We've been married for 11 years, and the last 7 of them have been in this apartment. And this was our first "real" apartment--meaning, this is the first one we signed an actual lease for, put down a deposit for, etc. The other places we lived before here were either staff housing (when I was working as a graduate assistant), or a missions apartment in the basement of a church, or an in-law apartment above the garage of a dear friend's house. Renting this apartment was a huge "grown-up" step for us. And there are a lot of memories here. The biggest one probably being that it's the place we brought Ari home to when she was born.
When I drive home from work now, I'm reminded that my days of making this drive are almost over. I find myself glancing out the windows of my car as I exit the highway--looking at the housing development across the street from the exit ramp, at the commuter lot on my left, at the Dunkin Donuts I sometimes visit, at the grocery store across the street that we always shop at--and I realize, with a bit of a start, that soon, seeing these places won't be part of my daily routine anymore. Maybe it seems silly to say I'm going to miss that commuter lot or that grocery store. But it's a little bit true.
And it's not even just seeing those places. I'm realizing that we'll be shopping at a different grocery store, a different Target, getting gas at a different gas station, frequenting a different mall--just because they will be closer. And none of that is sad or anything. It's just an odd thought. You get used to doing things a certain way after 7 years.
I could probably make a list of the things I will miss about this apartment, but it would be very short, and they would be small things. And the list of things that I'm looking forward to in this house is long....
Much more space. Including a basement for storage.
Ari having a room all of her own (instead of having to share her room with an old computer desk and a filing cabinet).
A washer and dryer of our own. (No more lugging laundry baskets across the parking lot to the laundry room and paying per load.)
Being able to park in a driveway right next to the house instead of a random parking spot in a huge parking lot.
Tons of windows that we can open to let in the breeze. (We only have a few windows in our apartment, just on the front and back, and it's almost impossible to get a good cross-breeze.)
A huge yard for the kiddo and the dogs.
A brand-new dining room set. (We bought it off the owners--they bought it used but refinished it, and it looks brand-new.)
Being able to finally fit all our furniture in our house. (We have a few chairs living at my parents' house due to lack of space.)
Being able to put up a Christmas tree in front of the lovely bay windows for all the world to see. (I know that's silly, but I think it's so cool.)
Possibly being able to put up Christmas lights and such. (Note to self: buy Christmas lights.)
A kitchen big enough to put an island in (a small one, but still). And nice new appliances in the kitchen, too. And a double sink.
An actual dining room, separate from any other rooms (which gives me hope that we'll keep the table cleared off, which means no more meals in front of the TV because the table is too cluttered to eat at).
I could go on and on, I'm sure, but I won't. And aside from all these things, there are all sorts of other blessings coming our way. A friend of a friend is going to give us a twin-size bed for Ari--white wood frame and mattress and all. The owner is selling us his swingset (that his boys are too old for), which I know Ari will just love. Matt and Kristin are lending us a desk so that we can toss our flimsy particle-board one. And there's there all sorts of other people offering to lend a hand with moving, unpacking, babysitting. It's enough to make my head spin--in a good way.
It occurred to me a few days ago that last year, on September 27, we were leaving for our Caribbean cruise.
This year, on September 27, we will be moving into our new house.
I wonder what we'll be doing on September 27 next year? (If you say "having a baby!" I will kick you.)
3 comments:
You got my vote for a new grandbaby! Note that you said it first!
How nostalgic. I guess I might have been a little more like that when we moved if we'd lived in our apartment longer. It just seemed to get smaller and smaller each year, and we were so happy to have extra space.
Of course I'm used to the house by now, but every once in a while I still feel like I'm playing house. We've still got walls to paint and rooms to decorate (and furnish), and there's extra bedrooms and places to store stuff. That part is really nice, though having more to clean isn't the funnest. I wasn't great at keeping the apartment clean, so I'm not too surprised that I get behind on cleaning around here.
It is weird shopping at different stores. Even if it's the same kind of store, some things are set up differently, so you still have to adjust.
Ooh, a Christmas tree in front of a bay window will be so nice! We've got 2 windows at the front of our house, so I totally want our tree right there where it can be seen from the road. And I know Josh is excited about decorating the outside of the house with Christmas lights this year.
I make no comment on the baby thing. You just never know, right? Wait, I guess that was a commment. Oh well, I already wrote it, so I'm not backspacing :)
Happy packing and happy moving!
Ahh moving. I don't miss it! Although it has a way of weeding lots of junk out, which is probably the only upside of the whole moving thing.
Oh and if you did want to have a baby around Sept 27ish of next year, you'd have to get pregnant in December. But you'd have to go through the summer pregnant. Which I don't recommend. I'm just saying...
Post a Comment