Just Humans Being...

It has been over six months since our last proper pet sit and for no reason other than all our regular clients decided to stay at home over the winter. Financially it's been quite a blow, but we have come to realise that neither of us are drawn to doing holiday let cleaning nor happy to work as employees anymore - it's just not for us and instead, we have made it through the last few months being more frugal than ever and with a little help from our friends - who we are incredibly grateful to! Most of all though, we have missed spending time in the company of all our animal friends, which is the thing that really makes our hearts sing, so now we are here with one of our favourite chums... We adore this beautiful buddy and we have settled into our lives together, even though her routine is no doubt quite different with us...she remembers everything.  We do see her regularly throughout the year and whenever possible we take her out, but life is much nicer when we are together for

We are spending a week on Dartmoor again at one of our regular pet sits - taking care of the usual menagerie... Along with this lovely chap - who is staying with the gang temporarily and we have come to adore him. Being professional pet sitters means we can only leave the animals for up to 3 hours per day, which suits us fine as we are content being here and pottering about. We have visited The Beehive Farm shop in Chagford and the Zero Waste shop in Moretonhampstead. Both shops are great for us and nice that they are close by. As well as feeding all the animals, walking the dogs and generally keeping an eye on them all, we are enjoying cooking simple meals, reading, sitting by the fire and watching YouTube videos of folks building and renovating small houses in remote places!  It has mainly rained since we arrived with just yesterday being dry, which was nice! Amazingly, we've only got a thorough soaking once and seem to be quite intuitive regards venturing out and have mostly cho

  We seem to have quite a few pet sitting assignments lined up this year and we are very happy about it. We feel incredibly honoured to be paid to do something that is so enjoyable and adore spending time with such lovely furries. It's a pleasurable way of living for us and such a simple way of life...walking, cooking, eating, taking care of various pets, reading and sleeping.  A nice change from our sometimes crazy work schedule at home (well, crazy for us) we just can't help getting involved with folks in need of support, but what we really should be doing is taking care of ourselves too.  House and pet sitting means we can take things easy, no rushing around and it is truly wonderful; basically a paid holiday! We are currently in very hot Hampshire, arrivi ng 10 days ago totally unprepared with more food than clothing - pretty normal for us...which means we've already had to buy shorts and now an elderly neighbour has offered for us to cool off in her pool, which leaves

  Six weeks have passed now since we moved into the cabin and we adore this little place. We have experienced quite a lot of stormy weather, with huge amounts of rain and some very blustery nights. We have held our breath on a couple of occasions, half expecting the roof to be ripped off, but have been pleasantly surprised and will be ever grateful to Scot, who built this amazingly resilient house. We also love our second-hand wood stove, which easily kicks in - warming the cabin, keeping our furry friends and us happy! We’ve even been through a little cold snap and while there was frost outside a couple of weeks ago – we were toasty and snug inside. There is an abundance of birds around us and when the mornings are calm and mild, the birdsong is absolutely wonderful. We are situated at the top of a beautiful wooded valley, so the climate is almost rainforest-like. We see the sun rising and setting, the clouds forming and moving across the sky, the rain coming in and the mist r

I love the summer. It's my favourite time of year. This year has been particularly bountiful with regards to long periods of uninterrupted sunshine and I have needed no encouragement whatsoever to step outside and sensibly and gradually expose my body to the rays. Over a period of many weeks I have gradually bronzed in a way that has been beyond my grasp for many years due to the whims and vagaries of the British summer. Finally, after careful immersion I have achieved a level of poise and confidence not unlike say mild smugness. Now don't get me wrong, it is by no means a deep tan, a swarthy layer of earthen masculinity but it is most definitely noticeable to those who may have whispered the words "pasty" or "wan git", It has been not just a surprise but a crushing blow then to discover that my new found glow has not only been completely ignored, but my lovely wife (who too possesses a not unenviable tan herself has been the centre of attention be

We were travelling home from Falmouth last night and followed this spectacular storm. When we got home it was still raging and probably lasted a couple of hours - this is the view we had from our bedroom window at 1am this morning looking towards Plymouth, which is some 40 miles distant. It was an incredible show, with a constant succession of flashes. Kay and Sime xx

It's two months since we moved into our little home and despite the fact that it's rained every day since we arrived - we love it! We sleep with the curtains open and wake every morning seeing the sea, although some days the mist has meant we don't see anything for a while, but it's fascinating having such a vast view of the open sea and the coastline into Devon. We see the changes in the weather and the colour of the sea. The blustery and gale force winds bringing rough waves and then days of mill pond calmness. We see storms coming in, the dark clouds and glimpses of blue sky. From the kitchen we look down on Portmellon, which is very pretty and at night is like a Mediterranean hillside village with twinkling lights, next to a glistening sea. We are living in this small space and it is wonderful. Life feels simpler, we have definitely slowed down and just enjoy being cosy and snug with the kitties... We all seem to sleep more too, whic

Thank you Richard for this great photo! :-) ♥

The view from our garden this morning... Low cloud over the sea... Our neighbours new glamping pods... Bleached sky... Portmellon. Our decking...  Looking forward to sitting here in the warmer weather! We are having a cat flap fitted on Monday...  Can't believe we've been here for nearly 4 weeks now and our boys will be so happy to be venturing out! We think they are very much at home now, so we are hoping they won't travel too far...  Bedtime snuggles with Fleaby... And a rare bedtime snuggle with Lupes! Bye for now, Kay and Sime xx

We set out today after a late breakfast & in search of snow... And found some on Dartmoor... We enjoyed a stunning, incredibly chilly walk up to Buckland Beacon & saw the rather weathered  & underwhelming 10 commandments carved into the rocks below the Beacon.  Will share more photos of our day soon, but for now here's another video: Kay & Sime xx

A beautiful blustery day... Dancing with the  Merry Maidens ... But we didn't turn to stone! The stone circle is on a quiet lane & is free to visit - just don't cause any damage or leave any physical offerings... Don't change the site, let the site change you. Our video turned out to be rubbish...  So instead here is a favourite one from The Books - Take Time.    Hope you like it! Kay & Sime xx

We are really getting into the swing of life with Bebe & she is doing wonderfully well... Far better than we ever imagined! She has been with us for 3 weeks now & has already got to grips with the stairs & where her bedroom & bathroom are... When she arrived she was unsteady & using a walking stick, we had to assist her on the stairs & getting up the step in her bathroom. Now she has given up her stick & can negotiate the stairs & step independently... Has she just gained confidence or is our vegan diet working wonders?!  We moved to Cornwall when Hugo was just 5 years old & although Bebe has seen him regularly over the years she just can't accept that he is now a young man, so sadly she greets him as either a stranger or thinks he is Kay's Brother! Bebe is loving day care & will soon be going in for regular respite.  We are missing being able to go out in the evenings, so once we are satisfied that she is ready