Another day of patio progress

 After the relatively full-of-energy evening yesterday today once more I am skating the raggedy edge towards sleep time as I sit down to write this update.

The poor little sparrow

Huge sun at sunset

Before we reach today however yesterday Angela found a very tiny baby sparrow that had fallen / been pushed out of his nest and landed outside our front door. She did her absolute best to try and revive the poor little thing but it was not interested in any food or water and unfortunately did not survive the night. We think maybe it was actually pushed out as it seemed to be unwell. Sad times, though. On a slightly more positive note the sunset was lovely.

Halil continuing to dig out the trench

Really filthy pond

The pipe is installed and buried

Halil and Bekir fixing Thomas' gate

And so to today which has again been a very busy one. Angela was feeling a whole lot better today and took Rosie to school which is very good news indeed. My ear is still better also. Bekir and Halil were in and cracking on with the remaining tasks for the patio. Firstly this was finishing the trench for the drainage pipe to sit in. I remembered finally to start emptying the duck pond which is disgusting and I'll need to get in there wearing my wellies and shovel out the algae before it all dries and cakes on. I was on many calls and by the time I finished all of the pipes were installed and buried under the dirt. They then headed down to the shop in Thomas to pick up some more metal and cement and when they got back they fixed the back gate on Thomas which is awesome as it was sticking and not opening easily at all.

The pipe has been buried, and the drains in

Working on the ledge

Filthy pond; we really need running water here

It felt like the next time I looked up the men had finished all the drains work and were onto the final bits of carpentry to build the wooden shelf for the overhang. They have really cracked on today, and hopefully we will arrange for the cement to be delivered next Monday or Tuesday. Very exciting indeed, this, as then the toilet pump house can be fitted and hopefully we will very shortly afterwards be able to use the "normal" toilets without sawdust making the house dirty. the pond had finally drained but it really needs me with a shovel and bucket so that may be my fun job for tomorrow. I got some lovely time in the pool with Angela and Rosie which really is proving to be worth the effort and investment to get such a sizeable pool. Rosie is doing so well and growing so comfortable with being in the water it's awesome.

So there you are; thanks for reading.

Ear cleared

 I am much happier today; my ear is cleared!

Wood delivery number two

Halil with the cleared area

Cement mix ready for the drainage channel

Final sections going in

Clearing the ground before digging

Trench by the end of the day

As soon as Bekir and Halil arrived this morning I turned round with Bekir, dropped Rosie at school, and then we went on together to the ear doctor to get my ear looked at. There was a long enough wait (and in this time our second load of wood was delivered which is great) but I was seen eventually and the treatment was quick and effective. A large syringe, a lot of wax, and I could hear again! After that we went to the chemist for some drops and then quickly visited the place on the way out of town that sells diggers. Unfortunately they only really have brand new diggers that are very expensive and too small. When we got back we found that Halil had spent the time clearing and readying the ground for the drainage channels to be fitted and that is what they spent a large chunk of the rest of the day doing. When the drain was all fitted they got the pickaxe and shovel out and set to clearing the ground and then digging out the trench for the final pipe to sit in. Great progress, considering how long I was out with Bekir for in the morning.

Rosie swimming on her own

When Rosie got back from school we were straight into the pool for a very lovely swim. I had to keep my head up at all times but that was OK as today Rosie really learned to propel herself around. Of course I was always very close to her and she could grab my hand if she wanted but she was moving around all by herself. I was such a proud Dad, and Angela was a very very proud Mummy :)

So there you are; it's so nice to be able to hear again. Thanks for reading.

Tired day

 A super short update today. My ear still hasn't cleared. And I'm tired.

Early morning from my desk

The wall being worked on

Clearing weeds at the end of the day

I was awake super early and at work so I would have time to get out to the doctor. I dropped Rosie off but on my way back stopped at the hospital. The queue was crazy and I wasn't going to wait around so I didn't bother. Bekir and Halil worked on the wall at the end of the patio all day and finished it entirely. They then cleared the weeds from the edge of the walkway. Tomorrow should be final drainage before they can do the metal then we can book the cement again. I went with Bekir to the hospital again mid afternoon and he saw an old school friend who is a doctor down there who looked at my ear, said there was no infection, and gave directions to a place in town to get it cleared out if it is still blocked tomorrow.

And that is pretty much that. Hopefully once this ear is cleared I'll have more energy again. Angela is struggling with very sore eyes as well but thankfully Rosie seems to be largely well. What a few weeks it has been!

Pool fun and ear pain

I'm sat here not very comfortable as during the night Saturday my ear blocked up and it is still blocked right now. It isn't painful but I'm surprised how much it has impacted my ability to concentrate and operate. If it isn't better by tomorrow I may well head to the doctors.

