Year Ends 2019

Two more days as I write this and 2019 will end. From what I read about the rare lineup of planets, for 2020 the astrology world is very excited about what good things next year will bring. The end of many situations and new beginnings seems to be the theme. When I look back on my 2019 I will certainly glad to see the end of it.

Another Christmas has come and gone and I hope everyone had an enjoyable time. We spent breakfast and present opening with the  local grandchildren. So much squealing and chatter to be enjoyed.

This then was followed by our lunch at home, with my sister and partner, and our eldest daughter and youngest son. Six salads, cold roast lamb, ham,  plum pudding and cherry pie.

Boxing Day is a family tradition to go see a movie and this year it was the last Star Wars one, at our very packed local theatre.

The next day we celebrated our youngest son's birthday, who turned 40 this year. As usual we go down to the river, and always there is a game of darts. We were joined by this time with the Sydney grandchildren, and so nice to have all the family around me, that is except for our youngest daughter in America who celebrated with her husband, Christmas in their new house. So new they haven't had time to get furniture properly yet, but managed to buy a table so 4 of their friends could help celebrate.

Family at large in the river.

We hired a shed for the occasion

Our make shift dart board area, worked really well.

It was a lovely day not too hot, and a slight breeze. The two other Sydney children left the next day for home, while I got the house back into order. I also have put my new Mini Happy Planner together for next year, and trying to get my hardanger cloth finished before the year is up, so then I can concentrate on making cloth dolls for my shop.

I hope you all had had a wonderful time and looking forward to 2020. Happy New Year everyone.

Till Next Time.

Preserving Apricots and Backyard Makeover Plans

I nearly forgot it was Sunday, as I have been so busy this week, and it is a relief to sit down as I write this weeks blog up. My sister arrived back from visiting her daughter in Ipswich and a succesful shopping of fruit and vegetables at the Rocklea Markets. A phone call though let me know apricots were $1.99 kilo, unbelievable!!! So I ordered 5 kgs and some beetroot for christmas dinner and they turned up this morning about 10am. The apricots were fairly ripe and nice and big so I decided better preserve them straight away.

Half went into some pie filling and the other half into jam. Apricot pie and apricot jam is certainly up there with the favourites.

I ended up getting 4 jars of pie filling and 10 of jam. They are cooling on the bench now. Should have ordered 10 kilos haha, so nice.

On another note my Rheumatologist rang me this week and ORDERED me to get an infusion. Not what I wanted to here but his words were "Your blood readings are awful". Well I knew that, by the pain levels, but agreed with him that I needed to calm things down, luckily I got fitted in on Christmas Eve morning, and that should last me to the end of January when I can go to Brisbane and sort this changeover out. I don't think he is in agreement either. The bone density wasn't that good either and if I fall badly, my left hip will break.

This is why I am trying to sort out our backyard with all its loose steps, no hand holds and 4 levels to negotiate just to garden. John will stubbornly, not move house, so next year going to try and get some concreting done,  replacing all the pavers so no more weeding between. Fill in the pool, with all this drought happening, it is never full, and there is a leak somewhere anyway, and grass it over. Hopefully get some one to paint the back verandah  as I haven't done it, and make it all visitor friendly, being just a place to dump junk. You can probably tell I have had enough lol.

Lemonade Lemon tree definitely has died, so will come out. Will plant a new Pierre De Ronsard Rose as the front one has officially died as well. My favourite Rose.

 We talked about changing my garden shed around also as the land is shifting and where it is the fence is moving away, so I decided to put just the compost bins there and rebuild a shed where the chook pen is. They are a lot of work and in the furthest most corner, so sadly not going to have chickens anymore.

Pulling down my  potting shed this week. Crazy paving is breaking up also because of the land shift and weeds growing through.

Chicken Shed also started.

What we will do is put the small sheds opposite each other with a space in the  middle. So we only have to move one then fill in a roof, and maybe an open front area. The shed wall can hold the hydroponics pots so I can still plant my flowers.

 We shall see how this goes. It is at least a start and we don't want to pay someone to do this.

As nice as this pond was, time to get rid of it completely.

