Week 8 of our new life Home and Away

Monday, thought it was going to be a lot cooler today but turned out again very hot, rain is forecast this week and seems to be appearing about the time that we hit Scotland. New Fridge Freezer delivered for dad today, got it fitted in and filled up and then had to phone the supplier back as it was making a terrible noise, don't think it was balanced correctly but we cannot seem to make it shut up, so will leave it to the experts.  Got all the washing and ironing up to date, as getting ready for our exodus North.  Popped into Exeter to pick up a pair of flip flops that I had ordered, also bought a couple of pairs of cultured pearl earrings (from vouchers I received at our retirement party from Douglas's partner and his wife - thank you so much once again) and picked up a couple of things in Lakeland that will be useful at home.  So having been here nearly three weeks I finally relented and spent some money.  Douglas has his cases sorted out, me, well I know I am going to have a job as I have bought a couple of things online whilst here (uummhh maybe more than a couple) so tomorrow night Douglas's eyebrows will be touching the top of his head LOL.
Tuesday, not doing too much today as need to prepare for our Scotland journey tomorrow, cleaned the house top to bottom for dad, got all the washing and ironing up to date, went shopping to make sure dad has his supplies for the next week and visited my gran and granddads grave to lay flowers.  Adrian contacted us to update, only half a kitchen now and one bathroom is being plastered and water proofed, also think we can have the 2nd bathroom as planned, he is still working on the pipe. Cases packed, here we go again.

Kitchen going

Master Bathroom on its way

Wednesday, well we have come to the end of our three weeks in Devon, we have had some fantastic weather and I think Dad has enjoyed the company, driving to Bristol and then we will arrive in Edinburgh at teatime.  Richard picked us up at the airport, car a bit dodgy, we discovered it had no oil in it, first stop garage to top up the oil, good old car didn't let us down after all.  Nice to be back and be behind the wheel of my car, just need to remember what side of the road I have to drive on, uuumh a couple of scary moments.  We are staying at Sean's house for the week ( a good friend of Douglas's) such a nice welcome from Kath (Sean's Mum) with a spotless house, she would make a good House Rental Manager, would easily fit in over in Portugal LOL.  Had to pop in and see Katie and Carly and Danielle and of course Douglas had to pop into the Gilvenbank.  Yes we are in Fife.
Thursday, Update from Adrian, the pipe is going to go where we want it, finally, just need to dig it in.  Meeting Anita, Trevor, John, Yvonne and Steve for Lunch today, had a great lunch with some good banter, nice to catch up with the team from my old work. Then off to Town centre with Katie and the kids while Douglas went to his old work for a catch up. Managed a couple of hours chilling out and watched a bit of TV, funny as have not had a TV for so long caught up with Emmerdale and the Hotel Inspector.

The pipe!! getting dug in

Friday, Grandchildren day today, picked up Becky, Amy, Tia, Zoe, Carly and Danielle and of course Katie and yes think it is going to be sunny and warm so off we head to Muddy Boots, well we had a great day, Pig Racing (yes, with Tamworth Pigs) Carly's pig won so she got a free entry next time she visits, quad train - great fun for them all, sledging, cycling - Tia liked this one (with Amy's help), sand - think this was Zoe's favourite, although she had a lot of sand in her pants!!, water ducks, animals, a nice lunch and then more play, and yes it started raining just as we were leaving so everybody had a great day.  Managed to pop in and see Ellen and Diane - great catch up, and getting some cross stitch hints and tips for my quiet moments back at home (will be a miracle if I can see the weave to do it but will give it try).  Finally back to the house for a chill out.  Danny and Lesa popped in for a quick visit, got an update on their holiday to Greece and on how our next Grandchild is coming along, nice neat bump due on the 22nd December, will it be a boy???.

6 Lovely Granddaughters

Tia

Becky

Danielle

Carly

Amy

Zoe

 Saturday, Eilidhs 1st Birthday today (our 7th Granddaughter) so we are heading to Glasgow, first a bit of shopping!!, then off we go, made really good time, knew I was in the right area then got lost, ho hum, a phone call to Laura, help!! did finally get there.  Had a great time, Eilidh is getting so big and is coming on so well, good to catch up with Lynne, Nicola, Pamela, Andrew, Laura and of course Eilidh, a nice BBQ, well done Andrew and once again the weather was good for us.  It was good also to See Andrews family and their friends also helping them to celebrate.  Missed Andrew dressing up as Woody, never mind I am sure there are photos somewhere.

Laura, Granny Ann, Granny Pamela

Daddy with the Cake

Something missing!!

