Updates

As I tried to update the "About Me" information I had to change the number of cats.  I changed from 3 to 2.  But the good and the bad of it really was a change from 3 to 2 to 1 to empty kitty nesters but then, happily, back to 2.  In just a few years a lot of changes.  A lot of tears, and then, a great deal of joy and laughter. 


Thankfully, not much else changed.  And I am truly grateful for that.  There is something to be said in life NOT changing.  It doesn't mean life if boring.  It doesn't mean I am not doing anything with my life.  It means that in many ways, the good parts of my life are still there.


Since my last post I have traveled to Puerto Rico, Ireland, Argentina, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Germany.  Each trip unique and amazing 


Oh, and we moved.  We had joked that we would leave our home feet first because we were too lazy to move but alas, the commute got to be too much.  The drive time seemed to be getting longer and longer no matter what the weather.  The final straw was a late night at work when we both left well after rush hour and taking two different routes ended up with almost an hour and half drive to go less than 30 miles.  In good weather!   We looked at each other that night after commiserating about our drives and said, let's move.  We started looking at homes on the internet that night.  A few months later we made an offer on a home.  And only three years after that, we sold the old house and were completely moved out of it....................so I guess we were still really lazy.  We moved in to the new house one car load/trailer at a time.  Then three months later we hired a moving company to get the last of the big stuff moved.  The next 2 years and 9 months would be sent cleaning and remodeling the old house.  We made a deal with a friend that he could live there in exchange for doing some of the work.  Then after he found a home of his own we finished the rest.  Part of the reason we weren't in a huge hurry to sell was the down market.  We probably got close to 40% more by waiting for the market to recover.  And in fact when we were ready to sell the first time homes were selling faster than they were getting listed.  We sold when starter home inventory was at record lows.  And we sold not to someone that would flip it or rent it, but to a sweet family just starting out.  THAT was the most important part.  Our much beloved home went to a couple that would cherish it as their first home where they raised their family.  That house had the best spirit.  So much love.  It was wonderful to pass it on to someone who wanted the home for the same reason. 


Looking back, the other big change was losing my Aunt.  I knew, when I said goodbye to my Uncle that she would soon follow and she did.  Six short months later.  And that broke my heart.  I have never been closer to two people outside of my immediate family.  They were my world.  There are still moments when I think I should call them to tell them about something and it takes my breath away to realize that I can't.  I tell them in my heart.  I talk to them still in my thoughts.  They may be gone from this world but they will never be gone from my heart.  Coping with their loss has been hard.  The hardest thing I have ever had to do.  But we have brought many of their things home with us.  Pieces of furniture that have been around since I was a baby.  The yellow chair/stool that sat in her kitchen.  It's in my kitchen now.  I can't tell you how many dozens of hours that I sat in that chair talking to them while they cooked meals.  In the new house we gained a family room so it was only natural to use their sitting room furniture.  It's not the same as having them there but it provides some level of comfort, of familiarity.  And I know they would love that the things they loved and used endured.  That it has passed on to another generation.