wood works

We spent a few hours getting firewood over the last weekend. It felt so good to be outdoors, enjoying the sporadic sunshine and breathing deeply of the moist air laden with the scent of eucalyptus trees. I had one of those moments...you know, where you feel totally at one with the world around you; totally blissed out; in a complete, perfect joy state. It comes over me on very rare occasions - only when I'm outside, in nature. Feeling the wind. Breathing the air. Seeing the surroundings. Sensing the earth beneath me and the sky above. Perfection.

Of course, while I was communing with the elements, Stuy was manhandling the chainsaw. First a lengthy sharpen, then on to all the dead wood thats laying around up here at The Rise. This is a 100 acre block of land and quite a bit still has original bush although more than half is pasture. There is a lot of old wood to be had and since we only have a wood heater to warm us up, there'll be a lot of wood needed for the winter!

As I was ambling about, I noticed a very old and weathered tree stump. One that had obviously been cut down a long time ago, yes, but by hand! Can you see that horizontal cut with some bits rotted out of it - well, thats for a standing board and theres another on the other side. I thought it might be fun to have a look and see what the wood cutting was like here in Tasmania many years ago, so I did a bit of research.

Not much to be found except the following about this area -

The first explorers reached the area as early as 1823. Reports were not favourable with one explorer noting that the land was "mountainous, extremely barren and totally unfit for habitation".

The area was further explored by the surveyor Nathaniel Kentish in 1842 as he was trying to find a route through to the west coast.

The area was subsequently opened up for settlement but wasn't actually surveyed until 1859.

By 1862 thirty lots of land had been sold and a nearby town had been named.

And here's a tiny bit about what our Tasmanian timber was used for back in the early days.

But I did find a really interesting video about Australian wood cutting in general and will leave you with this link to watch it - highly recommended! And a couple of photos of the gorgeous lichen that has taken up residence on the inside of the old stump!

easter part 2 - intrepid adventure

Once upon a time (when all our children were younger, still living at home and less opinionated) we often spent a day in the bush just for fun. We'd pack up whatever good food or leftovers we had hanging around, throw in some blankets, eating utensils and the pram if there was a baby, and head off in our old Landrover down a dirt track to find a nice spot to picnic. Usually it involved a river, a campfire and a bit of walking. Sometimes it was winter and cold and we'd need the fire to warm up and stop everyone me from whining about the chilly day. Sometimes it was summer and whatever water source was available was used to cool off and provided much entertainment for the littles. Occasionally I had time to do a quick sketch for my nature journal, to be finished off at home the next day, although most of the time was spent feeding children, making sure they didn't drown or worrying about the possibility of snakes!

These days, its different. Most of our children are grown and are very opinionated (we did let them 'express themselves' when they were younger, so I suppose its to be expected…sigh) so going on family outings is fraught with much more than just snake dilemmas! Now there has to be a family parliamentary session and after much debating and discussion, laughter and loud words, we finally agree on a destination. Those older women who warned me to enjoy them while they were little, since it got harder when they got older, were most certainly right!!!!

So after Easter breakfast this year, ten of us departed (mercifully, without too long a discussion) for a jaunt into the foothills of the highlands. Destination - Devils Gullet. I'm always the one that is the keenest to stay home but I'm also always the one that is so enraptured and awed by wherever we end up….. as usual this was the case! After a brief walk through some lovely high country bush, we came to the very high lookout. Sadly for the rest of the family and thankfully for me, it was misty so we couldn't see really well to the bottom but from what I did see, it looked spectacular - a loooonnng way down! Apparently, if its windy, you can throw a small rock into the abyss and the wind will send it hurtling back up to you. Amazing. We are so fortunate to be living just a short distance from some beautiful World Heritage areas.

While the others waited for the mist to clear, which it did, I amused myself taking photos of all sorts of rocks and shrubs. My children may be older and more opinionated but the upside is that they are able to step over snakes, swim out of the river and refrain from falling in a campfire, leaving me to be inspired and invigorated in the great outdoors!!!

easter, part 1 - its all about the food!

I love food. I love to eat food. More than that though, I love to feed others. My children laugh at me and warn visitors that they had better be hungry because mum will feed them! And its true. Food and the act of nourishing both family and friends, gives me a great sense of satisfaction, a feeling that I've cosseted and nurtured and filled hungry bellies and now all is right with my beloved ones.
This means, of course, that there is always an abundance of food at my table - in fact, I like so much abundance that there are leftovers! Leftovers are good because that means that everyone has eaten their fill……if all the pots and dishes are empty then oh dear, maybe someone hasn't had enough; maybe they had to stop before they were properly filled up; perhaps they will leave the table with rumblings in their belly and thoughts of raiding the fridge on their mind!! (Leftovers are also good for man-lunches the next day which saves me from extra preparation of sandwiches and suchlike!)

So that brings me to Celebration Food. In my mind celebrations always need food. Outings always need food. Just a quick jaunt to the local park, always needs food! Someone is bound to be peckish and the inevitable question "mum, is there anything to eat?" will arise and then what would I tell them? Wait till we get home? Sorry, eat grass!

Anyway, I digress. I wanted to tell you about our Easter - because a large part of our Easter is food! For as long as I can remember, right back to when I was a little girl, we have been having a bountiful Continental breakfast after our early morning basket hunt. My mum used to set a fine table with all sorts of cheeses and breads, jam and coffee, all of which were eaten right along with chocolate bunnies and coloured eggs. And I have continued the tradition. We head out into the cold morning to search for our baskets that the 'Easter Bunny' ahem, has hidden sometime in the earlier hours (in the dark!) of the morning. Then when everyone has tromped through the garden beds, upturned all the empty plant pots and eventually found the basket with their name on it, we return to the house to eat ourselves silly with loads of chocolate bunnies good food and warm beverages. Naturally there are always leftovers!!