Happy Family

Sunday, leisurely day today, going to Katie's to cook a Sunday dinner, special request from Danielle for Grans Sunday Roast, very happy to oblige, nice day with Danny and Lesa and Bump joining us.  Back to the house for chilling out ready to start again tomorrow.
Been a good varied week and absolutely shattered but ready to start again tomorrow and catch up with as many friends and the rest of the family before heading home.

Week 7 of our new life Home and Away

Monday a trip to Exeter was required today after receiving a phone call from our bank to tell us possible fraudulent activity had been going on.  That is the trouble of being in too many places at once, things were fine, just flagged up as we are doing a lot of moving around just now.  Good for the bank to be on the ball. Visited Exeter Cathedral whilst we were there so was a useful visit.

Exeter Cathedral Side View

Exeter Cathedral Entrance

Tuesday, dad wanted to go out today so once the housework was done off we went, first stop Widecombe, dad used to bring my sister and I here when we were little girls, beautiful village with the usual lovely church, ponies roaming over the green and Uncle Tom Cobleys chair sited in one of the gift shops now.  Then on to Dartmoor, beautiful scenery, ponies roaming all over and cows the size of houses, must be the plentiful grass, on into Princetown, HMP Dartmoor is located very near here and if a prisoner escapes, an alarm sounds to alert the villagers to batten down the hatches, village is lovely, prison a bit grim.  On the way back we passed by Pixieland which appears to be a tiny place in itself dedicated to Pixies, and yes there were pixies in all shapes and sizes, evidently when I was little we could not pass it unless I was able to go in and needless to say add to my pixie collection, uummhh think I have grown up!!

Roaming Ponies

Widecombe Green

Uncle Tom Cobleys Chair

Statement

Widecombe Church

Wednesday - today is the day for doing jobs for dad day, Douglas has become the Driller Killer, dad needed a new telephone line put in so Douglas had to drill the hole from the garage through to the living room and proceed to put in new cable and connect to telephone, Douglas hates using power tools, but give him his due he done the job much to Dads great satisfaction.  Next we had to go down to the Dentist and organise a home visit for Dad to get his teeth looked at, one long registration form later appointment booked, lastly a new fridge freezer is required due to the intermittent breakdown of the one he has, so with dads requirements written down we had to go and hunt one down, take photographs and then let dad decide what he wants.  Success we found one locally which will suit his needs, so a cheeky wee Morgans was achieved.  Shopping for Dad is more difficult than shopping for myself.  A successful day for Dad, and now he can sit in his chair and think up more jobs to be done LOL.
Thursday, a really hot day again this weather is fantastic, dad wanted to go and he wanted to go and have a look at mobility scooters, so we took him to Trago Mills which have a great selection and you can try before you buy.  This is probably not a funny story and I am not being disrespectful to dad but he made me laugh so much today I have to relate the tale.  The salesman for these scooters was very good explaining all the individual plus and minus points of each scooter, dad spotted a couple that he liked and of course he wanted the best (like father like daughter - now Douglas realises where I get it from).  Would you like to have a go and try one out the salesman said, well dad was not too sure but after a bit of encouragement he decided why not, well he got on it very easily adjusted seat position, handlebars etc, balanced, turned the key and off he scooted.  Well one poor unsuspecting shopper had to jump out of the way, and then he upped the ante and went full speed, well! he had such a mischievous look on his face (like a wee school boy let loose in a sweetie shop), I had to run to try and keep up with him all the while crying because I was laughing so much until he came to a halt. Dad steered it correctly back to the waiting salesman, and was highly delighted.  We brought him home with plenty of literature to read and I have this terrifying thought of him being loose on the streets of Dawlish with his scooter.  Think he will eventually buy one or ask Santa for one!!!
Some not so good news from home, Adrian is having big problems trying to locate the waste pipes etc for our bathrooms, and after major digging and a broken Jack Hammer we have had to change the plan for the suicide bathroom, something I did not want to do but at the end of the day rather than digging to the ends of the earth to locate pipes we might just as well feed new ones in.  We knew that there would be issues with plumbing and drainage etc but to lose at least 5 days for locating pipes is not worth it. So another change of plan, hope there will not be too many issues like this.

