Memories, The Heart Of Our Home

Have you ever had something so monumental to tell that you had to wait, until you could get it just right?

Well, I have one of those things to tell. I hope I do it justice because to me, it is very monumental.

Rumors run rampant, sometimes, in our little town. Sometimes, they take on a life of their own. There are many, many things I love about Andrews, but the spreading of rumors is the one thing that I've always hated. So before the rumors start, I would like to tell the story.

If, perhaps, you have heard rumors that Cliff and I have sold our home and are moving from Andrews, then for once.....that rumor is true.

I have lived in Andrews for 49 years and Cliff has lived there his whole life. We've gone to school there, worked there, married there, had children there. We've raised our family there and our grandchildren were born there. Our mothers and most of my siblings still live there. And through the years, we have made so many memories there. We still love Andrews. It will always be home. But, there comes a time when you get to a crossroads and have to make a decision whether to stay or to go. For Cliff and I, the decision was to go.

When Whitney and Jason moved to Denver and when Emily and the children moved to the upstate, the decision got real easy. We wanted to be closer to our grandchildren and when we found the lake house, I knew it would only be a matter of time.  We didn't know when, but we knew the move was coming.

Having said that, I was caught completely off guard when this sweet young lady texted me and said that she had heard it through the grapevine that Cliff and I might be interested in selling our home and asked if it were true. It was true to some extent, but we had not been thinking about it for some time and we definitely had not been trying to sell. But that day, just a couple of months or so ago, we began a conversation and it ended with us selling our house to this wonderful young couple. I couldn't be happier for them. I know they will be great caretakers of our house and will love it and enjoy it, just as we did. I know they will make many memories there, just as we did.

I'm not gonna lie......I get so emotionally attached to things!  Although the decision to sell was easy and even though I know it's time to move on and start this new chapter, I am having a hard time leaving. Every thing I pack and every box I stow, there is a memory. Every cabinet I empty and every corner I clean, there is a memory. I look at the rocking chair and see myself rocking our grandbabies to sleep. I look at the floors and see my grandchildren crawling on them. I look at my kitchen sink and see the times I stood there washing dishes and Cliff sneaking up behind me to scare the bejeebies out of me. I look at the stairs and remember sneaking up them to listen to Emily and her friends as they sat on her bed and had girl talk. I remember when Whitney's science project went bad and she threw up on the same stairs. I still see red paint on the telephone pole out back from where Emily backed her car into it, not long after getting her driver's license. I still see Whitney getting ready for prom and having her picture made with her granddaddy with his arms wrapped proudly around her. I still see every Christmas tree, every meal, every family event spent there. I still see Whitney and her friend, Sarah, swinging in the hammock while eating watermelon. I still see Billy, the goat, as Emily caught him and held him by the horns to teach him a lesson in who or who not to head butt. I still see Lidia running to the barn, rope in hand, because she was going to lasso the horses. I still see Sawyer lying flat of his belly in the dirt watching ants crawl around. I still see Abbie, our lab, as she ran the perimeter of the property when we returned home as if to say....."It's safe, I've made it safe for you to live here." And safe it has been.....our sanctuary, our place of calm in troubled waters, our place of joy and laughter, our heart.....our home.

We will miss our home and Andrews so much! I can't even count the times I've broken down and cried over it. But, like I've said.....it's time to move on. I will take all the memories and love for this place with me. And I will come to love and make more memories down the road.

This is our last day as residents of Andrews. Today, we close this chapter and head on down that road. We have, for years now, been enjoying our little place at the beach and will continue to do so. And we have our place at the lake, as well. We will be living between the two, until........

Laurie

Hunkered Down Neath The Pecan Tree

 

Sista #2

Lord have mercy, the littlest things just crack me up.

I was just sitting here and heard someone on t.v. say "hunkered down" and it immediately took me back nearly 20 years ago. We lived in town, at the time, on Rosemary Avenue. Dr. Gamble lived next door and had a pecan tree almost on our property line. Actually, some of the branches reached over into our yard.  

Sista came over one night and saw pecans lying on the ground and just had to have some. She sent me inside to get her a bag to gather them in and when I came back out, all I saw was........

Sista.....hunkered down neath that pecan tree on all fours.....gathering fallen pecans into the tail of her shirt. I laughed at the sight of this long-legged grown women sneaking pecans like a squirrel hoarding nuts for the winter. We got a good case of the giggles because we were scared to death Dr. Gamble was going to catch us.  

Sneaking around in dark shadows on all fours......it's just the little things that makes a memory special.

Happy Friday Y'all,
 Laurie

Nostalgia Has Just Hit Me Like A Ton Of Bricks

A good case of nostalgia hit me this morning. I was sitting in the den drinking coffe and watching the weather channel.....my morning ritual. And my mind began to wander. I started recalling things that happened many years ago, when my children were growing up.

I remembered Whitney practicing her gymnastics moves off the back of the couch.

