Feather your Next Friday, 29 June, 2018.

I am so glad of Feather your Nest Fridays.   Stopping to assess things makes a world of difference to me.  I helps me plan next week too. But sitting here writing I see wow the month is almost over and we are right in the middle of the year already.
Big things are happening!  The second half of the year is set to be life changing!
We have the wedding coming in October.
So much to do!

This week I continued working on my pantry.  I emptied and washed all my jars and put my new labels on.   I am ordering more labels as I realised some I missed and had not thought of.  Also I have kept many spare jars since Bluebirds Farmhouse Pantry will be much bigger.

I found I had multiple jars with the same thing i.e. four jars of icing sugar.   So I made up snap lock bags full of things that need using up. 

I have used a lot  of these this week in a kind of use it up challenge.  I can see I have enough random dried fruits to make a fruit cake too. 

I made baked apples with some of my hailstone apples from the Adelaide Hills.  I bought four bags of these in support of the farmers who were hit by hailstones.  They are beautiful apples anyway.

They end up caramelised and gorgeous. I had baked apples for breakfast too.

One of my getting ready to move jobs this week was to touch up paint in several places with marks or chips.  I did all those and they look perfect!

I made GF Melting Moments.  I just used GF flour in my regular recipe.  Excuse the wobbly icing but these few were for Harper...

They tasted good and gave me something when I was craving biscuits!

I also made Gingerbread biscuits with honey.  I make these for the girls and Andy.  

I made tuna mornays, a big Tikka Masala Chicken curry and even had a bash at GF Naan Bread.  It worked!  I just used Aldi GF flour, yoghurt and a little milk to mix a dough.  I rolled them out and fried the disks.   Well yum!   I used homemade yoghurt and mint from Mums garden to make raita to go with everything. 

Andy said to stop telling him things are GF as he honestly can't tell any difference and thinks they are great.   I was really happy with this as Naan sure extends a curry a very long way.

I made a pot of use it up veggie soup for the lunches. 

Our neighbour over the road had an extension built.  She came over and asked us if we wanted a pile of wood that is left over.  Andy went over and took a photo of this all and sent it to Luke.  Farmer Luke said YES PLEASE!  so it is all sitting on our front veranda to go to the farm.   I asked Andy to guess the value of it and he measured it up and said $180.   So that is $180 in timber for farm use.

Mum gave me two beautiful cardis, one navy blue and one a beautiful claret colour.  

Lucy gave me three litres of olive oil which I decanted into bottles. 

Then I went to see Hilde and do a further afield shop.   Each time I do this it pays off so much.  My one purchase of hair colour for 33c cents per box (instead of the usual $19) saved me $170.

I got a car load of beautiful fruit and veggies for a fraction of our local prices.  

I found a crystal decanter and the cups and saucers I love for $4.

The biggest bargain was an expensive brand pure duck down Queen sized quilt for $15.  Bluebird Farmhouse will have another double bed so I need more linen.   This is a saving of at least $200 right there.   I washed it up in my homemade wool mix and it smells beautiful and dried in Mums tumble drier for half a day!   It is glorious! 

The second biggest bargain was a velvet coat for Harper.  It is lined with navy satin. It is just gorgeous.

My picture makes it look faded but it is luscious dark thick navy blue.

Hilde gave me two big baskets of lemons. 

I drink the juice of a fresh lemon every day in my jug of water (thanks to Lana that is my habit now) and I have enough to get creative over the weekend as well.

When I got home and unpacked I had so many veggies I made up a basket each for Chloe and Dad as they were coming to Adelaide for a meeting.

Dad loves cauliflower and cabbage, I guarantee he is cooking them up today.    So I got to see Dad and Chloe briefly and give them cups of tea before they headed back to the farm.  Dad told me there is progress and if all goes well we will have access to Bluebirds Farmhouse in August!  Then it will be a matter of assessing what work we need to do before we could move in! 

