Winter has arrived. One minute we were having above average balmy Autumn days then all of a sudden it was dark at 5pm, log fires are in full throttle and electric blankets are essential ! The dastardly westerly winds are back and I always forget just how annoying they are until they return. The skies are blue and the sun is shining but the wind makes working in the garden anything but pleasant. My new seedlings are struggling to stay upright and my veggies have had to be staked to avoid being blown to Whoop Whoop. The birds struggle to fly and the cows aren’t particularly impressed either, standing with their bottoms into the wind and a look of deep resignation on their faces. The upside is it’s cosy inside and perfect for slow cooked lamb and a glass of red in front of the fire. Curled up with a good book whilst the winds rage outside makes it bearable and because our winters are relatively short, really just 3 months of being cold, it never becomes too oppressive or depressing.

The fact that we have a winter in Australia comes as a surprise to some people in the world as they think we live in a permanently sun drenched country, full of life threatening creatures and harsh desert environments, either that or they think we live on the beach and spend all our time surfing, again always hot and sunny, a perpetual summer. Although this might be the case in the tropical north of Australia where they have a year round average temperature of above 30ºC the same is not true of the southern states. The Meadow in particular is reminiscent of England, with our rolling green hills dotted with cows and an abundance of deciduous trees which are a spectacle in the Autumn as their leaves change to a delicious shade of red before dropping and creating stark silhouettes against the winter sky. The street names in our local town also indicate that the early settlers, mostly from the UK, also saw the similarity and bestowed very British names upon them so it is very easy for me to feel at home here.  The clashing of two countries in one place if you like and if only there was a quaint little English pub around the corner I would feel like I had never left the Old Country.

On a sunny but cold afternoon we decided to drive up into the hills and have lunch at the closest thing we have around here to an olde worlde pub, The Commercial Hotel in Jamberoo. It is 161 years old which is pretty old for Australia and with a few log fires going and a whole heap of memorabilia from the old owner who was a former star of Australian Soccer it made for an atmospheric lunch followed by a wander around the town which is beautifully looked after with carefully tended flower beds and restored old buildings everywhere you looked. The Choccy drop had a run in the park, joining in with a few local boys who were kicking a ball around and we all enjoyed an afternoon off from the chores!

This time of the year provides us with the best sunrises and sunsets of the entire year. As the days are at their shortest we are invariably getting up at the same time as the sun and there is nothing that makes me more happy than to fling back the curtains and see a deep pink and orange sky radiating all around the house. Despite the old rhyme about red sky in the morning being a shepherds warning I think there is no better way to start the day than by appreciating nature in all its glory. Similarly I love seeing the raspberry crush of a sky above the chook shed in the evening, to be followed later at night by the amazing Milky Way (one of the bonuses of these cold clear nights). Blessed indeed.

So we settle into the different rhythm of Winter. Shorter days, more time spent inside, more books read and cupboards sorted out, the smell of baking wafts through the house as I seek respite from the wind and on those perfect blue sky winter days, Bailey by my side, I love to walk along the country lanes rugged up against the breeze and enjoying the clean fresh air.

We have managed, despite the wind, to do a few winter jobs around the property. With our various helpers we have staked trees that had been blown skew whiff, fixed broken pipes, cemented in a couple of fence posts and re positioned the outdoor fencing for the chooks, allowing them to explore a new area and us to mow the previously fenced area. Somehow they never really enjoyed it as much as we thought they should, preferring for some strange reason to be in the drier dusty run they have under our huge pear tree, burying themselves into shallow holes and rolling around in the dust! Funny little birds they are! I love the little comforting noises they make as they huddle up on their perch at dusk, cleverly inserting themselves into a corner with the most protection from the wind and seemingly happy despite the wintry weather. I love having my first cuppa of the day looking out across the paddocks from the warmth of my kitchen and seeing the beautiful crimson rosellas flitting in and out of our trees, usually in a group of 6 or 8, their bright colours visible now that there are no leaves on the trees, they seem so industrious and methodical as they work their way through the garden which I presume must be the avian version of an eat as much as you like smorgasbord of deliciousness!

The most important animal in our lives embraces just as much of winter as she fancies, She loves our daily walks and occasionally running around outside chasing swirling leaves and the odd stick and she ALWAYS accompanies me to the chook shed in the hope she can snaffle some of their scraps but mostly this is what she does………….It really IS a dogs life folks!!