PRE- ORDER Fleur's newest novel 'Voices in the Dark'
There comes a time in every dog’s life, when they graduate to riding in the back of the ute. Believe it or not there is a lot to learn about riding in the back of a wobbling, moving and bouncing piece of tin! We always tie our dogs on because no matter how seasoned a…
Last week, after many power outages and surges, the microwave blew up closely followed by the TV. I’m not casting any aspersions that the power caused the demise of my two electrical appliances, but it does seem coincidental. We rarely watch TV and I thought I hardly used the microwave… However not two days after…
Making hay is one of the fun things about the farm … unless you get hay fever, like I do! For the last few weeks I’ve been sneezing my head off and will continue to do so until harvest has finished. Rye grass, grain dust, normal dust and ‘fines’ (minuscule particles of…
I heard the other day, through some form of media that people seem to think that the Agricultural Shows are dying. I beg to differ. Yesterday The Boss donned his good clothes, the kids counted their pocket money and I packed my camera and we drove the 100km to the Esperance & Districts Agricultural show.…
The Esperance Show is next Friday and Saturday and without fail we are usually making hay. Many years ago, we would be showing lambs or involved with the carcass competition (both cattle and sheep), but good quality hay is now more important that anything else. Especially when the season cuts in early like it has…
Weather is such an interchangeable thing. And sometimes it changes within minutes. The boss came home for lunch today – a luxury at this time of year, what with hay making, shearing and lambs to weigh, all in the next twenty four hours. After a cup of tea and a chat, he wandered back out…
Once upon a time, there was a very cute pup named Meita. She lived on a farm that had lots of sheep. She didn’t know that one day it was going to be her job to chase them so mostly she had a lot of fun running around and playing with some human children and…
Every daughter has a special relationship with her father. Mine is no different. I love my Dad to the moon and back and I’m so proud of what he has achieved in his life and the obstacles he’s had to over come to do it. A few weeks ago, Mum and Dad flew to Alice…
Yesterday was busy to say the least. But then again, it seems that’s the norm in my world and has been for many years! We’ve got over one thousand prime lambs ready to leave this morning and tomorrow. We’re also (still) shearing and the hay is nearly ready to be cut – time for me…
I’m lucky enough to have a writing partner. He’s pretty good at what he does; he keeps my feet warm, doesn’t answer back and sits there with his head to one side listening to me argue with myself about plot points. It seems that I often bore him though. That’s when he will lie…
I’m not sure why it’s heart wrenching, incomprehensible tragedies that make us stop and look at our lives – I don’t understand why we can’t see what we have until something happens. Why have I enjoyed the hugs I’ve had from my children more this week than others? Why couldn’t I appreciate…
It’s been a busy Saturday on ‘McDonald’s Farm’, (we skip the old bit, coz we’re not there yet!) First up was the weekly crop check. It’s not only humans that like going on crop checks. The canines of love it too. They must love the feel of the leaves in their faces or something, because…
I thought I’d share some photos I’ve taken this week. It’s been a strange mix of weather: warm and humid, inky black skies and heavy drizzle. Normal spring weather. The sounds of spring are about. There is a constant buzzing – flies. There’s the bellow of sheep as we get them into the yards to…
There’s nothing more exciting for a farm kid than going on a crop inspection with dad, (more commonly known as The Boss). They get to roll in thigh-high grass, run through it with the dogs and peer into long leaves of barley/wheat/oats to see what’s hiding at the very bottom. Of course any information that…
A question I’m often asked is, ‘Why are there always colours in your book titles?’ It’s a question with many answers, but the main one for me is the colours of the land. This photo is a prime example – brilliant white sheep against dark, rich green grass and a fluorescent canola crop in…
Dogs mean everything to me; they always have. I adore their loyalty, unconditional love and the way they look like they’re smiling when they hang over the back of the ute looking into the wind. Today my old dog and ‘first child’, Rex, died and I am crying floods of tears. But I have to…
My blog has been a bit quiet on the farming side lately–only because I’ve been so busy in the sheep yards. The approaching spring is a really busy time, particularly for sheep graziers. It means flies. We’ve been running all our sheep through the jetting race, trying to head off any problems. We’ve been crutching…
Maggie MacKellar has been to hell and back in the last few years. The loss of a husband, while pregnant, then the death of a mother, would be enough to send most of us to the wall. Not Maggie. In fact she is not only my Guest author today, she’s also my Guest for…
There was a stow-away on our local school bus this week. This little joey was rescued from the pouch of a dead kangaroo and taken to Jo, a local lady who raises orphans. She also happens to drive our school bus. The kids thought it was so cool having a ‘live joey’ going to school…
‘Tilly and Tessa were twins. They looked exactly alike…’ Have you ever heard this kids story? It used to be one of my favourites when I was about three or four. Mum still groans every time I mention the book – she thinks I made her read it thousands of times. I’m sure I wouldn’t…