I remembered the time after Emily got her driver's license that we bought her first car....a pre-owned red Firebird. She was so excited to take the car out for a drive, but in the process backed into the telephone pole and left a swipe of red paint on it that is still visible today. Oh, and then the time she also backed into the garage doorway. And the time she ran up on the curb trying to miss a cat and busted her front tire. She's hard on cars. Ha!

I remembered Whitney and her friend, Sarah, sitting outside in the hammock......just swinging back and forth, laughing and playing and eating watermelon with our black lab, Abbie, sitting there hoping they would drop a piece of it.

Then, I remembered the time Cliff made Emily catch our goat by the horns. His name was Billy and Billy would rear up on his back legs and act like he was going to butt us, when we got near. Cliff was having no part of that goat acting like that, especially to the hands that fed him. So, Emily braved up and caught Billy by the horns and held him like a man. HaHa!

I remembered Whitney's 6th grade birthday/dance party. We pushed back all the furniture in the den so she and her classmates could have a big dance floor. She caught me taking a picture of her and her 6th grade boyfriend dancing and shot me the evil eye. HeHe!

I remember Emily having a friend sleep over and Cliff secretly hiding a walkie talkie under her bed before the girls went to sleep for the night. He waited all night to pull this stunt; I did too, HaHa! The next morning, I snuck up to the top of the stairs so that I could see into Emily's room, but they couldn't see me. Cliff blew a duck call into the walkie talkie. You should have heard that thing. It sounded like something dying. Emily and her friend shot straight up in bed...their arms flew straight out and they started looking wildeyed around the room. The friend finally asked, "Do y'all have cows?" I was trying to be quiet, but you know how you end up spitting all over yourself, when trying to repress a laugh. I busted out laughing so hard I just about wet my pants. We still laugh over that one.

Then, I remember the time Whintey was doing a science project on what held heat more, after bringing it to the boiling point....water or rubbing alcohol. Disclaimer: Do not try this at home! The fumes are awful. Whitney puked going up the stairs trying to make it to the bathroom.

I remember the day that Cliff took one of Whitney's Barbie Doll heads, tied a piece of fishing line around it and hid it behind the linen closet door and then hooked the other side to the baseboard in the hall. When Whitney walked by, she snagged the string and the Barbie Doll head came flying out of the closet and wrapped around her ankle. She screamed bloody murder. HaHa!!

I remember both girls getting ready for their proms, their graduations and their moves to college. I remember their brief moves back home and then they were gone again....in the blink of an eye. I miss them and those times so much!

I remember the first time Whitney brought Jason home. I had this old dirty looking rocker recliner that I was replacing, but still had it in the den when Whitney and Jason got here. I realized it was still there and while Jason was meeting Cliff motioned for Whitney to help me hide it. You should have seen us pushing that chair down the hall to the back of the house. Good thing we had hardwood floors to slide it on. HaHa! I think Jason was so nervous to meet Cliff that he didn't even notice us pushing that ugly thing out of the room.

I remember the many nights I sat up and waited for the girls to return from their dates or from cheering at an "away" ballgame....so sleepy I could barely hold my eyes open and then sometimes I made Cliff do it because I couldn't stay awake a minute longer.

I remember the time we had geese. One of those geese was a mean son of a gun. He would chase us every chance he got. He chased Whitney and she would jump into the back of Cliff's truck to avoid getting pecked by the hateful thing. Cliff's mother would antagonize him every time she came over. He would chase her until she ran up on the porch. One day she happened to have a black umbrella in her hands and when the hateful old devil starting chasing her, she opened the umbrella at him. It scared him so bad that he took off running and never chased her again. Ha!

Then, I remember the time someone gave us a baby deer found in the woods just after it was born. The mother had died somehow. We named her Lilly. Anyway, we would feed this baby deer with a baby bottle. Lilly was the cutest little thing. She would come up to you and nudge you on the leg when she was hungry. She would run and play in the yard with the girls like a dog. One day an older lady friend came over and before the storm door could close, Lilly came in through the front door and into the house. We have hardwood floors so Lilly was having a hard time standing up. Her little legs were sliding all over the place. The lady was so shocked that the deer came in that she picked Lilly up from behind to take her back out the door. When she did, Lilly's feet went in all directions. It was like trying to put a cat in a tub of water. HaHa!! Finally, we managed to calm Lilly down enough to put her back outside.

Then, I remember my grandbabies and the times they slept on my couch or in my bed, the times they sat in their little carryalls on my table while I cooked dinner. I remember the times they crawled around the house and walked these same floors. I remember them playing with magnetized alphabets on the side of the fridge. I remember Lidia pulling a chair up to the sink to help me wash dishes and I remember that sweet Sawyer just hugging my legs anytime he came near.

I remember the time Whitney was lying on the couch holding Lidia above her and Lidia drooled all over Whitney's face. Whitney just about puked over that one.

