We’ve been wadding through a houseful of memories!
Although we’ve turned our family home of 35 years over to a renter the past 18 months, we have kept the office there and have picked up our mail there. Our renter moved out on January 1st and we’ve been moving out too to get it ready to sell or re-rent. Since our renter was a single guy who wanted room for his bikes (go figure?), he allowed us to leave things in the closets of specified bedrooms. Now it was time to clear all that out! I can’t believe how much stuff we have collected over the years. Besides all our beloved books and files (not so beloved) to sort through there was an endless supply of left-over high school mementoes, college memories, humanitarian trip paraphernalia, several wedding dresses including mine and left-over wedding gifts that kids couldn’t take as they moved across the country or across the world, not to mention our vast international instrument collection.
The “chucking” was time consuming and sometimes painful, but it felt so good once it was “out of sight”. The garage and balcony are stuffed with things that will be going to the DI and tags are posted on other stuff to be going to our place at Bear Lake.
Luckily Eli was home for a few days to see the process and go through some his “stuff”.
Amongst the “junk” of course we found multiple treasures that had long been forgotten. Below is a poster that Eli’s Sunday School teacher made for the class when he was about 4. I vividly remember that little red plaid coat and cute Taylor in the middle. Neither of us could remember this cute boy on the right. (Eli these pics are taken with my new point and shoot….much better. Thanks for the help!)
Look at those non-existent front teeth, knocked out in an toy truck accident! Awwwh! Is he cute enough?
The remaining pictures will only be of interest to our children but I am posting them here for a bit of family history! AND to prepare Charity who hyperventilating about letting this home of her heart go!
FYI, desk marked for DI, log bed made by Jonah marked for Kolob!
You gotta love the Cloud Room!
Crazy plant!
Thousands of batches of cookies, pizza parties and truckloads of macaroni and cheese have been consumed in this kitchen!
And this one is the real tear jerker for all of Eyrealm. SO many wonderful things happened around this table…. from myriads of family meetings to the question games, one-minute speeches, Jerusalem Suppers, pictures for TV shows and magazines, birthday parties as well as arguments and debates. No family member can look at this picture without a flood of memories! And now, I, who don’t really get attached to things, am getting emotional so I’m going to stop.
Life goes on. Memories are held dear. The thrill of life continues! And I must say that this house might look even better without us in it. Nine kids can produce an unimaginable amount of “stuff”!
Sorry about this Charity! Stop crying ASAP and go back to work!
9 comments:
I'm really going to miss that house too. I have SO many great memories there.
-DP
man, you really got me mom. how do you know me so well!? it looks so empty and weird. in case i haven't told you, my vote is that you rent the house rather than sell. i just wish we had professional pictures of what it looked like before you took everything out. i wish i had done a project to somehow preserve everything. PLEASE keep the kitchen table. i will pay the storage fee!!!
stop! I want to buy that house! seriously, what a flooding of memories and wow, it looks pretty awesome all empty. Maybe Jeff will get a job in SLC and we can buy it???? Oh, how I love that house. I'm in tears with you char. And, yes, please don't get rid of that kitchen table. I'll take it.
Love,
Saydi
Oh the CLOUD room. I will always remember it as the room where I spent my first night in the USA. I still remember waking up the next morning and turning my little radio (which I brought from Bulgaria with me) and instead of Bulgarian everything was in English. WOW. Thank you for ALL the amazing memories, laughs, joys, food,Christmases spent in this GREAT home. LOVE YOU!!!!!
That makes even me SO sad! So many memories!! I did take a whole bunch of pictures with everything in there a while back for mom and dad for Christmas, char. I'll have to go look at them and she'd a tear or two myself. Love those memories from there that I will cherish forever!
Oh I know the feeling of leaving a home behind. I will never let go of my attachment to my childhood home. This would be even more difficult though. 36 years! Who gets to do that anymore? I only visited that home a few times as a young girl and remember Thanksgiving meals in that kitchen with your wonderful family.
You might appreciate this song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQYNM6SjD_o&ob=av2e
sorry you will have to copy and paste the URL, it doesn't open otherwise. I hope it works. ;)
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