03:00.002+11:00

It was my birthday 2 weeks ago and I received this gorgeous wicker sun lounge for the deck from the family, but it looks like I'll have a fight on my hands with Jack for any rights to said lounge!!!

Back Again!

2012-01-19T14:36:00.003+11:00

Well, 2011 is done and dusted and 2012 is almost 1/12 finished!! Can you believe it?!

We had a quiet family Christmas with Farmer Phil trying to get as much stubble sprayed as possible before we headed away on our annual 2 week water skiing holiday to Renmark, SA. The rain from late Spring and early Summer has meant that lots of unwanted weeds have grown and need to be controlled quickly.

Our New Years Eve incorporated a 50th birthday party for a good friend and neighbour and I finally met a fellow "farmers wife" blogger in Polly from Duality.

I do not have a single photo of our holiday this year - the camera never came out of it's cover! We spent the whole two weeks very relaxed just skiing, chatting, having a few drinks, eating ourselves silly and generally chillin' with our friends Andrew, Michelle, Lucy and Hannah. We had a rather large camp this year with Daniel and Ange visiting for the first week, Ryan stayed only for the first week too and then went to a water ski training camp. Emma had her friend Hannah stay with us for the whole two weeks which was very entertaining! And Andrew's brother and family visited for a weekend too! We've also made friends with some fellow campers from Victoria who we catch up with each year at Renmark. So, we're home now and getting back to some normality! Although we're off to Port Macquarie tomorrow for Ryan to compete in the Australian Junior Masters Water Ski Tournament! No rest for the wicked as they say!

I thought I'd share with you a few of the Christmas presents I received this year. I was very impressed that my family have actually listened to me when I've dropped hints over the last 12 months!

First of all I wanted a silver balls necklace and I did receive! Yeah!! Now to get the matching bracelet?!

A few new cookbooks were also unwrapped so it either means I'm a terrible cook and the family wants me to get inspired, or they think I love to cook?!

And this is a picture of one of my bookcases absolutely chocked with books - I'm an avid reader and can get through a large number of books quickly when I've got my reading mojo on!

So Emma remembered that I'd been looking at getting myself a Kindle a few years ago but that never eventuated, so I received one on Christmas day! It's the best thing - so easy and cheap to use (lots of free and 99c books to download! The funny thing is that my sister Lisa also received a Kindle from her family for Christmas without either family knowing! If you know either Lisa or myself then you'll know that we're very much alike - we hate coffee but love chocolate, we order the same food whether it's just a sandwich or a meal, and we have the same taste in home decor, clothes, shoes etc. It's very spooky sometimes!

Since receiving my Kindle on Christmas Day I have read:

Cocktails for Three by Sophie Kinsella/Madeleine Wickham

Dodge the Bullet by Christy Hayes

Girl & The Ghost Grey Mare by Rachael Treasure

How to Break Your Own Heart by Maggie Alderson

Six Geese a-Laying by Sophie Kinsella

Wedding Bell Blues by Ellie Ferguson

Territory by Judy Nunn - 16% read so far

I've also downloaded ready to read:

Campaign Ruby by Jessica Rudd

Ruby Blues by Jessica Rudd

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

So there's a really quick round-up of the last month or so here on the farm since harvest finished. More to follow later!

More Home Improvements

2011-12-19T15:56:00.004+11:00

The builders have just packed up their tools and left after 3 days work installing a verandah across the south western side of our house and a covered walkway to the shed. All it needs now is some potted hydrangeas (one of my favourite plants) and maybe a staghorn or elkhorn on the wall to make it look even cooler. It'll be so good to kick off your workboots at the back door without fear of them getting drenched in a downpour!

Harvest 2011 Finished!!

2011-12-18T18:05:00.002+11:00

We finished harvest yesterday at 5pm and today it has started to rain - perfect timing!!!

It feels so good to know that we've finished and can now relax and enjoy Christmas. We put in some very late nights last week to beat the rain we knew was coming - try 1.30, 2.30 and 3.30 am!!!

Today we slept in and have just woken up from an afternoon nap. Now to get the final Christmas shopping done and get this house back to normal!

End of School Year Bragging

2011-12-13T11:09:00.002+11:00

Both Fiona and Corrie have recently posted about their kids school achievements at their respective presentation assemblies. Well, now it's my turn to do some bragging about Emma's achievements!

Friday was Emma's last day of school for 2011 and it culminated in the school's Speech Day assembly. It starts at 10am and does not finish until at least 1pm. The parents then have to collect all their kids clothing, bedding, horses if they have one at school and general junk before making the long journey home to all corners of Eastern Australia.

If you've read my blog you will know that Emma is a bit of a singer. At the assembly she received a class award for music, she also received the whole school music award, and on top of that she was awarded a special Cultural "Blue" award for excellence in music.

The school only awards a few "Blue" awards each year. This year there was one given for academic excellence, two for agriculture, two for sport and two for cultural excellence. Each recipient had a half page write up in the Speech Day programme about their achievements in their special field.

Unfortunately neither Farmer Phil or I could make it to Speech Day as we were flat out harvesting with wet weather on the way. We had to get friends who have a son at school with Emma to bring her home. The school didn't inform us that Emma was to receive this special award and Emma didn't tell us as she wanted it to be a surprise. It would've been lovely to see her receive her awards but it is an especially busy time of year for us with harvest.

We can always look forward to next year and see if she wins another "Blue" award!

ALDI Gingerbread House

2011-12-12T18:28:00.002+11:00

I bought this gingerbread house kit from ALDI a few weeks ago and today Emma put it together. I think they only cost about $10 and they look really cute with the wicked witch and Hansel and Gretel already made out of marzipan. I know it's cheating but really who has time to make one from scratch anyway?

Floordrobe??

2011-12-12T18:02:00.008+11:00

Our almost 23yo son Daniel has been home helping us with the harvest for the past few weeks. He is occupying his old bedroom which has been converted to my sewing/ironing/spare bedroom ever since he left home almost 5 years ago.

I thought I'd show you all a photo of the whirlwind he has created...... he calls it his "floordrobe"!! Arrgghhh! All I can do is close the door so I don't have to look at it!

PS - Harvest is on hold again after receiving another 12mm of rain. We still have 1500ac of wheat to go - it's been a frustrating harvest with breakdowns and wet weather. The yield is down a little from last year but the quality of the wheat has been very high which is great!

Sunset at "Fairfield"

2011-12-05T10:55:00.002+11:00

I snapped this photo on my phone on Saturday night in between driving the header, fueling up vehicles, setting up lights at the silo pad, moving augers, sampling wheat etc. Too pretty to let it go unnoticed!

Finally Started on the Wheat!

2011-12-03T22:52:00.004+11:00

We finally started to harvest the wheat today! It's taken a while for the grain to be dry enough to harvest after we received 50mm of rain last week. So far the quality of the grain has not been affected by the rain. The yield is down slightly from last year as we didn't receive as much Spring rain this year as last year. As long as the grain quality doesn't get downgraded from any weather damage we'll be very happy! Hopefully finish in 2 weeks all going well - fingers crossed!

The Deck

2011-11-26T14:32:00.002+11:00

Jack thinks the new deck is pretty good. It'll look even better in another month when a couple of coats of oil are applied which will make it an even richer red colour. We love it!

This is the new outdoor setting I bought a few weeks ago. Farmer Phil and I spent the afternoon putting it together yesterday while the rain was pouring down!

New Ute!

2011-11-26T09:09:00.002+11:00

As soon as Ryan turned 17 he went for his driving licence and got it first go which is very unusual for 17yo boys in our area - the RTA here is very tough on teens going for their licences with only a 56% pass rate!

As you can imagine the first thing Ryan wanted when he left school and came to work for us was to buy his own vehicle. We searched for a few weeks until he found exactly what he wanted. So here it is - Ryan's pride and joy!!

Home Alone!

2011-11-26T08:59:00.002+11:00

Yesterday and last night we had another 10mls of rain so this has really thrown a spanner in the harvest works!!

I'm home alone for the weekend as Farmer Phil and Ryan have gone to a water ski tournament in Albury and Emma is in Sydney performing in the Schools Spectacular.

I think I'd better head to town and do some Christmas shopping before we get busy with harvest again. I'm not really in the Christmas Spirit yet but I'd better get into it quick because I've got my first Christmas party tonight!

Ryan just back from a slalom ski

Farmer Phil - Media Star Again!

2011-11-25T18:35:00.004+11:00

Each time there's a newsworthy story about farming the local Channel 7 news reporter seems to call on Farmer Phil to give a comment or two. Earlier in the year it was about the impact the mouse plague was having on the crop. Today it was about the 25mls of rain we had over night and the impact on harvest.

Needless to say there will be no harvesting done over the next few days!

http://au.prime7.yahoo.com/n4/news/a/-/local/12032375/rain-halts-harvest-video/

Harvesting Again

2011-11-23T21:38:00.002+11:00

We finally started to harvest again late this afternoon after waiting a few hours for the moisture content of the canola seed to come down below 8% which it's required to be at the handling facility.

The two headers, Farmer Phil, the semi trailer, and the tractor and chaser bin waiting to start.

This is my view through the windscreen of the header.

