home sweet home

Ok so I have finally got around to taking some photos of the loft.

A very strange thing has transpired since selling our boat. When we lived on the boat we were so house proud. We were constantly making sure it was presentable, neat and tidy and able to slot right into an interior design magazine should they come knocking. When we moved into the loft we assumed that this trait would follow and so with four days off at Easter Woz and I expected to be working dawn til dusk, transforming the loft into a home and something we could be proud of.

What has happened is just the opposite. It is so strange but the move from owning our own home to renting has given us a complacency about home life. We come home and treat it as a hotel. Our things are unpacked but not really for good. We've managed to look past the yellow sponge painting on the kitchen wall, the horrible laminate kitchen work top and the crooked toilet seat. It's as if they're no longer there. I am convinced that if the loft was ours we'd have gone crazy painting and ripping things out by now, but given that it's not we haven't even been able to muster the motivation to put photos up on the wall or make it ours in any way.

We're still looking to buy a flat in this area but with crazy prices which don't seem to be affected by what is apparently a falling market we've not been able to find something we think will not only be a home for us but also an investment.

So here it is, a beautiful building with lots of potential, furnished with nothing but stock standard Ikea furniture and a touch of imagination but still a long way to go.

It's essentially a studio flat, large living area downstairs and two mezzanine areas above, one (pictured) we use as the bedroom and the other which is above the kitchen and bathroom, we use for storage.

blog roll

Dear readers,
I've decided to include some links on our blog and thought I'd introduce each of them to you.

What strikes me with the personal blogs is that Woz or I have grown up with most of these people and yet if we look at their lives now they barely show a resemblance.

In alphabetical order ...

Doctor Benny's Rural Adventures - My not so baby brother's adventures in rural Victoria as he studies to become a Doctor. This boy leaves nothing unblogged!

Kiwis on Top - Friends and fellow Londoners, Andrew & Vicki are Kiwis who flew the nest to spend 5 years in Melbourne and are now living in London. Enviable photography.

Live the Dream - a site set up when we were selling our boat. Photos and some commonly asked questions if you want to get up to speed with our life on the water without reading the last three years posts on this site!

Oh Paky Day - A blog set up by our dear friend Claire to keep us informed of the goings on in Pakenham. Guaranteed to make us truly homesick with every post. (No doubt this blog is financed by my parents).

Top End Time - Probably the strongest contrast to our life so far, (and her own growing up), Woz's sister Michelle's adventures in Northern Australia. A constant source of inspiration to us to reinvent our life.

Right here, right now - The great British weather.

Weatherheads Online - Written by my Mum this blog gives the Irwins a run for their money and provides me with daily reminders of what my life was like growing up. Look out for the snakes (killed by Mum with her bare hands), goannas, echidnas, steam engines and sawmillers and join them on their caravaning escapades in the Australian bush.

since we've no place to go

5 degrees today and more snow, this time it fell most of the day, at times in huge marshmallow sized flakes. It's the third day in a row now we've had snow but still no ground cover. Beautiful all the same. Makes me glad we chose to stay in London for Easter rather than fly to one of it's warmer neighbouring cities, as most do.

oh the weather outside is frightful

There is no mistaking it, the weather of late has been particuarly wintery.

In Australia, each year on the 1st of September, the population rejoices for Spring has come. On that very day the air smells sweeter, plump and rich with pollen and grasses, the day is warmer and from that moment on and for the months ahead there is not a hint of winteryness to be seen or felt (at least that's how I remember it).

In Britain, the 1st of March comes along and it passes by almost unnoticed but for a sprinkling of blossom on previously barren branches, on the 1st of June what should be the start of Summer also passes by, green but by no means warmer.

And here we are, late March. Technically, almost a full month into Spring. Bitterly cold, blustery and grey. Is it just me or is there something wrong?