Master Bathroom

Suicide Bathroom

Friday, a text from Adrian today, he thinks he has been able to find a way to put waste pipes in the bathroom so that we can keep to the original plan, we would be far happier with that so hopefully it will work.  Went to Lanford today to source a swimming pool cover, we were able to see the products that they supplied and shipping is not too bad, we think it will work out cheaper than buying one in Portugal, so just waiting on the final quote to decide.
Saturday, Dad wanted to sort out his bedroom and wardrobes today, so we just got stuck in, and managed to get him to throw out 3 tables so we took them to the recycling centre before he could change his mind, on the way back a cheeky wee Morgans in the Smugglers Inn.
Sunday slight cloud coming in today but Dad fancied going out so off we went to Brixham, a lovely fishing village complete with Harbour, ferry trips, usual restaurants, and 1940s Naval Ship called HMS Fairisle wich is still kitted out as it was then, and a replica of The Golden Hind sitting in the harbour, we walked all around the harbour, dad enjoyed seeing all the ships and also the fishing vessels complete with their kit, and then Cornish Pasties all round before coming back.  Coming up to our last couple of days here and then heading up to Fife on Wednesday so looking forward to meeting up with Family and as many friends as possible.

Replica Golden Hind

Brixham Harbour

HMS Fairisle

Week 6 of our new life Home and Away

Monday - another hot day in Devon, wow this is a surprise, managed to get all dads washing done and also dusting, then off we went to Exeter today.  Went to Princesshay Shopping Centre, wow I came face to face with Debenhams, Marks and Spencers, Superdry, Oasis and many more, guess what I did not buy one thing, not sure what has happened to me shopping just does not seem to be my thing at the moment.  Think the heat has gone to my purse.  Orders are coming in for Clotted Cream Fudge from one of our daughters in the North, I am sure we can fulfill that request.
Tuesday - another scorcher, done the ironing first thing before it got any hotter.  Got dad out in the car today, first time he has been out for at least ten years, apart from going into hospital.He wanted to go to Slapton Sands to see a Sherman tank from D Day that had been found in the sea there, it was retrieved from the sea and restored and now takes pride of place on the seafront commemorating 900 Americans that were killed by the Germans.  Sad story but dad was well chuffed with his trip, the scenery was stunning and Fish and Chips to round off the day.

Sherman Tank @ Slapton Sands

Wednesday - another scorcher, this weather is brill, lazy day today went for a long walk all around Dawlish, now got sore knees.  Received all our mail which has been redirected to my BF house, thanks Elaine for sending me the electric/gas final account and also a parking ticket, fined £60 for parking out with bay lines in The Mercat, Kirkcaldy day before we left, I remember it was a Sunday lunchtime no other cars on the floor that I had parked, what an easy way to make money on a Sunday, jobs worth at it again, well I assume as we now no longer pay Fife Council our Council Tax they have to get money from us somehow.  Just as well I didn't need spending money on our walk, apart from the sneaky wee Morgans in a lovely beer garden that we just happened to stumble across LOL.  Happy Days.  Another entry in my diary for the week we are back in Scotland, really don't think a week will be long enough.
Thursday started off a cool day today but soon hotted up, Dad didn't want to go out so off we went for a drive, ended up in a lovely little fishing village called Beer, walked on the beach and the cliffs and noseyed in all the quaint little shops along the little high street, funny how everything seems to be little here, little houses, little roads (where you have to breathe in to let another car pass),little pubs and little shops, this was a gorgeous village though and well worth the visit.

Village of Beer

St Nicholas Church, Beer

Friday another really hot day, not used to this maybe I should stop saying it, went to Buckfast Abbey the home of THE Buckfast Tonic Wine, hahaha but the monks were not out out playing today.  Beautiful Abbey with a lovely Monastic Produce shop and gardens. a shame really that it is in the process of still being renovated, it made it really very new looking and I think more like a new building without any atmosphere, and a lot of it was still closed off so could not see the ceilings depicting the saints, and the virgins, I am sure that more could have been done to restore original features rather than make new, but I suppose at the end of the day it will become another tourist feature.

Buckfast Abbey

Stained Glass Mural

Monks Rose Garden

Another Coffin for me, getting worried about Douglas!!

Monks Lavender Garden

Saturday an update from home today, the baths have been taken out, the three bedroom floors have been
taken up and the radiators have been removed.  We have had someone up to have a look at our gate and now have a price for removing, galvanising and making it electric, we will wait until we get back to sort that one out.  No word about the plinths having arrived yet!! Next week the new plumbing will be going in, looks like a real building site now.

Master Bathroom

Suicide Bathroom

Suicide Bathroom no Bath

Master Bedroom

Sunday -  Dad fancied going for a drive today, so off we went and visited Chudleigh, Tedburn St Mary,
(dad and his brother were evacuated here aged 4 in the blitz and stayed for 5 years, he saw the house where he lived, the school he attended, the Sunday School and the Church, sadly many changes have occurred with new builds etc but dad was able to dwell on his memories today, his brother died young and a memorial is in the church at Tedburn St Mary also), we also passed through Chiveton Bishop and Dunsford, passed through some fantastic scenery of fields and villages, thatched cottages and village pubs, only thing that puts me off is the lanes that are supposed to be roads, nearly came a cropper a couple of times when you come head to head with 4x4s then have to reverse 2 miles to let them pass, apart from that a good end to the week and more fantastic weather due for next week.