By grassing over the pool, we can then have someone mow it. Concreting everywhere else, what are now pavers, will stop weeds growing and save so much time. I have looked very carefully at this as over concreting is no good but feel what we will do will fit in with who ever owns the house, in the future. Still hovering on the middle section whether another spa or a BBQ area. We haven't entertained for so long ( CHAOS.. can't have anyone over syndrome) it is hard to know, whether it is worth the effort. The last makeover in this area was 15 years ago. Hopefully we won't ever do another one.

 With all the drama that has been going on with my health, I haven't decorated for Christmas. Today though I set the dining room table, ready for Christmas Lunch with the eldest daughter and youngest son and my sister and partner. I am really looking forward to this as well. Haven't had a dinner party for so long and part of my career was fancy hospitality, so the table is looking fabulous. Can't show as a surprise. Pulled out a couple of Santas and snowmen for a festive look. Worked out the menu which I will partly do in the next couple of days. The children will turn up tomorrow.

So everyone have a Great Christmas Day. Hopefully you are not in the fire areas, which are once more really bad around Sydney. Stay safe if travelling.


....................................................... MERRY CHRISTMAS ..........................................................



Till Next Time.

Christmas Parties

Would you believe Christmas is only 10 days away. Are you all ready? I must say for me it has been certainly different this year. Not sure what is happening on the big day, haven't got any decorations up, and only know our eldest daughter is arriving on the 23rd.

My health has been a major problem and taking it quiet is all I am doing and letting what will be, happen. I have put myself back on Prednisone a steroid that drains your bones of calcium. I couldn't walk without great difficulty and the pain was just too much too handle. Had the bone density scan done, another blood test  and see my local Dr. Thursday. This will decide if the Methotrexate is doing its thing or if I need higher dosage etc. If all this works I will be free of having a cannula put into my hand every 5 weeks to have a 2 hr. infusion at our local hospital. What I have managed to do Saturday though, as the Prednisone had kicked in by then, was go with my sister to see mum and also a local handmade only market, combined with fruit and vegetables in Bellingen.

Plenty of space at the showgrounds.

There were some interesting items of course, and some shop owners told me they had only been doing it a short while. I am looking at it to see whether I will also take on " a market stall" again in the future.
This one is vetted so no commercial type market stalls get in., which I like.  It is held every 3 months, at the Bellingen Showgrounds.

Toilets at the showgrounds

We got there by 8 am so afterwards it was a bit early to go around to the Nursing Home so had coffee at the Old Butter Factory. Haven't been there for such a  long time. It was certainly a much needed day out. Thanks little sister.

We wandered the shops there and found this lovely Spring Lamb. Isn't it gorgeous?

$160.00

Meanwhile early in the week when I was not good, John went off to the Community Garden Pizza Night. I made up the flour and we worked out all the ingredients and they had a lovely Christmas break up party.

 

John with the new Fantastic Pizza Oven the Roccbox.

There were a few problems but all were learning how to make pizzas for future events to sell. These are about 11 inches big.

I also opted out of Carols by Candlelight, and our Choir master asked for John, as they were a bit short of singers. 18 turned up in the end, and John informs me the noise was huge, and the stage very, very hot.
This is a photo of the stage set up. Everyone brings along chairs and food and sit around it. Just a large grassed flat park, and groups of singers entertain everyone till 9 pm.

2019 is nearly at its end, and tomorrow the 16th Dec. is our wedding anniversary, and we will have been 47 years married.


Stay safe everyone,  Till Next Time.

Frangipani, Beans, and a Pie

As a blogger you automatically take photos, as you go along the week. Sometimes I don't even know what I will say unless I look at the photos and this was such a week. I forgot what I had taken.

There has been so much pain in my body that I have had to move to an upstairs bedroom as managing the stairs early morning is so, so hard. Then struggling with breakfast and painkillers just to sit while something kicks in, doesn't stop it but dulls enough to actually do something. It is a bit of a waiting game changing over medicines as my Dr. is being very careful of what will affect me.

What I forgot about was the beans.

