Brrr...Winter

Time seems to be flying by - we have had the first day of winter, which was a very frosty day indeed! A few warm summery days between showery and rainy days, so what we do is quite dependent on what the weather is doing!

I spent a very long Sunday planting 42 fruit trees in the orchard - that was a hard slog, and I couldn't quite do the whole 45! There are 8 more trees on back order and that will hopefully be later this week. I've planted in groves, as we have so many different types - so a citrus grove with mandarins, lemons, oranges and grapefruit, then the pipfruit area - apples, pears and quinces. Up the top is the "nuttery" with almonds and avocados, plus a macadamia. Then I have a corner with three cherry trees, another with three plum trees, and an area for stonefruit - nectarines, peaches and apricots. A huge job but was good to get them in the ground and so far the frost has not touched the orchard.

Rupert has been slogging away on the kitchen - cabinets are all in, most of the floor is down, and he has done the plumbing. All the appliances are here, so it's just a matter now of waiting for the benchtop and the gas hob installer and we are cooking! Literally! It will be SO good to do dishes in a kitchen rather than a basin on the dining room table filled in the bathroom!

Our first experimental batch of chicks hatched - just two Aracaunas - I knew the hatch rate would be low, so thrilled to have two. They are growing well, and very noisy! Dream (the cat) thinks they are just there for her personal enjoyment and spends a lot of time watching them. In other news, we moved the pigs from what will be the vegetable garden down to their sty - easy job, with a bucket of food, they followed me happily with Rupert bringing up the rear.

Rupert scored himself a bit of a bargain with this very cool 1960's tractor! This will be used for the heavier jobs - ploughing, dragging out logs. Liza and Mark came to visit from Taupo for a day - so good to see them, and Liza had a wee tootle around on Big Blue. We do miss our friends and family but with the internet and Facebook it's really easy to stay in touch - and we are not THAT far away!

The adjustment continues - I've just had my first job interview which was a little nerve wracking! Grace seems to be settling in well to Kindy though she still talks about her Auckland friends. We had to explain to her the other day that fairies aren't real, after she made a wish (on her knees by the window!) and then cried the next morning when there was no pony waiting for her in the lounge! Big excitement coming up though with her first night time disco next friday at Kindy - it's going to be a long week of counting down.

So, that's us! Add in to all that the normal jobs and living, and it's quite busy. We did have a morning out at Otane Market (not worth it) and Otane Tree Guys (very cool), so we are seeing a bit of the country. Very shortly, Rupert will be home from town with a rotary hoe for me to break up the vege garden, so I'd better get my gumboots on!

Paula (and Rupert)