After much talk and deliberation, I have managed to persuade Phil not to go ahead with the loft conversion at the C-F. It’s not that his ideas weren’t good, they are great in fact, but it all comes down to money time and money at the end of the day. Phil’s idea of knocking the wall down in the bedroom, putting a false ceiling in the hallway and creating a bespoke built-in wardrobe would work well and would make much better use of the space. As were his plans for ripping out the wood cladding in the loft space, opening up the space and putting in velux windows and a spiral staircase in the lounge giving independent access to the loft conversion. But on a rough reckoning the works would cost 5 grand and its money we just don’t have at this moment in time. It’s not that these plans are cancelled just postponed for r the time being. It’s not just the money, I don’t think taking on a project of this nature which would be new untested ground for us would make sense when Phil is facing almost 2 months of radiotherapy and we just don’t how he is going to feel. We’ve got enough stress in our lives so why add to it?
I think also, we’ve decided not to rip out the bathroom but instead make good although this isn’t definite. The current bathroom is not state of the modern, it’s a magnolia suite but the tiling has recently been done so we are going to replace the window and the door, change the taps and the flooring and I shall do a quick repaint job. We can accessorise with textiles, towels and new fittings and it will be like new. We are also going to try and keep the existing carpet. It’s cream but if I can avoid any major paint spillage, we will hire a carpet cleaner and see how they come out. If they don’t clean up then we will of course replace.
Phil has given great thought to the kitchen and has decided to change the kitchen sink and move it to underneath the kitchen window. This will mean that we will need to get in a plumber to redo all the piping which will mean more work but I think it will be worth it in the end. We went in to Wickes last night for an appointment with Jason the kitchen designer. He’s a good guy, he knows his stuff and we’ve used him for Jim & Shirley’s kitchen a couple of years ago. We remembered him and he us. For the CF we’ve gone for the ‘Houston’ kitchen, a clean lined white gloss from off the shelf. After nearly 2 hours we came away with a design and an order that we’re happy with. The whole kitchen which included a built in oven, a hob and an extractor fan and a sink unit with taps and waste, came in at just under £1,400. The only thing that we didn’t order is the worktops because they don’t cut them to size at Wickes and also I haven’t quite decided what I want tops I want. The kitchen will be delivered on the 8th of July so there lots of time to decide but before then we have lots of work to do before installation.
As ever, I’ve been busy. I spent most of Monday painting in the CF. I managed to get one coat on all walls in the bedroom and bathroom. I reckon I might be able to get away with only 2 coats in the lounge but the bedroom will need 3 if not 4. I am not going to be able to get there today but I will be putting in a full day tomorrow. 
Yesterday my tree surgeon and landscape gardener Will Tricks was at the OB flat chopping down a tree and clearing the front of the block of flats. I was round there at half seven as I wanted to put out the green bin and rubbish and also check whether all the residents had removed their cars as I’d asked them to do. They had so that was good; whilst I was waiting for Will to arrive, I finished off the glossing in the bathroom so my painting there is done which is a relief.
Stepdad John and his partner Marie arrived at MK on Monday afternoon in their campervan. They are staying at a campsite at the back of Gulliver’s Land which I never knew existed. After giving Will my instructions I went to see them on site. It was slightly chilly but we sat outside their van and had a cup of coffee. J&M were pleased and happy with the site, they said the toilets and shower rooms were very clean, I’m not a camper but apparently this is very important. It seemed a nice enough site, albeit a little quiet but I understand it gets busier at the weekends. After coffee we bundled in my car and I took them to Sainsbury’s to get some supplies. I also took them to the council offices to get some local maps and did a quick rekey of Milton Keynes, pointing out the theatre and other local attractions. After this it was back to the van for another cuppa then home to get Phil’s lunch.
Yesterday was not a work day and in the afternoon Rachel came round to highlight and cut my hair. As usual, she did a great job and I look much better. After she finished I just had enough time to check out the tree and drive clearing at the OB and pay Will his money. Then it was off to Wickes to meet Phil for our kitchen planning meeting. It was good a job we went we did because the sale finished yesterday so we were just in the nick of time to get the discount. We have one slight concern in that we didn’t know where the stop cock is in the flat and this could be a major problem with our design but we decided to take a gamble and ordered anyway. Fingers crossed that it all pans out otherwise it will be major pipe work, which will mean more expense and without a shadow of doubt, more stress.
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