Whatever is that unusual sound on the roof? Big fat raindrops are bouncing off the ash laden tin roof and gurgling into the downpipes. We have a wet deck and the smell of damp earth is as good as the smell of bacon cooking right now! We got 4mm of beautiful rain. It’s not enough to reverse the drought or even fill the water tank but it is somehow a reinforcement that things will become normal again. As sure as Summer follows Spring the rain will return and grass will regrow, streams and rivers will fill again, the duck pond in Berry will lose it’s open jagged cracks and fill and the kids will once again feed the ducklings. It won’t happen overnight but it will happen. But for now, after the last horrendous couple of months it is a welcome change and will hopefully help put out these monster fires, at the very least it will dampen them down and give fire fighters some time to get on top of containment lines. What a dreadful start to 2020 it has been with so much devastation of our bushland, towns and villages and half a billion animals killed. Our local heroes, the men in the field fighting the fires are totally exhausted. I really hope they have found strength in all the accolades the entire country has bestowed upon them. The free coffees and lunches, the friendly toots and thumbs up from appreciative people as they pass them in their trucks and the outpouring of thanks from hand written signs on the sides of the roads to the amazing contributions from so many people both as donations of clothing and furniture, food and animal feed and the many many millions of dollars donated from both Australia and overseas. It shows the very best of people under the very hardest of circumstances and it makes my heart sing. What is it about a crisis that brings out the best in people? The collaborative way we go about bringing as much help as possible to those in need? Over 200 beds were made available in Berry for evacuees last week, the air conditioned local library and Sport and Rec were made available for people on a 40 degree day with catastrophic fire conditions. Icy cold watermelon and icy poles were distributed by people happy to help in any way possible. Weddings scheduled to be held on parents properties who were evacuated were quickly relocated to safer areas – Silos Winery and the amazing Raj and Sophie opened their doors to help in any way they could. All their accommodation was made available to evacuees and free animal feed and accommodation for animals large and small too. A relocated wedding? Sure – nothing was too hard for them. Truly generous and wonderful people. Please come down to Jaspers Brush and support them if you can…

There are so many images of people escaping to beaches or rivers as the fire burnt down to the waters edge. Firemen ridiculously close to a wall of fire, 4 of them dying in the line of duty as burning trees collapsed on them or their trucks. Dying far too young trying to save their beloved country from a disaster that could have been even more immense without their efforts. Sad funerals with tiny children wearing their fathers medals and uniforms, way too young to understand how their lives have changed but they will grow up knowing how good and brave their fathers were.

Now that the immediate local danger is over our thoughts and actions have turned to helping those displaced by the fires, both humans and animals. Lots of locals have been galvanised into making food and water stations for the native animals who have lost their food habitat. Local plumbing suppliers have donated all the piping and volunteers are making drinking stations and then going out into the bushland and placing them at strategic places, leaving a spray painted orange circle on the trees to let others know it is a maintained station and gradually the animals are discovering them. Local farmers have donated all their fruit and veggie odds and sods not pretty enough to sell and garlands of fruit and veg have been made and placed in the trees. The trees have already started regenerating which is wonderful but it will take far too long for those animals who are already starving and we are all hoping that these man made stations will tide them over until the leaves and fruits etc are back in abundance.

Half a billion animals have perished, whole species may have been wiped out and there will be more deaths still through lack of available food and water. It is almost impossible to imagine. Sometimes pictures speak louder than words….

Scenes like this are heartbreaking but luckily there have been lots of lucky survivors who have been rescued and are being treated before being released back once healthy. Koalas are being rescued and set up in special centres like the one below where their limbs are dressed and they are housed in soft portacot type houses with gum leaves and water for when they are peckish!

At our place we had two scary days when the fire came within spitting distance of The Meadow. Seeing the plumes of smoke rise so high and near made us anxious enough to stay home and prepare just in case but the fact we are surrounded by open land means we were always going to be pretty safe. It is when that Southerly change happens that things can go a bit crazy and embers can be blown in a different direction altogether causing fresh outbreaks of fire where you least expect it. I was sent indoors once the change came through as the skies darkened and the smoke was thick which my lungs really don’t like. The boys sat outside on ember watch but luckily they never needed to pick up a hose. Definitely a few days we will never forget.

In between the extreme bouts of fire danger there was Christmas! The entire Clan came together for 4 days of eating, drinking and chatting (mostly all at once) add in two babies under one year of age and it was basically bedlam!

Luckily the bubs were pretty much on the same sleeping and eating schedule and the kitchen was a flurry of pureeing and chopping of baby size hand held foods. Broccoli, contrary to popular belief, was a big favourite! I wonder how long that will last!!

Feeding the adults was slightly more labour intensive but with so many eager cooks in the house we all pitched in and managed to sit down and enjoy some lovely meals together. Liv’s Mum joined us for the festivities so we could all share in the grandbabies first Xmas and she seemed to cope okay with our crazy noisy family although I’m sure she would have really appreciated the peace and quiet once she got home!!!!

One other consequence of the bushfires was the complete lack of real Christmas trees available for sale and we were reduced to decorating a small artificial one for the first time in 35 years! All the beautifully wrapped gifts made it look much more festive thank goodness!

Having my entire family under one roof was so special and worth all the preparation and planning and cooking. Tom announced that he is home for good from London and he has loved finally meeting and hanging out with his little nephew and niece (he also likes that he can give them back!) and the babies think he is the bees knees as he throws them up in the air and is generally the fun uncle we thought he would be.

Having the babies there together was definitely Double trouble but also double the pleasure and it will be so much fun seeing them grow up together. They both love the pool, the chickens, Bailey, riding with Pa on his ride on mower, coming into our bed first thing in the morning and pulling Pa’s beard until his eyes water and generally exploring all the nooks and crannies that you forget babies can get into! So far there have been no accidents or hospital trips but they are certainly very fast at getting from where you put them to where you don’t want them to be!!!

