Art for Heart's Sake

Lovely Small Amount of Rain!

Hi, yay it's Thursday morning and everything is beautifully fresh after 14mm of rain last night.  Not as much as I would have liked, but better than nothing.  Just perfect for me to plant my pea seeds, capsicums, first dwarf beans  and just possibly my tomatoes.  I was thinking of leaving them until Saturday because tomorrow night it's meant to be 4 degrees C (bit chilly for tomatoes) but I am going to put some cloth around the stakes to give them a bit of wind protection so that ought to help keep the frost off them too as it is about 1m high (3ft).

John's appointment went well yesterday and it was really interesting watching the scan of the veinous system in his legs.  He definitely needs something done about them but the good news is they can be heat-sealed with a laser and not stripped via an operation.  I know this is a huge relief for JJ because he's never been in hospital or had an op of any sort.  When he gets it done depends on his workplace.  The only opening is 10 December and that's coming into the busiest time for lettuce deliveries.  For the first two weeks (or was it a month, I'm not sure) he can only lift one lettuce crate at a time which would make his job very long-winded and very! tiring.  I'm hoping he'll decide to put it off until February when things will have settled down a little.  His boss doesn't get back from overseas until 19 November so it's a bit hard to talk to him about it until then which means keeping the clinic waiting for a decision too.  Hmmmmm.  The specialist did say it isn't urgent which is good.

I FINALLY managed to get a pair of summer sandals that will be perfect for work.  They are fairly practical but rather cute I think.  I also put on layby (to pay off) the most gorgeous!!!!!!! stunning!!!! pair of italian wedge sandals that are beyond comfortable and made from the softest leather.  They are a neutral colour and I know they will last for years.  At last, some comfort for work.. big sigh!  I'll take a photo of my sandals later today.

I did have one rather scary moment in the shoe shop.  I was sitting down and buckling up the lovely shoe on my right foot.  When I went to do my left I realised my arthritic hip made it impossible for me to reach down to do up the shoe so I had to ask the assistant to do it.  It's little things like this that make me realise just how bad my hip is getting and it makes me mad at my left leg!!  I'm only 51 for heaven's sake!  Pookies to it!

I must get out into the garden now as loads to do!  Smiles..

A Blank Canvas!!

Hi on a lovely Spring Wednesday morning!  I'm about to head out to the kitcheng garden (yes, again!!) to spread compost on the area I want to plant my peas in and also to rig up the stakes for them. 

Yesterday I really did have a pretty ''off'' day, not surprisingly I guess.  I just felt off kilter for the entire day - until I started doing a bit of weeding in one of my flower gardens after 6pm which soothed my rumpled soul.

On the way home yesterday afternoon I stopped to do the grocery shopping so we wouldn't have to today and I also bought a blank canvas for me to work later this week.  It's (gasp, gasp) 30 inches by 36 '', crikey!!  Yes I'm daunted as it is HUGE but I just wanted to try doing a large canvas for fun.  As for the colours I'm going to use, I have some ideas, plus lots of texture.  I also hope I have enough paint!!!  Watch this space!

John has an appointment with a varicose vein specialist in Nelson this pm.  His leg is a lot better but he really needs to get them checked so I'm glad we're going.  I think he has a 45min scan so I'm not sure whether I'll be allowed to go in with him for that.  If not I'll cruise some shops instead.

Off to the garden I go, hi ho!  Smiles.. p.s. it's meant to rain tonight and tomorrow morning so I'd love to get my peas into the ground this pm but I'm not sure it will happen! 

Dear Little Thrush!

Hi, just an update on our little thrush.  It ate really well at 7.30pm last night and was looking pretty perky.  I covered the cage with a towel for the night around 8.30pm (dusk) and left the heater on to keep the temp around 14 degrees C as it was going to be a cold night.  Unfortunately when we went to feed it this morning it was dead.  Feeling very sad this morning and can't help wondering if I did something wrong with the food mix or something.  I honestly don't think so - it was wounded so it's possible Monty's teeth punctured something inside.   I'll bury the sweetie up by the studio today. 

