Well, we still live in our house, but technically it’s not ours anymore! We closed on the sale last Thursday, May 10, with a lease-back through May 31. It’s comforting to have my girls stay in the same house through the end of the school year. Normalcy is very important to me, and I am trying to accomplish this move with the least upheaval as I can manage. We originally thought of staying in a hotel for 3 weeks if the buyers wouldn’t allow us to rent it until the end of the month, but thankfully, they agreed with no strings attached. Just a check. A check was definitely attached.
I will say our buyers (um… landlords?) were an absolute dream to deal with throughout the entire process. They never made us jump through hoops or had unreasonable demands. In fact, they made their offer, we countered, and they accepted all within a matter of hours. It was smooth sailing from there.
We ended up meeting them during the inspection when she decided to bring her family in for a tour at the last minute. They were all friendly and excited about the house. I got to show them some of the cool features (built-in vacuum system) and gush over details that I love (pine floors, clawfoot tubs, millwork). We spent a lot of time, emotional energy, and money to create this dream home. So while I can’t care too much who occupies it, a small part of me is glad that this is the family who will build memories here. In return, as a gift to them, I plan on cleaning the house to make it immaculate for their move in date so they can move in fresh with their two little ones and start off with happy hearts.
Our PODS unit arrived on Friday, and in hindsight, we may not have necessarily needed it this long. We did a great job of purging the house before the sale, so the loading didn’t take but two days. I did not do much of the loading, so I happily give all the credit to my husband and to the glory of functional fitness.
So, we are about 80% packed. The only thing left is mattresses and kitchen essentials. We have a lot of furniture left over that would be nice to take, but I’m willing to let go. Decisions had to be made, so I kept what was only critical to re-home our family. (Truth be told, I may go in and get rid of a few more boxes! I can declutter with the best of them, and I’m slightly obsessive about overcoming challenges like that.)
Our next big task is saying goodbye. I’m not any good at that because I don’t like finality to things. I prefer life to be an evolution, and everyone who I’ve made part of my history here in Texas is an important part of my who I am. So, I don’t think goodbye is appropriate. However, I acknowledge that time and distance changes relationships, and I want to be sure to spend some time with those that matter most to me while I have the chance. This blog post was hugely in my mind the whole time, especially about appointments. As we close in on our move date, my calendar is filling up fast and there never seems to be enough days left to fit it all in, especially when you take into account normal life like gymnastics for The Bug, morning commutes (we gotta keep jobs!) and keeping life going. I feel like I’m going to look back on this month – much like I look back on two toddlerhoods – and go, “How in the f— did I survive that?!”
But I know that we are a team. We always have been. All four of us. And I can’t say enough about my kids and my husband that they have all been happy and willing teammates to make this all work. The only thing in front of us now is happiness, purpose, and opportunity.
The Top Left Corner Life 