Foxglove Narrowboat

I have come home from work tonight and I have just eaten tea and I am sitting here wondering what to blog about tonight. It is very difficult when we are not currently living on the boat and also there is not much happening either as most of the jobs have been sorted out already so sitting here thinking I have just imagined what it would be like finishing work and going straight to the boat as our permanent home. Currently we have only experienced going to the boat at weekends and for holidays but I wonder what it will really be like living on it permanently. Ideally it would be great for both of us to finish work and travel the canals but this is not our plan, we are still planning to continue work for the next few years. We will be trying this out during the next few months before the boat is painted as we will then decide whether we will finally take the plunge and move on Foxglove permanently. I think Roy is having doubts as I asked him at the weekend if he was looking forward to moving onto it and he answered ” Yes, but under the right circumstances”. Always a but! I think with me being ill during the weekend has worried him as everything seems to be easier when you are at home when you are ill such as water, electric, toilets, getting to the shops etc. I think we have just got used to the life that we lead and we will soon adjust. Everyone thinks that it would be me that would be having doubts but actually it is Roy. I can’t wait. Time will tell though. Looking forward to the Christmas break, lets see how this goes expecially if we are frozen in 🙂

Unfortunately this weekend has gone far too fast. We didn’t get to take Foxglove out today as it was far too windy and I was feeling even worse today. When you only have the weekends free and you are ill during that time it is so unfair. I am hoping by next weekend I will be much better as we have our friend coming over from Italy to visit us, Davide! He will arrive on Friday night and be going home early Sunday morning. We hope the weather will be good so we can take him out on the boat and take plenty of pictures.

Two more weeks of work to go and then I am off work for a whole 11 days off. Yippee!! I hope the canals aren’t frozen then as it would be lovely to take Foxglove out. Hopefully by then the generator should be in and working. The guys from Fischer Panda will be installing the new engine in the generator this week and it will all be installed next weekend back into Foxglove. Roy has started work on the boatman’s cabin already and he has wire brushed the stove, cleaned it all up and used that magic paste again and polished up the brasses on it. It looks brand new. I missed all the mess thank goodness as I have slept so much today it was all done and tidied up by the time I woke up 🙂

Love you Roy!

Well it was a very cold and frosty start to the day and I am absolutely laid up with cold but nothing was going to stop me getting to the boat today as the generator was coming out and after many an argument I gave in and let Roy have first drive of Foxglove. He had to turn the boat round 180 degrees which is very hard to do when you have never handled this kind of boat before and also the pressure was on as I was videoing and people were watching. Anyway, PERFECTION!! He looked very stressed and serious when moving it around but then when he stepped off the boat he had a certain smug look on his face. I was very proud of him. I can’t wait till I can have a go.

Could not have managed today without Angus. He was brilliant. The generator was so heavy but it was more awkward than anything to get out. Another guy from the marina also gave a hand, Mick from Whirlwind. Thank you so much for your help. Every picture I took though tended to have a view of a bum. No builders bums going on here! Angus has promised to wear his shorts for us next week when it goes back in. The jetties were so slippy I had visions of either one of the men falling in or the generator dropping in the marina. Anyway, with foreman Angus on hand everything went to plan apart from the guy who was supposed to pick it up at 11am didn’t turn it until 1 pm!!

Anyway, during our wait we felt a slight nudge on our boat and we wondered what it was. We now have neighbours for the first time on the right hand side of us. Julie & Tony and their 2 dogs which had the cutest little coats on to keep them warm. They gave us a guided tour of their boat which Tony has done all himself. There kitchen was huge. He had done an excellent job. Julie made me laugh so bad because she made a comment stating that it used to look like something out of Laura Ashley……I was laughing so bad cause that is where we bought all of our furniture from. She did mean Laura Ashley though from in the 70’s. Their boat was very modern compared to ours and I told her that she would think she had stepped back into time when she would see ours.

