EDM Challenge Favorite shop

I went over to Pt Elliott the other day, which is a neighbouring small town on the coast and the old main street is full of these fascinating cottages that have been turned into shops, I am not sure if the one on the corner is really on quite such a slope but the road goes up and down and the impression is definetly of slanting cottages. This one I find dangerous to go into as it has all sorts of "stuff" from old lace and threads to new material, books second hand stuff, you name it they have it.
These little cottages are very typical of the style built I think around the 1880's in all the old areas of the south coast towns.
Several Coffee shops and one a friend of mine lives in that was a shop but is now their home with the porcelaine dolls she makes and the wonderful chocolates he makes as side lines. Their garden out the back although tiny is a delight.
I have to say that where I shop normally is a large shopping complex devoid of any character at all.
If I had to retire I would think about living in this small town, but out the back in the new area it is not so nice.
I think there are spelling mistakes all over the place in my blogs, sorry Virginia but what can you expect from a slightly dyslexic whose mind runs on faster than her fingers!!

First foal for the year

This is what I saw when I went for my walk this morning, our first foal and not the one I was expecting, two more have waxed up so I guess they will foal either tonight or tomorrow night. This one is a filly and the first foal for this little Welsh Section B mare. She will go grey like her mother eventually. It is always exciting to have the first one, then you hope that the rest will have them safely.
I used to be up every 2 hours watching to see that all was well but inevitably they had had them inbetween my 2 hours and if there is a problem I would be too late any way so now I get up at dawn and check that all is well.
I had a very quiet day apart from that as my torn muscle in my side kept me awake most of the night, sitting wasnt very comfortable and so I sorted out my beads which meant I was standing for most of the time.
Grand children arrived off the bus and I think their mother will be home late tomorrow night as they left Alice Springs this afternoon.
Gale force winds but very little rain. Not good for our pastures.

More photos from the garden

I am tired and havent much to report, no drawing done so far today and I feel guilty, should I? Probably not but I still do.
My side has been annoying me, and I didnt sleep well last night, nothing new but I went to see a friend and she gave me some Salvia ungularis for the garden I have had this for years and suddenly that and Borage disapeared, we had a coffee and a chat, and I then collected my dolls from Wendy that had been exhibited at the dolls and decorative arts fair.
The dogs are still screaming at each other, but thank goodness not at night.
Still no foals, one mare I was up during the night to see but she hasnt yet, probably tonight when I dont want to get up.
This is the plum tree in the orchard taken from over the wall in the walled garden. I think I should have cropped this photo a bit!

The Anchorage

This is one of the last Guest houses left in Victor Harbor, there used to be quite a lot but one by one they have been bulldozed.
Luckily this one has been turned into a succesful restaurant/coffee house with fascilities for small conferences and rooms to stay in right on the sea front.
Such a shame that the rest have gone but most were not built very well and had salt damp, this one may too but somehow, probably because of its situation has survived.
My favorite place for coffee and consistently good meals. The railway line is at the back so at weekends you can watch the steam trains go by as well.
Back to winter conditions today, freezing cold and drizzly rain and so the fire has been lit again.
I am having a sort of quiet week this week, doing the garden and a few indoor jobs, stupidly I pulled a muscle in my side yesterday pulling weeds.

More Spring flowers

I picked this lovely vase of pear blossom this morning, the flowers are just gorgeous and then as I was wandering around I saw this lovely grouping of wisteria and arum lillies and bird of paradise flowers, yes and some weeds as well, oh well. I havent got to that bit of the garden yet.
I spent a couple of hours weedng in the walled garden this morning before the rain came in, lovely rain, not a lot but at least it helped where I had put sprinklers.
So hot the last few days and now cold and windy.
I am having huge amounts of problems with the dogs, the bitch in season has been trying to get out, the fox terrier is trying to get in and so has the male pug, One on one side howls, the other on the other side howls and she barks! At least I now seem to have them all confined where I want them. The extra male dog which is my grand daughters dog is not what I need at the moment. I am getting quite good at finding the odd bit of wire mesh and wiring it together.
I did draw the sleepy lizaed but he is on my other blog (see Links)

EDM Challenge Bread & Sleepy lizard!

First of all here is my newly baked loaf of bread, done in my breadmaker and not perfect! Its top slanted a bit, but then I do add things to my bread mix that are not listed in what I should put in it, like physelium husks and rolled oats because we like a white bread mix but I pander to my cholestorol. Not the best sketch but adequate.
The other photo is of the sleepy lizard John and I found on our walk on Sunday, he had newly shed his skin and was walking along purposfully. They are giant skinks with blue tongues that is one of their defence mechanisms, pretty pathetic really, they open their mouths wide and hiss and you pick them up from behind their heads and they are gentle and lovely and I have never been bitten by one. I used to keep them as pets when I was a child, they are about a foot long and really only want to mind their own business. As John said a mini dinosaur. Lovely things.
Today I caugaht up with things, weeded and cut back in the garden, no husework of course unless you count a load of washing, dishes done and a swept floor or two.
Picked some lovely flowers, some flowering pear, flowers from the elm and some freesias. The wisteria is in full bloom and smelling wonderful but it was very warm and humid today but with unfortunatly no rain. So every hose has been on and in a 2 acre garden that is a lot. Luckily the springs manage to keep up.

Sunday walk

Well I have just uploaded photos and chat that was supposed to be on this blog onto my sketchbookand walking blog, and no sketch on that or this one!!
Must have been the extra 1/2 glass of white wine I had tonight, no red as it was fish.
Any way it was a wonderful day for a walk, far too warm but delicious just the same, big rolling swells coming in and the surfers out in force, I was trying to catch the white horses on the top of the waves as the wind caught the break, not always succesful. This shot was taken from the beach, the others (on my other blog, see links) from the cliff walk.
We are so lucky to have this within minutes of home, and a decent coffee as well minutes from here.
I spent the rest of the day in the garden which needs it desperatly, so no time to sketch, and too tired as well.