Nearly at the end - at last!

Lilly disappears to bottom of box

Lilly jumping onto and into the box

Lilly Clambours out!

Our major task this year has been ongoing work in the lounge/living room and I'm happy with progress to date - yes its taken "for ever" to get to this stage, but I'm relaxed about that because in part I know that my dh IS doing an excellent job and the "end" result will be worth any wait, and also because this is fitted in between work and assisting me with some aspects of "domestics" that I cannot manage myself.  (mostly shopping and heavy lifting).  The other part is that I am in fact quite relaxed naturally about such things taking their time!!  I grew up in somewhat a chaotic household that was never quite "done" so a state of disrepair and ongoing tasks is "normal".
BUT I do have to chivy dh to maintain motivation and the biggest problem is that for me I feel he lacks a bit of direction and planning!  I think I know "best", too! and sometimes its been proven that I do! but not always! its difficult to strike a balance between interfering and pressurising & that of interest and encouragement.  Something that my LateMother was rather good at and I am less so on account of I can do the intial "brilliant job! well done! but now can we move on to ..?" but this rapidly descends into a shrieky slightly threatening tone of NOW .. PLEASE .. NOW! .. OR ELSE! .. which both puts him off and frightens him!
BUT as we near the end of the major tasks - the ceiling looks fab all new and with the lights, the wallpaper is excellent with its matching across the walls around the room from floral to plain and the updated feel to the room now we've rid ourselves of the brickwork and fireplace that so dated the decor we're left now with somewhat a MODERN feel!

This week we expect to see the carpet fitted and the curtains arrive and we await a call for delivery of new furniture and today the 2nd of the finials we'd had to order for the pole has arrived and tomorrow we take delivery of a brand new TELEVISION! a posh one! one of these screenless ones? know what I mean? flat and thin it will be the sleekest thing in the entire house and SO technical that we can even ring it up and request that it records a programme for us!

Toy mice!

BUT its what to do with the CATS that is the problem.
We have two cats and they currently live in our house making it their home and lying on our furniture, atop the tv and basically free to come and go rolling about the floors and the occasional scratch at stuff! but this must STOP!  and its how to manage them when the new stuff arrives!

My husband suggests they are now old enough to leave home .. ?  or live outside? ..
Although well behaved, cats do unfortunately have a tendancy to do horrid things like bring mice and rats inside .. (we've had some hairy moments lately with Lilly bringing them IN still alive and flinging them about our feet both no.2.son, dh and I have rather unpleasant experiences of this and it proves that we don't always pay our cats full attention that Lilly can bring stuff in under our noses and under our feet!).  With the new carpet there will be rules: apparently no one is to enter wearing shoes.  Which poses a problem, our patio door out into the garden is the main access for the garden.  Apparently no one is to USE the garden .. Long and short of it is, that dh has been set straight that lovely though the idea is to have a brand spanking "new" room at the end of the day it is a LIVING room and not a show room. 

Posh new litter tray

The cats have been given a new litter tray.  A covered litter tray.  With a swinging liddy door.  Which they are NOT impressed by.  I didn't think they'd like it, we've now taken the swinging liddy door off and they are at least starting to show SOME curiosity.  Usually the cats will leap into and onto and clambour about anything that resembles a box and we've had some stressful moments wondering whether because they've got IN they can get OUT particularly Lilly and her adventure down the back of the chest freezer once the wallpaper pasting table was removed leaving a narrow "gap" which HAD to be investigated.  right to the bottom. in an upside down sort of scramble and much use of claws and a bit of a tug from no.1.son we managed to assist her in a scramble back to front and upside down OUT of the narrow gap but it was a hairy moment!
Which is another thing.  Cat hairs.  dh has been wheezing and somewhat breathless for some months now and at first we put it down to the brick dust but now am starting to think perhaps he is allergic to the cats!  We plan to buy a new vac.cleaner for the new carpet and will look at this hypo-sensitive ones that pet owners are encouraged to buy and hope that this does the trick - well its either that or he gets to live in the SHED!?

For some time I've agreed that dh can choose a new tv.  In part as reward for the hard work in getting the house done and as a retirement styled gift or treat to himself for having worked hard all his working life both in and out of the home!  His reward is a posh new tv that arrives this week.