It’s all good…long but good.
Most of you know Mom and Dad decided to finally down size. Anyone that has ever moved and ever given birth know they are EXACTLY the same!
Mom and Dad have lived in the house they built for exactly 51 years on the day of closing tomorrow. How strange is that? I knew this process was going to be tough but add their age, their gift of accumulating soooo much stuff and then the emotional aspect of it all. Mom and Dad were the last Harper’s to live at Harper’s Corners. The Harper’s first settled at the corner of the 8th Concession E in Carlisle in 1832 and yes, Dad still had barn board from the barn, tools, a wood stove and other trinkets. This is going to be very emotional…for everyone.
Back to the move, I arrived 12 days ago and the 4th trip in 8 weeks. Thank you Patrick Herron for holding down the fort in Dallas. We closed on the new house on the May 27th, refinished wood floors, refinished wood floors again, painted, held an epic garage sale, (of course Mom cleaned every item before it went into the garage sale), 20+ loads to the scrap yard, the dump, value village, electronic donations, clothes donations+++ It’s all good, especially since I cleaned out a storage unit we have had for 5 years, YEAH! We actually sold the clown. I will save that story for another time.
The actual moving day was June 3. The movers arrived and quickly realized the Harper’s had a lot of stuff, and a lot of big stuff and they could not get it all done in one day. I was, lets just say less than happy about this because they couldn’t come back till today, June 6 and the closing for the old house is the 7th. Oh and I am back in Dallas now and all 3 brothers are too busy. You do the math, way too much for Mom and Dad to handle, but it’s all good.
On my way to the airport we stopped at the house, the house where I grew up, fell in the fruit cellar while building and got a concussion, shot hockey pucks in the basement, hosted more meals than a school cafeteria, practiced guitar, piano, drums, trombone, played pool in the living room, cut lawn and more lawn, weeded more gardens than you could ever imagine, laughed and yes Dad and I had a little cry. It’s all good.
It’s all good, is my line when things get stressed. I have said that a lot in this process, so much so that now Dad says it. It’s our code word for each other, when Mom needs a break, Dad a wobbly pop and Patti…patience. Truth is, it is all good. Mom and Dad will enjoy the simplicity of a smaller house and all the new people they will meet in their new neighborhood, it really is all good!
Mom and Dad survived the second move with help from some wonderful friends. Mom is feeling better, enjoying setting up her kitchen like a babies room and Dad hugs and kisses Mom because it makes her smile and a happy Mom is a happy Dad. Stress turns into anticipation for the new normal. They just gave birth and it’s all good…
Rockhaven Lane just acquired amazing new neighbours!
I had a few belly laughs in the last 12 days. Anyone that knows me well knows I struggle to keep track of a purse. I carry my wallet and know where it is all the time but the whole purse thing is tough for me. Moving day #1. Where is my purse, an hour later, no really where is my purse? I though I left it hanging on a kitchen chair. I asked the movers if they saw a purse and they said no. Oh dear God, where did I leave it…I found it still on the chair wrapped in shrink wrap ready to move to the new house.
Second belly laugh. One of the movers was from Jamaica and he, over the course of the 7 hours with us became very fond of Dad, who doesn’t? At the end of the move, Dad and Damen hugged and Damen said he wanted to take Dad to Jamaica to meet his dad. Everyone needs to meet my Dad but it was really funny imagining Dad meeting Damen’s Dad in Jamaica.
3rd belly laugh. During the garage sale someone asked if I was Dad’s wife? WTH… that’s it… I’m dying my hair…