As Led Zepplin once said: 'It's been a long long long long time'. I have miserably failed in my updating duty - I know - but time constraints and - what feels to date - the slow house progress have made me a bit reluctant to bore our one fan with the geologically slow advances. Anyway, I've finally bitten the bullet on this September 11, ironically for my brother and his wife, their anniversary. Happy anniversary you two!!
Right, this update is bookended by family visits. The first was from the latest octagenerian on planet earth (at the time, at any rate) my mother. We had a pleasant week at the beginning of June and the weather was kind to boot. Had a lovely meal at chez Ray and Ann's, best restaurant in town - and I mean that seriously, and visited numerous friends and places.

Over the last few months we built a gatepost, filled in a bloody big hole and installed our second gate. We now have the traditional two gate effect after almost getting used to just the one. We also fixed up our post box at a height to suit our super fast local post woman.

This is the update on our mate Pete's place. Kitchen all finished and Pete's about to tile it and put in the kitchen units. As ever, I've included a couple of 'befores'.

Every year there's a big country fair across the river from us at Chamorin, and every year we never go. So this time needing to entertain a guest -John - we thought it'd be a pleasant diversion, and it was. We even saw our local tile manufacturer showing everybody how it used to be done by hand.

After completing the fencing, back door and patio wall, the garden's flourished all by itself and we can almost say, this bit is finished. Our white fig tree is virtually running wild this year and is producing stacks of fruit. It tastes a bit sweeter than the purple fig.
We took delivery of our winter wood - bye bye summer - and stacked it in the front drive, which still looks like the Clampett's back yard.

As ever it is the compulsory inclusion. All say 'AAAAAAh'.

Last but not least, bookend number two. My mum, her sister Helen and uncle Bill visited us for the last week in August. Again the weather worked out brilliantly and we all had a mellow week, eating, drinking, visiting chums and having picnics by the lake. We had a great afternoon eating more food chez Ray and Ann's and the place felt empty when they went.