Caitie's room got finished and she loved it. The bathroom is still fully gutted upstairs but everything else downstairs is back together and usable. The insanity of no ceilings for over a month was super fun! I finally told Steve I needed a break from the construction at least for the summer, so we sent our contractor off to another job and will see him back here again late fall/early winter to finish the upstairs bathroom and front door. Then, the plan is to stop for a while. We will have the luxury of going at a slower pace since it will be unoccupied and not a necessity. We are still undecided what the future will hold for this house but, at least for the next year or two, we will keep it as a landing spot to come back to NH to visit. It's a bit of a safety blanket for all of us. When we left NH the first time to go to MO, we came to realize, selling that house was a mistake as we had no place to go back to and yet, we did the same thing with the house on Ashlee Dr. here in Peterborough. So, we have finally learned our lesson and will give ourselves that safety blanket should we need it.
This summer has been crazy, well, just an extension of the continuing crazy really. Losing Pat, Steve's dad, threw us all for a loop and being apart during it all has been excruciating. My job is to take care of my husband and I couldn't do it, that was hard for me. He has been so strong through it all, taking care of the monumental task of settling dad's estate, being there for his brother and dealing with his own grief. I am in awe of his strength and pig headedness LOL. His dad was and would be so proud of him for sure.
Before Steve was offered this amazing promotion opportunity of CIO, we were coming to the point in this crazy experiment that we needed to make some really difficult decisions. We were no longer ok with the separation, but still had no idea how to move forward to mitigate that. On top of that we were dealing with two teenagers struggling with life and we didn't know how to help and what would be more beneficial or more detrimental. We were both a bit frozen and couldn't really find a clear path. This promotion gave us a clearer path and allowed me to feel more settled with the idea of moving. This has been a career goal for as long as I've known Steve and because of me, many times it was derailed or at the very least veered of course slightly. He is nothing if not persistent (pig headed!) and he just kept trucking on and moving forward. You can't keep an amazing man down and he excels at pretty much everything he sets his mind to. I had absolutely no intention of standing in the way of this achievement.
I am actually ready and excited to move to TN. I am ready to be with my husband every day and have our family back together again. As much as I will miss my dog community, I am excited to try new things and spend time working with my own dogs. I have thoughts and plans in my head but I am not putting them out into the world just yet. The one thing that I am willing to share is that I plan to begin volunteer work again. Caitie and I are planning to volunteer at a local shelter and possibly even a wildlife rehabilitation in the area (totally bribing my daughter with these things!). I am ready for something new and even though I am scared of the fallout with the girls, I am hopeful it will be good for them as well.
The house of course is an incredible bonus. I am thoroughly in love with the new house and property and can't wait to be there full time and make it feel like home for all of us.
I am extending an open invitation for 2020, if anyone would like to come visit the Nashville area, give me a call, we have a room for you! Also, in 2020, if anyone would like to visit the monadnock region, give me a call, we have a house you can stay in while you explore this beautiful corner of New England! There will still be furniture and such here so it will be ready for guests!
Here's some pictures, in case you haven't already seen them on FB!
Visit Peterborough!
Rylie's Graduation!
An attempt at a mother daughter bonding home spa day...this mask was terrible!
She is a Stranger Things junkie now!
