We are already five working days into our refurbishment project and things are moving on quickly. I seem to have spent every day talking to builders and workmen, negotiating prices, booking in days for them to work and translating impossible sounding things from English to Spanish and vice versa. I am learning a lot of new words!
The dogs are behaving beautifully and napping wherever they can.
Little original features are emerging from behind layers of paint.
And yes, that carpet has gone!
Meals are still fairly scratch, no great cooking has been happening, but I hope you understand.
On the downside, the (dingle, dangle) dongle I have bought to connect to the internet allows me to pick up e-mails, go to my blogging home page, post and reply to comments. However, it only lets me go to one or two other blogs and blocks many of them telling me they have adult content. Now, I don´t imagine for one moment that you have all decided en masse to start posting saucy recipes or racy photos, and think I´ll just have to accept that for a while I won´t be able to read all your lovely blogs. I´m sorry, I do miss this, but I hope you´ll understand.
I´ll go and stand in the naughty corner for a while if it would help.
But then I couldn´t finish clearing the garden which is already looking so much better.
Chica Andaluza 
Tanya, this place is going to be fantastic! The fireplace, absolutely gorgeous!! What treasures lie beneath layers! And What fun for us all to watch this uncovering & becoming! There’ll be no naughty corner for you m’dear! And aren’t dogs amazing? So very good at living in the present moment, without expectations (unless they’re my dogs, who expect always to be fed on time – or earlier.) Best of luck Tanya. We’re all cheering you on! In a big way!
Ah thanks Spree, was feeling a bit tired and emotional today but lovely messages like yours are lifting my spirits! And yes, the dogs do seem to have a built in clock which tells them when it´s time to eat 😉
I so get the emotions & the tired Tanya! Hang in! Pet some dog! and know we’re thinking of you with such fondness!
I was so excited to see this post Tanya. I am thrilled that we can follow on with the whole process as it is happening! Yippee!!!
What a pity we have “adult content” and don’t even knowing about it -hee hee.
Wish I was closer to cook a couple of meals for you to just heat and eat in the evenings.
Your pups are so well behaved! Precious little fur babies. Wish it was that easy with cats.
Have a lovely weekend and don’t work too hard in the garden.
🙂 Mandy
Ah thanks Mandy – hopefully this weekend I´ll have time to cook ahead and we´re off to see some pals tomorrow which will be lovely. Dogs are a little more “mobile” than cats, but cats are so adorable too – we´ve already met a few of the neighbourhood “moggies”!
I’m glad it’s all going well, although it looks quite a project! It will be beautiful when it’s finished, after all your hard work. Lovely fireplace details and it looks as though you’ve imported some goodies to sustain you. Sorry about the dongle problem, though. I used one when I was in the UK last year but I don’t think I had time to test it on the ‘adult content’ of food blogs!
The house still has quite a lot of good original features like the fireplaces plus some less good ones like lead piping 😦 Not sure why my internet seems to think I am looking at food “porn”!
Good to hear things are moving along! Since you left me a comment yesterday, I’m going to assume my blog is clean enough for delicate British (internet) sensablities 😉
Maybe it’s the discussion of wine and other drinks? Wouldn’t want the kiddies getting ideas, would we?
Yes, for some reason yours was fine! Mind you, that´s not to say tomorrow it might not pop up as “naughty adult content” 😉
The fireplace is going to look lovely once the paint is all off! Ahhh the joy of paint stripping :0
good to hear things ar egoing well fo ryou guys, and as the weekend is approaching, a mtter of hours I can stop pretending to work and get some phone calls made 🙂
Keep the updates coming!
Yes, we´re counting the hours to “knocking off time”…it´s been years since I did that!
That place looks great, not to mention the lunch. I see you have adopted a garden gnome 😉
Oh that gnome keeps reappearing, along with Ben (as in Bill and Ben) and about 150 flowerpots!
OMG! Has Ben left Bill for a gnome? I hope you’ve found Little Weed 😉
I think Bill is hiding in the undergrowth, and Little Weed is very much here with us!
