Week 32 of our new life

Monday, Douglas playing golf today so an early start, as for me the housework is calling.  Got the washing out to dry, general housework and managed to clean another floor tile by tile so only another 3 floors to get cleaned.  One hell of a job and I regret it as soon as I start but need to get them finished.  Builders arrived about 11.00 and decided to paint the terrace so the furniture had to be moved again after we had just cleaned it all yesterday.  Roger has put the first coat of paint on some of the windows and finished off the cementing on the others, a nice dry day today so they should dry out easily.  Had some strange invaders swimming in our pool today, yellow beetles about 30 of them, they swam a few lengths and then dissappeared, very odd!!!  This afternoon decided to make Carrot and Coriander Soup and Broccolli and Stilton Soup for the freezer and also made a Rabbit Stew with Tarragon Doughballs for Tea, half of which will go in the freezer, ooohh Yummy Yummy, so all in all a very productive day.  Time now to chill.

Rabbit Stew

Coming Up....

Pool Invaders!!!

Tuesday, another bedroom floor scrubbed. Douglas was helping today so he donned the rubber gloves and then broke the mop bucket by working too hard (one way of getting out of it).  Had some more furniture delivered, we had measured for a wardrobe for the twin room, great would fit in perfectly we just have to move a light slightly, not a big deal.  What we didn't think of was actually getting it into the bedroom, only having a small hallway between the 2 bedrooms was a slight disaster as we could not get the wardrobe in, hummm, the delivery men got it into the hallway but couldn't get it into the bedroom and could not get it out of the hallway, lots of swearing from Douglas, after some deliberation the men said "do not worry" we will come back tomorrow and take the wardrobe apart, put it in the room and put it back together!!! We looked at each other and thought OK only solution, delivery men left and we were left thinking will they come back tomorrow?? Nothing on this project has gone right for us and this is just another challenge, just as well we are not using those bedrooms or bathrooms as to try and squeeze past the wardrobe was very nearly impossible, not to worry it will be sorted tomorrow (we hope), tonight is quiz night so we will have a beer before going out, ah ha the beers are in the small fridge which at the moment is in the back bedroom!! guess who had to breathe in very deeply to get the beers (no it was not me).  On the plus side the window designs are nearly finished just a bit more painting on them, builders not sure about the colour, but we like it and all will be revealed!!!

Off to quiz night, always a good laugh and a few drinks and I did get some questions answered correctly, won another prize on the raffle, this time I picked another oven dish, Douglas always gets miffed as he would like me to get the wine or beers but I always choose something practical, a good way of building up my kitchen dishes anyway Douglas doesn't mind paying for beers and wine but if I ask for an oven dish (another story)!!!  Arriving home just before midnight decided to sit on the terrace and have a few drinks, say no more a late night.

Kitchen Window

Living Room 1

Wall Art front of house

Front Door

Kitchen Side Window

To our Bedroom

Wednesday, builders are rushing around like mad, they want finished for Friday and off the job, there is no chance as there is still a lot to do, but Roger is going back to the UK for 3 weeks and Adrian does not want to be here without him!!  This is a bone of contention with me just now as rushing is just making them cut corners so I have my evil eye on them, it has been a long 7 months and Adrian has not moved as fast as what he has this week, very strange.  We have cleaned some more and then we went out early as we were going to meet Uncle Jim and Jan, they are here staying in Albufeira for a month so we are going out for dinner, off we go as we had to stop at Vilamoura as my alcohol (Morgans Spice) is running low and that is the only place we can get it, then it was off to Charlies Bar in Albufeira to meet Jim and Jan who were propping up the bar.  Had a couple of drinks and a chat and they had been good enough to bring us some light bulbs over, as you cannot buy bulbs for UK lamps here, then headed off to the Restaurant, our choice we were going to take them for Suckling Pig, fantastic little restaurant open 7 days of the week all year round in Fonte Boliquieme, just as our luck has it the restaurant was closed for 2 days as it was being painted, damn we didn't have a Plan B, not to worry we eventually found a fantastic Italian the other side of Albufeira where the food was gorgeous so it worked out fine in the end.  Had a great night with good food and good company.  We are going to meet up again next week and take them out for the day, hopefully before they go back we will have them to ours for a meal, they will be our first visitors.  All our friends keep asking us when they are getting invited (not until its finished) but in all probability it might never be finished so I think we have to bite the bullet soon. 

Thursday, tired today, 2 nights in a row socialising is not good for me, I must learn to space it out better LOL.  Douglas always gets to lie in, I have to be up for the builders.  Portuguese lesson today, the lessons are good but retaining the language is something else, I use the flashcards for Douglas and he does the same for me so hopefully that way the words will finally be retained, in our lesson today we have to now start speaking faster, easier said than done, but they are good and worthwhile so we will keep it up.  I have managed to find a Zumba class as well so will be joining that over the next couple of weeks, life is certainly not chilled and relaxed at the moment, hopefully once all the cleaning is done and things are set out it will become a bit easier, the days seem to go so quick and there is certainly no moments of boredom.  We have done a checklist for the house so that we can discuss with Adrian tomorrow morning, he didn't want to discuss with me tonight as Douglas was not in, dont think tomorrows conversation is going to be that good!!!

