Strange critter in our garden

Before I post about a strange critter in our garden at the moment, I just want to say that I have NEVER felt as exhausted as I was on Saturday. I was paste. I suppose it stands to reason - three weeks in and out of the city on a regular basis, an overnight stay earlier this week supporting a hospital patient (albeit an easy one!)  and in between getting MIL to the clinic and subsequently sorting her medication, which she insists on administering herself. 

Ergh. 

Nevertheless, I woke up on Sunday and said to Grant that it was the first day I had felt human in about ten days! 

Yesterday afternoon, we were walking up the driveway with Angus, Amanda and children. We'd all enjoyed a delicious BBQ here at our home - Angus did the meat grilling - Grant was forbidden to use his hands and we had a lovely meal together. 

As we neared the gate, six-year-old Joel came dashing back and said there's a huge butterfly on the lamp. He actually shuddered. I had my camera around my neck as I'd been snapping a pair of bird parents and their new fledgling (more about that later). I approached the lamp in question, focused and snapped away. 

At first I thought it was a moth (note the fuzzy head) but Grant reckons it's a type of dragonfly

It has large bulbous eyes and feelers and four legs that I could see 

I tried to get as many angles on this critter as possible

From the top, it's quite a slim critter. It has gossamer wings and Grant says it sports "a dragon fly's tail" 

The critter never moved although its eyes are bright;  it's definitely alive. It may be laying eggs. At the light of day, today (Monday) I'll check if it's still in the same place on the lamp.

Here's wishing you all a wonderful Monday and week ahead.

I'm late!

Hi Bozo and Mum's blogger friends; it's Ambrose and I'm late with my post. I only came in L A T E last night and got a scolding from Mum. The yoomens don't know how nice it is out there chasing bugs and frogs in the moonlight.

What's that, Unca Shadow? 

Oh, did you see me sleeping under the bush in the neighbor's garden? Mmm. Well, I woke up in the dark and then went hunting! 

And no, I didn't take note of Mum calling and banging the food bowls to get my attention! 

Anyway, Mum asked me to tell you about EDDY the old doggie who went missing in the week. There were bangs and lights in the sky (yes, in the day time) and Mum says Eddy was lying panting under the book table in the lounge. Then Mum went out to help another old lady...

What's that, Unca Shadow? Oh, did she help Bammie! Ooh. That takes time.

When Mum returned, she fed the BIG dog but Eddy wasn't around. She looked in the garage where Eddy sleeps at night, in the garden room, in case the gardeners had locked her in there. She checked the house again, although Eddy never comes indoors unless she's afraid of the sky bangs and lights. 

The next day Mum took the big dog for his walk early in the morning. He hadn't been since L O N G ago, because Mum and our yoomen dad were away. Erica looked after us. But I heard Mum say that although the big dog enjoyed his walk, he kept looking for Eddy. Mum even posted about taking Skabenga to see the cows near the golf course to help his loneliness! 

Skabenga and Eddy love running on the golf course

The day Eddy was missing, Skabenga kept looking for her on the golf course

Mum took him to meet the cows...

When the gardeners arrived that morning, suddenly Eddy came streaking around the corner onto the patio. Eddy had been locked into the men's shower and toilet!

Everyone is happy that Eddy didn't go outside and get confused. I heard Mum say she's becoming deaf. 

Meanwhile, Unca Shadow and I enjoy climbing the many trees in Mum's garden

Doing what kitties like doing second-best. We like sleeping the best!

Comin' down...

For more cute posts, please click here

Mixed bag of Saturday Critters

This week was rather disrupted with our trip to the neurologist on Monday followed by a visit to the orthopedic surgeon. This man scheduled bilateral Carpal Tunnel surgery on Grant for Tuesday. We returned home and drove back to the city the next morning. To cut a long story short, Grant was operated on at 7pm Tuesday night. He spent the night in hospital and the next morning after breakfast a nurse renewed his dressings and he was discharged. I drove him home...

We stopped next to this strange contraption on Monday morning. Grant said it was part of a gyro copter

On the way home on Monday, we saw the same horses crossing the same overhead bridge!

Back home on Thursday morning, Skabenga and I went for a walk on the golf course. (Eddy was missing at this stage; Ambrose will probably post about it tomorrow)

This delicate little flower (I posted a photo of the bud last week) has finally opened

This grass flower looked so pretty in the rising sun's ray's I bent down low and photographed it

Another small grass stalk with the large trees in the background

Beautiful pink flowers on a many stemmed bush

I could see Skabenga missed Eddy that morning. When I noticed the cattle at their feeding troughs, I took the dog to meet up with his bovine friends

MWAAAAH!

The cattle are fat and sleek. Grant calls the ridges on the animal's back, "happy lines" Make sense...

I'm linking to Saturday Critters with Eileen here

Full moon Feb 2016

Full moon 21 February 2016; 13 days; visibility: 99%

Full moon, 22 February 2016; 14 days; Visibility 100%

Full moon 23 February 2016; 15 days; visibility: 100%

All the above shots of the moon were taken from my home in Marquard.

Waning Gibbous, 16 Days; visibility 99%

The shot above was taken from my friend's home in Bloemfontein. I stayed over with her daughter (my friend and husband live and work in Tanzania) while Grant was in hospital. I didn't want to open the window and disturb the young lady with the noise! 

