Well, I did it!
DH left after lunch yesterday to collect his mother for her first visit to the
new house, leaving the place not exactly ready for visitors, to put it mildly.
They arrived back late this afternoon to find everything clean and tidy after a
truly gargantuan effort on my part. I'm shattered!
Yesterday
afternoon I was busy ironing some very creased curtains when there was a loud
knock on the front door. When I’d finally found the key (we always use the back
door) I opened it to see a very small boy holding up two pieces of paper for me
to take. Behind him were two slightly older brothers, who had actually drawn
the pictures on the papers, and their smiling parents with a box of chocolates
for us.
They are our
immediate neighbours to the left and had come to welcome us. The boys' mother
said she'd try to keep the noise down, to which I replied that I'm totally
inured to the sound of children playing and in any case am starting to go
slightly deaf. Such nice people. I think we are going to be very happy here. It’s
like old times to have children’s drawings stuck to the door of the fridge.
Tomorrow DD and
her family arrive for a week’s stay, so I’ll be listening to music practice and
playing board games rather than blogging for a while, but it will make a
wonderful change from moving furniture and unpacking. See you anon…
PS It was remiss of me to have omitted to mention (blame my bad memory) our first visitors a week previously, who arrived at the back door with a bottle of wine, just as we were bringing in yet more furniture. They are our next-but one-neighbours. We feel very fortunate to have landed where we are.
What lovely neighbours...and I bet those drawings on the fridge door make the place feel really homely.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the descent of the family!
The pictures look perfect on the fridge and are a constant reminder of how nice people are. The family are now happily ensconced and will, I'm sure, help us to consume the chocolates. :-)
DeleteBrace yourself - and have a ball!
ReplyDeleteDuly braced and have just spent an afternoon playing Seven Wonders and listening to Grandson#1 tell me about the chemistry he's revising.
DeleteSounds like you have move. A regular sleuth aren't I? It is always such a pleasure to meet good people. Nowadays I am thrilled when strangers are kind. Don't work too hard.
ReplyDeleteHi, Rubye, lovely to see you back in blogland. We have indeed moved, though only a bit over two miles from the hill to the valley and have nearby neighbours for the first time in decades. The worst of the work is over and I'm relaxing with the grandsons.
DeleteThat is so sweet! It's nice to know you have such great neighbours. Enjoy your visit with your family. I envy you the opportunity to hear music being practiced while they are there. I miss hearing that sound in my home. The only thing I was sad we got rid of before we made our move last year was the piano they had played on all those years.
ReplyDeleteNot only did i hear music being practised, Kristie, but actually got my clarinet out after at least 2 months neglect. DD has given me 4 pieces to practise before we visit them for New Year and she will learn the piano accompaniment. :-)
DeletePleased you have good neighbours. It is always nice to hear children playing.
ReplyDeleteWe're very lucky, Susan, and the children are not noisy at all.
DeleteWhat a lovely and special welcome to your new neighbourhood; I am sure you will become friends with this family. Have a great week, enjoy the music practice and the board games. Family and friends are the best gift of all.
ReplyDeleteIt was great, Patricia, and we were very touched. We've had a wonderful week with plenty of games and music and chatter and I'm now busy with a mountain of laundry after waving them goodbye this morning.
DeleteA lovely reward for all your Herculean labours Perpetua. They sound absolutely charming, and clearly budding Picassos too (or maybe Lowrie).
ReplyDeleteTime to slow down and enjoy.
Blessings.
They look like a lovely family, Ray, and I've heard the children playing happily in their garden this week. We've had a super week with the grandsons and their parents and I'm all board-gamed out. :-)
DeleteHari Om
ReplyDeleteAuspicious signs! Enjoy your family... YAM xx
Indeed, Yam. We have a lovely, if packed, week with the family and I'm now recovering. :-)
DeleteWhat a delightful welcome:) Enjoy the family ... then relax:)
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely, Shirley. The family week was great fun and I'm now tackling laundry and catching up with comments.
