our house

opportunity something has been going on in our lives and i have been hesitant to share it....mostly because i have spent the last 7 months working through issue after issue (in my own head) and building up the courage to change. i am so content to just be, that it hardly ever dawns on me that opportunities abound....and we have decided to take this one because we know it will never be offered again! that being said....i am finally ready to start telling friends and family what we've decided and am ready to volley the myriad of questions and comments....we are confident in our decision and so excited to move forward on this family adventure!

how we got here when my dad died in may, he left this great old house behind. it is literally nestled in a tiny town seemingly forgotten in the sub-urban sprawl of denver. if you ask about it, people will say they remember seeing a road sign for it on the way to somewhere else. it's not a place people go to, but if you're lucky enough to drive through it....you are immediately enchanted. because my family has lived in the "village" (only 20 minutes from where i live now, but completely geographically isolated by open space) for the last 60+ years, you can imagine how many stories and memories we have built up around this magical place. it is "over the river and through the woods..." the question being there, after my dad's funeral, we were watching all of the little boys glued to the fence as the train rolled by across the valley. my friend lucy said this is americana...it's what you read about and never quite find. it was on every one's mind....what would happen to the house? would you ever move out here? my father's death and that little question started an emotional roller coaster i have been on for months. i have run the gamut mentally from wanting to walk away from the past to never wanting to let go of something so nostalgic. is this the last solid piece of our family history? i've wondered if we were holding onto the dream of that house because of our childhood memories, or because it still smells like my dad. were we ready to walk away from this town forever? were we ready to leave the comfort of being minutes from every major convenience and our friends? what would it be like to live in the fishbowl of a small community? were we ready to give up the anonymity of the city?
the answer for us, 2009 will be filled with sorting, packing, garage sales, moving, selling and remodeling. but we won't turn down this opportunity for some very simple concrete reasons far from the emotion that has encircled us to this point.

1. too many times we have heard people say that they wished they had held onto a family property.
2. everyone simply hearts this particular lot because of its location in the town (amazing view of the valley and all the way to pikes peak).
3. if nothing else, it will be an incredible investment and a renovation on our terms not a "fix and flip."
4. our boys will be safe and free to explore every day of their childhood (just like my brother and i when we were little).
5. if we hate living in the country we can always move back to the city, but we will never get the chance to own this house in this town again!

sounds like i'm still trying to convince myself? because it is a major undertaking in our lives, it will also be a huge part of this journal that is sweet pea and beans. hope you don't mind participating in our adventure....

i'm really excited to share a little history of the town and how our family fits into it - stay tuned!