Yesterday I made the girls cupcakes to take today since apparently all the biscuits are gone! 

Over the weekend I will take some time to add up my Vicky Challenge.  This week will be very good.  It all adds up that is for sure.  It all helped other households as well as our own.   Every week I put my list plus the dollar value into my Vicky Savings book.  I have no idea how I am going compared to the last two years of doing this.  But it inspires me a lot to see what an incredible savings it is to shop around, bake your own, pack the lunches and so on.  You can have a real income with savings! 

How did you get ahead, save or build up your home this week?

Be very careful how you live- not as unwise but as wise

making the most of every opportunity.   (Ephesians 5: 15,16) 

This is on my mind a lot!  Take every opportunity to build your home, your savings, your relationships, your knowledge, your pantry,  your skills.  

The wise woman builds her house.   She looks well to the ways of her household and eats not the bread of idleness.  

In a world of confusion and conflict we have clear instructions, thank goodness.  We have a guiding light and when things are confused we do not need to be.

There is so much joy in small things and the ordinary.   Yesterday I tinted the icing on the cakes the palest creamy pink.  It was so glorious I though how happy I am in moments like these!  Once time I said how I realised I would far rather be home making jam than jetting away on a plane somewhere. 

This week I have had my head hit the pillow every night tired and happy with good thoughts and gratitude.   When your hands are busy  your heart  is happy I am sure of it! 

Have a wonderful weekend!  I think I will get an extra post in next week as I have one half done! xxx

Feather your Nest Friday, 22nd June, 2018.

It has been a good and busy week! We have had a lot of sunny days too.

This week Lucy and the girls were down at the farm.  It was painful missing out on this I can tell you! 

But the girls had the most wonderful time with Nan Nan Pat and lambs and the baby deer.

Mum had a big box.  I think something must have been delivered to the farm in it.  She put mats inside and pinned fabric to make a door curtain.   Success!   Happiness is a big box to sit in!

Harper helped Chloe collect kindling and she loved it!  Good little worker! 

This week I made Gluten Free scones.  As I am bad at scones I always add a teaspoon of baking powder and an egg.  This makes them rise much better.  I made three dozen.  Also no one notices they are gluten free.

Anything GF in the shops is a ridiculous price and when you can buy GF flour well this is the easy solution!

I made a big beef casserole as I found a massive markdown.  This made dinner then meat pies.  Really any casserole in your slow cooker can be used to make pies.   No one even seems to realise they are seeing the casserole again!   Also Chloe said to me that Luke doesn't like casseroles much.  I asked does he like pies?  Yes!  So there you go, you slap your casserole in pastry and call it a pie!  😊

Also pies freeze wonderfully so you have spare and emergency meals.

One time a while ago I bought a fast meal from Woolworths.  It was a Jamie Oliver meal of meatballs and you just baked it in the oven.  Since then I copy it.  I make or buy meatballs.  Very often I will buy hamburgers and cut each one into four and re roll them to get meat balls.  That is what I did this time.  This way too you can re roll them to what size you want i.e. for little kids you can make them really small.

So my copy cat recipe is to put your meatballs in a baking dish with lots of cherry tomatoes.  Bake this for about 15 minutes and roll them around at some point.   Then I pour over a jar of tomato pasta sauce and top with grated cheese. 

Bake until bubbly and golden.  That's it!   I made enough for a couple of nights.   Serve over noodles, zoodles or with veggies.

On the second night I served it with a potato bake.  While I was making that I also made enough for a couple of nights.  I use Hilde' recipe which is thinly slice potatoes,  sprinkle the layers with french onion soup,  pour over cream milk, evaporated milk or whatever you have and top with grated cheese.  For a big one I use about half a packet or a small scoop of homemade french onion soup mix. 

Bake until bubbly and golden.  I allow about an hour so it is beautiful and soft.   

I made honey carrots so these appeared a couple of nights also.

I put a corned beef in the slow cooker as Andy likes this for lunches.

I made a big pot of sweet potato soup.

