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Tuesday, December 27, 2016

AS THIS YEAR DRAWS TO A CLOSE…



Looking back…

We have been in this house a year and 3 weeks. Wow. How is that possible? 
Our Michigan home


We left Michigan in January 2015 and headed to Ormond Beach and our new home and life. So much was left behind so that we could begin to build the life we had talked about nearly 30 years. A home in a warm climate with no real winter. A place where we could walk outside all year long in relative comfort. Where flowers bloom and grass is greenish all year. The ocean being 3 miles away was a bonus. A wonderful and amazing bonus.






The perfect Florida house

The house we loved was a cozy and beautiful home. We loved everything about that house. It was a typical Florida home with stucco and painted white with a lime green trim all around. The inside was three bedrooms and two baths, a Florida room, living, kitchen and dinette and a fabulous 14 x 39 foot screen porch all across the back with a lovely wooded view. It had fan windows in three rooms, which I loved. It was exactly what we dreamed of.

Within a few months we realized although the house was perfect and we did love it, it was not the neighborhood we needed. We needed friends. We had neighbors who spoke and waved,, but weren't interested in being more. No socialization with one exception. A single gal with two adorable pups who became and remain our Florida family. So glad we met and even gladder that we are still friends and within walking distance yet.

We put our perfect house on the market in August and started looking for our new community. The decision was quickly made that we would go to a 55 and older manufactured home community. Now, which one. There are many here in this general area.  

Located directly north and adjacent to our subdivision was the one we chose. We were going to move a few blocks by foot and a mile or so by car since no road connects the two communities.
The exact house would be determined by what was available when our home sold, which I believed would be soon because, well, it’s perfect.



It sold in October and we closed on Dec. 4 and moved into our new manufactured home on Dec. 4, 2015.

Our forever home (?)

Let me say here that I do not recommend moving twice in one year. It’s not fun. It’s not exciting. It’s not a new adventure. It is, however, exhausting and downsizing a THIRD time in a year is emotionally more than one should attempt.  

Leaving Michigan, we sold and gave away nearly half of our furniture. We moved the three bedrooms we would need and all of Momma’s furniture, our dining table and chairs and our recliners and a couch. We moved all of our end tables to sort here if they weren't all needed.

We got rid of nearly everything from the kitchen and baths that wasn’t going to be needed. Sorted towels by matching ability to new house and tossed or gave away the rest. Tossed, sold  or donated about four comforters with matching sheets etc because I didn’t want to use the limited storage for such things which could be replaced, if needed later. Kitchen utensils…from Momma’s house and ours were divided and cut to what I thought was bare essentials. Knick  Knacks were only moved if they held sentimental value to me. Momma was gone just two months and some things could not be left or given. Some things were needed even if they were not to leave a box once the move was completed. 

Downsizing again 8 months later…really tough. Lots of tears. The couches both had to go. Wouldn't work here. The recliners, wouldn’t work here. One, Momma’s recliner was coming and her wooden rockers, two, were coming. We bought a new couch and chair for this living room.
Tables…we had Momma’s on the porch and ours in the dining room.  Momma’s wouldn't fit here, we needed round. Ours came. Two beds came, Momma’s stayed in the house for new owners daughter. This kind of made me happy and sad all at once. 

Tossing, donating until we had everything here that we needed and what we couldn’t easily store, eventually, got donated, sold or tossed. It simply had to be done. It was draining. 

Other than the couch and chair, we bought virtually no furniture for this house until I figured out a way to fit in some shelves for photo albums. I cannot let go of those.

So here we are a year later…in this year we have made new friends and joined many social activities here at the park. We have some truly lovely people around us and we love this house. We put in a brand new kitchen and guest bath and new flooring in the guest room, bath and kitchen. We would still like to put new flooring in the living and bedroom, but nothing urgent.
We added on to our very small back porch and it is now a beautiful 12 x 20 and we practically live out here. We added vinyl windows so the cooler temps don’t send us inside anymore. It’s the best thing we could possibly have done here. This is our forever home, we hope.

