Mid May already

I have been planning to write more blog posts nearly every day but time just flies!

We have been busy with baking, celebrations, visits and visitors and goodbyes, but most of all packing and organizing. Finally all the boxes are filled and sealed, the total count added up to whopping 46. So many even though we have sold a lot of furniture and household items, brought even more to charity and given some to our lovely new neighbour Hilda. She even bought the wee car, yippiyay for not having any hassle with that!

This is what I have been dealing with: things piled to guestroom bed to be packed. This phase has been quite chaotic, trying to pack everything that was still left in the house to be used to the end. But only 10 days to go, the boxes need to be sealed and addressed before the haulier comes to collect them.

Here are Sandsmuggler's side windows. We needed to restrict the visibility as the bed is back there, but didn't have any fancy solution on hand, packing paper is working just fine, or the Polish patent as I call it. :-)

Chest of drawers from our bedroom are the kitchen area. View in from the side door.

 Don't worry, we are not entirely mad, the tallboys will only travel a day trip with us to Devon. Here they still stand in the middle of the floor in front of the bed, but will be placed on the bed for the trip, so that the dogs have room.

And what would a post without our hairy ladies be. Daddy went out through that door, they are making sure not to miss his return. Bless them.

May Day, new month, new beginnings.

This blog is about our adventures travelling in Europe, life with our dogs, spending time with family and loved ones, a little bit of this and a bit more of that. 

Here the background to the name Sandsmuggler:
We live close to the dunes at the estuary of river Boyne in county Meath in Ireland.
The dunes are a protected environment, and nothing is to be taken from them, including sand. 
But our two hairy dogs love to play on the sand, rumble around in the grass wrestling with each other, chasing and crashing on the beach and usually after they have been splashing around in the waves or got wet in the grass.
The blonde granddaughter Orlaigh becomes brown, the black grandmother Myrica becomes grey, and they carry the sand home in their wet coats. The daily amount of smuggled sand is hoovered off our floors once they have dried out, is probably half a kilo at worst.
I hope we won't get arrested now... :-)

The departure day to leave Ireland is approaching fast and we are busy packing up our possessions and fixing the bus Sandsmuggler for the trip.

Pictures of the Sandsmuggler itself will follow later.

Wishing you sunny May days!