Feather your Nest Friday, 8 November, 2019.

It is so nice to sit down for a minute and consider the week!  I am spring cleaning and as you know once you get started you create a big mess. Things get way worse before they get better!  I never seem to be able to work on one area and finish it... no, I have to go from one area to another.  But in the last three days I have done a lot!

Some of the ways I feathered my nest this week included:

I pulled up some parsley and cut silverbeet each day.  This fed the chickens.  When all the spent parsley was pulled up I replanted the whole border with seed I saved from the last house.  I still had enough to replant the whole area.   I have left some parsley to go to seed properly and dry off.  I will then save all that seed and package it up.   Seeds make great gifts that post well so I put it into pretty little packets.

Because of all the greens the chickens are laying such bright yellow eggs. Every second egg is a double yolker too!   And the little Bantam is sitting on those eggs!  
One day I went in to feed the chooks and a different Bantam was on the nest!   Clearly there had been a dispute ...  I am guessing the Bantam went to get a drink and this other hen hopped on and thought yippee!   In the process one egg came out of the nest and I felt it.  It was stone cold.   I corrected the whole situation,  got the original hen back on the eggs and enclosed her now so this can't happen again.  
I brought that cold egg home and curiosity got me. I cracked it and inside was a chicken about the size of the top half of my thumb!   So the eggs are at least fertile and developing!   Now to hope no others got cold in the hen swap episode!

I weaned the two older calves Loui and Georgie.  Together.  This time I made bottles and they followed me down to the big paddock.   I could not for the life of me seperate them from the other calf, lamb and goat.  So they all came.   At the other end I managed to get the right two calves into the paddock and come back with the others.  This time there was no crying or hunger strikes.  They have both been perfectly happy.

We also have had rain!   It is raining again right now.  Between not having to water the garden and having two less animals to bottle feed this gave me so much more time.  It has been wonderful and I have used that time for other projects...  like Christmas present wrapping,  getting parcels ready to post,  Spring Cleaning...

I used up 10 eggs in lemon butter.  Then I bought two plain sponge cakes and filled them.  This gave me an easy cake to take to Lucy's and one for Chloe and Luke.

Eggs are my currency these days.  I gave six dozen to Wendy, 2 dozen to Lucy,  3 dozen to Mum... I still have plenty of eggs!

My pumpkins are starting to grow.  The rain is helping.  No amount of watering does what rain does!

We updated our emergency phone numbers and contacts, fire plan and so on.  We have an emergency cupboard and all phone numbers etc are on the inside of the cupboard door.

I am baby sitting Chloe and Luke's animals.  They have everything!   This means looking after four dogs, two puppies...

Then there is Paddy the Alpaca and Blossom who is so pleased to see me. (and I take biscuits!)

Ok what else?  One cat and one kitten...

One budgie (small blue parrot) and I think that is it! 

Oh no... forgot chooks.  A heap of chooks!  

I have to add a picture... my friend Di is bottle feeding a wombat.  She rescued her when she was so tiny.  Look at her now!

This is turning into the random animal gazette!

Ok back to savings etc...

I planted silver beet, spinach, capsicum and cucumbers.   The old spinach is going to seed.  I am feeding it to the animals then in the end I will pull it up so I already planted my new rows.

Inside I have tomato plants growing in the window.  I have been working on a new small section of garden that I am turning over to a veggie and herb patch also.  I hope to get this garden all planted over the weekend.  And I hope to keep going on my spring cleaning! 

I had a realisation.  Even though it is obvious I just really took notice of the fact that the year is not only drawing to a close but the DECADE is!    I feel extra inclined to whip things into shape.  We have now been here just over a year.  I know we did a lot in that time.   It is amazing really what you can achieve in a week.   I always say little bits add up.  They truly do.  

I did some more Christmas sorting and wrapping.  Then I went through everything I have set aside that can be posted in a regular card.  The idea being to beat postage costs.  I have trays filled with small light gifts.  This is one tray of them...

Postage is just terrible now.  We can beat that! 

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

Have a lovely weekend.  I am late to post as once again my internet has been terrible! xxx