For three years we've dreamt of a White Christmas, but never a White Easter. This morning however we woke to a White Easter Sunday. The magical sight of soft snow swirling about in the wind, falling gently to the ground was enough to melt my heart and my resolve against the Great British Weather, at least until the next snow free 7 degree 'Spring' day.

and so begin 'the loft years'

Well we're in. In, but a long long way from comfortable. We have boxes, plastic tubs and bags littering every inch of floor space at the moment as we slowly try to find some sort of order. The flat has the potential to be amazing, but as it is a rental property it has been fitted out with the bare minimum, to fit a small budget and with the least possible taste or creativity. As we're renting we can only do so much, but in a few weeks we hope we will have transformed it somewhat from what it was.

We're absolutely loving having a bath in the flat. For a year and a half we've had to take Nate over to the bathroom at the marina facilities, which meant carting over shampoo, fresh clothes, a fresh nappy, a towel and a toddler who refused to be held and would wriggle his way out of our grasp to walk over himself with reckless disregard for time constraints. All this in the freezing cold.

We're also loving having more floorspace. Soooo much more floorspace. In this flat we have enough room for a full sized dining table which is something we've missed for so long. Eating a meal together is something that is important to us and wasn't always possible on the boat.

So, we'll keep working ... watch this space for photos.

those were the barge years my friend

I thought they’d never end ... at times anyway. At least that’s what I’m trying to remind myself in what has been a very sad week or two as we prepare to move off the boat for good.

It’s not yet been two weeks since we wrote last and it feels like months. After much searching, a few weeks ago Woz and I found a flat we liked and put the plans in motion to move out of the boat. With our safety certificate passed, hull survey done and the flat ready within two weeks we signed on the dotted line and will move in today with the new owner moving into the boat tomorrow.

The last three years have been an emotional journey. Having reduced the boat to a shell not long after buying it and slowly rebuilding it, it has been a challenge at the best of times. I remember clearly, waking up, pushing our mattress up against the wall, covering it with plastic, retrieving a suitable piece of clothing from beneath another piece of plastic, taking a shower over at the shower block, then making my way to work, leaving Woz to continue to work at making a home for us. After work I would come home and join him, turning in for the night around 11 or 12pm, with a quick flip of the mattress down to the floor and a quick brush to the soles of our feet so as not to transfer anymore dirt and grime into the bed as possible. How we didn’t look like homeless people is beyond me.

I remember months of not having a toilet, running water, or a floor to walk on. Days that were swallowed by a perpetual list of things to do, broken only by short stays of friends and family from abroad.

Those were the days my friend …

I remember the thrill of being able to take the boat out whenever we felt like it, having a completely different view out your bedroom window if you so chose, ducks and geese meandering past, showing people the home that we’d built with our bare hands, amazing parties, being able to show friends a glimpse of a London they might not otherwise see, and the locks … oh the locks!

So, as the last chapter of the Barge Years draws to an end, we begin another chapter, in a loft apartment on another wharf just around the corner and still with access to the water (although no views).

We shall call these our Loft Years.

for a short time

Our last trip on the boat. Sigh ....

We've had a very late Winter this year and been experiencing absolutely terrible weather so it was with great trepidation and lots of coats, gloves and hats that we set out on Saturday, up and back to Little Venice for the last time.

We took a group of friends along for the ride, some of them veterans, and others new to the experience. The weather was kind to us and we made it all the way through the four locks and safely to a pub for lunch without getting wet. On the way home we were met with relentless drizzle but thankfully no downpours.

Nate slept both there and back, first on my shoulder at the back of the boat, and later on Bec's lap. It would have been nice for our last trip to have been on a sun drenched day, with lush green surrounds rather than the grey winter landscape but unfortunately we've had the last of our Summer days on Papillon.

What next? A yacht on the Mediterranean? That could work.

right behind you

just the two of us

On Saturday morning Woz helped one of our neighbours, Dom, take his boat down to the local boat painter around the corner. Dom hadn't taken his boat out since last Summer so he called in Woz to help him out. We've taken our boat out too many times to count, particularly in the last few months as the end to our 'barge years' draw to a close.

The exterior of Dom's boat was in a particularly bad condition so it will be a complete transformation when it comes back ... although he's still not sure what colour. Plenty of time for that though!

busy bees

Life in our household is very busy at the moment. We have an endless list of 'to do's' which seems to be added to daily with a comparative few being ticked off. There's the boat safety certificate and everything we've had to do to make sure it's up to scratch, the hull survey, booking tickets and everything else that comes with it for our trip to South Africa and Kenya in April, trying to find a place in a nursery for Nate, and then there's finding a place to live which to date has involved countless hours of scanning the internet, as yet, in vain.