Happy Days Indeed

So as the whole East Coast of Australia eagerly anticipates the forecast drenching of rain with crossed fingers, we begin a new year and a new century with fresh hope of things to come and a perfect time to make any changes in our lives that we need or want to. A time to take action instead of all the finger pointing and blaming of politicians and make real changes. That starts at home.Whilst we sit in our air conditioned rooms with all our devices streaming through the internet and drinking purified water and using power at the touch of a button we blame politicians for not doing enough about climate change. Maybe if we didn’t demand all the comforts of the modern world things would be a bit different in 2020 but we always want our cake and to eat it too. Perhaps if we all changed just one thing each this year, even just becoming more aware of the repercussions of our lifestyle, things will slowly change so that my little grandchildren and their children will inherit a country and a world that is still beautiful to live in.

I have an overwhelming need to write about the disaster unfolding around us here on the South Coast. There is such a sombre mood everywhere here, no smiles and cries of happy new year just yet, we hardly know what day it is to be honest. Of course we live in a time of 24/7 media so everyone knows about and lives through these things pretty much as they happen but that is nothing compared to living in it and seeing and hearing all the stories of people and animals being trapped or displaced and the sheer overwhelming reality of 12+ million acres having been burnt out across Australia, 10 million in our state alone. Seeing as the world mourned when 2.45 million acres were lost in the Amazon last year there has been little international outpouring for the loss of our unique indigenous animals and birds. There are reports of dead birds falling from the sky, they just couldn’t outrun the fire storm sadly. Here at home we have bowls of water scattered around the garden and I have spread seeds in the hope the birds will find it as food and drink is in short supply for them. The cows are resting more often as I imagine they too are affected by the smoke in the air and the lack of feed on the ground. The farmers are doing their very best and hand feeding them at considerable cost and the dairy cows still have to be milked even though due to road closures they cannot get the milk trucks out and some farms have dumped thousands of litres of milk due to power failures or transport problems. The ripples from these fires are very long and wide, not just the terrible reality of lives, houses and livestock lost. Businesses have also taken huge losses at what is usually their biggest time of the year. Food is spoiling in supermarkets and cafes with the power failures shutting down the refrigeration and all the holiday vacation industry is giving full refunds to people no questions asked when they would usually be fully booked. The upside to this is there is quite a lot of spare accommodation available which is now being offered to stranded or evacuated people. 

The sheer enormity of the losses is hard to take in with whole towns being wiped out in a matter of minutes such was the ferocity of the fire.

We have been very lucky so far and have been in a position to help people who have evacuated by storing some of their larger personal items and by providing the odd night’s accommodation when needed but there is a feeling of uselessness at not being able to do more. We have donated packages of much needed items to the rural fire service via a local real estate agent – sunscreen, hydration tablets, lip balm, wet wipes, eye drops and insect repellent. Others have given out slabs of drinking water, powerade and all the local cafés are giving free coffee and burgers to the emergency services. There are convoys of fire trucks, lights flashing going up and down the highway and sometimes absolutely no traffic as roads get shut – both are equally scary.

There are some great phone apps that can help nowadays – the fires near me app is pretty good at telling us what is happening nearby, the weather apps predict quite accurately what temperature and wind to expect and live traffic apps tell us of road closures. Radio and TV are keeping people up to date too and it is not until all phone/internet and power is cut off that people have felt truly stranded. For many people it is a waiting game. Waiting to hear from loved ones. Waiting for the roads to open. Waiting to go home and see what is left. Waiting to see if your animals survived. Waiting for rain. Waiting for this damned fire to be over.

This picture shows molten aluminium, now solidified. Aluminium melts at 660.3 degrees Celsius. Try fighting anything that hot. Absolutely impossible.

That is my chook shed and this was as close as we have been so far to the fire and on a 43 degree day it felt very ominous. The previous day a paddock 3kms from us caught fire when their hay bales exploded, apparently if the lucerne is cut too green this can happen in the heat. Luckily 3 helicopters poured aerial buckets over it and it was contained quickly. The video footage we have seen of trees self combusting and embers being blown up to 30km ahead of the fire front tells us that anything can and will happen and it’s best not to be complacent even if you are supposedly in a safe area. As we are surrounded by paddocks we are pretty sure we could see anything coming and put it out in time but our gutters have been cleaned out and debris cleared away from the house just in case. Everything is coated in ash, even inside the house somehow, and we all have sore throats and stingy eyes as well as sinus infections so that smoke is having more of an effect than we thought. All this is nothing of course in comparison to the people stranded and homeless. People have lost their lives staying to look after their herds and others report the sound of their animals screaming as the fire overtakes them will be etched in their brains forever. Horse owners are using precious water to keep their frightened animals cool by throwing buckets over them. One local lady evacuated her pigs but they went to Cobargo, a town that was unexpectedly decimated. Somehow one pig survived but she cannot transport it back due to road closures. Our local showground has become a sanctuary for evacuated animals of all shapes and sizes and it is only once the animals have been safely sorted that lots of these kind stoic country people then evacuate themselves.

Of course before all this escalated we had Christmas but it somehow doesn’t seem appropriate to talk about happy jolly things right now so I shall keep it for my next post when hopefully I will report that the worst is over and the fire is finally under control and that it IS RAINING!!! We have to get through this Saturday 4th first with another 43 degree day with strong squally winds forecast. We are all praying the fire will not jump the river. Right now I can hear sirens and helicopters are flying low over the house, the wind has just picked up and that can only mean trouble. A few of the roads have opened to let tourists go home. There is a 30km traffic jam of cars laden with kayaks and surfboards and bicycles with tinsel around the handlebars as the holidaymakers escape back to the big city. Now there is a shortage of petrol as power failures mean garages cannot pump the gas and diesel is in short supply as (rightly so) the firetrucks and first response trucks have first dibs. For those that experienced the Armageddon like redness of NYE it is a holiday they are unlikely to forget for all the wrong reasons but I know the rain will come and once again the south coast will be a green and lush place full of nature as the bush regenerates and people will visit again to enjoy the pristine coastal water and magnificent beaches, the verdant wineries and pretty coastal villages. In fact after losing so much business at the busiest time of the year the one thing we CAN all do is support our local town and shop and buy local, eat out in the cafes and restaurants again and stick together. The one overriding thing I have taken from the past few weeks is the wonderful sense of local community and coming together, of people helping each other, donating time and money, holding fundraisers to help the rural fire services and to re-clothe people left with nothing. Hordes of people making sandwiches and tea ( always a winner in a crisis) and offering paddocks and floors for strangers and their animals no questions asked. People are being good and kind and sometimes in the heart of darkness we really do get to see the best of humanity, that sense of mateship that Aussies hold so dear and that will ultimately help us all get through what has been the toughest of times for so many. See you on the other side…..