Deck Update

2011-11-23T10:17:00.002+11:00

The deck building has been a very slow process with the builder busy with other jobs elsewhere. They will finish it today with the last boards about to be fixed down now. I'll show you the finished product this afternoon. We're really happy with the result and it'll look even better in a few weeks when we oil it.

Harvey Norman delivered my new timber/wicker outdoor setting this morning. It's in cardboard boxes all ready to be screwed together! Can't wait for Summer to really kick in and have some BBQ's with family and friends on the new deck!!

Harvest 2011

2011-11-23T10:01:00.003+11:00

We started harvesting last week, but we've now been stopped for 3 days after receiving 15mls of rain on Saturday and Sunday!

The canola is yielding really well with the oil content up to 45% - it should be at least 42%. For every % above 42 we receive a bonus premium.

We bought a second header during the year so that we can hopefully complete harvest a bit quicker before the receival handling sites become full.

I am driving one of the headers with Daniel and Ryan sharing the other one and chaser bin duties. Farmer Phil is driving the semi delivering all the grain.

Daniel is home from Deniliquin just to help with harvest, and Ryan is now a full time employee of ours after leaving school at the end of Term 3 when he finished Year 11. He turned 17 at the same time and got his Provisional driving licence so he's been a helping hand for us. Emma is our housekeeper as she's basically finished school for the year - no more lessons, just work experience and a leadership camp to attend.

We should be finished harvest in another 4 weeks - all going well weather wise, breakdown wise and sanity wise!!

Surfer/Sailor Boy

2011-11-23T09:53:00.002+11:00

Last week when President Obama visited our country my nephew Surfer/Sailor Boy was the centre of our attention in both the print and TV media. He was splashed across every newspaper and TV news report for a few days.

You see, he recently enlisted in the Royal Australian Navy and is based at the moment in Darwin. When Obama and Julia Gillard visited, my nephew was smack bang in the front row behind the podium where they both spoke from.

That's him in the grey fatigues right next to President Obama's hand!

Family Reunion

2011-11-23T09:40:00.004+11:00

A few weeks ago my sister Lisa and I went to a family reunion on my dad's side. The last reunion was in September 1999, a few months before our dad passed away. Both Lisa and I decided that Dad would've wanted us to attend this latest reunion even though we'd probably know hardly anyone there.

It was true!! We only knew a handful of people but we got to meet a lot of dad's first cousins who we'd heard about over the years but had never met them. We had a really nice time in the end.

As kids Lisa and I would always get mixed up by long lost relatives because they all thought that we looked so much alike! There is two years difference in our age with Lisa being the oldest and me being about five inches taller! I guess it didn't help when mum dressed us in exactly the same handmade clothes - the only difference being the colour of the material!!

Here are the two photos taken of us at the reunion - what do you think? Alike or not?

Lisa

Minute to Win It and Colombo's Got Talent???

2011-10-13T16:57:00.004+11:00

At night if the kids aren't too tired after 4 tough water ski training sets each day, we usually have some entertainment for them (there's no TV allowed!). We always have the annual Colombo's Got Talent and then this year we also had some Minute To Win It type games. In past years we've had a trivia night and a ping pong tournament.

Kirsty, I don't hink praying is going to help you with the Oreo!

Our two youngest skiers Callan and Kyle mastering the jigsaw puzzle.

Super coach Josh trying his hand with the ping pong balls.

Emma trying her hardest to get a ball in each cup.

Brodie and Jenna concentrating on their cup stacking technique.

This years winners of Colombo's Got Talent - "The Sparkles" (aka Sierra, Hannah, Tahner, Jaycee and Leah) who performed a wonderful Taylor Swift number.

Emma singing Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" - great look with the trackie pants and uggies!

Emma lost points because her back up dancers weren't quite up to scratch - sorry girls!!
Jenna, Tanika, Riley and Jayme trying their hardest.

It's really great to see the kids come out of their shells and move away from their comfort zones to have some fun!

Second Silo

2011-10-13T16:51:00.003+11:00

Last week the builders finished our second 300T silo. Great job!! And the new "silo paddock" has been levelled to resemble a billiard table! That's Farmer Phil and Farmer Andrew having an inspection before the builders completed the cone!

Ski School

2011-10-13T16:37:00.003+11:00

Every year in the first week of October school holidays Ryan and Emma have a water ski training camp at Colombo Creek. Here are the future superstars of Australian and international water skiing!!

Here are our amazing coaches - Chelsea ("no wimps allowed" super coach), Cathryn (Australian Water Ski Team member), Jacinta (World Champion Silver Medallist in Women's Jump!!) and Josh (everyone's favourite "Joshie"!). I must apologise to the girls because they all apparently put on weight after eating the great food we cooked for them over the two week camp!

Ryan doing his thing in slalom.

Emma showing her slalom style.

Guess What.........??

2011-10-13T16:21:00.002+11:00

WE HAVE STEPS!!!! Yeah!!! Just a bit of cleaning up and push the mossy rocks back into place and we're in business!

We also have battens fixed down ready for the merbau decking boards to go on top!

And, the retaining wall around the pool filtration system is almost done! Just need to knock the boxing and formwork off and then the timber box creation can be fixed into place!

We can almost see the finished products - just a few more days work for the builders and they're done!

Another Silo + Earthworks

2011-09-24T15:36:00.002+10:00

We have decided to build another 300T silo which will be located right next to the other one built earlier in the year. The builders were here on Friday setting up the crane needed to lift the silo as it is being built.

We also had the local earthmoving contractors in to laser level the small paddock the silos are in. It will eventually have just a 1% fall across the whole paddock which will make it much easier for semi-trailers to tip their loads of grain into the silos.

The machines were quite mesmerising to watch in action! The levellers hold almost 50T of soil when full so you can imagine the horsepower needed to pull the beasts!

Birthday Cake and Field Day Loot

2011-09-22T08:46:00.006+10:00

Farmer Phil and Ryan arrived home last night at 7.30pm both complaining of sore feet, legs and backs after a very long day at the Henty Machinery Field Days.

Ryan is now able to eat solid food after his surgery 3 1/2 weeks ago so it was steaks on the BBQ with salad and roast potatoes for his birthday tea. Then we had a chocolate sheet cake from The Pioneer Woman's cook book - yummo!

I took these photos this morning of the mess left after Farmer Phil inspected every purchase made yesterday. There are cordless drills, an impact wrench, rain gauge, motorbike work stand, HID lights for the tractor, drill bit sets, miscellaneous tools and another 3 hats and 4 stubby holders for our already overflowing hat and stubby holder cupboards!!

Ag n Chat Overnight Trip to Cowra/Canowindra/Manildra

2011-09-21T10:27:00.003+10:00

Last week 10 Ag n Chat ladies embarked on our annual overnight trip - this time visiting Cowra, Canowindra and Manildra. First stop was a quick morning tea/catch up at Young before heading to the Cowra Information Centre for a presentation there about the World War II Cowra Breakout.

The Cowra Japanese Gardens were next on the agenda and what a beautiful day to visit there!

On to Canowindra and the Age of Fishes Museum to learn about the districts important fossil history.

Our overnight accommodation was at the very comfortable Old Vic Inn at Canowindra.

We were joined by 5 local ladies from the NSW Women In Agriculture group for a very yummy dinner.

Super cosy lounge room to have a great old chin wag!

Next morning was a very informative and mind-blowing tour of the Manildra Flour Mill. Wow, whoever designed that factory was very ingenious!

Last "agriculture" stop was the MSM Milling canola crushing and packing plant.

We then all wanted to go back through Canowindra and sample some of their gorgeous boutique clothing (Saffi) and homewares (Bendy Street Emporium) shops and art gallery (River Bank Gallery).

Phew!! We fitted in a lot in our 2 days away - thanks Wendy for organising!!

Henty Machinery Field Days and a Birthday

2011-09-21T09:50:00.002+10:00

Farmer Phil and Ryan have gone for a day out at the Henty Machinery Field Days today. It's Ryan's 17th birthday today so Farmer Phil has been instructed to purchase a present for him while at the field days - a motorbike workstand and some tools! Daniel is coming over from Denilqiuin and they'll all meet up together for the day.

I decided to stay home and get some jobs done as next week we are all away at the water ski training camp we attend every year. I need to cook some biscuits and slice and maybe get some housework done which has sadly gone by the wayside this past month!

Another Deck Update

2011-09-21T09:01:00.002+10:00

Our builders Graham and Kade concreted the deck area on Monday (steps at the front path will be done later so no photos to show there). Hopefully in a few weeks the merbau boards will be fixed on top and it will all look fantastic!

They also concreted around the pool filtration setup which will have a retaining wall and a large steel-frame box cladded in decking boards surrounding it with opening doors for access. It'll look much nicer than it has the past 2 1/2 years!

Deck Update Etc

2011-09-16T10:10:00.003+10:00

I was away for 2 days with our annual ag n chat overnight trip and I came home to this - yeah!!

The builder will be back on Monday to pour the slab for the deck and make me some stairs at last!!

My Stuff!!!

