Looking for adventure….
Wow this month has been action packed and has gone so very fast, it is hard to know where to start!
Luca left yesterday for camp, just as the temperatures plummeted! He packed his own pack, so I am hoping he packed well!!! His theme song as he left was, “looking for adventure and whatever comes my way…”, he is going to the Catlin’s, no cell reception, deep into the bush to learn all sorts of things (it is a Kiwi rite of passage for this age, and I am so happy for him that he gets to do it). I took this shot as the sun was rising and he was heading off, he was so excited …. 🙂
Rich and Luca had gone off last week to do some shopping for the trip, the first time Rich has done clothes shopping for years, he came home highly traumatized but it was successful, they did well in getting all that was on the list.
It is also the first time in almost 14 1/2 years that we have both been apart from Luca for more than a night, so it is quite the milestone for us all! We are missing him like crazy, but looking forward to hearing all about his adventures 🙂
The build is coming along, the weather has turned, so definitely it has slowed things up, but we are getting there, the framing is due to go up tomorrow, finally we got the concrete all down, that was quite the mission…
Before we started the extension Rich sorted our wood situation, so thankful as of tonight we need the fire, it is actually hailing out there! Yesterday was t shirt weather and we were the warmest spot in the country and now this, it has taken everyone by surprise!
Last weekend I spent preserving and baking pies as harvest is in full force…
This month also saw another big addition to the property, we got a beehive! I have been wanting one for years, and finally it has happened! This time next year, all going to plan ,we should have our very own “Tui Cottage Honey”, I am so excited about this! They seem to have settled in well and going about their business with no bother at all.
I also got around to getting myself another sewing machine, my last one died and I have been hand sewing our things which is fine for most part, but somethings just do better with a machine. Luca and Rich’s Guatemala pants for example had numerous holes, they love them so refused to throw them out, and they are now hole free! I have missed having a machine more than I realized! 🙂
Next week is the last week of school before we head into Easter, then straight into school holidays. Luca will be exhausted after school camp so the break is good timing. He has had a successful first term, things are getting more intense at school but he is handling it well. I come home to this sort of homework scene most nights…
I am also thrilled to see that he has not lost he love for reading an actual book and found another series that he has lost himself in. I hope he never loses this ability so there is a balance for him between this and online…
He has however introduced Vida to online videos! He sets her up watching things like this and it keeps her amused for ages, it is pretty funny to watch her so engrossed in them 🙂
It was Pica’s 8th birthday this month! We got her when she was about 9 months old, a little pound puppy brought to us in Nova Scotia, after being rescued from a kill shelter in Georgia. Now living her best life in NZ….
I have also set up a couple of new contraptions for the chooks, a new feeder ,(to reduce food waste), and a new water set up. Not only does this mean we can go away for a week or so and they will be fine, but it keeps their food and water fresh, clean and easily accessible for them only. The local birds had been stealing a lot of their food and with the price of their food having gone up a lot, I was keen to find a solution. This seems to have done the trick wonderfully well, clever little inventions!
So here we are at the end of March 2023. I took this a few days ago in the early morning up at the fire pit area, the chooks had just woken up and were scouting the orchard for grubs, as I enjoyed the view, warmth and ambience, so beautiful….
