Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas 

Clayton is dreaming away this early Christmas morning.  He tried to wake me up this morning at 3:30 because yesterday I was up at 3:30 and he got to eat early.  This morning I just put him down on the floor and he slept on his new pallet in the living room until about 5:30.  That's more like it.  Update on our little guy is he is much better.  He still has some episodes of spasms but they are not often now.  It was so hard to watch his body spasm and he just cried.  The vet had us increase one of his meds and it seems to have helped.  He's finally wanting to sit and sleep by me on the couch again.  When he first started this the best place for him was on the floor on a thick soft blanket.  He laid so funny on it in such twisted ways but it was what was comfortable for him.  I just knew at the beginning of this that we were going to lose him but again he has rallied.  Poor guy.  He even goes out his doggie door and back in again like a champ.  

This week was another sad time but a must to move on to the future.  Daddy's house, our home at one time is now gone and all that's left is dirt.  I got all kinds of texts and Facebook messages that "the old homestead" was gone, did I know...well, yes I did know it was going to go.  We knew and we are okay with it.  The land will have a new grand home built on it and a new family and new memories will be made in that spot.  I hope all the good memories surround their family and home.  I was also able to disburse nearly all of Daddy's estate to my siblings and myself this week too, Merry Christmas!  If Daddy only knew what he left us.  He thought he just had a little money in the bank but he forgot to take into account the life insurance and the house.  I hope to be able to give some to my girls and the grandbabies for their college funds.  Thank you Daddy.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

 

Our Final Goodbye

Tomorrow I have to do something I am dreading more than you can imagine.  It's also something we all three agree on, we three siblings.  

Tomorrow, since I am executor of Daddy's will, I will put the final signature on the papers to finalize the sale of Daddy's house, our house, our home.  

We've all three stood by each other through thick and thin.  

This doesn't mean that this decision has been easy but it is what had to be done.  Life moves on.  We've shared many memories and our lives in that house, memories to be cherished forever.

Today we met yet again to recreate this photo...

one last time in front of our family home, to say a final goodbye.

This tree that stands out in the front yard, like the house has seen better days.  Bye tree...Bye house...

 It is nearly turkey time and I think I'm prepared or should I say the grocery store deliveries/pickups are done.  The gigantic turkey is chilling in my deep freeze ready to start the big thaw this weekend.  I know it's just for The Hubby and me but I can't resist on cooking a huge one so we can have sandwiches.  We are having one of the girls and her crew, hopefully, but they're vegan, and if the oldest and her family come they're mostly vegetarian.  So MORE for us for sure.  

This past weekend I had Snicklefritz spend the weekend and she was so helpful in getting Christmas out and up all over the house.  We had such a great time.  For a 8 year old she is incredibly helpful with everything around here and we have such a great time.  She has started in person school again and that means that we may not see each other for a long while.  That makes me so very sad but until we get a vaccine it is what it is. 

I hope I'm a fun granny!!!

OH, and one of my Christmas presents arrived.  I purchased this from a fellow artist, Jeff Legg when he posted it on Facebook.  I already own one of his paintings.  This one is a tiny 5x7, my other one is an 11x14.  If you check out his website, I'm LUCKY to even own any of his works because DANG, they are so expensive.  I was just kind of lucky, right place, right time, right price!  So Merry Christmas to me.  Snicklefritz is showing it off for me.  Love this little girl so very much...

And this little girl too.  We've been apart from her for over a month because their little family, unfortunately caught Covid and were pretty sick but are all better now.  This damn virus is so devastating to so many people and their loved ones.  We've been lucky and I'm going to knock on a lot of wood to keep it that way.  They will be sharing the holiday with us and hopefully we all will be together for Christmas, even if we have to open presents outside.

Little Clayton is so patient with these babies.  When Snicklefritz was little he would lay on her blanket with her like he was keeping watch.  Yesterday when Min would sit on her blanket he was right by her side.  She pats and kisses him and he just loves her to death.  It's too bad he's so old now because he is a great kid dog.  When we're at the cabin if he sees children he runs right up to them for love.  Such a special little guy.

I've been painting at the house again because I was trying to (1) be in quarantine for a bit because we were exposed and I was keeping my studio partner safe, (2) it's just not fun at the studio right now by myself.  I'll probably keep supplies at the house for now because with winter coming I won't venture out if the roads are bad.  Even my partner hasn't been in the studio either because of her health (blood clot) and her parents incredible health issues.  Her parents live in Louisiana and she is constantly having to drive there to deal with them.  They unfortunately BOTH have Alzheimer's, as does/did her in-laws.  That disease is just horrible and turns your loved ones into absolute aliens.  They can get violent as did her father and father-in-law and just plain crazy.  The struggles that she has faced trying to get them into facilities has been mind boggling.  I don't think I could have handled it all and she is barely.  Then when they finally found a safe place and the turmoil was settling down a bit her father fell and broke his hip and they had to rush down there for his surgery.  Can you imagine dealing with that during this year of Covid and it being an Alzheimer's patient that can barely remember how to swallow.  Trust me she is GOING to need some therapy after all this.  Hope she can get back to painting that is such good therapy.  