Douglas is away to the 5 o Clock Club, supposed to finish at 6.30 but as it is now nearly 8.30 and he has not appeared I guess he is stretching it out, yet again!!! There are some things that dont change.  I quite like the peace and quiet so not too worried. I get to catch up on my emails etc, just getting hungry and its a pain cooking late.
Friday, woke up in a not too good mood today, had a bad nights sleep, dreaming of the builder no less, I actually woke up thinking I had punched Douglas in the face, phew I hadn't, not that I think he would have noticed!!  Shopping day today and a trip to the hardware store to get some bits and bobs and then on to the DHL office to collect a parcel, it really is hit or miss if parcels arrive with us or not.  Adrian and Roger were left to do the finishing touches to the exterior painting.  Got back and Douglas had a chat with Adrian regarding the outstanding jobs and also the added extras to our bill, this is going to be sorted out on Monday.  Adrian is coming back to do the snagging list next week and then that should be him finished, I don't think we are going to bother asking him to finish off the rest of the work, we are going to either do it ourselves or get someone else in.  We have prepared the account with very many deductions and also we have a lot of extra expense due to the amount of time this job has taken, so we will have to wait and see how the discussion goes next week.  I just cannot be bothered with him anymore and I think we will have to put this down to experience.  I think what we are going to do now is just get on with all the rest of the cleaning down that needs to be done (and there is a lot) then try and get the rooms organised and then just start living, whatever else we need to do will get done eventually.  We are quite happy with the end result it has just taken a lot longer than we thought and it has been a struggle to get the standard that we originally thought we were going to get, the stress is not worth it and if I do not see Adrian's face again I will be more than happy.
We can now arrange for the fly screens to be fitted, although when that will be will now be entirely up to the company as it has taken so long.  We are also still waiting on our doors coming back, this should have been by today but of course we have had no phone call, again see what next week brings.  Joao, the gardener has been getting on with the garden and because of the weather I can see all the new shoots and things starting to come through, he is also going to start preparing my rose garden so in a couple of weeks I will be able to get the rose bushes in, looking forward to the summer to see what it will all look like.  We are also going to need to put a new fire in and get the chimney done, but we will see the winter through now and get that done before next winter.  Funny talking about winter as it is not winter as we have always known it, it feels more like spring, only the cooler nights tell us it is winter but still not enough to wear coats, a gilet is enough to put on at night time or a fleece.  Happy days.
Saturday, Another floor cleaned today, so we now have only one more floor to go and the terrace floor still needs to be done.  Off out tonight to Felipo's one of the local bars with Tom and Linda and Mick and Pauline, a night of Portuguese singing and music, should be interesting.  Food is also being served so a Pizza will do us as a light tea.  Put the pizza in the oven at 5.00, and bang the electricity went, no oven, no lights, no boiler, how typical is that went outside to look around the whole neighbourhood is in darkness, yes you have guessed the power has gone to every house. 40 minutes later it came back on but only at half the voltage, so no pizza, no shower, great start to a night out, boiled the kettle to get enough hot water so we could wash, by this time it was getting late and we needed to be out for 7.15, managed to get ready and then phoned the Electricity Company to report it, they will work to get it back on!! not sure when.  Oh well guess we will be coming back to a cold house so will need to have a few more drinks then we wont notice the cold, how is that for a great excuse, also taught us a lesson on the fact that we need to buy a couple of big torches for when it happens again.
Sunday, great night last night, the Portuguese can really play their castanets and accordions, could not understand a word they sang but it was good fun. Managed to get the terrace floor scrubbed today so we now have the terrace looking good with the furniture outside also.  Cooked a Roast Leg of Lamb Portuguese style for dinner, the meat was so tender it was yummy.  This has been a good week for us as in beginning to make the house a home, not so good with the builders and next week probably more stressful, all the little jobs that still need finishing are holding us up in being able to make even one room complete, we also still have lots of bits and pieces to buy but again not sure what until the rooms are complete.  It will all come in time and we are managing quite comfortably so no need to rush out for anything.

Tap your Feet

Smooth Serenade

We play Castanets

Time for a bit of Sax

A Guitar in there as well

Linda and Pauline

We get to hold the Flag

Wheres my Clams?