DeleteSuch a lovely welcome - people are kind aren't they. P x
ReplyDeleteBy and large they are, Patricia, and we've definitely struck lucky.
DeleteI think the welcome was very nice. I can feel the warmth of the welcome. Glad you are settled, and enjoy your DD. 'Welcome home'.
ReplyDeleteIt was a very kind and friendly gesture, Bonnie. We're feeling surprisingly settled after such a short time, helped of course by the fun of having our daughter and her family here.
DeleteSuch a lovely welcoming gesture Perpertua - it must be very reassuring to have such lovely neighbours. I have watched some TV programmes lately where the neighbours are anything but friendly, rather they are a nightmare.
ReplyDeleteIt was such a wonderful surprise, Rosemary, and I smile every time I pass the fridge door. Having close neighbours for the first time in decades was almost a scary thought, but we feel very fortunate to be where we are.
DeleteWhat a lovely welcome your neighbors gave you.. How sweet that the little boys drew a drawing for you.
ReplyDeleteIt makes for happy living, to have good neighbors. I have one neighbor a way to the right of me..and they are very unfriendly.. its just a nod each time we pass.
I am very happy for you Perpetua.. that you are settling in.. enjoy your time with the family.
val xx
They couldn't have made a kinder gesture to make us feel welcome, Val. I will treasure those drawings. It's a very quiet cul-de-sac we've moved to and we rarely see anyone around, but it's nice to know they are there.
DeleteYes, we're settling in well and had a brilliant time with the family. The house seems very quiet now they've left.
How wonderful...I suspect they will be pretty delighted to have you as a neighbour too !
ReplyDeleteI do hope so, Janice. They deserve lovely neighbours. :-)
DeleteWhat lovely neighbours. those little boys will be so pleased to see their art work up. Enjoy your family's visits and all the lovely music.
ReplyDeleteThey really do seem so, Molly, and the boys were very pleased to hear the drawings would go on the fridge. We've had a lovely week with the family with plenty of music and games. :-)
DeletePlease clone these neighbours and send them out into the world
ReplyDeleteThey're mine, all mine! If I could clone them, I would. :-)
DeleteWhat a delightful "welcome wagon", Perpetua. It is so good to know that you are settling in, welcoming visitors, and have such thoughtful new neighbors. Take care - and enjoy.
ReplyDeleteI was so pleased and touched, Penny, as was DH when he got back. Having family visitors has been the best possible start to our life here and we feel remarkably settled already, after only 3 weeks.
DeleteHaving nice neighbours is a bonus. Don't work too hard xx
ReplyDeleteA wonderful bonus, Ayak. The hard work meant the house was ready and welcoming for the family, but I've relaxed very nicely this week. :-)
Delete"We always use the back door"... sounds like you've lived there for ages, it's a good sign that you've settled in well! Lovely drawings, to. I vote that we ll draw you a picture, that way we'll not onlycover your fridge but repaper the entire kitchen :-)
ReplyDeleteLOL! Yes, it does sound like that, doesn't it? If anyone knocks at the front door I have to go searching for the key, MM. I thought you'd like the pictures. Any others to keep them company would be much appreciated, even virtually. :-)
DeleteGlad to hear your news about the house move. Enjoy your new environment. Your week with your visitors will be a lovely way to start a new phase of your life.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Linda. It's been a busy time for us while you've been away in Italy, but the worst is over. the family visit was indeed the perfect way to settle into our new life and we enjoyed it immensely.
DeleteGood news that you have super neighbours. What sweeties the boys are to draw you pictures to go with the chocolates. Have fun with the family.
ReplyDeleteIt's the best news, Sarah. We've lived almost all our married life with no near neighbours and were a bit apprehensive about acquiring some. We had a super week with the family and it whizzed by too quickly.
