The wooden bench seat

It's always been there.

It's the seat you'd go to if the outdoor chairs were already occupied.

Or, if you felt like putting your feet up, that's where you'd put them.

It's just a plank of thick timber that fits between the two veranda poles.

It used to balance on old kerosene tins at either end, but Pa must have refurbished it at some stage ( tins probably rusted out ) and replaced the tins with some piping hammered into the ground.

He was a plumber. There was always pipe lying around.

Every one of us would have taken a seat there at one time or another.

It's been there as long as we can remember.

We were just wanting to update this snap of the older cousins.

Instead, we ended up with a snap of a different kind!

So funny.

Not so funny for Marce who is 20 weeks pregnant, but she assured us she was perfectly fine.

Take Two....

Take Three....

We let Pa know about it too......

It was a great day.

Thank you Den for cooking for all of us on such a hot day.

Thanks Aunty Raylene for your fresh fruit salad.

Thanks Marce.... it's never quite the same without the cauliflower and cheese.

And to Ben and Uncle Bill for doing the dishes.

So good to have Ben home for Christmas.

All out in the back yard after lunch for water shenanigans....water pistols, water balloons and finally, the big guns.....buckets!

Notice the very much intact wooden bench seat ( at that stage ).

Christmas mail for our little ones in Perth.

So precious. We adore them.

Sam received a toy drone for Christmas.

Yep, I've got this.....

Let's give it a go outside now.

And much to everyone's horror, it floated off into the horizon!

The search was called off for that day, but resumed early next morning by Farmer Bill who traipsed the back paddocks before heading off for Christmas Day. Still no luck.

We returned on Boxing Day and Sam began the search again.

Then, lo and behold, there it was.....Sam is waving in the distance. We are standing at our back fence. Like finding a needle in a haystack.

Helen gave Amy some Lego ( Amy's annual Christmas list request ).

It's a fishing bait store. Perfect.

I managed to find a use for the rusty tin and the dried flowers......

Claire and Sara came up for an afternoon of foraging and wreathing with Helen. Their wreaths looked fabulous.

Claire made this one for us and it still looks gorgeous in its dry form.

I made some too....

My little roadside flower stall is taking a break for the holidays.

It's way too hot for the flowers on the side of the road.

But before we closed up shop, we sold heaps of jars of flowers.

Helen came to the rescue when we needed to restock.

We came home to find two special visitors to Frogpond Farm yesterday.

This little bubba....

......and her Mum.

Sadly, we have no idea where they are today, but we're hoping they have found somewhere cool and safe.

Christmas catch up day in Geelong.

Thank you everyone for your birthday and Christmas messages, gifts, cards and notes. And if you've somehow worked out how to leave a message on here then go you!!!! They are very much appreciated too.

Thank you Mima.

Thank you Teahne.

Thank you Rhonda.

Cherries from our tree....Farmer Bill's netting did the trick. 

A day at Dixie.

We hope that 2019 gives you lots to smile about.......

Some new plants for the Rose Garden. The beginning of the 2019 collection. Can't help myself.