Of course these past few weeks have seen all sorts of disasters, bush fires out of control and hundreds of thousands of hectares of bushland burnt out, habitat lost for so many native animals and fires heading dangerously close to our coastal towns on the south coast where they will eventually run out of fuel but at what cost who can tell. The smoke may be causing strife for some people in Sydney but just imagine what it’s like for those poor people left to defend their properties with a mere garden hose and a 40 foot wall of fire ahead of them…. 

In the middle of the chaos of the bush fires my cousin’s son Ed and his girlfriend Lily arrived from the UK after travelling down from Cairns in a motor home experiencing firsthand all that Australia in the summer can offer. They had a few changes of plans due to the fires but they loved their adventure nonetheless. They arrived down in The Meadow together with the Westerly winds and the flies but never complained and they enjoyed having a few days hanging out with Bailey and checking out some of the local sights. They were a lovely young couple and great company and we waved them off to New Zealand and the last stage of their trip with an invitation to return anytime!

The next arrival back on home soil was the prodigal son returning home after 16 months living in London. It hasn’t been the blue skies and sunshine he’d been dreaming of but it was home and he’s had a lovely time reuniting with his mates and catching up on all the news. As this is the only time he is back before Sam’s wedding it was a perfect time to arrange Sam’s Bucks and 30 guys enjoyed a special afternoon on Sydney Harbour and partied into the early hours of the morning. This was taken before things got too silly…

So this week brings my little family back together with the addition this Christmas of our two littlest members which will put a new and delightful spin on it all. They are a bit too small this year to enjoy it all and I’m sure the wrapping paper will be as good if not better than the contents of their gifts but it brings a bit of magic back to the Xmas festivities and I for one cannot wait to read them all the Christmas stories and go to Christmas Carols in the park and generally immerse myself in it all!! So from our house to yours we wish you all a safe and happy Christmas with your special people and if it happens to rain you fill find us all screaming and shouting and dancing with joy as it would be the best gift for most of Australia this Christmas! Fingers crossed xx

Mother Nature has packed her bag and gone on holiday leaving her wicked stepsister in charge of Australia. There are no two days in a row that are the same. Hot and windy one day and cold and windy the next. We haven’t had a blue sky in weeks either because of clouds, smoke haze or dust storms. The lawn is dying and the trees in our lane are dropping their leaves a mere few weeks after getting them! The cows spend all day eating the parched grass but their exposed ribs tell another story. We are watering our flowers (too many dollars invested in them not to) but water restrictions are here so we can only use a hand held hose which is fun with 2 acres! All this and we live on the coast, usually rich grazing land for dairy cows and as green as the Welsh hills. Go another hour inland and the picture is tenfold worse. Just dust. My friend Michael travels with a TV station all around Australia and he took these photos of properties seen a few years apart. Heartbreaking….

The fires are still raging in some parts of Australia and there are SO MANY people in need. There are loads of worthy charities doing great work and all in dire need of our dollars. The bush fire appeal, hospitals for fire affected animals, farmers needing feed and water for their cattle and for themselves and then there are the women and children in domestic violence shelters, the homeless, underprivileged and sick kids. So many people in need it’s quite overwhelming.

There is a family I know that is doing it especially tough. Their 11 year old daughter London was putting their chooks away when she was bitten by a tiger snake last week. As they live on a remote property in the Byron hinterland it took over an hour to a) get a phone signal to call an ambulance and b) for the ambulance to get there and administer the antivenom. A helicopter ride to the hospital which is 2.5 hours away by car and she is now in ICU heavily sedated while her little body fights the toxin. She can’t breathe, talk, swallow or eat, she is on dialysis and may need a kidney transplant and her heart is pumping so fast she’s in danger of having a heart attack. London is one of 5 small children and her Mum is currently staying at Ronald McDonald house next to the hospital to help the 24 hour nursing team and to be there when her daughter wakes up. It is just 3 weeks until Xmas. You can just imagine what she is going through. London will be in ICU for at least 2 months but all hope is that she will be well enough to start high school next year if things go well. There are so many financial pressures as well as emotional ones so if anyone would like to help there is a go fund me page set up for the family…

https://www.gofundme.com/f/tiger-snake-bite-victim-nsw-11-year-old-girl?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet

In other news Le Rod has left the building!! He was rather unceremoniously bundled into this cage by the MOTH while he was busy eating and has been whisked away to Ulladulla about an hour south of here where he will father some more baby chicks and hopefully behave more gently towards his new owner. I must say the hen house is a much more tranquil place since he’s gone and our rapidly growing chicks have finally been able to roam free in peace. Not to say that the older hens have exactly welcomed them with open arms (they still let the little ones know who’s the boss) but they are loving their new found freedom and have developed quite a little gang. Trunchbull has resumed her dominant hen status and is the first to run at them or keep them away from the food and we have had to separate her from them a couple of times so they can eat and drink in peace. The littlies haven’t quite plucked up enough courage to roost with the big ones yet and remain in a huddle on the straw floor of the coop at night but surely they will get brave soon? We had them sexed on Friday and are very relieved that there are only 5 roosters out of the 15 chicks, one of which we are keeping (Atticus) and another is being taken by our lovely neighbour Katherine so only three to “rehouse” at this stage thank goodness!

We had a lovely gathering of the clan a couple of weekends ago when my Swiss sister-in-law and her sons and partners all came to stay. Sam, Liv and Coops were also there so the Swiss family got to meet our happy, smiley little boy in the flesh! He took all the extra faces on board with no problems and still went to sleep on time despite the noise level in the dining room being something akin to a U2 concert ! The next day they made a delicious cheese fondue with cheese brought all the way from Switzerland and enjoyed by us all, thanks to my brother-in-law Michel for the thought. You would have thought we hadn’t eaten for a month if you saw us scraping the last little drop of deliciousness from that pot!!!

