After the butcher bird family spent all of last week in the front yard, especially around the bird bath outside our study window when it was hot, they’ve moved out to our back yard (see the young’un above checking out one of the water bowls in an old tree stump in our back garden) and other gardens around ours. The parents certainly teach their young well!

This week we have wattle birds, magpies, a crow and a young kookaburra (see above) hanging around the bird bath.

Our garden is a place of gifts, including the new plants that we planted last spring. With watering each evening, they have survived summer so far:-)

And the daily visits from the red-tailed and white-tailed black cockatoos to feed in our many trees are a great source of joy:-)

Australia Day aka Elwyn’s birthday this year was a quiet one. The heat of 40 degrees every day for over a week has quietened everyone down, including us. So we had a quiet day at home in the aircon, apart from when we went to the local cinema to watch The Descendants in the aircon. Good story!

Tonight we walked up the road to join a few other local residents to watch the fireworks. As luck would have it the lightening arrived at the same time, so God and man joined in making a spectacular display. This photo from Matt Titmaniscaptures it beautifully.

“God’s fireworks” is the name given to lightening by a friend of ours:-)

It’s 40 degrees today in the shade, and the butcher bird family is keeping very close to the bird bath just outside our study window. Here is one of the parents with one of the young’uns:-)

View from Dusky Dolphin in Pig Trough as we enjoyed our drinks at the end of the day.

Yesterday was another mile-stone in the knee recovery journey. Not only did I walk all the way out the “Dusky Dolphin”, I also set up the cabin with our food and gear for overnight on the boat, got up to the bow for the first time since the first knee replacement in June, did the bow ropes when we left the pen (and dropped the boat hook overboard but the kind man on the boat opposite rescued it for me), with Rob got the boat here for the night, AND worked out how to get into our tiny bunk-room without hurting my knees (good thing I got a good bend in both knees!) so we could sleep together.

This morning the reward was being able to potter around the boat together while she was moored in this lovely place.

It’s a good weekend:-)

Well it mightn’t look like real bush, but compared to sitting around INSIDE nursing my knees, or conscientiously doing my rehab INSIDE, at least walking for half an hour this morning in Kings Park was OUTSIDE (in 30 degree heat!). Clockwise from top: Rob waiting (he’s done heaps of that the past year) in the avenue of gum trees that look out over the Swan River; bush around the fake granite rock garden; my faithful trekking pole resting against one of the gum trees where I enjoy a good leg muscle stretch after my walks. All favourite places and I am SOOOO very glad to be back in them:-)

Today Shadowfax aka gofer returned home. My dear friend Kerry who loaned this godsend to me came and picked it up today, to take it back to her place and find a new home for it. I got Rob to take this last photo of it because I’ve got very fond of this little steed as it’s transported me around when I couldn’t walk since last July.

Farewell and all the best, little one!

When I sat down at my desk this morning, after we’d seen the family off, I found this – Thea had been showing off her writing skills.

Last night we’d gathered for dinner, Tristan and Blaine, Tom and Thea, Jeanette and Christopher. Tristan has been quite sick, a return of his asthma that he’s had on and off since he was a baby. And we’ve all been worried about him. So to celebrate his move to a healthier life style, and to see him and his lovely little family off to their holiday in Thailand, we had a great noisy meal together, and chatty evening, and a playful breakfast at Zamia this morning followed by time in the playground.

It was one of those times, of which we are blessed with many in our family (I’m thinking of my year just past when they all gathered around me in my illness), when we gather to give extra love to one of our own. As I learn more about how my Dad’s family worked, we have made a fair reproduction of this pattern which Dad enjoyed.

Life is good:-)

Today we have been blessed with many visitors to our garden. The red-tailed and white-tailed black cockatoos have been through and eaten from the flowers in our big trees. The family of butcher birds, which has taken almost 2 years to rebuild after we lost so many birds in the hail storm of March 2010, brought their 2 young’uns to have a feed and drink in our garden. As I sat at my desk I spied one of youngsters alight on the bird bath. It was drinking until a wasp came to drink too. The wasp freaked it, and it watched the insect closely for a little while, then flew off. A “28 parrot”, a rare visitor to the bird bath, came to drink too after the others had left. Yesterday a magpie lark came to drink here. It was going well until one of the resident wattle birds decided that it wasn’t allowed in the bird bath and chased it away!

It’s a hot day here and it’s good to be giving our precious birds food and drink as they need it:-)

Tonight we had the pleasure of babysitting Tom and Thea, while Tris and Blaine had a much-needed “date” night out.

When he wasn’t reading his Zac Power book on a kindle, Tom really enjoyed their bubble bath. Thea found the old farm tractor that they both used to play with when they were smaller – I hadn’t been able to let go that one because it was the toy they both played with the most by far. And it’s still as much fun as it used to be! And she made great creations with her new play dough.

They are delightful children, a credit to Tristan and Blaine. We are very blessed to have them in our lives:-)

This morning, for the last time, I rode my gofer (“Shadowfax”) to the rehab clinic, to Zamia for writing time, and home again. We’ve had fun together, Shadowfax and I. And he has been a most faithful companion through the long months of disability with my knee renewals, keeping my knees safe and they’ve recovered.

When Rob put him away in his stable (see above) for the last time tonight, I silently thanked this steed, and my dear friend Kerry who lent him to me, for the good times we’ve enjoyed.