There are good times ahead

I am really pleased to see so many readers joining the tote bag swap. It's a way of connecting with others in this wonderful blog community and of having a bit of fun getting to know your swap partner. The end result of developing sewing skills, and then using your handmade tote bag, is the icing on the cake. If you have been too shy to join, or you're unsure of your sewing skills, give it a go. If you have any problems, just post a question in the comments and I'm sure there will be many of us who will help you through.

The move went smoothly and almost everything is packed away again. I worked yesterday and felt really satisfied and happy that the house is beginning to feel like a real home. We made plans for the garden and a new car park, I hooked up the computers again, the phones are working, the internet will be connected next week and on Monday, our opening day, we'll have a sausage sizzle with the Flexischool kids so we can all celebrate our move.

Yesterday we had our first unexpected visitors for morning tea - the local member of parliament and the shire councillor. We had the plans for our new building (to be built next year) laid out on the kitchen table around the muffins someone brought in and cups of tea and coffee, and I had a little smile when I thought that this gentle way of planning with hot tea and a feeling of goodwill, is how all planning should be done. This real connection with people over shared ideals and hopes for the future is powerful, and it gets results. There is a good feeling in that house and we'll all smiling like Cheshire cats.

But back to reality, where today I have a lot of work to catch up on. I want to watch the Cricket semi final tomorrow and I need to do all my work today so I can go back to work on Monday knowing I'm up to date at home.

It's a mixture of gardening, laundry, baking, cleaning and tidying up today. I removed the tomatoes from the aquaponics garden on Thursday and have them all clumped together in one soil pot. They'll all be repotted and I'll take photos of the work so I can write about potting tomatoes next week. I'll check on the seedlings while I'm out there and give them a feed of seaweed to strengthen them before they're planted out. It's great to have summer out of the way and to move into Autumn, my favourite time of year. I just took the dogs outside to be fed and there is a real nip in the air this morning, it might be time to move my jumpers and cardigans up in my closet drawers. Everything seems possible to me in Autumn, it always feels like a time of fresh new beginnings. I wonder if it's because I was born in Autumn.

We have a tray of kale to be planted out, along with some squash, cucumbers and a few sugarloaf cabbages. In that blue container are the tomatoes that where submerged in rainwater last week. They seem to be fine now. I'll put them out in the sun today to allow the soil to warm up and help the seeds germinate and grow.

When Hanno cut the avocado branch off the other day we found these elkhorn ferns up high in the tree top. I brought them home instead of having them carted off to the rubbish dump. In the photo above you can see the gnarled branch of that old avocado tree where these ferns and lichen had been growing for who knows how long. I've leave them on the branch to grow in the bush house.

If you're in Australia or New Zealand, I hope you're enjoying your weekend. For those of you further away, I hope you have plans for a relaxed weekend with your loved ones. Thank you for dropping by and sharing this big week with me. It will be Spring for some soon and Autumn for others, let's all move into our new seasons with the hope of good times ahead.