Cooper had his first swim in the pool which he LOVED! It’s going to be a godsend at Christmas if it’s warm. Much easier for the babies than the ocean and no travelling to and fro either. We stoked up the pizza oven that night and Cooper was very curious to check out the oven with Pa, it felt good to be using all our summer toys again. Young Coops has started moving around the house in a mixture of commando crawling and flipping and twisting rather like a human slinky and he can get from A to B really quite fast so we are going to have to keep an eye on our little boy from now on as he has already discovered the plugs and TV wires and just wait until the Christmas tree goes up….eeeek!

So at a time when we would generally be feeling summery and excited for the season ahead we are all quite on edge. Only a few days into the start of summer and things are very dodgy for lots of people so let’s really look around and appreciate all that we have, for you can bet your bottom dollar there are so many people far worse off. Never forget how quickly your life can change for whatever reason.

What a week it’s been in this huge brown land of ours. Amongst much conversation and blaming of politicians as to whose “fault” it is, Australia has had a few weeks from hell with a very early start to the bush fire season. Having been in drought for up to 7 years in some places it is a tinderbox out there with loads of fuel everywhere you look. Combine high temperatures with strong swirling winds and we had a recipe for disaster on our hands. Disaster is what it was for a lot of people who lost their houses, farms, animals and livelihoods. Some even lost their lives. Disaster for the hundreds of thousands of wild animals who either died or lost their habitat, they have been seen in droves wandering aimlessly, burnt, hungry and thirsty, bewildered and lost. Disaster for those people who lived in the middle of nowhere for various reasons and couldn’t afford the insurance and have lost what little they had. Disaster for those volunteer firies out battling blazes while their own homes burned to the ground. To put things into perspective when the Brazilian Amazon rainforest went up in flames recently it burnt 125,000 hectares but Australia has so far lost 970,000 hectares and counting. Unimaginable.

This is only the beginning of what could be a very long hot summer. Water restrictions are back on December 1st as there is very little rain forecast over the next few months and we need to be aware of our water consumption more than ever. Sensibly all new buildings are now required to have either above or underground water tanks which can be used to water gardens and many people recycle their grey water onto veggies and lawns. It is good to see that lots and lots of Aussies have put their money where their mouth is and donated to one of the many charities helping people who have lost everything or animals who have been injured and also to our farmers and people of the outback who have been doing it tough for a very long time now. It’s all rather sad and grim and Christmas with all its shiny decorations and million dollar gift industry seems a little trite right now. I love Christmas as much if not more than most but I feel almost guilty buying what seems like trinkets when so many need so much.

I wake up early nowadays. The mornings are always such a productive time, before things get warm or windy or both. There are the new chicks to be let out for a stretch after a night snuggled together in their ‘dormitory’ separated from Le Rod and his harem by a flimsy wire mesh. This is for their protection and for the big chickens to get used to the littlies. Le Rod has been advertised locally but so far no one has fallen for his manly attributes and he remains at The Meadow to annoy the MOTH. We don’t feel it’s safe to let the little chicks into the yard with him at this stage so we are at a hiatus. There is also the daily watering to be done and the endless weeding of course together with new garden beds to be planted, fed and tended.

The cubby house has been revamped by our man in the field Smutzer who completed the new ramp while we were in Vietnam. It looks wonderful and I know it will probably outlive our new little family members, lasting for many years to come. The babies are still too small to get much out of the cubby (I have MANY ideas for the future involving a kitchen, library and lounge complete with a rug all within a space 2 metre square!!!!) but I’m pretty sure they will enjoy the sandpit and the swing in the next few months.

We made a new friend recently, Jason Hodges. He’s best known as the resident gardener on the TV program Better Homes and Gardens and has moved to Berry where he has a fabulous little business ‘The Buxus Balls of Berry’ He has a great little patch of land on the outskirts of the village where he grows all sorts of wondrous things and the locals have embraced him as he is a very friendly chap and loves to have his morning coffee at Il Locale in the main street of Berry where he has got to know so many people. We mentioned we were interested in buying some buxus for some new pots I bought from yet another local for in front of our garage. He loaded up his beloved vintage Landrover and drove over with some different shapes and sizes for us to consider but in view of the sun and the wind that we get here we remained faithful to the original ball and now have two very healthy looking plants to enjoy seeing when we pull up into the garage. If anyone is after some perfect “balls” Jason is your man!!!

Since we’ve returned from Vietnam the bambinos have reached new milestones, got more teeth, tried new foods and generally time has NOT stood still. Myla went along to an introductory day at gymbaroo and was fascinated by all the people and the noise but mostly by the other babies faces!! So much for the musical instruments that the others were all clamouring for, Miss Myla was all about being a bit hands on and making friends!! The two sets of parents have enjoyed some grown up time at various weddings and the youngest man child has started a new job in London Town a mere month before arriving in Oz for his long planned for trip home to see his friends and meet his new little nephew and niece. Happy Days all round.

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We are looking forward to a couple of months of visitors over the festive period, starting this week with the arrival of my sister in law from Switzerland who will finally get to meet her great nephew so there will be no shortage of kisses and cuddles for little Cooper this weekend! I can’t believe my whole family will all be back together in just 5 weeks time, it will be short and sweet and VERY noisy but it is the very best Xmas gift I could ask for.

One minute we were in The Meadow showing Cooper the new baby chicks and the next we were back in one of the busiest bustling cities of Asia – Ho Chi Minh. My two lives couldn’t be more different!! My whole week prior to flying had been consumed with the safe arrival of our chicks. I took it all very personally and it very nearly brought me undone. I knew in advance that some eggs wouldn’t hatch and that we may lose a couple but knowing it and seeing it are two different things. One chick was born with no lower feathers and its stomach on the outside so it was a target from the start. It would never have made it in the outside world and luckily passed away within hours. My 2nd little chick was a different kettle of fish….

