Fiesty Friday

Sometimes i just sit and watch the show..some days it is just what the Dr ordered..between vet visit after vet visit and a load of work on the property i just need some me time.
I hope you enjoy the show as much as i did..take note of how the bigger roo put paid to the youngen’s silliness..well for a little while anyway 🙂
Off to dinner tonight so will catch up soon..

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Wags and Waves for Forrest

Our precious Forrest left us recently and my dear friend Sharon from Gentle Stitches came up with a Wags and Waves tribute day..she has been helped by another dear friend and fellow blogger Pam from One spoiled Cat  who made a beautiful badge for Forrest’s day.

Sharon has made a donation to a local shelter in Forrest’s name and Pam is having a commentathon and donating to a local rescue $1 dollar per comment.

Today is also Pam and Sammy’s 5 year blogaversary so we wish them even more years of wonderful blogs that entertain and keep us all smiling when we may feel a bit down.

The weekend before we said goodbye to our boy we had family come from far and wide.

I spoke to the kids and asked if they would mind helping me to honor our boy and they were all more than happy to help.

All our children and their partners were asked to either think of one word or some words that they thought of when they thought of Forrest..we had a photo shoot and it was just a natural thing to spend some fun time with Forrest..we cried we laughed and we all paid tribute to our pup.

The kids were all young when he first came to our home..16 18 and 20..times flies..

Please enjoy this little slideshow and pop over and say hi to all the waggers and wavers today.

Thankyou for your love and support our family has truly felt that our family here has been so well loved and our pup so well honored..

Loves Fozziemum

 

 

 

 

 

Extended Summer

Well as you may be aware our weather worldwide seems a tad funky!

Snow in Spring for some folks and here the never ending Summer.

This sounds ideal i suppose but to a parched land it is a bummer.

We have a running argument with the weather girl over her ‘rain forecast’ on a nightly basis it seems..in fact i am ready to get my rain dance gear on..frightening!

I spent Saturday at the BACWS taking photos of the kitties up for adoption this is such a hard thing to do..i could easily take them home..but alas that is how the whole hoarding problem starts.

So i have some work to do on those images and it has been a challenge as so many do not want to say hello..they are scared or hesitant and you cannot blame them ..they have been let down by society and it takes time and patience..so last weekend i did not get a lot of shots as i will not push their limits…i won’t ever force an animal into a situation..i can get shots another day..que sera sera 🙂

So as i head to bed i will leave you with some bright pictures of florals..hoping they cheer your Monday blues 🙂

Hugs Fozziemum

 

Grape Hyacinth

 

Rosebuds

 

 

 

Hydrangea

 

Apricot Dahlia

 

Fronds hidden in fern

 

 

Purple Dahlia

 

 

Russet Dahlia

Pink Dahlia

 

 

New Visitors welcome

Well belated Happy Easter to all..i hope everyone had a lovely time and got some relaxing in!

I hinted at a new visitor that had been spotted here on our property and i am now going to introduce you!

We have been here 5 years in August and this is the first time ever i have seen a Wallaby here..i cannot even begin to tell you how thrilled i was and especially as the visit came on the heels of a really sad day.

We had the Wildlife rescue out to sadly PTS a Kangaroo..he had a broken leg and had been eluding the folks in the street for two days..despite his serious injury the poor thing managed to get away each time.

I had no idea..i had been shooting a sweet family and then heard the news that this was about to happen.

The kindest thing to do is to end an animals suffering but i will never get used to the sound of a gunshot.

I was of course a mess..in tears and feeling miserable so i went for a wander with my camera.

A bit of nature therapy..i had not gotten far from the house when i spotted him..the Wallaby..my heart skipped a beat ,and as much as i wanted to clap my hands in the way that has hubby always laughing at me , i had to concentrate as i was scared my little visitor would leave!

I grabbed some shots and he took off but the next day he was back and hubby and i both got to spend some lovely time with him as he chowed down on those Hedge Wattles i despise!

Not only a beauty but also my new BFF for helping get rid of these rotten thorny beasts!

First some facts 🙂

.. The Swamp Wallaby (Wallabia bicolor) a small macropod marsupial of eastern Australia.

This sweet wallaby is also known (mainly here in Victoria) as the Black faced Wallaby, the black tailed wallaby, stinker (QLD), black stinker (NSW) due to it’s characteristic swampy odour,fern wallaby,black wallaby, and black pademelon.

