Beautiful Hobart

Beautiful Hobart

Last night we stayed in Hobart, following the graduation dinner for the 2013 Tasmanian Leaders program. It was a very special night for the 24 of us who completed it last year, as well as for our partners, employers and the many fantastic people who support this program so generously with their time, expertise, experience and funding. We celebrated the end of the formal part of the program and the beginning of so much more with a dinner at the Henry Jones Art Hotel on Hobarts waterfront.

This afternoon I had to fly to Sydney for work. My flight wasnt until later in the day, but it was not worth driving home and back. I spent part of the day wandering Hobart, something I dont get to do often. Its amazing the things I noticed on foot that I had never seen see while driving. It is such a beautiful town. Today, the Sydney Morning Herald published this article: Twenty reasons to visit Hobart. Go on. You know you want to.

Beautiful Hobart

Mourning the loss of another beautiful hen

Mourning the loss of another beautiful hen

I lost another poor girl to a grey goshawk today and feel very sad about it. There was squawking from the direction of the chook shed and I looked out the window to see something white in the driveway... oh no. By the time I ran downstairs and down the driveway, it was too late. The goshawk flew off, but the hen was dead. Now Ill need to keep the chooks locked up in their yard, as no doubt the bird will return tomorrow. Nature sucks sometimes.

Mourning the loss of another beautiful hen

Beautiful Weather Get The Landscaping Done

Beautiful Weather Get The Landscaping Done

We had beautiful weather last weekend.  Yay!  Which means that we were outside working on our landscaping.  In between soccer, ice hockey, and rugby games (oh yeah, the trifecta of spring sports...), we managed to get quite a bit done.  If you remember last week, I explained how we were sprucing up our landscaping.  We started this years journey (weve been working on it little by little since we moved in) by digging out two half dead bushes.  After taking them out (and moving a birds nest), we were able to start planting some new greenery.  Im going to start by saying that I know nothing about plants.  I buy what I like.  And I try to find plants that will fill in appropriately in time.  So, even if they look a little small now, they should be perfect in a few years.  I decided to buy two Shamrock Inkberry bushes and one Dwarf Burning Bush (I love burning bushes but it seems that the deer do too.  I have my fingers crossed that this one makes it...).

Here is where we were last week -

And heres what it looks like now - 

Three new bushes and lots of mulch.  And the area looks pretty good.  Im still not sure if those huge evergreens can stay.  Its hard to tell in the pictures, but they arent in great shape.  And they have grown like crazy since we moved in (we try to keep them trimmed but they have just gotten huge).  In case you dont know what it looked like when we moved in nearly seven years ago - 

It was a mess.  Ok that huge round bush was crazy!  And ugly.  It had to go.  Along with a few other half-dead bushes.  We also cleaned out the ivy, and redesigned the shape of the bed (notice that sliver of grass in front?  I wasnt a fan.  So, I changed the whole thing.).

I think they look great with the boxwoods that I planted last year.  And they should get a little taller over time.  I am really excited to check this area off my to do list.  It was looking very empty!  

Now that the front yard is finished (for this year), its time to move on to the backyard.  

P.S. I was very surprised to find out that I was nominated for the Circle Of Moms top mom blogger contest.  Very very surprised.  And if you want to vote for me, just click the button on my sidebar.  I would love to make the top 25!  That would be amazing.  Thanks in advance! (and you can vote once a day...)

P.P.S Click here to enter my latest giveaway!!

Ive shared this project here - Between Naps on the Porch, The Shabby Creek Cottage, My Romantic Home, Funky Junk Interiors
{My entry into TTO is sponsored by Appliances Online and their Fridge Freezers.}

Beautiful Weather Get The Landscaping Done