Nous sommes chez nous en 82!

Yes we have actually made it and are now resident en france!

The end was messy and complicated but worth it in the end.

We eventually moved out of our house in Stoke on 15th July when our third potential buyer got the money together. By that time we had the house back on the market and had gone to France to wait for something definite to happen. By then the house we had hoped to buy had been sold but we decided not to look at any more until we had moved.

After much stress and several missed deadlines we eventually got the news that we were waiting for - our buyers had signed the contract after we had told our solicitor to give them a final deadline before we told them the deal was off. We went back to Stoke for just a few days to do the actual move and then the fun really started when the suspension on our car collapsed at our sons house that evening. ( Yes the car was overloaded AGAIN!) We ended up having to hire a car to go to France to keep all the househunting appointments we had made and go back again a week later. By the time we had been moved out 3 weeks we had travelled 4000 miles, crossed the channel 3 times, eaten more motorway sandwiches than is good for anyone and slept in 10 different beds! We were glad to get away for 5 days by the coast (Collioure), lock the car in the hotel car park and rest.

We did find a house and signed the compromis, the final acte de vente being set for 7 th October. In the meantime we are whiled away the rest of the summer in our holiday place. We made ourselves very comfortable, the weather was hot and sunny and we didn't mind being without electricity at all. We did get a telephone line put in which cost and arm and a leg as we had to pay to have a pole put upbut we could not have managed without it. The biggest problem was not having the internet and having to visit a cyber cafe regularly to pick up emails.

Our temporary address meant it was difficult to really feel properly "at home" as were to be moving again so soon - but we did get a lot of official paperwork out of the way. We bought a new car , got registered for healthcare,and managed to re-register TC's car.

6 weeks ago today we were reunited with our furniture and our new house became our home. The move went smoothly and we settled in very quickly and soon felt very much at home. Its hard to believe that we have only been here for 6 weeks, but at the same time the weeks have just flown and here we are with winter round the corner.

So we have made it from 82 to 82. In fact our house is right on the border of Tarn et Garonne (dept82), the other side of the road is in Lot and our nearest big town is in Aveyron. It has been a strange year all round and one hell of a fairground ride at times but in the end we have found the right house for us and are looking forward to many years of Segala sunrises!



(the view from our bedroom window - can't be bad to wake up to this!)

The final chapter

Watch this space those who are interested

The cupboards are bare.

I am a stockpiler - my cupboards are usually well enough stocked to withstand any sudden siege or influx of visitors but not any more. As we were expecting to have to put things in storage I have been carefully using up the storecupboard supplies to make sure that nothing would be wasted. Gradually shelves have emptied and the big freezer has been switched off for a fortnight now.


BUT WE ARE STILL HERE!


It does not feel like home any more, missing furniture, no cat (thats the worst bit), boxes and cases everywhere, a garage full of other peoples stuff and now no food. Today was set for exchange of contracts but as with other deadlines seems to be passing by without progress. We are very tense and dreading everything falling through again. We have already had bad news this week when we discovered that "OUR" house in France has been sold. We are desperate to get on with a purchase of our own to avoid the prospect of having to live in our holiday house in the winter months.


It is getting increasingly hard to keep ourselves busy with other things as we can't plan for anything more than a few days in advance. Last week at the last minute we escaped for a couple of days to Yorkshire by the sea and had a great time discovering Robin Hood's Bay, Whitby and Scarborough. That was great - the weather was amazing, we did some long coast walks and we were pleased to have finally explored a lovely area which has been on our "to see" list for a long time.

This week we had hoped everything would be settled but no such luck. The weather has turned cold and damp keeping us in more than is good for us and we are pacing the rooms waiting for phonecalls. We are thinking of going over to France for a few days from tomorrow - at least we would get another car load over. Looks like I will be spending my birthday in the car instead of celebrating the exchange of contracts!

Post script - change of plan when we found out that the reason our "buyers" have not signed is that they haven't actually been given a mortgage. So we have stayed here to await developments over the next few days while we think about putting the house back onto the market.

Angelo doesn't live here anymore

We have thought long and hard about whether Angelo should make the move to France with us. He is a much loved cat and originally I had thought of course he should come with us.

On the other hand cats are more attached to places than people so I then hoped that maybe he would be able to stay with the new owners or next door neighbours but that was not possible.

