A festive hello to all… It’s just under two weeks until Santa comes to our houses (eek!) and Christmas Day will be upon us all once more. Of course, Mister C is now counting all of the days down until Christmas day is here (like most children, I expect); along with reporting how tasty his chocolate treat is, out of his advent calendar each morning (so sweet). He spent over a month counting down the days prior to his special his tenth birthday (very cute); now we have an automatic count-down-the-day young lad, to remind us of just how many days we have left to get everything ready! (Eek again!).
We managed to get our Christmas tree and decorations up in the house (didn’t think it was going to eventuate!); thanks, wonderful girls and very helpful Mister C for your help, I didn’t think it was going to happen this year, after all we have been through with the car accident and my surgery. I think I will need extra help with wrapping gifts too this year (oh my)! My heart is again warmed; we can now share a little bit of happiness over this festive time together, along with the fact I don’t completely feel like a useless mother and wife this season…
A week or so before the car accident, I managed to locate and purchase four new chook girls (Isa browns) to add to our dwindling group of girls (thanks our favourite produce company in town!). We now have nine sweet girls, including ‘Grumpy Ana’, who is most likely past seven years of age and still going very strong. Due to the accident (sadly and sorry), I haven’t been able to draw & upload any Illustrations to introduce our four sweet new chook girls, named ‘The Berry girls’: ‘Strawberry’, ‘Raspberry’, ‘Blueberry’ & ‘Blackberry’ (not very original- but is quite fitting). Excitedly, I was able to carefully sit and draw a new illustration of our dear ‘Rhetti’ doggie (who went to the vet last week and got a full bill of good health, for a now ten-year-old) and our four new girls.
I managed to upload the images (with Husband’s help of course!) and successfully put the five images onto the blog site last week (why don’t you check them out!). The girls are marvellous and bring us much joy & happiness, they are all laying copious amounts of fresh delicious eggs (approx. 8-10 per day!), and making lots of clucking mess too. Get in touch with us if you live close by in the area, we have lots of big yum eggs to share and we can arrange a dozen (12) or half dozen (6) for a small delivery and cover cots fee (now fittingly named ‘Flossy’s eggs’).
With my sleeping upstairs (still on the soft recliner, to aid neck operation recovery), I have been able to hear most things outside at night (including storms and some strange animal noises) and in the early morning, while also watch the sun rise (is quite lovely). One early morning before my surgery at about 0550am, I heard the chook girls screaming out loud screeching noises, not their usual chook cooing noises. I tried to quickly get up out of the recliner (didn’t really work), but I managed to get up and hobble over to the back sliding door and go outside on the patio, to see a huge nasty fox in our chook enclosure! I was sure the bad fox was about to take one or more of our precious defenceless girls.
I managed to carefully walk down to the chook area and saw the girls huddled and quite frightened together in the corner of the enclosure. I checked all the girls and noticed ‘Teressa’, (large black chook) was all puffed up like a mad rooster, standing up on the side of the fence. I carefully picked her up and checked her over, to see quite a few feathers missing on her lower abdomen (tummy) area, but no injuries (phew!). I was sure that bad fox was waiting in the chook enclosure for the automatic chook door to go up at sunrise; it was certainly now time to put a roof on the area!
I was able to get in touch with our handy builder friend (who built our extension last year), who came out and agreed to build a full wooden roof frame with metal fencing wire. It took our friend and his trusty apprentice two days to complete the work, it sure was a tricky and fairly big job (particularly in the rain at times too!). I can report the roof is fantastic and the whole enclosure is now well and truly very fox proof now! (Thanks heaps P.S & B), it was worth the costs and time spent. I still do however, wake up through the night (still upstairs on my trusty recliner) and hear the elusive fox calls and worry the fox my still get into the girl’s enclosure, but I know that’s impossible and fall back to sleep.
Well, it’s been just over three weeks since my neck surgery (has it gone fast?). I can report my neck wound is healing well, dressing and steri-strips are now all off and my neck area looks okay (a bit different looking to before the surgery). My pain is now somewhat improved from that really acute post-surgery pain to a constant, throbbing and aching pain (not sure which is better?). My Neurosurgeon did comment prior to the surgery, that I would be taller, mainly due to the disc implant being higher- I guess that’s a good thing? A day through the past week or so, I have been trying to occupy my mind during my long road to recovery, and I began to research and review my family history, while also do some research on my heritage and old family scrapbooks; it has been really good for my (at times-fragile) mind and soul! More on the subject next blog…
A Word from Mister C…
Sitting at the dining table together for our isolation tea (earlier in the year), Flossy was in her room (sadly) isolating and having her own tea, which I had earlier brought to her on the blue tray. Mister C smiled and said, “Gee, are we having pies and mash, Mummy? I love meat pies!” Serving our dishes out and putting down Mister C’s plate and mine on the dining table, I sighed and said, “Yes, my son; it’s the best potato mash ever!” Mister C giggled and replied, “Wow! The mash really is the best ever and so soft too!” I smiled and then replied, “Please use your fork, my son, not your fingers.” Mister C frowned, “Oh, Mummy, forks are for older people. Hands are the best and easiest for me!” Both giggled…🍴🍽
Stay tuned…
The girls and Mister C look forward (is an understatement!) to school finishing and having some down time until Christmas is here. Flossy has a fun reward day booked with her year group at High school, on Wednesday up in the Sydney area at the ‘Water and cable Park’ up there; while Mister C has a fun day planned in his final week of school on Thursday for their all-day class party going to the movies and ‘Adventure Playground’ through the day (sounds heaps of fun huh?). We hope you all have some plans for a well-earned rest from work and activities, and can arrange time to spend with special family and friends. I will endeavour to try to wrap some gifts (won’t look pretty!) and we look forward to spending time with Granny, Grandad and Husband’s Bro and family on Christmas eve, for a lovely lunch together in ACT (can’t wait!).
I wanted to thank all who came down to say hi, at our book stall at the local Rotary Parkside Markets in town last Saturday; it was so great to get out of the house and to chat with everyone. I am so grateful for the lovely comments of encouragement and wonderful positive comments on our books (and sales too). Thanks so much also to Husband (my rock) for all of your hard work on this day and your continued help over these weeks (I love you very much!). Thanks also to the girls and Mister C for your continued love and support, without you I would not be the person I continue to strive to be… We look forward to joining the Christmas Laggan Community Markets this coming Saturday (17th December) in Laggan NSW, to meet some new people and share our books- hope to see some familiar faces there… 🤸♂️
Nice to see that our Ing can remain upbeat after all she has been through in the last couple of months!!
Thanks Granny! We sure do appreciate your ongoing support. See you on Christmas Eve! Hugs Me and Mister C… 🎄