We have made two trips back to Michigan this year. We will be spending July there each year as long as we are able to do so. We have a small travel trailer that we store and then park at Holiday Shores. We have time to visit with everyone who wants to make time for us and all the family did so this year; we hope they will again next year. It’s the perfect set up for us and Miggy.

(Oh, Miggy…our beloved Jake, the rat terrier of our hearts for 15.5 years, passed away in September and we adopted a Chihuahua/rat terrier from the humane society. He chose us right away and has held our hearts every since. Miguel Jose Heroux turned three, we think, on Sept 30 this year and we are so very blessed with this crazy puppy love.)

baby Miggy


And while all of this seems overwhelming…okay, it kind of was…it was all worth it. We had our typical Florida house, now we have our forever house, maybe. One never knows what He has in mind for one’s future so I’m keeping my options open.

New porch, tree, Miggy, Brie and Bella with us


Happy New Year all. Peace and love to all and my dear Lord, please keep a hand on our new President’s mouth and a whisper in his ear from time to time. Guide him to a most successful term, for all of our sakes.

Jo


14 comments:

  1. Happy New Year! I hope 2017 brings you some extra time to just relax and enjoy it all.

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    1. Happy New Year to you! i am sure it will.

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  2. Happy New Year! You have done a lot of moving about and settling in and like you, I hope you are settled in for a good long time...or even forever. Loved receiving a Christmas card from you this year dear Jo. Consequently yours was the only one I got. It was very special. Thank you!! Here's to more blessings and profound happiness to come in 2017!

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    1. I miss you! I am going to make an effort to get more online time in 2017. We will catch up, my friend.
      Happy New Year and lots of hugs and love. xoxo

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  3. Been a while since I have read your blog...thanks for posting

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  4. I miss you in the blog world Jo! I'm happy that I have you in my FB world tho. :) - I cannot begin to imagine all of that packing and moving. Holy smokes. I got exhausted just reading about it but I am super happy that you now are where you are intended to be with a full plate of friendship and fun stuff n' lots n' lots of sunshine. - Happy New Year to you!!! Love n' hugs from Idaho <3

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    1. Thanks! I really do miss writing. I mean I got one in here and there, it you know I'm more of a routine person. 😘
      It's nice to be missed!

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  5. A pleasure as usual. We will see the 3 of you in April. :)

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  6. Unfortunately, it is fairly common for people to keep to themselves here in FL. I am afraid I am one of those. We bought this house 26 years ago and I only call one neighbor my friend and we don't even get together very often. I had one dear neighbor who moved away, but they are now trying to locate a home in our neighborhood so they can move back. I sure hope she does. Our dogs mated and we each have adorable pups from that union. When her oldest dog died recently, we let them bury her in our very large backyard since the manufactured community she lives in will not allow burial of a pet. Her Xena rests right next to our Maggie Mae. Both died within a couple of months from each other. Both very old. We are family... But, I don't miss the rest of the neighbors who mostly don't have time for each other anyway... A lot like us.

    I moved a little more than I wanted to after moving to Orlando until I bought my first house here. I was in my early 30's and it was exhausting. Now I get exhausted if I even think about moving again. After that house, I only moved one more time when we bought this house. My husband said he was going to put a sign in our front yard that says "Dunmoving". I hope I never have to move again, but one never knows because....life....

    I didn't realize until reading this how much I have missed reading your blogs. I'll try to keep up... LOL

    p.s. Sorry to have written a blog in your blog. LOL

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    1. You can blog on my blog anytime! It really is all about the house AND the neighborhood, both have to be right.
      Thank you for missing me... :)

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  7. Happy New Year, Jo! You've had one crazy year, so the upcoming one almost has to be less eventful, right? Whatever the year brings, I hope you and yours are happy and healthy.

    PS: Not just a last name for Miggy, but a middle one, too. :)

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    1. We were thinking the just not moving or selling and/or buying would make this year a bit easier!
      Looking for some down time from projects, but still a few projects to keep me moving!
      Of course Migs has a middle name! We aren't barbarians.

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