Category Archives: Muddy Bubby

Grateful for Organisation

Muddy Bubby turned One this week and to be honest it was a little subdued, I didn’t make him a cake, we used the leftovers from a cake I had for a meeting (he still hooked into it and there wasn’t much left).

I had a mild panic attack on Wednesday when I realised I had no presents for him. Then I stopped and breathed and had a light bulb moment ‘I bought his presents months ago and hid them’ HOORAY! He had a lovely Tonka Bulldozer to unwrap and a beautiful book and Care Flight Bear, all sorted.

So this week I am grateful for organisation and forward planning. Without Organisation and Forward Planning things would be a lot worse in our household! My house may be a shambles, my floors may not be clean and the toy room looks like a bomb’s gone off, but I can still be organised. I make lists and try to stick to them, and I am always packing and repacking days before we go anywhere, which drives Muddy Hubby insane, but keeps my sanity intact. It’s the little organisation beforehand that helps reduce my stress levels when we go anywhere which makes for a happier Muddy Family. It also means my Muddy Bubby actually had a present to unwrap on his birthday.

I still plan on making him a cake of his own, with a family lunch this weekend, to appease for my mother guilt in almost letting his birthday slip by unnoticed, but for now he is a very happy One Year Old pushing his Bulldozer around.

Linking up with Maxabella for 52 Weeks of Grateful at Village Voices. Please take some time out to check out the lovely Grateful posts, they will put a smile on your face and warm your heart.

New Family Members

My Muddy Puzzler only had one request for her 3rd Birthday – Ducks. Our first attempt at the Poultry Auction was a sad outcome, we came home with nothing. Now, however I’m quite pleased we came home with nothing, because I found 6 little ducklings to fulfill the request, and to top it off they’re my FAVOURITE type of ducks. They are Indian Runners, they can’t fly, so they can’t escape on me, they’re great for training your sheep dog (so Muddy Hubby is happy), and they are so good looking and friendly once you’ve got them used to you.
They had a long trip to make it home to our house, I picked them up and they attended their first baby shower, before spending the night in Nana’s shower recess, then a 6 hour drive home. They were very pleased to be put in their new home, have something to eat and a nice bath and drink, before the Muddy Kids started the cuddles!
They have kept the Muddy Kids entertained for hours, just sitting and watching, or sitting and holding. Muddy Bubby has tried to climb in with them a few times, or tried to pull down their light, but he’s getting used to them.
There’s one little duckling we’re keeping an eye on, she’s a little bit smaller than the others, the runt of the bunch. My Muddy Organiser has named her Sprinkles and yesterday she was being bullied a little bit, today the other ducklings are being a bit nicer, she’s getting something to eat and drink and seems to be growing and happier. There’s no doubt about it, they’re a very welcome addition to our Muddy Family.

Thank You Posie Patchwork!

A little while ago now I was lucky enough to win Posie Patchwork’s comp where the prize was Louise Fulton Keats latest Recipe/Story Book titled ‘The Best Ever Birthday’. I had been eyeing this off for a while so was VERY excited to be a prize winner. I promised Posie that the first recipe I would make would be the Butter Cake, and it’s taken me a while (thank you to the thermostat in the Oven going) but this week I did it! I used the Basic Butter Cake Recipe to make the cake for the Muddy Puzzler’s Birthday Cake. As promised by Posie, it was delicious, just like my Grandma used to make, all moist and buttery goodness.

It was the perfect cake to use for the Butterfly chosen by my Muddy Puzzler and by the reactions they loved it!

A Huge Thank You to Posie, the book is already a big hit, we read the story all the time and the Muddy Kids have picked out what’s next to make.

Push It, Push It

Lately I am tripping over objects wherever I go, inside outside, doesn’t matter. Muddy Bubby is trying to be on his feet with whatever means he can. Be it truck, cart, desk chair, high chair, washing trolley, dining chair or ladder. If he can get on his feet and push it he will.

Every so often he surprises himself and lets go and finds himself standing on his own, then he realises what he’s done and quickly grabs hold of whatever is closest.

I have bruises up and down my legs where I’ve walked into things he’s walked somewhere and then abandoned in favour of something else that moves, or makes noise. It’s so much fun to watch him have fun and be so proud of being on his feet. It warms my heart and brings sunshine to a cold winter day.

What a Difference the Right Weather Makes

This year I will have been living on the farm for 7 years, I’ve been visiting for longer, but actually living, breathing farm life for 7 years. 7 of the best years, with ups and downs and big events, four babies, lots of love and laughter. The thing that still amazes me and makes my heart sing is the first flush of green across the paddocks, those first few weeks when the seed shoots and the crops start to grow.
With just the right weather (not too much rain, but not too little, warm days but not too hot and not too cold) those seeds push their way up and out into the sunshine to test their fate with what the weather has to offer. I never thought when I was growing up that my life would revolve so much around the weather, it can mean the difference between a happy Muddy Hubby or a sad Muddy Family, money in the bank or a tight, tight budget. On days that it rains the businesses in town are busy, busy as farmers can’t do much around the farm and head into town for ‘town jobs’. It’s often these days that throw the week into disarray as Muddy Hubby says ‘let’s go and get this job done’ as opposed to the long to do list I had planned for the day.
Just before the weekend’s rain, Muddy Bubby and I did a little crop tour while delivering chemical down to one of the blocks for Muddy Hubby. We checked on the Canola and the Lupins and it had been a few weeks since we’d checked them and my how they’d grown! They were starting to power ahead which was a lovely sight to see and cheered me up lots on a down day.
Does your life revolve around the weather like mine?
What’s your favourite bit about where you live?
Canola, just shooting through
Canola starting to ‘cabbage’ out

Lupins just out of the ground

Lupins looking good

Good Excuse for A Party and Cake!

