Another day, Another small step towards completion

almost there

G has had a lot on his mind recently as he has been trying to solve a couple of  problems.  Problem number one was how to fit doors to the eve storage area and make them almost hidden so that it just looked like a wall.  Problem number two was that pesky shower valve that keeps leaking.  The photos show the solution to the storage and a jubilant G with the finished doors.  There is also another photo of G crying about the leaky shower valve.  For someone that hates having photos taken he seems to be making more effort in my constant photo shoots!

Ta da - job done

We realised the other day that in May this year it will be four years since we have bought this home.  We have done so much in that time but there is still so much to do.  I just asked G what metaphor I should use to explain how it felt - I said to him are we half way up Everest or are we nearing the summit and he replied we are almost back to base camp.  I am not sure it feels like that, It has become a bit of a never ending story.  We are getting so close but there is still so much to do. 

   

 

  

The shower valve just keeps leaking

The other photo shows the difficulty I have walking down the stairs that have been painted on either side.  I keep stepping in the paint with disastrous results.  I finished the last few steps this evening that I hadn't managed to complete at the weekend.

Me trying not to step in the fresh paint

We finished the evening with a 3 mile run that is our longest since we have started running again and a lovely hot bath with gin and tonics.

 

Why can't I walk up the stairs?

The biggest problem with painting the stairs is the difficulty in getting up and down stairs while the work is in progress - fortunately there is a small strip in the middle that is not painted  - however that strip proved to be a bit small for my big clumpy feet.  We worked hard all day to get the undercoat on the stairs, and all the woodwork on the stair well.  Some of the banister rails proved to be very difficult to paint.  I managed to get a little bit of paint in other areas of the house when  I trod through it around a bit.  All the mess has been cleared up now so we are all okay again.

G started the day by painting the airing cupboard door and its the only work photo we have today so I have posted it,  Also because my mum said it sounded like I had done the majority of the work yesterday and that is not the truth  - I think it was because I am writing the blog so I must have focused a bit more on my jobs than his.

I also managed to persuade him to have a coffee break down the cafe -

it was hard work to cajole him this morning and when I first suggested a coffee he said ' you know where the kettle is!'.  It does take a bit of time out of the day but there was a quite a few of us down this morning, Vicko, Denise, Troke and Sarah and as always we had a good laugh.  We had to sit inside today as there was a bitter wind but we could still watch the waves from the warmth.

 

However when we got back we only had a couple of hours left as we had promised to support Mogsy's long training run in preparation for the London Marathon.  Today's run was 17 miles and G and I supported her on the bikes handing her energy drinks and gels along the way.  We were back to hers for a hot tub after wards and a bottle of wine before we headed home on the bikes.  It was a great afternoon to be outdoors and as our hot tub is broken at the moment we loved being in hers.  It was a bit of a wobbly ride home but we managed to make it back for steak and chips and are now crashed in front of the fire.

 I almost forget to explain the last photo.  One of the villages that we went through is called Titson.  However some pranksters had messed around with the sign and it amused us all, especially G.  So here is a photo of him next to it.

Back to it

After a week of us both working and recovering from the great snowboarding trip it was back to work clothes and the building site.

Today we both worked really hard and also managed to squeeze in a brief coffee break at the beach cafe.

We worked on separate tasks today Graeme finished lots of bits off and also fitted a shower valve.  The photo of him was taken shortly after he turned the water back on hence the towels on the floor.  One of the valves was not working correctly and it created a leak with water spraying everywhere. 

My job for the day was quite straightforward to strip the flowery carpet off the stairs, get rid of all the underlay and  gripper strips.  Then I had to remove all the nails and sand the stairs, banister and walls ready for paining.  The photos show a before and after shot with me cleaning at the end of the day.

