Help calm me, house buying and selling stress. Part 3

Onwards and upwards Mosaicwarts. This brownie recipe is brilliant. I use non stick greaseproof/parchment paper never sticks. 300g sugar, 250g margarine,250g 70% plain chocolate, 60g Sr flour,60g cocoa powder 3 whole eggs and 1 egg yolk. Melt 200g chocolate cut 50g. Cream marg and sugar. Beat in eggs. Mix in flour and cocoa powder. Stir in melted and chopped chocolate. Pour into 23cm square tin. Oven temp 180c for 30mins should be sticky in middle not raw. May need extra 5 mins. Leave in tin for hour before turning out. It gets solid when cooled. . Cuts into 16.

Thanks for your good wishes everyone. It's good to know if I see it and ask to have it, it's mine, I was and still am shocked not to be accepted by the previous landlord. Thank you for being my cheerleaders - and I'm delighted you think I'll be a good tenant Dottygran59, how nice of you

I definitely need to get out of the house, all the noises and creaking of pipes etc all worry me so much. The wood burner set the smoke alarm off tonight when I opened it as smoke poured out, I think I've used too many 'fake' logs in it. Doesn't seem to be 'smoking' when the door is closed, I've been sitting in front of it with the torch to see if it is, exactly the sort of behaviour that worries my daughter. If it is the chimney stack again I'm not looking, I can't spend another £500 for someone not to do it properly.

SueH49, having been stopped by men who looked like they were going to lynch me at Sydney airport because I kept my Quantas breakfast banana by mistake, craftyone is right, I am sorry I cannot send you the Dorset Herbs. Hopefully someone will sell the herbs individually locally, alternatively, there is something now called a 'thunder shirt' which apparently has a calming effect.

My daughter is home late tonight, so veg spag bol in the making, but brownies in the bin sadly, completely stuck to the non stick greaseproof paper and broke into bits. Should have stuck with my buttered paper greasing method!

Oh MW FAN BLOODY TASTIC!!!! Finally things moving at last, fingers crossed for you. If I owned a rental you would be my ideal tenant COZ YOU IS LOVELY. If they ask for references say the word and we start a GN Crafty thread petition. Oooooh. Excited now

oh my goodness, what a tremendous uplift this 3rd thread is, it lifts the spirits no end, all the upbeatness. Starting with Franbern and her amazing surprise from her family, wow, you are truly loved. Mosaics you are like a new person, so pro-active now, taken the bull by the horns. You are all making my heart churn with happiness, it is so infectious and energy giving

I live a bus ride away from wells and very close to clarkes village and have decided to spread my wings just a bit, by visiting ham wall in case there are any starling murmurations but I won`t go today because I am still busy, doing some more de-cluttering. A sideboard this time, in with some new and out with more old

mosaics I was going to do the same about the herbs but I believe that no plant material can enter australia

That sounds perfect mw and like me you'll probably do a deep clean for pet smells when you move out anyway, (we rug doctored the carpets every couple of months!)
Hope you can offload the furniture you no longer want although you may find you can pile a lot of stuff in the corner of one room. Hopefully the weather will be kind and spring will be here before you know it with more properties coming to market.

Brilliant news MW, new year and positives already!

I hope everyone is having a good day.

I phoned the rental agent three times and - success at last! The landlord will allow my small dog and cat, thanks so much Ellianne! She doesn't want a bigger deposit, just if there is damage, I have to make it good. The tenant is showing me around on Saturday at 10.30 am and if I want it it can be agreed on the spot with the agency, I've said I'll pay 6 months rent in advance so they can relax about credit checks. I'm going to take it as it's the perfect solution - and it's free from February, not May as stated in the advert. I can take the small amount of furniture I'll need for my new home, and leave the things I'm going to sell in the house. As it's between a developer/auction, I'm not leaving anything that I can sell, I was thinking differently when it was going o be a family. I hope the garage is water tight, if not, things will just have to go. I've already promised the grandfather clocks to my late husband's friend, who repairs them. He's absolutely loaded and reknowned for his miserliness - in group meals he'd have his calculator out and not give tips. When I offered them to him he stuttered 'how much would you like' - I laughed and said my husband enjoyed his company, he can just have them.

