Taming of the garden!

During the uni holidays Aaron has been finishing up his steps and building gates to secret gardens!

Aaron the handy man

The finished steps

The new gate 

Through to the secret garden (council land next to the steps up the hill)

He has also been chopping back and taming the olive trees - they now look a bit more like trees!

While mum and dad (nagymama and nagypapa) have been weeding, sorting out the compost and planting winter veggies... With a freshly mowed lawn, the garden is looking the best it has in the last year! Thanks for all of your hard work Aaron, mum and dad! 

Freshly Weeded bank....

One Month

We have survived the first month..... At 3 and a half weeks Freya weighed in at 4.68 kg and is 58 cm in length, so she is obviously feeding and growing well. We are starting to learn each other's habits... until they change again. Her eyes are getting better at focusing and her neck is getting much stronger and we had our first proper smiles the last few days...

 

First family photo in the front garden

One of Freya's first smiles

Hanging with Grandad David

 

Reclaiming the Slope

Summer is teasing us and on days like today Aaron has been out in the sunshine trying to re-tame the garden after the neglect of the winter... removing all the weeds and planting some new plants in the hope that eventually we will cover the slope so well that the weeds don't have a chance.... ;) we can live in hope! It is a great time of year with garden coming back to life and the veggies all coming through. I just hope that the inclement spring weather (usually very windy) doesn't destroy too many of the plants... that is why we keep a few in the greenhouse as back up to replace any that get decimated!

Bring on summer and nice days in the garden and outside!

Projects progress

Today is the first day of my 'retirement'. I have a feeling I am going to be busier in my retirement than I was when employed. Sometimes I was happy to go back to work on Monday as it gave me chance to recover from the long weekends activities.

Here are a few pictures of where some of the projects I have been working on are up to.

Patchy grass growth

The last of the dirt has been removed and grass planted. Some of the starter soil was old and the cats liked it as well so the new growth is rather patchy. Hopefully it will fill in a bit more.

Cleared and ready for gravel

The north side of the house will get weed mat and gravel as well as few pavers so you can walk around the house in bare feet.

First look at the wardrobe doors

The wardrobe doors have made it to the painting stage. I don't like painting and tend to rush this part, but since I am going to have to look at these things every morning when I wake up, I figure I better take my time and do a good job. Here they have had a primer coat and I have filled in some of the holes from knots.

Drawers for the inside of the wardrobe

Here are all the drawers (minus one that will go in the middle). They are sitting on the plywood that will become the carcass. I still need to cut, paint and attach the drawer faces. So lots still to do...

Garden progression

A new top for the an old wall

Full height has now been achieved

Some new flax to help hold the slope in place

Still need to finish back-filling

Wall in the front garden

Looking up the north side of the house

Labour weekend gardening

The last of the posts are in

The bottom most board is new- it closes a gap that really annoyed me

The bottom most board is in on the upper walls

Renga Regna lilies in blossom

Cat in a bag

Working in the garden

Block wall fully removed

And rebuilt down below

Renga Renga lilies taking over more of the slope

Sunset behind the wind turbine

Spring in the garden

While Helen has been traipsing around Europe, I have been holding down the fort back in Wellington. Apart from a couple nasty southerly storms it has even been pretty nice. I have been working in the garden all the weekends Helen has been away.

Late afternoon sun on the extension

Not sure what this plant is

Marlborough Daisies getting ready to bloom

A block wall growing on the bottom terrace

A retaining wall post sprouting near a shrinking block wall

An infestation of retaining wall posts

Even more - they're everywhere!