Hello again. It has been a few weeks almost 2 months but
in that time we've gotten settled in our wee little rental.
I have just a little to share in the area of quilt progress but I
also have my new temporary sewing room to show and it's
not too shabby, even if it's missing Lucey. So, here we go...
Yep, we closed on the sale of our happy home.
My haven--with its huge garden, chicken coop & run,
big ol' pool and pergola, our recently-remodeled kitchen.
And not to mention almost 150 years of my family's
blood, sweat and tears.
Sigh.
A quick recap for any newbies
My great-grandparents purchased the initial homestead in the
1880's. More of the surrounding farm ground was purchased
through the years but there came time for the first home to be
torn down to make room for a new one. In 1988, this was
repeated when my dad built (much with his own hands) a
third home. Eventually hubs and I purchased this one, happily
keeping it in the family for another 25+ years. It was not our
"dream home" but it was definitely our dream space
and we've been very, very happy there.
A few years ago my siblings chose to sell the last of the
farm ground around us. After that, nothing was the same.
In a nutshell, it became time for us to let go.
Once again, a family home is being torn down but this
time phase 2 of an assisted living will take its place.
It has been difficult, to say the least, but we're doing
our best to look to the new chapter ahead of us.
It does give me some solace knowing that many will
live out their final years in comfort there.
I pray they will find some of the peace that I felt so often.
Back to the now
So, as they say, there went the family farm.
And all its memories.
Just days after the move, off we flew to Florida for hub's biz trip.
Because we like to keep things hectic, I guess?!?
Well, it was perfect timing, allowing us to get away from the
constant reminder of that so-difficult goodbye.
And hey! I finally got to see alligators while out golfing.
(I was in a cart and on a bridge--relax! )
As I always do when traveling, I seek out cool coffee shops.
I found this one to be especially perfect for hanging out.
Then back we came to....home?? It sure didn't feel like it.
It was more like ice water: I'll never get to go home again.
I feel...displaced.
Not to be whiny. We are healthy and safe; we are together.
It'll be fine. I'll be fine. I'm getting there.
I struggle at times with the memories. Too much time to
myself maybe? I need something to create, and to grow.
(Oh my garden--I miss you!)
I have moments of panic ("What have we done?!?") and
I've silently told my parents "I'm so sorry!" at least 100 times.
No exaggeration.
But they both knew it would happen someday.
But they both knew it would happen someday.
I quickly remind myself there really was no other option.
A house is just a house.
[But darn it, this one had so much more with it!]
We'll create new memories in a new one soon.
Meanwhile, it's been...ah, interesting, and not without some issues
but most of the time (most!) I've been quick to say with a smile,
"It's an adventure!". It helps me keep perspective.
Three of our 5 bedrooms are stuffed with furniture and boxes
so it's more like a wee 2-bedroom unit--with no dining area.
We eat on the "bar" side of the kitchen counter, or out on the
wee patio. Or tv trays--because we're classy like that. 🥴
For a couple of foodies, it's been a real adventure squeezing
into a wee kitchen with a wee pantry but I got it worked out.
I know you want to see the new sewing digs so here ya go:
I guess the irony here is that, without Lucey, I actually have more
space than I did in my much bigger room at the old house.
I'm not real thrilled about the bolt storage (on left) but
the best solution is to simply use the stash, right?
My sew-view is a bit boring (construction) but I'm pretty sure
I can put up with it when I think of the view I'll have at this
time next year--can't wait to experience, and share, that!
These still need to be put into little 2" (finished) blocks.
Things have obviously been pretty busy but I've still squeezed in
some work on the Unity QAL. It's last year's Primitive Gatherings
QAL but I knew from the get-go it would be a side-project with
all of our travel. I didn't know I'd be going through all this
move-chaos but either way, it's a great project for jumping
in and out of as time permits.
On the cutting table is a growing stash of finished blocks
that are waiting to become bigger blocks.
To appease the gardener in me, I've been slowly building
a mish-mash selection of potted herbs on our wee patio.
It faces north so getting sun is another adventure--sigh.
BUT there's a bonus: the sprinkler system hits them. Not sure
how things will work out when the mowers descend but we'll
deal with that adventure as it comes.
The Herb Crew [Herbs I Can't Live Without]
Rosemary
Thyme
Cilantro
Parsley--curled & Italian
Mint
Basil
Oregano
(Sage and more oregano over on our lot/build site)
At the last minute, I grabbed the rhubarb plant from the garden.
It only took me about 5 tries over the years to get one growing.
It figures, eh?
I finally reach rhubarb success and we go and sell out.
More irony: I don't even really like rhubarb!
I do like the flavor so I basically grow it for that:
because someday I might want/need it for a recipe.
And generally, I'm just a stubborn gardener.
Well if you hung out to the end, I appreciate it and I promise to
move on to more fun things like quilting, more travels, new house
progress and such. In fact, I wrote this post while traveling again.
Any guesses?
I'll share that next time.
Until then...
Keep looking ahead and happy quilting!
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