Compaction AOK

It's 3pm on a windy, rainy day and the structural engineer has just been here.  He ran around on the sand pad doing multiple compaction tests and we have the big tick, good to go for the concrete slab - yay!

Things have been insane for the last 4 days, we had two semis bringing in sand non-stop for a day and a half, one guy on the earth mover, another guy on the excavator and another guy on the roller.  Apparently they have brought in and compacted about 450 square metres of sand - holy cow!

Look at the size of the rocks they brought in to stabilise the front of the pad.  I think they are fabulous!

Here are a few videos of what went on the last few days.

What with all this and the trees that needed clearing, we have excellent piles of future firewood all over the place.

 I must show you the inaugural use of the fish cleaning sink that was installed in the vegie patch.  Here we have Steve modelling the cleaning of a couple of flathead that Laurie caught (Steve, alas, caught zip).  Eventually we will set up a tap and hosepipe in the vegie patch, but for now the sink gets sluiced down with a bucket of water.

 I am excited, look at this lovely blossom.  It's a Kunzea - Solomons Pink.  I have planted about 100 natives about the place and to save money I bought tiny tiny plants, so nothing terribly exciting has happened to them.  So I was thrilled to bits to see buds forming on this little plant and impatiently watched every day until this.  Such a beautiful colour.

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I've found yet another new bird and finally managed to get a focused photo of him as he flitted about.  This is a Western Spinebill, a nectar feeder.  That thrills me no end as this is the first nectar bird I've seen - our native bush here doesn't seem to have much in the way of nectar plants, so most of the plants I've put in are nectar plants, as I want to encourage more birds.  This little fellow has been visiting my heap of pot plants, some of which are flowering and dripping with nectar.  He loves kangaroo paws, a lovely red grevillea olivacea and the pineapple sage that I'm waiting to plant in my house garden later on.