Week 5 of our new life

Monday got my nails done in Santa Barbara this morning, lovely job only not sure about colour, Portuguese Pink I think, although it should be Violetta, still happy with them and pleased to know that I can get them done close to home rather than having to wait until I go back to the UK.  Did notice though that the colour palette for the Portuguese tends to be more Pastel Colours, guess I can get used to that.  We packed up the rest of our boxes today as the removal van is coming again tomorrow afternoon.  Douglas made a statement that he would actually like to put me in storage for a couple of months, he measured me up and you can see the result in the photo, LOL. Hope the GNR are not around tomorrow when the van man comes. Still not quite sure what Douglas meant!!

Does look like a coffin LOL

Tuesday well what can I say this is our last day for 4 weeks in our wee empty hoose, going to miss it, just getting used to everything, but never mind will be a different house when we come back in August (I hope), the removal men came today and the first thing they asked was (What is the long white thing!) Douglas reply it should be the wife as I thought I would put her in storage for a month while I go to the UK, you don't need to worry about feeding her or anything she will be OK, they just looked at him and he then had to admit it just the cushions for the garden furniture, LOL their faces were a picture.  It has made me chuckle for the rest of the day.  Have managed my 18 lengths of the pool today, again sad that I will not be able to carry on swimming for the next month, unless!! Dad has managed to put a swimming pool in his garden (somehow don't think so), went to Mick and Paulines tonight as they are storing our clothes etc for the next month, had supper with them and a few laughs, life is good and on the brighter side we will catch up with everybody, boy have the family got plans for me back in Scotland, not sure if a week is long enough!!!
Wednesday up at 05.00am ready to leave our beloved house for the month of July and make tracks to Devon, walked the whole way round house and garden to say goodbye, feel quite sad and going to miss it, just feels so comfortable already and nothing has been done to it yet.  Arrived in Bristol lunchtime, OMG what a difference in temperature, picked up the car and on the way to Dawlish, at least the sun has come out, this will take some getting used to again.  Today will be a day to catch up with Dad, see what jobs he needs doing for the next three weeks and acclimatising to the UK weather.  Received the electric bill by email, uuuumh! need to get our head around how they work it out!! watch this space.
Thursday lovely sunny day in Devon and the news is telling us we are going to have a heatwave, bring it on, managed to get some cleaning done for dad, then went shopping, also found a couple of nice little pubs, one in Dawlish Warren and one in Dawlish so had a couple of sneaky drinks.  Conversation with Adrian our Builder as we need to change the planned extension yet again, instead of building on to the side of the house we now have to extend to the front, this is due to Portuguese Planning that states you must respect 5 metres from your boundary on any side, which in effect means that if we build on to the side we are not respecting that. Now Adrian needs to work out what extra units and Granite we need to order for the kitchen.  The Granite is not a problem but as we have already ordered the kitchen we need to move quick to make sure we have enough kitchen. Typical it happens as soon as we arrive back in the UK, oh well sure it will work out.  Poor man is working to a tight enough schedule.
Friday had a busy day today, cleaning and washing, tidying out the garage and doing dads chiropody. Email about our windows and doors, we hadn't chosen the glass for the new front door, 2 pictures emailed, can we pick one and let them know straight away, not the same when done electronically.  Managed to pay the electric bill on-line, pretty straightforward and then had to let our lawyer know our full address so that she can have our bills sent to us rather than her, would be a good idea if we knew what the address really is, no one can tell us that fact!! so have sent her what we think it is and she will have to check with the Camra (council), might as well earn her money, plus we need it for proof of residency in August.

Chinchilla Glass

Delta Glass

Saturday, my sister Carol visited Dads today so a family gathering which was very good, we sorted out some stuff for dad and had a bit of lunch had a good laugh together.  Carol got the train instead of driving so she was in local holiday mode she also said that when she comes to Portugal she is not going to book she is going to be a random visitor, nothing to do with the bottle of Prossecco in Storage at the moment which has got her name on it.  Douglas says everybody will be random visitors as he is not inviting anyone LOL.
Sunday must be the hottest day today, went for a long walk along Dawlish Beach, stopped for a bit of lunch, then had the ultimate Clotted Cream Ice Cream ooooh heaven, just as well we left the car at dads as the walk will delay the calories sitting anywhere.  What a way to end the week Andy Murray won Wimbledon.

Dawlish Beach

Dawlish Beach