We had moved all the little chicks to their brooding pen and presumed the rest of the eggs in the incubator weren’t viable until we heard cheeping. We thought a little chick must have hopped away in the move and was in the garage somewhere but the noise was coming from the incubator. From an egg. It had a smallish hole in it or as they say in chick talk the egg was ‘pipped’ but all we could see was a foot. The cheeping however was strong and persistent and we left the heat on so it could do it’s thing. Two hours later still loudly cheeping the situation hadn’t changed much, just a rounder hole so I called the chicken guru. He said that usually the chick hatches quickly and beak first meaning the egg membrane doesn’t dry out too quickly but if it does dry up it sticks to the chick making it hard for them to break out. He suggested dampening the egg with a warm damp cloth to help it soften and as the call was so loud he thought it appropriate to help break some of the shell off with some tweezers and give the little chick a chance. It had such a strong life force with its cheeping and I really really wanted to give it every chance so I was very happy when it eventually broke free even though there was quite a bit of shell attached to its feathers. It lay there recovering and I left it for an hour to dry out and fluff up. On my return however it was still lying there and going around in circles rather than standing up but still cheeping like crazy. We popped it into a little paper towel lined “nest” in a reel of tape to try and give it some sense of standing and we fed it some sugar water as it had been going for nearly 24 hours by now. We named him Thor for his spirit and I checked on him every 30 minutes but he just couldn’t stand up and he too wouldn’t have lasted 5 minutes with the other chickens. I was devastated and felt so personally responsible for this little life. He passed away in the warmth of the incubator, still cheeping, albeit more feebly, right until the end. I was a mess. Ridiculous maybe but that’s me I’m afraid. I couldn’t eat chicken for over 2 weeks. Not sure I’m cut out for this country stuff sometimes.

Our wonderful house sitter Smutzer arrived for the handover and despite us loading him up with an extra 15 chicks to look after he happily waved us off and we were on our way to see our daughter and our other little grandbaby in Vietnam. We have been many times now but it is always a bit of a shock on that 1st cab ride from the airport. Vietnam is an assault to your senses similar to most Asian countries. Life is lived outdoors and late into the night you can see people of all ages eating and drinking at pavement cafes on those little red and blue plastic chairs so evocative of Vietnam. Over the next few days we enjoyed our reunion with the family and delighted in our cuddles with little Myla. She loves going swimming and Pa loved taking her. I was on reading and playing duty and the latest adventure of feeding her solids. So far she seems to like EVERYTHING! Things get pretty messy though…

Lauren had booked us all into a boutique hotel on the beach at Ho Tram for the weekend and it was lovely to drive out of the madness that is HCMC and pass through rice paddies being worked by the most ancient machinery (and most of the time by ancient people as well!) and smaller towns with lush gardens on our 2 hour drive south. We stopped off at a roadside cafe to feed Myla and have a cafe sua da, the delicious and addictive Vietnamese iced coffee. Like many other cafes it had a selection of hammocks in which to rest if the fancy took you. It does look so relaxing just swaying in the breeze under the shade of a tree and watching the world go by….

The resort was perfect for us with 2 different swimming pools, a beachside bar that served tables and freestanding cabanas on the sand, a perfect location to enjoy the amazing sunset. The traditional decor was so serene and a welcome change from the ubiquitous modern hotel room. After just a few hours we felt recharged as if we’d been there for days!

Our son in law topped off the day by streaming the Rugby World Cup on his laptop at the beach bar for the MOTH while Loz and I read on the beach with a pina colada and Miss Myla ripped out the zzzzzs back in the air conditioned comfort of the villa (thanks to the babysitting app which made this possible!)

Back to the big smoke and some lovely meals and cold beer with board games around the Cook family table, walks via the very local area to grab pho or to one of the many local restaurants catering to the expats of the area. We love them both in equal measure as there is SO MUCH to see and people watching is one of our very favourite things to do!

Looking around, you absorb all the snippets of information that are the reality around you and this is what becomes your overall impression of Vietnam…..Hot and humid, chaotic traffic but with no road rage and very few accidents, beautiful lush gardens next to empty blocks of rubble, mud and rats; people so friendly and relaxed that nothing is a drama; food markets set up on the smallest strip of pavement; cafe’s set up in people’s houses; businesses pop up and shut down every week as everyone has a stab at a new idea. Flooded streets, karaoke belting out alongside the sweet songs of caged birds that hang outside in the shade of a tree. Dogs, chickens and cats wander the streets; roosters in cages resting up for a big night ahead – sadly they still fight them here. Pot plants galore in every restaurant and shop, bikes laden with entire families or building supplies…even 2 metre long pipes or planks balancing precariously. Old women selling lottery tickets, shuffling along in their socks and sandals, their deeply wrinkled faces etched with their life experiences. Young girls in tight jeans and stilettos on motor bikes, their bahn mi or iced tea dangling from the handlebars in a plastic bag. Men swinging lazily in hammocks slung between the trees in the shade or somehow miraculously sleeping on top of their bikes. All this can be witnessed in one short walk from Lauren’s apartment. Life is poor yet rich in Vietnam.

All of a sudden it was time for Pa to leave and Myla just loved helping him pack. He put his belt in neatly coiled and she would pull it out! Each item held the utmost fascination to her and it took him rather longer than normal to get organised! Lozzy and I had an extra couple of days together which was super, enjoying a lovely last lunch in the garden of an Italian restaurant – 3 courses and 2 glasses of bubbles each for the princely sum of $50. Amazing value! I was leaving at 10.30pm on Halloween and hadn’t given any thought to it until Berry came home saying he had tickets to a private compound where the wealthy residents decorated their houses for all the kids to enjoy. He was working at a ‘house of horrors’ which had taken weeks to set up. His job was to scare people as they walked through the darkened corridors and he was exhausted by the time he got home with nearly 1000 people coming through! It seemed so strange to see all the little Vietnamese kids dressed up and embracing such a western event! You could hear them all chatting away animatedly in their language with a few “trick or treats”thrown into the conversation! Together with sandwich and weekend and okay these words are universal apparently! So after a lovely week with my girls I was back on a plane to The Meadow but this time it was made easier knowing that they will all be home with us for Christmas in just 6 weeks time!

Bye for now Myla Moo xxx

So back home to my little chicks who are now gangly teenagers and practising their flying and eating us out of house and home. They have been moved into the big chicken coop but in a wired off contained area where Le Rod cannot eat them for morning tea and they can all get a bit used to each other before we let them mingle. So far so good! The garden is bursting with life and flowers and birds and we are back to mowing every week. It is still a bit chilly for the pool but not for long….Summer is definitely on it’s way folks!

