We have mushrooms!!

My  first try at growing mushrooms is appearing to be successful so far. I soaked this log of shiitake mushroom spores a couple of weeks ago, and put it in the greenhouse where it will get regular mistings of water...and it is going great guns.Lots of yummy mushrooms coming along nicely. So I will need to make something yummy with these.

I still have to plant my field mushroom kit down the back in the shade, but need to build a fence to keep the chickens out of them. Still lots to do to keep me busy, I need to get a lot of seedlings up and running, plant a big crop of corn, and  get some sunflowers coming along (just because they're pretty)
Damian picked the pumpkins that had grown, we only got a few off the vine, they just didn't seem to do very well this year. I also have quite a few varieties of potatoes to plant, I have had them sitting ready to plant for weeks now, but haven't got to it. I still need to paint Kasey's bed and desk, and it is right in the middle of a very busy wedding season, so I have lots of weddings coming up over the next couple of months, as well as lots of preservations to finish off.  I also need to start to put some effort in to getting a little organised for Christmas...I haven't done anything really so far this year to prepare for that...but it will all come together, so I'm not going to get my knickers in a knot over it! If I don't get things handmade, then I will just head off to the shops...or the markets, or etsy or similar...anyway...I might try and get a batch of soy candles and a batch of soap made this afternoon, and head out to the vegie garden this afternoon to do a few plantings....we'll see how we go.

Candle Making

I went to a candle making class last night. It was a soy candle class, meaning the candles are soy based, not petroleum based, so are better and nicer for burning in your home, and not releasing petro chemicals into your home, and they also burn longer than parrafin based candles.  I made a candle in a glass container which was scented with "white tea" fragrance, some melts scented with "green tea and lemongrass" fragance and gardenia scented tea light candles. I have also bought some supplies so I can make some more and practice some more.

So, something else I have been wanting to learn, crossed off the list nice and early in the new year. I have been using my home routines app on my ipad every day, and I am finding it easier and easier to follow each day, with the morning tasks only taking 15 minutes or so in the mornings to get through most of the list, which I have been doing before breakfast, which leaves just the floors to do, and washing to hang out after breakfast. I have edited the list so it is more suitable for me, and added a couple of things to it that weren't on the list. Damian wanted to add some things on to my evening list...but I said no...lol... So, I'll keep plodding along with this for now, and see how I go with it all. It is certainly keeping things much tidier here.

The chick's eye that I have been bathing is looking a lot better, and she is keeping it open much more now, so I will keep up with this until it's all better. Diesel is also going well, I think he has almost doubled in size already, and he is settling in well. I don't think he is going to be as tolerant of Kasey as Max is, but it is also good for Kasey to realise that not all dogs are as tolerant as Max is, and that she does need to exercise some care when handling different dogs. Diesel is a quiet little boy, and is more reserved than Max, but very friendly and loves a pat, just doesn't put up with as much as Max does. Not sure what the day holds for today, I have another preservation to finish off, and some flowers to order for a wedding next month, and a few other things to organise. I might take Kasey to the movies to see Yogi Bear this afternoon, we went and saw Tangled the other day, and it was really good and got us out of the heat for the day, as we have been having some really hot days here this week. On the plus side of that though, is that I finally got the mowing done yesterday, the grass was so long, but looks much better now. Still need to whipper snip and spray for weeds.  The seedlings that I planted on Sunday are starting to sprout already as well with all of this moisture and hot days we have been having. 

(lettuce coming through thick and fast)

 (corn are coming along really well, germination rate seems much better than sowing directly in to the garden)

 (some cabbage are starting to come through, the other seedling types are still to show their faces)

 (the pumpkin's are starting to come along too, yay, I have got Damian looking out for some Reo concrete mesh for me, so I can teepee the mesh and grow them up these, instead of ramling all through and taking over the rest of the vegie garden, they seem to grow better when they are suspended as well)

 Good to see people are starting to dry out here after the floods of last week, still so much to do though, and now Victoria is copping it as well....the weather is all over the place right now...hopefully it will start to settle soon.