Spring in Yungaburra!

Spring has made a huge difference in the garden.

Everything has grown quickly and vigorously.

Of course that means bugs are everywhere!

 

All the trees are flowering and are buzzing alive with bees. The birds are busy building their new nests right next to our bedroom window.

Beautiful birds

Beautiful nest

 This poor little fellow unfortunately didn't make it. Brought down from his nest with the wind; we tried to rescue it. The parents were feeding it for three days but mother nature had a different idea.

Poor little bird...

The vegetables, snow peas, bok choy, radishes, beans, spring onions, silver beets, lettuces, have to be picked every night and end up on the dinner table.

Harvest for one night

Tomatoes galore! Fresh, plump and juicy! Until you taste a freshly picked tomato you don't know the real flavour.

Green tomatoes

Ripe tomatoes

Raw, cooked, stuffed, sauces….We even eat them like apples during the day. Glorious tomatoes!

Cold stuffed tomatoes...

Hot stuffed tomatoes...

The strawberries... we eat  them as we pick, sweet and juicy!

The flowers have also appeared everywhere. Some we didn't know we had in the garden!

 

The curlews have also come back in our grounds for an intermittent feed of scrap and like it so much, that I think they're thinking of nesting there. That would be something!

Waiting to be fed

Testing for a nest???

After the occasional rainy days we had lately, everything is green again. The cassava cuttings I planted are looking very promising and so are the banana trees we planted. The new choko vines are rapidly climbing in the trees and we hope they'll bear as much fruits as when we first arrived.

Everything'sso green!

Next season's persimmons, oranges, mandarins, cumquats and avocadoes are getting bigger and the macadamia nut tree is now full of baby nuts. Yum… Can't wait until February/March!

Persimmons

Macadamia nuts

Avocado

Another project for the future is to build a gazebo right at the top corner, near the fence. We would then get an uninterrupted view of the lake, mountains and fields...

View from the proposed gazebo

How can we be so lucky to live in such a paradise?

Carport extension and visits

The carport's extension has been finished a couple of weeks ago.

It looks very good and is very efficient as it shades the side of the house which gets very hot summer time.

Strong enough? Yes!

Building the extension

 But even a professional makes the occasional mistake , especially when you're looking for tricks to build something by yourself when it usually takes two men  to do the job…

I've heard once that humour is a sign of intelligence. At the time I asked myself;  is it really? I don't doubt it anymore. The ability to make people laugh, not at you, but with you, using your natural wit to turn an awkward situation into a comic situation can't be done by someone who is not intelligent.

We couldn't stop laughing when Sven realised what had happened.

Check  the next picture and laugh with us...

Can you spot the mistake??

Next project is the platform Sven will build on top of the extended carport.

All finished! The stairs to the platform will be where the ladder is

  The next two pictures are a quick collage to show you the view we will get when this project will be complete. Well worth it!

From the left corner

From the right corner

 

Another improvement for inside: the fans have been installed in prevision of summer, (which will be hot, no doubt). But the carport has already made a big difference, keeping the house much cooler..

Simone came to visit for three weeks and she loved it. Especially the cows next door as it reminded her of her childhood;  and the fresh vegetables , from the garden, we eat every night.

Simone enjoying the cows

And more cows!

And the vegetables

 

Phil also stayed with us for a few days and got to know Freja.

Her favourite pastime!

 Marika and Byron came up for the weekend and we celebrated Marika's 32nd birthday. We thoroughly enjoyed their visit . Freja did too, playing with Byron and licking Marika to death!

Country lunch

Happy Birthday Marika!

Birthday greetings from Freja

  Sven took them for a tour around Atherton, Tolga and Peeramon, which are not very far from Yungaburra.

Peeramon Hotel

Original pump still standing

Obsesion with phones?

 Every year a pig hunt is organized at the Peeramon Hotel (competing for the biggest feral boar).

We'll definitely check the venue and meet the locals next year, as we're told it's a very interesting weekend!

The arrival of Freja!

Well it's been a while since our last post.

The reason is the new arrival of our 12 weeks old puppy… An English brindle staffy. We named  her Freja (pronounced Freya) after a Viking goddess.

She's beautiful and full of life, as babies are…

She adapted very quickly to her new home and Sven had to build a temporary fence around the patio to keep her safe and out of mischief in the big garden. So much to explore!

Where can I go now?

She keeps us on our toes all the time. But when she sleeps (like a baby) she is so very cute!

Sleeping like a baby!

We had to make this area as puppy-proof as possible, of course, meaning shoes , newspapers, hand towel, hats, cushions, etc... out of reach. But there is always something that falls in her paws or jaws, which are already very powerful! So we bought her a big bone...

I'll get that bone...

She is fascinated with the cows but doesn't bark, just looks….

Watching... Watching...

My mum, Simone, was there when we picked her up and she loves her.

Simone and Freja

She is a very cheeky little puppy, up and about all the time…

Her favourite place!

Second favourite!

Then suddenly falls asleep!

Wherever she's comfortable...

She knows how to get to our hearts whenever we tell her off. She cocks her head on the side and stares at us, with her lovely puppy eyes, as to say "What's wrong with you now?"

What did I do ???

We have lots of fun with her and we love her.

I'm home now!!!

Welcome to your new home Freja!