Eventually we decided that an 800mile journey over two days would be a huge ordeal for him and we will be moving more than once over the next few months making it very difficult for him to settle so we have found friends keen to adopt him and act as his new "staff".

This morning we took him to his new home. He certainly did not like the travelling ( and it was less than 8 miles not 800). He seemed to like his new "chief of staff" and when we left had selected a chair to curl up on so hopefully he will settle and enjoy discovering a new patch of territory.

I am sure we will miss him more than he misses us! I do hope he's OK.

On other matters our garage is now half full again - our buyers have spent the day moving vanloads of stuff in as they are hoping to move out of their house this week- this really does start to look very promising.

It wasn't even Christmas!

My very favourite days are when we have the whole family together for food, wine, chat and music. Last weekend was a great example of just such an occasion and it wasn't even Christmas! These days it doesn't happen very often as they both live away from Stoke but both kids came to visit and unseasonably sunny weather meant we were able to barbecue and eat outside all weekend. Both of them left with cars loaded with plants and other spoils from the house and garden.



Its very likely the next time we are all together we will be in France - hopefully I won't have to wait too long for their first visit. We will be seeing everyone again before we go though - Adam is coming to collect more stuff and we will be going via Anna and Martins house when we leave for France as she is buying my car and we have decided we can use her place as a temporary address.

Its the 28th tomorrow, significance being that was supposed to be THE day for one of the buyers in the chain. So far we have no completion date but neither have we had any bad news so we are continuing to prepare for an imminent move while we keep reminding ourselves that it could still go horribly wrong.

Our buyer turned up at the house this week asking if we would be able to store some of his furniture if he has to move out before our completion date - this left us feeling a little more relaxed knowing that he has a plan B and seems very certain that everything is OK.

Itis just possible that the roller coaster ride will be replaced by a spin on the waltzers as there is so much left to do before we leave! I'm not going to complain though we just need a date to work to.

I never did like roller coasters!

I have never been a great fan of theme park type fun especially of the roller coaster kind but recently I have felt that I am fastened tightly in the seat of the biggest of dippers.







UP, up, up we crawl - another buyer, talk, wait, talk - getting near the bend and looking over the abyss and then whoops we turn and there is the SOLD sign -












arrgg....whats this? its getting faster, faster hurtling down towards .?.?.?..... or will this be the time the truck comes off the rails? - but no this time its the water splash - yes the sale is on but have to be out by the 28th May- no sooner through the water when up we crawl again slightly soggy but preparing for the next twist, turn or plummet.

So the ride goes on - 28th May is distinctly optimistic especially as our buyer's surveyor has not yet appeared to do his/her stuff but we have agreed to go if need be. The removal firm are on standby to move our furniture into storage and we are back to working through the list of things which have got to be done before we go, all the time reminding ourselves that in fact we could be back to square one at any time and still here all through the summer and beyond.

This week we are driving over to France with another car load of stuff to make some preparations for spending a few months at Pavillon - highest priority being getting a phone connected. Our original plan was to go for a few weeks but we will be cutting the trip short as we will need to be back here to complete the sale -WE HOPE. We won't be doing any househunting though - neither of us can face the prospect now until we have a contract signed and exchanged.

I really do need to get off this ride soon - feeling a bit iffy!

is that a light?

Well we cannot fault Belinda the Kangaroo for effort and determination!

She had secured people to view within hours of taking over and has been on the case all week phoning us many times a day discussing a potential offer.

We end today having provisionally accepted a rock bottom offer on the basis that things will be able to move quickly. We now wait to discover if the "chain" is complete.

Stress levels are at an all time high.

Belindaroo

Well we now have a new agent. She is Australian, young, noisy, pushy and seems to have a surplus of energy - so from now on she will be Belinda the Kangaroo to us. We are not knocking it though, a bit of enthusiasm will not go amiss and it was quite a relief to go out and leave todays viewing to her. We got some positive feedback after the viewing so we will just have to see how things develop. At least we feel she will pull out all the stops to secure a sale - in her words she's "got the poms poms out on this one".


TC continues to move from one "improvement" job to another in an effort to feel that by not standing still things are happening. Falling off a ladder and breaking a window the night before a viewing was not exactly the most constructive thing he could have done however!



