winter again

The signs of spring are still everywhere but here in the high country it's feeling a lot like winter again. The temperatures have dropped to around 8 degrees during the day and it has been raining a lot - they did get a bit of snow on Mt Buller though. During those few days of beautiful sunny spring weather last week, it was so warm that we didn't even light our coonara for three or four days in a row since our house seemed warm enough that it would just have been a waste of wood. That changed yesterday when I arrived home from town to an absolutely freezing house. So,  it was time to stock up the wood basket and light the coonara. Our coonara is basically our only form of heating in the house so during winter, keeping the coonara going, becomes quite central to the rhythm of my days. First I take the wheelbarrow down to the woodshed and fill it with wood to take up to the verandah and unload into the basket outside the back door.

 



There were times last year, when the weather was so wet and cold, that it didn't seem right to take children out in it, especially not a new baby, so my little trip to the woodshed felt like the only time in the day that I could get a little fresh air and freedom - and I really appreciated it.

To light the coonara and get a really strong fire going takes some time and attention. Once going well it needs more wood periodically and to be shut down low when going out. My big challenge is to try and get enough wood into it, late enough at night, for it to still be going in the morning when we all get up, which makes for a far more pleasant morning all around. When I first moved  here I found all of this quite a chore and it seemed like one extra thing, to add to all the others, that I needed to get done in a day. Now it has become a habit and one that I really enjoy - one of life's simple pleasures...

My husband has just had two days off, so apart from helping to keep the coonara burning, he cooked dinner each night. What a treat - he is a very good cook, but being so busy at work, I usually tend to do the day to day cooking. Since he only cooks on holidays, his meals are usually a little extra special...

The first night it was spaghetti with prawns, rocket, chilli, zucchini, garlic and parsley.



The second night it was pork cutlets (purchased from the Hook and Spoon butcher in Benalla)with a fennel and red wine vinegar reduction. Mmmmmm...