2011-09-10T17:42:00.005+10:00

Farmer Phil and I were in Adelaide for 2 days this week collecting a new car for his parents. We flew over on Tuesday and drove back on Wednesday. I did my research before leaving home and discovered that IKEA in Adelaide is right next to the airport!! Of course a quick stop was called for because while I was in Sydney last week with Ryan's hospital visit I wanted to buy a glass front cabinet but found that it was out of stock at the Homebush shop - Argh!! Anyway, Adelaide had it in stock so we drove home with 2 cartons on the back seat!!

I've also been busy re-doing our bedroom. I started to make this quilt a few months ago and now I've just got to finish off the binding (it's only pinned on in the photo!). I made the padded bedhead also to complete the look - I love colour, if you hadn't guessed already!!

Please don't look at Farmer Phil's messy pile of farm magazines, brochures and books on his bedside cupboard! But please note my neat pile of Real Living magazines!!

Farm Stuff

2011-09-10T17:24:00.002+10:00

Farmer Phil says that I don't have enough "farm stuff" on my blog! Even though it's called "The Farmers Wife" I think I should be able to put whatever I like on it!!!

Anyway, I just took a quick drive around a couple of paddocks near the house to take some photos of the crops. The first one is canola almost out in full flower. The canola crops are all a bit behind to what stage they should be because we had to re-sow them after the mouse plague decimated them. This one was re-sown 3 weeks after the first attempt. If we receive some nice Spring rain they shouldn't feel any effect from the late re-sowing - fingers crossed!

This is a paddock of wheat in front of our house - I look at it from my kitchen window everyday. It's really come along in leaps and bounds after some nice mild weather and rain over the last month. More rain is needed in September/October for the wheat to yield high.

PS - This post is especially for all those farmer friends of Farmer Phil - Farmer Andrew, Farmer Kevin, Farmer Greg, Farmer Kade..............................!!!

Scholarship Concert

2011-09-10T08:45:00.001+10:00

Last night Emma had to sing at the Riverina Conservatorium's Scholarship Winners concert. She did a beautiful job of Adele's "Turning Tables".

10 Years......

2011-09-09T15:01:00.003+10:00

Yesterday it was 10 years since we moved into our new house on the farm. It's still very much a work in progress! In November last year I organise for a builder to come out and start building our deck - he finally came yesterday!! It's been a long time coming but I'm very excited now!

We've gone without steps at our front path for all of those 10 years too but they will be completed next week - yeah!! Our friends and family use our back door entrance so this is really just for visitors and those who don't feel comfortable using the back door.

The deck area has been levelled and filled with crusher dust ready for a slab to be poured next week and then the decking boards fixed on top. It will be such a bonus for us to finally have a nice area to have a bbq and sit in the northerly sun. More photos to come as building progresses!

Sydney Again....

2011-09-02T10:48:00.005+10:00

I was in again Sydney this week for 3 days with Ryan who was having another surgery to straighten his jaw at North Shore Private Hospital. Check my post from last year about Ryan's story.

I took the photo this morning to show the site where he's had ten operations to try and get his jaw straight - it's a bit swollen at the moment though! The original bone graft surgery was done when he was 6 years old. The rib bone that was used keeps growing at a faster rate than Ryan does so it's necessary to have it reduced every 12 months or so until he stops growing. This is an unknown factor - Ryan will be 17 later this month and he's already 6ft 1 tall (Farmer Phil is 6ft 3). Once he finishes growing there will be a final operation to get the jaw straight and his teeth aligned correctly.

You can also see Ryan's reconstructed ear which was done when he was 10 years old using cartilage from behind his rib cage and skin grafts from his scalp. It's amazing what the surgeons can do these days because when Ryan was born his only choice then was a prosthetic ear which would be attached to his head with magnets!!

Not a very flattering photo of Ryan but you can see the work that's been done.

Spring Has Sprung!

2011-09-02T10:12:00.006+10:00

Well, Spring has definitely sprung around here! I love to see the new leaves on the silver birch and liquidambar trees. The Manchurian pears are out in full blossom with new leaves just forming.

Charlie and the Lemon Scented Gum which two years ago was about 1m tall and it's trunk was only as thick as your finger - look at it now!!

Pear blossoms

Day 3 - Even More Country Bumpkins

2011-08-24T15:28:00.003+10:00

Day 3 yesterday saw Farmer Phil and I doing even more touristy stuff in Sydney! A walk around Darling Harbour and a visit to the Powerhouse Museum were the order for the day. We really needed more time at the Powerhouse so we've pencilled in visiting there next time we're in Sydney.

Imagine me driving this tractor to put the crop in!!!

Or heading off to a bush fire in this rig!!!

The Zoo and Aquarium that we've visited on other trips to Sydney so no need to do it this time!

The Maritime Museum which we've visited before and found very interesting.

PS - We arrive home at 1pm this afternoon - so glad to be away from the cars, people and pollution of Sydney and back to our rolling hills, green paddocks, fresh air, and peace and quiet!!!

Day 2 - Country Bumpkins!!

2011-08-23T09:28:00.003+10:00

Day 2 in Sydney yesterday saw Farmer Phil and I playing the typical tourists with visits to The Rocks, the Harbour Bridge and Sydney CBD. Emma had rehearsal the whole day at the Opera House so we had to keep ourselves occupied for the day.

Farmer Phil has a very good friend "Cookie" who he's know since his school days who works in the CBD in one of the business skyscrapers. As we were walking along George St at lunchtime (you can imagine how many people were on the street at that time), we thought "wouldn't it be funny if we ran into Cookie amongst this crowd". Guess what?? We did!!! How flukey is that!! We're having lunch with him today for a longer catch up.

Sydney Opera House

Luna Park

Sydney Harbour Bridge

Farmer Phil under the Harbour Bridge

Emma outside the Opera House after performing with the NSW Public Schools Choir

Day 1

2011-08-21T21:51:00.002+10:00

There is only one word to describe Mary Poppins the Musical - sensational!!! From the superb acting, singing and dancing to the fabulous set designs it was truly a wonderful Australian production. So if you're in Sydney in the next few months it's a must see (or Brisbane at the end of 2011). Also the Capitol Theatre is a Sydney icon - just beautiful!
We visited Adriano Zumbo's patisserie at Rozelle.

And bought a 5-pack of his famous macarons - don't they look pretty!

Sydney Accommodation

2011-08-21T07:44:00.004+10:00

We arrived at our Sydney accommodation at 9pm last night. We're staying in an apartment at the Hyde Park Inn in Elizabeth St - it's perfect. Emma has an all day rehearsal today so Farmer Phil and I will be putting in a day at the DFO at Homebush and then tonight we're off to see Mary Poppins.

The view of the ANZAC Memorial at Hyde Park from our balcony

Farmer Phil and Emma chilling

The kitchen in the apartment

4 Days in Sydney

2011-08-20T17:24:00.002+10:00

Farmer Phil, Emma and I are currently driving to Sydney for 4 days for Emma to sing at the Opera House as part of the NSW Public Schools Choir. Emma was part of this event last year as well, so this year we know exactly where to go and where to stay, eat and be entertained! I've already pencilled in a trip to the DFO at Homebush, IKEA, Adriano Zumbo's patisserie (from Masterchef fame), and a theatre visit to see Mary Poppins!

I'll post some photos over the weekend as Farmer Phil and I are so up with technology that I can now use the laptop in the car or apartment hooked up to a wi-fi hotspot through the mobile phone! Wow, never thought I'd ever be able to do that! Don't really understand the technology but who cares - it works!!

Gotta Love a Country Show!!

2011-08-20T17:14:00.006+10:00

Today was the annual Ganmain Show Day. It's a typical country show with a side show alley consisting of the Cha-Cha, dodgem cars and blow up play castle thingies! But Ganmain also has the added attractions of hay stack making, quick shear competition, sheaf tossing competition, famous Ganmain pie eating competition, yard dog trials and of course the Master, Junior Miss and Miss showgirl events.

Farmer Phil was asked to judge the quick shear compeition which is hilarious and quite ironic as we do not have a single sheep on our farm!! Farmer Phil absolutely hates working with sheep! At least the judging he had to do only consisted of timing each shearer and making sure that the sheep were shorn cleanly.

Emma and I went along to have a quick look through the pavillions to see all the chooks, sheep, baby farmyard animals, farm produce, wool fleeces, cooking, handicrafts and photography. It was a beautiful sunny day and the crowd was huge so that is fantastic for a small country town where they sometimes struggle to even put on a show each year.

Ag n Chat Metalwork Day

2011-08-19T11:45:00.004+10:00

Yesterday I went to the monthly Ag n Chat meeting which was held at Jo's learning how to make metal flowers for the garden. It had rained 30mm overnight so we worked in very cold and damp conditions. My flower is held by Michelle - 3rd flower from the right. Click on the photo for a closer look and check out http://www.marraragnchat.blogspot.com/ for the full story and also what our group has been up to lately.

Getting to Know Me

2011-08-15T11:13:00.007+10:00

Julia at Bushbelles asked to get to know some of her readers - here are my answers!!

Town or Country

Definitely country! We're off to Sydney for 4 nights this weekend and after the first day the novelty will have worn off!!

Music or Books

Love both - read every night in bed but sing to my hearts content alone in the car!