A unexpectedly warm spell of weather has enabled us to do a bit of pretending. We have been eating early so that we could barbecue and even eat outside. Its not the same as what we had planned for April but will have to do for now. We do need to be thinking about a visit to Pavillon soonish - the grass will need cutting, we want to organise a phone connection and a post box as well as needing a fix of SW France sunshine. Its really difficult deciding on the timing for a visit though - we want to go by car to take a load of STUFF which ideally means being away for two weeks - being away is not a problem unless there are selling related issues to deal with, and who knows when that might or might not be.

Come on you kangaroos!!!

concerning enthusiasm......

I normally love this time of year in the garden - hard work but full of hope and expectation of the glories to come. This year though is very different . I have to admit the garden looks spectacular - the late flowering of the "early" daffodils has resulted in all of the daffodils and narcissi flowering together and they have never looked more impressive. But now I have had to start planting and sowing in the vegetable garden at the same time hoping against hope that I will not be eating the produce. Its very hard to work up any enthusiasm. I don't want to spend loads of money on plants or loads of effort on weeds either.

This weekend a new estate agent is taking over from our original choice who also seem to have lost their enthusiasm where our house is concerned! We are taking a chance with a new small agent who has opened up in the village who is very keen and being new kid on the block has a lot to prove. Who knows if it will make a difference but it's worth a try. Another advantage is that she does all the viewings herself and although this means we lose a bit of control it will free us from what is becoming a real bore and having to be nice to people who much of the time are just having a nose!

I suppose on the plus side we should be pleased that we have not had to negotiate traffic chaos between here and France this weekend and maybe the volcanic ash will help to keep other buyers away from OUR house in France. We are trying hard not to be miserable b.....s , there are of course people with much greater problems to deal with , and our friends don't want to be hearing how fed up we are not being able to get away. Last week we managed a walk, a trip to the theatre to see a play and a celidh as well as having a rare visit from our son and in between TC managed to continue to find things to do on the house. One pane of glass which has been cracked for the last 22 years has been fixed and the garage door looks like new after its first ever coat of paint.

April foolish

We had an emotional rollercoaster of a week!

Things started well when we arrived at Pavillon to find everything in good order - no winter flood debris, no burglary and the boiler, generator and fridge were working. Good omen perhaps?

April 1st was the day reserved with the estate agent to look at houses. I awoke to hear disconcerting noises from the bathroom and the discovery that TC was suffering from one of his occasional attacks of vertigo. As we have no phone or mobile connection at Pavillon there was no choice but for me to set off to meet the estate agent on my own - sounds simple but I had not driven a left hand drive before so it was somewhat nervewracking. Anyway I and hire car arrived in one piece and I kept our appointment.

I had been very eager to see one house which had come onto the market a few months back which looked like just what we were looking for and it did not dissapoint, in fact it was even better than expected. It was just perfect, a fabulous house, beautifully converted, room for the grand piano, set in beautiful countryside surrounded by fields, great views and just a 10 minute walk from a busy village with all facilities ( and we even have friends who live there). It seemed like we had discovered a reason for our last sale failing as this house beat Las Charretieres hands down. Poor TC was dragged from his sick bed in the late afternoon to see it and did not take any convincing to agree with me that this was IT.

The next few days ( the Easter weekend) our French estate agent worked tirelessly on our behalf and we eventually agreed a price with the vendors and began eagerley looking forward to returning in a week or so to sign the compromis de vente and then to spending a couple of months living in Pavillon while the sale went through.

Our last day, with TC now recovered, we were able to enjoy the great weather and go for a long walk. We left in high spirits but by the time we got back to the house we were crushed after a phone call while we were on the hills from our English agent telling us that our buyers had pulled out apparently because of a threat of redundancy.

So at the end of the week :

• our dream house has been put back on the market!
  
• we haven't sold No 82

Here we have arranged for a new agent to take over after the 14 days notice we have to give the old ones and since our return we have been furiously working on the house and garden in an effort to make us feel we are helping matters. The only way we can cope is by keeping frantically busy.

TC is determined there is no plan B but I do feel utterly despondent. There will be no pictures from this week its all too depressing.

so far so hopeful!