This was my lunches.

And I made individual baked custards.  I love these!

In the op shops I found a beautiful cardi and a big thermo with two cups for $5. 

I ordered some pantry jar labels from The Little Label Co.  You can order the labels you actually want and need.  I ordered thirty and I love them.  I started putting them on my jars yesterday.  

This afternoon this is my job... to wash all my jars up, put the labels on and re fill them!

I finish a cot sized crochet rug.  It is going into the gift cupboard...

So that is my week!   While we have this sunshine I will get some washing out on the line too.

How did you get ahead, save, build up your home or pantry this week?

I hope it was good and happily busy for you!   All your efforts add up!  Things do not have to be prefect to be good!  

Have a lovely weekend! xxx

Never underestimate the Titus 2 Woman.

I have been thinking a lot about the people who have helped or influenced me a lot in my life so far.  It is as if a bigger picture is emerging and I am just starting to understand it!
Apart from my Nannas' and Mum there are women who helped me so much along the way.  Enough to have a lasting influence and an impact on my whole life and my children's children!

Some I have never met.  Some lived near by and helped me when the girls were little.  Some I knew briefly but they had a big impact!

But there is one thing they all have in common.  They were all Titus 2 women.  They were all older than me and they all, in one way or another,  were busy at home and teaching the younger women.
I am noticing a lot that even with Christians there are unpopular Bible verses.  Anything about women seems to be socially unpopular.  Yet there you go, the women who have had the most powerful impact on my life were Titus 2 women.

The cooking in this post belongs to Maria who is always cooking for her Grandchildren.

I think these are Miracle Muffins with pineapple, pumpkin seeds and coconut.

I have written before about some of the women that filled this role here.   I have been so lucky with the right people at the right time in my life.  Just now I am blown away actually at how blessed I am and the quality of the Titus 2 ladies that were there for me.  None of these women were particularly highly educated, particularly glamorous, or anything that the world would call outstandingly "successful".   They were Mum's who were ahead of me in years as a Mother and strong Christian women.  They stood out above all others to me.

If you read my link above there was Dorrie who was my neighbour when Chloe was a baby.  She was the next best thing to having my own Mum living over the road.   I am starting to wonder if she was an angel.

Choc fudge Cookies.

And there was Phyll who was a Mum and Grandmother. She cooked, gardened and worked so hard. She opened her home once a week for the young women to come for Bible Study.  All the kids were welcome!   In between times if you needed help or advice she gave it.   Everything she spoke was sound.  She told you the truth. She was sensible and practical! She spoke with wisdom!

Online I had Laine.  She was another who told it as it is.  Some women wanted to argue with Laine but she stuck to what the Bible says.  If you do not know Laine reading her letters is one of the best investments of your time you will ever find!
You can find her letters here starting with the article I am currently reading  Her Income.

I really like women who are willing to tell you the truth.  I am noticing a lot that the words of the Bible are very offensive to many people these days.  I heard this... that the truth is very offensive to people who hate the truth!  Well I guess so!  But it takes a good friend to tell you the truth as anyone will lead you along a merry path!  

Snickerdoodle Cookies.

Patsy is one of my friends that just reminds me of Mrs Starkey!  Read her article Get a Job.
I am sure that these two women are sisters separated at birth!  Yes they give it to you straight!  They tell you the truth.

Thanks to the fellowship of this blog I meet a lot of women who are either younger with children or older with Grandchildren.  The younger Mums  need encouragement that they are doing a good job and have a very important mission.
The world is telling them they are wasting their time and talents raising their children.   As older women we need to be letting them know that we know how hard it is!  That they are doing a wonderful work and that the time they are in now flies past!   Ages I wrote about my time when I was a single Mum and looking after the girls.... That is here... Your Time.   You are laying important foundations.  What you are doing will influence several generations (at least!)

Veggie Quiche.