We worked well all day and ended up pretty tired at the end of it.  We changed the end of the day plan from a run to a walk down to the sea pool.  We are now chilling with a wine and beer by the fire waiting for the pasta bake to cook.  Another full day planned tomorrow including the painting of the stairs and we are both going out for the afternoon supporting Mogsy on her long training run for the London Marathon.  She will be running and we will bike along side her with spare water bottles and energy drinks. 

G & A Snowboarding Tour

We are back to earth with a bump after a fabulous time snowboarding.  We managed to get 6 days on the slopes and managed to get enough snow to get some great boarding in.  We all had a great time and it was a well deserved reward for Dan and Jordan for all the hard work they have put in on the renovation.
 

Overnight Ferry Crossing - Very bumpy


We rented a three bedroom chalet that was about 25 minutes away from the slopes.  It was very much a DIY holiday and required quite a bit of organisation.  We drove down to Portes de Soleil with an overnight ferry crossing with all our food and kit piled high in the car. When we arrived in the evening Clare and her family were all waiting for us. They had bought Fondue with them for dinner.  Graeme likes fondue but doesn't see it like the French do as making a proper meal.  He believes that its only a starter so we followed it with Lasagna - suffice to say we were all pretty full by the end.   

Fondue Night

Clare and Lilian stayed in the B&B next door with Christopher, and Juiliette stayed with us.  We got to board with Juilette and Christopher all day Sunday our first day then after apres ski they left to go home.  It was great to see them all and we had great fun with them.



 

Our Chalet





View from our Chalet

 








For the rest of the week we explored all the different areas and drove to the different resorts of Morzine, Chatel, Avoiriaz and Les Gets.  There is not a lot of snow around at the moment but the pistes were all pretty good.  We also found a great section that had a couple of red runs that was empty.  The snow conditions and lack of people made up for the fact there were only two runs in that section.  We were also blessed one afternoon with about 3 inches of snow when we were in that area and we had the place to ourselves - definitely the best boarding of the holiday.

  



Snowboarding holidays are always full of laughs - there is so much that can go wrong - and fortunately most our our falls came under the amusing category although a few were a bit painful at the time.  Jordan and Dan's boarding has come on brilliantly. 



Some of the memorable moments were 

• Dan trying to board across a button lift and making a total muck of it and crashing in the middle with people either side of him
• Jordan offering to buy us a round of drinks in what turned out to be the most expensive bar we had been in.  He offered before the bill came.
• Me snowboarding into a flat bit of mud that I thought I could just slide over - wrong!  The board stopped but I kept going.  Unfortunately everyone was watching me at the time.  
• At one point we came across the poles of a slalom course - G, Dan and Jordan all managed to get down it boarding between the poles.  Unfortunately when it was my turn I crashed hit one of the poles that skidded halfway down the mountain.  I had to unclip my board and walk down to get it try and put it back in again whilst a ski school was waiting above me to use the course.
• G and Dan doing cartwheels on the board.





J & D Tours (Just Disastor Tours) took over the map for a great day





Squinting into the sun





Great holiday and loads of happy memories.  I can't believe how much washing we are back to.  The ski stuff is so bulky, I am on about the fourth wash and the pile does not seem to be diminishing.





The trip has re motivated us about our idea to do a ski season.  We are hoping we might go out in December for five months to run a chalet.  Its an idea we have had for a few years but we are getting closer to it possibly becoming a reality.  G has asked at work and had a favourable response and his next step is to put in a formal written request. I haven't asked at work yet because our company is more corporate than G's environment and I didn't want to appear as if I was not very career focused.  My boss is out with me tomorrow and I am thinking of broaching the subject with him then.



Jordan & Dan







The thoughts about the career break have boosted our energy for completing the house.  One of our plans is to rent the house out on holiday lets whilst we are away.  So that means it needs to be the finished article!  It won't be a busy period for holiday rentals as it will be over the winter but it will all help and also give us an idea of whether we want to do it for a full summer period.

So our plans now are to go full steam on renovation mode starting at the weekend when we will both be off and also getting super fit over the summer so we are ready for a season of boarding. Willl post back tomorrw night to let you know how the discussion with my boss goes about having 5 months off!

