EEEEK no broadband!

Well that's it, broadband at cold comfort farm is being disconnected later today and reconnection will take at least a week - quite terrifying to think that my link to the world beyond the rubble will be out of reach for a week!

No sneaky cups of tea while I catch up on all your gossip, no new hooky techniques to try, fabric to swoon over, photos to brighten a dull day. I will just have to be strong and wait patiently and set aside a whole day to blog surf when I am reconnected!!!!

I hope you have fun with all that you do and I should be back just before my post date for my first swap. I will tell you all about it when I'm back but you could always take a look over at justbehappy. Chocolate and new yarn - sounds perfect to me!

Have fun, see you in a week! xxx

Rose Cottage

These are the better bits..........dreamy wisteria, inglenook and lovely old range....




Then there's the bit we have destroyed........


Kitchen and Bathroom - well it was......

I think that's a smile, but it could be a grimace!!
We are rather pooped this week and I fear we are just beginning. The aim is to move in........well one day!

Mini update.......

We got those keys, we went inside and pretty much destroyed the kitchen and bathroom!!!!

I left two lovely, capable men unsupervised for the day yesterday and by the late afternoon there was nothing to distinguish where the kitchen ended and the upstairs bathroom began - yikes.

But I am suitably reassured that all is well and this is for the best, rotten beams are not good. So much chocolate later we are off again today to try and put some more beams in place......watch this space!

Keys

I am so very very very excited, I have hardly slept a wink last night, my tummy is in permanent somersault mode and trying to sit still to write this is particularly difficult.

Today is the day we complete on our purchase of Rose Cottage. It will be just two months tomorrow that I first walked into Rose Cottage, but the last few weeks since we exchanged contracts has been sooooo long.

We will have our home again. Somewhere we love, somewhere we want to invite friends and family, somewhere to build magical family memories, somewhere to put our mark, make it our own and feel at ease in it's embrace. I can't quite explain why renting cold comfort farm has been so wrong, not quite complete, very strange.

Life has been full of things for the last two months, I'm not really sure what things, but lots of things. Now it is time to try and find some order in the chaos, maybe get to show you what I have been doing in my free minutes - I have been hooking, sewing, felting and baking!!! The baking did get a little out of hand a couple of weeks ago with friends groaning under the constant supply, but the stress has eased a little and excitement has taken over.

So now I must dash, wrap more crockery, watch my phone intently and wait for those keys!

Ta Dah!!!!

Although the ice cream cupcakes were a wonderful distraction and greatly appreciated by many (due to the vast quantity that I made) I did finally get on with the job in hand and clear the study furniture into the landy.


This was no mean feat, bookcases are awkward and desks heavy but with constant encouragement from Bumble (!) and a rather impressive stubborn streak I did it!

Best not to mention the odd expletive that escaped my lips, but there were no children present.


As you can see it was all quite exhausting - even from an observers point of view!!!

Distractions and Divations

As you will see from the picture our house is rather overloaded with stuff, I have spent weeks de-stuffing cold comfort farm ready to move yet there is still more!

Today was supposed to be spent dropping off admission forms for A&B at their prospective school followed by clearing bookcases and the study desk ready for them to go to their new home at Grandma and Pop's. The dropping off bits I achieved but the clearing, yuck!

Just looking at the desk is enough to send shivers down my spine and even inspire me to go and do the ironing, it really is that bad just look...

However, the real horror is that all that "STUFF" needs to fit neatly in here.......

So I wandered around the place trying to find something to take my mind of the task in hand. Sadly there wasn't any ironing as I attacked that yesterday so as to avoid going to the gym, A&B are desperate to earn pocket money because of an imminant holiday with Grandma and Pop so their bedrooms are unusually tidy. Mr H is away tonight so I can't even pretend to be cooking a sophisticated dinner as "cottage pie" has been requested.

Ggggrrrrrr - there must be something to do.........

well in the end I resulted to another batch of cupcakes! Rather snazzy I think. The batch I made earlier in the week (no doubt to avoid some hidious household chore) were quote grown up so I decided this time it was time for little people cupcakes. As we are getting ready for the school fete I thought I would try out cooking chocolate cupcakes in ice cream cones!!!!


Although intended for little people I'm sure I could squeeze in one with a cup of tea, it might just give me the energy to attack the study!!!

Home

Firstly I wanted to thank all the lovely people who have enquired about my wellbeing - I am here!!! I am very well, a little frazzled, very busy and incredibly excited, but thank you all for your concern and kind comments.

So what has caused so much mayhem in this area of the world?
Home!
Such a small word but a word which evokes so much emotion, positive and negative, creates soooooo much work!!!

Our move last year saw us renting what we call "cold comfort farm". Not a pretty bungalow but an idyllic setting in a lovely village in North Oxfordshire. We really thought that renting was the way to go, no commitment, no hassle and a home that given the land with it we may not be able to afford if we were to try and buy it. Sounds great doesn't it?!

It has been a journey that has made us realise that where we live is so much more than just the outside space or the four walls that surround us. It's about making it our own, putting our own stamp on it. A space where we can relax and feel comfortable, somewhere that you can sit and enjoy a meal with friends and family without being embarrassed or mortified if they ask to use the bathroom - honestly they are that bad! It needs to reflect the people in it and we are four, a dog, three sheep and chickens, so things aren't always neat or tidy, our taste is not always conventional but much of what we have holds memories of previous journeys or of a moment in time. In a nutshell "cold comfort farm" isn't right for us long term.

At this turning point we are mid recession - as always our timing is immaculate! Undeterred we continued searching and a few heartaches later we have found, what we hope will be, our home.

Rose Cottage is in a small, goes nowhere village in the middle of the cotswolds. Surrounding the village is the most beautiful countryside. The cottage is just big enough, full of nooks and crannies and quirky enough to represent us all. It's also close enough to "cold comfort farm" to carry on enjoying the friends we have made.

So if my posting is erratic, I apologise, but I promise to pop back and fill you in as things progress.

Lastly before I sign off, look! I have been given an award! I am soooo excited I wanted to say a huge thank you to Julia for this splendid award. I know I have not been a good blogger this last month and I will try harder but to receive this was just fantastic - thank you Julia it is truly appreciated!

I promise to pop by and see what you are all doing in the sunshine and as soon as I have hassled solicitors into complete submission and the keys are in my paws I will take you on a trip to our new home.

Hugs xxxxx