The other group here are the older women,  ladies with grown family and maybe Grandchildren.  If you are in this group please read Laine's Letters on being a Grandmother.   Calling all Older Women would be a good place to begin.  But there is so much more!  Probably as an "older woman" you do not realise how important you are and what a huge difference you can make!

Both my Nans worked so hard for their families. were kind and generous to everyone.  They helped others, shared food and cooking.  Nan L taught the new neighbours English as they knew none when they arrived traumatised in WW2.  They became life long friends and like family.  She was talented at baking, knitting, spinning and dying her own wool.
Nan B always said "an ounce of help is better than a pound of sympathy" and was one to send a meal. She was a talented florist.  Her work appeared in many shows and books.
Someone said to me once  it is a shame they didn't "work" and perhaps the world missed out because they were homemakers.  Pfft! They cast so much work and influence down the line their legacies are immeasurable.

We just have to live in the season we are in!  Happily when we move out of one season we move into another!  Each season is beautiful!  Just different!

Beer Bread.

I am just starting to realise how much the Titus 2 women that were there for me helped us.  Because they helped me they helped the girls too.  I am gradually realising more and more how much my Grandmothers made a difference to my life. I always knew it was enormously but even that doesn't cover it.   As I get older I am realising some of what they did.

Last winter Maria made her Grand Children Monogrammed crochet blankets.

This year it is personalised scarves for winter. 💗

Kids are smart. When you make them something they see it as love!

Even Harper at three says "Nan Nan Bel MADE it for ME" I can hear Maria's Grand Children saying how their Nana made their scarves for them!

I was talking with Laine this week.  She now is a Grand Mother and a Mum to Lucy who they adopted and homeschool.   She helps homeschool the Grand kids as well.  And she helps her parents. I saw her go from a young busy Mum to a Titus 2 woman and here I am with grown children and Grand Children too!
I asked her how does she manage so many roles?  After all the first thing is to take care of our own households, husbands and children, then Grandchildren then help the other younger women...
Well lets just say life is busy! Sometimes we have to pray about how to manage our time and what our priorities are or we would never manage it all!  

Softest hankies made by Mimi.

Mimi manages being a Nan and a Mum. 

Her  daughter at Uni is bring home new uni friends to Mimi's cooking. 

And she is making cakes and gorgeous things for little Grand daughters as well!

I am noticing on social media literally thousands of chances a day to be a helpful older woman.  I see young Mums asking "how do I menu plan?"  and "what can I cook for dinner I have $50 left for the fortnight?" and a million such questions.  There is a need everywhere for teachers,  mentors, encouragers and friends.   You really never know what a difference you will make.  A world of difference would be my guess. 

I hope your week is going well! xxx

Feather your Nest Friday. 15th June, 2018.

It has been a very busy week!  I got lots done and am trying to tackle the things that I can as it is too soon to be packing boxes but there is plenty I can get on with too.
With this in mind I bought a steam cleaner.  I had a fantastic one years ago and have always missed it.   So I did my research, chose one and headed off to get one.   I did great on price too and still haggled and paid cash.   This is the best thing ever.   For anyone interested I got the Euroflex Monster Compact Steam Cleaner.  It is fantastic.  Every day I have been steam cleaning.  I started with the laundry grout and tiles.  Then the washing machine.  Then all my appliances...  everything looks brand new.  It has a domino effect as I keep thinking of something else to steam clean!

Some of the ways I saved, got ahead and built up the home this week were:

I made chocolate mud cakes.  These were GF so I had a couple too.  Some were for Andy, some for Harper some for freezer.

I made roast pumpkin soup and to go with it I made Corn Bread.   I made extra loaves to freeze.  Also in one of them I used GF flour and it turned out just fine.

Later in the week I also made Mum's Veggie soup.  She gets a bag of the finely chopped up soup mix, adds zucchini and I added sweet potato.   Simmer and blend adding a Massel  Brand Chicken stock cube.  Has to be this kind Mum says!  Anyway that is it and it is delicious!

You could really throw anything in if you have things to use up.

