A New Home, Upcoming Blog Changes, and a Good Prognosis!
Other than my last post, I have been missing here at my blog for quite some time. (Well, there was the sporadic quick post here and there to let you all know I was still here!)
Why was I gone? Well, the answer is long and convoluted! But the short story is, we sold our house, thinking we’d find one quickly during the hot real estate market right after we sold ours. But it took us over a year and a half to find one!
Everything else in my life kind of went on hold, as we scrambled to, not only look for a house, but, (you may have guessed this already) find somewhere to live in the meantime.
Some of you may remember that my son and I suffer from extreme reactions to chemicals, especially remodeling chemicals (paints, cabinetry, carpet, flooring, and the list goes on.) Yes, it’s a real thing, NOT psychological (although, until the early 2000’s, the science wasn’t there yet, so many doctors still think that it is. Ah, the psyche always seems to be the go-to scapegoat, when doctors don’t know the answer.)
If you’re interested in the science of one possible explanation for extreme chemical sensitivities, go and google mast cell activation. It’s actually very interesting science about the immune system that goes awry.
Anyway, you can imagine how hard it is to find a house (or anywhere to live!), under those kinds of circumstances!
But, between family and various hotels, we managed to keep a roof over our heads, and we did finally find a house to buy. We moved into the house in November, and it has been a blur. (There’s a long story about tearing out basement carpet and replacing a furnace and researching home ventilation, but that’s a long story for another day…)
Sunny, the adaptable Yorkie that she is, didn’t seem to mind hotel living at all.
So we are now way down at the southern edge of the suburbs. (My daughter insists we are in the country.) Well, it’s not really the country, given the suburban flavor of the area, but there is a wooded common ground area right behind the house, the view of the stars is incredible, and the sounds of the night are really reminiscent of my childhood camping days. So, yeah, we are much closer to the “country” than we were before.
This view out of the dining room window was one of the things that sold us on the house.
The peonies on the side of the house surprised us this spring, and my daughter brought one inside.
Among other sweet gifts, the sellers gave us this wreath above the mantle!
In the meantime, my son created, produced, and hosted several episodes of a local cable music show, and wrote and recorded a song. My daughter graduated from college, moved from one apartment to another, and got engaged. Our Sunny dog was flexible and seemed happy and adventurous as we moved her around, (because, really, as long as she’s with family, she’s happy!)
One of the scariest parts of this long story, was my recent uterine cancer. No worries, though, the prognosis is good! (Negative lymph nodes!)
If you’ve followed along this far, thank you! I’ve had some time to contemplate the future of this blog (again!) I started it in 2011, and it’s become a part of me (like a limb or a fly that just won’t go away. Except, I like this fly.) I’ve been in and out several times. I love the blogging community so much, and even though blogging has changed a lot since I began this one, I would miss it too much if I left.
I’m considering a blog name change. (I am, after all, closer to an empty nester than “mom- blogger” age.) I want to focus the blog on my passions which are lettering, art and craft, and photography. (But, as eclectic as the blog is, I will tend not to stay within one confined blogging niche. Unless my niche is just creativity!)
Hope you enjoy the photos. Other than the phone pic of my daughter and Sunny, the rest were taken with my old Nikon D200.
Looking forward to a blogging future!
Until next time!
Linking to:
Wordless Wednesday at Create with Joy
TFT at Katherine’s Corner
November is when I moved into our house! But I was six weeks pregnant. Ugh. And someone at my daughter's school has that same thing with chemicals. Very real.
congrats on the house! And Yorkies are amazingly adaptable!
Thanks Tamara! I can't imagine moving while pregnant. This move nearly killed us, and I swore, never again!
welcome back and WOW,first so happy to know your cancer scare is over and … there has been a lot going on in your world. Thank you for sharing it with us at the TFT blog party. Biggest hugs and cheers for weathering the storm and staying positive. Oh and ear scratch for your more tolerant than our dog would be, Sunny. xo
Thanks so much, Katherine! And thank you so much for featuring my post–you made my day! Sunny says "thanks" for the ear scratch!
Popping over from Life at Rossmont. I enjoyed you're saying blogging is hard to give up. I started in the days of building my pages on Geocities before blogging was the thing. Then that era died so I found blogging. Even if no one is reading, I find it helps me, but I have also met some really nice and interesting people along the way. Enjoyed finding your site. I would love to have you share at Pictorial Tuesday (a photography link up) and/or Sunday Scripture Blessings (on Sundays) when you get your new blog up and going or anytime. Was nice to find you blog to visit. Congratulations on the house, and praises that the cancer is benign.
Peabea from Peabea Scribbles
Thank you for the visit, Peabea! I'm so glad you made your way here. I know what you mean about blogging–so many nice people! Thanks so much for your kind words. I'm looking forward to visiting your blog!