The nest is empty. It has been a little more than 2 weeks since we dropped our daughter off at university. It is so strange. You raise your child for 18 years, see them face to face, give a hug and share a meal on a daily basis; only to progress to daily phone calls and FaceTimes. Thank God for FaceTime! The house is so quiet. The cats even know she is gone. They will not go into her room. I’ve caught them at her bedroom door which is wide open, peering in, but not daring to venture in and make themselves comfortable on her bed for an afternoon nap.
Our daughter is thriving. Strange how all the little worries I had as a mother, she has eased. Did I teach her enough about little things that can turn into big things when neglected? Things such as keep your room clean so you won’t add any friction to a roommate friendship. Put your room key and your car keys in the same spot in your room so you are not wondering where they are in the morning when you dash off to class. Did I remind her to be kind to those who might be scared to leave home? Will she be a friend to one who is in need of a friend? Will she notice them? Our fearless and feisty girl has eased my little worries. The one thing she cannot ease is that I miss her. My husband and I both miss her terribly. The question at the end of the day is, “What time is she calling?” It’s our favorite time of day!
Time marches on and we learn to wipe our tears, pull up our bootstraps and get busy building a new life. There are many changes in the near future that will help to give me a sense of purpose. I find myself quite bored these days. I’m not really interested in the tasks at hand. A fresh start is needed. With that said, we have placed our home on the market. God willing we will get an offer soon so that we can jet off to a new place here in town. We are wanting an older home that has good bones, tons of character on a large lot. We have our eyes on a couple of homes that we both love and will fit our family and future family (grandchildren one day). I will keep you posted.
I know I haven’t shared a lot of our home in the past 7 years. My focus was to spend as much time as possible with my daughter before she flew the nest. This was by far one of the best decisions I have made in my life. When she wanted to talk, we talked. When she wanted to just sit side by side on the couch and watch a show together, that’s what we did. It was truly time well spent. Now that she is out of the nest, I thought it was time to share more of our home before we move.
I decided for my birthday this past April, I wanted new patio furniture. For those that have been with me for what seems like a hundred years, back in 2012, I received our outdoor dining set for my birthday. We still have that outdoor dining set which was in need of some TLC. I spruced it up with a couple of coats of black spray paint and ordered new cushions that would coordinate with the cushions on this year’s birthday gift of a conversation set. Here is my back patio during our hot, hot, hot, late summer.
Even, Camille, our “old girl” kitty had to get under the furniture because it really is just too hot. The new conversation set is from Amazon as well as the little side tables.
We moved the dining set over to the other section of the patio and tucked the conversation set in front of the fireplace.
All of the cushions were from Amazon as well. You know I have to have a touch of blue somewhere.
Now, let’s move over to the other section.
A few coats of spray paint really did wonders to bring her back to life as well as a new much needed umbrella, cushions and pillows.
I will miss our pretty water view and watching the wildlife that comes to visit.
How do you like my new birthday gift? It’s so nice to go out in the evenings after the sun has set, turn the fan on and watch the water. I will try my best to keep you posted on life here at the Griffin House with the Man, me and the cats as well as little updates about the darling that is soaring.
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Click the links below for any posts you have missed:
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Toodles,
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