2016 was a year of waiting for us.

I had some unresolved health issues that I was working through with a team of doctors, and most of my energy was just devoted to getting myself back on track.  Lab work, eating a clean diet, tons of supplements, and rest.  Lots of rest.  But for several years now, in the back of our minds, Dave and I have been dreaming of buying a large house on land as our “forever home.”  Somewhere spacious enough that we weren’t all tripping over each other all the time {these kids are only getting bigger!  And the dog…she is the worst offender, to be honest} and somewhere the kids could spend more time outside with room to run.  We didn’t know if or when it would ever happen, but at the end of 2016 after looking at countless homes, we found a house on 17 acres that fit most of our criteria.  Problem was, it didn’t really look like us. We love white painted woodwork and light, airy spaces.  Honey oak just doesn’t do it for us {sorry if you’re into that sort of thing.  We can still be friends.}

I’ll post before pics of the new house another day, but here’s some shots of our old house so you can see what I mean:

We pretty much painted every surface of that house.  We had the popcorn ceilings scraped, we painted all the walls and trim, all the cabinets and doors, and we basically put our mark on a very builders grade home.

And when it came down to it, it was harder to leave than I thought it would be.

Maybe because the first person to see it bought it, confirming how special we knew it really was.  Or maybe just because we put so much blood, sweat and tears into that place and had so many memories tied up in it.  Neighbors that we love, evening walks to the park, family bike rides, parties on the back deck, impromptu baseball games in the back yard.  We had a good little run there on 26th Street.

I’m really thankful for that house.  I’m thankful for the memories it held and the way our family grew while we lived there.  To say I miss it nearly every day is not an exaggeration, but I know that we’ll grow to love this new house in the same way.  Just gotta put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into it first. 🙂