New Sport - Dog Riding!

So this week saw our cat "Misty" take up the new sport of Dog Riding!

Heidi, being not used to cat's now and being 12 years old, seems to be putting up with the adventures of the kitten. However if Misty comes too close to Heidi's food then she better watch out!

I cannot believe this is actually happening, Heidi sit's taking no notice at all. The cat plays with her tail, sit's on her back legs and reaches up to box her and even tries to cuddle up to her.

Heidi must be going soft in her old age.

1st Snow Fall

Yes today the 22nd November 2008 we had our first snow fall. I was in a village called Novo Selo, when I left the property I was in it was snowing quite hard. Sally and I set off for Veliko Tarnovo to do the weekly shop where we found it only raining!
However after exiting "Metro", it was again snowing hard, but back home in Resen it's only rain so far. But we have seen it.......
I will soon have to think about planning next year, I have usually already done this by now, but this year has been a busy one and I am late! Still I should get time in December!
Time today to sort through my wardrobe and bring out the winter clothes, summer ones to the rear. No good looking at properties in shorts and t-shirt's now.
5 Weeks to Christmas, will I have time for it?

Banks Hu!

This week saw Vesalina and I complete on another deal for our clients. The protocol is to order your funds from the bank a couple of days before you require them.
So Wednesday Vesalina ordered a few Euros to pay for the property. Friday we were sat in the bank ready to collect the Euros, paperwork done and signed, off we go to the teller, only to be told they did not have enough Euros!
Can you believe that! We took all of the Euros in the bank! Then we had to still have a few thousand Lev to make up the difference. So funny.
On the chicken front, we are now getting approx. 3 eggs per day, just enough to keep Sally happy so she can bake cakes etc. I still get the short straw, I collect 1, she finds 2!

"Misty" The Cat

This week saw a first in this house. I was running a bath, no that's not the first! Whilst the bath was running, I was checking my emails in the dinning room. I went to check the bath and found a very wet cat sitting on the side of the bath washing herself!
I thought cat's didn't like water, however it seems that Misty does, mornings she can be found in the dry bath, skidding up and down. Maybe she did not notice the water in it.
We are now getting about 18 fresh eggs a week from our chickens, not bad from 8 hens and 1 cockerel, so we no longer need to buy any more.
Sally is busy thinking of ways to use up our egg supply, cakes, biscuits, fry up's etc. Nice!
It is very nice to actually go out to the barn and return with eggs after 6 months of just feeding the chickens.
Another good thing is that we have now had three of our cockerel's for a Sunday dinner! Yummy.

Firework Night

Well last night saw our second bonfire night at this house. Last years was a small affair but good. This year we invited 32 people and some children. Everyone turned up. There was a mix of ex-pat's and Bulgarian's.
I explained why we celebrate November the 5th, the Brit's yawned, the Bulgarians listened interested.
We bought the fireworks, Kahl and Andy who also contributed fireworks and carried out the display and kept an eye on the fire.
Sally made hotdogs, Wendy made some curries, Pat supplied home made cakes, Bissi made a terditional Swiss plum dessert, Veselina made a roulade cake. So many nice cakes! Yummy...
Most of the others brought beer or spirits.
I would like to thank everyone involved for making it a great night.
It was a pity that my camera does not take good pictures in the dark, I would have liked to put some on here.
It appears that this could be a yearly event, so if you want to be here next year make a note in your diary now.

New Family Member.

Well I have finally given in to pressure, we now have a new kitten in the house. Her name is Misty, please don't ask why, she is almost white with some ginger over her eyes and a ginger tail. She is 9 weeks old now and climbs up your back and will gladly sit on your shoulder as you walk around the house.
If you want a kitten or puppy here in Bulgaria you can stop along the road and if there is one running around you can take it home! In the towns, if a dog has a tag on it's ear it is registered as homeless, you can takle it to a vet to have it checked and the tag removed then take it.
We found a house in Resen that had 12 cats living there, we, Vessie and I asked the owner if we could take one and she was pleased to let us have Misty.
So long as you do not want a pure breed of dog or cat then there are so many to choose from. Some owners of properties even leave dogs with the house. If they are not required then we have to tell them to take them away.

My car trip!

Well in the last seven days I have slept in seven different beds! I flew back to the UK and spent the first night in my parents haouse, then moved to our house where our daughter Teri lives for a night. Then it was off to Williton, Somerset to meet up with Sheila. Sheila has bought a property in a small village near to Resen, on Monday we set off on the 1,866 mile drive across Europe in a Suzuki 4x4 and three dogs.
As I was packing the vehicle up ready to go, all Sheila was saying is "It's not all going to fit in". I managed to stay calm, even when the top box lid would not lock! Amazing really.
The drive was eventful and fun, but tiring as well. Driving that far you must be ready for the unexpected. We were lucky, our unexpected was a hotel in Serbia, called The National in Belgrade. The stay there will stay with us forever. I cannot explain here the events, but please when we meet, ask, it is so funny!
Sally and Shane stayed home to look after the dog, kitten and chickens, starting to sound like farmers now. Shane chopped the remainder of the firewood, Sally cooked and cleaned and saw friends. Kahl came around and pulled a chickens neck, so that's another meal in the freezer. Another one was done yesterday, so we can at least eat for two Sundays this winter!
Sally also did a bit of DIY, she painted the top of the "Kamina" white, smoke got to it last year. We were hoping to decorate the lounge this year, but we have not. However the dining room is almost finished, just a light to be fitted and a new carpet to lay.