In October 2008 we moved to "live the dream" We had a number of wonderful holidays here on the Isle of Wight and always planned to retire here. When I received a substantial sum of underpaid benefit we were able to pay off our mortgage and think about making our move. It felt a little selfish moving away from our elderly parents but we thought that with MS being such an unpredictable beast it would be better to move whilst we knew I was fit enough to enjoy it.

Luckily we were able to sell our property fairly quickly, despite it being the beginning of the financial downturn and housing slump. We had found the bungalow we wanted earlier in the year and our offer was accepted. Another legacy from a much loved Auntie enabled us to buy the bungalow outright and so we found ourselves living in our new home in Lake.

I vowed to increase my fitness here and try to go out walking as much as possible (weather permitting) Of course since moving in, the Islanders have suffered the coldest and wettest winter in living memory. Trust us, higher bills than normal due to the "credit crunch" and a higher than usual need to have the heating on after all the costs of moving house.

I found some walks I could cope with, the easiest being the Sandown seafront which if I went from Yaverland carpark up to Woolworths and back was about 2 miles, this was very tiring to start with and I did it for several weeks before increasing to something more challenging. We actually did it on Christmas Day together and the number of people we passed that smiled and wished us a Merry Christmas was far more than ever would have done on the mainland.

Hubby set to with a vengeance on creating some order in the garden and hacked away all the shrubs to find the garden was about a third bigger than we originally thought. He hired a mini digger and flattened the garden and dug out the pond. We ordered a flat pack summerhouse, some decking and a large rainwater tank (for which we are still waiting - take note B and Q!!) Then the snow and the rain came and stayed for weeks. He made the most of any dry days by laying the decking to build the summerhouse on. On Wednesday 11th February I went out for a walk and came home about 2 and a half hours later to find the main summerhouse was almost built. He was shattered but determined to get it done in a day as if it rained the wood would swell and wouldn't fit together the next day. On the Thursday he finished the walls and had had enough. The next day he could hardly move and he eventually relented to my "nagging" and had a few days to rest.

 

The new chalet at Sandown

We are now the proud owners of a chalet at Riviera Park (formerly known as Sandown Bay Holiday Centre) We are hiring it out to holidaymakers on a first come first served basis through email bookings only via our holiday website, more pictures and details are available by clicking the link.

 

 

The New chalet at Sandown more details at Harrods Isle of Wight Holidays

 

©Jenny Harrod 2019