When I was a little girl, we moved a lot - not as much as a military family, but probably pretty close. Being that I didn't like change as a little girl, this could have been traumatic, but we always stayed in the same school district and most of the time, we even kept the same bus driver. That actually became a joke between my brother and I. Mom and Dad would tell us we were moving and we had two questions, "Where are we moving?" and "Will Jim still be our bus driver?"
When Wasband and I were first married, I told him that it was important to me that when we had kids that we settle down into a home that would always be "their home". I wanted them to have the same bedroom from the time they remembered until they got married. This was something I didn't have and always wanted. I just thought it would be cool for our grandkids to sleep and play in the same rooms their mothers had.
Let me go ahead and clarify. I don't think I missed out on anything by not having this. My parents' home has always been inviting and comfortable to me regardless of the "house" they lived in. I probably feel most comfortable in the home they live in now - maybe because this is where they have provided some much needed comfort to me over the past two years or maybe it's because I know that they have finally "settled". I'm not sure...
Wasband and I started out in a little two bedroom house on a dead end street paying $200/month. We were there for one year. We then moved to a big farm house out in the country and stayed there for a year. After that, we "grew up" and ventured into the BIG City of Lexington! We rented a one-bedroom apartment until we were finally able to put a down payment on our first home. I loved that little house. Our first "home". It was a small, three bedroom, one bath, brick with hardwood floors througout. The perfect starter home. Emily was born while we lived there and we stayed until she was three years old.
The week before her 3rd birthday, we moved to the house I thought we would live in FOREVER. We moved back to Garrard County to be close to family and friends. We spent a lot of time over here anyway and decided that when Emily started to school, we wanted her to go to the same schools Wasband and I had gone. We bought a 4 bedroom, 2 bath brick ranch on 4 acres. We planned to have at least one more child, to raise our children, build a small barn, buy a horse or two, eventually retire and play with our grandchildren in the same place.
Well, that lasted for several years and then the D-I-V-O-R-C-E happened...
Since then, I have moved more times than I have wanted. First, I HATE to move. It's hard work, it's time consuming and it costs money. When I moved out of our marital home, I moved to an adorable little house that had come available. It was perfect for our situation - well, except for the fact that two girls who had never had to share hardly anything in their lives were suddenly put together in a small bedroom! I stayed there until another house came open that belonged to my aunt and uncle. They offered me a great deal on the rent to allow me to get "back on my feet". The decreased rent was wonderful, but unfortunately, the heat bills were astronomical and I really wasn't able to save money the way I had hoped. So here I am, taking a break from the dreaded task of PACKING, and getting ready to move again!
When I moved from the first post-divorce home to the current home, I made the comment, "I am not moving again until some rich man comes and moves me out." Well, a rich man is moving me out. I call him the propane gas man! I guess if I make this statement again, I made need to clarify...
I'm excited about my new little house. It's a very cute white framed house with black shutters. It has a swing on the tree in the front yard that Edison LOVES. That same swing scares my mom to death because she thinks it's too close to the road. The back yard is fenced in so he's probably going to need a swing set out back to keep him out of the tree! The house has new windows and a new heating and air unit so it should be very economical --- a BIG issue for me right now. The people I will be renting from are super-sweet and have done lots of things to get it ready for me and the kids - including allowing me to pick new paint colors!!!
Now, if I had a fairy godmother who could wave her magic wand and pack everything neatly into boxes, go through the things I don't need and set them aside for the yard sale I'm planning, take apart the beds, load everything onto trucks and unpack it and place everthing exactly where I wanted it, life would be good! But I know that is not going to happen. I might mention though, that my own mother is pretty close to a fairy godmother. She came to my house while I was working today, straightened my house a little, did some laundry and packed my china :-) She's as close to a fairy godmother as I'm gonna get. I just wish she had a magic wand so she didn't have to work so hard!
This will be the 3rd time I've moved the week of Emily's birthday, the 2nd time in two years. Hopefully, this time, we can settle for at least a few years. I want this house to feel like home to my children. I want them to feel safe and comfortable because I don't think they have truly felt that with ME since the divorce. Kensley is excited - she's getting a purple room :-) Edison is getting a big boy bed and Emily will share sleeping quarters with him when she comes to visit every other weekend. The one downfall is that it only has one bathroom, which will be tough for 2-3 girls to share, but we can do this!
I'm only moving 2.2 miles, but that will still require spending the rest of this week packing, moving this weekend and then unpacking. Have I mentioned that I HATE MOVING? I know I will have to do it again because I can't stay in this new place forever, but maybe, just maybe, this is the 2nd to last time that I will EVER have to move again!
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