Week 31 of our new life

Monday,  Nail day for me today, an hour of pampering getting ready for the new year.  The builders arrived back at Lunchtime, end of peace and quiet again, will be so pleased when everything is finished.  Roger is starting the windows, we are getting a design around all the windows so he needs to draw it on and then cement it into the shape, then mould it and paint it with 9 windows to be done not an easy job.  The weather is up and down at the moment as well with quite a bit of rain, so not sure if this job will get done.  He done very well today and managed to get 3 windows started so good for him.  Adrian is to get on with the guttering, bad weather is due and we want to be able to save as much water as we can, he also needs to sort the boiler and radiators and also the outside lights, we will see how much is achieved this week.
Tuesday, New Years Eve, Douglas is playing golf today and I am trying to get the tiles cleaned, 9 rooms to do and each tile needs to be done individually with miuretic acid, the only way to get cement off, and all the tiles are an absolute mess, so mask and rubber gloves on and set to work, succeeded in getting 2 bathrooms done, it has much such a difference but boy it is hard work, never mind only 7 rooms to go now.  In between doing that James and Valentina had to come back as a curtain track had broken, so it took them just over 2 hours to dissect the track and put it back together, what a job but now it works like a dream.  Now they are doing another 2 sets of tie backs and a cushion for me.  Also discussed other cushions required later on!!!
We are off out tonight to a New Year party in Sao Bras, 30 of us going so should be a good night, pity about the weather, but will be good to get the glad rags on.
Wednesday, Happy New Year to everybody, well what a brilliant night we had, I was the one that had to get up early for the builders, after 2 hours sleep I did not feel that great, probably didn't look it either and had a very lazy day.  Douglas did not surface until 6.00pm and was back in bed by 9.00pm.  He had far too much Maciera (Portuguese Brandy) and cant remember a thing.  I did remind him of the following: we got dropped off at the bottom of our hill, so had to walk up the hill, it had rained very heavily so was very wet and muddy, I fell on my backside, lovely dress and shoes splattered with mud.  Douglas on the other hand decided that we didn't live up this hill so he didn't want to walk up it, after much pulling of his hand to get him up the hill, he decided to fall into the ditch and he didn't want to come out of the ditch.  After a lot of cursing from me I managed to get him on feet that would not walk and drag him up the hill, and finally drag him into the house, covered head to foot in mud. Do you get the picture!! I then had to drag him by the belt of his trousers into the house only to then strip him off in the kitchen to then drag him by the feet into bed.  I hope by this time you are laughing because I was not at the time, but did see the funny side later on today.  There ends our New Years celebrations.
Thursday, Portuguese lesson this morning, Douglas still not quite feeling 100%about doing them but he is going, we do enjoy the lessons, but Douglas just sometimes cannot be bothered, I like them and feel that we need to make the effort, plus it was fun trying to relate Douglas's New Years Eve shenanigans.  Went into Faro to get some bits and bobs and tried to stay out of the way of the builders, they were working on the windows on the terrace today so more mess being created which means more cleaning to be done, a lot of rain again today so this is going to hold up the finishing of the windows.  Douglas is also going to the 5 o Clock club today, this is a meeting for Men Only in Felipos, which means drinking and catching up, it is on a Monday and a Thursday and usually only lasts a couple of hours, I think it might be good as it is another way of meeting people, although I might live to regret it, we shall see.  Once I am settled I might just organise a Ladies Only night once a week, cant be a bad thing surely!!!
Friday, Weather still not too good today, have had quite a bit of rain, but it is not cold.  Shopping day today, this always takes longer than it ever did back in the UK, it is trying to translate all the different foods, herbs and spices etc it seems to take forever, strangely Douglas is quite good and helps me scan the shelves, I do try and translate most of it before we go, but somehow the translation only ever seems to be a part of the actual word, due to the way the Portuguese language is.  Never mind we will get the hang of it, I have made up flashcards for us so we can test each other as well, might just get into our heads that way, we also listen to Portuguese CDs in the car so am taking it quite seriously.  Have finally booked my flight back to Scotland to see my new granddaughter Madison, cannot wait.  We have also got Uncle Jim and Jan in Albufeira for the month, so we are going to be catching up with them a couple of times and also having them to our house for a meal, fingers crossed the house is going to be finished.  Adrian has assured me that he will be finished by next Friday, though I cant quite fathom where he has got that idea from as the exterior painting is not even started yet, so not holding my breath and will keep you updated.
Saturday, it is Auction day today, and we are going to see what it is like, there are also 7 items that I am interested in so will be an experience.  Got there at 9.45 as the auction started at 10.00am, a few small items I wanted to bid for, well actually I made Douglas do the bidding but didnt end up getting any of the small items, the Portuguese go mad and the things I wanted were not worth what the Portuguese were bidding for them so we dropped out of that, this left me with a sense of foreboding as I thought I would have no chance with the larger things that I wanted that were coming up later in the auction.  3 Items down 4 left to go, and believe it or not we got all 4 and for a lot less than we thought so I was well chuffed.  We left the auction finally at 2.00pm so it was a long day but worth it if there is something that you really want, guess we were lucky, but strange when you see what the Portuguese are interested in!! Now just to wait for delivery!!! Went for a Chinese meal with Tom and Linda to Sao Bras, lovely food and ended up having a great night, this coming week we have a full diary so will be busy.
Sunday, lazy day today, well not quite!!! got all the washing done, hung out and most of it dried as it was a good day.  I then decided to scrub down our bedroom floor, again tile by tile, this takes about 3 hours to get rid of the dirt, cement etc that is on the tiles, I had this crazy idea of getting all of the bedrooms done, but sorry to say one room was enough for today, will just have to do one a day or something like that.  Douglas cleaned down the terrace yet again and also tidied up all the garden.  The builders are leaving such a mess behind them it is unbelievable and we will be cleaning for the next few months, just dust, dirt, dust, dirt and so it goes on.  Also managed to finally get around to cleaning the mud of Douglas's shoes and trousers and coat, and my shoes and dress ready to get them cleaned, after the New Year shenanigans.  Then I decided to empty another box, so now have a big pile of papers etc to sort out, got rid of the box but need to sort the papers.  Pork and Clams for tea, ooh it was good, just loving getting back in to the cooking again, though must admit I think most Portuguese Women must spend all day in the kitchen as it takes me ages just to prepare the dishes never mind cook them, but I am sure I will get quicker and love trying new things.

