Bird Buddy, plastering and painting

We've reached another Friday so let's get to this update and get into the weekend.

Beautiful start, but it didn't stay beautiful

The day started with a lot of promise, a glorious sunrise, however very shortly after this the clouds rolled in and they have stayed all day. We have had some quite strong winds as well into the afternoon.

Bekir cleans up an old pipe length

Digging a hole

The dug hole

Welding two pipes together

Cemented into position

I took Rosie to school today and when I got back the men were already in and measuring up for the steel we need to mount our Bird Buddy. They got back from the shop quickly with some metal of the correct diameter and set about cutting it, then digging a hole to hold the pole, then welding the narrower diameter pole on top of the long pole and finally they set it in place and cemented the base. It is perfect as it is within WiFi reach of the house, but close enough to where the birds are naturally that hopefully they will enjoy visiting it. The men also cleaned up the weld and painted the pole with the rust proof paint so hopefully it will last a long time.

Bekir and Halil both plastering

Halil painting in the crawl space

Removing the electrical box to plaster behind it

With the pole installed the men headed back into the roof and were back to plastering the ceiling and the left hand back wall of the room. Once Halil finished the section he was working on he shifted to painting the ceiling in the right hand crawl space, which is the first area that I want completely finished so I can start to move things into storage in there. Bekir, for his part, was continuing the plastering and was inside the left hand crawl space doing that back wall, which also involved detaching the electrical box from the wall so he could plaster behind it.

Digging a hole to plant a tree

Two trees are planted

Bird buddy on a pole

After work I went outside and planted out two trees for Angela into the flower bed I was sifting soil into for the last few days. They went in really well, and the ground there is really very good, very deep and rich, so hopefully they will do well. I also went and got the Bird Buddy and mounted it onto the pole and later on put bird seed in and checked the camera and it all looks good.

So there it is. Tomorrow we will be going to the garage to collect Maisie who has been in there for about five months so that's exciting. Thanks for reading and back on Monday.

You guessed it, more plastering...

It has been, once again, a glorious day today. Sunny and warm, though the wind did pick up a bit in the afternoon.

A beautiful view with some beautiful song birds

I'll open this update with the view from my office this morning, complete with starlings which were singing a beautiful song. It was lovely to have my window open again for a bit.

Halil continues on the roof

Bekir is plastering the other side of the room

Upstairs it was a day like the other days; the men focused on plastering from beginning to end. I did think they were going to start painting however it does make sense to get all the plastering done before changing to the next task. At lunch time Angela and I set up our Bird Buddy Bird Feeder and worked out where it should sit; this will be mounted tomorrow we hope.

Three helicopters fly past

This flower bed is now ready for planting

I was disturbed in the afternoon by the sound of helicopters flying past; three of them in a row. The puppies were very unimpressed with the noise they made. Once I finished work I went out to finish up sifting the soil onto the garden and I managed to finish that, which is great. Angela was out this afternoon doing her Bulgarian language lessons as well, which apparently went very well.

The sun disappears behind the ridge

Chill time with Daddy and Rosie

Rosie and her funny face on a plate

Rosie and I went up onto the balcony so she could have a jump on her trampoline while I rehydrated after my digging. It was a lovely evening and really warm so we decided to eat up there again. Before that, though, there was plenty of time for Rosie and I to lay back on the recliners and have a chill out. When dinner time came Rosie loved the funny face that Angela had made for her with her vegetables on the rice - how clever is that!!

So there it is; the day we had and it was very lovely. Thanks for reading and back tomorrow.

Not the greatest start to the New Year

It has been a very sick beginning to the year for all of us, sadly, and this means I'm late to start writing this update and actually as I begin I don't even know if I'll complete it all today. We start, however, before the virus caught us.

Leaning into the turn

First of all a final picture, and a video, from Boxing Day of Rosie outside with her police car having loads of fun. She has driven it around a lot through the week between Christmas and New Year and loves it - such a successful purchase indeed.

A hazy sun

Keeping the fish tank going

Getting started on the stones for the day

Flying ants not ready to fly yet

Quite a big hole, but unused I think

Lots of progress, more to do though

Rosie just loves this game

Moon and evening clouds

Absolutely lovely goat curry

The 27th dawned similarly to every day this past week, cold and foggy but with the sun trying to break through. I was planning on working on this day however we had some very odd issues with our power where we were getting very low voltage through, such that the lights were flickering, the kettle boiling would turn them off (if it even managed to boil) and my computer wouldn't stay on. It got so bad we called the electricity board and also Bekir; Bekir turned up (but just as he did, the power returned) but the electricity engineers never showed up. Typical. Anyway instead of working on my computer I got outside and did some more clearing of stones down by the entrance, in the process uncovering some flying ants a bit early for them (they all went deeper very quickly) and also a large burrow that looks abandoned but was very interesting. Inside Angela was working hard on my favourite meal of the year - the Goat Curry from Christmas leavings and she cleaned off the bones from the goat leg and gave them to the puppies who had a great time! When I came inside I pulled out the bagatelle game again and played with Rosie and she loved it again. It was a lovely day indeed and the curry was superb as always.

Rosie getting her old paints wet again

More fun with sticklebricks

On the 28th I did my half day work in the morning and spent the afternoon playing with Rosie doing painting and having fun with her toys from Christmas. I don't have many pictures, I was too busy having a good day.

