We're putting our house up for sale.
Even as I put that sentence in writing, it stuns me just a little bit. Of course, no one's forcing us. It was our decision to do it. But it makes my heart flutter.
What if someone buys it?
What if no one buys it?
Back in 1995 we were being transferred to a new state and our company gave us a week-long house hunting trip to find and buy a house. I had told the realtor our price range, and she dutifully showed us a bunch of houses under that number. Like, thirty or forty houses. And even though all the homes we tromped through were perfectly nice and fine ... nothing was floating my boat. Or as our realtor said, "No bells and whistles, huh?" I shrugged. She said, "I have a house to show you. You'll just have to up your price range a little bit."
As sales tactics go, it was not a bad one. "A little bit" ended up being a massive understatement. We had to up our price range a LOT bit. But the moment we walked into the house ... this house ... I knew it was ours. And I got so excited just imagining that this would be the gorgeous house that we got to raise our family in.
Our kids were four years, and six months old when we moved in. Our house saw us through birthday parties, family Thanksgiving dinners, family Christmases, sleepovers, our annual New Years Day Open House. We befriended our neighbors. We decorated all the rooms, and some we redecorated.
The best thing about the house is that it gave us room for everything. The house has never been fancy, but it's always been spacious. I knew when I moved in that I would never fill it, and I never have.
Twenty three years later, both kids have grown up, moved out and are living in their own places. I've retired from the big day job now, and we've bought the beach home 950 miles away that will be our next permanent home. It's time to sell our dream house. It did an awesome job raising our family. Now, we've given the ole girl a face lift, remodeled the bathrooms and the kitchen, and put fresh paint on every wall. We're almost ready to turn it over to the next lucky family to fall in love with.
I expect nothing less for my dream house, for my awesome house that raised our family and provided us with so many wonderful memories, to find another, younger family who steps in and immediately falls in love with it. Time ticks on and such is the way of houses. Tomorrow the realtor and the photographer is coming over to take pictures inside and out, trying to attract that one perfect family.
<<SIGH>> Excuse me while I grab a Kleenex.