Summer in September

We have had fantastic weather this last week and it looks set to continue for a while too. The whole area is taking a huge sigh of relief. The combines have been working non-stop to bring in the grain and the balers are busy packing up the straw. A few weeks back the news was that the harvest was a disaster but I think things have turned around now.

This is Conor's favourite time of year. Last year he managed to get a ride in a combine harvester and he was chuffed to bits. This year we are waiting for the maize to be harvested. The maize harvester is Conor's favourite machine. The field surrounding our house is full of maize which is almost ready to be chopped. I hope we will be around to see the event.

We spent all of Saturday at the Ballydaniel house. Liam spent most of the time colouring and drawing in the mobile home whilst Conor and I did some manual labour, filling in a trench containing the pipe from the mobile home to the sewer. The boys couldn't be more different: Liam is the real artist, Conor is the worker. Liam made me laugh because he kept popping his head out of the door shouting things like "Put your backs into it", "You can do better than that". He thought it was hilarious. Conor had enough after a while and went off to build a wall with old bricks. He did a great job too.

Who Am I?

Ireland has the series "Who Do You Think You Are?" like the UK, where celebrities trace their family tree. Well I was bored last night and decided to look at the UK census records to see what I could find.

My mum's side of the family has been fairly well researched by other of the family but I don't know much about my dad's side. Fortunately I knew my greatnan, Isabella, on my father's side and remember asking her about her family for history homework so I could remember her year of birth and maiden name. She was my starting point and before long I managed to trace back to my great great great great grandad John Doolan, born in Ireland (possible in Ringaskiddy not too far from where I live now although the record was only patially legible) c.1816. He was living in North Wales in the earliest available census, 1841. The family moved about a bit and ended up in Scunthorpe where my greatnan was born and reared. I though that the Irish connection was much later because my dad remembers coming over to Cork in the 1950's to visit greatnan's family so the connection must have been maintained even though none of the children were born in Ireland after John moved over. Interesting stuff and amazing what you can achieve in an hour or so if you have a starting point. I shall continue.....

Sooooo Slow!

Work on the house is so slow at the moment. Daithi is working in Galway 3 days a week (about a 4 hour drive away) so all work is taking place at the weekend again!!!!! I didn't think this would happen. I though we would be getting someone in at this stage to do it for us but Daithi is reluctant to let anyone take over :(. Moving in seems so close yet so far. I got Munster Interiors through the post today and I didn't have the heart to open it and look at all the lush houses!

I have started to paint the windows in earnest now, when I get a chance that is. Conor is at preschool 3 mornings a week and I can get one coat on one side of all the downstairs sashes in the time he is away. I love painting them and now I am painting them in upstairs of the house I am starting to get a real sense of the place. I am actually starting to feel like it is our house now and can see us all living in it, relaxing, arguing, cooking, cleaning, playing, although I do look nearly 70 years old in the scenes.... hee hee. It is a very peaceful place and comforting too. My friend, Heather, bought me a lovely Kitchen Design book ('The New Kitchen Planner' by Michael Beasley) which has some great advice about designing a kitchen and has some pull-out cabinets and appliances to shuffle around your own plan. I had to extend the grid by another 5m - it is a big kitchen dining room.... Anyway, thanks Heather....

Back to school and more rain!

I can't believe this weather. Last year we had a wonderful indian summer and I remember not having the heating on until at least the end of october! My evenings are spent beside the fire with a hot water bottle at the moment. I am secretly glad that we didn't move into the mobile home when we said. I am surprised that it hasn't been knocked over in the gale force winds!

Luckily I managed to salvage some windfall cooking apples from the orchard and make apple and elderberry jelly... yummy! I will have to get more jars to make some chutney next. Conor eats the wonderful blackberries before I can pick them so I may have to wait until he is at school and take the opportunity to collect a bucket load for more jam.

The boys have settled back into school very well. Conor is now at playschool 3 mornings a week so it gives me a bit of time to some essentials (at the moment finishing painting the windows). Liam is in his new classroom which is fantastic. Clonpriest NS really needed the 2 new classrooms and the extra space. The kids love it! I am waiting for the local paper to come out tomorrow becuase Liam's photo in the new room should be in it. He's really excited.

Daithi and Cian managed to finish the back roof before the weather turned very windy and rainy. We are still missing the ridge tiles which does mean that there has been a few very minor leaks when the rain has been monsoon like. Daithi assures me that once the ridges are on then things will be fine. Who am I to disagree with the man who built the roof!

This last weekend was spent putting up the steel studs downstairs in preparation for plastering. It is actually proving quite difficult to decide where to put sockets and light switches in each room before the wiring is done. Decisions, decisions! Anyway it shouldn't be long before we have moved into the downstairs of the house. Yippee can't wait!