Thieves

 I was going to do an update about the house yesterday, and we have come a very long way, and I had loads of pictures to share, but unfortunately someone stole my phone from my work and now I do not have any of my photos. I hope I will get it back but then my hopes aren't too high. So just a wee post today. Hopefully I can get a new phone sorted out soon, but I will need to get my camera out of the loft for any kind of quality photos. So it might be a bit before there are pictures here again.

Before And After

So even though that sounds like this is the post where I reveal the finished project and our house is complete, it isn't but we have made some really good progress over the weekend, and with Daniel and Gordon off this week we should be almost there in no time. I am off Tuesday to Friday, so that helps too. So when we talked last I was grumpy about the mess of the floors the contractors did, well, Dixon has put down a subfloor and got rid of all of the squeaks and creaks, which means once we get the carpet we are prepared to put it down! Yay!

He has also started on the doors and made quite a bit of progress on the skirting(baseboards) and facings around the door. So its all coming together I am excited to see what they have all done today, as I am at work today.

When I get home I will get the exciting job of cleaning the kitchen or perhaps staining the skirting, I would prefer the staining, but either way I think I will get the job of cleaning the kitchen.

Dixon even trusted me to use his new sander! It was a total workout for your arms! I thought it would be a breeze, but it was definitely easier than manual sanding.

All of the old nails from the skirting needed to come out so that was another job for me, most of my jobs involve shooing me off somewhere out of the way where I won't damage anything and Dixon and Gordon can get on with their work, case in point, the next few photos, but I am pretty proud of my sheds and how they have come up. I thought they were rubbish old ones, but a lick of paint and they look brand new! So I cna't complain, I got to be outside and I did something that needed to be done. I didn't think the paint would make much difference to the backyard gate, cause I thought it was horrible, but it looks so much better now. Its a shame I didn't take a before picture but I did in an earlier post.

I must have proved myself with the sander because I got to use the saw to cut down some of the conifer that was leaning on the shed so I could paint the side. I did have to assure the I had throughout my youth built many a tree fort and have indeed used a saw and other such construction implements in my time before I was allowed to use said saw. But it was nice he was concerned and only slightly reluctantly handed it over with bits and bobs of general safety advice.

The conifer in question is pretty dead, so I might have to do some more demoliting! Whooo!

The Zoo With The Canadians

So it started out as a rather cold and clammy day in Edinburgh, but it was definitely going to be an excellent Monday. As you can see it was a bit foggy and overcast, but I was meeting, Caryn's boyfriend's family, Lynn, Jesse and Sue. We were getting an early start to go to the zoo! So no matter the weather, it was going to be an excellent day. And it was! We didn't prebook for the pandas, but still ended up getting excellent tickets at a time that totally worked for our timeframe and zoo climbing layout! The new Penguin Rock was awesome, now all the penguins can be together, which is doubly awesome cause that meant a rockhopper (my favorite) was in the Penguin Parade for the first time that I have seen. I do not have photographic evidence of this because he got a bit tired on the way and was brought back by a keeper, but it was still awesome!

The sun bears are one of my favorites, they look like they are wearing too big pajamas, and the pandas were awake this time! So the bears were awesome! The koalas, though technically not bears, were not on display because they are getting a new habitat, I believe because they are getting a girl koala. I was a bit disappointed because I sorta bigged up that they were the only koalas in the UK, but what can you do.

The penguins were nesting the last time I was there, and I don't know if this is the same ones now but they have layed eggs and 15 of them had hatched by that point, so we got to see baby penguins! And they are way cuter than what I think they look like when they are the big grey/brown fluffball in my mind, they look like penguins put through a shrinkray! 

Of all the big cats, Mowgli the Black Jaguar was the most active, that we could see, we just got there when he got up from the back and came strutting down, we got some excellent photos of him. The rest were sleeping, except for the Scottish Wildcat, which kind just looks like a really hard housecat! The tiger was pacing quite high above us so I got fragments of him, perhaps I can piece them together.

We had excellent timing throughout the day as well, when we went through the indoor there was a lady there for the brass rubbings you can do, but she ended up telling us more about the rhinos they have. And how the Zoo works with them until they are 6 years old when they are old enough to meet a lady and settle down, but til that time, they are worked with so that vets can get near them, which is pretty cool. So that means that next year they will probably be heading in separate directions, but possible two new wee ones will replace them. So they can grow up to be responsible Rhinos too.

The otters were out! The were playing and eating and chasing eachother, it was awesome, I always wait and look and try to see them, but never have any luck. But this time I saw them running amok! It was excellent, see what I mean about good timing.

The Pygmy hippos are pretty excellent too, last time I was there, the wee hippo was just a tiny sausage and now she's almost the same size as her mom! Crazyness! This picture is mostly for Caryn.

Now hopefully this video works cause it is awesome, the Sun Bears rock.

I sometimes get a bit anxious about meeting people, especially people who I have never met ever before. So I build it up in my head that it will be really awkward and I won't speak to them. I'll just sit there and point at things of interest but do not explain or anything. Annnnd it usually turns out that it is awesome and I have a great time. So I need to push myself to just do more things because otherwise I wouldn't have met Lynn Sue and Jesse, all of whom were awesome. 

So yes an excellent Monday.

Walking to Cammond

More beautiful days in Edinburgh and the plumbers are done plumbing and the electricians are done electrifying and so I am now done all of the walls for de-wallpapering, but now I am onto the cieling. Which luckily is coming off extremely easy in some bits despite it being wallpapered twice! Who does that! 

So I had to go to the dentist for my 6 month check up on Thursday and for the first time in my life I do not need a single filling or gum complaints or anything! I am extremely excited, that means I don't have to go back for 6 more months. I also picked up the papers so I could register at the Crammond Medical office, so I went for a lovely walk down to there, and because you could see the Firth of the Forth and everything was green and bright.

I am really excited to be living in this area again and getting to walk about here.

In The Post

So we have still been busy, busy, busy with the flat, and so have the plumbers and electricians. Now the electricians have not only put a hole through the downstairs neighbours ceiling but when using the ladder in her Garden, broke a dog dish that came from Canada. So I would have to say she is not best pleased. Not only wrecking stuff in her house but they have damaged the floorboards at ours and when replacing them, made a real mess of it. So that probably means that Daniel and Gordon will have to redo them, which shouldn't be the case but at least it will be done right. Oh the hassle. But hopefully soon they will be done what they are doing and we can carry on doing things properly.

In other news, I have replaced the missing Doctor for Sarah and he is in the post. I am currently really liking drawing on envelopes. Its a good bit of fun! Plus I got Tardis stamps this time. As long as they do not get thieved!

 

 

Annnd for the first time I think ever I went to the dentist today and I didn't need any fillings! Whoooo! So all in all I am feeling pretty good about today, I am hopefully going to the house for some more wallpaper removing and perhaps it will be nice and sunny later and I can have supper outside! 

So these are some photos of bits around where we live now, I am pretty excited to be living in this area again, and can't wait to have some time to ourselves so I can have a bit of a walk down to the shore and stuff!

And some of Edinburgh, of course.