Perfect Day

A day out with friends, eating and drinking, and water skiing

Clooney or Pitt

Brad Pitt ♥

Romantic Hero or Action Hero

Romantic Hero - any actor in a rom com who sweeps the girl off her feet!

Prince Frederick or Prince William

Prince Frederick - he's a man's man and because he picked "our Mary"!

Princess Diana or Catherine the Duchess of Cambridge

Princess Diana

Heels or favourite winter boots

Boots - I have 4 pair of RM's and 3 pair of dressy boots (I'm too tall for high heels!)

Australian Stockman or Surfer

Definitely rugged Australian Stockman ♥

Chocolate or Coffee

Chocolate ♥ - can't stand the smell of coffee!

Great Shoes or Gorgeous Underwear

Love to look at pretty shoes - only two people get to see the undies!!

Pedicure, manicure or massage

Massage although I've never had one!

Rodeo's or Picnic Races

Only been to one rodeo and never been to picnics so can't decide (horse races are always on at busy farm times

Talk it out or keep it to yourself

Keep it to myself - don't want to burden people

Karaoke - first to sing, last to sing or absolutely-no-not-ever

Never really had the opportunity but dream of getting up on stage and singing to my hearts content

One Beauty Product that you would recommend or can't live without

Body Shop Shea Body Butter - yum!

One book you would recommend to anyone or that you love and can read over and over again
Loved Twilight series, Harry Potter series and anything by Rachael Treasure

Summer or winter

Summer - hate being cold and layered in clothing

One life-changing moment

The day I met Farmer Phil

Camping or 5 star

Love our annual summer camping holiday although we've graduated to a caravan now, but also love to stay in a nice 5 star hotel for the weekend

One movie that makes you cry everytime

The Notebook

One moment you would like to revisit if you could

The days before my dad died from lung/brain cancer - just didn't say the things I wanted to, although I'm sure dad knew what I was thinking

Favourite movie/song

Grease/The Notebook/Sweet Home Alabama/Love Actually - the list goes on.....

Have too many favourite songs - I have a mix of music on my iPod from classical to AC/DC

Who would play you in the movie of your life

Maybe Jennifer Aniston or Reece Witherspoon

Who would play the handsome hero in the movie of your life

Josh Hartnett - have you seen him in Pearl Harbour - YUM

How long have you known your oldest friend

Since I was 11 - we only had 2 years together at school but keep in contact even though we're in different countries

3 things you have yet to do

Travel overseas - Canada, New Zealand and Europe

Would also love to Trek the Kokoda Trail
Become a squillionaire!!

School days - happy or sad, good or bad memories

Happy, but just wish I hadn't been so shy!

What - or who - always makes you feel better on those more challenging days

Alone time just pottering around the house or reading blogs I love

Recommend a blog/website

Favourite blogs are Bushbelles of course, Ree at The Pioneer Woman, Fiona from Cattle, Kids and Chaos and The Itty, Bitty, Kitty Committee (I ♥ cats!)

Something you are passionate about now

Women in agriculture can do anything!
Happier now than you were at 20 - honestly

Happier - at 20 I was newly married with a small baby!

Describe yourself in one word only

Content

Words to live by

"Keep Calm and Carry On" World War II slogan from Great Britain - just get on with it!

What is the one thing you know for sure

Life goes on no matter what!

Busy, Busy Emma .........

2011-07-30T08:56:00.004+10:00

Emma has had a busy first 2 weeks back at school. Last week she had a 3 day excursion to Sydney to see Mary Poppins - she said it was fantastic!

This week she was at the Riverina Choral Camp and the video of Emily, Emma and Courtney singing "Jar of Hearts" was recorded at the end of camp concert yesterday. I think all three girls did a fantastic job!

Now, this weekend Emma is at Morundah attending a Children's Workshop with Victoria Opera. She attended this weekend 18 months ago when they performed "Brundibar". This year the workshop is "A History of Music" so Emma should have an even better time as it's all singing!

So next week Emma will actually be at school for the whole 5 days!!!

Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi!!!!!

2011-07-25T13:02:00.006+10:00

What a huge weekend for Australian Sport!!!

Cadel Evans wins Tour De France!!

Casey Stoner wins US Moto GP

Mark Webber places 3rd at German Grand Prix

Wallabies beat South Africa 39-20 in the Tri Nations

Sally (McLennan) Pearson wins 100m hurdles at Monaco

Australia wins mens 4x100m freeestyle at the Swimming World Championships

And of course our favourite sport water skiing:

Australia places 4th in the team overall at the World Water Ski Championships

Ryan Green is 3rd in mens overall

Timmy Bradstreet and Jacinta Carroll both win jump silver medals

Aussie Sport

2011-07-24T10:31:00.004+10:00

What a great weekend for Australians and sport!!

First of all it looks like Cadel Evans will be the first Aussie to win the Tour de France! Superb effort in one of the world's most gruelling races!

Cadel Evans in the Leaders Jersey

Secondly, the Australian Water Ski team currently competing at the World Championships in Dubna, Russia are in second place overall with one more day of competition to go. With Ryan and Tim in the jump final, and Cap and Michale in the trick final we could very easily win the World Overall Championship!

Ryan Green (captain), Karina Nowlan, Jacinta Carroll, Cathryn Humphrey, Michale Briant, Sally Morris (manager) and Tim Bradstreet

We've had great results from all the team with each member competing in a final or two. Karina finished 5th in womens slalom, Ryan was 10th in mens trick, and the fantastic Jacinta "Rabbit" Carroll winning silver in the women's jump event at only 18 years of age and at her first World Championships - way to go Rabbit!!

Microfinance Loans

2011-07-20T16:08:00.004+10:00

Towards the end of 2010 our Ag n Chat group decided that we wanted to become involved in microfinance loans for women in poverty stricken countries to help them either start or continue their own business to support their family. Today we finally made a decision on who to help and through which agency. We chose to donate through Kiva which is a well-established organisation based in the USA.

The photo above is of Rosine from Rwanda who we chose as our recipient. She is a 35-year-old entrepreneur that is married with two children, ages 3 and 6. Her husband is a technician and both of their children are in school. For three years, she has been running a business buying and selling fruit. She plans to use this loan to purchase oranges, tree tomatoes, citrus fruits, and mangoes that she will sell to meet the growing demand of her business.

Once Rosine has repaid her loan to us we will then choose another worthy recipient to help - and the cycle will continue!

Our Dream Residence

2011-07-10T12:05:00.006+10:00

This photo represents what our ultimate dream home would be like - sitting next to a private ski lake surrounded by prime wheat growing farm land.

These lakes are called Mystic Lakes in Kansas, USA and we've discovered that there's a home for sale for only $995,000 at the moment! Just makes us want to sell up here and move!!

Not really - but we'll keep dreaming and maybe our dreams will come true some day!!!

The Biggest Kid of All!!!

2011-07-05T14:23:00.006+10:00

Ryan, Emma, Farmer Phil, Jayme and Jenna - thanks for the photo Carol!

I met Farmer Phil nearly 24 years ago at a water ski day and it's been a huge part of our lives ever since. Farmer Phil absolutely loves to water ski and couldn't wait to teach the kids as soon as they were old enough. We are now very involved in tournament skiing with both Ryan and Emma competing in the slalom, trick and jump events. We've met fabulous people and made many great friends all over Australia.

Last Summer we had a day out with friends who all have teenage kids. Farmer Phil decided he wanted to have a ski with the kids because they're always having a go at us "oldies"! The above photo is the result - all 5 on trick skis. Farmer Phil held his own and wasn't the only one to fall off!

Something to Sing About 2011

2011-07-03T11:47:00.002+10:00

In May Emma performed in the Riverina Conservatoriums fundraising concert called Something to Sing About. It is a bi-annual event and helps raise much needed funds for the Con's scholarship programme of which Emma is a recipient this year. It's held at the Civic Theatre in Wagga so Emma was singing in front of a large audience.

These photos were taken during the final dress rehearsal. Emma sang a really lovely song called "Who Painted the Moon Black" which was chosen by her teacher Heather who is the head of the vocal department. She had 6 dancers around her which made for a very special performance.

Rain Expected

2011-07-03T10:57:00.003+10:00

The weather forecast says that we are to get rain for the next three days so Farmer Phil is madly spreading urea on the crops so that the rain will wash the fertiliser into the soil and give the new plants a boost.

He spreads the urea at 24kph so that means he gets over a lot of acres in a day - 800ac done in about 6 hours yesterday.

The spreader flings the urea over 30m so while taking this photo I was getting peppered with little white beads!

Crop Update

2011-07-03T10:41:00.004+10:00

Farmer Phil and I re-sowed about 900ac of canola after the mice decimated the first sowing. Farmer Phil has been spreading bait across the wheat and canola crops constantly in the past few weeks. We think that we are finally on top of the problem but must still be vigilant.

The photo of the canola above shows one large canola plant which has survived from the first sowing, and 2 smaller plants which have emerged after the second sowing. So you can see how behind in development the plants are after being sown late. Hopefully with a wet Spring the canola will not show any effects of the mice problem.

This is the wheat crop in the paddock just north of our house. As you can see it's coming along nicely although Farmer Phil has baited it twice for mice and you can still see some activity scattered across the paddock from them.