Caring about nature is so hard sometimes!!  Monty is DEFINITELY the last cat I will have for many years...  I told him in no uncertain terms ''no thrushes'' and he looked straight into my eyes - yes I'm sure he knew what I was saying!!  Tearful smiles...

Hi on Tuesday Morning from Monday Night!

Hi lovelies.. I'm typing this on Sunday night because I KNOW tomorrow morning is going to be dynamite time-wise. 

The good news is, as of 8pm on Sunday night, the song thrush is still with us and doing well.  With each feed (2 hourly during the day) he seems much more feisty so that's a good sign.  He was fairly feisty to begin with so now feeding him/her is a bit of a challenge.  If he/she is still alive this morning (Monday) I will be racing him to our vet clinic for a wound check on my way to work.  I will have to leave it with them and just hope all will be okay. If it is, oh dear, I guess we will have a pet thrush to raise.  Monty will just have to get used to having it around.  I'm not counting my ''thrushes'' before they hatch though because I realise cat wounds are full of bacteria and infection might set in, hence the vet visit.  Keep your fingers crossed.  Oh how I adore thrushes, they are such trusting, gorgeous birds and oh their song!

Apart from that we had a good day today, visiting our friends and I managed to plant a cucumber and two tomatoes in planter bags which are now on our verandah.  The night temps are going to be chilly tonight and tomorrow night (almost frosty) and again on Friday so I need to keep an eye on them. 

I'll update you re the bird later today.  Smiles..

A Song Thrush!

Hi, it's Labour Day Monday (public holiday) and we're just back from visiting friends.  My nursery is open today but we hadn't seen them for ages for I put up a sign closed till midday.  Ack, hope no-one came up the drive but I don't think it's likely!

We have a song thrush fledgling in a bird cage at the moment.  Monty caught it yesterday pm and we managed to get it from him but it does have a damaged wing.  Because it's a public holiday our vet is closed so we are feeding it every two hours with cat food and raw egg mixed.  I am so happy it survived the night but I know there is still a good chance it will die.  If it's still alive tomorrow morning I will take it to our vet on my way to work.  Fingers crossed, dear wee thing!  It has 1/3 of it's tail feathers so it isn't too young but still very fragile. 

This pm I am composting and getting ready to plant my peas!  Happy dance!!  I need to get the 18 stakes in the garden for them too.  I'm doing them in two parallel lines of 9 for a change, rather than a teepee.  I've also managed to get tall stakes which will make such a difference.  Off to the garden I go.  Smiles..

Happy Sunday!

Morning on a rather breezy but lovely, fresh Spring morning.  We had a tiny bit of rain last night (oh bother, I wanted more) so the air feels gorgeous.  Oh my goodness you should see the weeds in the right hand side of the perennial garden - yes, the side I finished weeding about 3 weeks ago.. grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr mountainous!!  Laugh out loud.. botheration, shoot me now! 

I'm concentrating on the kitchen garden at the moment so the flower garden will need to fend for itself for another week or two!

Yesterday I planted some beetroot, lettuce, rainbow chard and red onions in the original globe artichoke patch.  There are still a couple of globe artichokes in there but they tend to run out of steam after 3-4 years so some of them have been pulled out.  Speaking of which we ate our first artichokes from the ones I grew from Roman seed and oh my they are SO tasty!  I'm going to cook a couple more for lunch today and we're going to eat them warm, yum!

I also weeded an area ready for my peas but we need to get the huge bale of baleage (mulch I hope!!.. it looks horrid) off the trailer first and it's like dealing with a huge dead body!  The sooner it's off there the sooner we can get more compost and then I can plant my pea seeds.  I also put up the tomato stake frames in one of the gardens and today I'm going to wrap the protective cloth around the bed, closing the gap with clothes pegs so I can get in there easily.  I'll plant my tomatoes later this week as the nights are meant to be chilly until Wednesday.  The cloth will just provide them with a bit more of a microclimate out in the kitchen garden.  Having said that my hornbeam hedge is looking AMAZING this year and really is creating more shelter.  Yay!