New Year 1

Cheers Louise

Julian is happy

Linda & Tom

Margo

Margo & Mick

Quite a few

Who is doing what!!

Smoking inside!!!

Pauline & Mick

Smile for Fiona

Week 30 of our new life

Monday, house is strangely quiet today with no one around, Douglas is playing Golf and I am trying to sort out one of the spare rooms into some semblance of order.  Unpacking boxes and pictures, putting things away or repacking at the moment.  Got it all done plus mopped and cleaned again before Douglas got back, so a good days work, nice not to have anyone around for a change.
Tuesday, Christmas Eve, need to go to Vilamoura today to replenish my Morgans supplies, get some last minute bits and bobs and that's it.  Cosy night in, in front of the fire.  Raining on and off today and think some heavier rain will arrive during the night.  Hoping everyone has a good Christmas Eve.
Wednesday, Merry Christmas everybody.  We woke up this morning to water coming in the kitchen and also coming down the chimney, some heavy rain last night, so mop up job required, having done the clean up, spoke to all the family, skyped Katie with instructions on cooking her turkey dinner, it left us running late to get ready to go to Mick and Pauline's for Christmas Dinner.  We arrived half an hour late, but all was good as Mick was running two hours late with the dinner, so no problem. Paulines brother and his wife had been staying with them so there was six of us for Dinner, and what a dinner, Mick goes all out and does really well, the food was gorgeous but so much of it, no room for anything else.  A nice day spent there. Good food, a few drinks and a good few laughs.  Thank you to everybody for our presents and cards, all were lovely and much appreciated and with the money we got am going to buy a coffee machine.  We are also going to Ikea in Seville after New Year so will buy other bits and pieces there.
Thursday, Boxing day, Douglas and I had a Champagne breakfast and just relaxed all day, the weather had gone from rain to sun again and turned out really warm, so lovely to sit on the terrace, admire the view and do absolutely nothing.  Amazing how quick the day goes when you actually do nothing.
Friday, back to normal, some cleaning, some unpacking and shopping, nothing exciting happening with the house as no builders on site, we are trying to tidy up the outside a bit, so have moved our log pile around to the end of the house, also moved some of the builders stuff into the garage, it sometimes seems like playing tools roulette, if only they could keep everything in one place and also keep it clean, the front garden is such a mess with sand, cement, broken tiles etc etc that we are just not sure what to do with it.
Saturday and Sunday - normal routine days with good weather and lots of sitting outside.  As I have not posted any pictures over the past few weeks here are a collection of some that have been taken randomly.

