BLESSED SPEEDY

And here we are in the third week of august - yep still some very cold mornings but lovely sunshine most days - sometimes with a cold breeze sometimes not We are still calviing here on the farm and are not quite half way but getting there - the bulls are in with the herd so hopefully doing what bulls do (if you know what I mean!) I have been working away on a few things - firstly I finished a pair of socks! The pattern is zigzag sock and I used some lovely self striping yarn from Ash and Eve Designs I also enjoyed the latest art journalling class run by Jenni Finn out of her Hey Sunday store - this one was all about ripping paper and creating almost 3 d like images - lots of fun And I finished the online quilting challenge wall hanging quilt and I love it - so bright and cheery and I really enjoyed the thinking of what to make for each round - highly recommend this sort of challenge to not just use up fabrics but also to get your thinking! Reading wise I finished the Covenant of Wa...

Second week of August - where are the days going!!!!! We now have 16 calves in the calf shed and they are all going well - these are all calves from our heifers, with the cows due to start any day - then things will get busy/exciting I finished something! A hat - which is reversible so double layered and super warm - the pattern is called Daily Double and is written by a friend Susan and I used yarn dyed by another friend - Ozifarmer - to make it In the reading department, firstly I finished the physical book of The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods. This is a beautiful story and a nice easy read The main theme of the book is: "In a place called lost, strange things are found." If you can solve the meaning of this riddle, you may truly capture the full essence of the entire manuscript. There are three main characters—Ophelia, Martha, and Henry. They take us on a journey from Paris to London and Ireland back up and down the time line Theres romance, mystery and a bit of fantasy...

And here we are in august already! On the farm the mornings are still quite cold but weve been having some beautiful days - we wouldnt mind a bit more rain so that we can "water" the feed growing in our paddocks with rain rather than irrigation - which starts again on the 15th of August This is a pic of the dairy early one morning - I did reflect that even though it was quite cold - it was still very pretty - 530 am in the morning was the time I took this and if you know me you know I love the early mornings - for me its the best time of the day. Even better that Im not milking and can go about the start of the day that I like to do! I dont have anything finished craft wise to show you - but dont worry there are plenty of things on the go - a pair of socks which are a test knit, a hat and a challenge quilt - maybe next week something will be finished On the reading side of things I finished (via audible) Empire of Storms which is the 5th book in the Throne of Glass series ...

Well thats July done and dusted - some super cold mornings and evenings, some rain, some mud - but heck its winter! On the last day of July I went to the art journal class that Jenni Finn runs each week - its a super fun time when she explains to us how to do a style of painting, which we then all do while having an excellent chat, having a cuppa and enjoying the grazing platter made up for us by Jenn This week it was abstract painting which had been done several weeks ago, but I wasnt able to attend so I was glad she decided to revisit this. Ive really been enjoying doing boro stitching - actually I think I just really enjoy doing slow stitching! This time I made a table runner and a zippered purse using Japanese fabrics Oh and on the farming front - our first calf for the season has been born (well we have 7 now but this was the first one!!) A cute heifer whose sire is Latos so hopefully polled (no horns) On audio Ive finished book 4 in the Throne of Glass series - Queens of S...

Three weeks into july! Again another busy week but some fun things too! On Friday Megan and I went to the Bendigo Sheep and Wool Show which is an annual event held, yes, in Bendigo - its huge lots of vendors selling yarny type things and also some farming stuff too and LOTS of people We had a good look around which was fun and I bought a few things - this is probably the most restrained Ive ever been at the show and its not from lack of lovely things to buy, its just that I have so much here and it needs to be used or moved on The item on the left is a wood turned seam flattener for sewing - you roll it on the seams instead of using an iron - Ive never had one so thought it would be a fun thing to try, the dark green yarn (which is the one thing I had in mind I wanted to buy) is to make a pair of socks for me and the three lighter green skeins are a linen blend for a top for me. The black box at the top is a mystery gift for a friend so not showing that. I also bought some jerky and...

This week has been a busy one - I had a two day board meeting in Melbourne - decided not to drive in the city where I was staying but to leave my car at Aimees and get the train from Bendigo. It was lovely and relaxing and I would highly recommend - also its quite cheap too! I finished off a jumper for me (yep something Ive made just for me!!!) and Im so very happy with it - it fits perfectly! The pattern is Field Sweater and I used yarn from Skein Sisters called BC Garn Loch Lomond Its such a lovely warm jumper but light too! As far as reading goes - I finished (on my Kindle) Ruthless Fae by Caroline Peckham which is book two in the Zodiac Academy series I whole idea of this series is an interesting one - an academy for Fae to learn the skills they need to use their powers and they are sorted into different houses Theres love interests and hate also and I did enjoy it but it does waffle on a bit - I also get a bit confused which character is what at times Hence the 3 star rating My...

Ok Im going to try and post weekly again as it keeps me on track so much better! When you run a farm (which is a business) the new financial year feels like new years day sometimes. Thoughts of which milk company to send your milk to - we supply ACM (Australian Consolidated Milk) do I need to change the ways I record things? What did I not do quite right last year and how can I improve etc etc with that in mind I was excited to find that my past self had purchased a set of monthly dividers for the folder I store my paper invoices in so that was a win so that folder is now set up and going. We are continuing to AI (artificial inseminate) our cows with 134 of the 160 eligible done - fingers crossed they dont "return" which means that the insemination didnt take so we will do again or Mr Bull might get lucky also. Craft wise I have finished a beautiful wall quilt - pattern by McKenna Ryan and I machine applique and threadworked it - something I havent done before and I love how ...

Its almost the second week of July, but heres my June wrap up! Last month of the end of the financial year - and can I say as a farm owner/manager Im proud to say I got all the superannuation, wages etc squared away by june 30 as well as zero (yep zero) emails in my inbox - sadly it doesnt look like that atm but it was for a short time! Farm wise the mornings have been often below zero, and drizzly rain - just enough to keep things muddy Im glad I dont milk very often anymore and virtually never in the mornings - just the cup of tea deliverer to Gary in the shed, but I do get up at 5am to do the bull selections for cows as we are currently AIing (not articificial intelligence - artificial insemination) This is a bit of a passion of mine, I dont want to breed show cows but nice looking cows that do all the right things - good temprement, milk well etc and if its a red and white holstein Im in heaven But enough of the farm stuff - Im sure you would like to know what I finished! Fistly a ...

Well winter has well and truly arrived with some very cold mornings and plenty of fog too! We have, thankfully, had some rain which is needed - we are not as desperate as some for it but really welcome what we have got. Here's a pic of the cows and outside the dairy the other morning - it was super foggy, a real pea souper and the fog only lifted for about an hour in the afternoon and then it was back again. Tomorrow our heifer AI program starts (one of the most exciting things for me ) and fingers crossed they all get in calf. I spend quite some time choosing bulls for them with the aim of breeding great cows - Id love to have a whole herd of red and white holsteins but I doubt we will get any red ones this season as I havent chosen any red factor bulls - mainly because the black and white ones are just that bit better, so compromise! Ive also finished a table runner from left over quilt blocks and I think its turned out pretty good - this will probably go in my gift cupboard. Th...