Only down side is that there are two horses in the rented field adjacent, I do worry about them, they are just left there like lawnmowers. I have phoned the RSPCA in the past, nothing they can do. They still don't have any hay. I messaged the son of the field's owner (can't bother his parents as his Dad has a heart condition), and said I would be happy to pay for some if the horses's owners arrange it. The owner's Dad died earlier in the year and I doubt they are thinking about the horses. I throw cut up apples and carrots in occasionally as a treat for them. I cannot make too much fuss in case they are sent to the meat market.

Thank you for the link to the boxes craftyone, I'm going to be positive and optimistic about the rental, I hope no-one pips me to the post by having a viewing earlier. I'm going to order them and start packing.

SueH49, I'd be happy to send you the herbs as a gift if you can point me in the right direction, I'm going to buy some for myself as my dog was very shaken NYE. Loudest we've ever heard here.

When we moved out of our old house DD and SiL moved in. They completely altered the house. Skips galore and workmen for months. It was lovely when finished. They'd radically altered the configuration of the house. I remember waking up after an overnight babysit in what used to be our garage now a very smart bedroom.
After doing all that work another house came up for sale with a bigger garden and they snapped it up! All that work and stress. I suppose they'll have recouped the cost of the refurb.

Franbern my husband sang in Wells Cathedral over Christmas. I was quite envious, the roof is stunning, but even more so when I heard he had stopped to go shopping at Clarks Village en route!

Yes, it seems a foregone conclusion that even though the house you sell is up to scratch someone will come along and totally revamp it. We sold ours for the full (expensive) asking price and yet the new owners still have £50/£60k available to spend on it. The location is what they were after ... tube line, good schools, shops. As you say GM, these young people have so much money, 3 figure salaries, they don't give it a second thought.

Lovely to hear from you, Loopyloo - I have several visits to London arranged for this year, - whilst I am still able to drive. I am hoping that one of those visits will be at the same time as the Redbridge meet-up and I can come to see you all again.
Of course, where I lived was so surrounded by open countryside - Epping Forest and fields within five minutes walk in three of the four directions.
I have found a lovely, small park just a few minutes away from my flat and come the better weather will be spending time there. However, I now have bus stops directly outside the flats, and the High Street and the Beach just 5 - 10 minutes away (on my scooter). So, a good exchange for the forest, etc.
Once the weather improves I will be taking rides during the day time on a lot of the local buses - best way of learning their routes is to go on them. Know I can get buses directly to Bristol and also to Wells.
Next week, my SiL will be accompanying me to the Council Offices to sort out my Blue Badge and also my local Bus. Pass.

Franbern, exactly the same has happened with my London house which I left one year ago. It was quite large so expensive and the buyers beat me down on the price due to work needing to be done. A friend has told me that there's been skip after skip there, starting as soon as they moved in. Obviously they had the money to create a large kitchen/diner with wet room downstairs immediately (I knew it was their long term plan, everyone does that now as Franbern says) as well as expensive new winows. That would have cost at least 50k/60k. Most people also add a loft conversion, despite the house already having four bedrooms and three reception rooms as well as kitchen downstairs. I find it hard to believe how much money so many younger people have.

Dear Franbern , Our old house was just round the corner to yours. 4 bedrooms and my mother lived with us till she died. Many happy days and I cried when we left. But where we live now much better. Closer to underground shops etc.
But it's very poignant.