Silo

2011-07-03T10:31:00.004+10:00

Farmer Phil has told me that I'm not blogging enough and to get my act together!! His best friend Farmer Andrew is also of the same opinion so these next posts are for their benefit - updates on what's happening here on the farm!

The new 300T silo was finished a few weeks ago so here is a photo of it. Apparently there are 2,000 nuts and bolts in the cone alone! It took the builders Grant and Willy 4 1/2 days to build it. We're thinking of ordering another one to be built before harvest so that we have our own small grain storage facility if the big local one we deliver to is filled before we finish our harvest which is what happened last year when we had to fill 10 grain bags.

I'd like to climb to the top of it and get some photos of the farm but it's blowing a howling wind so I wasn't about to do it today!

Fiestaware ♥

2011-06-13T10:19:00.010+10:00

5 Piece Place setting in Scarlet

When I saw this post on The Pioneer Woman I knew that I had to get my hands on some Fiestaware.

Pitcher in Shamrock

Salt and Pepper Shakers in Scarlet

After researching on the net I discovered that Fiestaware is not available in Australia - bummer! I decided to bite the bullet and order it direct from the factory and pay the ridiculously expensive postage from the USA. I reasoned that with the Australian dollar better than the US dollar at the moment then it wouldn't be so bad.

Sugar Bowl and Creamer Set in Sunflower

The boxes arrived last week and I couldn't wait to unpack them and display them in my kitchen. I bought a place setting in almost every colour - scarlet, paprika, tangerine, sunflower, lemongrass, shamrock, turquoise, peacock, cobalt and plum.

All farmer Phil said was I'm glad you like them!! And I do!!!!

Ange is 21!!

2011-06-12T17:36:00.007+10:00

We've just arrived home after a night away in Deniliquin to help Daniel's girlfriend Ange celebrate her 21st birthday. The party was at her parents house under the brand new pergola just finished the day before especially for Ange. I racked my brain trying to think of something special for Ange as a present that she would remember. Ange is a big tea drinker, so I finally settled on a lovely tea set from T2. I told her she had to use it everyday to enjoy her tea!

Daniel and Ange

Ange cutting her cake.

The tea set we bought her from T2.

Google is a Wonderful Thing!

2011-06-08T19:27:00.008+10:00

Have you ever "googled" your name to see what results would be revealed?

Well a few years ago I googled my maiden surname which is Newbound. I discovered that during the Depression years of the 1930's the Imperial Glass Co. in the USA manufactured a beautiful double candle holder in a pattern they called "Newbound".

After some more research I found a really pretty pink pair in the USA which I bought for my sister for her birthday. I've always wanted a set for myself but never got around to looking again. They came in light green, pink, cobalt blue, light blue, amber, milk glass, clear and steigel green (my favourite). Not sure why they were called "Newbound", but my guess is they were named after their designer.

2 months ago I googled Newbound again and discovered that not only was there candle holders in the Newbound pattern but there was also a lovely fruit bowl to match. I found a beautiful 3 piece set in cobalt blue on eBay, so I decided to buy it. It arrived yesterday and I must say they really are very special!

Building a Silo

2011-06-08T18:09:00.003+10:00

Progress so far on our new 300T grain storage silo. The builders have only been working on it for 2 days and this is how much they've got done - almost finished!

Daisy!

2011-06-08T18:01:00.001+10:00

Media Star!!

2011-06-02T20:47:00.004+10:00

Yesterday Farmer Phil was asked by our local TV news reporters if he would mind if they came out to the farm to interview him about the mouse plague. He reluctantly said okay and here is the story which was played on our local news tonight.

http://wagga.iprime.com.au/index.php/news/prime-news/mice-invade-local-farms-video

PS - That's me driving the tractor and seeder!!

Fame

2011-06-01T21:02:00.004+10:00

Last night Emma received a call from the casting director of the theatre group who are putting on Fame the Musical at the Wagga Civic Theatre in October. She had a singing audition a couple of weeks ago and she's very excited to have been chosen as part of the ensemble. Looks like more driving for me getting her to the many rehearsals scheduled!

Calculations

2011-06-01T20:38:00.005+10:00

We are still re-sowing paddocks of canola eaten by mice. Today I re-sowed this paddock that I posted about a few weeks ago when I finished sowing it the first time. I commented at the end of the post that a week or so after this photo was taken that we should see little canola plants popping their heads through!

Well today I saw not one canola plant!! So that means that the mice ate every single canola seed I planted!!

A few weeks ago the Nerd Farmer did a post about their canola planting. He did some calculations about how many canola seeds he planted. If I use his maths skills then I planted approximately 30,832,000 seeds in this one paddock AND the mice ate 30,832,000 seeds! You can only guess how many mice there must have been that lived in this paddock!

Hopefully Farmer Phil's baiting has eliminated a large percentage of them!

O

2011-05-26T20:42:00.014+10:00

After re-sowing 250ac of mouse-eaten canola today I'm now curled up on the lounge in my jamas and ugg boots watching Oprah's second farewell show. Farmer Phil is still out there spreading the paddock with poisoned wheat in an attempt to exterminate another few thousand mice who survived the last baiting a few days ago!

I'm not ashamed to tell you that I'm a big Oprah fan! If you come to my house in the afternoon, Oprah will always be on the tv. She is a very inspiring woman and some of her shows have been very thought provoking for me.

One particular show I saw last year had a huge effect on me. It was an interview with the authors of the book "Half the Sky", husband and wife Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn.

I ordered the book the next day from the local bookshop and waited the few months it took to get it in . When I started to read it I couldn't put it down and I was always quoting excerpts to Farmer Phil whether he wanted to listen or not!

The book recounts real life stories from girls and women all around the world who have suffered the most horrific abuses imaginable. Some examples are from third world countries who value women so low that they may as well not exist!! From girls who are kidnapped and forced into prostitution in Thailand, African women giving birth to dead babies after days of traumatic labour with no hint of health care, female infant genocide in China just because they had the misfortune to be born a girl, and girls all over the world who are deemed not worthy of an education just because they are female!!!

It really is unbelievable and until you read the book, you just cannot imagine this sort of thing happening in our world in 2011!! The great thing about the book is the list of organisations supporting women which you can research and see if you can help in anyway.

I suggested our Ag n Chat group become involved in the "micro loan" system where we provide a small amount of money to a woman so that she may start a small business to support herself and her family. We are in the process of deciding where and how to spend our money and I'll let you know what we decide in the near future.

So, Oprah really does have some wonderfully thought-provoking shows but I also really love it when Nate Berkus does a house makeover show - I'd so love someone to come and visit my house!!

Our BIG Furry Problem!!!

2011-05-25T07:46:00.005+10:00

Well it seems that our small furry problem from a few weeks ago is not so small anymore!!!

After finishing sowing almost 1500ac of canola a few weeks ago it looks like we're going to have to re-sow almost all of it after it was decimated by mice. The pesky little s***s have not only eaten the seed before it sprouted, but they've also munched off the newly emerged canola plants!

Farmer Phil had spread the paddocks with poisoned wheat seed through the fertiliser spreader, but it looks like all our efforts over the last month have been for nothing!!

We've sown about 1000ac of wheat with another 2000ac still to sow. So it looks like this cropping season will be a long, frustrating one!!!

Stubble Burning

2011-05-12T08:03:00.010+10:00

My father in law Farmer Noel in the ute and fire fighting unit burning stubbles

We don't normally burn our wheat stubbles from the previous year before we sow into them, but as last year was such a good one with high yielding wheat crops, we've had to burn the stubbles this year as they are just too thick for the cultivator to get through. If we didn't burn the stubbles then the cultivator just gets blocked up with all the straw in a huge tangled mess which takes ages to clean up. We would much rather keep the stubbles because they act as a mulch for the new crop coming through to help retain moisture and protect against frost - much like in your own small house garden, just on a much bigger scale!

PS - The reason we haven't burnt stubbles in the last few years is because we've been in a serious drought (since 2002 actually!!) and the wheat crops have been very low yielding and thin, so they were much easier to sow into the following year!

It's a Dirty Job, But Someone Has To Do It!

2011-05-11T19:19:00.002+10:00

This is what my hands look like at the end of the day - covered in soot, dirt and seed treatment! There are no hand washing facilities out in the paddock so when eating lunch you have to be very careful not to contaminate your food!

Seeding

2011-05-11T18:18:00.008+10:00

Thought I'd do a post about about seeding and what equipment we use to get the job done.

This is our seeding tractor - it's a Case MX 285. Very easy and comfy to drive which is essential because of the long hours Farmer Phil and I sit in it. It is equipped with a GPS unit which makes sure that the tractor drives in a dead straight line so that there is no overlapping or missed bits on the paddock which reduces our efficiency.

This is the air cart with the addition of a liquid spray tank. The tank is used to apply the chemical "Impact" which is a fungicide to control diseases in canola and wheat when mixed with the fertiliser. The air cart has two compartments or tanks - one for seed and one for fertiliser. The photo shows Farmer Phil filling one of the air tanks with fertiliser. The air cart has a fan attached which blows the seed and fertiliser along tubes to the cultivator bar.

