Old is new again.

What's that old saying?..."the more things change the more they stay the same".

A few years ago we were offered an old vacuum cleaner. At first I said no. We already had a vacuum that we left in the shed along with a host of cleaning stuff for the villas. If I needed a vacuum for the house I'd just walk up and get it. Then I had second thoughts. We only have carpet in the bedrooms so I didn't need it that often. The vacuum was in perfect working order, and it had all the extra attachment even one called a "Power Head". Perfect for all that 60's shag pile carpet! So then I relented and said yes. It would be handy to have in the house. Trent was not so convinced, but as ever he was very supportive. He even managed to find a new connector for the hose on e-bay. Seriously is their nothing you can't buy in e-bay?
I nick named her Betty Draper.

The first few times I did the vacuuming with Betty, it was a bit of a laugh. I could imagine house proud women of the 1950's being totally in awe of Betty. After a few uses I could also see why housewives of the 1950 loved a "Bex and a good lie down"! Betty wasn't actually that old, probably a child of the '70's more than the '50's but never the less, Betty was hard work. None of the extra piece were ever on hand when I needed them so I was forever walking back to the last room to retrieve the missing bit. The power head attachment was fantastic but it required an extra cord to be plugged into the vacuum for it to work. She was big, noisy and cumbersome but I persevered because she was free and it wasn't like I was using her that often. But then I was. Our love affair went downhill fast.

Enter her replacement. I named her Ruby. Because she's red. Original name I know.

Ruby Meile is compact, quiet and whooshes around behind me like a ghost. All of the attachment are hidden on board, and she has 3 power head options. Realistically I'm never going to be THAT type of house proud person, so the additional 2 are still in the box. I didn't pay extra for them, they just came with the vacuum. I wonder if Betty's attachments were optional extras?
I guess the bit that made me laugh was the fact that even though Betty still did the job, I wanted Ruby.  She was easier to lug around, smaller and with whiz bang air filters, defiantly better for my health...We women can justify anything can't we?
I had succumbed to consumerism and clever marketing. Much like Betty's original owner I suspect.  I could have persevered with Betty until the very end, but seriously vacuuming is a dull thankless job at the best of times. Why prolong the pain?

Winter Wardrobe

It's February and there is the tiny hint of change in the air. The nights are getting cooler and a few of the leaves have started to dry out and slowly change colour. I cant wait for winter. Crazy? Maybe, but it's my favourite season. I love everything about winter.
The "first drop" of winter fashion has started to arrive in stores. This is my signal to start sorting.  What I have, what I need and what I want. Over the years I've developed my own style. The outfit's I wear time and time again. The things that work for me and suit my lifestyle. It's one of the many things I enjoy about getting older. No longer do I feel the need to spend a small fortune on this season must have. I might pick one or two things replace something that is worn out or add a splash of this seasons colour, but overall I stick with what I know suits me and suits my lifestyle. I like the ease of winter layering. Starting with a simple silhouette of core pieces then adding scarves, jackets, hats, gloves, and boots. So what are my core pieces for winter?
Weekend/casual wear will always be jeans or tights, a fine wool jumper and a jacket. Depending on what I'm doing I'll wear boots or flats. I then pull the look together with a scarf.  I've also fallen hard for the poncho over the last few seasons. It's a more relaxed and fun look than the jacket and it a great way to breath new life into the core basics. 

 

Looking at what women have been wearing in the northern hemisphere over winter I'm predicting cobalt blue as this season colour. 

I also noticed a lot of lace up shoes. I'm approaching this trend with caution. It could be tricky. Much like over the knee boot where it's a fine line between chic and cheap, this flat lace  up could have you looking totally on trend or like you are wearing school shoes.