The Swamp Wallaby is the only living member of the genus Wallabia.

The bicolor comes from the varied color that they have.

Typical grey coat of macropods varied with dark brown to black region on the back and light yellow to rufous orange on the chest.A light colored cheek stripe is usually present and extremities of the body generally show darker coloring except the tail tip which is often white.

Their gait is also different to other wallabies as they carry their head low and tail out straight.

The average length (height) is about 30″ or 76cm for males and 27.5″ or 70cm for females.

The tail in both sexes is approx equal in length to the rest of the body.

Average weight for males 37lb (17kg) and females 29lb (13kg)

They become of breeding age around 15-18  months and breed throughout the year.

Gestation is 33-38 days and leads to a single young which is carried in the pouch for 8-9 months but will continue to suckle until about 15 months.

The Black faced Wallaby is usually a solitary animal but will aggregate in groups when feeding.

They will eat a wide range of food plants shrubs pasture and native and exotic vegetation and seem to be able to tolerate plants poisonous to others such as brackens and lantana.

Rather than grazing like Kangaroos they prefer to browse shrubs which is unusual in wallabies and macropods who prefer to graze.

Their tooth structure means their molars differ from other wallabies in that they are designed for browsing and their 4th premolar they keep for life and it is shaped for cutting coarse plant matter (ie.that hedge wattle!)

Several characteristics both physical and behavioral make the Black faced wallaby different enough from other wallabies to place it in it’s own genus Wallabia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swamp_wallaby

And  now please welcome Wally who i hope feels safe and at home here on  our 11 acres, for awhile at least..get ready to squee as he is adorable 🙂 and yes a boy..i checked 😉

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summers End

Well what can i say..Summer left a few weeks ago..it left us with Autumn..slightly less relenting on heat but my energy has been zapped!

So many things have happened here and in the blog world and i know i will never catch up..and yes it seems to be my byline!

I have seen that many bloggers have experienced losses..this is so very sad and of course like life is always something we are not quite prepared for.

I have missed celebrations and commiserations but know i have felt them all.

I got to a point where i felt i had nothing to blog about and the longer i have left it the harder it has been.

Just starting seemed a daunting task!

And so as a tentative dabble back to a forum i love and have missed i want to share with you the last remnants of the Summer that nearly killed my spirit.

I planted almost as a joke some old sunflower seeds i had sat on the porch and carefully pulled from flowers i had grown two years ago.

They had sat in a box waiting for me to find some time for some frivolous gardening.

Nothing here is ever frivolous! hubby had made me some garden beds out back to try and bring more color to our grey/brown/parched world and as the new plants were popped in i threw these seeds in the ground behind them.

The idea being maybe they would offer the new plants some protection.

Well i did this so late in the season i expected not much to happen,in fact i had forgotten about them when they all started to shoot.

Thanks to our Summer refusing to let it’s heat go peacefully the Sunflowers thrived.

Hence the reason i have magnificent Sunflowers when i should have none at all.

I guess Summer decided to give me something to smile about.

Thankyou all for your patience with my 3 month abscence, it’s a long time and i hope these images from my garden can go some way to saying how much you all mean to me .

Christmas in Australia

Well hello guys and yes i have been awol..the heat over Christmas has been atrocious and the weather such that more often than not the computer is packed and ready to go .

This has left me struggling with a small phone and fat fingers so blogging is a real chore.

I will of course be doing a slide show of thanks for the gifts and cards we have received..i feel awful as i am behind but needs must.

Christmas in our beautiful country can be quite brutal and this year has been no exception, i understand in the USA the weather has been warmer than usual and tornados have been taking a toll on homes and tragically lives..places usually covered in snow are warm and dry .

In England the weather i see has caused flooding also .it seems Mother Nature has thrown us all a curveball.

On Christmas day the  Victorian seaside towns of Wye River and Separation Creek were hit by bushfires

Respectively 98 and 18 homes were lost..people were spared thankfully but the toll on the communities is high.

People flock to this are in summer and the tourism is vital for the community. The fire is still going and some areas are only accessible to emergency services and the residents.

For me i can only imagine losing everything..living in the bush it is a fear we live with not only in summer but year round it seems ..our landscape is parched.