I rememeber the time Lidia took off for the pasture to lasso one of the horses with the little piece of rope Cliff gave her to play with. I remember Sawyer playing with the new puppies and laying splayed out on his stomach in the dirt watching ants. I also remember the time he came and told us he ate an ant because Bear Grylls did.

I remember all the Christmas mornings and how much my girls love Christmas. And then last year when Whitney flew in from Denver on Christmas Eve and surprised Lidia and Sawyer Christmas morning. They though she caught a ride with Santa.....because that's what we told them. HaHa! You can read that story here.

I remember our famous egg sandwich breakfasts. Everyone that comes for a visit gets one. They're requested, frequently.

And now, my little family is all grown and out on their own. Such memories as these can make me chuckle out loud somedays and then days like today makes me teary-eyed as I walk from room to room and recall what happened there. There's not an inch of this house that doesn't hold special memories for me. Nostalgia brings them home ever so often. Our lives change no less often as the seasons and we make new memories during those times. They may not take place in the same rooms or on the same floors. Children grow up and their walls and floors and rooms become a breeding ground for their own family's memories. And I am happy for that. As for me, I will always have nostalgia. Nostalgia and I remain the best of friends.....and I depend on her to make sure my memories remain the same.

Peace out,
Laurie

True Confessions

This is my Gerber Daisy from last summer. It was a potted plant that surprised the heck out of me. It bloomed it's little head off. As it happens every summer.....the heat gets the best of me and I tend to neglect my outdoor plants. (True confessions). I let this little beauty die a slow death.....I thought. But Lo and Behold, she has come back to life. She survived living on the porch at the beach, in a pot, under an overhang, with little to no water all winter. And now, she is putting out green leaves. The surprises continue.

But alas, this post is not about my Gerber Daisy! I just thought she was pretty and wanted to share her with you. (True Confessions). No, this post is about "what the heck am I doing?". Do you ever just sit back and wonder, sometimes?

I am a new blogger. I started blogging to capture the memories of my family from day to day or week to week, to tell the story that I live daily and to preserve the memories for my grandchildren and future generations. I never dreamed that blogging would open up my world, literally. I stumbled across a post one day that was an invitation to join a blog party. I thought, "what the heck, why not?" So, I did and was absolutely astonished at the rate my blog grew, overnight. Now, just five months since the blog party and I have readers all over the world. I will be forever grateful to Vicki. You can read more of the original story here.

True Confessions

I wouldn't doubt it, if everyone is totally confused as to what kind of blogger I am. Well, it's not a specific type for sure. Like I said, I do this to capture memories for me and my family.

So it's no surprise that you will find a conglomeration of topics here. Be patient. If you don't like today's post, you may like one next week.

I find myself now blogging with you in mind, even though this blog was and still is meant to capture life memories for my future generations. Why? Well, I've given that a lot of thought. A few reasons are:

1) I have meet so many new friends through out this process. I cherish each one of you!
2) For whatever reason, my new friends are interested in what I write. Holler!
3) Because travel for some may not be an option, why not share where we live and breathe with those who will never see this place. Ahhhhh!
4) If you get a chuckle once in a while from my posts, then I've done my job. Laughing is internal jogging. Good for you....it does a body good! Pass it on!
5) And I hope to be an inspiration to you on the matter of your health. It's an ongoing process. It's hard in the throes of menopause to lose weight. But, BUT, If I find the fountain of youth or just a little tip that can help you.....I'm all up for sharing.

These are only a few of the reasons I blog. I hope I haven't confused you even further.

Disclaimer: By the way, I read your blogs. I just don't comment on all because I would be here all day. Sorry, but Cliff would nearly die, if I spent any more time reading and writing than I do now. (True Confessions). I am a read-aholic. Reading is like crack for me. I could spend all day doing it. In order to have a life, I have to draw the line somewhere. Also, I used to try to reply to all your comments and that has become time consuming as well. I am so sorry. I feel guilty not replying. But, we have to have boundaries, right? I love you all, I read your blogs and I am crazy excited to get comments and I most certainly read them all. I will from time to time reply. And, I'm sure I will continue to evolve. Please be patient with me. It's a virtue.....Mama said so!

Question: Do any of you have the same problem as in my disclaimer? It is true confession time. Confess it, sisters and brothers. Confessions are cathartic.  I will not judge! Can I get a witness?

OK, that's it. Confession time is over. Get off the computer, go outside and do something physical. You can tell me all about it tomorrow.

*****



In closing, in case you were wondering:

Total miles run in April: 29.4 (That's a little disappointing, oh..but wait, I started biking. Duh!)
Total miles on the bike in April: 41.58
Since the Divas 5K post, I've run: 13.36 miles (Includes my 7-mile run Sunday...started training for the half marathon a little early. Don't worry, I'll be careful.)
Since the Divas post, I've biked: 24.49 miles (Heading out in just a few, for more.)

Please come back from time to time. I love your comments. And I will definitely be following you!

Happy Tuesday!

Laurie