Fancy seeing you here!

So after three weeks of living with the Wheaters, we have apparentley all morphed into the same people.  We packed up our toys and came back home on Friday night, and the Wheaters came over for Pizza e Birra and show and tell.  We said goodbye after their very generous hospitality, and moved on to our own lives again.  Except they were the same... On Saturday Jamie and I were out doing jobs, one of which was to do the fruit and veg shopping at Fratelli, and have a late lunch (2 x toasted chicken sandwiches at Dank St Depot).  Just as we started chomping in, who should walk in, but Muz and Em, who were also going to do their fruit and veg shopping at Fratelli, and also decided on a late lunch of 2 x toasted chicken sandwiches at Dank St...  We hadn't said a word to eachother about doing it, it was just a total coincidence.  Naturally, there was a table available next to us, and we talked like we hadn't seen eachother for a month (well, Em and I did anyway).

Back home.

Today is a month since the work on our bathroom started, and while we aren't quite done yet (hence no photos) we moved back in home Friday and we are LOVING being back and TOTALLY LOVING our new bathroom.  It looks so great, and while it isn't hard to beat what we had before, we are really pleased with it.  Last night we used the bath (!!!) for the first time, and I've been enjoying turning the dimmer up and down and standing in the doorway just staring at our new room. I've always been a real home body and being back here is just such a great feeling.  It really feels like a weight off my shoulders, and it makes me look at what we have and feel very grateful.  To make the transition easier, we hired cleaners to get rid of all the dust, sand, sawdust etc.  Best money we ever spent.  They did a great job, and saved us a weekend of doing it.
Pictures to come as soon as the washing machine is in place and the cupboard doors are on.  Then I'll finally start posting about a new topic (surely everyone can't be interested in a month's worth of bathroom related posts... then again, surely they can't be that interested in everything I eat).

Nearly done...

It's all coming together!  The toilet is in, the hardware for the shower is in, and they tell us that by tomorrow the rest will be done!  In this picture, the sink is just resting there, waiting to go next to the toilet, it's not permanently there.

BIG shower head (sorry nature).

I love a good bath, and I'm so excited to be able to do it at home soon!  Here are the bath taps...

We've just come from home, and the workers were still there, cleaning up and putting finishing touches on things.  We've also hired cleaners to get rid of the dust that is all through the house, so we can move straight back in on Saturday.  Phew.  I'm really glad I don't have to deal with it, because it really is on EVERYTHING and it's really gritty - the kind that gives you goosebumps when you touch it.  I've got gooseubumps just writing about it.  So barring some massive disaster, the next blog post should be an 'everything is done' post.  So exciting.

Getting there!

We are making progress and it's quite exciting!  The tiling is all done now, and they just need to stick in the other bits like a toilet and sink and we will be done!  They've told us that they will be finished onThursday, so we should be back in by next weekend, which is great.

This is what we came home to last night - it isn't grouted yet, so will look even better after that happens.  Jamie isn't sure about the mosaic yet, but I'm a big fan.

Here it is up close - pinks, blues and greys.  I really like it, and it compliments the floor really well.  When all the other stuff is in and we have some nice matching towels, I think it's going to be excellent.  And it's nice looking into the bathroom from the kitchen and seeing a bath and some nice tiles rather than a toilet (which is what it was before).

While we'll be glad to get back into our house, we've been having a ball with Em and Muz, it's lots of fun living with them.  Yelling at So You Think You Can Dance, cooking, eating leftover Easter chocolate, playing with Pedro, going out for team activities.  They've been so generous letting us stay and invade their house, and we've loved every minute!

Bathroom progress.

The destruction is complete... Progress is being made.  I walked in to see this and muttered a pleasant "oh" of surprise on Thursday.  The bath was in place and the walls were rendered.

We were exra pleased that work was happening over the Easter weekend, by Monday evening the bath was fully bricked in, the new roof was up and the waterproofing was drying.  The rest of the house is still a bomb site, but I'm loving the progress.  We are hoping that a week (roughly) will get us to completion.  We could be totally delusional, but fingers crossed.  Meawhile, we aren't in a massive rush to move back home.  We've had such a fun weekend with Em and Muz.  Right now Jamie is sitting across from me reading the paper, while Em and Muz choose their wedding photos with Pedro napping on the rug in front of them.  Cute.

Mollymook.

Last weekend we escaped the house to go to Mollymook for a few days.  We spent a great deal of time louging by this infinity pool.  A GREAT deal of time.  And it was totally blissful.  No great surprise I was a total fidget who struggled to sit still for five minutes and rotated around all the diferent sun beds, put sunscreen on every five minutes, got water replenishments, snacks, new reading material etc.

Bannisters itself is a renovated 60s motel.  It was fine, but we weren't blown away.  The pool was definitely the highlight.  The rooms were adaquate and clean, but for the sort of prices you pay, I'd expect more.  And on the last night we were there there was a wedding, which we weren't told about, and as I pointed out to the very helpful (that's not sarcasm - she was really understanding and helpful) lady on reception, if we wanted to hear people get drunk and carry on we could have stayed in inner Sydney for free.  We got our last night complimentary as a result.

The reason we stayed at Bannisters was because Rick Stein opened a restaurant there last year. He's all about fresh, simple produce, and the meal didn't dissapoint.  This was my entree - Jamie had lobster ravioli.  I had fish cury for main, and Jamie had Bouillabaisse.  Everything was excellent, beautifully fresh.  The restaurant was a little noisy and lacked atmos, but the food was spot on.

