Closing a chapter

Beautiful storm clouds in Illinois

We drove back to Iowa on Labor Day to get ready for the house closing.  Sleeping in the guest room (in a bed the buyers were purchasing), living out of suitcases (ok, this has become the norm) and finishing the packing, it already seemed like house belonged to someone else.

 Ok, I admit to a couple of tears in the middle of the night when I thought about leaving my home since moving to Des Moines.  Not just the physical, it was the memories. Good memories, not-so-good memories and memories of learning to live by myself.   Even after the furniture moved out my touches were evident in the gardens, the siding, the decks and the floors.  Kind of like leaving a part of yourself behind...

We met the buyers and really liked them.  I smiled at their description "our dream house".  We talked furnaces, air conditioners, the sauna, sump pumps and septic tanks.  They asked good questions, and though they seemed so young, I felt the house was in good hands.  The next day the closing went as planned and we hit the road for Indy.

When we arrived in Indy, the  first thing I did in "our house" was to unpack all the suitcases. During all the years of visiting Mike in this house, I lived out of suitcases. Enough already!

Diane, Andrew and Alice

My niece Diane, her husband Andrew and their 5 month old daughter Alice came for dinner and to "shop" our storage garage for items for their new house.  We had so much fun catching up on their experiences being parents, buying a house and Andrew starting a new job.  We are so excited that they will live about 25 minutes from us in the small town of Whitestown.

Now it's all about unpacking, or as  Mike calls it "putting 10 pounds of stuff into a 5 pound house".  We've made progress though it seems awfully slow...



We bought a new washer and dryer to replace those we left behind as part of the sale.  Here are the new ones being installed and the old ones waiting for pickup by the Shepherd Community Center who said they can find homes for washers and dryers any day of the week as they help the less fortunate in the city.

Installation underway

You know you're a redneck if...(you have appliances in the driveway)

I am starting to add my own touch with some lawn art...

I call it "rabbit contemplating gutter"

Wrought iron in green

Armillary x 2

Though we are working very hard finding a home for my stuff, we are enjoying friends. We had a great time at a party for our friends Brian and Stacy who are getting married later this month.  And Melanie and I enjoyed time shopping and  dinner in Broadripple while the guys had their Boys Night Out.

And the weather has been incredible.  Sunny days, 70 degrees and a light breeze.  Definitely calling me outside to work in the garage and yard.

And so it goes. We rather unceremoniously closed a chapter that occupied our every waking moment for the past 6 months and quickly turned the pages to a new chapter.  Not a lot of fanfare, not a lot of rest, just moving ahead.  In other words, life...

I found out today that my mom is in the hospital with pneumonia.  Any prayers and well wishes you could send her way would be appreciated!

Hope you are having a great week.
Diane