Rejoicing in the Rain

It's been pattering on our roof, trickling into our tanks and soaking into our soil. Oh, how happy I am for wonderful wet days after so many dry days. I suspect there are others rejoicing too in this much-longed-for RAIN!

A jewel-like raindrop on the tip of a leaf.

Our new rain gauge (a rather hopeful Xmas gift from my son to his Dad) finally has some water in it. Some drought-affected areas had precious rain fall too. It was just wonderful to see footage of rural folk and farmers celebrating in the downpours of rain in their towns and on their parched paddocks. Like these happy station workers in this video, I'd be jumping for joy and splashing in muddy puddles too if I hadn't seen rain for as long as they haven't. (I fully intend to jump in a puddle or two when I take Sir Steve dog for his morning stroll a little later on. I expect he'll find a puddle to loll about in too!)

Precious water in our rain gauge.

This beautiful rain will bring relief too for our native wildlife who are impacted by lack of water in the landscapes they call home. They've been thirsty too! At our place, these two rather wet Pied Butcher Birds perched up on the railing of our back verandah yesterday to fluff up their feathers and sing. They broke out in bursts of rather enthusiastic trills and whistles which I imagined was in celebration of the "wet stuff" falling from the sky. 

Happy and wet Butcher Birds on our back railing.

More rain is forecast for today. I hope the mist of this morning, which shrouded the view from my back deck in a cloak of grey, doesn't clear to a blue-sky day but to a cloudy, rainy one instead. Follow-up rain would be wonderful! 

 Misty view from my back deck this morning.

For many people in drought-impacted areas, this rain brings with it, more than anything else, hope. Hope that more will fall to revive their landscapes, properties and farms, to replenish creeks and rivers and dams and to boost their spirits. That's certainly what I'm wishing for too. Xx

Prayer flags along my wet front verandah.

Have you had rain at your place? 

Meg

Hail Storm

Further north, there have been some destructive hailstorms of late. We rarely get hail here but yesterday, as the storm clouds gathered beyond the ridge, the air seemed more dense and the sky heavier and ominous.  

Storm clouds coming over the ridge.

 Gum tree branches silhouetted against the storm's clouds.

As it cleared the ridge, the wind whipped up and heavy rain lashed down. Spectacular lightning split the sky and the booming thunder claps that followed had our poor old Sir Steve dog trying desperately to get in under a bed!  Hail, small balls of ice the size of marbles (and not any bigger thankfully), began peppering our roof and covering our green lawn in a blanket of icy white. The racket as it hit our roof was deafening!

Hail and a mini-river in the backyard.

Marbles of hail.

While we stayed safely inside, this little fellow, a Pied Butcher Bird, sought shelter under our verandah. It sat on one of our deck chairs until the storm had passed by and it was safe to fly away again. 

A Butcher Bird sits out the storm.

Our boy had a great time scooping up handfuls of hail once it was safe to venture outside again. It reminded me of the storm we had here when he was much smaller. Hail had covered the trampoline that we had back then and he couldn't wait to get out there and bounce it off! 

Storms like this seem unusual at this time of year. To me, they are more synonymous with the sweltering heat and humidity of our subtropical Summer. I wonder what will be ahead, weather-wise, in the months to come.

What's the weather like where you live?

Meg

Our Little Local Creek

Just down the hill and around the corner, begins a path that walks you along our little local creek. It meanders all the way to the sea! When times are very dry, as they were back over the Winter months, our little section of this waterway is just a rocky creek bed. But, when we have lots of rain, as we have this past week, it soon starts flowing again. During breaks in the rain, or sometimes while it's pouring, we go down to the creek to see how far the water has come up and how fast it's flowing. 

Over the past few years, our little creek area has been rehabilitated. Invasive weed species have been suppressed and more native trees, grasses and reeds planted en masse. I love to see the cycles of growth and blossoming and setting seed that we observe in the plants that grow along the creek. As we walk this path almost every day, there is always something beautiful and botanical that catches my eye.

I love watching the rejuvenation that the rain brings; the increased flow of water in the creek bed, the green that returns so quickly to the landscape, the blossoming of native flora and the abundance of birds and other wild creatures that call our creek their home. Nature seems to rejoice, as much as we do, when plentiful rain falls.

Meg

Off to the Capital

From the unseasonably balmy days of our subtropical city, we are heading off to the Winter cold of our nation's capital, Canberra.  Next week's minimum temperatures there are forecast to hover around zero and the mercury is not expected to climb much higher than ten degrees so a beanie and other Winter woollies are essential!   

A warm beanie is a must!

Although it will be very chilly indeed, I am looking forward to visiting my capital city for the first time. Canberra is a one of the world's rare planned cities with its design decided in a competition held back in 1911. Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin won that competition and Canberra has evolved from their original blueprint.  

