On most Tuesdays, I write what’s on my mind, not necessarily a “slice of life” despite posting to the forum. But, today I have a real slice of life! We are moving – in less than eight weeks! This has been planned but is happening slightly faster than we thought it would. Our primary house has a buyer and we couldn’t be happier! We will be moving to our cabin, which is actually a four-season, timber frame home on a small private lake in Northern Wisconsin. There we have 2 acres of wooded, lakefront property on a quiet unpaved road. While we designed and built the home when our boys were small, we never envisioned living there full time. At least, I didn’t.
But, it has all the amenities of a primary residence with perhaps slightly less storage. The house meets our needs all the while being a unique property designed and finished by my husband. Our timber framer brought in the trusses and the frame went up in a day back in 2005. Amish put on our steel roof and our ganged windows that face the lake. My husband did the rest. It’s been a labor of love and while not some huge expansive abode that would cause some to be braggarts, it’s been a place that we’ve enjoyed being with our boys as they’ve grown into young men and a few close friends. And, that is what matters – not square footage, not amenities, not the number of bedrooms or baths, not expensive fixtures, but that it’s been a place that love has built.
We recently put in a second full bath and second private bedroom, as well as a second living area. I say “we” but should say “my husband” put in these new spaces. He’s very handy and can do almost anything he sets his mind to. Despite his career in healthcare, he could have been an architect. He has all the “tools.” The extra space will make having visitors such as our boys and their significant others as well as our friends, easier to stay with us.
I finally get to do some fun decorating, too. This is something that I never really bothered to do at the cabin in the past. We went there to relax, unwind, unplug, and enjoy the sights and sounds of nature in the North Woods. Don’t get me wrong, it’s pleasantly decorated now, but I hope to be able to be a little freer with my interior design starting with a colorful, milk-paint wash on the master bedroom closet and a funky yellow laundry room rug. I am looking forward to this.
We are making lists of furniture to take to the cabin (which I am now referring to as the lake house), put in storage, save for our son who will be finished with grad school this summer, and put in a garage sale. This morning, two large mission-style solid oak bookcases went out the door to a friend in a nearby town. Besides the piano which left a few weeks ago, the bookcases are the first major pieces to leave our house. We are moving!
Yes! It’s true. I’ve heard it’s called downsizing but you know – it really doesn’t feel like that when you are going to live in a place created by love. It’ll be a busy eight weeks.
Today is Slice of Life Tuesday. I am grateful to TwoWritingTeachers.org for creating this supportive forum for bloggers, teachers, and authors to share their written word. I’ve been posting to this forum since February of 2017. Thank you!
The Apples in My Orchard 
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