I've barely scratched the surface in the moving process. I have managed to sort through and get rid of a lot of stuff, but there is so much more to do! In July Matt, Nick and I filled up a 15-cubic foot dumpster with junk that I don't want and is beyond donating or selling. (Lesson Number One: 15 cubic feet isn't nearly big enough!) Since then we've taken one trip to the dump and several trips to Goodwill with many more to both in the future. Soon I'll be calling ReStore, junk haulers, with some possible posts on Facebook Marketplace and the like. I've been talking to realtors, home repair companies, and landscapers. I have a waterproofing company coming next week to deal with an issue in the basement and hopefully fix it for good.
I've found myself reminiscing as I've run across things I haven't laid eyes on in years. May I present a small sampling of some of the treasures I've found over the last several weeks!
1. Many photos of the boys in cute frames people gave us when they were babies. Ray took this one of me with newborn Matt when we lived in Upper Marlboro. When we brought him home, we were a little worried about how our chocolate Lab, Coffee, would react to him. We had little reason to worry. He was curious but mostly indifferent.
2. Lots of photos of our many vacations to Ocean Isle Beach.
3. Proud Papa with baby Nick when we were still in the hospital. Chris was 19 months old at the time and was SO EXCITED to meet "Baby Nih-niss." Matt was more reserved; after all he'd already gotten one baby brother.
4. For a few seasons Ray coached the boys' flag football teams. I asked Matt if he remembered who the other kids were but he didin't.
5. Lots of school pictures, sports photos, and family snapshots. Many more than this.
6. And these napkins from our wedding. There are eight of them. I think I saved them thinking we would use them sometime for a lark but then we forgot about them. I can't throw them out and I don't want to spoil them.
Any suggestions?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I've been mostly quiet on social media. Much of my summer was travelling and vacationing, both with and without family. I got a look at my new house (Why in the world didin't I take photos?) and Matt and Andrea got engaged. I went to an Indy Car race for the first time in six years and I travelled to Wisconsin for the first time ever. Nick leaves today and starts his classes on Monday. Last night I made him Ratatouille, a different recipe than the one I posted (and my personal favorite). The next couple of months will be focused on house stuff and celebrating these two.
See ya in a future post!
