Painting doors

It's never ending I tell you, 8 doors, 2 sides per door. Even though I'm using a mini roller it's taking an absolute age. So today I tackled the new bathroom door and doorframe. It took hours, and as the paint is an oil based one it absolutely stinks! Anyway that door and frame are now done, at flippin' last. Only another 6 doors to go, hurrah!

Not much else going on really, except DIY jobs. Once the doors are done then I have 2 sets of bannisters to paint before I can get the carpet fitters in to fit the stair and landing carpet I've ordered.

Tomorrow however, I do have an interesting day ahead, it's Photomarathon #2 of the year, this time based in Newport, so not to far to travel. 10 topics in 10 hours, should be a good day I reckon.

Home from Holibobs!

Well I'm rested and relaxed after 10 days in Cala D'or Majorca. We did....well.... not a lot really! Chilling out, reading, going for walks and generally watching the world go by in a nice pub by the marina where there were a lot of mind numbingly expensive boats! It was teetering on high 30's most of the time and got as high as 40 degrees C, blisteringly hot and humid too, not much of a breeze to cool things down. The hotel was fab, all adults, no children and peace and quiet, bliss!

We landed in Bristol yesterday around lunchtime and scooted off to pick the kitties up from their cattery holiday, they were very pleased to see us and miaowed all the way home. Then it was check the house out, and the new boiler all fitted and working well. We had to put back the washing machine and plumb it in so we could crack on with washing holiday clothes. The fridge was bereft of food so a quick list jotted down and a trip to the supermarket sorted that out. All was good. I toddled off to aqua class at 6pm for a workout and really enjoyed it.

Last night around half past midnight I was woken by John being violently sick in the bathroom, then the stomach pains started and so did the diarrhoea. I've never seen him look so ill. He was green, clammy, sweating cold and hot, itching and generally delirious. He collapsed on the floor and couldn't get up. I couldn't lift him up and he had no energy to get up himself, I was really worried and did consider calling an ambulance at one point. I finally managed to get some water water down him and he kept it down, no longer feeling sick. Once he had spent a considerable time on the loo, I got him to take some tablets to stop things happening and got him to drink lots more water. Eventually I got him back into bed and I managed to get to sleep around 2.30am. This morning he was aching all around his stomach muscles, probably from retching last night. A glass of Dioralyte and two pieces of toast later and he seemd to be ok. No idea what caused it, we had eaten and drunk the same things for more than 24 hours previously and I was ok. Anyway, he is on the mend which is the main thing.

Today was little DIY jobs around the house day. Lots of small things like sanding down filler and painting and touching up to do after 3 weeks of having the bathroom fitted, some of the house was looking worse for wear decor wise We also had lots of things to hang in the bathroom which required drilling etc. We did quite a lot actually and I'm really pleased with progress, still lots to do though!

To end the day I'm currently addicted to a Maroon 5 song, Moves Like Jagger. Lea Desmond, you are to blame for this! I love Maroon 5 to death anyway and seeing them live a couple of years ago was fabulous, she intoduced me to their new song and now I have it on repeat play, I cannot get enough of it.......

I'm happy!

New bathroom, no hot water

Joy! We have a finished bathroom looking v swish and modern, it's just what I was hoping for. I'm so glad that it's finished so I can claim the house back and get things back to normal. There's now lots of small decorating tasks to do as a result of the bathroom refit but they can all wait until we get back from holidays. However the delight was short lived as our boiler decided to die on us. Initially it was thought that the circuit board needed replacing, so we purchased a reconditioned one as we were hoping that the boiler could get us through this winter as we planned to replace it next year. Circuit board fitted, nothing, in fact the water pressue just wasn't going anywhere. Plumber came out and said the fan was working but wasnt getting up to speed enough to get things started, a replace ment would be £300 including fitting. So we decided to just replace the boiler now instead of spending several hundred quid now only to replace it next year. Plumber coming next week while we are away to fit it so we will come home to hot water and be able to use the new bathroom!

Brilliant white and Gin

Bathroom paint, brilliant white bathroom paint to be exact. Three coats of it on the new bathroom ceiling and it looks flippin' fab, really pleased with it. We made a start first thing this morning washing down all the tiles in the bathroom to try and get the grout dust off them. after that it was polishing them up to get rid of the last dusty stuff. They look good now and with the fabulous ceiling it's all coming together nicely. Plumber and electrician are in tomorrow for final fix and snagging, we should have a working bathroom at last!

Gin..... well what can I say? I just fancied one which led to two, then three. Gin, elderflower cordial and lime tonic with ice, delish!

