One year on

A year ago today, we moved into the Priory, full of hope that Quent was clear of cancer. This year, after the recurrence in November and two more major operations for Quentin, we are, once again, full of hope. Quentin is still recovering from all that the past 2 to 3 years has thrown at him, but he's doing really well and we have everything crossed for a third clear scan at the end of next month.

I thought some of you might like to see a few "before" and "after" shots of the house. Rather disappointingly, in spite of my best chivvying efforts, the builders have not finished painting / linseed oiling the front of the house for the occasion - although they promise it will be finished on Monday / Tuesday next week.



The front of the house. Strangely the best shot for comparison was taken in January. The cement on the beam above the ground floor has gone. The windows have been releaded. We have uncovered the carvings on the gables and of course repainted and repointed. Once the finishing touches have been made to paint and beams, it should be looking great. (The middle shot is from a month or so ago, when the work was being done)



Back lobby and coalshed, 2008 vs 2009.



Kitchen, 2008 vs 2009.

I am hoping that the kitchen will be fitted before the next anniversary and, who knows, we may even have a new boiler by then.

Back to school

Back to school tomorrow and back to work for me. We've had a great time in August, with a very enjoyable holiday to France. I can't resist a couple of snaps of the boys...

Oakley on the high ropes course.

Oakley and Quentin sharing a joke.

The rest of the time was spent exploring Hertfordshire. Oakley can now cycle several miles at a time and Quent has treated himself to a new bike. "New" being a relative term. A few years ago, Quent had a reasonable, second-hand bike. This was swapped for a worn out, uncomfortable contraption, by the burglars who raided our garage in 2003. This reject getaway bike served Quentin until last weekend when he upgraded to a blue one with excellent gears - £5 from the dump.

The house is progressing. The scaffolding is down and the roof came off the kitchen while we were in France (deliberately removed by builders, not blown off because it was so old). We are very pleased with the work to date. You know you have craftsmen on the job when they take tea with no sugar and listen to radio 4. The outside of the house is looking great, with nearly all the painting and repointing done and most of the old, single glazed Victorian leaded windows replaced with new, single glazed, Victorian leaded windows. (Actually most of them repaired, not replaced, as per the Conservationist's handbook.) You can tell which ones have been done because you can see through them. I know it's a lot of money, but window cleaners are hard to come by these days, so I am delighted.

Quent continues on the road towards recovery and seems to be taking a new drug called ebay. Antique windows for the garage we can't afford to build, floodlights which are too big for the house and even some useful stuff the builders have asked him to source. Another day, another package...