After a short time away, we were back, arriving on Wednesday night so we stayed in Châteaubriant with Magali’s parents. In the morning, we got up early to run a few errands and go to the garden centre to spend a voucher that Magali had gotten for her birthday. It was very exciting to be going on our first trip to the garden centre for the house. We arrived at Le Boulay and started to clean our new kitchen furniture, unfortunately one of our relatives had passed away so they had some furniture and appliances to give away and we were lucky enough to get some. We cleaned and started to put away our plates and pans, it was like we were moving in for the first time and it was a great feeling. Katy and Aurélie arrived for a picnic lunch and later Dominique and Monique came for an afternoon snack, where Aurelie’s daughters had started to get a bit restless so Magali tasked them with sweeping the leaves out of the hanger which they seemed to thoroughly enjoy. It was a nice relaxing day of entertaining and having fun, it was like we were home, we even have a red squirrel friend who traverses our trees. We tried to make dinner but as one of the new appliances was an oven, we didn’t quite know how to use it and then the gas stopped working so we ended up having a cold dinner.
On Friday, our new contact at Aquatiris arrived to look around the property and make sure we had the plans in the best place. After he left, we got ready to go to Le Pigeon Blanc, a nearby restaurant where we had a voucher for a meal that Magali had gotten for her birthday. It was such a delicious meal and the wine was exquisite, we had a great time. Afterwards, we went to Francoise’s house to look at the kitchen which they had just renovated before going to Dominique and Monique’s house to ask for some help for the gas oven. While we were there the architect called and we set up an appointment for Monday. We went home and managed to sort out the oven and have a hot dinner.
On Saturday, we started to weed the front garden to make space to build a tepee for the passionfruit in the garden that had started to grow. We planted some spinach seeds to hopefully grow and put the radiators back so that we could test that they worked. Catherine and Jean-Guy arrived and help us with a few things, Jean Guy fixed front door and finished putting back the radiators. We all had lunch in the garden before doing some more bits and bobs around the house and garden. It was then time to get ready to go a friend’s birthday party so we took Catherine home while Jean-Guy stayed to fix the lawnmower. We managed to find our way to the venue and had a great night with friends.
On Sunday, we got up late as we didn’t get to bed until morning and when we got up, Dom and Monique were there to feed the rabbits so they came in for a quick coffee before heading back to their place to prepare lunch. Catherine and Jean-Guy came to the house before we all headed to Dom and Monique’s for a yummy lunch where we talked and walked and played cards, it was a great day and we avoided the grim weather of the day.
Monday morning came and we planted the plants we’d bought at the garden centre on Thursday before putting a female rabbit in with a male one, Hubert had shown Magali how to do it as he’d gone on holiday. It was a horrible experience to watch and made us feel terrible for the rabbits. After doing some more work in the house, the architect, Marc Migraine, came for our appointment, we talked about our intentions and ambitions, showing him the house and exterior. It was really exciting and scary as it felt like we were actually starting to progress with our project. We continued working, we even built some fencing for our vines to start getting them to grow together. In the evening, Albert and Loic, Magali's uncle and cousin, stopped by for a bit before Raphael and Solene, Magali's cousins, came round to see the house and for apero.
On Tuesday, we started clearing the shelves in the hanger, it was a big job that took most of the day and there were so many spider webs that in the evening we could still feel them all over us. Our friends Alexia and Anthony came to see us in the evening to look around the house and property before we all had apero and chatted about our plans.
Wednesday had already arrived and we continued cleaning our new appliances, starting with the freezer. Dom and Monique came round to see us, bringing a yummy chestnut flour cake from the market. After they left, we cleaned the fridge and the oven before having a BBQ for lunch and cleaning the rest of the house in preparation for our fast approaching departure.
We woke on Thursday morning where we finished cleaning the house and tidied up the shelves in the hangar which we hadn’t quite finished the day before. We packed up the car and headed back to Châteaubriant before heading to the airport.
Once again, the trip was too quick but we still managed to do a lot and with the decision to go with the architect, it felt like we were really starting to get somewhere. The next steps are to get the plans and sign those off as well as getting a builder for the assainissement. It’s all happening.