The sale of our boat is coming along nicely, well frightening close actually. We haven't agreed a date we will move out as we're yet to find a flat to rent, but with the new owner having sold her flat and staying on a friends living room floor we're obviously keen for it to happen a.s.a.p.

there were three in the bed

Well it's official, after three years we now have cabin fever. They said it would happen, and actually we didn't think it would take this long, but three years down the track, with the end in sight, the boat all of a sudden seems to have gotten smaller. Nate's toys seem to be bursting out of his toy basket, our clothes out of our wardrobe and even the kitchen cupboards seem to have shrunk.

Only we still don't know where we're going next ...

no fixed address

It never fails to amaze me how much of a spectacle a narrowboat passing through a lock becomes. Add to the equation a flashy modern boat and a cute toddler and crowds are drawn, infinite in number and unrelenting in their stare.

This afternoon I had another disturbing phone call from Woz. This time he and two mates had taken the boat out to Paddington. I was of course planning on coming home and relaxing but once again, a familiar conundrum presented itself. How is it that I can go home when indeed my home is not at home at all?

The answer today lay in the number 29 bus where I jumped off at Camden Lock to meet Woz, Dobs and Martin. Our past experience of Camden has been either passing through on the underground, an exercise which results in only a brief interchange with Camdenites, or to pass through via the canal, where the younger Camden crowd come face to face with the lock, and almost with ourselves. Venturing through Camden High Street on foot on a warm sunny afternoon however is an entirely different scenario. Pushing a buggy through the immense crowds who are knee deep in Doc Martens, clothed in black and sporting multi-coloured mohawks is an experience not to be forgotten and certainly one that left me feeling out of place.

I finaly met up with the guys at the lock, where millions of visitors (no word of a lie) photographed and recorded us as we passed Nate over the railings, then the buggy, then me.

I don't get it ... Boat goes in, gates close. Boat goes down, gates open. Boat goes out again. It's not that exciting.

But still they stare ...

mooring anyone?

What a rollercoaster ride the last few months have been.

On New Year's Day we had a phonecall from someone who had seen our site and was interested in viewing the boat. We'd only listed the boat a week or two before, and over the busy Christmas period so we hadn't anticipated much interest. We acted immediately and scheduled the viewing for later that afternoon. What a great start to the year!

The viewing took two hours as the enthusiastic couple questioned us on every detail and inspected the boat inside and out, getting very excited in the process. They left us high as a kite with full intentions to buy the boat. We then stopped taking viewings and put everyone else who contacted us on hold. A fortnight later with great reluctance they came back to us, regrettably unable to finance the purchase and terribly disappointed.

So were we.

But not for long, with viewings back on the cards our second intersted buyer came along. He too loved the boat and after a quick 20 min early morning viewing before work he too set off to organise the finance on the boat. A week or so later, he had bad news for us, and once again, our hopes were dashed.

I'd like to say we were very level headed about it all but in all honesty we had a few dark days there when we realised that the hard bit wouldn't be finding someone who loved the boat, but finding someone who could finance it. It really felt as though we'd never find anyone.

Last weekend we scheduled a third viewing ... she offered and the process began again. Things don't feel like they're on hold this time though as we've been busily exchanging emails and paperwork. Having given notice to British Waterways, if things go ahead we could be moving in as little as a month ... but where to?

According to our poll, our readers think that we should opt for a bigger boat. We're still searching, and should a mooring come up we'd love nothing more.

Anyone got a mooring up their sleeve?

slightly different from yesterday

like sunday morning

cashed up?

