Reality Bites

Even though we're on holiday (having now moved north to Brittany for week 2) we're making mental lists of what needs doing at the house in Ålen.

Now I realise we haven't actually said very much about it.  It is up a private road which is already pitted, so goodness only knows what it'll be like in the winter, it has no running water or drainage / sewerage, there is no bathroom, or electricity or roofing insulation. Only the downstairs windows have secondary glazing, the steps up the veranda are rickety as is the main staircase, and I'm terrified that one of the children will fall down down them! And it only has 3 bedrooms, so I'm not sure where visitors will stay!

However, it has character - bag fills of the stuff, it has an amazing view along the valley in both directions; the rooms are huge with log burners in every one. The kitchen such as it is, is lovely and a good size.

And once it is finished it will be beautiful and make a great family home in the long term, and short term a great holiday home.

We've also just booked flights to go out in October to do the paperwork things and register the house. Well sort of. As it stands Jim and Maisie are flying out together, as I don't have enough holiday to take the whole week off (and someone else has some time booked the same week) but all 4 of us are flying home together.

The plan is that Ned and I fly out later in the week. To pitfalls of living in the south west and needing to be near a large airport are becoming increasingly obvious. No matter how I look at things it's not going to be an easy journey. Late night drives and early starts, or early starts and late night train journeys. You probably all think I'm a wuss, and in a sense you're probably right. But the last few times we've flown from Gatwick, the journey has been hideous and I'd need to leave as early as possible to make sure I got there on time and oh I won't go on, but I'm stressed thinking about it and it's making me grumpy.

Jim has gone out for a run with promises of hot chocolate and cake goodies we bought from an artisan baker earlier, much to Maisie's upset as they didn't get anything! Well Ned can't as all the lovely cakes and pastries are made with butter, and we tell Maisie that everything else is made with caramel as she doesn't like it! She was a proper grumkins - wish I'd had a photo!

Night night.