Wesley and I took one last spin on the lawn mower this Sunday as we mowed our back yard (the ENTIRE acre) so that Dad could focus on taking down the kids' play station (whether or not it ever gets put together in the same manner again, leaves much to be questioned..but that's a story for another post!)
I snapped this picture this morning after the grass had been mowed and the play station was down and it was very emotional for me. To see our chairs together after sitting on the back porch last night while Justin grilled burgers....very sentimental moment.
When we built this house in 2002 they only gave us 4 pallets of grass for the entire front and back yard. Now after much hard work on our part we have carpet grass on the entire acre and our front yard is the most beautiful in the subdivision!
When we built the house we didn't have a fence (most builders don't throw in fences when the lots are this large). So after a few weekends of help from family and friends we had a fence. Then during my pregnancy with Kate, Justin and I together finished fencing the entire back half of our acre. I can't tell you how many times in the hot September heat Justin would tell me to go inside before you bake that baby! And with only a week to spare, we finished that project!
When we built the house it was just Justin and myself and Jake and Rex. And I have to crazily admit that we modified the house around 2 very important aspects of our life. (1) We bypassed the carpet in our house and tiled all the floors and put in a doggy door to make Jake and Rex have a very nice pad. (2) We also had extra wide doors put in and extended our back patio so that Wes had an easier time getting around in his wheelchair. I never in my wildest dreams would have imagined that 6 years later we would have our own son named Wesley and Wes would have a son of his own. Wow how time flies when you are having fun!!
When we first built our house, Carol and Carthan lived on one side of us and Art and Olga lived on the other. We have since had 3 new neighbors on each side of us! Some good, some not so good. Some quiet, some not so quiet. Some clean, some not quite so tidy. This is probably one of the biggest motivating factors for me wanting to move closer to where I grew up (Hallettsville - pop 2,700). Where I grew up people didn't just come and go because of their jobs. They stayed in the same house on the same street (or farm) forever. And the farms were passed down from generation to generation. My friend Dawn's parents live in a very old farmhouse but it is the coolest house ever. And in order to get to her parents house you have to pass her aunt and uncle's house and her grandparents house (who are still married and going strong!)
I have had the same friends (lifelong friends) since before I started school. People aren't defined by their jobs or where they worked or what subdivision they lived (there were no subdivisions as we know them today...just North, South, East and West). You knew people from school, the bank, the grocery store and Church. I can honestly say that I don't know what a lot of my friends' parents did for a living or where they worked. But I can tell you all about their family, their birthdays, and that they all were raised with mutual respect for themselves, their neighbors and the Lord. That is the same environment I want for my kids. So on that note, I'm excited to be turning a new page.
We got to see Tara and Brian and Peyton this weekend and every time I'm around Tara it makes me realize how lucky I am. She's an amazing friend and a lovely person. I am so happy that we will be closer to her and her mom and dad. Now if we can just get them out of Austin soon!
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