Phew! Hopefully you’ll be finding the Woodentops and Spotty Dog next 😉
😉
Don’t go into the naughty corner! We all understand! That fireplace looks like it will be beautiful and the stairs look just like ours still do… i.e. a once removed carpet runner has left behind interesting paintwork! That’s my job for the summer. x
I´ll stay out of the naughty corner then! The fireplace is coming along, there´s even one in the bathroom! Good luck with the stairs. We´re sanding downstairs but carpeting up the stairs and the upstairs rooms for speed.
Hi Tanya! I am glad everything is going smoothly so far! It must be an exciting project, and you will be so satisfied when it is done! The fireplace looks amazing without the paint! Wow! Cannot wait to see it finished. Keep us posted and look forward to read your upcoming posts! In grande in bocca al Lupo!
Grazie mille – we need all the luck we can get!
Good luck with the work, it looks like you’ve got a job on your hands. I’m pleased to hear that I’m being treated as an adult at last:)
Very much an adult!
That is quite a project! Interesting about the internet. I have had several blogs that I used to be able to read now blocked as ‘malicious’ sites!! I hope it all gets cleared up soon!
It´s all very strange – I´m looking mainly at food sites!
Are you learning fun words that would make my grandmother blush? What a project! I wish you luck and can’t wait to see how it turns out.
No…just words like PVA Adhesive and air vent bricks 😉
Even with workmen it’s still clearly a lot of work! The garden looks great, though and it’s so fun to see how things are progressing. Looks like you’ve done so much in 5 days. Are you two hands on with the carpet stripping etc as well? That is very strange about the malicious sites…I know mine is rated G but I get spam that isn’t G at all anyway! Oh, well, seems like you have plenty to do without trying to keep up with everyone else. Can’t wait to see how it all looks next. Have a great weekend! 🙂
We were very lucky and organised and had someone come in before we arrived to strip out the carpet, bathroom, kitchen and most of the awful layers of wallpaper, so we´re now kncking down partition walls, stripping down paintwork etc. Weird about the sites isn´t it. Am going to persevere though!
You have done so much in 5 days, Tanya, and like others have noted, that fireplace is quite a feature. Can’t wait to see it fully restored. With all that you’ve accomplished indoors, I’m surprised you found time to get so much done in the garden, too.
Once again, the difference in our “common tongue” surprises me. Your naughty corner has a completely different name — and purpose, I imagine. I need to remember this the next time I visit the UK. It could be very embarrassing otherwise. 🙂
Ooh – what does it mean to you? Actually here, it´s usually used for misbehaving children and they don´t get sent to the loo, just to stand somewhere quiet away from the other children or to sit on a step in the house while they think about how naughty they´ve been and are ready to return to the group and say sorry! I guess it´s probably the same in the US? The loo in the photo is an old outside one, quite a feature in most Victorian houses and would, at one time, have been quite a luxury as it is attached directly to the house and not at the end of the garden and not “shared” with several other houses in the street.
Wow…only five days! I needed you here for my move!! You’re amazing Tanya! That’s so funny about getting blocked from the blogs! I’ve not seen anything racey lately! This will be so fun (for us) watching the house remodel. Thanks for taking the time to share this.
We´ve worked hard this frist week, next week people are here doing stuff around us so we may be forced to slow down. Probably a good thing! And yes, saucy blogs eh?!
Looks great… I can imagine it would be so beautifful. Good Luck dear Chica, Thanks and Love, nia
Thanks Nia – I am sorry I can´t “visit” for the moment, but I will catch up when I can!
Gosh, Tanya. I feel tired for you just looking at the amount of “jobs” you’ve created for yourself and Big Man. I’m taking a 3 week break from projects so I’ll try to “send” some of my saved energy over to you. 🙂 As others have suggested, take a good break at the weekend and have ‘relaxing’ fun.
Thanks Diane – we are learning to pace ourselves now, but I have to say we are sleeping really well!
Please may I have your fireplace? I LOVE it!
Hee hee, I´d take it back for me too if I could!
You have made great progress in five days. No saucy recipes here but I can imagine it is frustrating to you. You keep posting and we will enjoy reading. When you get back, you can start catching up.