Xmas Fun

Xmas Fun

Plenty of Fun

and Plenty more

Xmas Pressies

Xmas Cards

Xmas Cards

Week 29 of our new life

Monday, Woke up feeling rather p***** off today, waiting to see the builders and get there take on the past couple of weeks, will be interesting.  Phone call made regarding wardrobe doors, Carlos not very happy, but we are not happy so he needs to remedy the situation and give us what we wanted, otherwise he will not get the rest of his money, simple.  Phone call made regarding refitting the front door, can I use my oven in time for Christmas please!! they are not happy at having to come out again and would rather wait until all the work is finished so that they can do the front door and fit the fly screens at the same time, it is costing them to keep coming out particularly when no one is home.  Not our fault, not our problem that the door was fitted wrong, finally they will come out Friday and do the door.  Next call for the house alarm, we have to wait until after Christmas, don't think so we are paying for an alarm we do not have, fit it or take it away.  It will be fitted on Thursday.  Looks like another busy week.  Builders turned up at Lunchtime, excuses about car being off the road etc etc, just get on with the bloody job and get it finished.  Doesn't seem to make any difference if we are happy or unhappy they will still work at their own speed.
Tuesday, back to cleaning and cleaning and cleaning, dust is everywhere again, the house was caked in dust for our return so back to the grindstone.  Never mind we are getting there.  By the end of the day we felt human again. Had our outside blinds fitted to the terrace today, they are fantastic and will do the trick with keeping out the wind and the rain, it is like we have another room, and is ideal for me to sit out even when it is cold I just need a fleece on, they are certainly not aesthetically pleasing, but they look good enough and will do the purpose that they were bought for.  Hallelujah something has gone right.
Wednesday, Carlos turned up to collect the wardrobe doors today, so we now have no wardrobe doors again, they have also taken away one bathroom door so that they can make sure they get a match this time.  He did not explain exactly what was going to be done with them, but he knows that they need to all match or at least as near as possible. We understand that there are different shades of Mahogany but surely when doing a job you make sure they are all the same!!  Maybe not in Portugal!! wonder when the doors will come back.  Perhaps never LOL,  Unpacked a few more boxes today and cleaned, this will be our ritual for the next few weeks I think.
Thursday, Ana came to fit the alarm, appeared to be quite an easy job, sensors in the Living Room and Kitchen covering the Front Door and Sliding Doors, a Sensor needs to be fitted to the front door but she cannot do that until the door has been re sited, it will now be after Christmas as they close for holidays this week.  She left assuring us that everything was in good working order and she done a test to prove it.  My Birthday today, got some lovely presents and cards and Douglas is taking me out for Dinner tonight. Unpacked more boxes, done more cleaning then did not feel like going out for dinner, will leave it for another day.
Friday, shopping day today and the builders are finishing up for their Christmas Holidays so they tell us, they are going to take a week off and return on New Year Week and work otherwise the exterior for the windows will not get done in time as Roger is going back to the UK on the 15th January for two weeks. Great, would like the windows done so that the outside of the house can then get painted, so hope they will get the fingers out.  On the plus side we have a week with no builders around, it will be bliss.  Will still be cleaning dust though, and hoovering and mopping on a daily basis for now.  Yes, the guys came today to re site the front door, now it is in its proper place and I can use the oven, little things mean a lot. The final job that Adrian did was to get the radiators working, so we have central heating now as well.  Well actually a couple of the radiators are leaking and one is not working, just too good to be true.  Just what we need before Christmas.  A guy will come out to have a look at them tomorrow.
Saturday, a lovely day of sunshine today, decided to do minimum cleaning and sit on the terrace in the sun, hard to believe we are nearing the end of December and still getting this good weather.  Didn't even unpack a box today. Celia came out to look at the radiators, hahaha, one has a burst valve, he fixed one leak but cannot fix the other, and we also need a new valve for the boiler, just have to put up with it until after Christmas and New Year now, just does not surprise me.
Sunday, got the washing done nice and early, hung outside and dried within a couple of hours.  Will make up for the lazy day yesterday and get back to cleaning and unpacking boxes and rearranging things that we don't know where they are going to go yet.  We have quite a few things that we don't know where their new homes are going to be, so for now they are staying in boxes and we will get to them eventually.  The house is taking on the appearance of home, and at night when we light the wood burner it is nice and cosy.
A good and bad week this week, some things have been done, others have not and frustrations do keep creeping in, hopefully the builders will have a good week off and come back rejuvenated for the last leg of our house journey, we shall see.

Week 28 of our new life

Monday, today is our last day and it is Danielle and Katie's birthdays, I am doing a big Roast Dinner for the family at Katie's so another hectic day. Went to Kirkcaldy with Katie to buy her birthday present and also to get the food for dinner.  Katie needed to get bloods taken at Lunchtime so shopping done we went off to face the blood testing nurse, Katie is very squeamish but finally they were done.  Then its off to pick up Douglas as he needs the car and I can get back to katie's to start dinner.  We need to pick Becky and Richard up just after 3, then Douglas needs the car again for a while before dinner.  All sorted had a lovely Roast Dinner with Katie and the girls and one of Danielle's friends, Richard April and Becky and Danny and Lesa and Douglas was on time also.  Long time since I had cooked for Eleven but there was not one bit of waste so it must have been good.  Called it a night about 8 as had to pack ready for our trip to Devon.
Tuesday, another early start with Richard taking us to the airport for another early flight this time to Bristol.  Arrived at Bristol mid morning, picked up a hire car and set off for my Dads.  Stopped for a big breakfast on the way and arrived at Dads just after lunchtime, this will not be such a hectic visit so a bit more time to relax.  Dad was pleased to see us and he also had a long list of things he needed done, what was that I said about relaxing, not too worry just today I will not do very much!!
Wednesday, Dads garden badly needs tidied up so that is the job for today, front and back was just full of leaves, 3 hours and 45 bags of leaves later the job was done, I felt like crying as my back was so sore but I knew it would get worse as the day went on.  Dad is really pleased with the way the garden looks now, thank goodness for that.  Popped out to get some shopping, then relax before tea needs cooking.
Thursday, The guttering all needs cleaning out today, so Douglas had to get the big ladders out of the garage so that he could reach the roof.  Another 3 hours work but good results achieved.  I managed to get the washing and ironing done and some other bits and pieces so a good day, nice to be able to sit and relax in the evening.  Nurses were out to see to dads legs today and it is so good to be able to see that they are at last healing up, great results.
Friday, need to go in to Exeter today to sort some stuff out also need to get the house gutted completely for dad and get his shopping done.  Decided to do half the house today and finish the rest tomorrow as we don't need to leave for the airport until late afternoon.  Douglas has a couple of other jobs to do for dad so all in all we have achieved a lot in a few days.
Saturday, well it is off home for us later today so getting the rest of the jobs done, put some Christmas decorations up for dad just to cheer the place up, delivered his Christmas cards to the neighbours and made sure he has everything he needs.  This has been a good visit, great to see dad with some independence back, looking a lot healthier and doing a lot more for himself, hopefully it will stay this way.  Off to the airport and then it is homeward bound.  We have been lucky with the weather, although it has been cold the rain has managed to stay off, will be glad to get home though, it is a lot warmer.
Sunday, woke up in our own bed what a nice start to the day.  Investigated the house inside and out to see what the builders had been up to.  No snagging had been done in the house and of course no alarm fitted and no door refitted.  One consolation the internal doors and the wardrobe doors had been fitted.  Again nothing goes right for us as the wardrobe doors do not match the internal doors and are not what we wanted, OMG a phone call to the Company will need to be done in the morning as they will need to be taken back.  How typical is this, nothing goes right for us with this house at the moment.  The Roof Terrace has been started but is certainly not finished, how many days did the builders actually work while we were away.  Nothing else has been done. The Icing on the cake today is that our new Granddaughter Madison was born today, she waited until we arrived home and decided to make her appearance, now I just need to go back and see her!!!  Congratulations to Danny and Lesa.
Well this has been another good week between Scotland and Devon.  Very disappointed to return home and find that not very much was done and also that our doors are wrong as well.  We also now need to sort out the front door and the alarm system, well here is to next week.

