November 2021

 

It was good to find our way back up into the mountains this month as Dave's knee felt good enough for walking. We did a couple of morning walks on quite uneven ground so Dave did well! He still can't bend his knee as much as he would like to but the movement that he has is more comfortable. It was lovely to see the snow up there and the air was very clear.

The pool was looking very inviting when I took this photo - but the water was icy!

Here are our albums for this month
Dave's album
Lesley's album

October 2021

 Dave is still making three times weekly visits to the physio centre to try to improve the flexibility of his knee. Progress is slow, but there is some improvement. 

We enjoyed having friends David and Helena here to stay and then joined them at Chateau Rigaud in the Dordogne for their daughter's wedding. It was a glorious sunny day for the happy occasion!

At the end of the month we returned to England to spend some time with the family. We have just returned to La Maire and find Winter has arrived. There is snow on the high mountains and the trees are quickly losing their leaves

Here are our photos for the month (Dave doesn't have any this month!!)
Lesley's album

 

September 2021

 Hello England! For the first time in nearly a year, it was good to be able to visit the family again, and for them to visit us. 

Travel still hasn't been easy in September with all the necessary Covid tests and forms to fill out, but at least it has been possible. 
Here at La Maire we have had a few very wet days as well as some hot and sunny ones, so everything has started growing again and we are busy in the garden as usual.

Here are a few photos from this month

August 2021

 

This month has been busy with guests in the self-catering room, Dave's physio, looking after the garden and social events. The summer is flying by as usual.

On Sunday we go to England for a few days to see the family - very much looking forward to it as its been a long time!!

Here are a few photos from this month

Our album for this month

July 2021

 

As in the UK we have had a real mixture of summer heatwave and wet and cool days as well in July . Dave is still patiently working hard to get some flexion back in his knee. Walking far nor cycling are possible just yet but we have enjoyed a day out in the mountains and a weekend with Richard and Yvett at their new home. We have been busy as usual in the garden, have received guests in our self-catering room and have also enjoyed several lunches and evenings with friends

Dave's album

Lesley's album

June 2021

 

We have had a quiet month while Dave continues his regular physio sessions every week to get some mobility back in his new knee. Progress is slow but steady and so far there is no sign of the infections returning so we remain hopeful. 

Here are just a few photos of the garden from this month - all taken on sunny days!!

Photos

April and May 2021

 

We are squashing the last two months into one post as things have been a bit busy!

Dave had his knee replacement operation on 8th April and came home a couple of days later with lots of physio appointments booked. All went ok for the the first week or so, but then Dave noticed he was getting more pain and swelling in the knee. When he developed a temperature we decided to go to A&E to get him checked out.
To cut a long story short, Dave was re-admitted to hospital where they discovered infections (3 in fact!) in the joint. This is always a possibility with this operation but is still reasonably rare. It is however serious, so Dave was in for 12 days, had the joint 'cleaned' and was kept under observation while they discovered what the infections were and what treatment was needed. Not an easy 12 days!!

Dave is home now and half way through a 5 week course of strong antibiotics. So fat the signs are good - they appear to be working, he is feeling better and is back at daily physio sessions.
So we have been very busy - Dave getting better, and me.... carer, housekeeper, gardener, pool maintenance person, taxi driver, cook, cleaner etc etc!!

We have both been fully vaccinated now and things are opening up again in France - travel between the UK and France is continuing to be difficult though!

Here are a few photos from the past couple of months
Photos

March 2021

 We have been fortunate enough to get out and about still during March. The above photos are of one of our local bike rides and then a couple of a walk in the Pyrenees to the 'Etang d'Izourt', which was very beautiful but very busy, as a warm and sunny Saturday understandably drew people to the mountains. There are more photos in our albums below.

We have been glad to have the freedom of moving around and seeing friends since Christmas, but France is now paying the price with high numbers of Covid cases in some areas. The Ariege is still relatively untouched, but the whole country is now in semi-lockdown for at least the next 4 weeks. We can however go out up to 10km from home without needing to fill out a form!

Dave is having a knee replacement operation next week, so we have few plans for April anyway, other than him making as quick a recovery as possible!!

Dave's album
Lesley's album

February 2021

 Spring is arriving here now. The weather has been mostly mild and sunny through February with a few very wet days thrown in as well. We have started cutting the grass again and the Spring flowers are in bloom. We have been busy tidying the vegetable patch ready for planting and have enjoyed several local bike rides as well.

At the beginning of the month we had a walk in the Soulcem valley. There was still a reasonable amount of snow on the ground and the lake was partly frozen, but it was a lovely day for a walk and we had it almost to ourselves! Above is one of the photos that I took and my watercolour from this photo.

There is still an evening curfew here from 18h each day and bars and restaurants remain closed, but other than that we can get out and about and see friends in small groups.

Here are our photos for February
Dave's album
Lesley's album
For anyone who hasn't seen it....here is the link to the song we recorded with our friends!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmshKIR-uTE

January 2021

Lots of snowy pictures this month.
We had a very heavy fall of snow here during the second weekend of January which was lovely. It made up just a little for not being able to go skiing this winter. Everywhere looked so beautiful and we managed to fit in a couple of low mountain walks while it lasted as well. It didn't last long enough to become a problem!

We have been fortunate not to be in lockdown in France since Christmas but are expecting it could happen any time soon. We have been able to meet up with a few friends for lunch and music but everyone needs to be home before the 18h curfew.
Its good to have a certain amount of freedom, but at the same time, we are impatient for Covid cases to drop low enough for everyone to be able to travel freely again 

 Here are our photos for January
Dave's album
Lesley's album

December 2020

 The beginning of December remained quite mild, but it has turned very cold over the past couple of weeks and the mountains now have a good covering of snow. However the ski resorts must sadly stay closed for now! We have been wrapping up warm and enjoying our electric bikes, and had a lovely walk in the sun with Jean Paul before it turned cold.

It has been our first Christmas here away from the family, but we were pleased to be able to remain touch via the internet  

We wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year - lets hope for good things in 2021!

Here are our photos for December

Dave's album
Lesley's album