Of course there is always a plus side to publicity, particuarly when you have a captive market of obviously interested punters. At the risk of being completely inundated with questions, potentially making our leisurely afternoon into an advertising campaign we put up a 'For Sale' sign on our boat. Lots of photos just like this one were taken. Now we play the waiting game.

camera shy

Every man and his dog was out walking along the canal today. It was our first trip out since last Summer and somehow over the Winter months we had forgotten the amount of attention boaters receive when stopped at the locks. Everyone was looking into our boat, watching us working the lock and taking photos. Their unrelenting stare proved a little too much for me at times (ever the wallflower) and I realised I'd have to get used to it again, sort of like soft winter feet walking bare in the dirt again after months of socks and boots. At least that's what we did in the country!

gothic city

Those who have travelled with us through Camden Lock on a sunny day will know it is known for it's masses of young gothic revellers, loitering around the lock, sitting on it and generally seemingly unaware that it is used for anything other than a meeting spot for other paleskinned, dark haired friends.

On a winter's afternoon it was staggering (no pun intended) to see how many were out and already hitting the bottle. To me it seems such a waste but then maybe I'm just getting old.

Spot the odd one out.

have boat will travel

What to do with a gorgeous sunny Saturday? Invite friends over and take the boat out. At least for a little while ... all too soon our home will no longer be ours.

Today Lindsay and Delilah came over for lunch and we took the boat out for a short jaunt along the canal towards Paddington. Nate loved every moment (well at least the ones he was awake for).

everybody needs good neighbours

sundrenched

Basking in the morning sun. Hard to believe we're not even half way into February yet.


The forecast snow not only didn't arrive but in fact the sun shone most of the day and has done for most of the week. At this rate our deathly pale skin might even get a bit of a glow about it.

they say it will snow tomorrow

and I think they may just be right.

This morning was one of those awful mornings that make even the brightest button want to stay in bed all day. Unfortunately for me, had I done so, a certain little boy would have been up, drawing all over the walls, playing with all the sharp things and dragging the entire contents of the washing basket through the boat .... again. So rise I did and Nate and I ventured out to 'Messy Play'.

The weather managed to hold out while we were there, but decided to bucket down just in time for our ten minute walk home. The walk then took about twice as long as I fought to push the buggy directly into the galeforce winds, getting drenched from head to toe, the icy winds cutting like knives at my wet fingers and forehead.

Remind me again why we don't live in Barbados? Woz?

conversations on a wednesday afternoon

Woz: "Hey, where are you?"

Em: "I've just picked Nate up from Linda's and I'm on the bus coming home, why?"

Woz: "Because I just wanted to let you know that I'm at St Pancras lock"

Em: "Ok cool ..... why are you there?"

Woz: "It's a beautiful day. I wanted to take the boat out to make sure everything was running ok after the weekend. It's fine."

Em: (a little confused) "Ok great .... so where are you now?"

Woz: "At St Pancras Lock. I should be home by the time you get there"

Em: "Right, (starting to dawn on me) and where's the boat?"

Woz: "At St Pancras Lock"

Em: "Uggh! Well it better be back when I get home because I'm tired and cold and I just want to go home and if you have my home then I can't go there can I?"

Woz: "Don't worry, I'll definitely be home by the time you get there"

Em: (with desperation) "Please, please, please be there when I get there!"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Is it just me or is it a bizarre concept that someone can just take my house away while I'm not looking?

carpe diem

Today was a gorgeously sunny, mild and spring-like day and so this afternoon Woz and I decided to take the boat out. Now that the boat is on the market (and we have someone who is very interested in buying it) we're not sure how many more chances we'll have to take it out and so we decided to seize the day and invited Dobs and Bec to come with us.


As we moved out of the basin the thrill of 'home on the move' returned to us and re-ignited our passion, stirring up thoughts of 'what are we doing?' and 'we must be mad to give this up!'. Nate seemed to be experiencing it to a whole new depth too and it was so much fun watching him, watching his home, moving down the canal.


The excitement was short lived. We weren't the only ones to relish the opportunity and so when we arrived at the first lock we had to switch the engine off to wait for three boats passing through. By the time they had moved through the lock we couldn't start the engine again and found out that our battery was flat.

We then began the slow journey home, being towed alongside another boat heading our way.

Oh well ......

waltzing matildas

This morning Bec and I had a girly day together to celebrate her birthday. We spent the morning ice skating in the gorgeous setting of Somerset House, not that we noticed. We were both out of practise and spent the majority of the session with eyes transfixed on our feet, or the grandparent moving dangerously slowly in front of us, or the small child whizzing past us and practically between our legs. There were several near misses (particuarly while taking the photos with our phone whilst skating) but thankfully both of us managed to stay on our feet.

