A Gorgeous Day In The Cliff...

An amazingly productive day today and while blustery, the sun made a welcome appearance. Plants were checked, rubbish picked up that the wind had tossed around, weeds put into the garden bag and two houses cleaned. The wind dried all the washing, the paths and pad hosed down and many other little jobs that I couldn't do earlier in the week because I was quite poorly. Don't you just love those days when you get a ton of things done and can sit back and relax because everything is caught up on?

Sugar free ranged for most of the day so she was happy and even plonked herself down on the stairs behind me and sunbathed while I had a cuppa this afternoon. Seems these days, where ever I go outside I have a dog and a goat following my every move...and sometimes five chooks...and a cat...

Alfie laid her first egg this morning...a beautiful blue green colour, most fetching I must say! Such a nice surprise to find four colourful eggs nestled in the hay. Now there is only Tuktuk left to lay and there will be eggs for Africa.I promised some to a neighbour that brought her children down to see Sugar the other day so I will drop them off tomorrow but I have quite a few so maybe a Sunday Frittata for brunch?

And this is the gorgeous view from my balcony tonight...a skyline of wispy clouds that reflected a warm glow as the sun set on our beach side community. I never get tired of the ever changing view...

If Its Attached To A Pot Or A Person...

Well finally I am back online. The other day I managed to kill the laptop charger, the vacuum cleaner and a light bulb, all in one day. The new charger arrived today thanks to my very lovely friend who ordered it for me online when I couldn’t and in good time for a very gusty, wet night. Even my ever-faithful hotty bottle has taken a thrashing tonight, a night to bunk down and enjoy the rain on the roof. Mr came in before wet as a shag, ate and then yowled at me to go back outside. When I wouldn’t let him back out he jumped on the bed, nose dived under the quilt and proceeded to tunnel his way down to the end of the bed where he kneaded himself into a slumberous heap.

Sugar is doing really well, I haven’t heard boo from her tonight so I am guessing she has tucked herself up into her kennel. We have only had a few moments in the last couple of days where boundaries were drawn and climbing up on the outdoor table to nibble on my raspberry and currant plants is one of them! The strawberries, passionfruit and asparagus are another. These boundaries also include the rosemary, blackboy peach and cranberry plants, as well as my fingers and clothing. I think she has a clear understanding of what “Get off!” and “Owww, that’s attached to me” is now, boy she has a good set of chompers on her! She is doing a fabulous job of clearing a few patches I hadn’t got to though and once the weather clears and I can mow the lawns it will look great.

Not much has happened in the new garden this week, I did manage to add some soil to it but until I sugar-proof it there is no point in planting in it. Earlier in the week I planted basil, passionfruit, tamarillo, luffa, dragonfruit, banana peppers, capsicum, caper and capsicum seeds but the wind caught a few pots the other night...I put it all back in so hopefully with some luck I will still get one or two plants, enough to replenish seed and feed the soul. 

I also did a random seed spread in one of the gardens with silverbeet seed. If it works I will have a good supply of it as well as using another available space for food. I also sprinkled calendula and marigold seeds out where the girls sunbathe, even if a few grow they will spread under the punga and cabbage trees which will look quite colourful against the bush reserve. My urenika potatoes have started sprouting and I am itching to get them in the garden. I am thinking of using the old stainless steel compost drum to mound them up and see how that works and that means I need to start a new compost heap somewhere else.

House Arrest...

Ok, scrap that. The new count sits at Goat 6 - Garden 0. 

I have just discovered the skeletal remains of my flowering passionfruit AND my strawberry plants so someone is on house arrest. I have attached her chain to the long line out the front now so she can’t get into any more trouble! No wonder her tummy looks full.

Send For Reinforcements...

I am going to need a lot more bamboo! I had forgotten the irresistible urge goats get to scratch themselves against things...anything, anything at all.

To a goat anything is fair game. If you can rub yourself against it, do so. A short time ago I looked out the window to see Sugar wound between the bamboo fence stakes like she was competing in an agility competition. Until I get more bamboo its each goat for himself. 

So far the count is two strawberry plants and two nibbles on my precious year and a half old asparagus plants I painfully grew from seed. Anyone who has been following this blog will know just how much I love my asparagus, little minx! She had just eaten an avocado tree and a vege garden at the last place she was at so I knew she was going to be mischievous.

Today the chooks have been much more settled and Diesel and Sugar have been wandering around together out on the lawn so friends are made and everybody is happy but I am going to have to do some serious sugar proofing!

A Goat In My Garden...

Yes we now have a new family member come self propelled, low maintenance weed eater. May I introduce Sugar...the devil horned three month old. She arrived this afternoon looking sweet and innocent, sugar. Little did I know that soon I would hear a persistent chorus of “Maam,maaaaaam, maam, maaaaaaam, maaam maaaaaaaaaaaammmm!!!” which could be likened to an operatic performance with encore after encore and not necessarily enjoyable ones. It put the chooks noses right out of joint, confused the dog and upset the cat. I finally managed to get four of the girls into the run with a bit of bribery but Petunia dug her heels in and sulked on the other side of the house until dark...She eventually went around to the run but even then it was under protest. 

This teeny little fluff ball caused quite a stir with her sudden arrival but luckily now all is quiet and everyone is tucked up for the night. I am sure tomorrow will bring a far more social day and friends will be made. 

Tonight Sugar is snuggled up in the other side of the kennels where she will be off the ground and dry, she is tethered but can go out and snack should she want to. I was going to leave her in the run with the girls for company but they made such a fuss it just wasn’t worth it. She is used to sleeping with two dogs apparently so hopefully she doesn’t get lonely tonight. I had been thinking about a goat for some time now, seemed like the most logical way of clearing the bits of the yard my poor little mower can’t get at whilst being cost effective and earth friendly. And let’s face it, anything that you can do that is good for the earth and free, has to be a good thing doesn’t it? Oh, and she is cute...really cute!