The weather’s been so lovely this week, with cold, clear, frosty nights and gloriously warm, sunny days, that it would have been a shame to stay indoors. So Nick and Kieran took themselves off to the wood yard to choose the wood for the balcony; they decided on acacia as it is very hard and doesn’t rot, in fact it’s what they use to make the stakes in vineyards. Three trailer-loads later, we had all we needed.

Just as the living room floor is going to be 3cm higher than originally planned, so the balcony needed raising by the same amount, so they cut strips to go along the beams, then put the floorboards on top of them. It actually looks really good, just as if it was planned from the start. Come the spring I’ll get round to lasuring it, but in the meantime, it’s great to be able to sit out in the December sun, for tea and cakes or a beer!

The heating man came for a couple of days and has put down most of the insulation, but there wasn’t enough for the ground floor, so heaven only knows when he’ll be back…….