I was going to let the domain lapse for this blog when the renewal came.  It was set it up to record our trip around Europe last summer and it was fun to combine my photos with a few words. But that was an extended trip and every day is exciting when you’re on holiday.  The daily grind of life is far more mundane.  It’s pretty dull, it’s certainly not blogworthy and life had been quite unexciting since we returned home in August last year.

Mostly, all that dullness was due to our move to Australia in August this year, which is exciting, but there was a long list of tedious duties we had to wade our way through first.  Kerry needed a residents Visa to start with.  And that required a month trawling through mementos, keepsakes, documents, photos and messages to prove that our twenty-two year marriage was the real deal and not simply a marriage of convenience.  It also cost us six thousand quid.

Then there was the dog.  She needs vaccinations, serology tests, quarantine and more masses of paperwork. Chloe’s move to Australia will cost about the same as Kerry’s visa.

We want to rent our house out and that lead to three months of onerous house painting, DIY and tradespeople.  January and February were basically a write off as we spent a brutal period working through every room of the house.  As the weather improved, we started work on the outside before finishing with an upgrade to our decking, which was a few of years away from becoming a rotten death trap for potential renters.  As I write, there’s electricians boring holes in the wall of our kitchen and bathroom for extractor fans.

All work and no play have made us very dull indeed.  I’ve barely had a chance to get out with my camera but on the odd occasions I did, I took some images that I’m really pleased with.   

My mum came over for Christmas and we managed a little getaway to Edinburgh for the Christmas markets and a little festive spirit.  The other highlight was the Starlings that settled in Distington for the winter.  For a couple of months, I was treated to their daily murmuration as I finished work and the sun set. 

Thankfully, winter is loosening its grip and spring is set to burst.  A huge to do list is now mostly crossed off and in a months’ time we’ll take one final cheeky trip to Ireland before selling the van and packing up this life for another one closer to my family. 

I’ll turn 50 somewhere along the Wild Atlantic Way and will certainly raise a few pints of the black stuff to celebrate.  We round off our trip with a couple of weeks in our favourite place, Cornwall. 

So, I paid my renewal, and even if I’m the only person that reads it, then it will be a great record of a momentous occasion in our lives. I’m looking forward to playing around with my camera again and I really can’t wait for life on the road and one last trip in the van.

The adventure begins Easter long weekend.