The garden takes shape

Jim the digger has done his work, and the garden is taking on some shape now. First the tank was buried..

now you see it..

now you don't (well hardly!)

The pond....

The pond is filling up, no sign of life in it yet, but I'm sure it won't be long.
              The earth has been banked up around the gite terrace...

 

a 'petanque' pitch has been created....

and the turf removed from what will be my vegetable garden (and placed around the pond, thank you Mike).
 Nicole's contribution to moving the turf..

Just one, hopefully manageable plot for now.

 

 The weekends jobs....

                                                                           I sprayed my trees....

 

Nicole and Mike rolled the tree trunk down to the pond to make a seat...

Hugh sawed up yet more bits of oak that previously held up the gite roof, helped by Dave...

 Dave and Les came to stay at the weekend to help celebrate Hugh's birthday. It was lovely to see them and we hope they will come for longer next time. They have promised to drive, which means I can give them a shopping list before they come (I'm already working on it!) and they get lots of room to take home lots of lovely local wine and gastronomic delights! I don't seem to have any photo's of Les - I'll get them from Hugh and post them later - so don't think you've escaped, Les!

All change again...

The doors have gone on the gite today - a secure, water-tight building at last.*

 

Jim and his digger arrived this morning to dig the hole to bury the new septic tank - never to be seen again - but very important!

Almost gone....

      I hope everything is in the right place!

All that earth has got to go somewhere...

The earth will be banked up against the terrace of the gite to reduce the drop, to make the bank of a pond and level out some other parts of the garden for a petanque pitch and a place to pitch a tent or two - Liz and Phil - that's especially for you and Eleanor, Isabelle and George!!

The beginning of the pond - water in it already!

The trees we planted in the autumn are showing signs of spring now...

 

Nicole has been busy making croissants- they were delicious! The next batch are proving right now, and look just as lovely.

Another shopping trip to Ikea and we came home with a little treat - solar powered mini-lanterns. I don't know how they fell into the basket! They were a bargain, honest Hugh, and look how lovely they look - AND no running costs!

In case you were worried that we're working too hard.....

Hugh in the bushes!

Me with a cup of tea in the sunshine.

All for now, but things are changing quickly now (including our bank balance!) with all the finishing touches, so more photos soon.

*Footnote....
When I said "at last" I mean that I am very impatient to see it finished! It is by no means a comment on how long (or not) the builders are taking! It is amazing how much has been done in such a short time. And I'm very happy with it all. There you are Chris - grovel over - we are happy to see it all take shape, thank you for your hard work and patience with me!

Spring may be here

I don't like to be too optimistic about it - you never know what's around the corner! But the signs are there. On Saturday afternoon Hugh, Nicole and I went for a walk that was mentioned in Birding Dordogne by David Simpson. It was around the L'Escourou Reservoir near Eymet. We didn't see much in the way of birds (our fault I suspect, as we were so busy enjoying the sunshine!), but I did spot these little signs....

Dog violet

Cowslip

 

 

I was thrilled to see these growing near the banks of the reservoir, it reminded me of the springs of my childhood.
The following may or may not be a sign of spring - but it certainly means the sun was shining!

Nicole at work!

Also achieved this weekend....

Thank you Hugh for my new compost bin.

Also now finished, is the study/library/lobby/entrance hall/vestibule.....room still to have a name settled on it!

Nicole and I managed to turn this around in just a few days, in time to welcome our next guests....so I suppose she deserved her rest in the hammock!
Talking of signs of spring......I am still looking for the perfect photo of the returning cranes. Every time we hear their distinctive call, I rush out to try again. However close they are, they always seem miles away in the photo! This is the best of today's attempts......

...still not clear enough!

Spring IS around the corner!

The terrace takes shape

Josh the carpenter has been here this week and made magic with a few pieces of old oak. Even in the rain it looks great.

 

 

Just a few roof tiles now........

Blogs are like buses!

You wait for ages and then two come along at once!
Just thought I'd add a couple of photos from the weekend.

Rob, Susie and Nicole enjoying the sunshine.

Cranes on their way back from wherever they have been for the winter - a sure sign, I'm told, that winter is over ......fingers crossed

 

 

Long time, no see!

It has been a long time since I lost blogged. With good reason - honest!
Over the last week, we have had our first guests. All went well - I hope they will agree- and the house, which has been a hive of industry is almost quiet again. Hugh has been here- for the third weekend in a row- he has returned to Upton this evening, leaving Nicole and I with Rob and Susie, Hugh's son and daughter-in-law and they are going home in the morning.
I should start by going back to the end of January, where the last blog left off.
Kath arrived for the weekend, and spent most of it painting. I had been putting off decorating the lounge because of the size, but together we got started and I just needed to finish it off after she left. First guests were booked in by now, so deadlines were looming.

 

The room is now finished, mirrors reinstated, wood burner lit - very cosy!  Thank you, Kath.

I then finished off the second bedroom..

 

....finally, just about ready for the first guests - both rooms booked for the whole week! Hugh had to drive over with last minute purchases of mirrors and light fittings, all fitted with minutes to spare!

At the end of the week, Rob and Susie arrived and have earned their keep, chopping wood and helping to strip the ivy from the palm tree - future family visitors please take note!

Meanwhile, over in the gite......

                                                         last seen with no roof, has been transformed...

 

Inside is also taking shape... the plumbing is in place for the shower rooms and kitchen.

The terrace is ready for the roof pillars to be added....

Our next guests are not due for a couple of weeks, so we can now start on the next bedroom - after we have been to choose tiles and work surfaces for the gite.
In the meantime, we have found time to smell the roses (or look at the crocuses anyway!) and enjoy the sunshine.

That's all for now, no promises for the next blog, but I'll be back as soon as I can!