When the 2009 fires hit the paddocks for weeks had been  red as if burnt by the heat and sun we knew we were in trouble so burnt already they looked ..this year they have looked like that for weeks and we are only in December.

My heart is broken at the huge toll on wildlife.The losses of Koalas,Kangaroos,Possums,Birds,Reptiles Wombats,Echidnas..awful just awful..and the injured wildlife is flooding in..it will for a long time as they find their way from burnt bush and into areas unfamiliar to them..

I love the bush but i am losing my stomach for the devastation and fear.

This is something hubby and i have been discussing for awhile..how many more years spent waiting to watch the bush burn.packing and unpacking ..in heat .

What people do not mention is the alert fatigue..a very real and very dangerous phenomenon,you see we get alerts to fires in our area..we get radio alerts ,mobile phone alerts,we see the warnings about bad days..the day we had our family Christmas we were warned was to be one level down from catastrophic..we had to go..we did what we could but our day was cut short by our minds being elsewhere.

And when you get these alerts day after day..then maybe nothing happens and then a fire starts and you are active and then it is ok..or you leave with all your animals and drive around and it is ok..well you get tired..physically and mentally.This is the danger..you think oh it will be fine..and maybe it isn’t.

When you do this mind you you are hot..usually insanely hot,in denim jeans,shirts boots etc..and it is a killer.But so is ignoring it.

The day after our family get together we were exhausted..i wen to bed and got up at midnight..headed back to bed..adrenaline gone…heat still foul..45C or 113F day after day..in denim..in boots.well you get the idea.

Now our pups are 12 and 13..and we have made the decision that when they leave us we are gone..we can’t do this year in and out..this poses our second dilema..the sheep..now the move here nearly killed them..sheep do not travel 3 hours well and they are old..9 this year..what do we do..we can’t move them interstate it would kill them for sure, but  they are family..so this is also a situation we need to consider..

It is a lovely life..it’s quiet and the town is beautiful..we have no neighbours and the wildlife is amazing..but i  dread Summer..i dread being caught watching the bush burn ..

For now i am here and as such we are doing our best to keep us all safe..i am going to be a bit awol for awhile as i am getting the sewing machine out to make mittens for Koalas with burns..as Pepi Smart dogs Mum Michele has shared the pattern and shared that the call has gone out for them and pouches for Kangaroos..

So please will you send some POTP big time to the people who have lost their homes and also to the poor creatures that have been caught in this hideous fire which has burnt through thousands of hectares..this is a very early start to our fire season and New Years eve is also starting to be of concern..i send my thoughts to all people and animals caught in Mother Natures path at the moment..

Thanks for your patience with me guys..Loves Fozziemum xxx

 

My roos are safe here for now

Filaments that hold strength

Fine filaments..soft and light..

On their own they hold no weight..can carry no burden..can not be powerful..

Floating at the whim of the breeze they seem unable to control their destination..

Caught on objects as they are swept up in a tide they cannot hold back..

Powerless..rudderless and at the mercy of their environment..

But look closely..you see more..you see others with them..holding tight ..banding together..these filaments of strength..

And then the beauty of strength ,even in seemingly hopeless circumstances , is revealed..and they are free..taking wing being lifted to freedom..

My love and prayers are with the French people today as they try and find the filaments of strength to again take flight in freedom..

Busy Bees a buzzing

Well i am finally get back into the swing of things..and i must say i will NEVER catch up so i am visiting as best i can..

I have been spending my time getting myself ready for my first market..now this was a feat and a half..you must have certain criteria and forms needed to be filled and i was so happy when i was allocated a stall at the Maldon Market.

This town is so sweet and i visit there often, it is just a short trip from here and has beautiful old buildings and gardens and a Christmas shop that is open all year to thrill you with pretty images.

Now to ready myself i had to get busy..i needed so many things done and not just on my actual products but the stall set up and presentation..not a hard ask for a Virgo i must say..one thing we do well is Fru Fru 🙂

But also the logisitics of moving everything and getting a marquee.We were going to borrow one and then got a great deal on one so decided this was a better option..

So hubby and i set up a practice run in the backyard..now you can imagine..cats..dogs..sheesh..i had fur in everything..it seemed everytime i framed a print a fur would arrive..redo again and again..i was starting to see fur everywhere..