Valentines Day

I'm not sure how I feel about Valentines Day anymore...
Back in the day it was BIG news. Women would circle the reception desk in the office like sharks (me included) waiting for that elusive bunch of flowers to be delivered. So much was being written into that one bunch of flowers. So much importance was being placed on a single gift or some over the top declaration of love. I'm a born romantic. I think the majority of women are, but today when I think of Valentines Day my idea of romance is somewhat different.
I was trying to remember the most romantic thing that Trent had ever done for me. I cant think of one. Not because he has never done anything romantic, but because he has done SO MANY romantic things. Things that come entirely out of the blue. Things that prove time and time again that he "gets me". He understands the real me. 
I remember many years ago, not long after we had purchases our first home. Money was tight and the work situation for both of us was a bit unstable. Trent came home one night and handed me a $10 raffle ticket. First prize was a yellow VW convertible and a $1000 shopping spree. He said that when he walked past and saw the car, it made him smile and  he could picture me driving it. I didnt win but I kept the ticket in my wallet for many years. Then there was the time he took my horse float for it's rego inspection, on his day off, just so I woudlnt have to waste my time on the weekend. Small out of the blue gestures that meant so much more than a bunch of over priced roses. Of course he's rather good on the grand gestures to. Imagine waking up on your Birthday and seeing a beautiful diamond ring sparkling at you from your bed side table. Yep, he's got the grand gestures worked out as well. 
Happy Valentines Day everyone.

Summer Days. Heat & Humidity

Summer can be a very unforgiving season in the country. One year the talk is all about how dry it is and our desperate need for rain. The cost of hand feeding stock can be devastating to farmers.
 This year we have the opposite.  Heat and humidity. OMG!the humidity.  It sucks the life out of you like nothing else. On extreme days, any outside work is restricted to early morning or late afternoon. For all that bemoaning, there are some very big positives.  Add high rainfall to the heat & humidity and you have the best possible grass growing weather. Perfect for fat, content cattle and overflowing rain tanks. Not so perfect for keeping lawns & weeds under control.

35 mill of rain over 7 days + Average daytime temp of 32 degrees = Happy Farming.

2015 we're off and racing...

This is the image I'm holding in my head for 2015. When I start to feel overwhelmed with all the things I need to do, should do or want to do this will be my focus. 

Today was my first day back in the office. My real job. Not the farm job. I do sometimes feel like I have two separate lives. It's a good thing.

Christmas was a constant flow of family and friends. No sooner had one group left than another was arriving. We like it that way.

So what's on the agenda  2015?  Gardens & landscaping. As with most things "farm" it's a bit more than a Saturday morning trip to Bunnings for a few bags of potting mix. It takes planning. Lot's of planning.   The vegetable garden will be a series of raised beds. Irrigation is essential. We did a test run with our herb garden and the a drip system attached to a timer  works perfectly. I remember my Grandparents loved watering their garden. It was their post dinner ritual every night over summer. Realistically we wont have that luxury, so a reliable water supply is essential. The garden bed's will also require some form of netting to protect them from the wildlife. I'm not talking about insect & bugs. I'm talking kangaroos, birds, possums and wombats!

We also have plans to plant along the retaining wall at the back of the house and around our pool.  Timing is essential here. Instinct tells me that Spring is the time to plant but we have found March/April is our best time for general planting. The plants have time to get established before the winter frost, and then have their growth spurt in spring.

We've had great success with our herb garden. One bed has rhubarb, silverbeet and shallots. The other is a mixture of herbs. We love the young silverbeet simply tossed in a pan (think stir fry) with garlic, butter, salt and pepper. Yum.

Cooking Class-Stuffed Grape Leaves.

What a fabulous day!! Today I joined Rita from "My Fathers Table" and a few others for an afternoon of cooking. We cooked Warak Enab or Lebanese Stuffed Grape Leaves. Her hands on classes are amazing and truly "hand on".

First stop was Moore Wollombi Garlic to talk with Natalie Moore about all things garlic. They have just harvested their second crop of garlic. The smell was soft & delicate. Not the overpowering acidic smell you normally associate with garlic.

Next stop Noyce Brothers Vineyard to pick Verdello grape leaves. Rita gave us a quick lesson in identifying the perfect leaves for our rolls.

Then we headed straight into the kitchen to learn the time honoured technique of stuffing &  rolling the leaves.

The rolls take around an hour to cook and then left to cool in the cooking liquid. Once we had prepared our rolls and layered them in our pot's they were ready for us to take home and cook.

Luckily for us Rita had prepared a large pot of the rolls earlier, so we were able to sit down and enjoy a traditional Lebanese feast. 

Remembrance Day

One of the most stunning memorials to this day is the Tower of London Remembers which commemorates the the First World War. Artist and ceramist Paul Cummings and stage designer Tom Piper have filled in the moat of the Tower of London with 888,246 ceramic poppies.  Each poppy represents a British military fatality during the war.