April Randoms

Hi everyone, it has been a few weeks since I last posted and it seems like life has been speeding up for me during April, and doesn't look like slowing down over the next three or four weeks. There has been beautiful sunny days but with a slight chill in the early morning and late afternoon air as Autumn comes on us in the south west of Western Australia. Perfect for getting out and about.

Before the busyness descended on us we went camping and bush walking for a couple of days at Potter's Gorge at Wellington Dam near Collie. It is a WA Department of Parks and Wildlife campsite. So peaceful, especially if you go early in the week (not school holidays or public holidays). Autumn and spring are the best time for bush walking. More about Potter's Gorge in a future post.

A couple of weekends ago visited my sister and her family in the wheatbelt, where they have started seeding their grain crops.

 And visited the resting places of my mother and father, and a quiet country church

On our last night we enjoyed the yabbie catch fresh from their farm dam.

On a gorgeous Sunday afternoon the first weekend in April we enjoyed the Ferguson Valley Music Trail presented by Philharmonic South West. We watched their performance at Green Door Winery along with lunch and wine tasting. Nicole and Susie from Sol y Sombra Spanish Dance Company joined in their piece Boccherini's Fandanco for Guitar, Strings and Castanets. 
A perfect way to spend a sunny autumn afternoon.

Over the last month or so I've been experimenting with eco-dyeing with Australian eucalypt leaves inspired by my friend Jane Flower from Folios and Fibre. I am starting to get some good results. So exciting when you unwrap the bundle after a couple of weeks "curing" and see this!  I'm sure there will be more of this as time goes by.  These are printed on silk scarves.

Six things you should know about eucalypts

 We also were invited out to a friend's vineyard in the Ferguson Valley to pick olives last weekend. This is a first for us. So now the long processing begins. Wish us luck! Does anyone have a good recipe with the "preserving" after the salt and water process?

 In between all this I am reading Stories from a Suburban Road by T.A.G. Hungerford. Stories from his childhood in the 1920s-1930s in semi-rural South Perth. I am really enjoying the read, as my parents lived in South Perth for about 40 years and it certainly wasn't semi-rural with bush, gravel roads, and cows and horses in suburban blocks!

 He mentions buying vegetables from the Chinese Gardens and here is a pic I found on the net at Picture South Perth collection

 That is Perth city you can see dimly in the background on the other side of the Swan River.












Especially I am grateful for precious time spent this Easter weekend with family, and the welcoming of my sister's first grand-daughter. After three sons and three grandsons for her and two sons and two grandsons for me, it's a girl! 
 

How is your April shaping up? Perhaps you'd like to tell us about it in your comments. 
I hope those of you who celebrate have had a very happy Easter. And for all I wish for peace in the world. 

Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week.

I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!
 

Mosaic Monday  
Our World Tuesday
Through My Lens 
Image-in-ing
Wednesday Around the World at Communal Global
Travel Photo Thursday 
The Lovin' Life Team over at Lifestyle Fifty
The Weekly Postcard