A wholesale butcher here had specials that suited us. (For SA readers this is Specialty Foods, Thebarton)  We get the catalogue  emailed  each week.  So I got 12 lamb shanks for $1.90 each.  This was a saving of about $30 on lamb shanks.  Being winter this is a slow cooker hearty meal.  A delicious lamb meal for under $2 a serve is pretty good.  

Also we got pure beef burgers and I sat and cut each into four and re rolled them into meatballs.   I got 64 meatballs for $24.  I portioned them into meal sized portions.  We got seven meals worth which is only $3.40 a meal for two for meat.  

So my freezer is full again and I am only buying really good deals and nothing else!  Otherwise we are having a use it up challenge! 

I made Creme Caramel.  I always do this in the slow cooker.  

If you would like the recipe and how to do it in the slow cooker it is here.

I had bargains in Coles.  Recently they cleared a huge amount of hair products.   I stocked up for ages.  Now it is dishwashing liquid and dishwasher products.  Again it is due to new packaging I think.   I got packets of Finish Powerball dishwasher tablets for $3 a pack!

And Dishwashing Liquid for $1. 

I saved $77 on my bargains.

I had a sore knee.  It could be to do with steam cleaning around the bottoms of kitchen cupboards, skirting boards, kitchen cupboards, fridge... and so on.   I decided to try a castor oil pack as Patsy has talked about and I had the things on hand.  This is something I have been meaning to try.  So now I know and I think it helped as it is better! 

I traded essential oil roller balls for more medical supplies with Bella.  The supplies are going to the farm to improve Chloe and Luke's medical kits.  This is so good!  Thank you Bella!

Last night it rained and rained.  It is wonderful. This morning the sun is out and it looks like a nice day.

Today I am heading off to a wedding dress fitting with Chloe.  This is always fun and exciting!  She is only here 24 hours then back to the farm.  I have cornbread, orange cakes, soup and casserole to send home with her.

Before she picks me up I am putting beef and veggies in one slow cooker and filling the other one with potatoes and sweet potatoes.   Later all I will need to do is mash the potatoes.   I want a lot as after tonight the casserole will be made into meat pies and "shepherds pies" with the potato over the top with a sprinkle of cheese.  One meaty casserole usually gets me dinner then a few pies. 

So that is my week!  

How did you build up your nest,  save or get ahead? 

I am working on some blog posts here and there but otherwise I will always try and do my Friday post.  And I am working on creating Bluebird Farmhouse.  For a while things will just not be normal I just have less time to be on the computer.  But then we will settle back to a routine again! xxx

Feather your Nest Friday, 8 June, 2018.

I had a great week and caught up so many things.  I thought I will do one big Friday post and this gave me time to catch up on most comments and correspondence etc.

So where do I start!?  I had unpacking, shopping, cleaning to do and Andy,  Lucy, Harper and Scarlett all with colds.  Basically everyone in Adelaide has a bug I think.   Due to this I started with chicken soup.  I made a potent pot of wholesome soup and we lived on that for a few days.

Garlic,  bay leaves, celery, parsley, turmeric, onion.... to me all these things are so helpful when unwell.

I had a wonderful purchase from Aldi.  I was so excited.  A cast iron enamel pot that is just gorgeous.

It is so lovely and heavy.  Cast iron pots like these in department stores are a couple of hundred dollars.  At Aldi under $30.   I messaged the girls and they both wanted one so we all have the same pot!   What I love is if I have a combustion wood fire I can just sit it on top and use the fire as my "slow cooker."  How I would love to do that!   Well, we have decided we want to move to the farm so maybe next winter I will be doing exactly this! 

Andy and I both lived in the country most of our lives.  I came to the city to get the girls into further education.  I achieved that and they both ended up with good jobs.  Lucy now is married with two girls and Chloe who always wanted to marry a farmer is getting married in October to farmer Luke.  They want to start a family right away.   