Items i ordered did not arrive in time so mad dashes around town ensued..and packaging and cataloging and well you get the idea!

During all the production line work ,which hubby was an amazing help ,with i had several trips for MRI’s and Xrays..i had a mole frozen off my back and have had a cortisone shot in my bursa for an unrelenting hip pain..so i have been all over the shop ..

I stopped the car down the driveway one morning when i noticed that i was not the only one busy..a hive of bees had formed on a small shrub,directly in line with a gum tree that had a hollow which the bees had been living in..they were going from this to the shrub..it was a great chance to stop myself buzzing and watch them.

Industrious and non complaining what amazing creatures and i felt so lucky that we have them here..a great sign when their populations are threatened by chemical spraying.

Well i got through all the work..some last minute dramas and we were ready! the cars were packed with all my things and hubby and i set off ..he with the farm gates that i was using for display and the tables and marquee..me with my work..

So i was behind him and a roo just missed jumping right in front of him..early morning a bad time as is dusk..i saw just the tail and butt and a dust cloud from where he took off back into the scrub.

The  hubby pulls into the service station..his panel van was overheating..really today..

We arrived set up in our area and i had my first sale before the market even opened! I was amazed..the lady loved the framed print of the dewdrops on the dry leaf and that was it..sold.

People were so lovely ,interested in my work and how i did it and not only that they wanted to know if i would be back again..i could not believe how well it all went.

People were surprised i was the person who took the photos..maybe people buy work and sell it ..who knows..

At the end of the day i was pooped..i had been so busy in the lead up and the late night early wake up had caught up..but i did well really well..i am still gobsmacked really.

And it was great to see what people really love..and to hear what appeals to them..i look forward to the next market and hope i have as much fun..and as much as it was lovely to sell things and make money from what i have done it was more rewarding that people actually loved my work..please enjoy my busy bee life with me and have a great day..

*Thoughts go out today to Stu and his family at this tough time..we are rooting for you little guy…*

 

The new hive which left two days later

 

A hive of activity

 

 

The source of the bees

 

 

 

Setting up at the market

 

My displays

 

More displays

 

This is Roy..his peeps stopped by for a look at my stall

 

He is two and quite the poser

 

 

 

Look at that face..think he was after the water i had out for doggies

 

 

 

This is Ron..his peep helps organise at the market

 

 

 

Ron is 12 and quite the man about town

 

He had plans on being elsewhere i think

Sometimes this is all you can do

So excited about giving my cards away folks.. you still have until Wednesday to comment and go in the draw! so go for it..my lens bag is filling fast 🙂

http://dinz1234.com/2015/09/09/well-it-was-on-the-cards/

I am super  busy with preparations for getting my cards out there..spending a good part of morning until 2am working through various things.

Funny as i will have to order more as all the sets i ordered i am giving away..so will be great to hear what people think.

This week will be a bit crazy..i will be on here with my winners on Wednesday and apart from that i do not know..

We are all healthy , pets included but some things are happening that require me to spend less time online for a little while.

I even have to step away from my photography this week i think too..

Changes can come when we least expect them and the timing for some things could not be worse..but this is life and as always we regroup and get on with it.

So please remember to enter the draw and do not worry …i will be popping in as often as i can..it is just a week that needs me to be present..

And i think my little friend here pretty much sums up how i feel 🙂

Have a great week guys..hugs Fozziemum

 

Those leaps into the unknown..come jump with me

Hi guys..well i have worked hard ..really hard and have finally taken the plunge..

Soon some exciting things will be happening..and I am so proud of myself ..albeit a scary ride!

I have nitty gritties to work out and some more wrangling of mundane aspects of my new venture but i am getting there!

All of you have been so supportive of my photography..my bumbling attempts and my various trials and tribulations.

Nothing but lovely compliments that have made me feel humbled and loved..

All i ever wanted was to have people feel as if they too were beside me as i captured the images that made me happy..

So to say thankyou i will be having a little surprise give away..i will reveal details later and i hope you all enter for your chance to win..

So that is a bit of a teaser..for now i have a procedure in the morning and due to the lack of food…the intake of vile liquids..i will be awol.

I am off to drink some more chicken broth and eat some more Jelly (Jello)..urghhh

Hugs Fozziemum

 

Aim for the sky