Ready to play Sorry! (and win!)

The Guessing Game

Rosie's temporary race track

Heading out for another awesome walk

Playing the bean bag throwing game

Rosie eating dinner out

Balancing on the bar

By return on the 29th I took Rosie all day and had a great time. Before Angela went for some well deserved time in the art room we all had a great game of Sorry! that Rosie won fair and square, which was great fun. After that I stayed playing games with her for a bit and then we went onto the patio again with her little police car but this time I laid out some plant pots into a track for her to drive around and she loved it! After this we put Thelma and Xena onto leads (while Louise went to see Angela) and went for a really nice walk up to the headland again. Then it was back home for more games. It really was an epic day and then in the evening we headed out for dinner to our favourite restaurant and Rosie had lots of fun in the play area.

Well that was as far as I got yesterday evening before I headed to bed so let's pick this up again now...

Daddy and Rosie cuddles

Xena hot after a crow

Mummy and Rosie having a race

Drawing all over her balloon

The 30th was when I started to feel sick and I went downhill quite quickly to be honest. It started off well with a cuddle with Rosie in the morning before Angela was up and then the girls went out shopping while I did another half day of work. I was sat out in the sun when they returned around lunch time and was being entertained by two very young crows who were super friendly (though Xena did not like them at all and was chasing them so hard I had to send her inside). Fortunately they came back when Rosie was home and she was able to watch them hopping all around her feet. Brilliant. In the afternoon we built another race track but this time got Rosie's remote control car out and she raced her police car against Angela driving the remote controlled car. Once the sun went down we were back inside and Rosie did some art, including drawing on the balloon she had been given at the restaurant the day before by one of the waiters.

Rosie in her lovely white outfit

Xena giving me a cuddle

New Year's Eve I was feeling very rough; I came down the stairs and said good morning and found that I had basically lost my voice completely and that set the day up. I helped Rosie get dressed into a lovely outfit from her wardrobe which she wore all day and managed to stain with juice - typical. Never mind. For my part I was useless all day and getting worse and worse by the minute. I sat around or slept all day, watched Rosie play a bit with her car, but was in bed by 5pm without even eating any dinner. We had to cancel our regular visit to the neighbours which was a huge shame but I did wake around midnight and get a video of the fireworks including some of those from next door. I was back to bed and asleep again quickly though.

The sun rises on a new year

Xena from a year ago

Xena now!

Yeah I wasn't feeling my best

And so to New Year's Day which was probably my worst day as I was aching, shivering, had a very high temperature and was in bed a very large percentage of it. I was awake early, having had a disturbed night, but then back to bed again. I was pleased that I remembered to get Angela to attempt to recreate one of our first pictures of Xena from last New Year's Day when she was first found hiding in our wood shed. She's just a bit bigger now huh. The last picture is me sat next to the fire wearing multiple layers including my outside coat and a hat, and I was still shivering so badly my teeth were chattering. Crazy.

Sorting and breaking up firewood

Working on more distribution boxes

Shifting old roof tiles

Rosie feeds the ducks and chickens

We have a light fitting

Stones get removed from the soil

Sat on the tree house enjoying the view

Halil takes his firewood and heads home

On Monday the workmen were back but also I was finally on the mend however now Angela was down very sick and she actually slept the entire day which is totally unheard of. I spent the day with Rosie while the men got on with their tasks. Halil was back outside first of all making up some bundles of sticks from the wood he's taking and then he moved all the roof tiles and old floor tiles over into a neat stack next to the green building. Bekir meanwhile was working away in the roof on the electrics, getting everything connected up and fitting the lights and switches for the storage area. Rosie helped me to feed the birds as well during the morning. After lunch I let Rosie watch some films while I dozed on my chair as I was still feeling quite rubbish and then we headed outside for the last of the sun. Halil was, by now, sifting out the small stones from the plant bed next to the new path and was doing a great job. Rosie and I headed up and sat on the tree house for a lovely little while before playing some very slow hide and seek. At the end of the day Halil carried his two bails of firewood away and I made beans on toast for us, of which Rosie ate twice as much as I could. Crazy.

Rosie has a Xena cuddle before school

Bekir looking at our broken grinder

We are above the clouds

More ducting for the lights

Halil sifts out more stones

Lights in our storage area

Gathering together more firewood

And so I reach yesterday. Rosie was heading back to school after her holiday and having (apparently) amazingly dodged this illness. Angela was still very very ill yesterday but she made it downstairs to wave Rosie to school. When I got back from dropping her the men were in and I made it clear to them that, as Halil was also recovering from the same illness and Bekir starting to cough as well, I expected them to take it easy. Fortunately the sun came out and it was another warm day and I was able to do half a day as I was also back to my work today but I only did manage the half day. The men were doing basically the same as they day before, with Halil very slowly carrying sand upstairs so they could mix the cement up there for the next floor section while Bekir finished the electrics and now we have operating lights in underneath the eaves. Halil also readied more firewood to take home with him.

I am going to leave it there; I may do another update this evening or I may do today and tomorrow in an update tomorrow but I'm finally recovering and so should be getting back to speed. Thanks for reading this epic update.