Love a long weekend

Early start may not have impressed the neighbours

It is the end of the long weekend and the prospect of heading to the office tomorrow is not so thrilling. We are sitting in front of our lovely fire, the two cats are cuddling each other, as close to the heat as possible and the pup is running laps (in her sleep) as she rests comfortably on her new blanket.
Daryl and I have enjoyed a bottle of wine and I am just about done in, sleep is calling me.
After an early and very crisp start this morning, the eyelids are heavy.

But I cannot complain in any way. My dearest friend, also writes a blog, and she explores an entirely different world - one where making small talk is a challenge, as is shopping or driving the car, and some days making the bed is simply overwhelming - so I am thankful I can be tired because I have been busy (and slept like garbage last night).

We decided to get our butts out of bed early as we knew the day would be shared with friends (birthday brunch) and we didn't want to rush them away because the farm wanted our attention.

Crispy greens anyone?

So at 7 this morning we donned gloves and a few extra layers and crunched our way toward the wood pile and fired that chainsaw up. In less than an our we had a nice pile of wood ready for the fire in the coming days and the trailer was full.

Even too chilly for the pup - she rode inside

We are currently burning through about a metre of wood per week. We burn two fires - the slow combustion stove in the kitchen and the large wood heater in the lounge. I certainly would not want to be buying wood. Ouch, that would be expensive and we would be investing in a few more jumpers! After the wood was stacked we did the rounds, counted cows, tended to the horse (Bek was sleeping in at a friends), collected eggs and marveled at the beautiful morning we were enjoying. Mia was more than happy to make tracks in the ice and she tore through the paddocks chasing whatever rodents she could find.

Found this guy wondering what all the noise was!

We bought some winter vegies and they are now planted in the garden beds, hopefully the frost will not burn them before they get a chance to establish.

We did indeed enjoy our friends and daughter's company and celebrated a birthday with crispy bacon and eggs rolls, tomato and cheese optional. A zillion cups of tea and a few birthday beers later, it was time to say goodbye. Hastily, we rushed around getting night time jobs done before the blackness overtook us. We weren't quick enough and found ourselves feeding hay in darkness. Once again the chill began to etch into our bodies, but the warmth of the fires soon welcomed us indoors.

Yesterday saw some more house keeping jobs completed - our rose garden was finally freed of weeds. Daryl managed to drill holes into 30 red gum posts along the front fence line in preparation for wire. What a job! As the timber is green the drill bit continues to get clogged up. Daryl has discovered extra brute force and a screw driver are helpful ways to push the drill bit through.We enjoyed the noise and nonsense of kids and grand-kids who travelled over for tea, and after a whirlwind visit they left us to enjoy the serenity.
 
The first day of the long weekend was pretty chilly here and finally cold enough to convince Daryl it was an inside job day!! Yeah success. I suspect I may only get one designated 'inside job' day every year so I need to make the most of them.

What a way to start the day.

It has been a great long weekend filled with plenty of work, family, friends and fun times. Tonight I suspect I will sleep soundly.

Goodnight to you all.

N