Lucy and family and Andy and me have all been offered opportunities by Dad to come back to the farm.  He is getting older.  He is always thinking how can the future generations be helped and made as secure as possible?  

Three years ago when I started writing the preparedness series I had a feeling.  A feeling to get prepared.  Actually it was almost a nagging feeling.  I was prompted to turn my empty cellar into a food and emergency supplies pantry.   I built up preparedness in all areas.  We put in rain water, generators,  a medical cabinet and the list goes on.  It is amazing what you can do when you do a little bit each week!

Still I had a feeling things were changing.  About a year ago I knew that we would be better off to go back to the farm.  We could have wood fires and cooking.   We could plant and orchard.  Have a big veggie garden.  Ground and rain water.   Andy could be hunting and fishing.  We could have a homestead!  

Taking classes with Patsy she would have scenarios and you had to participate from the point of view of your own location, climate etc.  Each time I did this from two locations,  the city and the farm.

Boy did this show me how vulnerable we are.  At the end of the day it is like in WW1 and WW2 the people who did ok had family on a farm.  Space to grow vegetables and keep chooks.  

Another thing has been happening.   There is a mood.   The city and the media use words now to intimidate Christians.   Here are some I have seen lately.  If you believe the Bible is the Word of God you are a bigot.  If you save you are a hoarder.  If you are  a conservative or you tell the truth according to Gods Word that is hate speech.  I think this is because to people that hate the truth the truth is hate speech.  Even in our lovely area I have seen some things in the last year that no one should have to see.   

So every hint we are getting supports the feeling and conviction that we should move to the county. Back to the country. 

And then my Dad turned out to be planning and working on making a place for us.  It turns out he thought if he could get either of the girls back on the farm then I would follow!  mmm he is a long term planner I have to say!

Once Dad knew yes!  we want to do it he started moving heaven and earth to try to make a place for us and for Lucy's family if they wanted too.  

I have wanted to share this and I still want to share more but we are just on the edge of this all happening but it hasn't quite happened yet!  So if you would pray I would be really grateful.

Part of my catching up this week was jobs and part it was THINKING and planning!

My brain was kind of in overload.

Ok back to the past week! 

With all the soup I made sausage rolls.  I made 39!  I froze some and will give Chloe and Luke about half of them.

I need to check the current prices for sausage rolls a the bakery.  This many sausage rolls would probably be about $160 to buy!  Baking is such a saver.

I also made baked custards in the slow cooker.

The soup is all gone now.  So while dinner last night was in the oven I baked a tray of veggies for pumpkin soup.   This is a recipe from Matt Preston who is not a chef he just hangs around with chefs and gets their easy amazing tips.   There is onion, sweet potato, pumpkin and an apple.  

Tonight I will blend it with stock and make some cornbread.  Dinner and footie on a cold night.

My Aunt says I should mention what is cold to us as our idea of cold will make you laugh if you live in the north.  So cold to us is down around freezing point in the middle of the night.  A cold day is around 9 which is about 48 F.   We don't get snow and we don't usually go below zero.  Today is cool at 13 ( 55)  In northern Australia they think this is cold but I don't think in the USA Canada or Uk this measures up as very cold at all! 

My craft this week was very small but a success.   Harper loves Emma Wiggle.   The Wiggles are a little kid sensation you have probably heard of.  Love is not a strong enough word for how Harper feels about Emma.   

Emma does ballet and Irish dancing.  Harper therefore is obsessed with dancing.   The other day I saw that Emma had ribbons on wrist bands and they looked lovely as she danced.

I bought soft hair ties and raided my ribbon supply and made dancing ribbons.

Here is Harper watching Emma dance with her ribbons and being able to do it too...

As I had ribbon this all cost me $1. 

I took a video to show Mum as a lot of twirling was involved. 😊

Lynette sent me a beautiful parcel.   One thing was little canister type containers that essential oils had come in.  She thought I might like to use them since I am making essential oil gifts.   I sure can!  I covered the labels on them with my own...

