50 weeks on...

.... and I feel like I'm home and surrounded by friends... The last few weekends have been exhausting - I finally took the bull by the horns so to speak and have attacked the garage which was still full to the door with boxes which still needed to be unpacked after shifting here two weeks off a year ago. I was starting to fret about the books as they were still out there and we knew that the roof was far from leak proof... Even though we bought tarps to cover the majority of boxes, some things still got water damaged  sadly, we did lose a box of books due to them  getting wet and going mouldy - but I can now say that ALL our books are inside and safely in bookcases and for the most part - in order... I can't stop touching them - I feel like a part of me has 'thawed' from the depression that I was left with after our shock and sudden move last year. I have rediscovered some old friends and it was lovely stopping every now and then to browse through their pages. P and I still have a lot of work to do but at least we can see some of the floor in the garage....

I can understand why my stitching etc has fallen by the wayside as I just couldn't concentrate on anything knowing that so much had to be done.  Work has become so busy and while that is a blessing after last year it takes all my attention and I come home exhausted. The weekends have come and gone and I have felt that I have been getting nowhere and achieving nothing, that coupled with my continuing sinus problem has left me feeling pretty low...

However just striking a blow re the garage has cheered me up no end. Now that all my books and boxes of magazines are safe from the elements I can make a start. We have culled at a rough count 100 to 150 books from our collection and I am about to do the same with my craft magazines - I was a little bit of an addict.  :) And as much as I love them it is time for them to go - I think there were at least seven largish tightly packed boxes of them - poor P didn't think he would see the end of them. He kept saying - "and here is another box' as we made our way around the garage. I now have severely cut back on my magazine buying- it has to be pretty special for me to part with my money now...

The room we use as a study - I refer to it as "our study in chaos" - is the next on the list - after the garage for a makeover... Here too it has boxes still needing to be unpacked and sorted. I have become a bit ruthless - if I haven't missed it in a year then it is going...Looking towards the Springtime I am hoping that P will finally be able to finish creating his shelving that he lacks in here and get himself settled.... Then I will start to sort out what I lovingly call my sewing room - presently I go to the door look in and then leave. I really would like to get stuck into something - but I am not quite in the right head space as yet.

I would really like to get to a point where we can enjoy this house - have some down time and even some fun. I have never thought we would be here for a long time and so while we will at least be here for twelve months I would be surprised if we are here much longer than that. By then I want to be sure that everything we pack the next time around is accountable right down to the last piece of paper... Never do I want to do what we did  last time. Well that's the plan anyway. And...we can try :)

Our camilla trees have been profusely flowering again and they remind me of our first few unsteady and unfamiliar days here...

Until later, take care

Sharon x