Afterwards we warmed up with a hot chocolate and then walked to Covent Garden for lunch.

Being Australia Day we had to visit the Australia Shop in Covent Garden and manged to spend a small fortune buying coveted treats for ourselves.

a very grand entrance

After putting up with a very temperamental diesel central heating system for years Woz and I decided that we couldn't pass on the boat with the heating the way it was and ripped the old system out, replacing it with electric radiators. They're incredibly efficient, have individual timers and work at the flick of a switch! Luxury!

With the space we've gained at the front of the boat where the boiler used to sit, we now have an entrance 'hall' where we have put up shelving for bags and shoes as we come in. It's made such a difference to how clean we're able to keep the boat and we're kicking ourselves we didn't do it three years ago.

Nate loves the new space as he is able to sit or stand on the shelves, leaning up on the counter from his elevated position. The fruit bowl however has had to find a new home.

thank dom you're here

Some of you may know I love a good celebrity spotting and have a natural attraction to all things 'TV'. Last week Woz and I were watching a new TV show which our Aussie readers will be very familiar with, 'Thank God you're here'. It's originally an Australian show, by the production company, Working Dog. Anyway, as the credits were rolling Woz and I were very excited to see a familiar name, our neighbour Dom, who is a production designer. We sent him a text to say that we'd seen his name and he responded with an invitation to go along to a filming session the following week at The London Studio's. You can imagine my excitement.

We had a brilliant night, sitting in one of the control rooms with the production and lighting team. From there we watched the filming on several monitors showing every angle captured by the various cameras, the autocue and the other various animations used in the final product. We watched as props came in and out of the room, watched on as Dom scutinised his work as each new set was unveiled. laughed with the crew at the sketches as they happened and all with the running soundtrack behind us of 'Ok I want camera 2, long shot, camera 4, cut to 8, and pan, camera 3' etc. etc. etc. Dom made us feel so comfortable there and everyone else was incredibly friendly to us too. I warned Dom that they shouldn't be too nice to me or I'd be there every week.

Afterwards, following a tour of the set we joined cast and crew on the 18th floor for drinks over looking the Thames. One of the regulars on the Aussie version, Hamish Blake, made an appearance both last week and at the filming we were at. He was brilliant, and it was very obvious he was a seasoned guest on the Australian version. I was so tempted to go up and say 'hi' (mostly just to tell my family I'd met him) but I wasn't really sure what to say except 'Hi, I'm Austrayan' and hope the conversation moved on from there. In light of the fact that I actually knew little about his work I decided not to go up and introduce myself and I think I can safely say it was best for all concerned.

google us

Since we created our live the dream site I have installed a hit counter on it, mainly so that we could monitor the site and see if anyone was looking at it and if we were getting any returning visitors.

On setting it up I thought I might as well do the same for our personal blogs, so tonight Woz and I decided to have a butchers (to use an English expression) at some of the statistics and found some very funny results.

Key word searches in Google which have led people to our site in the last month:

• banksy
• london snow march
• london weather in march 2006
• how to say st pancreas
• st pancras renovation
• st pancras international
• st pancras inside
• boring (how dare they!)
• bruges canal by narrowboat
• dishes prepared during christmas in london
• london fireworks display new years eve 2007
• boxing day going out london
• copenhagen fireworks video "new years eve"

and our favourite, 'romantic dinner london' in which we made it to number 2 of 263,000!

Who says that romance is dead after six years of marriage?!

should old aquaintance be forgot

Another New Year's Eve, another anniversary which holds particular significance for us. In a way, the three years it's been since we left Australia have flown by, and at other times it seems as though we've been gone for decades.

They say that when you've been away from your hometown or country for a long time and you go back to visit or to live, nothing will have changed. Everyone will still be doing the things they were doing years ago and you will feel that you're the only one whose life is radically different. On the contrary, on our last visit we found our friends lives had changed significantly, they'd become engaged, married, had children, bought houses, changed jobs ... all of those major milestones in life, and there's the terrifying thought that we'll be forgotten in all of that.

