A chill in the air...

Sunday and I soon realise when on my walk , that it will not be market day today..The signs are not out and we check the calender and see its the 5th Sunday. Markets only run on 1st and 3rd.

The Asian vege stallholders have arrived anyway...

We potter for a bit in the morning..The boys get their Coffee/Hot Choc fix...and I do some vege shopping.
John wants to go looking for some coarse sand and a plant called Petasites...that someone told him is growing at Sandy Bay..so we head out and take the old Huon/Hobart road.. A very pretty drive. We stop at a landscape supplier and buy the sand..then on to take a look at Greenhills Nursery (for future reference)..It's pretty chilly out...and we can see snow on Sleeping Beauty and Mount Wellington.

We drive up through Fern Tree then decide to do Mt Wellington summit....Tom is very excited to see it snowing as we reach the top. Lots of powdery snow and Tom and I delight in a little snowball throwing...We take a fairly quick walk about and soon head back to the warmth of the car...

We stop down in South Hobart for a bite to eat and have a stroll up the street to look in the windows of interesting shops. Thomas is always on the lookout for seeds since we did our Oak and Chestnut collecting... He and John soon get busy picking up some lovely seeds on the footpath..with plans to plant then this afternoon.

We drive over to Sandy Bay and look for the Petasites...but it is not where John was told it would be...sad..
Oh well...head home for a snooze..
John and Tom get on with plantings and I do a bit more sewing and take a load of washing over to the laundromat to dryers...

I notice Matthew Evans is preparing a meal at the Old Bank B&B as I walk by...there is a long table set and he is hovering around looking busy...
We enjoy pumpkin soup and bread for dinner and settle in with the fire going...making it a cosy evening.
Tom and I make a Wholefood Brownie recipe...its pretty rugged...not real sweet and very chocolaty. (It would remind Aaron of my Organic chocolate muffins!!...he was not impressed). Well..so much for my venture into wholefood cookery..

Monday and its very fresh out. I strike frost as I cross the footbridge at Burton's Reserve...its very slippery underfoot.

I aways feel such a thrill to see swans flying overhead.

Tom goes to school in winter uniform today...so out comes the tie !! Oh joy.. he thinks!!
John gets the fire going first thing in the shop...as it is cool in the flat we gravitate to the shop while we have our breakfast..

John and I have orders and customers throughout the morning. Dave the chef from Peppermint Bay drops in with some friends from Melbourne to show them the shop. We have a chat about a contact person he knows who may have plants we need.
John makes up a new cream for an order from Lismore Acupuncture Clinic and I get the label made up and printed.
The day isn't warming up alot.. I take  walk up to the post to get warm...but end up coming back and putting more layers on...Brrrr.
Conor our local Irishman comes in for a chat. He was born in a small town called Abbeyfeale in County Limerick.. and has seen alot of Australia. He worked with a Circus for awhile and visited lots of small towns, worked in the mines in Qld and rode a motorbike up to Cooktown...interesting.
We have a really busy afternoon with a few large orders and customers too

...I even sell my first handmade hat to a couple from Surges Bay (across the river) who are travelling to NZ and wanted to take gifts. ( They also bought a Sphagni Rose..and a book.)
Tom is keen to get to scouts and John is busy rigging up a makeshift  mini glasshouse to protect some special plants from frost...so I walk Tom down to Burton's reserve.

We have a cosy night at home.

Tuesday and its not so cold out this morning. There is a lovely display in the shop across the road...now called "Trove".

John gets away about 7.45 to head to Greenhills Nursery in search of sugar Maples.
Tom and I get on with the morning chores (after breakfast with friend)

I get started on some orders ..Tom goes happily off to school.
I also get a rye soughdough baking for lunch...yumm

John arrives back happy with his purchases and we get stuck into some big orders that keep us busy beyond lunchtime.

Its a quieter afternoon, so we potter about doing various jobs..
Tom has ballgames after school again today...He really loves it.
Lovely to see Tom snuggled up in his bed at night...

Wednesday and its a cool start....and the events of last night unfold... I am now a Great-Aunt to Edward Bowman...congrats to all.

Pa had a fall yesterday and X-ray results late last night reveal a fracture...

After discussion with John, I decide to fly to Sydney today to support Libby over the next few days.

Pa is due for surgery on Thursday morning....

Thursday and Libby and I await Pa's return from surgery...an anxious wait.

So glad to have this time shared with Libby. We sit in a lounge area and where there is an incredible view from 10th floor ..(I can't help being the 'tourist' and taking a photo)

Pa comes through surgery well and now the long road to recovery begins..