On a more serious and sombre note, I am totally shocked at the stuff that's happening in London and now Birmingham with mindless thugs running riot through communities looting, burning vehicles and even worse setting buildings alight. What makes people do such horrific things to others? Do they not think that innocent people might lose their lives or get hurt? It's terrifying that it's been left to continue for 3 days so far, this is no protest, it's just an excuse to be volient and get away with it. I'm sickened to the core.

Nearly have a bathroom

Nearly, not far to go now until we actually have a functioning bathroom. There's a list of things (everything) to be plumbed in and all the electrical stuff needs a final fix but the bones of it is all done. Tiling, grouting, cabinets and basins are in and the new ceiling is plastered and looking good. Ceiling needs painting and all the tiles need a final wash down to get rid of the grout dust. We will do that tomorrow as we don't have anyone else here tomorrow so we have all day to get it sorted before plumber and electrician come on Tuesday to final fix.

So this is what we have at the moment and I'm really pleased with it.

We also had all the doors changed in the house to something more in keeping with it's age and I'm overjoyed with the result, actually I think I'm a little bit in love with them....

I'm now a Driving Instructor in training!

Yay! The weather was horrific, lashing rain and wind, but I had a great time. I thought ahead and bought a bottle of water and some chewing gum to stop my mouth totally drying out with nerves. It worked a treat. Had a really good lesson, lots of mixed driving, lots of pointers and new stuff to get my head around. We even stopped off in a transport cafe for a cuppa and some theory work. I should get my text books next week and next Friday is lesson #2 plus I'll be sitting in on someone else's lesson afterwards. I'm really quite excited about it all, but need to get my head stuck into the books and practise my driving in John's manual car more as there's only so much I can do in my little automatic.

Here's to training for a new career!

Progress and nerves

I have a bathroom ceiling, and beautifully smooth it is too, it really does look lovely, I'm so pleased with it. The tiler can now finish off the tiling, hurrah! Looking now for it all to be finished on the weekend including all the internal doors being changed. The new doors arrived today, I'm just a little bit in love with them.

Nerves! Nerves, nerves, nerves...... I'm plagued by them thinking about my first lesson tomorrow kick starting my driver instructor training off. I have no idea why I feel so nervous, it's not like I can't drive is it? It's bloody silly really, maybe I'll settle in and all will be ok once I make a start. I really hope so.

Tiling and vomit...

Well lots of tiling happened today, about 95% of its done, just waiting for the ceiling to go up before the top row of tiles can be done and everything grouted. Its all starting to look like the shell of a bathroom now, at last.

The vomit thing?..... well that was the begining of the end of my aqua class this evening. I get to the pool, notice that it's actually looking rather empty, as in it's totally devoid of people in it. So I ask what the problem is, apparantly someone threw up in the pool and they had to close it to clean it. It could take 24 hours, so there's a distinct possibility tomorrow mornings class will be cancelled too. I'll have to phone the pool before hand to ask if they've managed to clean it or not. Bloody marv.

Flitting like a butterfly and cacking my pants

I managed to have a lovely lay in bed this morning for the first time in over a week. I stayed in bed until, wait for it....... 8.30am! Yes, it was rather delicious not having to get up at 7am ready for the chaps to arrive, today it was electrician only and he wasnt arriving until 3pm. I did, however have a few things to do mainly bathroom related.

First thing was a trip to the DIY shop to buy white bathroom paint in readiness to paint the new ceiling once it's up and the plaster has dried. I then flitted into town as I needed to buy my Highway Code to read up on before my lesson on Thursday, I was distracted by the top 50 novels and the offer they had on buy 1 get one for a quid, so I bought two chic lits for holiday reading the week after next. I finally made it to the section that had the Highway Code.... £2.50!......Two pounds bloody fifty! I remember when it was 20p.... ok I'm showing my age but that's one hell of a price hike. Anyway I bought it, because I had to. I started flicking though it and it scared me, I've forgotten so much argh! Cacking my pants is an understatement.

Whilst in town I popped into a shop and thought I'd get myself a cheap pair of sunglasses for holidays, I had a total bargain, they were £5, reduced to £2.50 and when I got to the till they rang up for a quid, kerching! I then treated myself to some pain, eyebrow threading to be exact. It's been ages since I've had them threaded and shaped, so again, all in the holiday cause, I was threaded to within an inch of my life, but I now have fabulous eyebrows. She asked if I wanted my upper lip done as well, I was taken aback, surely I'm not that hairy? I looked in the mirror, no I'm not that hairy, I am a bit hairy but its fine and fair. I politely said no thanks, whilst quietly seething.

After that, back out of town to a builders supplier to exchange the thermostat John bought for the underfloor heating as it was the wrong one, old one taken back, new one purchased, sorted. Homeward bound ready for the electrician to arrive. He was a bit early (bonus!) and managed to get the wiring done in half an hour, he then went on to install a new fuse box (an extra we asked him to do as it needed updating). So all done, electrics sorted YAY!