The garden is in full flourish and thanks to a couple of nice drops of rain we can actually get some of the weeds out now without too much trouble and as the temperature is still quite mild everything is getting some good new growth before the Aussie summer sun blasts them with its intensity. There is a horrible weed called common mallow that has overtaken the lawn and anywhere else it can lay down its runners. It runs underground for metres before poking its head out and flowering and then sending out more of the little buggers. It’s nearly impossible to kill and a full time job to pull them out manually so we are going to have to just do our best and not let it get under our skin so to speak or we will be crazed lunatics by the end of the growing season!

We are off to Vietnam to visit our favourite expats in a couple of weeks but there is a lot to do before handing over to our trusty friend and house sitter Smutzer. I promised him a nice easy stay where he can just potter about in the shed and read some books but now we have added 20 baby chicks to the mix and therefore another list of things for him to do. Luckily we won’t be introducing them to the rest of our flock until we come back so hopefully there won’t be any skirmishes at least! Who said that life would be boring in the country? Never been busier or happier and can’t wait until our grandbabies are big enough to appreciate it all too – I can just imagine them enjoying baby chicks in a few years time can’t you?

The weather here has been strange to say the least. We have had the odd day in the mid to high 20’s when thoughts turned to putting away the winter woollies and baring the legs once again but then the temperature plummeted and we got three very welcome inches of rain with snow falling on the high ground! Rather odd to see snow laden cherry blossoms! We have been able to make the most of the damp soil to pluck out a gazillion weeds and transplant flowers while the soil is receptive. Our lovely friends Wayne and Kathy came to stay bringing with them a gigantic bucket of clivea from their garden. She had read my comment in the last blog post and now just like magic I am the proud owner of flowers around my pear trees after all! We had a huge old clump of the creamy pale yellow clivea tucked out of sight next to our woodshed so I dug them out and planted them in between the others and hopefully they will thicken up in the next few months and provide some low maintenance colour in the garden. The few flowers that broke off are now adorning our table!

Luckily it was just before the weather took a turn for the worse that Berry hosted it’s inaugural Food and Wine Festival at the Showground and we as eager foodies had bought tickets to the long lunch held on the first day. We are always keen to support local endeavours and we have always enjoyed the paddock to plate philosophy that comes with these type of lunches, usually some strong local involvement with the food either as producers or suppliers. This one was slightly different with a local Huskisson restaurant successfully providing dishes from it’s usual menu to about 200 of us which is never an easy task! Although tasty it didn’t resonate the same way as our previous lunches had and we all agreed there is some tweaking to be done ahead of holding another festival as the queues were ginormous for everything. Once into the showground you could relax on a picnic blanket and watch the cooking demonstrations or spend up big time and enjoy all the food and wine on offer. I hope they learn from this first year and it comes back bigger and better in coming years. 4000 people came on the first day alone which just shows the high level of interest in food and wine for such a small country town.

The same weekend saw the occurrence of The Sydney Running Festival. This catered to serious runners with both a full and half marathon as well as a 10km run across the iconic Harbour Bridge and the addition of a very user friendly 3.5km family fun run/walk. All the entry money and donations go to various charities to do with health both physical and mental, and this year over $2 million dollars was raised. Sam, Liv and little Cooper took part in this to commemorate Liv’s young friend Anna who sadly died from Sarcoma two years ago and they chose to raise funds for the Chris O’Brien Lifehouse which does such an amazing job looking after sick people. Little Cooper just loved all the action, enjoying the ferry ride and being pushed by his Daddy over that big bridge his home town is famous for. It’s always lovely for a group of people to come together in such a positive way to show love and support for people suffering from loss.

Our little babies are growing fast! They are both now sporting two bottom teeth and sitting up (still at a rather jaunty angle it must be said!) I absolutely LOVE receiving photos and little video clips of them and it really helps reduce the disappointment of not living around the corner from them. Although nothing beats the real thing it is definitely heaps better than when I had my babies and I had to take a photo, get it developed and then post it to my Mum in the UK!!! Technology really has made the world smaller hasn’t it? Here are my two favourite tiny people …..

We may have some other very small additions to the family soon. We are currently incubating 27 chicken eggs in the hope that Le Rod has walked the walk and isn’t all show and no go. It is a pretty simple set up involving a polystyrene box with a heating element and a water tray which keeps everything at a toasty 101 degrees and about 60% humidity. We roll the eggs twice a day and tomorrow is the day that our Chook Man John comes to help us ‘candle’ them to see if we have any embryos. If the egg is fertile, then we should see a dark spot around the middle of the egg, with some spider-like veins beginning to form around it. If its not, we should just be able to see the shape of the yellow yolk inside the egg, without any signs of an embryo or veins. If we do have babies on the way we will then clear out our custom made baby chicken compartment complete with heating lamps that was already here when we bought the house and prepare for some fluffy little baby chicks! Of course knowing my luck they will probably hatch while the MOTH is away and I will be solely responsible for keeping them alive, yikes!

There is a phrase that has been popping into my head all week that I would like to share with you all. My friend and Pilates Instructor extraordinaire Leanne said this to us all when we were whinging about our aches and pains after a weekend of gardening. She said “don’t let the old man or lady in.” We all laughed but it really is so true. We can choose to claim middle age and let it stop us doing certain things or we can just get on with it and be grateful for still being able to have a go! That old adage ‘you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone’ applies equally to ourselves and being a bit silly (whizzing down the supermarket aisle on your trolley/splashing in puddles/jumping into a pile of leaves etc) helps keep that old lady out as much as moving your body and using your mind. Having grandbabies will keep us on our toes and help us still see the magic in the world and seeing things through their eyes will keep us full of childish wonder, we are definitely NOT letting the old lady in here thank you very much! (Apparently Clint Eastwood who turned 88 on the 1st day of filming his latest movie The Mule was asked how he keeps up his energy and enthusiasm and he said ‘I just get up every morning and go out. And I don’t let the old man in,’ and he inspired the song of the same name written by Toby Keith whose own Grandma never had a birth certificate and therefore never knew or acted her age!) Don’t let the numbers dictate who we are folks!!