DeleteGood neighbours are worth their weight in gold - how nice to get two personal welcomes. I love the pictures!
ReplyDeleteI hope your mother-in-law is well and that she enjoys visiting the new house, also DD & family. Really looking forward to seeing you two in your new home before too long.
They are indeed, PolkaDot, and we feel ourselves very fortunate to have been welcomed so kindly. Mum is very well and both she and DD and family enjoyed and appreciated the new house, which absorbed a group of mainly tall and active visitors with no effort. I can't wait to show it to you too before long. :-)
DeleteSounds like such a nice friendly neighborhood. That counts for sooooo much!
ReplyDeleteIt certainly seems to be, Vic. It's a small village and we've always found it very friendly. We just have to remember that we now have neighbours who can hear us, rather than being two fields away. :-)
DeleteWhat a touching welcome. I'm sure it will be very nice for the children to have honorary grandparents next door! I do hope you get the chance to sit down over the next few days...
ReplyDeleteI was bowled over by it, DB. As our 3 grandsons all live so far away, it will be lovely to have little ones next-door. DD and family all pitched in to help, so I got plenty of sitting-down time and had a lot of fun into the bargain.
DeleteDear Perpetua, how wonderful that your neighbors are welcoming you with gifts and thoughtfulness. Neighbors can mean all the difference when moving. My neighbors to the right of me and across the street welcomed me so warmly that right away the house felt like home back in June 2009 when I moved here.
ReplyDeleteOn Facebook I've been reading about your playing board games. The names of the two games you mentioned are ones I don't know. I'm going to have to do some research to discover what "Seven Wonders" and "Carcassonne" are. Peace.
Dee, that's exactly what we think and we feel very lucky to have such nice people living so close. I'm glad you were similarly welcomed.
DeleteThe board games are great fun and are aimed at older children and adults, so are challenging and require planning and strategy, which makes them very interesting. I hope they are available in the USA.
Sorry I'm late to comment on this but I have been following your week playing games and doing jigsaws on Facebook, so know you've been very occupied! A lovely gesture from your neighbours, wasn't it? Glad you're all settled. I have no excuse for my busy day of cleaning and tidying as we've been here quite a while, but when visitors come, it's an excuse to have to get into the corners that I usually try to ignore! Axxx
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm appallingly late in replying to comments, so no apology needed, Annie. I had a wonderful time with the family, but quick updates on FB was all I had time for while they were here. Like you, I require the deadline of approaching visitors to get things really shipshape, so it was helpful to have that to spur me on with the final unpacking. Their rwaction when they saw the house made it all worthwhile. :-)
DeleteHow marvelous! All of it! New friends and neighbors, a good visit with DD and family, a wonderful time to visit friends and beauty in the Scottish Highlands and beginning to settle into your new home! I'm so glad to hear a lovely update, Perpetua, and I hope the travels bring even more refreshment! You do make retirement look quite special. :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Debra. Yes, a lot of good things have been happening all at once and I'm glad to be having a few quiet weeks to absorb it all and recover from the busyness - and from the cold DD kindly shared with me. ;-) I may even manage to do a proper catch-up on my friends' neglected blogs.
DeleteLiving in a flat as we do, we have several close neighbours - above, below & alongside! Fortunately, they rarely disturb us except for the lady who has now moved in with 'Mr Water Engineer', who lives directly above us. She is a rare breed of owning an exercise bicycle and actually USING IT! We've therefore christened her 'Mrs Hamster Wheel' because that is what it sounds like!
ReplyDeleteSo glad you've ended up with such nice neighbours in your new home.
I certainly didn't notice any noise from your neighbours when I stayed in the Chaplaincy flat, Ricky, though of course that as before the advent of Mrs Hamster Wheel. ;) At least her exercise bike will only be in use for relatively short periods unlike loud music which is so often a problem in flats.
DeleteYes, we're very fortunate to have such welcoming neighbours.