We're Here!

Over three weeks since my last entry! Well, it has been a busy time - SO much packing at the old house, and then when we moved here we had to wait for our ADSL line to go live, which it did yesterday. In the meantime I'd been using someone else's unsecured wireless connection to check email but I didn't want to linger on it for too long. But now I'm back and it feels great to be connected again (and that's in spite of problems with Demon over the past few days but let's not go there!). It's also really great to be here in Tonbridge. The move went pretty well although the van probably wasn't big enough in reality. The lads said they'd never seen it so full and Derrie and I both had our cars full of stuff. Still, we got here and we're gradually getting things sorted. We've found a brilliant local electrician who's already sorted out some things and he could redo our kitchen (which is much needed) - he's recommended colleagues for the plumbing and carpentry - so that's the main project for when we come back from holiday. We've also ordered new french doors for the lounge and a new front door and hopefully we'll have them in about three weeks. We've had the leaky guttering at the back fixed, have sorted out a vet (thanks Elizabeth) and a GP, and Derrie's been busy in the garden. It's just a shame about the giant Tonbridge slugs - any advice anyone? Oh! Despite my concerns there's been no more contact from Mrs S. who bought our old house. That's a relief.

Nicky and Hattie have settled in amazingly well. We brought them home from the cattery on the Saturday after the move and decided to ignore the advice to keep them in for two weeks. Neither had any difficulty knowing where home was. One thing that is disappointing is the complete absence of birds so far in the back garden - hopefully they'll discover our feeders soon but the seed cakes have been up for days with no interest whatsoever. They used to be gone in a flash in Anerley. Oh well, hopefully we'll be discovered soon.

Talking of holidays it's been awful to see the devastation of the recent flooding in the Midlands and to think that we were boating on those rivers - the Warwickshire Avon and the Severn - last September. We've been so lucky down here although parts of Tonbridge that are near the river are also prone to flooding on occasions apparently.