Some years we head off after breakfast to explore, an as yet unknown to us, part of our island and I'll share this years destination tomorrow.

steamfest 2015

Oh how I love Steamfest!!! All the smells, the sounds, the sights…….every year I think 'oh maybe I won't go this year' and every year I go and remember how much I like it! From the spinning shed with all the lanolin smells and friendly spinning ladies, to the bullocky controlling his huge, horned steers with a long whip and a few incomprehensible words. I love all the old household wares - pitchers, bottles, knives, chisels, baskets - all priced and stacked on tables as if they were items still in everyday use, not long redundant and now just mere curiosities.

This year there was an old fair organ that ground out its raucous never ending tune while the wooden ladies danced the hula and the soldier marched bravely on. This year, and every year, the medieval group had a mock battle while we wondered once again, how the heck they coped in all that heavy armour! This year there was another contest for the best dressed person wearing steampunk style clothes and without a doubt it went to a woman with a marvellous set of wings that could be folded and unfolded. Amazing! This year the children are all older and spent most of the time rummaging around on their own leaving me to meander along at my own pace when Stuy wasn't there or sharing thoughts with him when he was.  I'm sure the children sampled all the sweet dishes available and I only just managed to snap a pic of the Dutch pancakes before they were devoured! 

And for the first time, we were treated to a wonderful display by the TasmanianLighthorse Brigade  and it really was a spectacle - theres certainly something special about a horse and a man in uniform ;) But my most favourite thing of all is the grunt of the tractor pulling competition followed closely by the smells from all the old engines! True!! I just love the deep throaty roar of the big tractors as they strain to pull the weighted trailer to the end of the course, and the tension that mounts, the slower he gets….until he stops short of the finish line and its on to the next tractor. Yes. Yes I do. I love it all. And I come home every year and think, 'oh, that was so much fun, can't wait till next year!!'

I've been camping

Now while you may be thinking that I've just dropped off the radar again, I've actually been so busy doing all kinds of interesting things (and some not so interesting too, I must add!) and one of the fun ones was a weekend camp with our homeschool group. This weekend just gone in fact, which of course doesn't account for all the other weeks I've been missing from this space, does it?

Never mind, let me just tell you that we had a fantastic time, especially the children! There were all kinds of activities and loads of free time for playing games and running around and even a bit of swimming in the freezing Liffey River. We made lots of magic eyes and strung them around the rustic common room; fabric painting with some fab dyes that set in the sun, haha! a basket weaving session that produced a few lovely baskets and loads of headbands; an evening campfire and toasted marshmallows and doughboys (thats those wormy looking things on the sticks); an afternoon spent making a whole flock of swans from fancy cut apples and filigreed carrots; and for me, even a little bit of sketching….bliss!

Now I'm off to sort photos of the past month to show you and try to remember what happened in February for the Monthly 9 report. Wish me luck!

a weekend with our small elf

Recently I had the privilege of spending a whole weekend with my granddaughter. Her parents were having a much needed break, dancing and grooving at a local hippie festival, while I was reintroduced to how it felt to have a tiny one underfoot again!

With seven children, I had constant babies and toddlers around me for 18 years. Yes 18!! And yet, it amazes me how quickly I have gotten used to not having a permanent part of my brain focused on little beings. She was no trouble at all; she can amuse herself quite nicely, rarely cries, is interested in everything and is doted upon by her youthful aunts and uncle. Yet, still, I found that I had to rearrange my thinking and keep her in mind at all times.

Going to the garden? Find hat and boots. Make sure she doesn't get sunburnt. Oops, fell over the dug area….carry her over the lumpy bits. Clean dirt out of boots.

Cooking a meal? Ensure that she isn't underfoot. Pass her a nibbley. Give her a drink. Watch closely as she amuses herself with the cutlery and bowls. Quick! a trip to the potty. More snacks.

But we had fun too! It was delightful to see her busyness; the intense focus on her chosen task; her smiles; the snuggles at bedtime and her sleepy look when she first woke up.
 
 A wheelbarrow full of decaying rhubarb stalks makes for a fun ride.

With the help of my Fairy, we made uncooked play dough. The little one loved it. With the utmost concentration she placed small balls of dough into the nest.
(Our first time for uncooked dough and it's not as good to play with as the cooked one, quite crumbly, but…. it doesn't stick to every surface it lands on - i.e: the floor, chair, table and so on!)

We hung several loads of washing together...….one peg at a time!!

We picked leeks gone to seed flowers and fennel stalks and she marvelled at the tiny buds and gently pulled off the outer husks to offer them to me.

And she carefully made a lovely floral arrangement before turning her eyes and hands to a bowl of 'pums' we had picked earlier from the wild plum trees.

Perhaps I am older and not used to little ones any more but what struck me later (and again now as I look through these photo's) is that I can have fun with her. I don't remember having much time to wander slowly around the garden picking flowers or holding jars for a very slow flower arranger!! I certainly didn't have the time to run behind and snap photos for posterity (although I do have photos of my children!!!) I do remember being extremely grateful for daytime sleeps, older siblings and when each one became slightly more self sufficient.

Now, I wish I had taken more joy in each little one but I can also see how thats not always possible when you are the rearer, the nurturer, the discipliner, the cook and the cleaner. I can now truly see the difference that so many grandmas told me about when I still had my own little ones -

"You'll have fun and games with your grand children all day and then you send them back for their parents to raise"!

And I do believe that its true!!!