So as we creep slowly towards summer we are looking forward to the change to lighter fresher food, walks in the great outdoors without battling 60km winds, getting out of our trackies and into our shorts and enjoying the longer days. Bring on daylight saving next week as I currently wake up as soon as the first light steals through my window usually accompanied by the throaty song of the magpies and in the background the unmistakable sound of Le Rod welcoming the new day in his own inimitable way. All this at 5.30am. Darker mornings and lighter evenings YES PLEASE!

We have a problem Houston. It is our rooster Le Rod. After weeks and weeks of thinking he was a weakling and unsure of his sexuality (and therefore his usefulness) he has become the most magnificent hormonally driven animal you could wish to encounter. He is huge. Emerald tail feathers glinting in the sun. He fluffs himself up to double his size and flaps his wings before he crows (yup that’s happening folks) and lets the whole world know he means business. He is mounting ALL the chickens, even the old black ones who had stopped laying before he arrived. Guess what? They are ALL laying now. He has created a harem extraordinaire and they are all under his spell. Crazy.

So what is the problem I hear you ask? Nothing as far as I am concerned. I was a doubter and a sceptic but am no longer, despite the fact that he is still a bit slow on the uptake of scraps he is fabulous on all other levels except one. He hates the MOTH. He that wanted a rooster so much is now the one saying “he may have to go”. Its a blokey thing. Rod knows he’s male and therefore he flares up and runs at him, attacking him at every opportunity and generally letting him know he is not welcome in Rod’s patch! A piece of rubber piping is always at hand when the MOTH opens and shuts the pen as he cannot trust Rod as far as he can throw him. I on the other hand have not a problem in the world with him. How the tables have turned!!

After being here nearly 5 years (can you believe it????) we needed to address the quality of our soil. As complete newbies we were pleasantly surprised at our early successes with our veggies. Literally everything grew well. We were told how lucky we were with our soil and although grateful we just kept on planting and harvesting year after year without really replenishing at all. I am trying to grow things as organically as possible which makes me very suspicious about all the fertilisers etc available and apart from adding some of the chook poo and the odd drenching of seasol we haven’t added anything. We have tried to increase the level of the soil most years by digging the top third out and adding organic sugar cane mulch to bulk out the soil with pockets of air for the veggie roots to expand into but that’s about it! I had intended planting a green manure crop over winter but we went away before I could plant it and we lost that window of opportunity. Therefore I had a recent trip to Bunnings and my entire car boot was filled with organic compost of many varieties to boost the happiness of our soil. We will keep you posted as to the outcome. I have tomatoes, zucchini. eggplant, beans, spinach, broccoli, beetroot, onions, broad beans, lettuce, blueberries, capsicum, asparagus and herbs planted and we are trying to plan our meals around what is available rather than by what we fancy!

I was looking forward to a garden full of Spring bulbs after meticulously planting over 200 of them back in the Autumn. I planted 40 around each pear tree in the driveway, another 20 or so in the side beds and about 10 under JC’s tree. I was pleased to see green shoots pushing skywards in several areas but became totally bemused when they ALL disappeared with the exception of my lovely Welsh brother-in-laws memorial where all the daffodils survived and flowered. A sign for sure! I am really disappointed that the other bulbs are a no show and apparently it is quite common that they can be eaten underground by rodents and of course we have an extremely healthy population of rabbits and hares all around us that could account for the demise of the few bulbs that did emerge. What a thankless task and waste of money. I’ve tried twice now to no avail so that’s that for this little black duck. Not doing it again. Maybe I’ll try some clivea next? It would be so nice to get some winter colour in the garden.

Fathers Day weekend was made extra special by the arrival of Sam who chose to spend his first Fathers Day as a Dad with his own Dad! I still find it incredible that we have three generations in our immediate family and that Cooper and Myla are lucky enough to have 3 Great Grandparents still alive! I doubt we’ll be lucky enough to see our great grandkids (unless these littlies are child brides!!) and it really makes you aware of your mortality. I am so happy that my Mum (and GG to Coops and Myla) will be in Australia next February and will get to have time with both babies. Cooper did squeeze in a quick trip to see his Great Pop the other day but it’s not the same as being able to play with them, feed them and bath them at home. GG will be able to read them stories and have lots of fun with them as they will be one by then. Yeehaa!

We thought it would be a bit of a treat to go out for a Fathers Day lunch and we ventured back to Mountain Ridge Winery as it was a beautiful day and they had live music playing too. Cooper was so well behaved and fell asleep to the saxophone allowing us to enjoy an hour being grown ups! We are lucky to have so many lovely places that are user friendly nearby to enjoy.

Poor Cooper has been roped in very early to being a Roosters supporter. His Dad was bequeathed a jersey on his 1st birthday and the tradition has continued. Here is a rather shell shocked looking Coops sporting his Roosters booties courtesy of Smutzer! He hasn’t got a chance poor little chap…

On his very last morning we took our little boy to see the chickens which he loves. He doesn’t know which one to look at first and his little head swivels from side to side following them with his eyes. He loves getting down at their level so he can see them properly but today one of the chooks thought that Cooper looked like lunch and gave him a strong peck through the fence! It all happened so fast and he was SO UPSET. It was the shock more than anything else poor little darling but there were real tears and he wasn’t so sure anymore about his little feathered friends. Life sucks sometime.

This is a picture of a happy chappy who has finally after 66 years on earth managed to bake a cake! He mentioned that if he died tomorrow he had never made a cake and I said that was easily rectified (most people have far bigger bucket list achievements on their list lets face it!!) and started him off on a very easy banana, date and walnut bread which is basically a melt and mix type recipe. Needless to say his assistant (yup you guessed who) had everything measured and chopped so there was minimal complications for our first timer (didn’t want him discouraged) and he was very pleased with the result! Let’s hope he gets back into the kitchen occasionally to whip up something delicious now that he’s broken the seal!

We had one last night with Tommy in London before flying home. Unfortunately he had injured his shoulder the previous night playing touch footy and was in a sling. Luckily it was his right shoulder and he is a lefty so it didn’t interfere with his eating and drinking skills! He took us to a well known local eatery in Chelsea called Daphne’s and we had a super meal with a level of service reminiscent of the old days. No wonder it is an institution in these parts. We stayed at The Pelham, a boutique hotel perfectly located in South Ken and a couple of streets away from all the wonderful London museums.