There seems to be some debate over the origins for the name of our capital. According to  Dr. David Headon, in this article in Australian Geographic, 'Canberra' came from a merging of two words over time:  Nganbra, a name meaning 'meeting place' that the indigenous Ngunnawal people used for the area, and the European word, Canberry, which can be found in documents and maps from the 1820s and 1830s.  Such a blend seems quite fitting given that Canberra is the place where our nation's parliament meets and is supposed to work for and in the best interests of all Australians.  Whether our parliament achieves that  is a whole other debate! 

While visits to places such as Old Parliament House and the Australian War Memorial will give us insights into our nation's history, and offer some indoor warmth from the cold, we are also keen to explore some of the outdoors. Located inland, with the Brindabella Ranges to its west and Mount Ainslie in the north east, Canberra is often referred to as "the bush capital".  We are keen to discover some of that natural beauty, both in the suburbs and further out. Of course, we will spend time too on the shores of Canberra's man-made centrepiece, Lake Burley Griffin.  A lake was the central feature of Burley Griffin's winning capital city design and, some 50years later, after the damming of Molonglo River, it became a reality named after him. 

While exploring my capital city, I will be away from this space for a week or so.  I will share some photos with you when I get back here and have defrosted!

Have a happy week!

Meg

Overcast Winter Days

The Winter sun has been obscured by heavy grey cloud the past couple of days. It's been cold and we've had a few showers come through, enough to dampen things a little and keep the washing from the line. Time, for me, tends to go slowly on wintery, overcast days. I tend to spend them in the warmth of "inside". Rather than being drawn out into the garden, by the warm sunshine of blue-sky days, I am nestled instead in the warmth of home. As I wait for that sunshine to break through those thick clouds, there are simple things like soup and stitching, books and baking to fill these overcast days. 

Hearty & nourishing soup.

A little knitting to lengthen my shawl.

An inspiring book to read.

A little project all sewn up.

Some delicious baking too.

Whatever the weather of your coming weekend, I hope you enjoy whatever it is you choose to do.

Meg

Here & Now 20

We've rarely left home the past couple of weeks. It's school holidays here and with very few plans we've been absorbed by the simple happiness of our home. Gardening, baking, sewing, knitting, reading and playing both inside and outside have filled our days. Friends and family have come to share morning teas and afternoon teas out on the verandah. Sir Steve dog has been for his daily stroll around the neighbourhood and occasionally to the park in the back of our old ute. (He barks the whole way there, sharing his quite obvious joy with everyone!) Nightfall comes earlier now that Autumn is here. We tuck ourselves up in our beds with our books, lightweight blankets ready for the crispness of the early morning air come the morning. These are ordinary days but they are good days...

The Autumnal colours of natural dyes.

Delicious and chewy Honey & Ginger ANZAC biscuits. 

A mustard-y yellow sailor top for Autumn.

A bowl of homemade pumpkin soup.

The beginnings of a shawl.

One of Autumn's changing leaves.

Loving //  All of Autumn's glorious golden colours.

Eating //  Morning tea biscuits out on our verandah. (Chocolate chip cookies & ANZAC biscuits too.)

Drinking //  Sparkling mineral water with a little lime juice squeezed in.

         

Feeling //  Content.

Making //  Plans for how I'll use the little stash of the fabric I dyed ages ago. 

Thinking //  That young people, like this little girl who helped convince her city's council to ban 
                           plastic straws, can be so inspiring. 

Dreaming //  ... of a mid-May holiday to Melbourne, a city I have never visited before!

So, this is the here & now of my April. What's been happening during your April days? To join in with Sarah's lovely link-up, over at Say, Little Hen, just visit her there. She's just moved house and run a knitting workshop so there's lots to read about and her photos are gorgeous too. 

Meg

Falling Fruit

Our mandarin tree, laden with the promise of juicy Autumn fruit just a few months ago, is systematically dropping several under-ripe mandarins to the ground every. single. day. 😦 There aren't many left now and I'm not holding out any hope that they'll stay on the tree!

Several fruit are falling from our mandarin tree every day.

Our tree looks lush and healthy. There's no obvious damage to the tree, no signs of insect attack on the leaves or the fruit. But, we have had a LOT of rain and both a google search and staff at the local nursery concurred that this was most likely the tree's response to too much of "liquid gold".  An example of unseasonal weather affecting a plant. Sigh!

Our usually very happy mandarin tree.

There's a deep disappointment to losing a potential harvest like this. (I can only imagine how farmers who lose entire paddocks full of produce must feel!) Those homegrown, fresh-from-the-tree mandarins are something we look forward to picking and eating every year. Instead, this year, I'll be trying to ripen them on my kitchen bench and researching mandarin marmalade to try and salvage some fruit. 

