Life Down Wattle Lane v2 - AI and Photo Fun

Such fun... learning how to AI images by changing the photo style to a 3D character.

Life Down Wattle Lane v2 - Jack Frost & Winter Feeding

Some sheep are a little smarter than others.  The two ewes under the shelter regularly choosing this spot on frosty nights.

During the cooler months, the grass will stop growing when the ground temperature drops below 6°c. So it's important to have a good supply of hay to supplement the sheeps diet.

Having full bellies generates heat during the digestion process. An internal heater, heating the sheep from the inside out. Their wool also helps to reduce heat loss. 

It might seem a little foreign to the sheep at first, but once they know hay is food, they will come running when a new bale is being feed out.

I have a garden trolley that fits a conventional hay bale nicely, so I just load that up and pull it out to the paddock. Easy!

Life Down Wattle Lane v2 - Wax Eyes

One mans waste, is another birds dinner. Wax Eyes feasting on our compost pile, and they're particularly interested in the banana skins. I like my bananas green and chalky, so I don't eat brown bananas, and there's often leftovers for the birds. 

Life Down Wattle Lane v2 - The Southern Lights

If you can brave the cold, the night has a magical feeling to it.

With your naked eye you can see a red tinge to the night sky... but your camera captures the true beauty.

Put your camera in night mode, hold steady and take a photo of the night sky looking south. Use a tripod or hold your phone steady against a clean window.

Life Down Wattle Lane v2 - The Buffet

 There's just too much to choose from at Down Wattle Lane buffet.

Life Down Wattle Lane v2 - Thai Pumpkin Soup

We had a dismal summer harvest this year, which I put it down to the unusually cooler summer temperatures, and the plants were very slow to get underway... but we did end up with 5 usable pumpkins.

I like pumpkins in that they are very easy to grow, easy to store and the crown pumpkin produces a good useable flesh yield.

I thought I would share this very simple, cheap and tasty Pumpkin Soup recipe. I only needed to use half of a pumpkin, and we had some leftover roast chicken from the night before... so I used that to garnish the soup... there was enough for 3 adult servings. 

THAI PUMPKIN SOUP

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

1 tbsp soft brown sugar

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1.2 kg pumpkin, peeled and diced (about 1 medium)

2 cups water

1 x 400ml can coconut milk

1-2 red chillies, finely chopped

1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest, (optional)

1 tbsp fish sauce

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup chopped coriander, or parsley

Method

Heat oil in a big pot and gently cook onion, sugar and garlic until softened (8-10 minutes).

Add all other ingredients except fresh coriander and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes.

Mash roughly, adjust seasonings to taste and mix through coriander.

The recipe was from Anabelle Langbein.

Life Down Wattle Lane v2 - Paradise

We've had a lot of rain this year, but it's such a good feeling when paradise ducks stop in for a visit! 😍 It must be paradise 😅