Beans dressed and ready for blanching once cut.

If you remember my beans were riddled with a Rust disease so I asked John to pick them all early this week. 2 big baskets full even I was surprised what was there. Some were a bit big so these I shelled and froze them as is. I remembered this idea from Vivi's Kitchen Garden, as she referred to  the word Demi-Sec, for beans that get to hard to eat. Don't know yet what I will do with them maybe with a sauce of some kind.

Ones that needed shelling. Demi-Sec

Thank goodness for my sister, who rings me every day to check on me, but also to take me to mum's, driving being out of the question. This week though we stopped at a Frangipani Display out the front of someone's house, as Jan said a bright light on a smokey day, or something to that nature haha.

It was the yellow one that caught my eye, I had never seen such a bright yellow, so Jan kindly got out and took the photos.

The others were all different colours, so I think they had been collected from friends and neighbours sort of thing rather than buying them.

 

This is the common one.

We drive pass this house every time and it was so unexpected, to suddenly notice them.

I tried out another pie this week, Chicken Pot Pie. I am really impressed with the Kmart Family Pie Maker. I pre cooked the chicken, mixed veg, stock cube, and just added to the pastry. Took about 10 mins and ended with 2 little ones as well which was lunch the next day. The big pie does us twice. Been doing that a lot lately, having the same meal twice in a row.

Cleome

So there we go another week gone by. Hopefully I will manage to get to choir this week, I was just too worn out  last Thursday evening, and we have another "gig" at Carols by Candlelight on the14th. and really need to make the effort to go. Not that we are singing any carols, we have never learnt any, but everyone is allowed 4 songs. It will be the first time I have attended this, even though it is held every year.

The fires now are getting really bad everywhere in Australia so stay safe every one.

Till Next Time.

ABC - Arthritis, Lunch Break, Choir

Finally got to see my Dr. this week, she took one look at me barely walking in and promptly gave me a prescription for Prednisone, bone density tests, blood tests and a new appointment tomorrow. Prednisone thins the bones which as I was on it fairly long term before I have to be very careful having a fall, as I am sure to break something. Anyway after much protesting she let me be on it just 10 days, as it is one of those drugs you have to scale back on. It certainly stopped the pain but noticing again today it is coming back, as I downsize the dosage, so hopefully will start something better tomorrow.

Dec 11th.2017

This didn't stop me going out although I have been driven everywhere not trusting myself and Jan and I did a weekly visit to  Mum's, again who is looking very frail.

Alzheimers is such a sad disease, when the person you love remembers nothing or can't speak.

Nov. 28th. 2019

  I missed my embroidery class Monday but we had our Christmas Luncheon at a cafe set in a garden.

There is a great shop attached as well. We exchanged home made goodies which was great as none of us need anymore things.

The chicken collector in me loved this stand.

The Sawtello Choir is being asked to do a few "gigs" and yesterday we sang at a fund raising for the Bush Fire Brigades, which was an all day thing. We sang at about 5.30 at the Coramba Pub, and it was the noisiest crowd. Lots of rock bands  had been playing and raffles, and auctions being held so we were quite a change. After our Choir Leader explained we were a Gospel Choir as he turned around and got us organized, someone yelled "Hurry up Pastor" which made our Alto group who was nearest laugh, as Andrew  is just a choir leader, and not many of us go to church anyway. I think the nickname will stick.

Inside the pub

Part of the donated Auctions and Raffle Prizes.

We sang our way through noise, laughter, chatter, waitresses and watching a  drunk  fello trying to join in, one bizarre moment after the other. I think we sounded all right we got lots of claps, funniest gig ever I think.

We sang where the Firies are in yellow, up close and personal.

Triple the amount of  people behind this table as in front. It was a large crowd.

To end this week today we attended the Christmas Break up party, of the Choir, down at the river. Although there is a BBQ end of  every term, first one we have attended. Everyone brings their instruments for a singalong, so lots of laughter and fun.

It is nice to see also the cooler weather as well, as it has rained a little also this week. At least the smoke has settled some what. I must say another busy and interesting week, despite Dr. visits.

 Till next time.