Unripe mandarins still on the tree.

(Fingers crossed!)

I guess this is just a gardener's lot sometimes, isn't it!  How are the weather conditions where you live affecting the plants in your garden?

Meg

Here & Now 19

We've had a lot of rain here. Not as much as other areas to the far North, where torrential rain has caused widespread flooding. For many, this rain is a welcome relief from a drought that has parched their landscapes. 

Where I live, there is blue sky again now, dotted with clouds. The returning sun has brought with it the feeling of a season turning. Summer is fading and my favourite season, Autumn, has begun. 

Two skeins of a beautiful hand-dyed yarn.
(from Saltwater Yarns)

 A delicious Pear & Dark Chocolate Loaf.

Milky brown cotton for a new washcloth,

Loving //  The change in the season from Summer to Autumn.

                      Autumnal is one of my most favourite words!  💛

Eating //  Slices of lovely pear and dark chocolate loaf eaten warm when the chocolate
                      is still little sweet puddles.

Drinking //  Water, as always! A twist of lime or lemon too. 

Feeling //  Quite tired and sore. I have developed tendonitis in both feet!

Making //  A few washcloths in latte and chocolate brown cottons.

Thinking //  ... that I may swim laps and knit a lot while my feet heal.

Dreaming// ...   of a first shawl made with yarn the colour of sandstone cliffs.

Over at Say, Little Hen, you will find the lovely Sarah and others who post their own monthly Here & Now lists.  Why not make yourself a cup of tea or coffee (or pour a glass of whatever you fancy) and visit with them awhile? 

Meg

Weekend Days in the Garden

We've had a couple of welcome wet days here.  Friday saw some very heavy falls. Low, dense clouds blanketing the sky and rain drumming loudly on the roof and gushing from gutters. An inside day for everyone! Sir Steve dog's walk was cancelled due to lashings of precipitation ... but try explaining that to an enthusiastic Labrador who feels hard done by!

The rain continued to fall in heavy showers throughout Saturday. Breaks in the weather, peeks of sunshine now and then, humid and warm. Beautiful boy's cricket match was cancelled, much easier to explain than a Labrador's missed walk! The garden beckoned, that sense of impatience and optimism that I find comes along with soaking rain.  So, on with my old, torn and soil-stained gardening clothes and gumboots (that I keep for just such occasions) and outside into the rain ...

Drenched!

The main veggie patch was cleared of its tangled cucumber vines and frazzled celery amongst other things.  Ready for rejuvenation!

Cleared veggie patch.

Cranberry Hibiscus and yellow Clivia Lillies were planted in the garden that surrounds the spot where our son's sandpit used to be. There are established shrubs there; a Little Gem Magnolia right in the top corner and two Michelia Cocos either side. I'm trying to grow this garden cheaply by using plants that I propagate from cuttings or through division. I hope to add salvias around the birdbath at some stage too. The pumpkin vine keeps wanting to spread out into the lawn so something more compliant is needed in that spot.

 The sandpit garden.

One of three tiny Cranberry Hibiscus that I grew from cuttings.

Division of one yellow Clivia Lily now makes for three!

Sunday dawned a little brighter and so, after a walk with the beside-himself-with-joy Sir Steve, I returned to the veggie patch I'd cleared. I lifted the soil gently with a garden fork, loosening it without turning it over. A sprinkling of little leguminous leopard tree leaves that I collected on our walk and some torn pumpkin leaves from that pesky vine up the back. As they break down, they will nourish to the soil.

Little leopard tree leaves & torn pumpkin leaves to nourish the soil.

  A layer of manure and compost over the top.

Watered in with worm tea & protected with a blanket of pea straw.

In a few weeks time I will plant in our rejuvenated veggie patch. I'm already dreaming of lettuce, spring onion, silverbeet and kale. Definitely beetroot too! Perhaps we'll have a few more wet days before then. 

What did you get up to during your weekend days?

Meg

Summer's Stormy Skies

Several scorching hot days here this Summer have finished with late afternoon storms rolling in over the ridge. We have watched the beautiful sky; the change from that high, clear blue of the earlier day to the ominous dark grey of swelling clouds as they gather. 

A brewing storm. 

Rain-laden storm clouds above the trees. 

A stormy sky above our place.

Rain falling off in the distance.

 The colours of a storm cloud.

These stormy skies have inevitably crackled with lightning as thunderous rain has fallen; at times so heavy we've heard its drumming before it's reached our place. Welcome storms that have cooled some late Summer afternoons and left behind a clearer air scented with rain.

How's the weather at your place?

Meg