I can make up a little bottle of oil or a blend or a roller and pop it in one of these with printed instructions!   Thanks so much Lynette! 

Chloe had a visitor this week.   She has had many Kangaroos and Wombats but this is a new one...

I went to see Kath in the nursing home.  I took her favourite marshmallows and biscuits and coffee.  

On the way I went to a good op shop and to Bunnings to save petrol and do a few things together. 

So that is my week and some of what is going on!

With so much to do I am just trying to do anything that needs doing!  

When we move I will still blog but we will go over to Bluebirds Farmhouse!

Thank you to everyone who supports me here.  Our community and the friendships formed have taught me so much.  I have come a long way in a few years.  

Through this blog I have met some of the hardest working and wonderful Christian ladies I could ever hope to meet.   I recently realised it is fellowship.  We can have fellowship long distance due to technology.  This is amazing! 

Listen to this...

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,

not neglecting to gather together, as is the habit of some,

but encouraging one another....

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up.

The older women ..... can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be set controlled and pure, to be busy at home.

Like the woman who found the lost coin... she calls her friends and says "rejoice with me!"   It is a beautiful thing to have someone to tell what you have achieved and your happiness.   It makes it even better!   Having someone who will recognise your efforts is so encouraging.  This helps me every day.

All these scriptures are what we have been doing together.  My message has been all your work at home is not a waste of time it is so valuable and worth more than rubies.   Make hay while the sun shines.   A little bit every day will get you there.  Read your Scripture and check everything against it.  Pray!  Make the most of the season you are in right now.   Take every opportunity!

I hope you had a good week.  How did you build up your nest, save or get ahead?

Have a lovely weekend! xxx

A very late Feather your Nest Friday.

As I mentioned on Monday I was away this week.  It was my Dad's 81st Birthday and I headed to the farm to see him.  I had a lovely time.  He drove me for a day of touring around and showing me things and I packed a picnic with fruit cake, rolls and a thermo of tea and one of coffee.    It was a gorgeous sunny day although still cold!  Mum had roasts and soup going.  And the fire roaring.   The nights were so cold but we were snug and crocheting by the fire in the evenings.

The farm had very little internet reception.  So I am behind on all correspondence and blog replies.  Today I am working on catching up just on washing and the house.   We all know what it is like when we have been away.  It seems to take a few days to get back into the swing of things.

It was not a normal week of savings but an investment in other ways.

At the farm there were lambs and a baby deer that are all being bottle fed.  This is the first time for a deer.   He is so lovely and like a baby.

He wouldn't stand still so I got Chloe to hold him and took a heap of photos.

I love the spots.  To me he is just like out of a fairy story! 

Hopefully Harper and Scarlett will see him in a couple of weeks.  They will have so much fun!

The lambs are tiny.  Just a few days old.

This time of year while its cold is the time for clean ups around the yard.  Mum loves a fire and it was warm to stand near.   Fallen trees were being cut down for future wood as well.

Because there has been rain things are looking green and good.   Rain is always the big issue.

Before I left on this trip I did manage to bake a heap of Orange Cakes.   I did muffin size and small loaf size.  Several went into the freezer.

So now I have washing to do,  soup to put on,  custards to bake and so on.  The sun is shining and it looks like a beautiful day.  It was really cold last night thought!   It was a two hot pack night haha! 

Andy had a bunch of savings and makings amounting to a few hundred dollars.

I am not sure how I will go this week with posting.  I didn't think I would get this post done!  I will just see how I go.  I am getting a ridiculous amount of spam comments every day and this is taking me ages too!   These are commenters who aren't really reading they try and post a comment that is a thinly veiled ad for something they are selling etc.  Drives me crazy!

How did you build up your nest, get ahead or save last week?  For many of us we had the first day or winter!  There was a time I didn't love winter but now I do.  Soups,  the slow cooker going, warm and cozy, lots of crochet...

Have a wonderful Sunday and new week!xxx