Wednesday, January 07, 2015 @ 12:50 PM
Good afternoon :) this is me and we’re finally to the point we’re going to try another entry to our blog. It’s been just over a month. It’s bothered us that it go on for so long, but practically, we never really got to a day where we felt we could say let’s sit down for the morning or afternoon and write to our heart’s content. WELLL, today is the day! We did get a late start, but to be honest we took a second nap for the day. I’m not sure if it’s because we didn’t have one of our depression medicines, or if it were something else, just felt too cold and tired to be sitting up in our chair. That’s the way it was earlier too about the time that Rich was getting up. Oh, I remember, we woke up at 4 am. Maybe that is where some of this is coming from.
I think it is traditional for us to start by saying, I don’t know where we are going to start. There you go! So now is the part we start from scratch anyway. I think the main part of this entry will be to say that the Christmas season came and went and maybe we could remember a few things about the old season the things really before the New Year. I don’t want to drag on it, but then again … I would like some kinds of memories recorded so that we have something to remember the end of this year with.
I think the major part is how much visiting we got done! I think at it really started when we got Lady and Max for the Thanksgiving week. That was a very good time and everyone seemed to settle into things magically… Looking back over a few pictures and videos, we got on where the three dogs are just crunching away at their dog food out in the sunroom, and then we got another video where the three dogs were playing tug o war at the same time. They are videos that warm our heart, because I think in some magical way I relate it to when we used to watch the three of our sons playing and being together. It was like we always had a party going on. They really got along together well though I’m sure they would tell us stories that were different, but as a Mom, I saw them most just relating through videos, movies, eating, playing basketball, stuff like that. I very much adore how Dakota is able to play with ALL THREE cousins.
https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10152998772858394
And, then you know what else? Just before we started writing, we looked up when Dakota was outside and he barked – he rarely does that! And, low and behold the neighbors not only FINALLY moved in, but they have what seems to be a husky. The dogs a beaut. He was hanging out on the back porch. I don’t know how much space he has to run. I have to assume he’s on a leash at least we never saw them putting out an e-fence. I LOVE IT! Maybe this dog, Dakota can get to know. He looks like the kind that is big enough for Dakota and he might be ready to have play with him. Joe never really lets his dogs out for extended times across the street. He’s got some Collies and something else – 3 dogs. And, then Don across the other street has a little dog and a medium dog, but you rarely see them go out too far. I know Don has an e-fence. The neighbors in the middle down for the next couple of houses have dogs too. One has a boxer and something else, and then the next house has a couple of small dogs. I know there’s a HECK of a lot more down the street.
I don’t know what’s wrong with me – maybe just not going out so much, but we really don’t know the wives in any of the houses near us. I’m pretty sure we’ve explained this before, but they seem to be like me – shy – plus, both women work. I THINK the guy has a wife – the new neighbor Jerry. He’s owned the house now for over a year and has just moved in this week. Glad that he’s here, I hope he likes the new place. I know they have downsized AND they had several truckloads of stuff though their home is only a singlewide, SOOOO not sure how that’s going to go for them. Rich and I are thinking it just took a long time to sell their old house.
Hmm, didn’t see that coming. We were thinking about the next door neighbors and then for some reason we started checking on mobile homes because we haven’t seen what is being offered lately. And, then we went through about 30-35 homes being offered in Sandwich. There are like 4 parks here. Our park is the one that RARELY shows houses for sale. It was really I think different when we had four up at the same time – the one down the block, ours, the one next to us and the kitty corner one. It has really been a clean sweep on our side. I think there are like 35-36 homes in our park – I’m THINKING it’s the smallest of all the parks and its nice because the homes are side by side instead of front to back longways (just the tip showing – before running into another house like sardines).
I think we got just a little bit into things and then we started thinking about Mark. Mark is Rich’s brother and he’s looking for a house. He’s got more than we had when we bought this house outright, and there were 3-4 houses that were in the mid 50’s about where ours were and they were offering sellers contract with like 20% down – so that’s like $10,000. SO if he wanted to pay just in part – he could still have a savings and do anything he wanted to the house AND he could have money over for buying furniture. He doesn’t have anything right now because he stays at a long stay hotel when he’s in town from driving. I don’t think Mark would really have problems with a mobile home, but he seems to want to stay north in WI for some reason – although his mother, brother, kids and Grandchildren are all around THIS neighborhood. I’m thinking the only thing he’s really attached to up there is having more space, and bar people he knows. I can’t imagine he wouldn’t find the same kind of people here, PLUS he’d have his family – though he seems to avoid them most times because he has problems with everyone. He just gets fidgety, doesn’t want to put up with problems – Kind of like an independent maverick – you know things are his way, or nothing.
