Short week

Monday is a Public Holiday and we are glad to have a slow start.
Thomas is still not 100% so is happy having quiet lego time in the morning.
I spend the morning doing some sewing repair jobs..
John finishes filling/packing the Copper oint.
The boys do a drive into Huonville to see if the Tip shop is open. John is looking for some glass to cover our seedings. They find some and also a small window that will be wonderful in the cubby..
We have lunch and have planned to go up on the hill...
But Thomas is settled in at home again and I would like to continue with some sewing...so we opt to stay put. (a bit of a lazy decision...but that's ok)
I am enjoying listening to the Classic FM 'Top 100 Music from the Movies' countdown. Some beautiful pieces played and loads of memories of wonderful movies...
A lovely quiet night.

Back into it on Tuesday...school and work picks up as usual.
I'm not needed in Tom's class this afternoon as his teacher is away.
That's ok as there is plenty to do here.
We get orders out and then pack up copies of the 'Sunday Tasmanian' magazine that features us...sending them to family and friends..

We decide not to go to Soup night at Red Velvet . Tom is still feeling a bit grotty and John and I are tired and happy to stay at home.

Wednesday is a grey and wet day. It has rained alot of the night.
Things are pretty quiet around town today...but we have some customers in around lunchtime. One settles in do a bit of work on his laptop. Nice to share the space for a while.

 

John gets on with a Calendula/Hypericum Cream that needs making..
The afternoon passes quickly.. Paul drops by to discuss the house plans some more...
Tom has a haircut over the road and then we go up to Cowen's store in the hope of buying some new joggers...no luck.
We settle in for a quiet night in.. I enjoy a catch-up phone call to Sandra.

Thursday and its another grey one.
We have so many orders to get on with and a cream to fill today,so I don't go to garden this morning.
Lots of customers through the shop too.
Alot of them have seen the article in Sunday's paper and have come for a look.
The afternoon is quiet order-wise...so I go over to Carmel Hall for a couple of hours to help with the set up for 'Cygnet on a Plate' fundraiser. Sharon, Robyn and Kathy have been working alot of the day (all teacher/aids from St James) Liz (from garden) comes too. It is coming together well.

I head off about 4pm and Thomas decides to go over and help out for a bit..
The carpark construction continues despite the weather..

 

Thomas has great fun putting together a rocket from the kit Libby and Tim gave him.

We have a quiet night in.

Friday is grey and cool...but we are kept busy with things to do.
I wear the warm woolen skirt I finished making last night.

I notice a family of duck having an outing in the rain..across the road..

I go up to the Top Pub to have a drink with the girls after work. Lovely to catch up (if brief)
We watch another episode of Earth flight...fantastic.

Saturday we go into Hobart to do some chores.
We stop on the way to take cuttings of a Redwood (sequoia gigantium)tree near Huonville. John hopes to strike them.

Unfortunately to book stall John was going to at the Market is not there today due to the rain.
Anyway we pick up the other items we are after and head home again.
Its a grey cool wet afternoon...and we enjoy pottering doing various things. Hannah arrives in the afternoon.
We get ready to go to Cygnet on a Plate.
It is a fabulous evening of good food, lovely company and lots of fun with the silent auction...
It's great to see such a mix of people, with so many different philosophies and beliefs all coming together in support of our children's education. St James College, Cygnet Primary, Peregrine School and Cygnet Early Childhood Centre are all represented...by staff/parents and friends.
Chefs Matthew Evans, Steve Cumper, Gillian, John , Cameron and Roy create a delicious meal..including pate savouries, sourdough bread,fish cakes with saffron dressing, goat cheese and beetroot salad, salmon fillets with salsa on potato rosti, slow cooked goat, sauteed mushrooms, roast pumpkin/potato and poached pears with chocolate and crumble to finish...
St James high school students and parents from other schools are wait staff and 'man' the bar.
Local politicians including the Premier Lara Giddings served the first course..
We catch up with alot of friends/locals.

We have a bit of notoriety since our photo was in the paper last week.Nice to have Bob Brown come and chat to congratulate us on the article. I commented that it was lovely for the town of Cygnet to have statewide exposure and that many people I have spoken to have 'puffed out their chests' in pride. Bob said he and Paul did too.. nice.

 

 The chefs...being congratulated

The evening is a great success and I hope has raised alot of funds for all the schools. A lot of hands have come together to make it happen.

Thomas' Birthday this week

Sunday morning is very quiet without Thomas.
We potter about doing various jobs , then take a look around the Market. I buy a few supplies from Kate... lovely dried apricots , salted pumpkin seeds, and some spices.
I wrap up Thomas' presents and we make a nice display as a surprise.





We pick up Tom from Camp at 11.30. He is happy to see us ( pretty tired)
I bake his birthday cake when we get home...very exciting..

