I feel so guilty.

These little suckers caused my healthy eating to fly out the window. 

But...

GOSH they were good!!

:D

Vanilla Cupcakes with butter icing.

I made them last night. 

Instead of using sour cream and cow's milk, I used natural yoghurt and my goat's milk.

They turned out fluffy and moist (don't you just love that word!! hehe). And the icing was gorgeous.

I'll just have to work extra hard tomorrow to burn off those calories, and perhaps eat plenty of raw veg!

:) 

Fantails are the cutest of dudes.

They never sit still, constantly flitting from here to there. And cheeky!
If a door is left open they will fly inside, have a good nosy then scoot out again much to the indignation of the cats.


This wee chap made himself useful by pecking the spiders on the weatherboards.


I got so close to him that I could have reached out and pulled a feather.

less is more...

that's the june/july photo challenge

Snow Teddy

On the sixth day of winter my true love said to me...

Six inches and growing!!

 

milking the goat

Heidi the Saanen goat.

A few years ago I stopped milking Heidi because I couldn't bring myself to remove her babies. 

And share-milking with greedy goat kids was hopeless.

Last year, Heidi started to produce milk.

There was no way she was pregnant as we'd sold all our other goats and she absolutely detested the sheep ram.

Goats are superior, you know! 

I milk two litres from her every second day.

Heidi's milk feeds five cats, one dog and, unbeknown to him, my boy. I also make my yummy porridge with it as well.

One day, I made the mistake of giving Matty a glass of goat milk while it was still warm. He knew straight away what it was and refused to drink anymore. Now I secretly pour it for him from the fridge! hehe 

I don't know if it was false pregnancy or spontaneous lactation, but I do hope Heidi keeps it up.

Why does the sound of glass shattering make people quickly turn their heads?

Today as I left The Warehouse, I dropped a large glass cookie jar.

It seemed to happen in slow motion...the fall to the floor...the phew! moment when it bounced unscathed...then the almighty...SMASH!

gulp!

A young shop assistant scurried over. 

"Don't worry," she said. "Go and choose another one."

Talk about doing the walk of shame.

The jars were at the far end of the shop, and I'm sure everyone's eyes bored into me. 

I was the colour of beetroot.
:(

The new cookie jar made it safely home, and he's waiting to be filled!

Mmmmm...

Perhaps some Chocolate Melt cookies, or some Anzacs.

Yum Yum

:)

After a day of battling Nor'west Wind, my sheets are finally dry.

That grumpy old wind did his best by throwing them on the lawn (just missing the chicken poo) or twisting them tightly round and round the line.

But I didn't give up. And now they're back in bed.

I can't wait for beddybye time. It's the bestest feeling snuggling between clean fluffy sheets.

:)

Baby Pigeon was murdered!

When the pigeons nested in our truck shed, several weeks ago, I thought I was so lucky. 

Every day I'd pop in and say hello. 

Mrs Pigeon would stare down at me as she sat on her egg. 

Mr Pigeon was goodness knows where. He'd disappeared after the deed was done. 

Then one night I heard cheep cheep cheep. Yay, Baby Pigeon had hatched.

I wanted to lean a ladder against the wall and take a peek. But didn't dare for fear of upsetting the works.

The noise at feeding time was incredible. I'd stand outside the shed to listen because if Mrs Pigeon saw me she'd let out a short, deep coo and Baby Pigeon would instantly go quiet.

Oh, I wish my kids were that obedient!

Yesterday, Mrs Pigeon was perched on the bracing near her nest. How strange, I thought. Next thing, she flew outside. 

I couldn't resist. I ran and grabbed the old wooden ladder.

After a shaky climb to the top, I peered into the nest. Baby Pigeon lay there...dead.

Gently, I pulled her out. I was amazed at how big she was. Nearly the size of an adult and nearly fully feathered. There was a gaping hole in her back.

Who could have done this?

Cat or Rat?

My first thought was Rat. It could have easily scuttled along the bracing. But would a rat kill a bird so big?

Next thought...Cat. 

I visualised how it could reach the nest. It would have been a nimble puss to achieve that. 

After a few tears I texted Man-slave. His reply was:

'There were cat paw prints on the bonnet of the ute.'

To avoid the frost he'd parked the ute in the shed, right under the nest. 

Cat!

:(

Today Mr and Mrs Pigeon were perched together on the power pole. 

I hope they will try again.

I forgot these were in the camera.

Back in March, my man and I had a very special lunch in the new 'container mall' in Christchurch.

I thought the containers looked neat. They were multi-level and vibrant coloured with decks and banisters. And they felt safe.

Thankfully Mother Nature must have been having a rest as there was not one wobble.

At the Crafted Coffee Company, we sat overlooking the courtyard and ate delicious chicken filo and salad. 

Entertainment was a young long-haired busker and his electric guitar. As much as I love electric guitars, we found it annoyingly loud when trying to talk. Even the waiter wished the musician would leave.

Another source of amusement was a feathery fiend stealing a lady's lunch.

While waiting for her order, the middle-aged lady left her table to chat to someone she obviously knew. A waiter appeared with a burger and fries. He put them on the lady's table. As he left, a cheeky seagull dived in and wrecked havoc, grabbing beakfuls of food and spreading it everywhere.

Ah ha! A photo opportunity! 

But as I fumbled with the focus a commotion broke out. 

People had realised what was happening.

The lady rushed back.

She angrily shooed the seagull away then stomped red-faced into the cafe container. 

Moments later several waiters zoomed out and frantically cleared the mess. 

This time the lady stayed seated and soon a fresh burger and fries arrived. 

I must admit I felt sorry for the seagull. And a bit annoyed that I'd missed out on a photo.   

But, just then, a wee friend joined us for lunch. :)

explicit detail #3

explicit detail?

I don't think so.


You know they're bubbles, but you don't know what is causing them. So it's not 'explicit'.


I've just learnt that today.
:)


Guess what the bubbles are from.


~

UPDATE: ahhhh The photography tutor has been 'explicit' in what he means... 


The detailed part could be something like you do not know what it is - but "whoa" it stands out alright!

So maybe my bubbles are explicit detail afterall.


I still think they're pretty. 


:)