Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

[grammaterry]

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I have been away off and on for a couple of weeks. After SammyBird died, we were having trouble being home and not having her here so DH got it in his head to look for some property on the coast. We have looked at 25 waterfront properties and have found a few we like, but it is so foreign to me, I can't commit. Everytime we come home, I realize how much I love our property and I have overcome DH's objections that it is too much work by telling him we can hire someone for less than the cost of the move. I think he is going to settle in and now my mind isn't feeling so fragmented.
Anyway, I arrived home this afternoon and found two very generous donations for the Shriner Project. A large box from MOM23 (thanks Robin) and one from Sewbizzy (thanks Carol). I will be working on finishing these exquisite pieces of work and hopefully making my forum friends proud of them. I will be posting some finished pieces this week that I believe are the work of Mimihoward. My DD helped me finish some of them as I was falling so far behind this year.

[MaggieSue]

Re: Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

Happy to hear things are settling in. you are a very busy lady and have missed your posts!!!

[jjkaiser]

Re: Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

Lovely new tops and I am sure you will finish them off beautifully. As always! Sorry to hear you are so conflicted about moving. It is such a big decision. My dh has been grumbling over the last year about the yard work here becoming overwhelming. Who told him to plant a gazillion flower beds anyway. I said who cares if every weed is not picked and the grass is a little long sometimes. I can live with that. But maybe I am just too lazy to pack up everything in my house and start over. I admire you for even considering it to make your dh happy bc it sounds like you really want to stay where you are.

[JCY]

Re: Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

Terry ~ So thankful reality is sinking in & you plan to stay put on your lovely property. There really is no place like home. We had a previous neighbor whose wife "just had" to have a new house on the other end of town in a new neighborhood. They sold their house for less than they could have got out of it & moved to the new place. He had all the yard work to do over so it was like what they had at their previous home. He also needed to do finish work in the bsmt. He agreed with DH later that it would have been cheaper to have stayed put & hired some of the work done or to have bought a riding mower. The grass is not always greener on the other side of the fence.

The way real estate prices have increased in the 41 yrs. we've lived here, we never could afford to buy our home again -- or another one. We are staying put. This is the 6th year we've used a lawn service to mow our yard. I used to do it all. Our riding mower now sits idle in the shed.

What a lovely surprise getting those quilt tops & fabric. I know you'll do them justice. Hopefully it will help ease the grief from losing Sammy. It takes time to work through that grief. One day at a time.

[SuzanneOrleansOntario]

Re: Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

I'm happy to hear that you are settling to stay in your home. It's never an easy decision to downsize or move, but like Joy mentioned, it can be cheaper to hire services than move. Great surprise donations.

[sewbizzy]

Re: Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

Terry, you always make us proud with your creations....and the finishing of the projects that we are honored to send to you for the Shriners.....
I am glad you and your dh are getting through your grieving process....and I am glad you had a chance to get away for awhile...hugs to you, Carol

[grammaterry]

Re: Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

You all are so great. DH has me on a roller coaster. Last night he hits me with …"I really want that house on the water...what can we offer?" I want him to have his dreams...I really do...but I thought we were done with that one. I have prayed that God will guide us, and believe he will. It is just so far away and so foreign to me. I fear that we will get there and the unfamiliarity will fragment his mind and then I will be alone taking care of him. I guess It could be the other way too. I admit that the property he is infatuated with is awesome. House is okay. But, it is still very rural. I think its further from a grocer than I am now. But, there is one neighbor that may or may not be a full time resident.
Up and down. Back and forth. I just want to sit and enjoy what God has given us. Thank you all for your thoughts.

[SuzanneOrleansOntario]

Re: Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

Oh Terry. That is such a dilemma. I think you may need to make a list of pros and cons about every aspect of current and potential property. House, repairs, maintenance, cost of loiving, taxes, location, access to services such as hospital, medical facility, shopping, family, support circle, activities, weather, climate, isolation. You mentioned earlier it was by the coast, near water? Flooding concerns? You also mention its rural. That not always a good idea as people age, unless they have unlimited wealth to pay for every service. I always think down the road about our children having to help out.

It could be he just needs a change of pace. How about renting a home in the area for a few weeks/month. A trip? Maybe he needs to fall in love with your own area as someone mentioned, the grass is not always greener on the other side. How does he spend his days, maybe this is an issue. My ex was never happy with our homes although they were beautiful. He always wanted new, every 3-4 years. The last time he wanted to move, I put my foot down and said that's it. I lived there 17 years and then I left. I realized he would never be happy, and still isn't. He buys new house every 3-4 years. I know this is not the case with your husband.

I will keep you in my prayers for resolution.

[auntstuff]

Re: Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

Tell him to build a big pond on your property, and at least there would be no danger of hurricanes.

[GrammaBabs]

Re: Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

Hey Terri.... lots to keep your mind busy! I too am working hard to distract! What do people ever do without a hobby??? I'll never figure that one out! These will be beautiful! I will most likely be sending a package down the road... with such busy hands the place is beginning to overflow...LOL.. Hugs, to you my friend.. GB

[Granny Fran]

Re: Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

Terry, so glad you have some wonderful donations to work on. As to the move, well that is an awful lot to absorb. My DH wanted to move long before I did and we did hire some work to be done. When the time came to actually act on it, it was done fast and I have never regretted the move. In our case we moved from a multilevel home to a one story condo. Best thing we could have done. Now that we are in our seventies it is making life so much easier. His concession to me? Well I have the larger of the bedrooms for my sewing studio (also serves as guest room when we have overnight company). Each decision will be unique, but I will pray for you to have a good outcome. The suggestion to have a rental (trial run?) for awhile may help ease your mind.

[grammaterry]

Re: Unfinished pieces that will keep my mind busy.

Yep, thought of renting. Can't find one in that county. We have two ponds, we have woods, deer, bear,coyote, birds, everything a sportsman would crave. We have 40 acres, a swimming pool, lots of fields to mow...we are always busy. He wants BIG water, a boat, woods, rural just like we are. The house he is dreaming of is minimally better than the one we live in but on two grassy acres next to a big woods. Has sound frontage and a river inlet so crabbing, shrimping and boating.
However, it is still 30 min to a grocer and 1 hour to a town of size. 6 and a half hours to any of our children and we are in our 70's. I'm so … don't even have a word for it. So I'm sewing like a mad woman