Our lovely heat pump

The temperature has soared again - our heat pump that provides us with lovely 21 degrees warmth during the winter can also be reversed so that it cools our house when the temperatures rise and it is too hot to sleep.  There has been a faulty valve for some time and Ben needed to fix it today so that we are able to turn it on - so while we enjoyed playing round at some friends and staying cool in their pool, Ben was at home trying to find the plumbing bits he had put somewhere safe for the job. 

Our heating system has been a great investment; Ben took lots of time researching the different options for us the first year we arrived and we decided on aerothermic - the system was expensive to put in but Ben applied for every grant going and got them so actually it worked out pretty reasonable.  It is easy to forget what the house used to be like in the winter before the infrastructure was installed - damp, cold, lots of condensation and mould all over the walls and ceiling - no place to bring up a couple of children.  In the summer it was hot and being so close to the farm if we had all the windows open we were invaded with flies so now having the VMC (ventilation system which blows fresh air into the house throughout the day) we are able to have a house that is cheap to run able to breath - thanks Mr Ben!

At our friends they have a new addition to their garden - a fantastic wooden aeroplane that a friend built for them.  The kids enjoyed playing going to different imaginary places in the plane - to buy toys.  I look forward to the day when we have time to build such items for our garden - we have briefly discussed looking at getting in a WWOFA for next year to expand the garden - remove the hedge and make the garden twice the size, relocating the veg garden and taking down the stone wall…..  Who knows what next year will bring!