Our new property at Dereel has been taking up a considerable amount of time, with a fair amount of fencing needing to be done. Our new partners, Chris and Helena, have been thrown in the deep end and are willingly learning the ropes (or should I say ‘strands’?) of fencing.
Unlike our property at Rowsley, we have feral pigs calling Dereel home so our fence needs to be pig-proof. We have also decided to exclude kangaroos so the 1.8m high, feral-proof fencing is new for us too. We have found it to be much slower to erect this fence, with a few small issues along the way: we have to stand on ladders to bash in the star pickets, straining fabricated fencing really does need two strainers, and travelling 45mins-1hr before and after work makes for a very long day!
The kids have all been brilliant, as usual, with putting up with their crazy parents who bite off too much all the time. They explore the new ‘playground’ and help with the fencing when we need an army to help out on some jobs. They also put up with late nights and early mornings.
I now have a new term in my vocabulary and on my shopping list – Dereel dinners. This is used when we know it’s going to be a long day and we take dinner (tea) to eat. On the shopping list, it means buying tinned veges, fish or lentils, which are super-easy to chuck in the car fridge and use with pre-cooked pasta or rice to whip up a quick, hearty meal for the end of the day. Maybe one day I’ll share some of my Dereel dinner recipes with you all.