Who's been to Sicily?

We booked our summer holiday!  Finally found a location for a reasonable cost - Switzerland!  Highs in August average 22 where we are going, which is perfect.  But no where near warm enough for most Brits, so prices are low!

Got a lovely villa for a week and we'll fly in and out of Milan and tack on a few extra days.  Hit up Lake Como and also properly see Milan.  None of us have been before and are excited!

Jimbo, the 4 of us are flying for £380 (baby on the lap).   

We booked our summer holiday!  Finally found a location for a reasonable cost - Switzerland!  Highs in August average 22 where we are going, which is perfect.  But no where near warm enough for most Brits, so prices are low!

Got a lovely villa for a week and we'll fly in and out of Milan and tack on a few extra days.  Hit up Lake Como and also properly see Milan.  None of us have been before and are excited!

Jimbo, the 4 of us are flying for £380 (baby on the lap).   

22°C sounds perfect.  I don't need to bake (or steam).  I just like sunshine and dry warm weather.  Yesterday was sunny and I spent time in the garden at 9°C.  When I first came here, my rule was: sunshine and double digits = go outside and enjoy it!  In the US, I wouldn't bother with these temperatures.

Anyway, today the weather is all, "Not so fast!"  Grey and spitting rain.  But whatever.  I had my day.

Edited to add:  I got distracted and forgot to say that's a great price on the airfare, and enjoy your trip!  I mean, I'll say it again when the time comes, but yay!  I live vicariously through your travel. All of our money is still earmarked for visas and kitchens.

We booked our summer holiday!  Finally found a location for a reasonable cost - Switzerland!  Highs in August average 22 where we are going, which is perfect.  But no where near warm enough for most Brits, so prices are low!

Got a lovely villa for a week and we'll fly in and out of Milan and tack on a few extra days.  Hit up Lake Como and also properly see Milan.  None of us have been before and are excited!

Jimbo, the 4 of us are flying for £380 (baby on the lap).   

I'm certainly a bit jealous of that £380 flight.  Is that Ryanair? 
I may have been close in another holiday where we flew in and out of Bergamo.  I thought Bergamo would be like Luton, but it was actually quite nice.  Have a good time!

I'm certainly a bit jealous of that £380 flight.  Is that Ryanair? 
I may have been close in another holiday where we flew in and out of Bergamo.  I thought Bergamo would be like Luton, but it was actually quite nice.  Have a good time!

Easyjet from Gatwick.

Could have flown for less going directly into Switzerland.  £240 for all 4!  But haven't been to Milan and it's a good bit closer to the area we will be. 

22°C sounds perfect.  I don't need to bake (or steam).  I just like sunshine and dry warm weather.  Yesterday was sunny and I spent time in the garden at 9°C.  When I first came here, my rule was: sunshine and double digits = go outside and enjoy it!  In the US, I wouldn't bother with these temperatures.

Anyway, today the weather is all, "Not so fast!"  Grey and spitting rain.  But whatever.  I had my day.

Edited to add:  I got distracted and forgot to say that's a great price on the airfare, and enjoy your trip!  I mean, I'll say it again when the time comes, but yay!  I live vicariously through your travel. All of our money is still earmarked for visas and kitchens.

Soon I will be living vicariously through your kitchen!  We have one - so I know I'm in a good space.  But we are making do until we do an extension.... which won't be until we no longer have nursery bills.  3.5 years and counting....

They don't have slides like this in Switzerland


My kids found this online and were bugging me to book it.  Apparently, it's freezing and the hotel is hellish so I had to say no

They don't have slides like this in Switzerland


My kids found this online and were bugging me to book it.  Apparently, it's freezing and the hotel is hellish so I had to say no

Looks awesome!  My kid would cry.  A LOT.

They don't have views like this in Sicily though.     And the house and flights were the same cost as just your flights.   

Soon I will be living vicariously through your kitchen!  We have one - so I know I'm in a good space.  But we are making do until we do an extension.... which won't be until we no longer have nursery bills.  3.5 years and counting....

Oh, I didn't realize your kitchen would be so far in the future.  If, after we have a kitchen, it ever seems like I'm getting too gloaty, try to remember that I have been cooking meals on a single-burner electric camping stove in my laundry room for almost a year and a half, and we're not sure how much longer that will continue.

On the bright side, we're consulting another company about the exterior render next week for a second estimate.  We might be doing that job this spring/summer, and then we can finally start work on the interior with any money we might have left over.

