Fourth bedroom coming together, a new door and lights wired...coming along nicely.

I've been lax again in keeping up to date with the house goings on. 

Last month we finally fitted a shower in the bathroom and now there's just the skirting to be fitted.

The wee man's shelves are all painted and they are now choca with toys. We had a bit of a sort out and the hallway is now lined with toys that need to find a new home. The kids keep getting them out and playing with them; typical, they've not been touched in over a year! 

James has been ploughing away splitting the room that had once been part of a bedroom and the front hallway. We're making a small fourth bedroom/study and an en-suite for our room. The stud wall is up, insulated and plasterboard. 

He has also been putting up insulation and plasterboard in the hallway between the original beams. The plan is to get them cleaned eventually so that the old oak and the craftsmanship can be on display. There's a lot of beautiful beams throughout the house that have been painted black that we hope to one day strip back.

You can see the very old wallpaper on the nine beams

The best bit of all is that James has wired in lights in the hallway so you can walk around at night without falling up the step into the extension. The only issue is that you can't yet turn them on downstairs so we have to turn them on in the light or take a torch upstairs for the initial journey as the switch is at the furthest end of the corridor! You'll be pleased to hear there are plans for a light switch at the top and bottom of the stairs too.

This week the wee man got a door fitted to his bedroom. He said a few weeks ago that he would like a door for Christmas from Santa. That made James and I feel pretty shit so we moved the job up the queue. I've probably said before that hanging doors is the one job James is crap at (he says this not me) so we have to pay a carpenter to do the job and money is a bit tight at the moment. The guy did an excellent job and I did the first coat of varnish this afternoon.

Whilst I painted and made a stew for tea, James plastered the ceiling in the new bedroom; we're back to being efficient and getting things done around the house.

Here's a pic of pud helping me pot up some seedlings that I'm growing from seed I saved this year from a plant I bought.

Lastly, James got a new car as his last car died. It was an automatic and a Rover so the gearbox replacement was more than the car was worth. We got hold of a stop gap car for £300 to tide us until next year but it kept not starting so we've bitten the bullet and had to borrow to get a newer one. Not part of the plan, but it's essential when you live in the sticks to get to work and earn money. Anyhow, it's 10 years old, but low mileage and James loves it, so it all works out in the end.