I’ve thought before too of my sister living in the area – but, thinking now she doesn’t even have the wherewithal to put money down on a mobile home. Unlike Mark, we think she thinks she’s better than a mobile home, and secondly with all the people and dogs/cats living with her, she wouldn’t be able to have enough room. I think we’ve discussed this before, where she would need like her own room, Mark’s room, a sewing room AND probably a guest room … that all is a little harder to come by. Maybe she would consider a move down the line if Nathan and his girl and her family were to move out of their space and Mark would be on the road driving truck like Rich’s brother Mark. I’m pretty sure he has the license by now he was going for a test right before Christmas. If Nathan and the girl would move out – she’d be pretty much alone all the time. I’m not saying if she moved down here we’d spend all our time together, but certainly much more. We would gather around sewing and family events. Not sure if Nathan could make it on his own, but then again, I don’t know how much longer CS and Mark are going to be able to do their home. I don’t know how their financing on their home is going, though Mark would definitely be making more money … We’ll see. I know CS is familiar with West Bend, but I don’t know if there is anything really keeping her there. I don’t know however, with Mark’s new trucking company if he wouldn’t have to be based up there. Just know directly in West Bend there are no mobile homes.
Maybe we’re a bit of a prude, but we didn’t like the idea of moving into a mobile home either – at first. It just seemed like it wasn’t a real home. But then, after looking at so many places, particularly condos, which were more affordable, we came to the realization that if we were going to get out of an apartment at all, we had to go for something less. When this place came up – we saw it in the pictures after looking at just a few mobile homes. By that time we were really used to looking online for places and we knew IMMEDIATELY that we wanted it.
Ok, ok … moving on – we do want to go back though and catch the new anniversary dates … we want to remember the day we found the house, and the day we closed on the house. OOOOH and we just got done instant messaging with Linda for about an hour. We got a little over excited thinking about Dakota finally being able to meet the girls. WooHOO!!!
Hmm, GOT IT! February 10th 2013, we put a bid on the new place and we were accepted!!!! Feb 5th, we were really into the thick of looking, March 1st we closed, and March 25thwe moved! We must be into a kind of nostalgic day because we’ve been looking at our own house pictures now. It really is home now isn’t it?
Whoops there goes the husky or SOME such dog again. Dakota is keeping up with all the trash talk out there today – you know with a new dog on the block and all! I sure hope he gets to be friends, but not so much friends we have to keep the house clean all the time OR put on clothes every day. YEEKS giving away the trade secrets. Well, it is a bit later – exactly 4 pm now and I can’t admit to having gotten dressed. For the record we WERE dressed yesterday when Rich took us to Dr. Marvin’s. It was a hard session.
The first thing we talked about was the boy who had gotten shot in Rosemont over the weekend, and had died in an alleyway. He was in the same school and grade as Amy. It’s a small K-8 grade school – two classes for each year and about 400 students. I haven’t talked to Maury over the last few days to see how the girls and school did with it, we just knew on Monday (two days ago) that they were going to have grief counselors at the school. We talked about a couple tragedies then that had affected us going to school when we were kids. It isn’t something I want to go over again today. The talking to Dr. Marvin of course was yesterday.
The next thing we talked about – well there was a lot of little things like someone wanted to tell Dr. Marvin about Dakota being sneaky and trying to eat the kitty food by breaking down our spring fence. AHA!!! Nothing like a lotta clatter during the night to wake someone up! BUSTED!
I think the more serious part was that we were talking about the relationship with my brother which is something that doesn’t happen often. It had started from a few cross emails going between me and our SIL. Nothing bad – just how are you kind of things, but then our note got stronger that we sent a couple days ago. We had wanted to say I would like to get to know you, but at the same time, we were feeling very defensive of our space. Basically, we weren’t willing to do the relationship with a lot of anger from my brother built in. We felt very bullied and tormented as a kid and even through a couple of contacts we had during my fathers, stepmothers, and grandmothers funerals when we saw them. I don’t really trust him, or believe in his profession, so we are not helping out in the least. I really don’t see how a relationship is possible, but we’re willing to piece it together if they responded sincerely and without animosity. I don’t want to be “handled” as a church parishioner, or worse.
I guess that’s all I want to say on that topic now, but we’ll see how it goes down the line. I don’t know if my SIL will return that last note. She may have reasons to be cautioned about us too. I don’t have a problem with her, but I won’t be treated with a mean-spirit or lesser than from my brother.
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