Painted this little jewel on Tuesday and posted it on Facebook.  Woke up Wednesday morning to have someone wanting to buy it.  SOLD!  It will fly off to California next week.  

I almost forgot to update on Daddy's house.  We met on Saturday and had 8 offers on the house and if we didn't have a cut-off there were more that wanted to offer but we did have a deadline.  Several offers wanted to "LIVE" in the house but they were not even close to what we started at and frankly the house was not habitable.  The majority were cash offers!  Amazing in these times.  One of them, the highest was interesting but he wanted inspections, appraisals and we knew that would not fly, it would not pass.  What we chose was a cash offer and they will be tearing down the house.  We knew that was probably going to happen, I knew it 10 years ago.  My grandfather who purchased the house in 1953 and was in real estate would be so happy with what we are doing.  He was a businessman and very wise.  I hope we were channeling him when we made this decision.  That house is 67 years old!  My brother is friends with the couple who are purchasing and they are extremely successful in their business and have loads of money to build a stellar home on the huge lot there.  I mean even if I had wanted to keep the place that is what I would have done too.  I had visions many times of building on the lot, tearing down that house over the years.  So before we close on the house we three are going to meet and have our picture taken one last time in front of the house.  Life goes on, as we must.  

House Memories

Tomorrow Brother, Sister and I will be tasked with looking at all the offers that have come in for the purchase of my Daddy's home.  Sad as this may be we are okay with it.

Seeing these photos lets us know that we still have wonderful memories but that it is time to let the physical property go and the physical body as he is no longer with us.

Looking through old photos I am taken to so many memories that will be with me forever in the house.  But the house just was not able to withstand time and deterioration, the wear and tear of living.

We said goodbye to Daddy and now we say goodbye to the house, the house where all these memories were made but they are not in the house they are in our hearts and mind.

Many Christmas's, birthdays, Thanksgivings...just family gatherings.

Lots of grandkiddos passed through the door and were much loved.

My brother, sister and I are at peace with this process we must go through and that is what counts.

Memories...memories...memories...

This house is not the first one we've had to leave behind, give over to someone else to make memories...

Grandma's house that we drive by often has gone through many transitions.  It's been an Italian restaurant, a tea room and now it's a hospice, but we have our memories of the house.  Memories of playing with my aunt's Barbie's when she allowed me to touch them (LOL.)  Memories of running up the stairs, running around the house, laughter, memories of Grandma's organ and on the wall above a map of Vietnam, where my uncle was deployed.  Memories of me sitting in my favorite uncle's lap, Uncle George, and watching his cigar smoke curl around his head and up in the air.  Those sweet memories are what holds us together to carry on and move forward with life.

Memories of falling off that step and not breathing after the hard hit and Grandma breathing life back into me, as the story goes.

Memories of my Greatgranny's house in Jay.  Another house that is no longer there or at least most of it is gone, but the memories, oh the memories of that house are mighty.  Sleeping in my Greatgranny's featherbed and getting up at dawn to go with her in our nightgown to the barn to milk her cow, Pet, and the collie Sandy walking alongside us along the wooden bridge over the creek that never had water in it.  The smells of the barn come wafting to the surface of my memories of that house and it makes me smile.  Not necessarily memory smell of manure, but memories of the grain, the hay, the cow.  Greatgranny's cat Fatso, sitting on his hind haunches while Greatgranny squirted milk fresh from the cow's teet into his mouth.  Now those are powerful memories.

Houses have a hard time withstanding the wear and tear of time, but memories are forever.

Our very first home, the apartment...we renewed our vows here at 25 years (now coming up on 45!)

Our first home we purchased.  We still drive by it often and remember.  Do we want to own it or live there again, ABSOLUTELY NOT!  But we drive by and remember that we spent 10 years there, our babies were born while living in that house.  Our first pet, sweet Bilbo Baggins shared his life with us in that home.  We're still friends with the neighbors from next door.  We started our business in that house.  

Momma cooking with friends in the kitchen where she cooked so many meals for us, our children, where her mother cooked.  Memories, memories, memories...

Backyard shenanigans...

Yes there are lots and lots of memories there and now we leave the house to someone else to make memories or more than likely another house will take it's place.  Like I said, we are okay with this process and what we must do.  We can't hold onto it for a shrine, Daddy would not want that at all I can guarantee that.  We make a shrine in our hearts and let the tangible go.