Week 27 of our new life

Monday Week 27, the start of another week and ongoing issues.  Security Company again did not turn up to fit the house security system.  The Door Company again did not turn up to finish off the doors or to fit the wardrobe doors and the Window Company did not turn up to refit the front door, not a good start to the week.  Adrian and Roger finally arrived at 11.00am by the time they had their tea break and then a lunch break probably about 4 hours of work got done.  We had to go back to Guia yet again to try and sort out a new sink for the 3rd bathroom (remember Adrian dropped the hammer on it) also now the shower in that bathroom cannot be fitted as the tap is not the correct tap, no box for the tap we bought so cannot exchange it have to buy a new one.  Adrian tried to explain that it could be connected somehow differently, but my point is that we bought a good new shower and it needs to be fitted as a good new shower not a make do shower!!!  Also managed to pick up the Cornice and End panel still required for the kitchen and the rails for inside the wardrobes, never know might be able to hang some clothes up by Christmas.  Douglas gave Adrian the snagging list that we had done over the weekend, well it is more like a snagging book, for some reason Adrian thought he had to get the snagging done today so did not bother with the more important things like radiators and electrics.  We will need to explain tomorrow that he can do these things at the end as long as they are done!!  A word beginning with P sprang to mind.  Picked up a couple more bits and pieces for the bathrooms while we were out.  At least this morning I had a couple of hours off getting my hair and nails done, my patience has well and truly gone and the will to live is decreasing by the day.  There will be an end to all of this eventually just not sure when!!!
Tuesday, we are starting to get ready to go back to the UK for 5 days in Scotland and 5 Days in Devon, constant cleaning etc makes me think a break will do us both good.  Quiz night tonight, with a Christmas theme wonder why!!!!
Wednesday, quiz night was a huge success, all based around Christmas and the food served was fantastic, I must hunt down the recipes.  Loaves of bread hollowed out and filled with four cheeses and herbs all melted together and served warm, absolutely scrummy.  A lovely buffet and well received.  There were prizes galore on the raffle and this month I managed to win a set of five brand new books which were 2013 bestsellers so more happy reading for me.  Still no one has turned up to fit the Alarm, to refit the Front door or to finish the internal doors and wardrobes.  Frantic phone calls all round as we are flying out tomorrow so when are they going to do these jobs!!.  Sat down with Roger and Adrian to discuss their plans for the next 7 working days while we are away.  At least there is a plan, some of the snagging will be done inside and the roof terrace will be done and completed for us coming back.  We shall see.  Phone calls to say Front door will be refitted Thursday Lunchtime and Alarm will be fitted on Friday, will have to leave this with Adrian now as we are not going to be here, nothing can go wrong can it?
Thursday after a very late night cleaning up the dust and packing for our trip, a very early start this morning, stepped off the plane at Edinburgh, blowing a gale, very cold welcome back.  We got the bus from the airport to Ferrytoll and then another bus from Ferrytoll to Glenrothes, then a taxi to the Gilvenbank where we are staying for the next few days.  Richard dropped my car off at teatime so at last I have wheels again and a car full of presents that need wrapped, this was things I had shopped for on line and sent to Richards ready for my arrival, at least part of the shopping was done.  Douglas caught up with friends for a few drinks and I caught up with Katie and the girls.
Friday, busy day ahead, shopping with Katie all morning and then a doctors appointment with her.  On then to meet Yvonne, Graeme, Evie and Harris, great catch up with them all and the kids are just growing all the time. Douglas has the car so decided to walk up to Katie's where Douglas was going to pick me up at 5.30 as we were then going to Elaine's for a Carry Out.  .Need I say Douglas forgot about me so I had to phone him to remind him so that made us late by just over an hour, not to worry a few drinks and an Indian sorted it. Bad news from home the front door could not be refitted and the alarm could not be fitted because nobody could get access to our house, Adrian was not working Thursday and Friday only he had not told us!! tough we will not get either fitted now until we are back, not a happy bunny.  A not very polite phone call made to Adrian
Saturday, meeting Laura Andrew and Eilidh today, had the girls with me as was going to do more shopping afterwards, girls kept Eilidh occupied in the play area so a good catch up with Laura and Andrew, then off to Kirkcaldy, shopping for Christmas presents in such a small space of time is not usually the way I do things, but needs must and it has to be done, then they all need to be wrapped and delivered, am managing to deliver most things as I am catching up with people so all is good.  Dropped the girls home, managed to get shopping back to Gilvenbank and some wrapping done before going to meet Danny and Lesa for something to eat.  This visiting business is exhausting.  Great to catch up with them both and with baby due on the 22nd not long to go, still think she will be a January baby. Off back to Gilvenbank to meet Ellen and Willie for a last drink before they close, not seen Douglas today as he has been catching up with friends.  Good to see Ellen and Willie exchanged presents, well I had not wrapped theirs yet so will need to pop it in.
Sunday, more shopping for me to do and more wrapping for me to do, then going to catch up with Ann and Lynne, didn't manage to catch up with Ann or the girls as they had gone out but managed to catch up with Lynne and Zoe which was great.  Then it was off to do some more wrapping and then dinner with Richard and April at Gilvenbank.  More presents exchanged I did not bring a big enough suitcase and we still have Devon to get to yet.
The end of a very busy week, always good to catch up with everybody but it does make everything so frantic just trying to cram it all in, at least my alcohol intake has dropped this week but I rather think Douglas's will have hit the Richter scale - nothing new there then.

