As I was shutting the house down for the night recently it occurred to me how ready we are for the next stage of our life . This brought thoughts of our homes over the years. In college we lived in a few small apartments. One was so drafty in the winter that the plastic on the windows had constant pressure on it. However this was also the same apartment where I proposed to Colleen, so it is special in its own right. We also lived in a small unit that was part of a beautiful Victorian home. It was only 300 square feet, but had an upstairs and 2 bedrooms. We became good friends with Theo, the woman that owned the home. Her brother owned Greyhounds. That is how we first got interested in the breed and shortly there after started adopting them.
And then onto home ownership. Our first home was in Milton, Wi. It was built by a mason and had a lot of beautiful stone work including 3 wood burning fireplaces. That is what we fell in love with. A lot of memories in that house over 14 years, some good some not so much. Lets just say I learned to get comfortable on the couch. We did a lot of growing together in that house. We ended up leaving because it was getting too difficult for Colleen to drive the 40 miles to work. We then migrated to Madison, WI. We rented a house less than 10 minutes to her work. Truth be told, I came to Madison kicking and screaming. I did not want to leave Milton. I was leaving my watering hole that was right down the road. I had no idea how important that move was. Madison is where I got sober. This was a period of very positive transition in my life. I have some very distinct memories in this house I will carry me with me for the rest of my life.
After selling our house in Milton, we were ready to purchase a home in Madison. We thought selling our Milton home was going to be the tough part. After all we are in Madison and there is a lot of inventory. This was before we realized how specific Colleen’s needs were. House after house something did not work for us. Then one day Colleen came across this house online that was even closer to her work. The price was way out of our range and I instantly balked. I promised I would take a look at it. As I was driving to work the following Monday, I received a notification on my phone that there was just a $25,000 price drop. We scheduled to see it right away. We fell in love with it. It was exactly what we needed and wanted. Two hours later we put in and offer. Later that night we had an accepted offer. As it turns out the owner was leaving the country for work the following day. We believe this was absolutely directed by Higher Powers.
We thought this house was going to be our forever home. There was not much else we wanted out of a home or community. When Colleen retired last November our needs continued to change. Colleen was ready to move, but I battled with what we should do next? Sure we can sell this home, but go where? After all we love this home, neighbors and community. This bounced around in my head for 10 months until that day I suggested we buy and RV and travel. When Colleen’s face lit up I knew this was the answer.
This process of selling our house and everything in it has been extremely challenging, but at no point have we thought it was a mistake. There have been numerous signs we are headed in the right direction. Over the last few months as we have prepared ourselves for our next stage in life. It has become very apparent we are ready. We love this home, but it is time to let go. It is no longer right for our needs. It is funny how life lets us know when these times of transition are upon us. For us it has simply been a question of how long are we going to be dragged before we let go?
