Jonno

Did we Escape to the Country?

Eventually. After what seems like an eternity we do seem to have escaped right out to what is known as the countryside. It’s taken a while and it hasn’t been a straight even path but we have made it and our next little adventure has well and truly begun.

Sorry for disappearing

First things first though, we do have a serious apology to make to all of you for disappearing these past few weeks. It’s been a bit full on and busy but that really is no excuse not to keep in touch and update our blog so we throw ourselves at the mercy of the court and hope that you can find it in your hearts to forgive us (slightly dramatic).

Leaving Northamptonshire

Last time you saw us we were in a fabulous Airbnb up in Northamptonshire in a charming village called Middleton Cheney. Our two months there were a delight and we absolutely loved the apartment and the countryside all around us, thoroughly enjoying our regular hikes and walks around Banbury, Brackley, Towcester and more.

It was lovely being near our eldest son Shaun and his even lovelier wife Katie and we tried to make the most of our time living so close. But our property search had taken us back down to Wiltshire and resulted in us buying a two bed bungalow near Devizes. Time to put down some roots.

Off to Wiltshire

Strangely we had been taken to Devizes, Calne and Chippenham by the TV team when we were featured on Escape to the Country so knew the area fairly well. Plus spending the whole of the Autumn in Melksham seemed to seal our love of Wiltshire and when Jo saw the property online we immediately arranged a viewing and fell for it.

After travelling with all our belongings on our backs for the past seven years it was plainly obvious that we would need to buy one or two items. In fact we needed everything! Can you imagine just how much stuff that is? No knives or forks, sheets, towels, tools, anything! Our online shopping has gone through the roof in the past few weeks!!!

“Countryside all around us is absolutely stunning”

So we moved in at the beginning of April and very kindly our good friends Richard and Dee offered us their spare room for as long as we needed it whilst we got ourselves straight. Three days of cleaning and tidying and buying second hand furniture ensued and by the end of the weekend we moved in for real. Jo had amazingly found a bed company that sold and delivered a new bed within a week so once that was in we were good to go.

“Lots of footpaths and places to explore in this part of Wiltshire so still JWalking”

Our new home

It isn’t a new build and has had a single guy living there for a year or so which has left it requiring a bit of work but we’re in no rush and have time to do what we want and the pace to want to do it. The kitchen and bathroom could both do with renewing or changing, and we need new carpets throughout but again we will get around to that in time.

Sam and Tabitha came for a weekend and seriously rolled up their sleeves to help with a few big jobs which was incredibly helpful. We needed a wardrobe demolishing and a shed taking down and they’re both very good in the destruction field.

“Not too shabby in the painting department either …….”

When we were looking for a new home there were a few requirements for where we would live. A small village with a country pub and a shop and a friendly community spirit. This is exactly what we seem to have got now. A fabulous pub and shop and the people have been so very welcoming and friendly. We are so looking forward to getting to know more people and getting involved in the local community. Our next adventure I reckon.

So the answer is ‘Yes. We definitely have escaped to the country‘.

31/03 – 28/04/2022

44 comments

  3. All is forgiven for your short escape from blogging…especially when an escape to the country is what has now happened! I hope an Airbnb is in the future 🙂 All the best in your new home! xo

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  4. Welcome to your new home! How lovely, the beginning of a new chapter of your lives. I wish you every happiness and feel sure you’ve made the right decision and will embrace village life very well in such a lovely part of the country.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Thanks so much. It’s a brand new challenge and we’re really looking forward to every step. The village seems exactly what we were looking for and people have been so friendly.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  7. You just have to show us around! I’m so exited for you – you know me, I just love restoring/renewing/making over, and I love seeing others do the same. I want to see it all, both inside and out, and progress reports as you transform the place to something stunningly comfortable.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Thanks so much. We’re so excited to be starting this next phase of our lives and although there is a bit if work to be done it won’t stop the walks.

      Like

      Reply

  13. Huge congratulations to you both on being tenacious and waiting until you found the right place for you! I’m so excited and as you say there’s lots of walking to be done so now you can share your new environment with us all. I’m so pleased for you 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Thanks Deb. It’s taken a little time to find the right place but we’re feeling pretty good about our new home now. Hopefully it’s just right for us. Lots of work but as you say lots of walks too.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  15. Fantastic news Jo & Jon. How odd has it been having a home of your own after so long? Hope all goes well down there in Wiltshire. Don’t forget to ask if you ever need a housesitter!!!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  16. Many congratulations to you both on your new home. It sounds perfect for you and I hope you both will be very happy there. I look forward to reading about Wiltshire life!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  18. Congrats on your new home! I thought we needed a lot of stuff when we bought our house a few years ago, since we’d been living in a furnished flat for a decade beforehand and had almost no furniture or appliances, but we at least had kitchen utensils and basic stuff like that. Starting completely from scratch would be a lot more work!

    Like

    Reply

    • Thanks Helen, it really is a lovely part of the country to settle in. Life is far slower and more gentle than elsewhere and there are so many places to explore.

      Like

      Reply

      • Glad you have found somewhere to settle down.

        I agree with you that life is far slower and more gentle . We have found it the same since our move to Cornwall from Hampshire nearly 2 years ago. Miss being near the family but I wouldn’t go back. A far better quality of life 😀 and lots of beaches

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

Please leave us a comment, it always makes our day.

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.