This is the cultivator bar. It's 10.5m wide and has 36 tynes which are 12 inches apart. The tynes dig a trench and the seed, fertiliser and fungicide are placed behind the tyne in the trench.

Here is a close up of the tyne with the fertiliser hose, the seed hose and the smaller liquid tube.

There is a row of press wheels behind the cultivator bar which presses the tilled soil gently back into the trench.

This is what the paddock looks like after the seeder has been through. Hopefully in a week or so we should see little canola plants popping their heads through!

Hope this sort of explains seeding at our farm!!

My Mothers Day!!!

2011-05-10T21:14:00.007+10:00

Since I took over driving the seeding rig a few years ago I have spent every Mothers Day sitting on the tractor for the day sowing our canola crop. This year was no different with me on the tractor for the daylight hours and then Farmer Phil taking over at night. You can imagine what my Mothers Days have been like over the past few years!! I'm not complaining too much but this years' Mothers Day really topped me off!!

None of my three children (or my husband!) even wished me a Happy Mothers Day, let alone gave me a small token of their appreciation for me!! I sat all day on that bloody tractor imagining what all the other mothers in the world were doing - a nice sleep in to start with, then the kids making breakfast in bed, homemade gifts given that were made with love, maybe a picnic in the park with the family, and someone to cook dinner and clean up when they get home!! Ha - not in this household!!!

So, I'm giving myself a photo of a nice bunch of flowers that I deserve!! Hope you all had a much nicer day than me!

PS - Sorry about this post - I don't normally write anything too personal here but I really needed to let off some steam!

Update.........

2011-05-04T10:58:00.004+10:00

Yesterday I put some poison mouse baits in the ceiling cavity next to the manhole so that they were easy for me to get to. Looks like it paid off because when I checked it this morning all the bait was gone - hopefully eaten by those pesky mice! Thinking about it now, the house was decidedly quieter last night with no scratching noises coming from the walls and ceiling. So hopefully I may have contained our furry problem for the time being!

Just one small problem - what if the mice decided to die in the ceiling? Look out for the stench in a couple of days!!!??

A Small, Furry Problem!

2011-05-02T11:48:00.006+10:00

Yes, we have a mouse problem here on the farm! Thankfully, they haven't found their way inside the house yet although we do have some in the walls!! All our neighbours are battling them inside their homes - YUCK!! I guess because our house is relatively new (almost 10 years old) that it is sort of mouse proof! We also have a Jack Russell Terrier and 5 cats who have been doing a great job at keeping the numbers down around the house and shed - evidenced by bits of mice bodies everywhere outside!

The paddocks are literally covered in little holes which the mice dig as a nice cosy nest for themselves and their family. When you drive at night the roads are alive with mice running across everywhere! We're all hoping that once some colder weather starts that the mice might eventually die off!

A Royal Wedding

2011-05-01T09:19:00.002+10:00

I can vividly remember sitting up all night watching Charles and Diana's wedding almost 30 years ago when I was 12. I really hadn't thought a lot about watching William and Kate's wedding until the coverage started on Friday evening - then I was hooked and couldn't wait to see THE DRESS!

Kate didn't disappoint - she looked as elegant and stylish as you would expect a royal to be. And Pippa's dress was just gorgeous! William and Harry looked very dashing in their military uniforms and they looked the epitome of young prince's.

All in all I thought it was a beautiful wedding and I hope their marriage is filled with happiness!

2011 Water Ski Nationals

2011-04-28T09:26:00.008+10:00

We arrived home late Tuesday night from Townsville after a week there for the 2011 Australian Water Ski Nationals. We had a really great time but just didn't get enough time to have a look around Townsville. We shared a house with two other families for the week - 6 adults and 7 kids!

It was our first time at Nationals and both Ryan and Emma learned a lot about serious competition. Ryan skied well enough to get a new tournament PB in slalom.

On Monday night we had the Presentation Night at Jupiters Casino which was attended by over 400 people. There was a fantastic fireworks display and the food was magnificent. All 8 states and territories of Australia were represented for the first time this year with NSW winning overall. There were many Australian records and PB's broken during the week so it was a very successful tournament for most competitors.

Ethan, Ryan, Deanna, Jayme (Under 17 Girls Slalom Champion!), Jenna, Emma and Brodie

The winning team from NSW

Winner!

2011-04-17T08:37:00.011+10:00

Last weekend we were in sunny Port Macquarie at Stoney Park for the NSW/ACT Water Ski Titles. Ryan and Emma both competed and they skied well. On Saturday night we had the annual presentation night for the Malibu Series that they compete in during the season.

Ryan won the Most Improved Overall Skier Award which was presented to him by the gorgeous Sinead from Stoney Park. He was very pleased with himself because he has worked very hard on improving his skiing this season. The award also includes coaching sets from the experts at Stoney Park.

Ryan also won his division of jump for the series too. He's pictured here with Jayme (2nd), Timmy (World Overall Junior Water Ski Champion!!), Rabbit (World Junior Jump Champion and more recently winner of Women's Jump at Moomba!), and Jenna (3rd).

On Tuesday this week we're flying to Townsville for the Australian National Water Ski Championships, so I hope that there are no more earthquakes there!!

PS - Thanks to Liat for taking the photos of Ryan when my camera died before even getting to take one photo!

New Old Lounge!

2011-04-12T13:37:00.008+10:00

I finally picked up my lounge from the upholsterers yesterday. I really love it and I think it still looks like it's from the 1940's era. Check out the old lounge in my post here before it's makeover. It's more than 100% better than before!

I picked a striped velour fabric from Warwick called Brioni in Olive and a plain velour called Bond in Mocha. I think the lounge would've looked too stripey if I hadn't broken it up with the plain chocolate brown.

I also changed around the lounge/dining area so that the lounge is now against the wall and the dining table and chairs are in the bay window. This will save the fabric from fading after sitting in the sunny bay window. It's lovely to now sit at the dining table with the windows all around to look out at the surrounding farmlands.

Best Mates!

2011-04-04T09:15:00.001+10:00

Squirt and Jack snoozing in the sun this morning!

A Taste of India!

2011-04-03T09:53:00.006+10:00

Last night we had our very good friend Sue's 50th birthday party ( she's also Farmer Phil's cousin about 3 or 4 times removed, I think?!). The theme was "A Taste of India" so that meant we all had to dress up and the meal was beautiful Indian fare.

It didn't matter that the evening was held in a corrugated iron hall in a small country town - it looked like we had been transported to India! Mahatma Ghandi was even there!! We all had a great night and the hall was absolutely packed so that just showed how much we all think of Sue!

Sue in her beautiful sari.

This is Jenna, Emma, me and Carol dressed in our interpretation of Indian dress.

New Toys

2011-03-30T07:15:00.007+11:00

Farmer Phil has bought himself a new toy for the farm! Well it's not really a toy and it certainly cost a lot more!!

This will be our new tractor to pull the spray rig. The old tractor we used to use for this was not powerful enough to pull the spray rig up the rolling hills on our farm.

It was delivered yesterday so it's still all nice and shiny! It won't take long to be covered in dirt though!!

More Hairy Panic!

2011-03-30T07:10:00.005+11:00

After a few months of Summer this is what our vehicle shed (please ignore the mess!) looked like until I bought a leaf sucker thingy! It took a few hours to suck up every piece of this "most frustrating noxious weed under the sun", but I got it all. I'll still have to vacuum the shed every week because some hairy panic blows in every time you open the roller doors!

Debutante's Ball

2011-03-30T07:00:00.012+11:00

Last week Farmer Phil and I were invited to a Deb Ball to support the daughter of our very good friends Janice and Greg. We had not been to a Deb for 16 years so it was lovely to see all the gorgeous young girls and boys dressed up in their finery.

I took some photos to show Emma to see if she would be interested in doing her Deb next year. After seeing the photos she's very keen to participate.

Anyway, we had a really great night after Farmer Phil had the week from Hell work wise! Let's just say that it was a very unproductive week with everything that could go wrong, DID!!

Emma's Birthday Quilt

2011-03-14T12:56:00.004+11:00

I only decided about a month ago that I should make Emma a quilt for her birthday, so it was buy the fabric online quick sticks and get stuck into making it.

I cheated a bit by purchasing pre-cut charm squares to save time, I then sent the quilt top to Fabric 23 in Griffith to be machine quilted by Morganne, and I machine stitched the binding on instead of sewing it by hand.

It's come up really well and Emma loved it when she saw it. She only got a quick look at it this morning as she had to leave by 7am for the school bus, but it'll be on her bed when she comes home from school this weekend.

PS - Click on the photo if you want a closer look at the pretty Amy Butler fabric and quilt stitch pattern.

Emma is 15!!!!!

2011-03-14T12:28:00.005+11:00

Farmer Phil and I are lost for words today as our "Little Emma" turns 15!! It only seems like yesterday that she was as cute as a button - all blonde hair and blue eyes!!

She was the most placid baby of all our children. As soon as she was born she did everything right and caused no fuss!

Emma loved it when we had sheep on the farm - she liked to help feed the poddy lambs. Farmer Phil and I thought we had a real farm girl in the making, but it all came crashing down when she became a teenager and had more important things to do!

