A bit of gardening

 We're not tackling the garden this year - it's a case of restricting our efforts to holding the wilderness back!  And that alone is a pretty big task.  For example, it takes me 2.5 hours to mow the lawn and I had to downgrade the mower to a lightweight flymo to cope with the slopes (and Phil is exempt due to hayfever).  In our old garden, we were forever pulling up sycamore seedlings whereas here, bindweed is encroaching everywhere as is a pretty but thuggish white geranium.  At least the sandy soil means that digging and pulling stuff up is easier than it was on Edward Ave's brick quality clay soil.

I've covered some of the veg patch with weed stopping fabric for this year - and did sneak in some spuds!  The aparagus bed gave us just 2 meals worth - very tasty.  I'm not as impressed with the tastiness of the raspberries though and may be replacing at some point.

Phil's made the birdbath watertight and has been attempting to make the patio a bit less uneven.  We've painted the fence - but we still need to repoint its brick base.

The clothes line is back in operation so I can start weaning myself off my recently acquired tumble dryer addiction.

And we've entertained in our conservatory - it made a good spot for lunch in the rain.

I'm enjoying the garden much more that working inside.
Wildlife: we've spotted a green woodpecker (on the lawn - very weird), goldfinches, wrens, sparrows, blue tits, great tits, robins, starlings & very tame blackbirds.  One pigeon fell victim to a female sparrowhawk who decapitated it & removed the liver on the driveway before flapping off!  She has been back and Phil's hoping she may keep the pigeon numbers down.

Dining Room - Furniture Change

 More grey IKEA Hemnes added...  We've been rethinking how the huge open plan space downstairs will work - and we're building the plan for the big overhaul that's waiting for my sharesave scheme to mature in December.  It does mean that we can make small changes secure in the knowledge that they will be right for the room in 6 months time as well as now.  


A very generous payment for a bike & housewarming gift from James & Freya enabled us to get 2 bookcases for the dining room.  Short term, it's meant the last of the boxes could be unpacked, freeing up the conservatory and giving me access to the cookery books.  Long term, they will stay there - and may be joined by another of the slim ones.  The pine dresser from our old house that I painted up fits beautifully next to the fish tank & is now overflow booze cupboard and table linen.

There was a wall shelf/unit in the dining room too - it used to be our TV stand in Edward Avenue, but became obsolete when we got a different telly that wouldn't fit.  However, combined with a blanket box, it makes a great suitcase/bag support for the guest room - not exactly elegant, but functional!  I don't know if I'm unusually lazy (probably), but I rarely unpack when staying at a friend's, but do like to be able to stow my bag somewhere - hence not worrying about spare drawers, but 2 places to shove and easily access a case.  after we redecorate this room, will probably put up some hooks so guests can hang up stuff....

Bedroom Furniture

We ended up getting IKEA freestanding furniture for the main bedroom having spent lots of our time talking about fitted units - partly because we couldn't afford the gorgeous wardrobes inspired by our friends' home in Winchester.  And I think that although it wasn't our first choice, it's worked out better as it keeps our bedroom feeling big and spacious - something about being able to see the wall behind.  There's enough space for Phil's clothes plus a chair (essential jacket/jersey/belt temporary storage!).  In an ideal world, the wardrobe door would not wobble when pulled open, but I think we can live with that!

Assault on Box City Part One

Believe it or not, these photos are after a weekend of sorting through Box City in the conservatory and moving contents into permanent homes in the garage.


We'd moved everything into the conservatory (that was already hosting many boxes) so we could de-asbestos the garage.  That's been done now, thunderbirds style garage door has been installed, the ceiling has been put up & painted and 5 heavy duty plastic racks drilled to the walls.

The big transfer was scheduled for next weekend, but as our plans had changed (Mum & Dad were going to visit but Husband's been ill so we postponed), I figured I could make a start whilst the patient recuperated.


So, time to move in.  And it's a slow process - despite Husband being much more able to help than I'd anticipated.  We're determined not to just store stuff we no longer need or want so I've taken the Panda to the tip many, many times - but very little has ended up in the landfill skip!

About another weekend of sorting & moving & we'll have an organised garage & a use-able conservatory.  Hopefully!

Lobby Complete - Our Smallest Room

We did think that the lobby would be a quick job - it is our smallest room after all & the plastering & new front door had been completed a couple of months ago.  And this is why Husband decided to have a go at laminate flooring himself for the first time.




However, it still has 4 corners, a radiator and oodles of white work - so it still took 3 weekends to do!
Repainted, flooring installed, new light fitting fitted, coat hooks replaced, key rack installed, interior door furniture updated.

The photograph on the wall is one we bought a couple of years ago in Corbridge & is of one of our favourite urban views (a very short list) - the Millennium Bridge looking across to the glass armadilllo Sage in Gateshead.


We haven't replaced the very 70s internal door - it is in reasonable condition & we didn't hate it!  However, we changed the door handle as the old one was looking a bit past it.  I'm really pleased we now have a key rack as I have had far too many key loss crises since moving in here.  It is straight BTW - weird angle is down to my dodgy photography.


I won the paint 2 years ago in a competition (very rare) and after much surfing, the hooks ended up coming from Ikea.


Husband did sweat and swear quite a bit as he worked out how to fit the flooring.  He's done really well with it, but I suspect we will be outsourcing this job in the future as I don't think he found it a fun project - especially around the radiator pipes.

Lofts emptied and insulated

Two days (over 2 weekends), many trips to the tip, 3 to B&Q and 2 to Colden Common - and we now have both lofts free of rat/mouse poo, free of stuff left by previous owners and beautifully insulated.


Exciting discoveries:

• 3M protective suits have a blue triangle on the back for no readily apparent reason.
• The plumbers removed the old cold water tank (platform still visible).
• New glass fibre insulation was much less horrid to handle than the old yellow stuff we put up in the old house's loft.  Phil still suited up though to prevent irritation.
• Most mouse poo found in rolled up old green carpet.
• Advice was correct - bread knives are the perfect insulation cutting & shaping device.
• Previous owners had his & her lofts!  And didn't get around to emptying either....
• Manual Singer Sewing machine circa 1936.
• Slide viewer, very solid looking, with rat chew marks on the box.
• Project completed by previous owners daughters on "Sledge dogs of Antarctica" with touching patriotic conclusion.  And recently as "resently" - but as findings included year books from Southampton Medical School, I guess this didn't hold her back in life.
• Photos, photo albums, Christmas decorations - returned to previous owners, requiring drives to Colden Common.

Thunderbirds are go

Garage door has been fitted.  It is a roller shutter so that we can keep the cars parked up close without impairing opening - I haven't pedaled up to open it yet with the remote - but am really looking forward to doing so.  No more lifting muddy mountain bikes through the house.
The seal at the base is much more secure so that rodents shouldn't gain easy access!

All that's needed now is a lick of paint inside the garage & some shelving - then we can fill it with bikes, surf boards, pressure washer, inflatable canoe, paddles, buoyancy aids, pumps, gardening tools, bike carrier........ and I'd love to find a way to get the Thunderbirds theme to play as the door opens!