Kia Ora Everyone!
We had a quiet start to the new year with lunch at the Persimmon Tree cafe with Sandra and Marshall, followed by drinks at our place.
The weather this month has been hot (25 to 30 degrees C) so we try to walk the girls early. Since they get one of us up between 5.30 and 6am that’s not too difficult – although all they want to do once they’re in the house is to go back to sleep on the sofas or bean bags!
We’ve been pruning the berberis hedge with secateurs and loppers (rather than using the hedge trimmer) as we want to avoid getting thorns in paws. The trailer was VERY full when Peter took it to the tip. It took him 25 minutes to empty it as he had crushed all the pruning’s into the trailer. Next door’s cow has also been helping. She pushed her way right through the berberis thorns and happily munched on the grasses! Luckily the green netting stopped her from coming all the way into the garden. Not sure what we’d have done then!
The girls had their annual WooFs (Warrant of overall Fitness) at the start of the month. Both did well although they’ve both put on weight! So it’s less treats for them now.
We’ve been eating lots of fruit from the garden this month. The Santa Rosa plum tree gave us a good crop before the birds raided it. Ann made two lots of jam and Peter had plenty of fresh plums to eat. The peas have been raided by the girls but Ann is just managing to keep ahead of them. We also finished stripping the fruit off the mandarin tree – juicing the fruit gave us lots of fresh drinks to go with our lunches.
Azaria and Carolien visited again (along with Azaria’s bear).
Ann’s been back to school for meetings and training days this month – before term actually starts on 4th February. And people say teachers have an easy life with lots of holidays!
Peter and the girls came into school to help although they weren’t exactly over the moon about it!
Ann is back wearing her moon boot. After more x-rays and an MRI it was decided that the pain and swelling she’s had in her left foot for the last three months is actually another stress fracture (different part of the foot to last time). She just wishes they’d seen the fracture during the first x-ray last October when she first complained of pain.
The surgeon at the fracture clinic was good – going into detail about the bones in her foot – and telling Ann that she’ll almost certainly have more stress fractures in the future. Good thing she has the moonboot (so long as future breaks are all on the left foot)!
The IT contract work Peter had been promised fell through. No communications from the client after another month of nagging them. Both the recruitment firm and the IT Support firm have lost their patience with the client and the lack of response, so three months wasted and a couple of other potential contract jobs missed. Fortunately Peter has an interview on 1st Feb for another contract.
The super warm weather in Australia made its way across the ditch (Tasman sea) over the final few days of the month. It’s been way too hot to work outside so we closed the doors and turned on the air con – lovely!