Peanut on the front porch of our house, 1970
Mom coming out of the house, 1969
Uncle John and Peanut in the living room, 1968
Me on the swingset and Peanut in the grass, 1973
Dad and I in the backyard, 1972
Summer with lawn chairs, 1971
Roses by the house, 1971
Dad and I watering the grass, 1972
Mom’s crab tree, 1984
Christmas in the living room, 1968
Dad with me and Beth by the roses, 1978
Me with Beth on the swingset, 1974
Mom with Beth outside – 1973
Mom and I when I came home from the hospital – 1970
Grandma on Dad’s chair, 1970
The family in front of the house for Beth’s first communion – 1982
Last night, my sister went up to Kenosha for the closing on our family home, where our family has lived since 1966. It’s the only home Beth and I knew from our growing up years until today.
Last year, after we moved my mom into her new home, we spent months cleaning (and cleaning) the house, getting the things we wanted out of it, and planning and executing an estate sale with the incredible help of The Balderdash Collection. In November we put the house on the market, and yesterday it was sold. Pretty incredible when you consider the market today.
A few weeks ago, I stopped in at the house and took one last walk around. Although it was completely empty, I still could see everything the way it was, and I could remember things that happened in every nook and cranny. Where I’d listen to my music. Where my mom would sit and look at the crab tree in the front yard. Where we sat at the dinner table. Where we’d sit and watch TV as a family after dinner. Where my sister and I played together and made up silly games. Where fights happened. Where good and bad news was learned. Where my Dad died. They all happened there.
It’s hard to say goodbye to a place as special as this… but it’s time. We have a lot of wonderful memories there, and we’ll never forget those. But now it’s time for new memories. In new places. And now, someone else can make memories in our old home. I hope it has as many good things in store for them as it had for us.
Tagged: change, Family, growing up, home, kids, Memories, time
