Well it's up for sale. I've got mixed emotions. I want to sell so we can move on and start the serious work on our next place but I love our home, I love our roof terrace and I don't want to move out. I'm now in that weird place where you are waiting for news. I hope it doesn't come this side of Christmas as I really want one last Christmas in our home with all 3 girls. But on the other hand if it does sell, then the money in the bank means we can crack on with our next renovation...which is the big plan for the future.
Christmas isn't the only concern, when we move out there is the question of where we go next?
Obvious solution is to rent somewhere in our village - there are a few small places up for rent which we could squeeze in for 12m (likely timeframe of renovation) or as my dear husband suggested this week "we could buy a mobile home and live in that on site". We joked about this before we set out on this project and I thought my message was loud and clear...not on your nelly. Clearly not...as this week he had me looking up second hand static caravans! Can you imagine squeezing my 3 girls into a mobile home. Princess Jasmine hates anything that moves - flies, spiders, worms....so it would be constant screaming from her. Izzy is completely messy and would bring tonnes of mud in off the site and Maisy well she'd just be up to her little crawling knees in it. No...that is one idea I won't entertain.
So for now I will sit back and wait - I'm in no rush, people tell me French houses can take years to sell...I'm happy with that...oh and we have a whole lot of planning ahead. Roll on Christmas xxx
Yes you'll do it this year, and you'll make it the biggest and grandest! I'm hoping when Christmas gets closer maybe the intermarche will be selling some cheap bits and bobs, enough to make an effort. As long as I can make the front room a bit sparkly Shaun will be happy. He'll simply be thrilled if there's a sprinkling of snow - he's never seen it.
aww Valerie - what a shame to have lost your decorations. Last year we had Christmas in London so we ended up making decorations from gingerbread and paperchains which was fun. I had the tiniest fake tree as my hubby wouldn't buy a proper one as it would need decorating! In the end I did buy a few small decorations as a memory of our Christmas in London but I did miss the whole house decorating event - that's big fun for me - putting everything out in anticipation of a great holiday period). Who knows whether we'll be doing it this year or not?!?
Thanks Johnny - we've already bought - went through the French mortgage pain last year. Next step is to release the capital from our current home to renovate the next place. We want to stay in our village for rental ideally though as 2 of the kids are due to start maternelle next year and I want to be 'on site' to see everything progress.
You are going to unearth so many forgotten items when you start to clear that lot out - and I bet, if you're anything like me, you still move some of it to the new place even though it's not seen daylight for years! Not sure what we're going to do about Christmas this year. I've had very little work coming in but need to make it special for the Twerp so will splash out on getting a tree, decorations etc from scratch - our old ones were left in Malta.
Thanks Valerie - I have to confess it will be a challenge to find the christmas decorations anyway - I piled loads of stuff into the cave. Mind you, we do have a choice of the last 3 years Christmas tree's to choose from. The problem with a huge garage - you fill it with junk! That's a whole other job I'm not sure how we are going to sort with the 3 nippers - we have lots of stuff in there from our last house move that we've not even opened. Arrgh!
What an upheaval, but it's the means to an end I suppose. It sounds like hubby just likes the idea of camping out, lol! Perhaps you should let him buy an old caravan which he can play in while you and the girls find somewhere to rent close by that has all the home comforts - and fewer creepy crawlies. It will be his Man Cave and he'll be happy. Mind you, he'll still bring all his dirty clothes home after a hard day's work.
I hope you haven't 'jinxed' yourself by wanting one last family Christmas in the house - you may now find a purchaser wanting to move quickly before the weather turns! I've not know notaires to move at great speed though so I think you will be fine.
I wish you the very best of luck with the sale Suzanne and hope the renovations go without a hitch so you have a wonderful new family home for you all to settle into (with a little mud puddle just for Maisy).