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details for the property transaction that was due to take place the following week. The dogs
rollicked over to Ellie's buggy and slavered on her tiny hands. I grabbed a wipe and cleaned
them before she could put them into her mouth. On my way into the kitchen to throw away
the wipe, I saw a pack of gastroenteritis dog medicine on the table. I sprinted back out and
lifted Ellie from her pram well out of the dogs' reach, wiping her hands frantically. We
couldn't risk Ellie's health another second.
I made an excuse about needing to feed the kids and strapped Ellie into her car seat, mo-
tioning to Sean to leave urgently. 'Sweet divine, it's much more rundown and dirty than I
recall from my visit,' said Sean as we took off.
'I liked the doggies,' said Sophia.
IfilledSeaninonthegastroenteritis tabletsIhadseen,asmallballofangstforEllieform-
ing in my stomach. It was clear to both of us that the first priority once we moved in was
cleaning and disinfecting the house.
As we drove to the B&B that would be our home for ten days as we waited for the prop-
erty transaction to complete we discussed plans for the coming weeks. Despite the horrors
we'd seen we were remarkably upbeat. While the filth and renovation were more daunting
than I imagined, the natural beauty, views and history of the property created magic that far
exceeded my expectations. We were embarking on the adventure of our lives and we were
both excited.
The B&B was run by a family who had a vineyard the same size as the one we were about
to purchase. We arrived at our apartment on their farm and found it to be the perfect an-
tidote: spotless and with everything we needed including delightful toys for Sophia. She
was developing a nurturing instinct and took great pleasure in looking after the baby dolls
complete with accessories - cots, pushchairs, baby bath and clothes.
When we sat down to dinner that night with our hosts, Bernard and Myriam Barse and
their teenage daughter Élodie, I explained in halting French why we were there.
'We are buying Château Haut Garrigue in Saussignac. The purchase goes through next
week so we are staying here while we wait for that to happen. We left our city jobs and
moved country today. We saw on the website that you have twenty-five acres like we will
have so we thought it would be useful to stay with you to hear what it is like.'
Their eyes popped out on stilts.
'C'est très dur,' (It's very hard) said Bernard.
Myriam could not believe that we had chosen to swap the comforts of city life for the
tough life of winegrowing. She explained that they both had day jobs off the vineyard,
Bernard as an electrician and she as a teacher's aide at the local école maternelle , to make
ends meet.
Bernard, a quiet, compact man, considered our story a little longer then added: 'Prudence.
You must be very careful. Costs are high and sales are difficult.'
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