Week 26 of our new life

Monday, well first day in our new house, interesting day. All of our stuff came out of storage today, so the house is full of boxes, bits of furniture etc, cannot unpack very much as the builders are still in and the dust is awful.  We have our own bed tonight so that is a bonus.  Am managing to get a good fire going for the evening so we do have warmth. Adrian and Roger turned up at Lunchtime today, Roger got on with the steps outside our bedroom and Adrian connected the Hob, fitted my whirligig outside.  Problems with the hot water, boiler going on and off, got the heating engineer in, he adjusted a few things and so far fingers crossed it is working, think that because the radiators are not connected yet this could be part of the problem as the pressure on the boiler is very high, either that or we need a new boiler!!!  David is getting on with tiling the pool terrace.  Manuel came to measure for the exterior blinds and to make sure that I was happy with what Douglas had decided, LOL so the blinds will be fitted on the 16th December.  Unpacked a few kitchen items but have 4 packages undelivered so will need to chase the removal company tomorrow.  Decided we was having a casserole for tea, hit a big problem, cannot open the oven door.  Adrian had problems fitting this as he had to change where it was going to go, I was not too happy but it had to go right near the front door, well now because the front door has been fitted I cannot open the Oven door, not sure how we will get around this issue, cannot wait to see Adrian's face in the morning!!  Not looking good anyway!! Casserole ended up being cooked on the hob and it turned out very well LOL.  Have to keep smiling :)

Boxes and Packages

and more Boxes

Tuesday, another day has dawned.  Adrian decided that the front door should have been fitted according to the opening of the oven door.  Douglas was on the phone first thing this morning, they are sending two technicians out to seal all the windows from the outside, if they have time they will have a look at trying to refit the front door, well guess what they didn't have time, hopefully will come back Monday, meanwhile I cannot use the oven, Oh joy.  They are also disputing whether it is their fault or our fault that the door does not fit correctly, according to them they liaised with the builder and all was confirmed as correct!!! This will be a story that will go on no doubt.  Internal doors being fitted today and over the next 3 days, good start the first two frames did not fit, the door entrances should have been bigger, bloody hell, the dust and dirt is indescribable and I am decidedly pissed off, Adrian is moaning because a lot of his work is now going to have to be redone, we phoned the Company, they are doing the work and they will do the remedial work so Adrian has nothing to do with it, told Adrian quite heartily that he has nothing extra to do, hang his head in shame!!  We have decided that now on a day to day basis we will instruct Adrian as to what we want done, 2 days with only 3 lights fitted is not good enough and I want the inside finished sooner rather than later, Douglas took me out as I was on the verge of telling them all to get off the job as I feel I have had enough, not the right thing to do at this moment.  David is getting on with the pool terrace great and has finished tiling it today.  Roger has finished the steps from our room to the pool and also the shelves in the Living Room.  We had to get the Oil changed in the car today, so visited Sao Laurenco whilst we was waiting on the car getting done, again another lovely little village with the main attraction being the church. Unpacked the Hoover which is a godsend for all the dust so I guess I will be hoovering at 5.00pm every night when the builders finish just to keep the dust down.  Got the fire blazing now and a Morgans and Coke, aaahh reeelaaax :)

