June 2006 News 5 June, 2006
May was a very social month for our family. I’m happy to see that the June calendar is a little quieter. At last the sun is shining and we can slow down and enjoy some quiet family days together.
AT HOME: We’ve moved some furniture around because of the arrival of my new computer. The children now have two computers in the study, so there’s less waiting. I like the way that the shuffle allowed for some serious decluttering. And the decluttering has shifted attention of some games and crafts that we’ve not enjoyed for awhile.
Two of the girls had birthdays in May.
AT WORK: It’s editing month for Education Choices I have a lot of great writers to work with lately, which makes the job so enjoyable. Continued magazine growth shows lots of potential with the announcement of the 2007 Conferences in the latest issue. If you’ve not seen Education Choices yet, you can request a free copy from the website. Currently you may also purchase 4 back issues for $20 as a special offer. Orders can be made directly to the Education Choices office via email through the site. The seed sales are steady but a little quieter because of the season. We introduced a few new products during May and have another three varieities being processed at the moment, which should be packed and available for purchase in our eBay Store during June.
A handful of my homeschooling articles have been accepted by the Aussies Living Simply site and in turn they will be advertising our seed project, which will perhaps boost sales a little and allow for further growth.
IN THE GARDEN: Our hens stopped laying for awhile when the nights got cool, but they seem to be used to the change now and we’re getting about 7 eggs for the 14 hens, which is normal. Some are old, some were moulting - there are always excuses for no eggs! They destroyed one of the gardens we planted with wheat and sunflowers for them. One other is struggling with lack of sunshine but the third is flourishing with its wide variety of grains, greens and more. We’ve been enjoying some juicy mandarins, almost emptied a whole tree! The oranges are coming along and the lemons still going strong. I think all the citrus need a little TLC at the moment, so I’ll be getting the books out to figure out the best way to do that. Anything to keep that chainsaw at bay! Passionfruit and choko are coming in as well. We still have a stockpile of pumpkins and a couple more a week are maturing, which is lovely for this time of year when pumpkin is a useful ingredient in our meals. The lettuce are maturing, and there are baby zucchinis growing slowly in the herb garden. The ones in the main patch died. Some of the tomatoes have wilted this week, they are so delicate. The cherry tomatoes are going silly, though, which is great as they’re so easy to grow! The eggplant are producing a LOT of fruit, glossy and black on the three-year-old bush. I’ve just put in a couple of new seedlings and I hope that they’ll survive through the seasons like this one has! We are getting a lot of pawpaws, so long as we’re quicker than the birds. The chooks enjoy the bird-pecked fruit, though, so all is not lost.
The main patch has had the majority of weeds removed and the paths fixed on the second half, so I need to mulch and plant some peas and other winter vegies in there soon, before the weeds come back! It’s great weather to garden, a real pleasure to be outdoors.
HOME ED.: The Beach Camp was fantastic in May. The weather was beautiful and the Rollingstone Caravan Resort is a wonderful place to stay. We enjoyed a variety of activities including a great concert on the final night. It was amazing to see what a variety of talent was hidden in the crowd! Some families came who hadn’t been before, so it was lovely to spend some time with them. The camp always feels too short, but we come home exhausted so I guess it’s long enough… Our newly-12-year-old has been trying a few different things with her daily routine and she’s kept to the plan she created quite well. She wants to learn more Italian, music and writing, as well as study natural therapies, herbs etc. A busy girl! The rest of us have been plodding along with the regular routine and outside activities, highlights were a couple of Kits from the Queensland Museum, the camp, and “new” computers and software!
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