The first step to getting the home ready is cleaning it out. The previous occupant had left so much in it that it took an entire day to stuff everything in contractor bags. A new neighbor was awesome enough to allow me to loadup her trailer and even had her husband haul it off to the dump. I still have TWELVE bags left to dispose of, two ugly couches, and some other random furniture. But at least it's contained and ready to go. A huge thank you to "Aunt" Caroline. Who helped keep me on track and fed, and did so much work herself. The amazing part of this whole thing is that the kids now have new friends living all around. They met all the kids in the neighborhood right away and almost all of them are within the same age range, and they all get along great. The park is small. My home makes a total of five residences, and no more can be added without major work. Only one home doesn't have children. I was worried about moving to a mobile home park. I
Posts
Getting to work..
Let the work begin! The mobile home has been moved to it's new location and we have lots to do. Here we see the team getting it ready for moving. These guys were amazing . Here we see it attached to the truck, being pulled into the new lot. I was amazed at how fluidly the man whipped it into place. And here she is, in all her glory in the new location. Okay...so she's infinitely uglier than I thought possible, but she'll dress up nice. Little lipstick, little rouge, maybe a dress...Paint, new roof, fence..... She'll be the talk of the town. On the inside, here's what we're working with: There was a lot of furniture left by the previous owner. But the living room and kitchen are a nice size. With four bedrooms, the kids will get their own rooms again. They'll even get their own bathroom. We'll have an art room next to the master bedroom. Obviously books will dominate the living room.
Life.... it is infinitely unpredictable... I know, that's tragically cliché... But seriously, I have learned by now that nothing ever goes as planned. At least...nothing in my life goes as planned. Maybe I'm just bad at planning?? (Probably...) Anyway, back to the point: I've had lots of plans... usually loose..not much set in stone stuff. As a teenager and early adult, I "planned" to be a rock star. (I know, back to the clichés...) I had a really good shot, though. I was good, passionate, and determined. At 19 I "planned" on moving to Nashville, but I got knocked up and my fiancée, Mr I'll-Go-Anywhere-With-You, refused to leave his hometown. I stayed, but kept working on my career and dream. I was being courted by producers and had songs on the radio. Things were looking good. ...Then I got rocked by a family tragedy and crawled into a hole for a few years. My "rock star plan" was laid to rest. In that time of emotional drif
It's a lovely, rainy day here on the island, though some might call it dreary. Especially given the fact that I have three girls ridden with chicken pox under my care at this time. But, in my mind, it's a glorious day. Outside, literally hundreds of birds are swarming the yard. The air is thick with their joyous sounds: chirping, singing, calling out for no apparent reason. With their songs they herald the afternoon rain and delight in the feast of worms driven up from the wet soil. They swoop from the giant live oak trees to the grass, peck at the offerings and sweep back into the sky (despite the steady rain) to sing again. They are mostly red breasted robins, but we've noted two cardinals and a few other smaller birds from unknown heritage. I've seen this many robins here before, but I'm always delighted to watch the display. The girls also, were delighted. These are not my children, but most of my roommate's brood. Mine are on visitation
Today I submitted my college application and registration fees. I don't know if I've ever been so excited to hand over thirty dollars in my life. It was perfect. All I could think, over and over in my head, was "Oh my god! I'm doing it! I'm not backing down from this plan!" The first official step. You see, I'm twenty eight and a half years old. (I have small children, so that half a year is important data in my household.) I've been to college once and fudge it up pretty well. Not that I performed poorly, I simply didn't make good decisions, because my only guidance came from a strong but misguided spirituality. "Feeling led" by some divine hand made my clueless-ness easier to navigate, but the direction was anything but sound. In the end I earned a worthless degree from a worthless college, and two years worth of nontransferable credit hours. Thankfully, my blunders have at least served to educate me as I look back on them