Sao Laurenco Church

Church to pray to get me through this

Wednesday, builders and door fitters all around us again today, decided to go to the beach for a nice long walk to get away from all the dirt and dust and regroup on thoughts etc.  The tap was rearranged today so now works normal red is hot and blue is cold. The grouting has been finished on the tiles in the kitchen think that was it for day 3 of this week!! another 3 door frames fitted and 1 bathroom door fitted, not on our bathroom, trying to get a pee in peace is slightly impossible just now, anything else just does not happen until after 5.30pm!! The tiles have been laid on the terrace outside our bedroom and the steps have been concreted, and the tiles are now finished on the pool terrace.  Funnily enough the lights on the terrace and the gates now do not seem to work, but the lights in the kitchen do, every day seems to bring something else that does not work or is not right, cannot understand what is going on incompetence springs to mind and I am fast running out of any patience that I have managed to hold on to.  Tomorrow is another day, this will be my mantra until this job is finished :).
Thursday, Portuguese lesson this morning, teacher started straight off in Portuguese so threw us a little bit, did finally get into the swing of it and our homework from last week only had a couple of mistakes in it, so quite happy with that.  We then went off to buy new sheets for our bed, flannelet is what you need for the winter here so got two sets of sheets, determined to be cosy. I have got the log fire going great every night and the warmth is really good, no radiators on as yet and not likely to be this week, have got a portable heater that we put in our bedroom just now so warms it up but the fire does great.  The internal doors are now fitted and look fantastic, just a couple of frames need attention.  The wardrobe doors have come in a slightly different shade so they need to be corrected, not sure how long we will have to wait for them!!  David has started the finishing touches to the rear of the pool extension.  Roger has got one more step to put in for our bedroom terrace to the pool and Adrian not quite sure what he is achieving (it is the things that we cannot see) that is definitely true as I cannot see very much having been achieved for this week!! My god the process is slow.  We also got two new lights for the terrace and looked at sets of drawers for the bedrooms but need to measure up to make sure they will fit, getting there!!!!

Fire on the go

Friday, Security Company were meant to come today to fit security system for house, they texted to say they couldn't manage today will do it on Monday!!  Had to go back to Guia to get some parts required for the radiators, done some food shopping etc.  James and Valentina arrived while we were out to fit the curtain hooks for tie backs, they just got on with it, one pair of tie backs too big so we will need to take them to shop to get shortened just because curtains have been shortened, not a problem as I want a cushion made as well for our bedroom.  Roger has nearly finished the steps, looking good.  Adrian has started on the 3rd bedroom bathroom but not quite sure how far he got, definitely not finished and now half the lights are not working, think we are going to have to get an electrician in now. We have started to unpack the boxes for the kitchen and managed to get them all finished so everything kind of put away. No point in unpacking any other boxes just now as work is still required in all of the rooms. The Internal Door people did not come today I guess they will be back on Monday.  Here you just never know who is going to turn up and when!!  Adrian should have done a bit of cementing for them to fit one of the doors, but that has not been done yet so maybe just as well.  Thank goodness it is the weekend, no builders for 2 days, perhaps we can get rid of some of the dust.
Saturday, have not been out of the door today. have been unpacking some things and repacking other things. Cleaned out all of the rooms to keep them dust free, cleaned all of the terrace also. Managed to sit on the terrace this evening and enjoy a drink. the weather is lovely during the day so making the most of it.  Gets colder at night so the log fire goes on and makes the house all cosy.  Plant Pots looking a bit dead at the moment so hoping I can revitalise them, we shall see, I think only time will tell.  Looking good and the feeling is so good to be in our own house and to be able to enjoy it just now. Snagging list being done for Adrian for Monday, lots of snagging!!!
Sunday, lovely day today managed to have breakfast on a nice clean terrace, then got all the washing done, hung out and dried, and sorted out the garden stuff into the area underneath the pool for storage, also cleaned up all this area as such a mess of cement and brick etc.  Went to a Christmas Fair in Sao Bras, bought some Hyacinth bulbs and a cork purse, met up with Mick and Pauline and then went for lunch in Almancil.  By the time we got back we managed to get all of the rooms measured for rugs, marked out where we wanted towel rails etc to go, finished off the snagging list (which is very big) and then I planted my bulbs.  This has been a good week for getting settled into the house, cannot unpack all of our things so we are living amongst a lot of dust and dirt and boxes but it is home and beginning to feel good.
Laughter line for this week:  Mansion Tax welcomed by Makers of Monopoly:
Hasbro, makers of the popular Monopoly Board Game have welcomed the Governments proposal for a Mansion Tax, but have called for them to go further and introduce taxes for those who have more than two houses on the same road, and for hotel owners.  Having these taxes will give us a reason to release another version of our game, said a Hasbro spokesman.  The new edition will be bang up to date, with a high speed railway going through Mayfair.  European court backing for the get-out-of-jail-free-card, and a quantitative easing version that comes with a free money printer.  We have also amended the rules, around the role of banker he added.  Rather than hiding profits offshore under the game box, they can spend all their cash safe in the knowledge that other players will bail them out.

Terrace outside our Room

Steps going in

Pool Terrace being tiled

Sunrise Sunday Morning

Hyacinth bulbs planted

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