Ellianne, I kept telling myself NOT to go into the little cul-de-sac where I used to live. But leaving my friends house on Friday afternoon, I felt I was a little early to arrive at my daughters house(!), so I did drive there. It was just dusk, so knew no-one would be around to recognise my car (felt a bit like a stalker). On the driveway in front of the house was a large skip. House was in darkness - of course, they could have been away for the holiday period, but it did not look as if anyone was living there at present. Did not have time to actually call in to see one of my ex-neighbours.
Last year, the house opposite me sold in April (can remember how jealous I was at the time), but the new owners did not move in until July - there were builders there throughout that time, and skip after skip was filled up - yet I know that house was in an excellent state of decoration, etc inside. They, evidently, had a large two-storey extension built at the back. Do wonder, how people can pay such high London prices and then still have money to do this sort of work.
However, I tell myself it is nothing to do with me any more whatever happens (is happening) to my old house.
There was a through-lounge and a long galley kitchen coming directly off the hall - no doorway -and I know this is not fashionable at present.
So, it is likely that they are opening up the kitchen into the rear of the through lounge to make a large kitchen/diner, and closing off the front part of the lounge into a separate sitting room.
Indeed, my daughter whose house is a similar type and age did this some years back and it is very nice, but I always preferred the more open plan of mine.

That sounds lovely Franbern and means you can now visit without carting heaps of stuff with you. I used to leave toiletries and nightwear at our son's house as that got me through the first night if I arrived late. Did you go past your old house to see if they had done anything to it? Our buyers have put shutters on all the bay windows, it is quite a noisy road and the tube line also runs behind the houses on the other side. Or maybe it's just because shutters are fashionable.
Not much on TV tonight Grammaretto, so I might have to follow mw's example and clean the bathroom.

Fran how absolutely lovely! What a wonderful, thoughtful thing to do. You must be very loved, and it’s wonderful to read about. I too tell my AC not to buy me anything, as there really isn’t anything that I want. So they don’t. Ah well......

That's a really heartwarming story Franbern.
We are the sandwich generation. I cooked a tea suitable for the little DGC last night and today another one, a lunch, suitable for the very elderly GGP . They all overlapped for a matter of minutes to toast each other before the wee ones started wailing (over tired?) and then it was the turn of the Aged Parents to be needy. They are all gone home now and we are at last sitting down falling asleep. Is there anything on TV?

Franbern, how lovely to have your own room, especially as you can leave things there so you can travel with a smaller bag. Wishing you a very happy first year in your new home x

As a teenager my Mum repeatedly promised that I could have the front room of our house as a bed sit. Unfortunately, although she bought the wallpaper, she never managed to get it done. My Gran was very demanding and she spent all her energy redecorating her house instead.

Tree gone to recycling centre, hoovering done downstairs, bathmats washed and drying Having a sandwich now before cleaning the bathroom. I certainly know how to live it up!

Franbern that was a wonderful thoughtful thing for your daughter to do. You must be very proud of all your family.

WOW!!! over two thousand posts.....and continuing. Hope lots more people planning on selling/buying/moving this coming year will join us and have help, advice and support.
Must tell you of my lovely surprise. I had told all my very adult children that I did not want any pressies this Xmas, if they wished they could put any monies aside to help pay for them to come to visit me during this year.
Anyway, I had arranged to spend few days after Xmas in London staying with my eldest daughter whose house is less than a mile away from the from which I moved. I had stayed there the night before the move.
Her small 'spare' room was # covered in shelves with books, etc. also has her tumble dryer in there and uses it as a laundry room. I slept on a rather elderly sofa bed, which when pulled out took up all the rest of the available space and to get in and out had to climb over it.
I arrived late Friday afternoon, my daughter was working that day - each time I had talked to her on the 'phone she had said how busy she was - but as she is a Manager of some large NHS Mental Health teams, she is ALWAYS busy and works many more hours than she gets paid for.
When I arrived I asked my g.daughter if Mum had got the bed pulled out - and, if so, could she please carry my suitcase upstairs for me. She said Mum had not had time and would do it when she got home from work. No problem.
When my daughter got home and we had a long cuddle together, she said I was to go upstairs to see my Christmas Present. 'No present' I repeated to her and she laughed/
In the two months since I moved, she had completely altered that room, all by herself - all her own work. Taken down and dismantled all the shelving, re-decorated, re-carpeted and brand new sofa bed, which opened out and closed easily and left plenty of room. Lots of cupboards on higher up on the walls, a dressing table area, new tv on the wall. All new bedding for sofa bed (which has large storage area for this). Could not believe it. It is absolutely gorgeous.
So, it means that I now have my own room in her house, to use whenever I wish, can even keep some items there for myself.
No wonder she had been so busy!!! Seemed all my other children knew she was doing this, but had not spoiled my wonderful surprise.
Good few days, lunch on Friday and then on Monday with friends. My other daughters all visited with their children. Each on separate days, which was rather nice and better than all together. I loved having so much company and am finding it slightly difficult to settle back into just being by myself now.
So, the start of my first full year in my new home - my last home!!! Have a few problems but sure these will be sorted out soon. Garage now has electricity power there so can have electric door put on shortly.
Wish everybody a healthy and happy 2020 and best wishes for Mosaicwarts and anyone else in the process of selling, etc. the very best of luck for good outcomes.