Waning Gibbous taken yesterday morning from the Marquard Golf Course. 17 days old and visibility 94%

I'm linking to Skywatch Friday here

Week ending 21 February 2016

On Monday Rina caught a lift with a clinic sister/friend, Mathilda and her father to the nearby town of Senekal. She and Mathilda were bussing down to Cape Town for two weeks. I don't know where Mathilda spends her holiday; Rina's sister-in-law, Alet collected her and she is spending time with her and brother Johan. Then she's visiting another brother, Jan (she has six brothers) on a farm for the weekend. This coming week she'll visit with old pastor and his wife who lived opposite her and Dick in Cape Town. I think she ends her visit with friend, Antionette who was her next door neighbor at the time. 

On Tuesday, Grant's birthday, we drove to the city to collect paints and supplies for several projects he has on the go in his workshop. We also had to drop Angus' garage door motor which had a faulty relay. All these businesses are situated in the industrial areas on the outskirts of Bloemfontein. 

It was not a good idea to be in the early morning traffic, trying to listen to Mrs GPS, while he searched for addresses in the industrial area - and to have a birthday at the same time. It would happen just as the woman on the GPS (the only directions my DH adheres to!) says: in 250 m turn left into... (she has trouble pronouncing the Afrikaans street names!) and Grant's phone would ring via Bluetooth. Someone to wish him for his birthday! 

However, we got past his birthday greetings and also found all the businesses in due course. We were finished by 10.30 and home by 12 noon. 

That afternoon I spent three hours in the clinic waiting to make an appointment for MIL for the next day; and for Grant for Friday. MIL had been complaining about recurring back pains; I'd already done the spadework at the clinic (without telling her) and took her on Wednesday morning where she was treated by our doctor. 

On Thursday, just when I thought I could finally get down to doing my own thing (blogging, visiting Facebook, taking photos, pottering in the garden), I woke up feeling absolutely awful. I booked an appointment with our doctor at his rooms. He diagnosed a bubbling ulcer. He reckoned he's not surprised - and I'm not either. Anyway, he gave me an injection and several pills which I'm hoping will heal my tummy. 

As this post is aired this Monday morning, Grant and I are on the way to the city again. This time he has a firm appointment with the neurologist and afterwards he has to see his regular orthopedic surgeon. We don't know what the outcome of today's appointments will be, but we're taking suitcases. If Grant has surgery and stays overnight (or longer), I'll stay with my Tanzanian friend's daughter in the city. Erica will take good care of the animals and our home seeing as Rina is still on holiday. 

Finally on Sunday, we took the dogs for a walk again. We hadn't been since Monday morning!

We've had welcome rains again and the world (and my garden, yippee) is looking fresh and lush.

Early morning sun over the Marquard Golf Course

Golden grasses illuminated against the morning sky

Grass seeds waiting to pop open

Creative fun...

...photographing...

...the hay rake

Soft morning light over the dam

Reflections

Soft, pretty and very tiny

My beautiful boy

Sunday and Monday is full moon. However, I'd already posted this scheduled post and have the waxing gibbous moon as seen this weekend. 

Waxing gibbous moon 95%; age 11 days (19 Feb)

Waxing Gibbous moon; 95% visible; age: 12 days

HAVE A GREAT WEEK

Some Hedges kitties and a dog

Hi Bozo and Mum's blog friends; this is Ambrose.

This week I'm not on the roof (thank goodness!) although I still climb the high tree next Mum's house and get onto that roof. But I can get down again!

Mostly I've been inside enjoying Mum's birthday flowers

Unca Shadow found a basket of dried catnip and sat in it watching Aunty Chappy

Aunty Chappy who loves catnip watched from afar

Out in the garden, Cousin Tipsy peeks through Mum's silver bushes

Out on the golf course, pup Skabenga made friends with a horse - Ewhy! I would be scared of such a big animal - good on you Skabenga

I couldn't find photos of Aunty Eddie, the other doggy and Dad Ginger. You can just see Eddy's nose in the left corner of the photo. Dad Ginger was at home, asleep.

For more cute pet posts, please click here

A month on...

...since our first summer rains.

On 11 January this year, we had our first good rains of the summer. A total of 75mm fell in one afternoon and early evening. I took photos of the rain, the dog playing in puddles in the rain and of my dried out garden, awash with rain water. 

The driveway and garden awash in the first rains of summer

Jacob weeding the garden

John wisely chose the shade to his gardening

The brunsfelsia in the first photo, now covered in blooms

Rina loves exotics (I'm partial to indigenous). 

This is Katie, the Dahlia which belonged to Rina's mom, Katie

The dogs follow me around the garden. The lawn i the front garden had all but died off

The garden along the driveway three weeks after the rains

One of the many roses in my garden at the moment

A pretty bowl of succulents next to my healthy Leonotis Leonurus/Lion's Ear

I managed to water my Gazanias by hand during the drought and saved three out of the dozen plants in this bed 

The plumbago shrub above is also a reliable, resilient plant

A healthy bulbine flowering profusely after the summer rains

 Driving from the city earlier this week (no, we didn't have a doctor's appointment - that's THIS Monday) Grant pointed out a herd of Charolais cattle 

Seconds later he told me to look ahead - to the overhead bridge...

Horses crossing the highway in a safe manner

Driving to the city early that morning, Grant pointed to a front-end loader on the side of the road. He was mighty relieved when we returned, to see people working on the machine

A large moth on my kitchen table yesterday morning

Grant is repairing farm quad vehicles. Yesterday I snapped John pushing Jacob who was steering a quad from the front gate to the garage

I'm linking my post to Saturday Critters with Eileen here

HAPPY SATURDAY TO YOU ALL!