Anyway, we have come home tonight cause I am feeling quite poorly. To be honest I wouldn’t have minded staying on there tonight cause it is so much warmer than at home but we weren’t very organised this morning when we left and so we did not bring anything with us and so I am curled up in front of the fire tonight, Roy has just made me some chicken soup and I think I am going curl up go sleep with Wish. Need to be o.k for tomorrow becausee I do not like missing out on anytime on Foxglove and hopefully if I feel a little better tomorrow we might take Foxglove down the canal and back and I will finally get a chance to drive her (well cruise her, whatever the boating term is).

BIG THANKS TO ANGUS AGAIN FOR TODAY. REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR HELP!!!

   Can’t stop sneezing and I am in bed. I am going to get an early night because we have to be up early in the morning ready to get this generator out and I need to be there with my camera to catch all the action.
Hopefully I will feel a lot better tomorrow.

Looks like the weekend is still going to be a cold one. Nigel the boat mover has text today saying he has had to break through ice on the canal to get through to Aston Marina so he may have to cancel. If the weather should pick up over the weekend Roy and I are just going to take it our ourselves. Got to be done at some point. Plenty of warm clothing and hot drinks as Roy and myself have both got colds at the moment. Well he has man flu again and I have a cold! Oh well, one more day of work to go then weekend. Foxglove time again! 🙂

We might, and that is a might not a definite, be taking Foxglove out this weekend. I hope we do. Nigel, who was the boat mover for us is hopefully coming back to the marina and we will be taking Foxglove out for a few hours. Roy and I are yet to take her out. First job Saturday morning will be to get the generator out, then the fun will begin. Roy is worried because of the extra 10 foot we have compared to our last boat whereas I am not worried at all. Perhaps worried is not the correct word to use, I think perhaps embarrassed is the correct one. What is the worse that could happen?? I am trying not to think about that answer too much! I am sure we will be fine. No doubt Roy will be competing to see who will handle the boat better (I think that will be me, but don’t tell him that) 😉 Anyway, if I get it wrong and end up about to hit something I will just pass it over to Roy and I will go inside make a cup of tea. I have done this before. Roy was not at all impressed. Anyway I hope Nigel makes it over to Aston Marina for Saturday so he can show Roy & myself how to handle Foxglove properly. No pressure Nigel but we are so excited about going out on it and we don’t want to disappoint the viewers now do we? 😉 The weekends always have good photos and I am sure this weekend there will be plenty more. Keep watching!

Roy and I had to make the big decision about whether or not we have Foxglove painted next year or the year after. If we waited until 2014 though that meant if we rent our house out and move onto the boat now we would have nowhere to live for 2 months whilst the boat is being painted and if we decided to have it painted next April this meant we have the next few months to move in on Foxglove and see if everything is what we hope it will be and then rent the house out from May onwards because by then we will definitely know if we are going to like it or not, if we don’t we always have our house to live in but the boat for holidays and weekends. Our aim though is to be living on it permanently though by May of next year.  And then in a few years both of us will retire. We both had this 5 year plan and that in 5 years time when Roy will be 55 and I will 45 that we both give up work and travel around on our dreamboat. We all have to have dreams and this is what we are hoping for. Anyway we have paid the deposit to Sally Tooze & Martyn King who will be repainting Foxglove next year. We are booked in on 29th April. That will give us time to decide if we have her painted the same colour or not. Any suggestions are more than welcome.