As we didn’t fly until 9pm we made the most of it and had a fab few hours wandering around the Natural History Museum. To me the building itself was wondrous with amazing detail everywhere you looked. Decades of workmanship and fabulous architecture for all to enjoy and appreciate and all totally free, which is so refreshing in this day and age. It was lovely to see so many families there enjoying all it had to offer.

Then we were off and excited for our return to The Meadow where not one but both of our gorgeous little grandchildren were awaiting us! The MOTH hadn’t yet met Myla so despite our tiredness and 5 changes of trains due to track work we arrived back to such a special sight with both of them lying side by side on their play mat. We didn’t know who to hug or hold first! The big kids were brilliant, completely taking over the kitchen and cooking a great welcome home meal for us, we didn’t have to lift a finger except to cuddle our littlest loves. Perfect! It was so lovely to have the whole gang back together (+2 and minus 2) for the first time since Christmas. Very special indeed.

After a chaotic but wonderful 24 hours we were down to just one bub and a week of beautiful weather followed for our Vietnam residents. The South coast shone and they made the most of it going out every day and exploring the area. I joined them one day for a long walk from Huskisson to Vincentia and Jervis Marine Park. It is so wonderful to have such long flat coastal paths that are perfect for bikes, prams and wheelchairs. It is the most pristine wonderful part of the world with clear turquoise water and pure white sand. We topped it off with lunch at the Husky pub and I think it was one of our best days together!

We didn’t have a moment to get the post holiday blues as we were thrust into baby heaven with Lauren and Myla staying with us for another three weeks. Every morning we were woken to a little tiny person coming into our bed so Mum could snatch another hours sleep and we had the best time cuddling and chatting with her until it was time for her to go back to sleep. A great way to start the day! She is also an early fan of books much to the delight of her journalist Mother and teacher Great Grandma!

The next couple of weeks passed in a flash. As babies are always happier on a regular schedule things were planned around feeds and sleep but we managed to have quite a few trips out and about exploring some areas I hadn’t been to before and even a lovely lunch at a local winery and a cosy dinner at our local woodfired pizzeria!

One good thing about having a baby is that people are happy to come to you as they understand it is hard to pack up all the paraphernalia required for a baby, even for one night away. Thus four of Lauren’s close friends plus a 3 year old came instead to The Meadow to meet Myla. It was lovely to see them all again and we had a super day catching up on all their news, with the girls cuddling Myla and of course chatting (nonstop!) The MOTH built a huge fire in the outside pit and we sat around drinking wine and enjoying the crisp evening as dusk turned to night and a million stars started to twinkle in the velvet black sky. It means a lot to Lauren that after living overseas for 7 years her friends still make a big effort to come and see her and share in her life.

Some of my favourite times were just the normal days where we all hung out enjoying the simple things as a family. When your family live overseas there are often big gesture type holidays which are wonderful but there is something about the small things that I relish, most probably because we don’t get to do it very often! Little Missy/Miss Myla/Myla Moo/Moo Moo/Mooey became our constant companion and right hand girl and was always very keen to hang out with the big kids!!

We were blessed with the weather, crisp blue sky days with sunshine perfect for walks along the coast or around the township of Berry playing our favourite game of sweet or sour (a lifelong game of categorising houses according to how sweet or sour they look!!) with Myla in the pram and Bailey walking alongside – what a perfect picture! Sadly it all changed just in time for our last weekend together when Sam, Liv and Cooper were joining us for Loz and Myla’s last weekend in Oz. The weather was perfect for staying indoors in front of the fire, eating and drinking and playing with the bubs who were SO WELL BEHAVED!! Both were out for the count by 7pm and we had the evenings to ourselves playing board games while those dastardly westerly winds raged outside. Very conducive to a pre birthday lunch for Sam and the biggest steaks we’ve ever seen! He had requested a standing rib roast and we had no idea how huge it would be! Where’s Tom when you need him??

The little cousins were mostly unaware of each other but by the end of the weekend Coops was definitely recognising Myla and we managed to get them to vaguely look in the same direction at the same time after about 120 attempts!

And so all of a sudden it was all over and time to send the girls back to Ho Chi Minh City where a certain someone was waiting impatiently for his little family to return! With talk of a potential return to Australia to live next year I was less sad than usual and with the whole family planning a Christmas together at The Meadow, Uncle Tom included, I am a happy bunny! A last mulled wine in the Berry pub and then home to pack as we had an early start the next day. We were driving 3 hours to visit Lozzy’s 93 year old Pop in his retirement home and to introduce his newest great granddaughter to him. We could hardly believe it when on arrival they told us he was in quarantine awaiting some test results as there was a chance it could have been the severe influenza that has been doing the rounds of Sydney. Talk about bad timing! We were advised to wear face masks but as you can see they were a tad big for little Myla so we risked a quick chat and they had a little moment together at least before heading off to the airport.

As I waved my two girls off at that (horrible) departure gate in the airport I was so proud of how my little international travellers had coped with all the many changes of houses and beds and schedules over the past two months and had my fingers firmly crossed that they would have a good trip home especially with no helper on this return journey. It was only 8.5 hours luckily and a bassinette helped Loz a lot, allowing her to at least eat something or go to the loo! Myla was a dream and slept for more than half of it as it turned out so she’s a perfect travelling companion! I came home to an empty house but to one very happy dog who finally had her people back to herself again! She had been brilliant with the babies, interested and eager to greet them in the morning but never rough or jealous. I bet they will be her besties before we know it!

So we are back to “normal” at The Meadow and have a list a mile long of things to do around the property. With Spring around the corner we only have a window of a few weeks to get the garden in order before it takes off again. I’ve been madly cutting back the roses and hydrangeas as they already have their new season buds and as we haven’t done much to our soil for the past couple of years we have compost and fertiliser ready to dig into our veggie patch as there is finally some rain predicted! We need at least a week of gentle soaking rain before I can even think of planting any new season veggies. Fingers crossed!

The Many Faces of Myla