19 Dec, 11

Big pause there as life got very real and took over for a while. It’s been a big year.

We have finally settled with insurance following the burglary. A combination of our motion cam photos and probably pretty good detective work the guy was caught and has subsequently pled guilty with sentencing next February. It has been another case of getting to know how disappointing insurance actually is and how even good cover is not what it seems. I have gone off insurance people. On a related crime front our letterbox was kicked to pieces by a nutter one night. The police took a while to come over and he managed to do a fair bit of damage and scare the snot out of the neighbourhood over the course of an hour. The police officer who did arrive didn’t quite laugh as he talked about reparation but he didn’t look far from it. I understood completely but am now experienced enough with front line police to not suggest “he hold him while I kick him and we’ll call it quits”.

Our new extension is almost complete giving us two new bedrooms bringing us officially to a three bedroom house. With a baby due in March it has been stunning to have the extension come together so quickly. Gib started going up today, gib stopping soon, some paint, some form of baby gear installed and we are good to go. The builders have been excellent and the final result looks like it has been there forever. Our new bedroom is larger, has a great wardrobe, good lights and is insulated to the nines. Warm, cozy and overlooks the back yard. Really looking forward to moving into it.

The backyard now sports two chooks, courtesy of C’s parents. I extended the small coop to give them a good run and we are now getting two eggs a day. They are great fun to watch and the cat has taken to keeping an eye on them and even protecting them from a dog that got to close. The garden is looking excellent this year with lots of veges and fruit growing well. We are looking forward to a good harvest and starting to get more plants in now we have the house finished and know where things can go. Only a deck to go and eventually we will move the garage but for now we are going to tidy up and focus on family for a bit.