This house is ruled by Boxers dogs. A gorgeous 'teddy bear' old boy and a puppy with boundless bonkers Boxer energy. It's fun, but exhausting. And as I work from home, some days it takes so long to settle down in the office. I all but abandoned the office in the summer during the kitchen renovations. The dogs wanted to be totally involved in all the work, and as that wasn't welcomed, I decided we would work in the garden instead.
It was a fantastic summer for the garden, and the veggie patch really did grow well. I expanded into a kitchen garden and a tomato greenhouse, all of which provided us with wonderful fresh produce well into October. The new potting shed came in very handy too, with Mr B having space for all his tools and garden machinery. This means that the studio in the summerhouse has been returned to me. It still feels a bit sparse, but over the winter I will whip it back into shape and move my art, photography and writing back in there, where it belongs. Out of the office, into a more creative space.
Back to the garden, and the dogs. Eventually, the kitchen was completed and handed back. I can't say it was an easy process. The design was fun and the designer really did understand our needs. She works with a team of tradespeople, some of whom didn't quite meet our expectations. As we had paid a fixed price, however, it was left to the designer to co-ordinate any 'cock-ups', which she did in good grace, if not with any sort of urgency. I suspect that she has never been without a kitchen for 7 weeks. All in all, the project took 3 months, starting with a new boiler and flue, removing the old coal fire bunker and chimney breast, taking out two walls, completely gutting the kitchen, and then re-building and re-fitting. I'm glad we've done it, but never again.
The presence of a constant stream of strangers in the house was very unsettling for the puppy. She was very stressed at times, and still suffers somewhat from separation anxiety. Thankfully, she has stopped ripping the zips out of the lounge cushions. This is a good thing as I have had my great grandmother's ancient armchairs re-upholstered, and the new loose covers for the sofas are due next week. Woe betide any Boxer puppy who thinks she can chew the new upholstery. A wise person told me to crate the puppy until she knew how to behave. And taking that advice on board, we do now set up a large gated area for both dogs while we are out. They have food, water, comfy beds, boredom busters, and enough space to be on their own if they want to. Sometimes the old boy needs a bit of 'me' time. I think this helped the puppy adapt to being in kennels for a few days while we were away in Valencia. She certainly seems more calm since, but then she has just turned 1 year old.
Now, thoughts turn to the festivities. But don't forget to support your small, local charities, who do so much good in your community, at Christmas and all year round.
A photo blogpost follows.
A photo blogpost follows.