As I write we await any "developments" following the buyers survey ( not quite a cash buyer after all it seems but they do not have to sell first and only need a small mortgage so fingers ( and toes and legs) crossed. Our house is 120 years old with ne'r a straight wall and some wonky bits but that's what is best about it - the trouble is these surveyors have boxes to tick!

Anyway we remain optimistic and have an extra visit to Tarn et Garonne booked for next week. We are hoping that we will actually be able to get a purchase under way. We are going back to look at Las Charretieres but also have a couple of other places to see - one of which I have to say has stolen my heart with the photographs. It is within walking distance of a lively village with and also has great views.

We have started to get quotes for removals and as a result have done some serious rethinking of what furniture we will take with us, firstly because there is a danger it won't fit in a lorry, secondly it will cost a fortune to keep it in storage while our French purchase goes through and lastly, but by no means least, we are realising that some of our furniture is perfect for our Victorian villa but will look out of place in the type of property we are planning to buy.

At the moment we are aiming to complete our sale ready to move out at the end of May - our buyers are keen to get in as soon as possible, we of course will want to minimise the length of time we have to store the furniture. Most of April we will be in France and then we will be back here to deal with this end of things. For this stage there is of course A LIST - we are crossing things off but I think at the moment it is growing faster.

This week we uncovered my daughters dolls house in the garage. As I told her it reminded me of house she or I might buy - in need of some serious TLC but basically structurally sound. The house was made by my Dad and its fate was Anna's first consideration when we first told her of intentions to go to France. She has a tiny cottage in Norfolk but has decided the dolls house must be saved ( I think she may have to build a shed around it) and restored to its former glory. We will be taking it this weekend - another big space in the garage - goodeee!

I've never eaten a chip butty

So I've never eaten a chip butty - No particular reason Ive just never felt the urge!

Apparently it is because I am a "Southern Wuss", this despite having lived in Stoke on Trent for 39 years ( ie most of my life and all of my career), clog dancing, and having two children born here. I have lost all traces of my West Country accent which used to so amuse my first pupils ( a "get on with your worrk" would be followed by a whispered "ooh arrr" being passed around the classroom) and I even use some Potteries expressions but Stoke folk, although friendly, can spot a "furriner" a mile off.

So what chance have we of being accepted as incomers in rural France? Who knows, but we do love France and have spent a lot of time travelling in the country. We have chosen to go to live in an area we know well and already know some people. Last summer we even made some progress finding like minds in the traditional music fraternity ( see August 2009 Carry on Dancing) so we shall see. I have been working really hard to improve my French too.

The latest developments have been dramatic - we seem to have another buyer. A cash offer has been made and accepted and we have contacted a solicitor to start things moving. We hardly dare believe that this really will come off but so far so good. It has come in the nick of time as I was getting very depressed with having life on hold and was beginning to wonder if I could persuade TC that there was a plan B ( had no idea what it was but there had to be something). Now its all systems go again and maybe I bought that big bag of potting compost for nothing.

We are hoping to be able to have some sort of discussion soon about timings so we can make further plans.It would be great to be in the position to get back to househunting as cash buyers ourselves soon and the improving weather means we will be able to live in Pavillon quite comfortably while a sale goes through. We may look into rented an unfurnished place to store our furniture and act as a temporary address.

Fingers and toes crossed nothing goes wrong this time.

And as for butties - I WILL miss bacon butties!
Chips I will enjoy with moules forestieres under the arches at Montauban!

A strange smell in the house! ( or don't try this at home)

We lingered long over our dinner last night, discussing the options for trying to kickstart our house sale, finishing the last glass of wine before going into the kitchen for the pudding.

YEEGODS!!!! thick acrid smoke billowed out as I opened the door and I virtually had to feel my way to the hob where I had left a chicken carcass boiling to make a stock ( never one for waste). Inside, and well stuck to, the very dry, very black saucepan was a charred skeleton turning to a sort of bony charcoal. Luckily there was no other damage so we do still have a house to sell!

Once the saucepan was safely put outside to sizzle loudly in the snow we then had to rid every room in the house of the smoke. Despite the blizzard outside and the precious heat we had been conserving all day we had to open all the doors and windows and turn on the fans. This morning a strange, strong, throat catching smell still lingers and no amount of airfreshener has been able to blot it out so far. So all in all its just as well we haven't got viewings this afternoon.



