Our lives together began just after the turn of the new century/millennium and I finally plucked up the courage to pop the question in 2007. Due to my Italian connections we decided to get married in San Leo, Italy. My sister has been living in Italy for over 30 years and during that time we have all fallen in love with the place. Sally and I, along with my 3 stepdaughters, various friends and partners have enjoyed many holidays there in our home away from home. After our experience renovating the house in Italy we became confident enough to take on a project in the UK. When the girls had all grown up and left we decided to take the plunge and bought an old brick and flint cottage that had been built around 1750. The pages here show some of the adventures we have had renovating both our properties. The work never seems to end but we have enjoyed each step and the satisfaction we get from completing them.