  

Mount Cherry  - our favourite slopes - my favourite restuarante in background











Should have gone to spec savers

Tonight I was going to blog about G's new specs.  I have been away with work for a couple of days in London and left with strict instructions to G that he was to chill out while I was away, rest up for our holiday, watch boys films and eat oven chips.  I have had a busy couple of days and we have not had much of a chance to chat over the last couple of  days (although when G talks on the phone I would hardly describe it as chatting).

When I got back this evening I said I would grab the lap top and write a final bog about before our holiday.  I was saying to him as no building work had happened over the last few days I would use the opportunity to post a photo with his new glasses.  Whilst I was saying this I could see that he was smirking a bit and I soon guessed  that he had not been following my orders to rest before we went on holiday.

So whilst I was away believing that he was having a bit of a rest before the holiday he had in fact been plastering the whole of the leading ceiling on the first floor.  Apparently he says that he only meant to mix a little bit of plaster to plaster a small section but overestimated how much plaster he needed and ended up having enough to complete the whole job.  I am not sure how much of that I believe but he has done a fab job.  He also moved the light that was on the landing which he didn't think needed moving but I did so I was really chuffed to have that surprise.

The photos tonight show G in both pairs of glasses and the new plastered ceiling.  We won't post again before our snowboarding holiday as we are leaving Friday night but will post as soon as we get back.  Just hope it snows before we get there.

Trying to find G's off switch

I am a woman with a mission.  At the moment its mission impossible but I am trying hard. My main objective at the moment is to try and get G to slow down a bit and rest up before our holiday.   As you know we are going away for our Snowboarding trip and the date is almost upon us, in fact its less than a week a way  (six days and counting!).  The way G's shift pattern has worked means that he is working a nine day stretch before we go away.  I am trying to get him to down tools for the last week so that we don't leave for holiday exhausted.

To keep the costs down and to manage the horrendous pound to euro exchange we are going to drive down to the resort.  This means that we can take our food and supplies with us and that really helps with the costs.  Hence at the moment I am preparing lasagna, curry and bolognese sauce that are all going in the freezer for the trip down.  We also have quite a big to do list before we leave, with some last minute organisational bits and pieces.  I am working away next week and am in London overnight so hopefully I will get most things tied up this weekend while G is at work (That's if I don't get distracted).

In addition to this we are on a last minute fitness campaign to get fit for the snowboarding.  Dan and Jordan are very fit at the moment and I am hoping we can keep up with them on the slopes. When G got home last night we both went out for a run  - this is our second run now and we are both impressed how well our bodies are coping with the new fitness regime - we don't feel like we have lost fitness at all maybe all our walking has helped.  Only a short run 2.5 miles but lovely coming back over the cliffs.  I had thought G might relax while I had a delicious supper planned but of course that was never going to happen.  He had picked up some oak on the way home, that is for the built in bedside tables and he made it sound like if he did not fit it that evening it might go off.  I know that I don't have as much building knowledge as him, but I am know that oak doesn't have a shelf life, anyway it was too hard for me to argue that the job didn't need there and then so the photo shows G fitting it in his running gear.  He also fitted an oak threshold between where the carpet ends and the bathroom tiles starts.  It all looks very good and he was pleased with the results.  The after photo shows the two new oak tops to the bedside tables.  The snowboard storage will be covered by some sort of cover - we are trying to figure out what at the moment  - and the bed head will sit in front of it.

I cooked another Jamie inspired meal which went down well with a bottle of wine and we finished the evening by watching the first half of 'Love and other Drugs'.  Its of great interest to me as its about a pharmaceutical rep, in fact the original book was written by a Lilly rep whilst he was working for Lilly.  I understand the original book is quite different from the film.  Apparently he is bit of a lazy slacker in the book and gives looks of tips and secrets on how to be a drug rep and look like you are working harder than you are.  The screen writer felt that the audience would not feel good towards that character as a lead in the film so changed his profile.  I think I need to get hold of the book to read all his tricks!  (Not that there are many that I ...and my bosses ....don't know about). 