Emma has always been a Daddy's girl, and of course Farmer Phil is a real sucker when it comes to his only daughter!! He couldn't wait to teach her how to ski, so when she was 4 they decided it was time. She never looked back and was more keen to ski than her two brothers.

So happy birthday Emma and thank you for being our beautiful, talented daughter - xx!!

Birthday Gifts

2011-03-07T17:35:00.003+11:00

It's Emma's birthday next week and I wanted to show you a couple of gifts we've bought for her. The necklace and earrings arrived in the mail today from Etsy shop Lala Design Studio. They were very reasonably priced for sterling silver - the necklace was $36 and earrings $12. With the Australian dollar at parity with the US dollar it's very reasonable to buy from overseas at the moment.

Names on necklaces are very popular at the moment and this one is just a bit different to the ones I've seen in jewellery shops here.

As Emma is a big music fan I thought that these treble clefs would be perfect for her.

I'll show you all her presents next week - I've also made her a beautiful quilt from Amy Butler "Love" fabrics that I hope she loves!

Framing

2011-03-05T09:15:00.002+11:00

I finally got around to getting some prints framed that have been sitting in my sewing room for quite a while just waiting to get zhushed up!

The first one is a paper quilt by Michaela Laurie that my sister Lisa gave me quite a few years ago. It's beautifully made with gold zig-zag stitching and really pretty paper pieces which measure about 1.5cm x 1.5cm. It's very intricate and would be very fiddly to make.

This one was a freebie sent to me by Kajsa from Syko in Finland. I ordered a set of her Christmas postcards last year to make into a Christmas tree shape on the wall. She didn't have one of the designs in stock so she sent me this apple print as a thank you gift. It looks great in my green, cream and red kitchen.

I bought two sets of these prints by Catherine Campbell from My Folklover. One set was for my sister Lisa and the other set was for me to have framed. The prints are called "Sometimes of the Sea" and "Sometimes of the Land". I thought they represented Lisa and I well as she lives at the beach and I live on the farm.

Another After Harvest Purchase

2011-03-03T21:25:00.004+11:00

Here's my latest purchase - a Bobcat Fastcat Pro Zero Turn ride-on lawn mower. I've wanted one of these for a few years now to mow the outer yard around the house. It's taken a bit of getting used to - driving in a straight line was a bit of a challenge for a while, but I'm going okay on it now! The house yard has never looked so good!!!

Birthday Boy

2011-03-03T19:59:00.005+11:00

Happy 45th Birthday Farmer Phil!! You don't look a day over 44!!!???

NB - poor Farmer Phil sprayed paddocks all day but then came home to prawns, a t-bone steak (his favourite) and chocolate mudcake! Ryan and Emma are home from school on a long weekend break so they teased their dad endlessly about getting old!!

Has Mother Nature Gone MAD??

2011-02-25T09:19:00.003+11:00

Lately I'm of the opinion that Mother Nature really has gone mad!! After the devastation of the QLD and VIC floods and Cyclone Yasi, now she unleashes absolute carnage on beautiful Christchurch in the form of a devastating earthquake.

So many precious lives lost, so many people injured and mentally scarred for life! The only positive thing to come out of this tragedy is the way people from all over the world have come together to help in the rescue and recovery of victims. The re-building of Christchurch will take many, many years but it will never look or feel the same.

I can clearly remember standing in front of the Christchurch Cathedral back in January 1982 when my family did a 3 week tour of the South Island. I can't believe that on Monday I blogged about my time living in NZ, and the next day a huge earthquake hits - I hope I wasn't a jinx!

My NZ Experience

2011-02-21T10:44:00.005+11:00

From when I was 10 to almost 16 years old I lived in New Zealand. My Dad had been given a promotion with work so we moved to Howick which was a rural suburb of Auckland back then. Mum and Dad said they'd give it 5 years before moving back to Australia, but by the time 5 years was up both my sister and I didn't want to leave. We loved living in Auckland, we had made some great friends there and we saw just about everything to see in NZ during the 5 1/2 years we lived there.

We left NZ in December 1984 after my sister had finished high school and I still had 2 years to go. I visited NZ in 2008 - 24 years after leaving! I still keep in contact with 2 school friends and one of them was having a terrible time battling cancer so I decided to have a week just visiting with both of them.

My friend Andrea bought me this beautiful artwork which hangs on our bedroom wall. "Aroha" means love in Maori language. It came from the most gorgeous shop called The Garden Party and was made by Hayley Hamilton.

My other friend Adrienne gave me this piece of Kiwiana - a kiwi and pukeko noughts and crosses set. Kiwiana is defined as "quirky things that contribute to a sense of nationhood". Some other examples of Kiwiana that I love are hokey-pokey icecream, pineapple lumps, Footrot Flats, and tomato-shaped tomato sauce bottles.

I'd love to take Farmer Phil and the kids to NZ and show them where I lived, where I went to school, and do all the touristy stuff as well. I don't know when or if this will ever happen, but I can always dream!!

Bragging!!

2011-02-17T22:04:00.002+11:00

Just need to do a little bit of bragging for the minute! We received a lovely letter in the mail today informing us that Emma had won a partial scholarship to the Riverina Conservatorium of Music in Wagga for her contemporary vocal lessons she has once a week. She is to perform at their scholarship night in September and she's also been awarded a solo at their major concert called "Something to Sing About" in May. Farmer Phil and I have absolutely no idea where her beautiful voice comes from!!!???

Art Purchase

2011-02-17T15:19:00.005+11:00

While in Narrandera today, our Ag n Chat group had a lovely lunch at the East Street Cafe which had a beautiful display of artworks for sale. I could not resist this oil on canvas painting called "Grevillea & Friends" by Catherine Stewart. As soon as I walked into the cafe it caught my eye - the gorgeous colours of green and red. It's now hanging in our front entryway. Catherine was actually Emma's art teacher last year at school but she has now retired from teaching to concentrate on her career as a professional artist.

Ag n Chat Visit to Fisheries

2011-02-17T14:51:00.004+11:00

This morning we kicked off 2011 for Ag n Chat with a visit to the Narrandera Fisheries. Our guide Dexter gave us a very informative talk about the native freshwater fish species in Australia and also the fish pests such as Carp and Redfin.

The centre was opened in 1962 as a research centre to study the biology and ecology of inland aquatic systems. It is also now a productive hatchery which releases millions of fingerlings of Murray Cod, Golden Perch, Silver Perch and Trout Cod into waterways in our area. The centre is also an educational centre for children to learn about fishing and preserving the fish environment.

This is "Agro", a 20 year old Murray Cod who has a very easy life floating around all day getting fed twice a week. He is also one of the "stud" males used for reproduction.

Holiday Pics

2011-02-16T08:51:00.007+11:00

While sorting through photos for the previous post I found some from our holiday in January and realised that I hadn't blogged about it. If you look on a map of Australia you will see that Renmark is just over the NSW border in SA. It's like an oasis when you get there after travelling across the desert for hours. On my birthday it decided to rain a bucket load (100ml) for the whole day.

We obviously didn't ski at all that day. Just running to the toilet block in the caravan park meant that you would get soaked to the skin even with an umbrella!

After much discussion we took the kids to see the latest Harry Potter movie for the afternoon, and then had an extended birthday dinner at the club.

We've never experienced a day like that before in the 22 years that we've been going to Renmark every January. We were sloshing around in ankle deep water for the day!

Anyway, we had a really relaxing 2 weeks away with a manditory sleep in every morning, a lazy late brekkie of bacon and eggs, then an even later lunch, finally finishing with a gourmet bbq cooked by Farmer Phil. There was also the odd ski inbetween! The perfect holiday really!

Today

2011-02-16T08:27:00.002+11:00

Since coming home from holidays Farmer Phil has been trying to get as much spraying done as he can when the weather conditions allow. The weeds have been growing like Topsy since before harvest so it's a full time job to keep on top of them.

Today it's decided to rain so Farmer Phil has picked Ryan and Emma up from school to take them water skiing for the day at Albury to have some training with coach Cathryn. We are all booked to go to the Australian Water Ski Nationals held in Townsville this year over the Easter weekend. To qualify for them you need to ski to a certain standard so both Ryan and Emma need as much coaching and time on the water as possible.

So, while I have the house to myself I've decided to get some more work done on this quilt I started last year. I originally started to make it as a Christmas gift for a member of the family but I loved the fabric so much that I'm keeping it for myself to put on our bed. The fabric is from Anna Maria Horner and is very bright and cheerful.

Hope you all have a productive day!

New Purchases!

2011-02-09T12:17:00.005+11:00

Now that we finally have a successful and profitable harvest behind us there are a few things that need to be bought to make our life on the farm just a bit more comfortable.

This was my first after-harvest purchase - a new lawn mower! But not just any old lawn mower, it's a self-propelled mulching one so no more struggling to push the thing up hills or emptying the catcher 50 thousand times! I'm not exaggerating!!!

It may not sound very exciting to you all, but to me it will be a huge time and energy saver.

