Last few months in the New England

Much overdue, but as they say it’s better late than never. I never made the time to update this blog last summer after I posted the last of our Mongolia trip photos. After we returned to Australia, spring quickly turned into summer and I was kept quite busy with my new job and more and more time spent in the garden. A few days before Christmas we first entertained the idea of relocating out of Uralla, not knowing it would quickly turn our lives onto a completely new and different trajectory. Come January, time was inevitably taken with various projects to spruce up the house in preparation to sell. As time went on, updating the blog became one of the last things on my mind, and the more time that passed the easier it was to put it off even longer. I’m optimistic to get back into it – at the very least a monthly update or so.

Despite committing nearly all of our time to the imminent move, we did take the time for a few trips during the summer: a weekend in Urunga on the coast over New Years, a stopover at Dorrigo National Park, a quick day trip to Port Macquarie to buy a new car as well as a quick stop at the beach while we were there. Of course we also spent two fantastic weeks in New Zealand (another post on this with some recap photos coming soon.) 

Newry Island, Urunga

Urunga boardwalk

Windy beach at Urunga

New Years at the beach

 

  

Dorrigo rainforest, still one of the most beautiful places in NSW.

Thunderbolts Way to Port Macquarie

 

Quiet Lighthouse Beach at Port Macquarie.

Not many swimmers because the water was cold!

Apart from those few trips, though, the rest of the few months was spent at home. There were photos of the birds who visited our backyard, fantastic skies and clouds that happened to pass overhead, spent a lot of time in the garden examining plants and insects. Time spent cleaning the house and hanging with the cats.

Galahs on a dramatic sky evening

A group of cockatoos were overjoyed when we got a bit of rain and frolicked
in the tree, drinking water dripping off the leaves.

 

Trio of willy wagtails

Ripper clouds over Uralla

Getting ready for the lantern parade

The end of the summer garden.

Despite the prolonged drought, we had green in our backyard up until we left: rocket, dill, kohlrabi and broccoli, and shallots all tolerated the frosts as winter arrived.

 Tidying up and taking care of the garden meant there was a bit of this

And of course... a bit of this guy.

Cleaning up and emptying out the house.

Uralla, our little town, as viewed from Mount Mutton

Packing up