Tomorrow its tiling and new ceiling, which should prove most interesting. One thing I do know, I need to get more tea bags in, they drink gallons of the stuff!

Ahhhh lovely, lovely floor and an ARGH! moment

Tiler was here by 8.15 and got to it straight away. Fuelled with a cup of tea (natch). He got cracking with the floor tiling and my oh my, it looks lovely. He also managed to do some more wall tiling, making sure the levels were right as the walls are a bit wonky. The whole tiles go up first then the ones needing cuts fill in afterwards. So anyway, this is what I have now...

Electrician arrives tomorrow for wiring, then ceiling should go in Tuesday. Tomorrow I need to exchange the thermostat John bought as it's not the right one for the heating and I have to buy white bathroom paint ready for when the ceiling goes in.

The ARGH! moment came when I had a call from my instructor to arrange my first lesson with him, it's a 2 1/2 hour lesson from 8.30am on Thursday. I'm now bricking it, it is so very real. So the other thing I need to do tomorrow is buy a Highway Code!

Underfloor heating

Tiler arrived to tile, got the underfloor heating out of the box ready to lay it, found out it was way too small, needed one twice the size. John went off to the shop to buy a 5m heating mat and thermostat, came back, all was well until the tiler laid it out, they'd only gone and given him a 10m mat! So back to the shop to exchange it. Finally the tiler got the mat down and the screed on top. While it was drying he got on with the only tiling he could in the shower area. He could only do so much until he had to leave to buy more floor adhesive ready for tiling the floor tomorrow. So this is as far as we have got in the bathroom, a screeded floor and some tiling in the shower.....

I cannot wait until it's finished. More tiling to be done tomorrow which will make a huge difference I think. Onwards and upwards!

All was going well, then it all went wrong

It was going so well, plumbing being done, shower tray and waste sorted out, pipe work for the towel radiator done and the shower valve put in place. All was good. The the electrician arrived to do the wiring for the underfloor heating, spot lights, extractor and lights on the mirrors, the newly plastered ceiling had to be cut into and then 3 hours later he found out that the lights on the whole of the first floor weren't working. One set of old lighting wiring had been tucked away into the roof void and plastered over. He had to cut another few holes in the ceiling to try and find the wiring, then found that there was no neutral and one wire came off in his hand! 4 1/2 hours he was here, and it was decided that the whole ceiling has to be brought down to see what wiring there is and what needs re-wiring.

The tiler is starting tomorrow, and this is going to set everything back, I know it is. I do wonder why nothing seems straight forward whenever we get a project underway. Tomorrow is another day, and hopefully progress will be made.

The art of doing not a lot

I went to aqua class this morning, the chaps doing the bathroom said they'd be with me around 11.30, I was home in time for them to arrive. Nothing, 1pm came and went and still nothing. It dawned on me that John had been contacting the plumber and he didn't have my phone number to call to tell me if he was running late. I'd heard nothing from John until he came home from work. John then tells me he has only been in contact via email and doesn't have his number nor does plumber have Johns. Finally John gets hold of him via email and gives him my phone number and I get a call. He was concerned he couldn't contact me to tell me he couldn't make it today as his other half had been taken into hospital with stitch problems after a ceasarean a few weeks ago. Anyway, all explained, I thought there was something wrong as I didn't think he just wouldn't turn up.

Anyway I had the art of doing not a lot down to a tee today as I couldn't go out in case the chaps turned up as they don't have a key. So the most I managed to do is water the garden and make myself lunch.

Tomorrow, I'm told, the bathroom will get plumbing, stud walls around the shower area and possibly flooring sorted (boarding and underfloor heating laid) ready for the tiler on Friday. So we should be storming ahead I think!

Getting plastered

Well the bathroom ceiling was getting plastered, I wasn't. I took delivery of all the bathroom fixtures and fittings at 8am this morning, 31 items offloaded and delivered in good order, phew! Just as the delivery was underway the chaps arrived and made a start. New doorway put in, in it's new position squaring the room off nicely. Then the plasterer set to and boarded the ceiling and plastered it, he didnt stop all day and it looks lovely and smooth and all one ceiling at last!

I went out and ordered the internal doors I wanted and buy the door furniture for all 8 of them. The doors have to be ordered in and wont be delivered until a week tomorrow so the carpenter will have to come back after the bathroom is finished to fit all the doors. They are lovely 1930's style doors though and will fit the style of the house nicely. So that's the update for today, lots done, lots still to do. But it will look fab once its all finished, my vision will come to fruition....