I'm a bit worried about my Mum today - her doctor has doubled her BP medication because her pressure was far too high and there is a chance of another stroke.  This morning she couldn't remember simple things, like her grandson's name and she called him her son first.  Hmmmmm I so wish I lived near her at times like this so I could hug her!  Smiles..

A Gardening Weekend!

Hi, it's midday on Saturday and it's Labour Weekend here in NZ which means John gets Monday off.  This morning we raced into our local mega-hardware store early to get some vegetables to plant for summer harvesting.  I have plenty of gorgeous things that will provide us with lots of vegetables over the coming months. 

I also need to plant about 10 tomato plants in one bed in the kitchen garden as well as some in planter bags.  Some of the varieties (all are heritage except one) are especially good for oven-roasting and freezing for winter use, or for making pasta sauces etc.  I tend to use them for casserole bases in the winter too and they are so full of flavour (the sauces that is).

I am going to plant some pea seeds which hopefully will provide us with lovely fresh peas for Christmas dinner (one of the nice things about being in the southern hemisphere for Christmas).  Yes lots to do in the garden, so I'll keep this short.  It's a beautifuld day today but we are meant to get rain tonight and tomorrow morning so I need to spread some sheep manure pellets too.  More tomorrow honeys.  Smiles..

Luscious Lupins!

Morning on this working Friday!  I'm about to head off to work but I wanted to share this photograph of a stunning lupin ''The Governor'' that is in flower in my garden!  I adore lupins and always have.  In Central Otago where we holidayed all the time when I was young, lupins grow wild along the riverbanks and in some of the countryside.  They are such a picture and smell lovely too.  I am going to plant a lot more lupins in my garden next autumn, I've decided and will collect seed from this gorgeous one too.  He's such a glorious colour.  Smiles..

How Many Weeds???

Hi there, it's Thursday morning and I've just put the open sign out for my nursery.  Here's hoping someone comes up the drive to get some tomato plants.  I feel so sorry for my babies, sitting here waiting for good homes.  On a brighter note I sent one special tomato plant via overnight courier to a dear friend in Wellington yesterday, so hopefully by now it's happily ensconced in a pot!  I was a little concerned about sending such a tender plant (tomato foliage bruises very easily) so I just hope it arrived looking okay - not to mention the fact I had to take it out of its pot and send it bare-rooted with damp paper etc round it.  Fingers crossed!

Yesterday afternoon I weeded a small area of garden in the kitchen garden.  This bed is not very long and I have a Reefton peach at one end, a Sturmer apple (yummmmm) at the other with two small square wooden compost bins (slatted) inbetween.  I could not believe it - I got a huge wheelbarrow load of weeds just out of this small area!  Crikey.. then again it hadn't been weeded since last Summer (oops!!).

Today I am going to prepare the ground so I can sow some peas.  This means loads more hard weeding but I am DETERMINED to do it!  I also want to plant a couple of tomatoes in planter bags, which I'll sit against the house in the vegetable garden up here.  It worked really well last year so I'm doing it again.

Out to the weeds I go.  Smiles..

That Moment When....

.. you realise you didn't put the dishwasher on last night and gorgeous hubby didn't realise it hadn't been done when he put them away this morning.. PRICELESS.. especially with a pot in there that was used to make chicken stock!  Oh my goodness.. I stood there with my mouth opening and closing for a moment trying to wrack my brains to remember what was in it.  I think I've managed to find it all and needless to say it's on NOW!!  I'll be looking at everything twice before I use it for a few days, giggle, that will teach me to be tired!  John was out at quiz night and I was watching TV and I just forgot!

Today I have my dear friend, Lyn, coming for lunch and we are going to be able to sit on the verandah which is just lovely.  It rained a bit yesterday but it's lovely today.

I must fly as lots to do before she arrives, including walking the dog (he is waiting patiently as we speak!).  Here's a photo of my bird feeding station.  That is Clematis montana ''Alba'' that is tumbling down it.  Unfortunately the branch it is on is dead and I know one day it is going to collapse so I need to start training the clematis somewhere else.  Hmmmm..  Smiles..