to all the people who have come out of lurkdom we love having you here

Sue mix your own herb combo, you may find scutellaria under that name and valerian you would find anywhere in aus. Yes definitely you have to be sure about your new property, head has to rule sometimes. Two of my sisters are in WA, one in burekup and one in bayonet head. One used to live in Adelaide and one in the blue mountains. They say that Tasmania is burning too. They are far enough to be safe right now. I read that south island, New Zealand is enveloped in smoke from aus.

That wood report mosaics, only present it at auction if it is good. If bad then hide it. Up to buyers to do due diligence

Happy New year everyone. Mosaciwarts try not to dread what is to come. I know that is not easy. What helped me before and since moving is setting myself a plan of action. Usually do it in bed when I wake of a morning. Today's plan was make soup and take down tree and Dec's. Both done. Now relaxing with a hot chocolate, low cal instant as I am still aiming to hit the 11st mark this year sometime. Not set myself a time limit.

Lovely see new people here. I know this thread has been a life line for me. I have got good family and friends but found friends here who have put up with my worries and doubts. All the advice they have given has helped me know end and still does.

Happy New Year to All, I hope 2020 is good to everyone.

We are so fortunate in our area not to be experiencing the horrendous fires that other parts of the country are however, we still have a a lot of summer to go and the worst of the heat and summer weather is yet to come. My heart goes out to those who have lost their homes and loved ones.

Our house hunting continues to be very frustrating. It seems the house is too big or the land too small. While we still have time to find something before we have to be out of our current place time is ticking. We will probably need to rent before we buy. Would prefer not to do a double move but I guess it is better than rushing into something that is not quite right. A nice aside - our DS and DIL told our DGS (3 & 5) that Grandma and Grandpa were going to move to another house. Their response was "Will we still be able to stay with them". I thought it was nice.

MW my dog used to freak out at the fireworks - or thunder - now I give her a dose of scullcap and valerian - Dorwest Herbs. I bought some last time I was in the UK but have just about run out and having trouble getting more.

MW I hope beyond hope that you move out of this sad worrying situation you are in and this time next year you'll be happily settled elsewhere.
Although we technically downsized from our family home to a flat, the actual flat is bigger and has much more storage than our old house. We still almost can't believe how happy we are here. It's warm, has a lift, a lovely garden we don't have to care for and great access to buses. I don't have to drive much any more. We're right next to some woodland and I meet lots of friendly dog walkers when out and about. Yes, moving is an awful upheaval but the calm after the storm of it all seems miraculous even after a few years.
Tip:- 60s flats are more spacious than later ones and not very popular. There are bargains to be had. Kirsty and Phil say so too!

Happy New Year everyone, pinch and a punch! We had fireworks here too, my dog was terrified, he eventually settled at the side of my bed.

I didn't wake up until 10.20 this morning, ridiculously late for me to start the new year! Car is still frozen solid.

Managed to take my 9 foot xmas tree down yesterday, my last ever real tree, Henry the hoover nearly exploded hoovering up the needles. I got in a temper and cut the lights off in the end, couldn't get them off they were so tangled. Chopping it in half and taking to be chipped tomorrow.

I'm wishing the week away with the damp/timber report looming on the 8th. Will it be bad, who knows, the floors are creaking madly now and I can hear the central heating pipes when I walk on the landing. My daughter said they've always sounded like that, it is just being alone and I notice absolutely everything now.

Not sure what to do with my day as usual, I'll have a think about it on the beach with all the revellers! Enjoy yours!