A GREAT DAY AT THE CHOOKPEN

Just must start with today's quote, Love it. The Family is one of Nature's great Masterpieces. Gary tried to trick our chooks AND Trevor, into laying eggs. The tell tale signs were their smiley faces!!!! THARRR she comes, 25 ton of house,transported,dropped and stumped in just over 1/2 a day.

View from inside

Coming round the corner of Rick & Karen's house On the pad

Today we took delivery of the house. The sun was shining and we were smiling. The kids were allowed to stay home in the morning to see it and Rick took a couple of days off too. We are not allowed in it yet but the family is coming to celebrate tonight with a barbie.Photos from the time they arrived in the street, through the manoeuvering ,backing in, getting on the pad, hydrolics on, truck pulling from under it. positioning, Trev signing receipt of and truck driving away empty. Quite a good experience. It is not every day one has one's house arrive on a truck!!!! The builders, T & R Homes, did a great job and our grateful thanks to Andy Mollen for a job well done . Also Thanks to Rick and Karen, ofcourse. Finishing is yet to come and will still be a few weeks but it's HERE, at last.

Anna is 3, away from the Chookpen

A pleasant surprise yesterday, the house is coming a day early, Thursday instead of Friday. Today another beautiful day, 26.3 degrees (though only 6.5 Min.). Kristy & Colin decided to celebrate Anna's 3rd birthday at Pt Walter, a very attractive reserve on the Swan River. It was a lovely venue and while the weather is so beautiful, why not?There was a good representation of Sadlier, Nankiville, Morgan and Branch families and I'm sure everyone enjoyed themselves. Bella is having her friends here tonight to celebrate (again) her birthday. They went to Sizzlers and are sleeping here. I gues there won't be a great deal of sleeping done!!!! LOTS OF FAMILY TO WATCH THE CAKE CEREMONY.

Anna Patricia,the Birthday girl

Caitlyn eating Birthday cake

The view from point Walter along and across the river is very pleasant.

The Swan River, a yacht and the Walters Cafe

Perth just peeking above the isthmus

Native Black Swan

The girls and boys finished with a kick of the football,surprisingly good kicks from the female side.

Final Inspection of the new Chookpen

Back View

Bathroom is small but shower is double size.

One corner of kitchen

On Tuesday we inspected the house and it is looking very nice. The photos don't really reflect how nice, as there was still a lot of tradesmen's gear all around but it was certainly a job well done.

Birthdays to come, from the Chookpen

It is once again an absolutely beautiful day in Paradise and when will it end? We need some rain.

We check out the house again on Tuesday and then wait for delivery the following week on the 15th.All I have to report now is that there are lots of Birthdays coming up and I'm going to list lots of them because we are going to be very busy in the next few weeks.

Last Friday night, the 1st, we celebrated our lovely daughter, Vicki's birthday and also had an early Bella 's birthday, with a lovely cake made very professionally by Karen.

Here's the long list.

TO;

Gary and Isabella 5th May

Anna 10th May

Jan 16th May

Jo & Ellie 24th May

Annette 26th May

Kelly 6th June

Maureen Barkla 10th June

Jill McKay 16th June

Henk Renting 17th June

Karen 19th June

Me the big 70 on the 21st

Raven 29th June

Caitlyn 30th June

Health and Good Luck to us all.

A SHORT ONE FROM THE CHOOKPEN

Our girls have left home!!! Snugglepot, Cuddlepie and Possum have moved to their new coop and permanent location, behind our house. The horse, Pixie, thought it was fair game to try and pinch their food all the time and wrecking their pen to do so. Hence , the move. Mind you, Trev keeps threatening to chop off one head as we still have no eggs but they are very pretty. Note the rural look of the chookpen!!!!!!!!!!

Following that a pic. of Sarah riding Pixie. It seems she has started to ride a bit and this was the first time Oma saw her. Still no rain.The days here are simply glorious,around 26-28 Centigrade most of the time. It's called Paradise.

The week that was,Variety at the Chookpen

We spent the week at Scott's house ,minding their dog while he, Jo & kids went to Melbourne. It was good to sleep in a real bed with soft mattress.While there we visited the yard at T&R to view our house. We have our last viewing on the 5th of May and that should be interesting because the painting and tiling and kitchen will be done. At home again and Karen arranged a belated family birthday dinner for Rick. She "done "well too!!! Here it is,our house at near lock up stage. It,s pretty, good workmanship but oh, so small.Never mind,we'll manage.

We minded the girls on 2 days ,while at Scott's and they had the pool all to themselves

This one is just for Scott;DOGS PLAYING ONTHE BED!!!!!!Kiah & Mac love each other.

Something you'd never think you'd see,Trevor wearing Eagles colours.

Karen Cooked to celebrate Rick's Birthday (last week), yes and it was really very nice too.

Happy Birthday from the Chookpen

Sorry to the April Birthday people, I had lots on my mind so here we are. Happy BIRTHDAY WISHES TO

Nikita 8th

Goos 14th

Rick 17th

Rene 19th and brother

Edwin 24th.

Lots more to come in May and June and I might list them all in a couple of weeks.

Easter at the Chookpen

I always say it is so good to have the family getting together. We invited both sides for breakfast and all those who were able, joined us on Rick's back deck for sausages, buns ,eggs and bacon with some fruit and sweet things added for good measure. After the food we had our egg hunt to which I got so many contributions that the kids all ended up with a grab bag full even though there were about 11 kids. It was a nice day .Hope everyone else enjoyed it,they seemed to. A little while ago, we minded Caitlyn for a couple of days, she was coughing again so could not go to school or childcare. It was good weather so we took her to Burswood Park to play. Last night she coughed so badly again, they took her to the Dr who feels she may be asthmatic.Her previous Dr thought so too and as she has such very bed excema,we are not surprised. Love you Caitlyn!!!! Poor Old Oi was not impressed to be locked in the chookpen. Here he tried the soulful look,in the end he just jumped out!! Kids in the egg hunt

Adults on the back deck,was lovely to see the majority of the Branch and de Jong side there.

Burswood Park with Caitlyn

Pop reading with Mary Durack. Cheeky on the toys

with pop,discussing the spot for the house

The First sod is Turned at the Chookpen

Yesterday was the big day. Nephew Matthew came to clear the site. First the cubby was moved, then the site was cleared and two truckloads of sand, one fast moving Bobcat and a big shaking compactor later, Hi Presto , we have a house pad.

The Cubby is lifted from it's old place. Boy,Matthew is such a good driver.

There she goes to her new place.

Put in place between chookpen and The Chookpen.

Rick's pretend Dunny must be saved,it's an icon.

The first sod is turned

The girls were tree climbing

Rick practising his truck driving,Mat was not impressed. Trev and the dogs inspect the pad