You may be wondering why I chose this picture to open my blog. It's pretty simple. This is the biggest (pun intended) thing going on at the farm. Remember all those blogs about our drought? This is Dan's answer. Since it is seriously huge, we may never have to worry about the pond drying up again. The stock will always be watered and our new, massive garden will always have the water it needs to keep on growing.

But the process wasn't simple. First we had to have a road cleared from the shared road through the orchard, through the sheep yard and around to the back of the red, red barn (see above). Then a deep pit had to be dug, levelled, gravelled, levelled again and raked.

Then the water tank itself had to be delivered and left on its side. And finally, 3 men with machinery had to manuever it into position and lower it into the hole. Quite an undertaking. But we're not done yet.

Don't ask me how that last picture got in there. I can't figure it out and my techie guru, Yael, is feeding the baby so you'll just have to admire the gates to the new barn as well as the tank addition to the red barn.

Dan still has to install the gutters, filter system and machinery to make it all work. I'll keep you informed.

Moving Right Along

Things have been moving right along here lately. Our driveway is finished and is fabulous. No more potholes, no more mud slides, nothing but solid gravel. I think the kids could even ride their trikes on it.

The porch has steps again and the first coat of enamel is on and hard. Of course, one of the handrails is not yet attached but one can’t have everything and we rarely use that porch anyway. In the Spring we plan to put a bench out there and survey our domain. If we ever have the time to sit down.

So far our days are spent standing up and running from one job to the next. We have our first lamb of the season but several other ewes appear ready to pop and that calls for added vigilance. I don’t quite know why since there is nothing to do but call the vet in case of trouble but we all feel better checking the flock frequently.

The yearlings have settled in as if they had been born here. Dan and I shifted both flocks and the steers last week and it all went pretty well. The steers were the easiest. They trotted around the paddock, shied at the gate, and played hard to get but then ambled through and started grazing. No problem there.

The old flock (with all those pregnant ewes) was pretty placid too. The borrowed ram ignored us completely and the rest had that ‘above it all’ look they get whenever I come anywhere near.

The Suffolk sheep are wild beyond belief but even they eventually made it into #2. They ran up hill and down, outflanking Dan as they went. I had the tougher job of standing beyond the gate to prevent them from bolting down the wrong paddock. I did very well. I could apply for a job at Buckingham Palace as a Guard any time. "We also serve who only stand and wait". Dan gotten pretty winded tho.

I spent a few days down in Auckland with the family and an unanticipated additional day due to a dental emergency. I had not left enough food for that additional day for Smudge (cat pet and mouser extrodinaire). So I fretted that she would leave home and never return.

This led to a number of derogatory comments from my son and my daughter-in-law. Some of the kinder were to the effect that no cat ever had it so good. That I paid more for Smudge’s food then they did for the kids’ food. Not true but this Hill’s Science Diet is ridiculously expensive. But the best was that Smudge in 2 short months has gone from a sleek, slim cat to a ‘rotund’ tubby. Not true; she just has a very thick coat.

So I get back to the farm and race up the steps to my apartment and fill the food bowl. Then I go help Dan unload the car and put away groceries. When I return to my room, the cat bowl is half empty and Smudge is sitting there washing her face. I pick her up for a hello cuddle and she belches right in my face. Perhaps I have been overfeeding her just a tad. Til next time!