We had a little party around here on the weekend, we got our Muddy Bubby Baptised. It was a short notice kind of thing, it had been scheduled for August with a big First Birthday Celebration, but the Reverend is leaving town and agreed to do it before he goes. Just to double the fun my Muddy Sister-in-law had her youngest Baptised at the same time. We spread the news of the party via phone and text with very little time to get ourselves ready, and pulled together a great day.
I am pleased to say Muddy Bubby behaved and didn’t cry through the whole thing, only beforehand trying to crawl around and stand up in his Christening Gown. All of my Muddy Kids have now been christened in this gown, it was my Mum’s and then mine. In all his enthusiasm to get to the front of the church Muddy Bubby ripped the gown, not sure that it will last til my Grandchildren (man, that’s a scary thing to think about).
We had lots of good food, good friends and family and a mountain of desserts to accompany the big blue cake. It’s kind of sad to think that this is my last Muddy Baby to be Baptised, the last one of mine to wear the gown. Now I need to find other excuses for throwing a big party, somehow I don’t think that will be too hard.
The best bit about the day was the weather, it was spectacular, we had been worried because we were having it outside, but the sun shone and everyone was looking for the shade to cool down. Now today it’s back to the same old, same old, a bit cold and lots of washing!
Hope your long weekend has been a good one.
Putting on ‘The Christening Gown’ definitely not impressed!




Show Time

There’s something about the local show that makes you feel a little like you’ve walked back in time. It reminds me of when I was a kid and went to the Sydney Royal Easter Show, back when it was at Moore Park, it was a bit dingy, a bit old fashioned, smelly, loud and so much fun. Our showground in town is old, I don’t think it’s moved in the 96 years we’ve had the show, the pavilions are the same, some with a coat of paint and some repair work, but still original buildings. The animal yards are probably not as old, but still are not modern by any standard, and the competition categories are still largely unchanged, including pieces of hand embroidery and hand sewn pieces of children’s clothing, fruit and veggie growing and my personal favourite for the kids ‘decorated fruit or vegetable’.

Muddy Girls with Muddy Pa’s Prize Winning Sheep

Checking out the Wool Pavilion

The Muddy Girls had been talking about going to the show for days, we’d put our entries in and they were so very excited to see what had transpired. I am so very pleased to say we had some winners! I had limited the girls to 3 entries, they each got to put in 6 brown hen eggs, 6 iced and decorated arrowroot biscuits and one drawing. Lucky for me the prize winning was spread around.

My Muddy Organiser won a Second Place for her 6 Iced and Decorated Arrowroot Biscuits.

My Muddy Pixie won a Highly Commended for her 6 Iced and Decorated Arrowroot Biscuits.

My Muddy Puzzler kept up the Prize Winning Eggs, gaining a Second Place for her 6 Brown Hen Eggs, not bad given there were 18 other entries.

I limited them to two rides and one game and no showbags, my theory is if I let them start too much this young I’ve got nowhere to go as they get older. We shared one bag of fairy floss and their Muddy Grandma treated them to an ice cream. I did my bit by manning the Preschool Animal Farm for a stint and we finished off our outing with some hot chips, which Muddy Bubby was most excited about, even trying to steal as many as he could from his sisters. It was such a lovely afternoon, and the Muddy Girls were so excited to call Muddy Hubby to tell him all about their afternoon and their big wins!

Grateful For A Wednesday

Since the start of Term One I’ve been doing Bootcamp on a Wednesday afternoon. I love this time, it’s not something I ever thought I’d fit into my schedule, but somehow it works, around dancing lessons, day care pick ups and Muddy Bubby it all fits in.

It’s all thanks to Muddy Hubby, each Wednesday afternoon he takes Muddy Bubby with him to work, on the tractor, in the ute, up the paddock, whatever he’s doing he takes his little man with him. It’s turned into a lovely part of our family routine. Some quality time for both of them. Muddy Bubby gets his little legs kicking when he sees Muddy Hubby coming and his face lights up with excitement. For us it’s been a win win situation. I get some precious time to focus on me, and the men in my life get their time together, to get to know each other and for Muddy Hubby to start passing on all his farming love and knowledge.

Even last week when Muddy Hubby was flat out trying to get sowing and spraying done, he strapped the car seat into the tractor and away they went. I am so grateful for this time and for the great bond my husband is building with his son and am linking up with Maxabella at Village Voices for 52 Weeks of Grateful.

We’re all exhausted by the end of Wednesday, asleep in his highchair.

Time Together

Last week it rained and Muddy Hubby chose that day to head to the block up north we farm. We traversed sticky black mud roads in showering miserable weather, slipping and sliding around the roads. Then Muddy Hubby climbed the windmill to reconnect it, so he’ll have some water to spray the weeds before we sow. All the while Muddy Bubby slept or happily checked weeds with us out the window.
Muddy Hubby and I used to do this a lot before we had kids, and even with the first two, after that, the kids just fought too much and it wasn’t as much fun. It was so nice to spend time together (and with Muddy Bubby), just chatting away about this, that, weeds, farming, guessing how much rain we’d had, just being together. Something we don’t get a lot of any more.
We’ve had enough rain at home to start sowing, not enough up north, so Muddy Hubby walked out the door yesterday and I think it’ll be the last time we see him for more than a few minutes, for a few weeks (unless it rains again), as we go hell for leather to try and get our crop sown before the moisture dries up or it rains again. He’s promised me he’ll come home for lunch today, as we have some lovely friends coming to visit (the one exception he’ll make), but he’ll be straight back into work after lunch. The life of a farmer is never dull (unless we’re talking weather).