It doesn't have a number...

Candidate number two was a bungalow. I know -- it  is hard to overcome the immediate vision of beige everywhere with the smell of cabbage and old copies of Radio Times. Not so here. There was a feeling of 'rightness' about this place. We saw four other properties later that morning, but nothing could touch this bungalow's combination of funkiness and serenity.

After all the visits were done, we sat in the Mulberry restaurant down by the seafront, eating our lunch, but not thinking about anything other than this house. We made a good attempt to be logical, writing lists to see which one was the most sensible option out of all six. But still it came back to this bungalow. Then Alexis said, "Let's make an offer." I was momentarily stunned, shouldn't we think about it for a few weeks? But then the Mexico Effect took over. We planned the phone call (we'd learned something from watching so many episodes of 'Location, Location, Location', so the crap TV did have some value after all), and then Alexis did the talking (because she'd once been on a negotiation skills course... don't ask). The call back, the revised offer, then 30 minutes later, sat in the car overlooking the sea with the rain falling steadily, we had our memorable moment. Offer accepted.

Blimey, that was a weird feeling. We'd only been in Saundersfoot 18 hours, only back in the UK two weeks! 

We started the journey back up to Cheshire, with no radio and very little conversation. There wasn't a problem, we were both just quietly considering what had just happened. Then we got more and more animated and more excited with the realisation of what we'd actually done, accompanied by slightly hysterical laughter. Then we had another hour of worry over whether it was the right decision - heads vs hearts and all that. By the time we got home, we were totally convinced, but very tired from the mental and emotional highs.

Now, when ladies fall pregnant there is an unwritten rule that says you don't tell anyone about it until you've reached 12 weeks (other than the Father of the child, if known, and your Mum). I have the same sense of nervousness writing this, though it's nothing to do with babies. So far, we have a lot of items ticked off the house purchasing list, but there are still searches and contracts to be done. There are rumours of an issue with access or maintenance of a shared road. We will face these problems as they arise. For now, it's a case of regular day-dreaming about long weekends in our escape by the sea... 

It doesn't have a number - it's just called 'Pinewood'.