Last week we had to put people off while we had a problem drain unblocked ( what was it I said about moving before anything else went wrong?). I had visions of having to have the newly laid drive excavated but we were lucky and now have a working drain and a report giving it a camera backed "all clear".



A short break in the freeze last week gave me a chance to start on tidying up the vegetable patch ( I had hoped to be doing that in France ) and generally clear up a bit so that the garden can play its proper part in promoting the property. The fountain now has a new identity too.

on not getting over excited....

OK, so the snow melted and I got a few mornings in the garden spotting signs of Spring - now we have snow again - very pretty I'm sure but tomorrow is February and it will be the third month with snow on the ground and we just aint used to it going on so long.

Now we have people who have come back for a second viewing, still love the house and say they want it. Sounds good yes BUT they have done nothing over Christmas and the New Year and they have only just started putting things in motion to put their house on the market - that means at least a couple of weeks to get the valuation, HIP and marketing done and who knows how long to get a buyer. (Just smile sweetly through gritted teeth susie!!!!)

I am continuing to add to the list of properties in France to view as a new year brings new places onto the market there. This at least is reassuring, the list is growing and includes some interesting possibilities. Maybe we will find the view, the village, and the pool with the house of our dreams!

Now we need to order more coal. We bought less than usual this year as we were moving and we concentrated on using up all of the logs we had stockpiled. It made sense but the unexpectedly cold weather has meant we have used it all and we are still here to endure the rest of a freezing winter. The boiler started playing silly b...ers this morning too - seemed to be needing a rest!

My fountain on the patio will never be the same after this either!



We need to move before anything else breaks!

Hope Springs eternal

I have to admit that my garden did get somewhat neglected in the Autumn when my mind was on other things and it felt like the adventure was truly beginning. This time last year I was looking forward to what I hoped to be our last Spring here and felt somewhat extravagant buying a witch hazel which I would only see in bloom once.

A year on and we are still here and desperate for another Spring to arrive. A tiny break in the awful weather got me inspired to start on a tidy up of the flower beds which are home to the early Spring flowering hellebores and snowdrops. And there they are, preparing to burst forth in all their glory and the witch hazel is flowering - how will anyone be able to resist buying the house.





This week has seen the first activity with regard to the house sale since before Christmas. A family came yesterday but did not seem likely purchasers. At the weekend another family are coming back for a second look. This should of course be a hopeful sign but their house is not even on the market so I don't even want to go there!! It did mean a good tidy up was in order - not such a bad thing as we hadn't quite got straight after the Christmas festivities.

I have to admit to recently having problems staying positive and more than once the possibility of forgetting the whole thing has crossed my mind - a suggestion smartly rebuffed by TC. He is still at the enjoying retirement phase and is keeping very busy but I predict he will be looking for something more if we can't get our French project under way soon. I have returned to the estate agent websites in France to keep an eye out for likely properties in preparation for the phonecall telling us Las Charretieres is sold. There are some interesting houses we could look at but we have no intention of doing so again until we are sure we can get on with buying it's just too stressful. They do say that moving house is one of the most stressful things we do in life - I have to say that NOT moving house is well up there on the list!

Unless we have a miracle and get an early quick sale our plans are now to return to Pavillon for our usual Easter visit and hopefully extend our stay. In the meantime I will look forward to seeing the snowdrops and daffodils once more. I need to stop thinking about my new French garden until I actually have one to think about - there is lots to get on with here.

On ice

The big freeze is on and beating the New Year blues this year has been made more difficult this year as a result of a total lack of activity regarding our house sale. TC is now officially retired and we had hoped to be frantically making final preparations for our move this month.

Still, so far it is not to be and we are in a state of frozen limbo.


We have been taking every opportunity can to get out and enjoy the snowy landscapes on some great walks and are loving the fact that every day is the weekend so we can just go out when our mood and the weather are right. Yesterday we were out all day walking along the frozen canal, through magical winter wonderland woods and across fields of deep virgin snow with clear blue skies above - fabulous!




The sudden and unexpected death of a friend just before Christmas has served as a timely reminder to us both not to forget to enjoy present good health and blessings as we plan for future dreams.

So we will carry on living "for the moment" and making the most of each day, our family and our friends until the thaw.