Forwards and occasionally sidewards – everyday musings of life

I don’t remember our furniture being quite so heavy and awkward when we emptied the house three months ago. Colin and I did a fair amount of huffing and puffing just wrestling the sofa through the door. As for the large trophy cabinet—it took four of us just to heave the thing back inside. We honestly deserved a trophy ourselves just for moving it.

By midday, however, the living room was officially ready for rehabilitation. In the space of a few hours, it was transformed from an empty, echoing shell back into our actual home. We absolutely love it.

With the heavy lifting sorted, we spent a delightful afternoon playing with Freddie in his garden. He was deep in chef mode, busy concocting a highly dubious “woodland stew” in his mud kitchen and proudly showing us his plants. The culinary tour was followed by a dramatic voyage in his paddling pool, which had magically transformed into a ship taking us across rough seas to encounter the “Bombarians.” We suspect he meant Barbarians, but Bombarians sound infinitely more exciting.

Later on, my long-held philosophy regarding outdoor cooking gadgets—namely, that they are entirely unnecessary and vastly overrated—was firmly reinforced.

Jack spent a painstaking thirty minutes battling to light the barbecue, deploying a specialised air-blower gadget in a desperate bid to generate heat. The immediate results included filling the house with thick smoke, creating a distinct burn hazard for both small children and inquisitive dogs, and leaving a unit that remained far too hot to touch for hours after the food was actually consumed. I just don’t get outdoor cooking. Still, the selection of meat tasted excellent, and the performance alone was highly amusing to spectate.

As we finally settled onto the sofa in our lovely new living room to watch Spain take on Argentina in the World Cup final, we felt incredibly content. The house is even better than we had imagined it.

We move the kitchen back in tomorrow, the bedroom carpet gets fitted, and we have just one final night sleeping in the caravan. The end is officially in sight.