A looooooooong sleep in this morning. Got up at four to let the dogs do a wee, and then retreated to bed, reawakening at 9:15 which was quite blissful. Once dressed, I took the dogs on their longer walk (around the oval) but had to stop just short of the oval when I discovered the neighbour's two dogs out and about without supervision. They came in for the attack but fortunately Shadow as still on my side of the gate and I was able to drag Seb behind it as well. Not happy at all - and I am afraid the usual 'sorry Miss Bain' did not get its usually forgiving response. So Seb had to do what he needed to do in the orchard before returning indoors unexercised.

I stripped the bed and took the electric blanket into the laundromat to wash it (it is designed to be washed, so don't be alarmed). It fluffed up beautifully and is now back on the bed with clean sheets, clean doona cover and second quilt as the blankets and quilt will be washed tomorrow (along with my favourite jumper which may not survive the wash as it is so full of holes now it is sheer will power holding it together). I may yet wash the doona itself, once i find out how to wash feather doonas. It will be nice to be able to put it away clean and smelling sweet when it comes time to add the goosedown doona to the bed. But in the mean time, the nights are not consistently cool enough to warrant such excess heat.

Lit the fire this evening as it is forecast to be fairly cool overnight. On shutting the door I managed to put three cracks into the glass in the door. It is moments like these I am grateful it is a Bakers Oven and so has a spare glass panel in the oven door. I will swap it into the fire box door tomorrow when things cool down a bit. I can get another glass panel at a time when there are fewer demands on the budget than there are at present (rates, rego, trip to Vic for the reunion, dog kennelling .... argh).

There's a nice lump of corned silver-side coming to the boil on the stove top right now - it will be served with some mash and cabbage/colcannon once it is done. No parsley sauce as the parsley has all run to seed.