and the time has come once again to pack up and move. this time just 10 miles up the road, to the pink house in wallace. yes, we’re finally doing it (although we’ve picked the week with the worst weather). several crucial items are already gone, including our very comfortable bed and the washer & dryer my dad bought us years ago. harlowe is feeling confused by the changes in her routine, and is not going to enjoy leaving the home she remembers most.
i get it.
because the time has also come for us to say goodbye to our beloved winterchase, our haven in every storm over the past 21 years. it was the only home that was a constant for our two sons throughout our many moves. we purchased it in 2001 while we were living in alaska, so that we could be closer to my mom while she was battling (and dying from) cancer. our sons were 8 and 3 at the time. a few years later, a pipe burst in the upstairs bathroom, devastating the entire house. the four of us worked very hard together to make it a home again, an even better home than before. when we later moved to washington state we started spending every winter here, three months at a time, just a few blocks from my dad. and then for 3-1/2 years before our move to italy, we lived here full-time. in november 2020, after experiencing covid and the strict italian lockdown, we came back to winterchase to be closer to our sons in such an uncertain world. so many changes during these times, to the interior and exterior, and in each of our lives.
this past weekend, nicholas was in town and cleaned most of his stuff out of the basement. bits and pieces of all of his many building projects through the years. i watched as he and eric headed out of the driveway with a trailer full of stuff on their way to the dump. and i cried. 😭
i am having a hard time thinking about saying goodbye to this house. this house that saw us through so very much. and eric is too. it’s been a part of our lives for so long, the home that alexander and nicholas always knew and loved best. 😢 eric and i are both feeling some low-level anxiety right now – lots of cleaning and fixing and painting still to do in both houses and, of course, lots of packing too. but mostly that sense of dread at the thought of moving on without the anchor we call winterchase. every picture i’ve taken holds its own unique story. soon this house will be on the market, waiting for a different family to create their own memories.
a new adventure always involves letting go of something else, doesn’t it? and we know we are headed in the right direction, doing what needs to come next for us. that doesn’t mean, however, that i won’t shed a few more tears before this transition is over.
“approach change as you would a beautifully wrapped gift, waiting to be opened . . . with eager anticipation and a sense of wonderment.”
oh wait, that’s MY quote! i guess i’d better start heeding my own advice.
here’s to you, winterchase ❤️ we’ll always cherish our time together.
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