At last! At last! My builder/decorator starts work on Tuesday. I've been waiting so long for him to finish the big job he's been working on since last September, but he's now ready to do the work on my little flat.

But - OMG! - panic! I have such a lot of packing to do between now and Tuesday - putting all my clothes into suitcases, manoeuvering furniture into the hall (two chests of drawers and a double bed), boxing up all my bits and pieces. It's going to be chaotic for a few weeks, but so worth it when it's all done.

What am I having done? New wooden flooring throughout, all the old wallpaper stripped off and the walls painted a nice, pale yellow/peachy colour, a new fitted wardrobe in the bedroom, lots of storage built in the recess in the hall, with sliding doors covering it, a glazed doorway removed and replaced with folding doors, radiator covers, all cables hidden away, kitchen painted, new flooring in the kitchen ...

And there's all the extras that I'll need to buy as well - lampshades, bedspreads, curtains, blinds, rugs, a new sofa, a new TV, etc., etc. But it'll be fantastic when it's done, and I've been waiting so long finally to make this place my own. The current decor is all my ex-husband's taste and it's eight years since he's been gone, so a complete re-do is definitely long overdue.

I will never have to vacuum that crappy carpet again! Ever! Yaaaay!

And I've decided that when it's all been done and everything's looking good, I'm going to get a cleaner to come in once a week. That'll encourage me to be tidier (I'll actually have some storage space to tidy things into) and it shouldn't be expensive, because this is such a small flat. Probably about £20 a week, which will be money well spent.  ¶ 3:28 pm