We got a nice table because we told them it was our birthdays.  Unfortunatley we had a late booking and there isn't much ocean to look out over once it gets dark.  But we looked cute.

On the Saturday we went for lunch at this beautiful winery called Cupitts.  This is where you taste the wine, and it's a creamery from 1851.  We both *loved* the food and would reccomend it to anyone.  It was French style, and just excellent.  They've obviously spent a lot of money adding lots of French touches around the place, and it's all just gorgeous.  We sat outside under that marque until about 5 just watching the sun move across the valley.  Such a perfect afternoon.

Renovation - day 3 - still not coping.

Today I got home and there was a bath in our kitchen, a toilet in our living room and the door that is supposed to go back on the bathroom is out on the street... progress???  The rubble that was in the bathroom itself yesterday has been cleared out though.

And I'm still not coping.  I'm coping less actually.  Slept terribly and the world is all wrong.  Take this for example - this is our lovely new kitchen.  They know we are still living here and this is where they put the bath (maybe as punishment for me eating grilled cheese sandwiches when they were fasting, and then me asking if their fasting was like Ramadan - turns out no, and it also turns out they were reasonably offended "we are NOT Muslim - the Muslims have killed our people." Sigh, all I wanted to do was eat my grilled cheese sandwich, so I went and hid in my room)

Here we have the cleared out bathroom space - and no, that isn't going to be trendy exposed brick wall.  It is kind of cool though, if you look closely, you can see the many different colours of paint that have been applied over the years people have been inhabiting this little patch of rubble.

And while you wouldn't know it, this is usually our living room, and this is where the couch usually is.  Instead, there is a toilet.  Go figure (more punishment?).

Only one more sleep and then we are off four a four day weekend down the south coast though.  Really can't wait.  Not only because of the renovation, but we've both been belted by work lately, and of course, it's the birthday biathlon (Jamie Saturday, me Sunday).  We are staying in a town called Mollymook, where Rick Stein opened a restaurant late last year.  We are eating in the said restaurant on Friday night, and staying in the adjoining accoms Thursday - Sunday.  Planning on lots of walking, reading, lounging, eating, drinking and sleeping.  A bit of revival I think we've both earned.

During bathroom renovations - feeling unsettled.

We didn't live through our kitchen renovations - just left on a holiday and came back and it was done.  This is entirely different.  After one day, I came home and the bathroom looked like this:

Gasp.  The house is totally a mess - covered in dust, all the things that need to go into the new bathroom are sitting in the living room (ie. a bath. sink, cabinets), there are drop sheets on everything, only the hot water works in the kitchen (go figure), and the only place to sit is our bed (because the spare room is full of furniture, chairs, and more bathroom crap).  I thought I could totally handle this, especially since the toilet is still functional - when I say functional, you need to pour a bucket of water in the top to make it flush (we were planning on using buckets as toilets- so, so gross, I know, so this is a far preferable use for te buckets), but the house being like this is really upsetting me.  Nothing is right and I don't like it.  I just feel like pacing up and down and whimpering about things.  We managed to squeeze two chairs into the last remaining piece of floor space in the living room lat night to watch some TV, but who wants to sit on a hard chair to watch TV and eat laksa?  Not me.  I know I could have bigger problems than the fact I have to live in a house that's being renovated for three days, and the end result is going to be 100 x worth it, but everything just feels all wrong right now and I'm totally unsettled.  I slept terribly because I knew everything wasn't right, and I'm sure tonight will be the same  We've decided to go out and see a movie this evening.  The sooner we get out of here the better... bring on Thursday.

Bathroom before.

The bathroom renovation has begun.  And just because it's really nice to compare, this is what things looked like beforehand.  How someone could willingly have chosen these tiles for a bathroom floors and walls is totally beyond me (and probably what someone else will be saying in 30 years about our taste - "Can you belive it WHITE tiles on the wall and GREY tiles on the floor!!!  WHAT were they thinking?!?).

This is the current laundry, cleaning supply storage area, and overflow moisturiser area.  Handy hubby built the shelves a while ago, but now a proper cupboard for all this stuff is going to be built (with doors for the cleaning supplies).

The basin is going to be bigger, and not a corner one.(p.s. that's my new $18 maxi dress - it's awesome)

The toilet is moving over to the other side of the shower (next to the basin) and the shower is going, and a bath (with a shower in it) is going along the back wall.  Everything is white except the floor tiles (grey) and the side of the bath will be mosaic tiles (grey, blue, pink - but quite muted - not too bright).  It's going to take three weeks - we are going to live in the house for three days while they do it.  I already know I won't cope with just that.  But luckily we are going away for a long weekend this weekend and then moving in with the Wheaters on their first wedding anniversary.  Because that's what everyone wants on an anniversary - friends moving in.

Taste Sydney part II.

Muz and Em after we ate ourselves happy.

Some of the tents of the restaurants set up.  All the chefs did an entree, a main, and a dessert.  Such a good idea, and all the superstar chefs were there in person (cue much whispering and giggling between me and Em).

Lots of people for whom food brings joy. There was a totally chilled out happy vibe and it was a lot of good fun.  We'll definitely go again next year.