This month we have driven down to Butleigh for the day as it's only 2 hours away instead of around 8 and a half hours away! Got down for morning coffee and stayed for dinner then home by 9pm.  The next day was my birthday and Nick got home around 8.30pm but the children and I had already eaten so we had a nice birthday dinner on Saturday instead.  Also on Saturday we looked at a few houses and found the house that we wanted to buy at last...just across the road from the house we are currently renting would you believe.

We had a nice pub lunch on Sunday and then it was back to the train station for Nick for his return journey back to Leuchars. 

On the Tuesday my mum & dad arrived for a few days and we braved the weather on Wednesday for a visit to Eastnor Castle.

 After getting absolutely drenched (and lost) within the maze we raced off to the tea room for a warming bowl of soup before braving the rain again for a walk round the grounds...cutting it short when it all became too miserable and we were completely and utterly soaked through to our undies!  Thursday we just did a circuitous walk round the banks of the River Severn and then it was Friday and mum & dad were on their way home again.  Tom, Lily and I went to the cinema to watch Brave then we just pottered about all weekend.

  It was really hot at the weekend and my fingers were a bit swollen so I had taken my engagement and wedding ring off and had just popped them on my pinkie finger to take upstairs and put away for a while, I got distracted by the laundry and went to hang it up outside...then ting!  there goes my engagement ring down the drain hole.  Not a problem I thought, I'll get the vacuum cleaner and vacuum it out, after much cursing, poking about and vacuuming I had a pile of dirt but no ring.  I phoned H2O drainage services on Monday and explained my problem

 so at 7.30 on Tuesday morning 2 cheery chappies appeared and after an hour or so guddling around in the drain and a couple cups of coffee

I got my ring back.  So I now know a great drainage company and got a recommendation for a good carpenter which we will need as we put an offer in on the house across the road and it has been accepted!



Well, we managed to fit all the contents of our house, garage and garden into the large removal van after a lot of jiggery pokery by the removal team!  And we were off to pastures new (again).  We spent Tuesday overnight at Mum & Dad's and then drove to Worcester on Wednesday to pick up the keys for our rental and stay in a B&B before the moving in day dawned on Thursday 18th.

 We got everything unpacked off the van and into the house by about 6pm and then the sorting out started.

 Not sure I am going to want to leave here, the house is really nice and the garden is HUGE!  We haven't unpacked everything and there are 2 rooms filled with boxes which will remain unopened until we move into our yet to be bought permanent home.

So we have spent the last couple of weeks exploring Worcester on our bikes and by foot.  Nick and Tom escaped for a couple of days with Les & Ben and climbed Snowdon, meanwhile Lily and I stayed home and Lesley joined us for a potter round Worcester and a few glasses of wine in the garden.  Much more relaxing and warmer!

 Nick and Tom also managed to watch a game of cricket, Worcester v South Africa, which they both thoroughly enjoyed.

 Then just before Nick left to go back up to work at Leuchars we drove to Puzzlewood for an afternoon exploring.

Finally today we got reconnected to the internet, an event we have all been looking forward to:)