Fruit calendar

The fruit seemed to last forever last summer. There was so much fruit we never bothered to note when each fruit started and finished - and we didn't get here until mid-December when things were already under way. To help us plan for this summer we've put together this rough calendar. For the fruits where we did some preserving we know the dates from the photos but it's mostly based on memory so it's pretty rough. Importantly, we can see that Sofia has a pretty constant supply of some kind of fruit to pick and eat from December to May.

Fruit season and preserving day for 2012 season

Of course timing might be different this season and some of the trees have been pruned pretty hard over the winter so may not fruit much at all this year. We're planning to keep much better notes this year so we know what to expect in the future.

Why Hobart?

I snapped this photo with my phone as I was walking to work one day last week.

The mountain gets a really beautiful thin cloud layer on top at this time of year which melts down the edges. On this day the sun was just coming up in the east so the cloud had a slight pink wash and there was also an almost full moon setting behind the mountain. Magic.

Treasures

After months cleaning up the wood heap then pruning fruit trees, there has finally been some time recently to get back to work on the rest of the garden. There is a big plant that I've wanted to get rid of ever since we moved in - think it was a datura. Apart from being pretty feral and needing to be frequently trimmed to keep it off the path, it also blocked the gate to get under the verandah from the front.

Before

Almost clear

There are a few treasures under the verandah like some real bona fide tea chests from Ceylon! There are about eight more under there - none in very good condition.

My favourite is the big piece of marble which has been broken in two. It looks like it may have been from an old dresser or wash basin stand or some other piece of furniture. The plan is to get it joined back together and made into something.

As an added bonus while we were cleaning up the garden, a family of four fairy wrens dropped by - we hope they visit again soon.

Sofia's slide

We have a new addition to Sofia's playground - a slide! 

I was on my laptop the other night looking through the latest local freecycle offerings when I came across a posting for "Toddler climbing cube with slide and Toddler car - Sandy Bay".  The items had been posted a couple of hours before I read the email (and things usually get snapped up pretty quickly), but despite this I replied to the poster and was happy to receive a response the next morning to say the items were ours if we wanted them.  We arranged a pickup time for that day and conveniently the pickup address was a mere two streets away.

Ian came along for the pickup, which was lucky as it took a bit of brute force to dismantle the slide.  We got it home and he gave it a good clean with the hose while Sofia supervised ...

... and then re-assembled it.

Sofia immediately tried it out - head first!

Followed by a more conventional ride.

There was also a toddler car which Sofia hasn't shown much interest in yet so it is parked in the garage for the time being.

After the fun, Sofia got back to work - there were many leaves to rake.

The Bridgewater Jerry

The Bridgewater Jerry from our verandah

There is a well known winter fog in Hobart which for some reason is known as the Bridgewater Jerry and today was the first time it's visited this year. It was pretty impressive - much more impressive than this phone photo shows - and it actually moves at quite a decent pace. The fog comes down from various mountains to the Derwent then flows down the river. Sometimes, like today, it covers the bridge and last year it covered Battery Point some mornings. Today it flowed down the East shore after it got past bridge which is why this photo shows it in the distance. Very pretty but it also felt like the coldest morning of the winter so far.

Interior delights

The weather has turned and it is definitely feeling very wintery here. The trees have mostly lost their leaves and the garden is looking quite bare.

Sofia has new waterproof overalls (so she can frolic around in the wet without getting soaked)...

... and we all have new garden footwear.

As we are spending more time indoors, I thought I would take this opportunity to record some of the more colourful aspects of the house. When we first viewed the property, we joked that the heritage listing must be due to all the interesting wall coverings. The use of wallpaper in various rooms of the house is really quite special - these are not modern 'feature' walls, but entire rooms of interior busy-ness delight.

Sofia's room

'utility' room

toilet (this a shot of the ceiling!)

breakfast room

Not to mention the colour combos and use of feature tiling and taps in the bathroom.

And last, but not least - the floor to ceiling curtains in the master bedroom.

They make me want to channel my inner Fraulein Maria ;)

 

Simple pleasures #4 - dancing

Dancing queen!  Who can resist a bit of Stevie W?