Who knows though what the future might bring. Someone told me once these are real balls not crystal ones!! I suppose that is the exciting part finding out what your future has in store. 🙂

This is the next big thing to be done on Foxglove. Things are never simple when it comes to narrowboats. We knew when we bought Foxglove that the generator was broken, kaput, knackered, unserviceable of a better word. If we are to do any long term cruising we need to get it fixed. The people to fix it are Fischer Panda based in Dorest……not down the road in Stone a few miles away……ohhhh no, that would be too easy, only 300 miles away. However we have searched the entire universe (via google) and found a man who can collect it for us , take it to Dorset to be fixed (new engine for the generator required) bring it back to Aston Marina and then install it again. Simples! As the meerkats might say…….ohhhh no, not quite that simple. Just the slight problem of getting it out the boat. Anyway, an Angel has come to our rescue in the form of Angus ( sorry about that Angus) but he will be helping Roy on Saturday to get the generator out of the boat. I think a hoist and some muscle, bit of swearing, hopefully no falling in the marina, will be involved. I will be there with my camera to catch all the action. Oh almost forgot, might even get to take Foxglove out, well turn her around in her mooring spot. This should be entertaining to watch as we have not taken her out yet. Don’t even know how that wheely thingy ma jig works yet (speed wheel) never mind the extra 10 foot we have got to contend with. This is the part which I think will have more swearing than anything! I think it is going to be fun or funny, one of the two!!

Where do I start?? Well, Saturday morning we arrived at the boat and Rob had just finished doing the last bits of silicone to the boat. We were looking forward to him finishing as now we could start enjoying the boat as there are hopefully no more major jobs to do. We brought Wish with us and her dog bed and settled her down by the fire and  then put the kettle on. We just sat down in our new chairs for the first time then there was a knock at the door.

Angus & Janet our friends who are doing up a tug boat came to visit us. It was lovely to see them both. We got Angus some lager/beer expecially called TIGER. Thought it was quite funny. Not quite Tigger but it was very close.

Next job I had to do was take Wish for her bath & trim. Thanks to Dee, Stuart and Sharna as Wish came back looking gorgeous as always.  http://www.dirty-dogs.co.uk/

Whilst Wish was being bathed we nipped over to Trentham Gardens so I could get some really nice slippers for the boat from Moshulu. The have the nicest slippers ever. Also bought a new washing up bowl for the kitchen sink. Much needed!!
After picking Wish up we went back to Foxglove and we were really looking forward to our first night on the boat. It was so warm and the bed is soooooo comfy.

We woke up this morning and everywhere was frozen but inside the boat we were so warm. I hope nobody saw Roy as he walked to the end of the jetty to let Wish have a wee at 7.30am this morning. He went out in his pyjamas and his coat!! Mad! because it was freezing. Anyway, he came back to bed and both fell  back to sleep. It was just so warm and cosy we didn’t want to get up.

Eventually at 10am we got up and had breakfast and popped the radio on. It was lovely. Christmas songs were playing and it was just one of the moments when you think how lucky you are. Just felt really happy. Really good feeling.

Took Wish out for a walk around the marina. Everywhere was frozen. On the way back the swans decided to be very brave and chase Wish and myself. Quite frightening when they come up to you and they try to make themselves look twice as big by fluffing all their feathers up. Roy stood there laughing at us both. Scary, but it was funny!

Managed to sort out the shower curtain by buying a suction loop hook which has done the job great. Roy put the new tiffany lights up today. He rewired them to take 12 volt fittings. They look fantastic.

Wish has made herself right at home on the boat. It has been fantastic this weekend and very relaxing.
I did not want it to end.
Unfortunately it had to and we are back home and already looking forward to next weekend.
The engine to the generator has to be sorted out next week. Having difficulties already with this as we are trying to get it down safely to Dorset to be repaired and back again, that is the easy part, getting it out of the boat is the hard bit!

Well here I am blogging whilst relaxing on Foxglove. First night on the boat and I have got to admit I am roasting. Only the radiators are on and we have had to switch them off. Just listening to the radio as we have no TV (yet) and would like to keep it that way. So relaxing. Will have to be a quick blog tonight as there is hardly a signal and I am not going outside. Far too cold out there. You will all have to wait for the full  report tomorrow night when I have the Internet back. I am very happy though, very relaxed. Everything I hoped it would be 🙂