Been a while

Posted on Wednesday 20 February 2008 at 07:50 - Post Comment

Nearly a month since the last update, and it's sure been a busy time.

House

The UK house STILL isn't sold.  Can you believe it?  We certainly can't, though we are now on the brink of getting it all signed off so it will soon (fingers crossed) be done and dusted.  2 weeks ago we got the call from our solicitor that we were completing that Friday.  The following Monday we get an email that we hadn't completed as at the hour they were going to sign they actually bothered to read the 'sellers statement' and saw that we had previously had problems with our neighbours to the rear.  When we got that email I was absolutely furious.  T said it was the maddest she has ever seen me.  The buyers basically said that they were not happy and wanted us to take 4k off the asking price for the possible problems this may cause.  Note the words 'possible' and 'could' in there.  It was the most blatant buyers ambush I have heard off, but we basically told them to go F themselves if they a) thought we were going to drop the price for any reason and b) thought that the neighbour issue wasn't resolved.  2 weeks on and it looks like their bluff has been called and after a fair bit of paperwork and toing and froing it will all go through tonight and they will pay the deposit etc.  What a palava though!  I have been ultra stressed about it all and it has left me feeling down and moody at work so we will both be SO pleased if it really does go through this time.  If not, then we are over the worrying and will just re-let it until the mortgage expires in another 2 years. C'est la vie and all that eh?

Work

Ton's work is going well. She is 2 full weeks in and seems to be settling nicely.  To make a good impression and make her life easier she's been getting in to work at 7.30am - meaning for the first time in our lives it's me left in bed in the mornings and not the other way around.  It is so weird that I now get up with her as it's just not right.  I'm sure I'll soon get out of that habit though.  My work still goes well, and I recently went to Wellington on a work jolly which was fun.  I will soon be off to Sydney for some training in mentorship which means I will hope to catch up with some folks over that side of the ditch.  We have a slight problem in that I don't have a visa to leave and re-enter NZ, so if we don't secure our residency by mid March I will be paying another trip to NZ immigration and handing over $200.  NZ Immigration are certainly doing well out of us at present - but Sydney will be worth it though I'm sure.

Family

We are soon to receive some long term guests in the form of T's sister K, her husband C along with our nephews J and J.  To say that we are excited is a massive understatement.  And they are not here for a week or a month - they are over for good!  Yup, the trail blazers have led the way and now the family will follow (we hope!).  They have gone through nightmares to get to the stage they are at, but can't wait to arrive and start their new lives here.  We will all be living here in our house for a month or two until they sort out their own place and get settled so it will be wicked to have them in our lives again.  Can't wait! 

In addition, T's mum D is coming out for a couple of weeks over Easter and that is going to be amazing.  It's a real shame that T's Easter holiday doesn't coincide with her mum's and so instead I will be taking leave to show D the sights and sounds of ChCh and the environs whilst T does the hard graft at work.  It's a hard life, but someone's gotta do it.  It will also mean ANOTHER person in the house but we'll survive I'm sure, though with only 1 bathroom I envisage queues for the toilet!

Triathlon

Not to be outdone by yours truly, last weekend T went and got involved in some hardcore Triathlon action, doing the national More FM triathlon at the local sports centre.  It involved a 300m swim in  the pool, followed by a 10km bike ride and then a 3km run.  Following 2 days of torrential (and much needed) rain we were expecting it to be called off but Sunday dawned bright and sunny so it was game on.  An early start - 6 am (yawn!) and we were at the start all ready to register.  T went and did the biz but it seemed that they had lost her entry and she was put in the final 'wave' of participants.  I'll leave her tell her story about it all but she completed the race in an hour and 20 minutes, and although it was hard the satisfaction of completing it was evident in her massive smile!  I was just SO proud of her I could have burst.  We promptly went to have breakfast at New Brighton pier to celebrate - it was a wicked, wicked day.

Other news

Erm... dunno what else really.  In preparation for the arrival of others here in the house we are getting some work done to install  a door to the bottom of the stairs that lead to our top bedroom to cut the noise down.  Otherwise it sounds like we are showering with whoever is in the bathroom, despite it being a door and a floor away.  It's half done so far, so most of it should be completed by the time the family arrive except for the plastering.  Just looking around we have so much tidying and childproofing to do before Sunday, so are going to be busy little bees for sure.  It's going to be fab though, so certainly something to look forward to.

Good luck with the house!

Posted by Littletoe on Wednesday 20 February 2008 at 08:51 - Link

And Congrats to T! Good on you!