New desk in the painting room

Sun breaking through the fog

Rinsing the filter out

Lots of meat on the BBQ

The whole group, eating

Dramatic sun-lined clouds

On Friday night I assembled my new desk in the painting room, with some help from Angela to lift it over once the top was on. It's a really nice desk and I've enjoyed painting at it the last few nights. Saturday dawned foggy but that cleared up quickly. I went with Rosie into town to try and buy a pipe to attach to the drainage outlet of the new pump but the shop we bought the pool from doesn't sell the pipes! I came home and jury-rigged one of the spare 4" pipes to direct the water into the drains and this worked perfectly. We had guests coming for lunch which turned out to be a wonderful time. Rick and I went in the pool, Rosie was with us most of the time (though she did get stung by a wasp but she reacted very well and was back in the pool almost straight away) and then we went onto the balcony and did the BBQ. It was just a brilliant day and nice to spend it with lovely people like Rick and Linda.

The plants Bekir has saved

Sunday I had my bad ear and it was tough to do anything. I did get out with the mower and I did the rest of the lawn as I couldn't achieve anything else I could at least walk up and down not thinking. I found a load of plants that Bekir and Halil have saved while digging out for the patio; it looks like they've been watering them as well.

Morning view from my desk

That fan is spinning!!!

The trench being dug again

Foundations and more drainage

And so to today. I slept well despite my ear but woke with it still blocked which was disappointing. I was at my desk while the sun rose and the new desk is rotated so I can see the view while I'm working (or writing this update). I dropped Rosie to school as Angela was feeling really poorly with a recurrence of the bad cold/flu that she had before. The men were in and first thing they got the new fan working however didn't fit the switch to the wall as I was on calls with work so much. Instead they went back to the patio and they have finished digging the foundations for the end wall and have started to build those foundations. They also put additional drainage in to take water away from the Green Building which is really awesome.

So there you are; hopefully tomorrow we'll both be recovered from these ailments. Thanks for reading.

Balcony fan, and Rosie floats!

 Another busy day today, but a fun and productive one. Let's get cracking.

A storm blows in through the night

Morning sunshine

Playing after breakfast

The ramp is ready

Clearing away rubble

Digging foundations

I start off last night as I was heading to bed; very shortly after this the wind picked up (just as I was dropping off) and I was off round the house shutting windows. When I woke it was a lovely clear morning with no sign of the night storm. We had a lovely breakfast on the balcony then Rosie was off to school and I was buried in work once more while Angela cleaned and tidied and readied ourselves for our guests on the weekend. Bekir and Halil were in on time and continued on the task on the patio, clearing all the rubble by the final little bit of patio that needs building up before starting the task of digging out foundations for the wall on that end. It was hot hard work for them. I got into the pool at lunchtime for a ten minute swim and finally could really swim - it was lovely.

Fitting the blades to the fan

Drilling through for power

The power cable appears

Drilling for fitting

The fan, nearly in place

Unexpectedly this morning the two fans for the balcony arrived so this afternoon, to get the men inside doing a less strenuous task for a bit, I asked them to fit them. It took some head scratching and confusion but we did get there eventually with the wiring and working out the parts. Bekir drilled through from the roof for the power and then they drilled into the metal frame to hang the actual mechanism. This was a terrible horrible sound that made me leave the building as it screamed through the strong steel. They did it, though, and while the fan isn't operable yet it does look good. They should complete this on Monday and then maybe fit the other as well.

Rosie floating for the first time ever

I'll leave you with this picture Angela took of Rosie in the pool. She left school and the first thing she said was "Mummy I want the pool". I'd covered it over already as there was storm threatening however it bypassed us so was able to get the cover off and ready for them getting home. When she first went in she was really scared as she couldn't touch the floor but slowly over the course of the hour or so we had she got more and more confident, while always holding on of course, and eventually was properly floating, kicking her legs up, and having such a great time. What a child!

So there you are; we've a busy weekend planned so look forward to a chunky update on Monday. Thanks for reading.

Ramps and a storm

 Another day in this wet year, and the storms haven't left us alone yet. Indeed the forecast is not looking happy for a little while to come yet. The pool is not full either, not quite.

The pool, early morning

Clearing and digging

Digging through tangled roots

Building the wall

They're "strimming in the rain" (I couldn't resist that one)

It was another hot hot day all day until later afternoon. The pool had kept filling and was now deep enough to swim properly in finally; I did get out at lunch time for about 10 minutes tops but that is all the use I got of it. Angela also got a lovely swim and really enjoyed it but by the time Rosie got back it was raining and stormy and we had covered the pool again. However we are getting ahead of ourselves. Bekir and Halil worked today on the other side of the ramp and it was hard going with lots of very thick tangled roots from the tea trees to hack through. They got it to a good state, however, with the wall completed and drying just before the heavens opened. Not put off they went into the chicken enclosure and strimmed it all down for us while the rain fell.

The storm, incoming

The pool, being rained on

Rosie admiring the pink riders

As I've said there was a crazy storm, it dumped huge hailstones on our friends up in the high mountains near here, but mainly missed us however it did dump some quite heavy rain and it was rumbling continuously without a single break for ages. It did blow over and it has been clear since, however another very similar one is brewing right now. This has meant that Rosie got no pool time, sadly, but she did enjoy watching Mark Cavendish winning the stage of the Tour de France today. I got a sore throat from shouting so loud.

So there you are; let's see how the weather holds for tomorrow. Thanks for reading.