We go up on the hill and spend a couple of hours moving dirt from the "shack' site..It is a perfect afternoon...warm and sunny.

 

 

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 Thomas is delighted to find his friend "Possie" in the Macrocarpa

 

We head home and I get dinner on while to boys shower.
We have early dinner . Thomas has asked if he can open one present tonight. (He calls it the Nanna tradition...as we always opened our Christmas presents the night before Christmas with Susie)
He opens a DVD called Earthflight and we watch an episode.. Terrific.
Tom is very glad to snuggle down into his own bed tonight..

HAPPY 10th BIRTHDAY THOMAS!!
We have early morning present opening..followed by breakie.

Then it's off to school with Birthday Cupcakes.
John and I have a busy day of orders.
Hannah arrives mid-afternoon and gets on with study.
John lines up pressies that have come in the mail...but when Thomas arrives home, all he wants to do is head back up to school for Computer Club that starts today!!.
Finally Tom is home again at 4.30 and he does the honours...Lots of lovely thoughtful gifts...a very happy boy.
We have Chicken tenderloins, chips and salad for dinner...followed by Birthday cake.

 

A good day.

Tuesday is a busy one with orders to do. John has lots of  work to do in the lab today.
I go to Physio at 11...really good session again.
Back to work before heading up to school to help in Tom's room. We start on decorations for the Hall for "Cygnet on a Plate". Making birds to hang and peacock mural for wall.
Back to work...some orders , homework with Tom, cook dinner then I go to a Board Dinner in Huonville at The Manor House. A really nice evening.

Wednesday and it is another beautiful morning...

 But the fire is still welcome...

I keep busy with orders while John prepares for a workshop he is giving on the weekend.
A group of Anthroposphical nurses/therapists are coming Saturday and Sunday..some from Tassie and the rest from the mainland. (at the request of one of our Prescribing Therapists)
The day passes quickly.
Thomas enjoys a read in his room in the evening...

Thursday and its a lovely morning at Community garden..
There is no-one else there for quite a while..so I do some weeding. Then Liz comes out  and later Kate arrives (after her Yoga session). We really enjoy weeding and chatting...then have a cuppa together.

 

 

 

The afternoon is spent doing orders and tidying up a bit for our weekend visitors.
A nice cosy night in...watching another Earthflight episode.

Friday and during the morning the temperature drops..we have rain then sun then rain then sun....a very Tassie sort of day.Some big orders keep us busy all morning.
After closing we begin to prepare the shop for the workshop over the weekend.
The garden is looking quite wintery now with most of the leaves gone..

After dinner ,Thomas and I go to Cinema Cygnet to see 'The secret of Roan Inish'...one of my favourite movies. (John decides to stay home and have a quiet read instead).
Thomas enjoys the movie and we are home and he is in bed by 9.30pm.

Saturday brings a beautiful sunrise...

We host the workshop for a group of five Anthroposophical therapist/ nurses from Vic/Tas.
I do a tour through the building and garden to begin..
John has set up the table with various mineral samples  and holds a discussion on how they ate prepared for medicines..

 

He then demonstrates preparation of Carbo Betulae (Birch Charcoal)

Thomas and I spend a lovely morning doing a jigsaw puzzle he was given by Chris and Dewayne.

 
We all go to lunch at Lotus Eaters and enjoy each others company.
The afternoon session involves the preparation of a Calendula cream...from harvest to packing.

All enjoy the process and are in awe of the hand-making and the time involved in all the steps. John gives them all Calendula creams to take to their practises..
We finish up the day with a cuppa and cake I baked (and some 'Lotus' cakes too).
We are all feeling pretty tired so enjoy a quiet night.

Sunday and we prepare the 2nd day of workshop.
Thomas is not feeling real well. A cold is taking hold and he is very tired ...poor darling. He is happy to just lie on the floor with lego today.
This morning John is preparing a Kupfer Spiegel (copper mirror).  It is a wonderful process to observe...the chemical reactions going through many colours before the copper mirror slowly climbs the side on the beaker.

 

We all proceed outside with equipment used for cleaning the copper..

We leave it to dry out near the fire while he continues his discussion on potentising methods.
We share lunch at our table today.. bought in from Lotus again...such sumptuous curries, soups, paninis and tart/salads to delight all tastes.
Thomas however opts for hot chips!!
He spends some time doing drawing in his room..

The afternoon session involves the preparation of Copper ointment.
This time John has the workshop participants fill, seal and label the ointments..
We finish the workshop and I take care of a few orders some of them wish to purchase.
We have a cuppa together and John and I are presented with a replica sundial and a lovely card of thanks before they leave.

Thomas has taken to his bed with a book...feeling quite unwell.
We are glad to have a quiet evening together..Thomas revives enough to watch an episode of Earth flight before bedtime.
Nice to know tomorrow is a Public Holiday!!