Oh, I didn't realize your kitchen would be so far in the future.  If, after we have a kitchen, it ever seems like I'm getting too gloaty, try to remember that I have been cooking meals on a single-burner electric camping stove in my laundry room for almost a year and a half, and we're not sure how much longer that will continue.

On the bright side, we're consulting another company about the exterior render next week for a second estimate.  We might be doing that job this spring/summer, and then we can finally start work on the interior with any money we might have left over.

Quotes for the render!  That's awesome!!!!

And I will never think of your new kitchen as gloating.  I celebrate my pal's achievements and will look on with proud envy!

Quotes for the render!  That's awesome!!!!

And I will never think of your new kitchen as gloating.  I celebrate my pal's achievements and will look on with proud envy!

Well, yeah, now that the visa savings are locked in, any excess moneys can go toward the house.  And my husband is two days away from coming home from Salisbury forever, so we'll stop hemorrhaging money to pay for his commute.  Seems like a good time to roll up our sleeves, open up the wallet, and do all the other clichés that mean a habitable habitat.  Yay!

The nice thing about these past 16 months is we have had time to live in the house and it has caused us to re-evaluate some of the things we thought we wanted.  If we'd been in a position to get started right away last year, we'd be satisfied without the results, but now we think we'll be making some better decisions for our space.

Oooo, what kinds of things are you thinking differently about?

Looks awesome!  My kid would cry.  A LOT.

Believe me, it took some advanced bribery.  I had to promise this instead

Believe me, it took some advanced bribery.  I had to promise this instead

I *think* my daughter would go down the blue slide on the right (on my lap).  She'd DEFINITELY cry at the top and I'd have to take her down sobbing.  But I feel like at the bottom she'd announce she wanted to do it again.

Oooo, what kinds of things are you thinking differently about?

We had been planning for underfloor heating since before we moved.  We didn't want radiators taking up floor space, and we don't want any sort of forced-air system. So underfloor seemed the way to go (along with a wood burning stove for ambience and to really make it cozy in winter).  But we recently learned of infrared heating panels, and we're researching to find out if they really work, or they're some kind of new age scam thing.  I mean... they look like a scam.  But if they work, they'd fit almost invisibly into the space.  My expectation is that if they work, the sensation will be like the feel of sunlight on your skin, even if the air around you is still cool.  And all without the danger of UV radiation. 

And we're re-considering the layout of the kitchen.  In fact, I was supposed to be drawing up 3-d models this week of the original plan and the new thoughts so we can compare them.  Aside from aesthetics, there are practical reasons to go with the new layout.  So we want to see how it looks/feels, to see if that cinches the deal.

And we've changed our flooring choice about 5 times since we moved in!  I'm not sure we have an option selected at the moment.

And then there's a major decision we're still debating.  We have an open combined lounge/diner space that spans the front of our tiny bungalow.  We were going to put the dining area on one side and the lounge area on the other.  But now we're thinking we might just do some sort of convertable table thing that can become a dining table, but mostly it'll all be lounge.  For just the two of us, we're unlikely to bother with a 'formal' dining option when we can just sit comfortable in our lounge, and to devote half of that space to a table that will rarely be used seems silly.

And some other stuff that isn't coming to mind at the moment.

Ah, so much fun planning what to do on your home! I remember when I bought one when the Daughter was a teenager. The place was a "fixer" although structurally sound. And, apparently, had been something of a frat house before we got it. Almost all the fixes were cosmetic, and we had a great time going through the samples and planning....  It was a nice place.  Enjoy your projects!


Vacation. I'm pretty much on a permanent one, the way it's looking. But the Daughter is slogging away with her studies and paper-writing and says she would really like a short, out-of-town break. I wonder if there is somewhere that someone knows of that is not terribly far (no more than a day's travel) out of Glasgow that we can get to by bus/train that is quiet, but has something to do nearby? A small town within walking distance to maybe look at the shops on an afternoon. Or a place with a spectacular garden that's open this early in the year? I think it's too early to try to go look for Pufflings.

I was thinking of taking us for an overnighter, or maybe two nights and a full day, out to Kilmartin as there's a nice little pub/hotel there that's not very expensive, since the Daughter likes to look at ruins and things. But we've already been there once a few years ago, so perhaps some other ruins, maybe Medieval, might be more of a treat.  We are not looking for anything upscale - plain, decent food, no bedbugs and a good night's sleep is kind of it. Maybe with a lounge or a pub with a nice fire where we could sit in the evening if it's been pouring rain. I've been all over TripAdvisor, and I'd really prefer recommendations from someone who's been. Daughter looks tired, and could use a change of scenery, I think. Anybody know of a place?