A Year In the Life

It's hard to believe it's been over a year since I last posted.

I have to say, it's been quite a year, and I've been rather overwhelmed by it all.

We found out in December we were going to be grandparents. A bright spot in our lives ... hope for the future in the midst of some very difficult times. Sadly, our hopes were dashed by a miscarriage last winter. It was heartbreaking. We still look forward to being grandparents, we'll just have to be patient for a while longer!!

We had to make some hard decisions about our business, and our living situation. We lost our home of 22 years, and moved into an apartment complex. Along with the move, came some serious purging. We were determined to bring to our new home, only the things we needed and loved. If there was no place to put it in the new place, it had to go.

Some of it was easy. I mean, how many sets of mixing bowls or casseroles does one household need? I didn't really need 10 cookie sheets, or 48 muffin tins.

A lot of it was hard. My doll collection, my collection of crystal serving pieces, my silver coffee service, my silver serving dishes, all went. Pieces that had belonged to my mother, my grandmother. It was hard to let them go. I offered my daughters in law anything they wanted and they didn't want any of it.

Life is a lot more casual these days and young people don't use those things anymore. So I let it all go, and hoped that it would go to someone who would treasure owning it as much as I had.

We sold all of our lawn and garden tools, the kitchen appliances, the snowblower. Big Guy came over and took what tools he wanted from the garage and we sold the rest. We sold our boat and our RV, and the truck, becoming a one car family again.

As hard as it was, in many ways it was a good thing. We often don't realize how bogged down we are by our things. Getting rid of a lot of it has given us a sort of freedom. We've pared down, streamlined, decluttered and simplified our lives. We've been humbled and have come to realize that it's all just "stuff" and that the things that really matter in life don't have anything to do with things. It's kind of a liberating experience!!

We've been in our new place a couple of months now ... and we're happy here. No more huge lawn to mow, no leaves to pick up in the fall. No snow to plow in the winter. It's clean and newly painted, with lots of light. We have a pair of cardinals that live just outside our back door, and a bunny who comes to visit every morning. I even have a little space I can plant some flowers in the spring.

I've commandeered a corner of the basement laundry room and I'm working on putting together my sewing room/studio and anxious to get back to being creative. I've missed that. In the move, I found three quilts that my mother had started before she passed away, and I want to finish them this winter, along with some other unfinished projects.

So life goes on, and we continue to reinvent ourselves. The business is still on shaky ground, and we don't know what the future holds ... but we welcome whatever comes. and trust in the Lord to see us through whatever lies ahead.

Someone once told me ..,. if you're going to worry, why pray ... and if you're going to pray ... why worry?

Whenever I find myself feeling anxious about things, I remember that. Praying is so much easier than worrying!!

Until next time ...


Terri