The Pink House days from Sell the Pig

Lots of you have been asking for more photos of the Pink House as described in Sell the Pig, and in more detail in Is That Billinge Lump. Lots of you wanted to see photos of the interior after I’d slapped white paint all over that ‘lovely’ wallpaper in the sitting room.

Funnily enough, I discover that I didn’t actually take any pictures specifically of the changed décor, it’s just there as background to various photos of the many tea parties Mother enjoyed.

If you have read both books, you will know that Mother loved picnics and tea parties more than anything else, so we had lots of both. She loved to be the centre of attention and would sit holding court and reciting all the poems from her childhood, which she could still remember.

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Inside the Pink House – sitting room

She loved having her photo taken too, as you can see from the way she is smiling at the camera! Of course there would always be a cake, and candles, which she usually managed to blow out.

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Birthday tea at the Pink House

Whenever possible, her two favourite carers – mine too! – would be at the party to help look after her.

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Mother with Lili (left) and Emilie

And when we weren’t having tea-parties, Mother and I, with Meic the dog, were out having picnics at many of the beauty spots near to the Pink House (this is the Chateau de Chazeron) …

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Chateau de Chazeron

or pottering and tottering in the garden at the Pink House

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The Pink House – garden

where she celebrated many a happy birthday – this was her 90th

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9o years young

But as you will know if you’ve read ‘Lump’, because of circumstances described therein, I went on to buy my own house, Tottie’s Grottage, where I now live.

So look out for some blog posts about my grottage, coming soon. And if you’ve not yet read the first two books in the Sell the Pig Series, Sell the Pig and Is That Billinge Lump?, get a wiggle on. Book III is due to be published in April!