Ruth's cosmetics and clothes arrive...

What can I say - we have a home. This is the trailer that delivered our stuff. And what a lot of stuff - this underlines the need for a change in lifestyle.

Dawn went away and left Ruth and I to do it - very wise!

We found out last week 2 of the containers with our stuff were flood damaged - very sad but not very precious stuff . It should all be insured and frankly in comparison with all the folk flooded down south it seems minor.

It is great to have a home again - looking forward to welcoming you all!

Move day!

Dawn, Tessa and Isabel are clearly the clever ones, they've gone to New Wine - actually might not be so clever with all the flooding at present.

This leaves Ruth and I to work with the removals men on the house move. It was all going swimmingly well - exchange last friday - keys on wednesday - bit of cleaning and painting - stuff arrives monday - good timing perhaps?

All blown out of the water (almost quite literally) having paid removals in full on wednesday day (very polite lady at SBS) to be informed on thursday that 2 containers have been flood damaged!

So hopefully its the expensive things we dont like and not the precious cheap tat that adorned our house.

Hoping we can post exciting photos of sludgy unwanted items with high insurance value later this week.......

Ruth has had me paint her room already - deep purple colour on the chimney breast and light brown / velvety brown walls. This is important Daddy and daughter time. I managed to switch the quantities of light and dark paint at the diy shop and the plan was retrieved by an obliging Ruth who quite liked it anyway.

I do like our new home - lots of lovely folk from the OM office came and helped clean and cut back the garden on Saturday - we're looking forward to opening up the home to all and sundry.

New school

Izzy had her first visit to Trinity school, which is where Ruth and Tessa already go and where she will go next year. On the left is the impressive looking 6th form block, but the school is quite a sprawling site, comprising of what was 3 schools, so I will give you a view of another part of the site. Unfortunately Izzy has not been put with any of the girls from her primary school, so she will need to make new friends again when she starts. She will at least be able to arrange to meet the girls she knows at lunch times. We think the school is about 25 minutes walk from our new house; they have to be there at 8.25 so will have to be organised!

new home at last!

We have exchanged contracts today and will have the keys to our new house next Wednesday! It will be another few days before our containers can be delivered but then after 6 months we will be reunited with our belongings and have a home again! The house, a late Victorian semi, is in Denton Holme; to the West of the city centre and south of the river, for anyone who knows Carlisle. It is a great location, in a quiet unadopted road, but only 15 minutes walk from the city centre, 25 minutes to school for the girls, and also within easy reach of the station, swimming pool, library and bowling alley. It is of course not far from the Lake District and we will have plenty of room for guests!

Carlisle life has begun - no home yet!

We apologise for the limited communications - Dawn has now been appointed Director of Commuinications (Mallon Inc) European (North) (Scottish Borders) to rectify the deficiency

This is not our prospective home but Carlisle Castle which we regularly drive past (no helicopter view like this)

We are still homeless and have been living out of the same 5 suitcases and 5 hand luggage bags that we took around the world in a series of houses belonging to some very kind people! Admittedly we have added to the luggage- especially some warmer clothes than we needed on our travels! However, it is frightening to find that we have had few problems without the container loads of “stuff” that are still in storage, and thankfully not under water, despite being in Sheffield! But the news today is that our house purchase could all go very fast now, but we are not sure we can believe it until it happens!