Why I love this house

Ten reasons why I absolutely love our new home:

1. Our garden - perfect patio for drinking wine and eating, and a lovely garden for the monkeys to play in. 

2. I've been able to buy new items as its ours and I don't plan ever to move again (new sofas, tv, dining table) things I love not just make do.

3. Extra space - the conservatory is brilliant.

4. Kitchen cupboards - lots of them

5. Washing machine in the kitchen - not in a cold garage

6. Following on from point 5 - a space above the washing machine to sort laundry - something deeply satisfying about clean laundry 

7. The chance to redecorate and make the monkeys bedrooms perfect

8. Having such a great cycle way 30 seconds away - already used it lots

9. Being able to hang the washing in the garden (ok I might have gone a bit mad on the washing reasons)

10. It is all mine and it feels like our home already - I just LOVE it.

One week in

We are all settling into the house - furniture has been built, homes have been found for things and it really is beginning to feel like home.

Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day, we had a trip to buy school shoes - relatively pain free. Then had a walk on "the lines" a long pathway that follows the old railway lines - it is going to be a great place to run and cycle when we finally get ourselves moving again - or to rephrase when I get myself moving and stop being so damn lazy.

A friend and her little girl visited in the afternoon and it was lovely to watch the monkeys all playing in the garden.

I managed to get lots of washing on the line.

Something that was impossible in our old home. Garden has not been touched yet but luckily it will be easy to keep under control.

I spent Friday evening in the garden drinking wine, eating pizza and reading - a very chilled out night after a busy week ..... I just won't mention the leak from the bathroom!

My friend bought me this as a house warming gift - it sums this house up perfectly.

The start of something wonderful

I'm sat on my lovely new sofa in my lovely new house. The monkeys are tucked up in their new bedrooms fast asleep - the past few days of sorting and doing my best with what we have so far has worked they are both really happy - and I'm so happy to have them both home.

There's a few more things to sort over this weekend but by Monday I think the boxes will be unpacked.

I've had a few surprises since I've moved in and some jobs need doing but that's fine - this is our house its not a rush job we are going to be here for a long time.

This is the picture of my lounge on Weds.

By the end of this weekend it's going to look very different.

Hosting the first gathering here tomorrow as it's my Mum's birthday - so the fridge is full of yummy food and chilled wine.

Woo hooooooo

It has finally happened the day that at one point I never thought would come - I own my own house again. After waiting and waiting I got a call Tuesday saying we hope to complete tomorrow - and that was that 24 hours later the house was mine.

I picked the keys up after work and it was such a funny feeling - the excitement and woah I'm responsible for this feeling all rolled into one. I can't move in til next week - but I will be taking quite a few before pictures because I will have plenty of things to do to keep me busy. So next week it will be roll my sleeves up time and get scrubbing and moving. 

The monkeys are currently with their Dad so I will have a few days to get their bedrooms looking as lovely as possible in the circumstances.

Now I'm off for a little adventure of my own.

MIA

My plan was not to write a post until I'd moved - but as you've guessed that hasn't happened .... yet. I'm trying to stay positive and doing ok most of the time - fingers crossed one more week. 

Hopefully next time I update I will have some good news.

On a positive I had a lovely day in Lytham with the monkeys and mum - we made the most of the sunshine.

Then headed through Blackpool (did not stop!) and had an hour in Bispham it was lovely and we even managed to find the 2p machines.

Sunshine please stay

I'm happy to say that Sunday was a much happier day in our house. We headed off to the park with our ginormous picnic blanket, bats and balls and some brunch supplies. I managed to sit down for 5 minutes - which is better than nothing.

We came home for lunch and I "encouraged" everyone to have a little siesta - I played the it's too hot outside card and it worked a treat - all of us had a lovely guilt free nap.

My mum came round and I did a bit of gardening and we had tea outside - it was a lovely end to the weekend.

It's St Swithins day today and the weather today dictates the next 40 days - it would be brilliant if summer really did stay.

I wish every day was like today

This is how every Saturday should be. Swimming lessons, then off to a party, then for the monkeys to play for hours with their friends (in and out of the paddling pool) whilst us adults got to sit down and catch up, home for tea in the garden and after a very quick shower two exhausted monkeys who were asleep as soon as their heads touched the pillows.

Now I'm enjoying a cup of tea (the only disaster is there is no wine in the house) the place is tidy and I'll be going to bed at a respectable time to catch up on some much need sleep.

I'm editing this post - the above makes us sound like we've had an idyllic day and we have from 10:45am when we exited the house to go swimming. However from being woken by a certain person at 5:30am til going out it felt like hours (which thinking about it it was!!) the monkeys were loud and argumentative and I wished that a second adult would magically appear and either give me a 10 minute break or make me a brew. Being a single mummy is the hardest thing I've ever done but the reason I started this blog was to remember the good parts of our lives (if I focused on the first 5 hours of the day it wouldn't be great) but the last 8 hours were brilliant.