Wood splitting, lavender and Belle.

Bill braved the chilly morning and took himself out to do some log splitting. Check out the size of them! We kept a couple for.......mmm I wouldn't have a clue just yet, but they seemed too good to chop up. This is our BIG TREE....It was on the fence line next to the garage. It has shown no signs of life at all. We were worried that it might eventually fall on our new shedding/garage, so sadly it needed to go. Our woodpile has grown again!
If it shoots out of the remaining stump then that would be a bonus.

We think it might be time to dispose of our special garden sculpture......it keeps looking at us !!!

It was a gorgeous sunny afternoon here today and a perfect time for me to finally remove the dead lavender plants. There were 3 that survived . I dug this one up and took cuttings today. 64 in fact. I have no idea whether they will strike but I am giving it a try.... hardwood cuttings of course. I have covered the pots with plastic bags and put them on the eastern side of the house.

I even dipped the stems in honey as an extra encouragement. Wouldn't it be amazing if they all survived. 64 would be perfect for the 2 lavender walks.

I stumbled upon these sweet pea seedlings poking through the rubble that is still out there. I had planted them along the northern side of the stable/potting shed a few years ago and they just pop up again every year........including this one. I dug them up and relocated them to the rose garden to climb up the wire fence in there.

Does anyone else get excited by what appears to be two dead sticks that arrive in the mail?  I can't wait to find a spot for these two sticks tomorrow.

 And the anticipation of what they will become is also very exciting.

They are both new plants for me..... 

 Persimmon and Wintersweet.

Here is a look at all the completed granny squares so far. Not sure how many I will do but I want to start something new. I'll probably have both on the go at the same time.

I  found this bundle in my sewing cupboard ( fancy that!!!) and it will be perfect for a Winter quilt.

 I won't mention how many times I will need to sort though it and gaze at it before I even start anything!

 It is called Belle by Amy Butler. 

Cyclamen,strawberries and the White wedding.

Michelle, your cyclamen is still blooming it's head off as though you dropped it off here yesterday! It has been such a welcome pop of colour at our back door. Thank you.

Now we know how Sam felt when he was doing FIFO (fly in fly out). 5 days on and 5 days off. We have had another visit to Mum and Dad's.
They still require full-time care at the moment. It has been just over 4 weeks since Mum's operation...May 12. 

The completed ramp looks fabulous and it makes their lives so much easier.
We stayed outside at every opportunity to make the most of the glorious Wimmera sunshine.

This is Olwyn.
She invited us out to her place to dig up some strawberry plants......there was a huge patch of them.
I wore her gumboots and immediately felt right at home. Can't fathom why I don't already own a pair of my own.
 She has a very productive country garden about 8km from Mum and Dad's.  She shares her produce with all the townsfolk. Strawberries, oranges, lemons, passionfruit, tomatoes....
She then invited us in for pikelets and tea. 
A very kind lady.

And some more Bali wedding photos..........they all make me smile.