Also, the air conditioner installer man has just left after installing a split system air conditioner in our master bedroom. We have ducted evaporative air conditioning already, but our bedroom is on the western wall of our house and with no protection from the sun the room can get up to 35 degrees on really hot days. It also doesn't cool down by the time Farmer Phil and I are trying to go to sleep. Hopefully this problem has been solved and we will have some refreshing sleep in the future!

The Decision is Final!!

2011-02-09T08:16:00.010+11:00

This vintage club lounge belonged to my grand parents from 1946? until 1989 and then I became it's owner. As a child I remember the lounge in the "front" room of their farmhouse which was only used for special visitors. My sister and I used to sneak in and have a quick look and sit on it - it seemed so huge to us as little kids!

When Nana bought herself a new lounge she was going to give the old lounge to the charity shop until I heard about it and asked if she would mind me having it. I'm so very lucky to have something that belonged to my grandparents which holds special memories for me.

Every time my mum comes to visit she always asks when I am going to get it restored and reupholstered. Well mum, now is the time!!

After a rewarding harvest a few projects that have been put off for years (22 for the lounge to be exact!) are finally going to be completed.

I wanted the lounge to remain "art deco" looking so I picked out a fabric which I think will do the job. I'm not showing you what I picked yet - I'll wait until I get the finished product home and put back in the lounge room.

Farmer Phil said he didn't care what fabric I picked so I asked my sister her opinion which I value very much. She agreed with my choice so the decision is final!!

Can't wait to see it when it's finished!

I Am Cursed!!!

2011-02-09T08:07:00.004+11:00

This is what I am faced with every morning!!! The pool is full of "hairy panic grass" after it has blown in over night. We live on a hill which can get very windy at times and with all the Spring and Summer rain we've had the panic grass (officially called Panicum Capillare) is flourishing on the sides of the roads and paddocks that farmers haven't managed to spray yet. It takes me about an hour every day to firstly clean the filter baskets and then start scooping the grass out. I have hedges of lilly pilly, coastal rosemary and seaside daisy which are absolutely covered in the stuff too!!

Yippee!!!!!

2011-01-09T19:55:00.007+11:00

This was the scene at the paddock in front of our house this morning on another beautiful hot sunny day:

2 headers waiting to be serviced
3 semi trailers ready to be filled
1 bagging machine waiting to be finished off
1 field bin waiting to be emptied
1 tractor and chaser bin waiting to start
1 water cart ready for when a fire may start

This is the same paddock this evening:

1 bag full of wheat

all machinery gone because we've finally finished harvest!!!!!!!!

grey skies which have brought rain!

Holiday here we come tomorrow morning at around 4am!!!

At the moment we're trying madly to get everything packed into the ski boat so we can get the early start we want. Renmark is about 700km away from here so it takes a good 1/2 day to get there.

The caravan is in storage over there already with everything in it that we need, so all we really need to pack is our clothing, the kids tents and bedding, and all the ski gear.

So it's goodbye from us for a couple of weeks - see you all when we're back to the real world after 2 relaxing weeks of skiing, eating, drinking, and catching up with our friends Andrew, Michelle, Lucy and Hannah!!

Bye!!!

2010 - A Year in Review!

2011-01-01T16:52:00.012+11:00

Fiona over at Cattle, Kids and Chaos has inspired me to post about our 2010. So here goes:

JANUARY 2010 - Holiday time at Renmark, SA for 2 blissful weeks of camping and water skiing, I celebrated my 41st birthday.

FEBRUARY 2010 - the farm receives 180mm of rain for the month which resulted in some flash flooding, Ryan and Emma are back to school for another year.

MARCH 2010 - Farmer Phil and I have a few nights in Melbourne where we see the musical Mamma Mia, Farmer Phil celebrated his 44th birthday and Emma turned 14, I am honoured to be named as one of Casella Wines Top Country women and win $1000 which goes towards a new BBQ for the family, the farm receives another 150mm of rain for the month so cropping is looking like having a very good start.

APRIL 2010 - cropping starts at the end of the month so machinery is being prepared in readiness, Ryan and Emma attend their final water ski tournament of the 09/10 season, Farmer Phil and I attend a friends beautiful wedding.

MAY 2010 - our house gets a facelift with a much anticipated pergola being built after a long 8 1/2 year wait, cropping continues with Farmer Phil and I working around the clock to get the crop sown on time.

JUNE 2010 - Ryan has another surgery to correct the overgrown bone graft in his jaw (I think this is about the 12th surgery!), Ag n Chat visits a dairy and none of us farmers wives wants to trade places with the dairy wife, we visit friends for a bonfire night to celebrate the Queens' birthday weekend.

JULY 2010 - we remember baby Brendan who was stillborn 17 years ago, Emma attends choral camp and performs in a production of Phantoms, Cats and Superstars, Ag n Chat enjoys Christmas in July.

AUGUST 2010 - Emma sings at the Sydney Opera House with the State Public Schools choir, Farmer Phil and I celebrate 22 years of married life, Ag n Chat reveal their artistic sides by attending a metalwork day, Emma sees "Wicked" the musical in Sydney.

SEPTEMBER 2010 - Ag n Chat visits Hay and Deniliquin for an overnight trip, Ryan turns 16 and attains his Learners Permit, the family has a week at Colombo Creek for a junior water ski training camp, Spring rain is falling.

OCTOBER 2010 - Wagga experiences it's first flood in 10 years, Farmer Phil and I get started paving around the pool, the farm experiences a wet Spring which hasn't happened in a very long time so hopes are high for a fabulous harvest!

NOVEMBER 2010 - Emma visits Tasmania for 6 days with her Year 9 school group, Ryan sits his School Certificate exams and then has 2 weeks of work experience to complete Year 10, Ryan and Emma attend a water ski training school for a week at Narrandera, harvest starts with hopes of it being a bumper one!

DECEMBER 2010 - harvest continues but under very trying wet conditions, Daniel comes home to help with harvest, Ryan and Emma finish school with floods enveloping YAHS, Ryan and Emma spend a week at Stoney Park near Port Macquarie for a water ski training camp, Daniel turns 22, we have a very quiet Christmas Day at home, and an even quieter New Years Eve with Farmer Phil and I on the header and chaser bin to see in 2011!

Farmer Phil

2011-01-01T15:54:00.005+11:00

Farmer Phil would like me to tell you that we are not hopeless farmers who get their header and chaser bins bogged all the time! He said that in my previous posts it looked like we were a pack of dills who do dumb things! Of course we are not, it's just silly mistakes that happen when you're tired, busy and stressed. We've also never experienced a wet harvest like this one has been!

So here are a couple of photos of us looking much more professional!! That's Daniel on the header with Ryan on the chaser bin helping out.

What To Do With All This Grain?

2010-12-30T10:42:00.008+11:00

A grain "sausage" just getting started

Almost finished - 75m

A completed "sausage" of wheat

Long before our harvest started Farmer Phil was wondering how he was going to deliver or store all the grain we expected to harvest. We only have one truck which holds about 27T, but when the header is stripping over 30T of grain every hour, the poor old truck and driver would be run ragged trying to keep up.

We decided to buy a bagging machine. This machine puts the grain into a big plastic sausage-shaped bag so that it can be stored for short periods on farm. Once harvest is finished Farmer Phil will then have the job of carting the grain out of the bags and into the grain receival site nearby.

A "sausage" of wheat is 75m long and holds 250T of grain. We bought 12 bags, and we think we'll use them all this harvest.

Bogged Again!!!

2010-12-30T10:09:00.004+11:00

Thought I'd better give you an update on what's been happening over the last week or so. We had a breakdown with the header last night so I'm making the most of a morning at home to get some catching up done - make sure the garden is getting watered properly with hot weather expected over the next few days, clean the pool, catch up on washing sheets and towels etc. All jobs which are put on the back-burner while I'm busy.

We had a very quiet Christmas day with just our family having breakfast and lunch together. We then went to Farmer Phil's parents for dinner. Our kids are old enough now that they don't get out of bed at some ridiculously early hour to inspect what's under the Christmas tree, so we had a lovely sleep in until 8.30am Christmas morning!

It was straight back to harvesting on Boxing Day though, so no rest for the wicked really! The header got bogged one night - photos below. Then the next morning the chaser bin got bogged.

Harvest has been very frustrating to say the least and we've still got about 2,500ac of wheat to go!! We 're getting excellent yields of over 5T/Ha and it's top grade quality, so we can't complain really. It would be nice to get finished sooner rather than later - we have postponed our 2 weeks holiday to later in January to give us time to finish up.

The header all forlorn and stuck!

Flopped down on it's front wheels.

Mud up to the ladders.

This is how we pulled it out - chains and cable attached to the front axle and the big tractor to pull!

Oh To Be a Cat!!

2010-12-22T17:38:00.004+11:00

This is how I found Squirt this afternoon - absolutely oblivious to anyone or anything!! Farmer Phil always says he wants to be reincarnated as a cat and live at our house!

The Aussie Farmer!

2010-12-22T09:29:00.001+11:00

You may have seen this on the news over the last few days but I thought it very worthy to be included on my blog! It's such a great example of Aussie farmer ingenuity - in the face of disaster (meaning floods and crop devastation), the Aussie farmer can still see the lighter side of life!! Hope you enjoy it as much as we have here!