Thanks Karen – at least I´ll be able to have a fantastic read when I get back 🙂
Don’t remember when last I had the chance to have a daily presence at a major makeover sitting on a comfortable chair in front of the computer: no hassles, no bills, no datelines! Hmm, i could get used to that 🙂 !
I´d quite enjoy the comfy chair too but no chance of that here – lots of dust and rubble and work!
Please do not appologize my friend. We all understand how hard and demanding this project is. Just hang in there and things will start to look up really soon. I love that fire place, such a treasure under layers of paint and dust and the garden is indeed looking so much better.
Believe me when this is all said and done you will look back on these pictures with a huge smile on your face seeing how far you have come and how great the achievement is.
Sending you a virtual hug 🙂
Thanks you SO much Sawsan! The hug is very much appreciated 🙂
I kind of like the walls. Very rustic!
Very, very rustic!
Looks like great progress!
It´s coming along 😉
Adult content?! LOL – is it one of those 3G internet sticks, or is it a dongle to connect to wifi? What a bizarre thing 😀
Charming meal you’re having there, and damn am I glad that carpet’s gone – the hallway looks so much more spacious without it!
I think it must be a 3G internet stick – yup, just checked and it is. Maybe I need better technology!
Oh, how I love a project!
I hope I still feel like that at the end of it 🙂
Wow you have seriously got your work cut out for you. Thank GOD the dogs are resting – someone has to!
Sorry ’bout the racy sauciness blocking your bloggy world. Don’t think its us but you never know I suppose :o). Well, until you get the internet back on for reals anyway, so I wouldn’t go into the naughty corner, go for the garden and some sunshine – we’re all good :o)
Ah, thanks for being so understanding. Am out of the naughty corner now and working hard 🙂
A big hello from saucy Serendipity Farm! I think wordpress is messing up again constantly making me log in, out and do the hokey cokey to just get into my own blog let alone comment on other peoples. For a while I was posting as my facebook identity which confused blogs that I follow no end! (Shows how observant I am 😉 ). Lovely fireplace you discovered. Sometimes its finds like that that stop you from banging your grey matter away on a wall in a quiet corner somewhere. Hope everything is going well. You seem to be imbibing your meat quota so at least your protein levels are high. Keep up the good work Sergent! At ease! 🙂
Ah thanks, you really made me laugh! Yes, plenty of protein here (actually, it´s lentils tonight so no meat today) but keeping up our strength. WordPress is behaving very oddly from this end, but glad I am not alone!
Its not just us…I think that wordpress is trying to change itself from a large fat bloated caterpiller to a “beoooodiful butterfly” (like Heimlich in Bug story with about as much success!). No idea what it is trying to do, but as usual…we will be the LAST to know! I have been reading lots of blogs of late that are wondering what is going on with wordpress. I guess you get what you pay for and wordpress is worth what I paid for it lol 😉
I adore that beautiful fireplace!! I think people pay to have a fireplace like that made to look vintage like yours.. I know I would! It’s the color I love most I think! You’ve really done a great job in the garden.. it’s gorgeous!! And the commenting.. that can get overwhelming at the best of times! I think sometimes it’s better to focus on getting a job done.. you can catch us all later.. we’ll be here:D xx Smidge
Thanks Smidge – I too like that “distressed” look. We had hoped the fireplace would be cast iron but it´s wood so quite tricky to get all the paint out. We´ll have to see if we persevere with the removal or paint it over. Decisions, decisions!
I am so in love with this house. It’s so gorgeous and I love all the original features. And you’re bringing it back to life. Wonderful.
The same lady lived in this house from 1936 until she died earlier this year. The last “modernizations” were in 1962 (we know this from the papers under the carpets). It was like time warp but as we work on it I feel I am finding out a little about this lady and I am loving it. I hope she´s happy with the life we are breathing back into her lovely home!
I think she will be. I love it when you feel the house coming back to life. It’s marvellous.
well i am just popping to see what has happened and how you are doing.. have I missed something, are you OK? c
All well here thanks celi, I just can´t post 😦 Hopefully I can resolve this soon and give you all an update on progress!