G is working today and I am preparing for the holiday which will include cooking chicken curry.  We have friends Steve, Deborah and Kiki (aged 3) coming over for supper this evening  - so I am going to have a browse through Jamie Oliver's 30 minute meals cook book and choose something new from there.  Then  I will watch him prepare it on line and voila  - a fab supper in minutes!  Except browsing through the book with a coffee, then shopping then watching it on line could all take me a bit of a while :-)

Let there be light

Tonight G managed to get the new lights fitted going up the stairs. We have tried to choose lights with a nautical theme without being too twee.  We have gone for more of a coastal hint than a nautical theme that might be over bearing.  They almost look a bit like port holes.  You can also see from the photos the new lights and also the new banister he fitted.  The banister was fitted a few days ago but I can't keep up with the pace of work and managed to miss it out the blog. 

I have also managed to uncover the mystery of what he did yesterday morning, he went to the tip to get rid of the smashed mirror and the other building waste and he also ordered some oak.  I am glad that I had not missed any big development that he had completed in the loft in last nights blog.  He came home very late last night about 10:30pm  apparently a customer that he had been after for a while finally decided to admit to all his crimes.  Even though G had been chasing him down and hoping he would get him to admit guilt it was a bit inconvenient when he came in yesterday as G was having a nightmare busy day from hell and was not looking for any extra work.

Today he has been really busy again and getting fed up with all the changes that may come down the line with cuts in funding on the police budget. I also had a busy day and we both hoped to go for a run together tonight but my late finish and his tiredness got the better of us.  Never mind there is always tomorrow.

I

Spot the difference



New mirror on the door - not cleaned yet!

I am really not sur what progress has been made on the loft tonight as I can't spot the difference.  G and I have passed like ships in the night.  I had a very early start and he was in bed when I left as he was working a late shift.  I am home now but he won't be untill much later and is busy dealing with a customer at work.  I know he will have done something in the loft but I can not figure out what it could be he wouldn't have had much time as he was due to start work at 11:00 am but that normally doesn't stop G from building a few walls or putting in a staircase :-).

However I did forget to tell you that yesterday the mirror has finally arrived safely in one piece yesterday and G has screwed it onto the back of the door where the walk in wardrobes are and its looking good.  So tonight I have posted a photo of that.

I hope that when he comes home this evening he doesn't tell me about some amazing job he has been doing this morning that I have totally missed I will be a bit embarrassed.  I would love to think that maybe he had a well deserved lie in and a lazy breakfast but I think that would be as likely as him deciding we should paint the loft pink!

I have been busy this evening preparing meals for our ski trip we are cooking ahead and freezing some to take with us.  The trip is getting ever closer and we still have  few things to sort out with the car breakdown cover, insurance certificate, hotel on the trip back as well as all our provisions and equipment.  Can't wait to hit those slopes.

Boxed in and plastered

Today G was not doing paid work today.  I always hate to say he is was not working as when he is not doing his day job he ends up working twice as hard at home.  Today was no exception and he worked hard to box in and plaster the underside of the stairs.  Apparently he has been procrastinating on this

job as he was undecided on the best way to box it in.  It took a long time to do as first he had to box it in with MDF (the table top came in use again), then cover that in plasterboard then finally plaster it.  The photos show before and after.  In the after photo if you look carefully you can see the wet plaster all complete under the stairs.  He is also more tired in the after photo as we decided to rejuvenate our running career this evening and after he downed tools we did a two mile run to Northcott beach and back.  He returned to a hot bath so hence the bathrobe.  We are now relaxing by the fire with a glass of wine and as I write he has just nodded off despite the fact he has his new glasses on and its only 8pm!  I promise I will post a photo of the new glasses soon, apparently its like we bought a new HD television as it looks so clear to him!