Last month marked eleven years since we moved to our little piece of paradise. This led to some reflection, over a glass of wine or two, of renovations completed and projects accomplished. The property we have now is quite different from the one we purchased in 2009. The first thing to go was the lino on the floor, I don’t understand why anyone would lay that over polished timber.

The pink walls and light fittings soon followed along with the curtains.

With so many outdoor areas, we decided the large deck at the eastern end of the house was better put to use as an office. We included a second bathroom in the extension to serve as an ensuite to the third bedroom for guests.

The main bathroom was next for a makeover, I don’t have a ‘before’ photo of the bathroom, it was so terrible, but you’ll get the general idea. Demolishing the tiny bath and shower cubicle was very satisfying, the transformation is amazing.

The laundry was done at the same time.

The red brick walls in the lounge were rendered and painted, the carpet and tiles replaced with polished timber, new curtains and lounge suite completed the package.

The bedrooms didn’t need too much work, floor coverings were removed, timbers polished and new curtains.

The kitchen was a major project, I had forgotten how ugly it was until I dug out these photos.

At the same time things were changing inside, we were working on some big projects outside. Apart from some delicious strawberries and a few spuds, there wasn’t much growing in the veggie patch. A few months of hard toil changed that.

We then set about building a potting shed from reclaimed materials and somewhere to wash the produce.

The chook shed had seen a number of incarnations before we gave up and bought one that only required assembling.

The driveway needed some attention before it descended into the paddock, we sourced old car tyres to create a substantial retaining wall and then replaced the fence along the entire length.

It was doubtful how long the timbers on the bridge down in the forest would hold the weight of the tractor so we replaced them with new hardwood and brought the old ones up for future use.

The biggest reno to date was the back verandah, motivated when a pair of swallows insisted on building their nest in the eaves. Many months later, we could sit back and enjoy our efforts (the timbers used for the dining and coffee table are some of the old ones from the bridge).

At the end of the back room, we left an area for a BBQ kitchen. The decking was an exhausting enterprise, the fine tuning of the ‘kitchen’ is yet to evolve.

Our most ambitious (and final?) renovation is a work in progress. Hopefully, I will be able share that with you in the not too distant future. There is one thing that will stay the same.