And now, a move that will bear even more significance to the changing face of Australia, a new government has been elected in, and the British media has taught us little about our Prime Minister except his name and that he is fluent in Cantonese .... or Mandarin ...., (or are they the same thing?!).

There are of course things we could do to keep in touch. We could listen to the various Melbourne radio stations online, keeping up with the Australian music scene and popular culture (and believe me they vary significantly), but then there's the strange and slightly off putting feeling of hearing the morning news when you're heading to bed or the forecast of clear sunny skies and a hot day when outside it is dark, bleak and cold. We can read our friends and families blogs, where we treasure each snippet of seemingly boring information or irrelevant photo, and there's always the phone, texts or emails.

So, ahead of us lies another year in which Australia and the lives of our friends and families will go on without us. The price we pay for adventure. We're excited about our year ahead and have made a great many ambitious plans we hope will come to pass, not the least of which we plan to finally travel to Africa, a return visit for Woz and a daunting first time for me. Time will tell.

Here's to another year of 'making it count'.

it wasn't me

When we first moved to London three years ago Woz and I heard about Banksy, an English pseudo-anonymous graffiti artist who has revolutionised graffiti as we know it.


Unlike other artists, who seemingly randomly 'tag' walls in cities all over the world, Banksy's work which often features rats, is satirical with anti-war, anti-capitalist or anti-establishment messages.

For a long time Banksy's work was blatantly obvious as he used a distinctive method of stencilling, allowing him to complete large pieces of work in minutes. His work opened the floodgates however as copycat works were seen popping up around London in the very streets Banksy frequented.

This one was mistaken for a Banksy (which would be worth a considerable amount of money) however it was actually sprayed by another artist 'Dbase' who has put his name to many Banksy-esque pieces of art.

Always one step ahead, Banksy visited the graffiti and put his own stamp on the work, a signature rat with a spray can confessing 'It wasn't me'.

coram's fields, bloomsbury

happy days

Woz has taken this week off work and wont return until January 2nd. We're hoping to have some lazy days together, mulling around, hanging out with friends and checking out what's going on in London.

This morning we've had yet another sleep in, this time snoozing while Nate played with his new toys. Then we headed out for a walk to Coram's Fields so that Nate could get some fresh air and run around. We wandered slowly home checking out the flats in the local streets and talking about where we want to live. It's fun dreaming but we're not looking too seriously until we find a buyer for the boat.

As far as the sale process is going we've had loads of hits on our website with many returning visitors, and have a viewing lined up next week. It's strange to think that they could be the very one to buy our home and that our life on the water could be over. Who knows what 2008 will bring?

thames views near putney bridge

angelic

boxing day

This morning after another sleep in we woke to a beautifully sunny day and then the five of us headed out for a walk along the Thames,through Bishops Park and then for coffee at a little coffee shop close by where we sat and chatted for hours.

Back at home tonight Woz and I are sitting by the fire, bellies very full from the last few days of indulgence (and I dare say a few pounds heavier) and yet we continue to eat - a chocolate orange which was just begging to be eaten. I have a feeling we may be making a few New Year's resolutions next week, but until then, we're going to eat and be merry!

and so this is christmas

Woz, Nate and I spent Christmas in Putney this year, staying with friends from Christmas Eve through to Boxing Day.

On Christmas Eve we were invited to drinks at Linda and Sanjay's house where we devoured mince pies, mulled wine and ....... curry! (Sanjay is Indian and over the years his very English wife Linda has mastered the art of traditional Indian cooking passed on by her mother-in-law). Nate absolutely loved the party as most of the people there had kids and brought them along. The adults gathered in the kitchen where we chatted over traditional Christmas music with lashings of Bollywood, and the kids ran riot in the rest of the house. We had a great night!

After the party we travelled home with Bec and Andrew (Dobs) who we were staying with for Christmas. With Nate being the only child in the house and being totally unaware of the excitement of the day, we all slept in until quite late, had a leisurely breakfast, exchanged presents and then got to work preparing a traditional Christmas dinner, led by Dobs.

