The end of October....really?

 I can't believe October is almost over. I do neglect my blog these days and haven't written a post for over a month now. The Carnival of Flowers is also over after thousands of visitors made the trip up the Toowoomba Range to see the beautiful parks and gardens. The weather was mostly fine which made it a pleasant time to stroll through the many gardens. 

Now it is time for the cactus orchids to make their appearance. This photo was taken last year as the yellow one hasn't opened up as yet this year.

When I check the cactus orchids I have to watch where I step as this fellow was sunning himself beside them the other day. The Blue Tongue Lizards give me such a fright as I always think they are a snake at first and I dislike snakes intensely. 

There was another rain event this month but it didn't seem to be as bad as previous ones for those in areas that flood apart from our neighbours in New South Wales where some cities were flooded once again. It has been the fourth time this year for some areas. We live on a hill so don't get flooded but it is the forecast of storms with giant hail that have me on edge. The poppies have almost finished flowering and I am saving the seed of the one pictured above as someone who drives by frequently had noticed them and asked if I could save him some seed. Considering how many seeds are in each seed head that is not a problem at all. 

The foxgloves are finally flowering but they aren't as 'full' as the ones in the parks and gardens so perhaps I should fertilize them. I really should read up on how to look after them as they didn't flower much last year as I had them growing in pots. Now they are in the ground and are much happier. The hollyhocks are ready to flower and this year I might plant some seeds in late December as one of the gardeners in our local parks said they plant them in March which I did but I think they might have meant they planted out their seedlings in March not that they put the seeds in then. Normally they are flowering by now but perhaps the cold winter impeded their growth. Who knows? I am not much of a green thumb. 

 

As usual we went to the Bromeliad Show during the Carnival and bought a couple of new to us Broms. 

I am sure we have enough by now but can't seem to help ourselves.  

 I needed to make some soap and was fortunate enough to buy a couple of 3 litre tins of olive oil for $6.95 each a few months back. I had been dreading forking out a lot of money for olive oil as everything has gone up in price so couldn't believe it when I saw these tins on special. The use-by date isn't until well into next year so I bought two.

I very stupidly tried out a new recipe and used 1000g olive oil and 500g coconut oil. I had a feeling it would make a soft soap but went ahead anyway. Big mistake! It is six weeks since I made the soap and it is still soft so in future I will use some of my old recipes. I noticed that Rice Bran Oil is back in Woolworths and it isn't too expensive so will buy some of that as it seems to make a harder soap from memory. 

It has been a tragic month for several people I know as one has just lost her hubby and another has a hubby who has been diagnosed with a terminal illness. Then I read on a blog that Mimi from A Tray of Bliss had passed away after a short illness. She had only posted on social media in September and didn't mention that she was unwell that I could see so it came as quite a shock to hear of her death. Life can be very hard at times. 

Now it is time I braved the mosquitoes that have descended on our property and see if I can pull out a few more weeds before it rains again tonight. It is back to weekly mowing here in Queensland but I guess it won't be long before we will be back in drought once again. It always seems to be the way after a year or so of wet weather. That's Queensland for you! I love it anyway as it is a great place to live. Just ask the thousands of southerners who have moved up here in the last couple of years. 

Have a wonderful week!