It was mouthwatering. A huge turkey, covered with rashers of bacon, baked with pigs in a blanket (sausages wrapped in bacon) and stuffing balls (it's not as common to stuff the bird with stuffing here as it is to simply serve balls of stuffing, cooked in the roasting pan with the meat). We had parsnips roasted in honey, carrots soaked in ginger beer, brussel sprouts served with red onion and chestnuts, Yorkshire puddings and potatoes roasted in semolina and goose fat. To top it off was a gravy made from scratch with ham, vegetables and cloves of all sorts of things!

Dobs did an incredible job cooking the elaborate feast for eight, co-ordinating the timing of each dish and cooking each one to perfection - hard to believe it was his first attempt.

merry christmas to all and to all goodnight!

Christmas Eve, you've got to love it. All the anticipation of the day ahead, Christmas Carols playing (or Christmas Songs as they have here), baking, wrapping, the pitter patter of tiny feet totally unaware of what is to come, and food glorious food!

We'd like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas from Woz, Nate and myself and hope that it brings all the joy and laughter it should.

Here's a little Christmas wish especially from us, we've been practising for a while, so we hope you like it ... (and special thanks go to the little elf who put us on to it!).

Merry Christmas!

jack frost

We've had clear sunny days for the last few weeks and frost most mornings but today we woke to find the basin covered in a thin layer of ice. With Nate locked down in his high chair eating porridge I headed out with the camera with the intention of photographing the ice and got a little distracted capturing the world around me.

This Winter feels to be the coldest we've had yet and the chilly days seem to penetrate to the core. It has taken every ounce of energy on my behalf in getting out of the boat during the day, preferring to hibernate in the warm. Nate doesn't seem to mind the cold and will happily play at the park for as long as I will let him but my time frame is getting slimmer and slimmer.

Winter in London brings an incredible array of delicious aromas; the smell of chestnuts roasting on the street, mulled wine, and the minute we step through the gates into the basin, the smell of coal fires burning brightly. A sweet smell which once you step into the boat, permeates everything and like a warm pair of well worn slippers says, 'I'm home'.

deck the halls

mid morning frost

This week we've had chilly days of around 5 or 6 degrees, and brilliant blue skies which has made it feel about 2 degrees. Every morning we've had a layer of frost and have had to take extra care not to slip getting out of the boat, especially on the early mornings when I leave for work in the dark and the frost isn't visible.

This morning, when I ventured out at 9.30 to take Nate to playgroup the ground was still laden with frost and it appeared as if it had snowed. All the roofs on the boats were covered and glistening sparkly white.

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas! Fingers crossed for snow!

for sale, enquire within

Well, it's official - Papillon is on the market. After almost three years on the water we have decided to return to terra firma. We have loved living on the water and are sad to be giving this lifestyle up but have simply run out of space with a little boy who is growing by the day, and dare I say it, if number two comes along we simply wont all fit.

It has been a long process getting to this point. We have looked into selling our boat and buying another to put on our mooring, but with only another 10 feet of space we were not sure it was worth the bother and expense. We've also looked into Dutch barges, and even entertained the idea of buying one in the Netherlands and bringing it across the Channel (ever the adventurous types) but the problem of a mooring in Central London for a Dutch Barge defeated us.

So, the search is now on for an affordable flat in Central London that offers close proximity to a park for Nate and enough rooms to house us. We will stand our ground! We will not be driven to suburbia!

In the meantime, we're marketing the boat ourselves, and have designed the flyer below, and a website accompanying it with further information (to stop us going around the bend answering the same questions). Although a good amount of our readers are in Australia, we thought it wouldn't hurt to post the information up for those of you in London who might either be interested yourselves or know of someone who might.

Live the dream!

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More photos of the new look 'Papillon'. A striking difference from what it was.

right back at ya

Although we have loads of windows in the boat, they're all well above Nate's line of vision. Our bedroom window however, is his window to the world. Standing on our bed he can see out into the basin and watch the boats coming and going and the variety of wildlife that swim past the window.

Woz took this photo using his zoom lens from another boat across the water. I love this shot because it captures Woz's reflection and Nate imitating him by putting the phone (which he knows has a camera in it) up to his eye to zoom back at Woz.