Beginning to Feel Like a Home

Saturday, August 7th – Yet more unpacking, Kent assessed things around the house. He took Steph on a tour and showed her about the water and well, the breakers, etc. We went to town to shop for mowers and parts. Came home and Kent got to work fixing the toilet and changing locksets on the doors. More Amish visitors (Michael’s son, Joseph, and younger brother) stopped their buggy out front and got out to visit. Said we could come down to the house if we wanted zucchini. A little bit later there was a knock on the door and they delivered two zucchini to us. We had a simple dinner of leftover chicken and pasta with veggies and fresh sweet corn. Afterwards, Stephanie baked zucchini bread while Kent explored the property some more and I sat on the front porch reading my Bible while the sun set. Enjoyed the activities of bats and fireflies again this evening. We went to bed around 9:30 to the smell of Steph’s bread baking.

This is as far as we got with the antique sofa and the sofa bed that won't be able to fit upstairs to the sitting room. But it still feels like a large room.


We now can eat meals at the table and still visit with whoever is taking a turn at cooking


The picture is blurry, I know, but it helps to put things in perspective. I love this kitchen, it's large and light and easy to work in.


I was instantly smitten with these drawers. They were just right for holding pots, pans, bakeware and lids!


Here's looking from the pantry toward the living room door. It's a very spacious room.


And to really give it that homey touch, Steph set to baking zucchini bread from that fresh zucchini the neighbors brought over.


Another triumph, my dear!

Around the House

Friday, August 6th – As tired as we were, we were awake at 4:00am and up at 5:30. Kent fixed the shower head and I found the curtain. We made a veggie and cheese omelette, toast and OJ and ate at the makeshift kitchen table. We’d found the top and had it propped on boxes. John Principe arrived at 9:00 am and helped finish unloading the truck, including all the heavy furniture. We were so happy to see him and to have his help unloading was just the greatest treat for us. We all loaded up to return the truck and then went out to lunch. Then we hit Home Depot for plumbing parts, toilet parts, hoe and shovel, trash cans, smoke detectors, fire extinguisher, nightlights, clothesline and pins, fly swatter and strips, kitchen towel racks, buckets with lids, pantry shelf. We stopped at a number of places and looked at riding mowers and weed trimmers. Then on to an appointment with the real estate agent we’d been keeping in touch with. And home again. John walked the property looking for berries and then went to meet up with his parents to show them the way here. Kent laid down for a nap. Steph rearranged and cleaned up the living room and eat-in area of the kitchen while I worked on unpacking kitchen boxes and made dinner. There were six of us for roasted herbed chicken breast, pasta with fresh local veggies, corn on the cob and slabs of ripe tomato. After dinner we spent time on the deck visiting, tossing stick for the dog and watching fireflies. Then we fixed ice cream sundaes for our dessert. Sharon, Richard and John left around 10:00 pm. We three watched a movie together and then slept soundly. Today on the property we saw: toad, small bat, elderberries, blackberries, Echinacea, woodchucks, and electric fencing. There’s not much auto traffic on this road but Amish buggies rumble by several times a day and the occupants usually smile and wave.

Valerie - here's some pictures of your beautiful home awaiting you in PA

What an inviting front porch!

With a lovely flower garden


The back deck has lots of Black-eyed Susans that are just beautiful


Here's the view from the South side of the property toward the house to the North. The greenery in between is a large lilac shrub and a small maple tree - beauty for spring and fall!


This was a pretty flower I didn't recognize from the flower beds in front of the house.


I'm not sure but this reminds me of Sweet William. Perhaps it's related?


A profusion of white violas


This is the South border of the yard, to the right of the house as you face it. This is where the elderberries and blackberries are found.


Lots of pansies and violas in the front flower bed


There's some pretty landscaping around the trees in the side yard...


And several clumps of hostas in the front gardens


I really fell in love with this echinacea on the North side of the yard


And this appears to be a clump of aspens on the back side of the property. A taste of Colorado


More of those extravagant Black Eyed Susans


Even though they have been neglected, the apple trees are still doing their best to produce. Is there anything much more cheerful than the site of fruit hanging on a tree?


And here's a shot of that expansive back yard as viewed from the deck!

The Arrival

Thursday, August 5th - We didn’t set our alarms and slept until 9:20 am. We had a real breakfast, stopped for a few sundries we’d need at the house and went back to Linesville. Joel was driving to meet us there and we convened at the property at about 1:00 in the afternoon. We immediately recognized the house from the pictures. We went inside for a look about and discussed what and how we would unload from the truck. We knew we’d need to sleep and figured we were sick of eating on the road and so brought in all the boxes we could find marked “kitchen” as well as the bedding. Joel helped us unload and organize the kitchen and also walked us around the property pointing out the boundaries and the points of interest. We noted the apple orchard, a dozen or more trees that, with TLC, should produce some wonderful apple harvests, a small crick, lilac, maple, aspen, and lots of other trees, it would provide lots of fun exploration for kids, plenty of room to free range chickens, graze goats, play, etc. Laela ran about with great abandon, obviously enjoying the space. At one point I was working in the house and couldn’t find Kent. When I opened the front door I saw him out in the road visiting with one of the Amish neighbors (Michael) who was passing by in their buggy. He was very friendly and Kent was very happy to have a chance to meet him. We had a simple dinner on the deck, serenaded by bird and nature sounds. It was a lovely evening. The mosquitoes had not yet found us so we weren’t bothered by them. We felt at peace.

We're finally here. Stephanie is relieved, I think.


I thought I'd take a few picks before we'd really unloaded the truck. Here's the living room...


Kitchen...



Matty was safely deposited in the sunroom for the unloading portion of the move...


We were able to park the moving van right near the front door...


Ready for a rest and enjoying the beauty of twilight and the sounds of the night life...

Day 2 - Davenport, IA - Meadville, PA

Wednesday, August 4th - Day Two on the road. We pulled out of Davenport by 9:30 am. As we crossed into Illinois, we would find much construction and slower traffic, especially around Chicago and Cleveland. We drove diligently but decided to stop for a real meal around 9 pm. Had a sit down dinner at a Cleveland Cracker
Barrel for our 9th anniversary, then drove on into Pennsylvania, straight through Linesville, and arrived in Meadville at 1:00 am. When we realized that we would not make it until the wee hours, Stephanie had called and talked to her uncle Brian, who was able to look up pet friendly hotels for us while we were on the road. She’d called and made a reservation for us with the pets. Whew! Glad to be so near our destination and get a good night’s sleep.

This is the party vehicle - Steph was a great traveling companion and kept me cheerful and alert.


(Diane, if you're reading this, you may recognize my cover. :) )

Mattie wasn't really thrilled with the transport part of the move.

Day 1 - Denver, CO - Davenport, IA

Tuesday, August 3rd - Day One on the road. We were up at 6 am, out of house by 8:15, on road by 10 am. Later than we had thought but MapQuest gave us an estimated 11 hours on the road to get to Davenport, Iowa where we had a reservation for a pet friendly room. We made necessary gas stops to fill the van with the car never dipping below half a tank. Bathroom breaks for us, dog walking for Laela. Sometime around dinner time we sat down at a Subway for sandwiches. This was obviously taking much longer than we had thought it would but we felt good to drive so we continued to push through. We passed the Iowa border near dark and shortly after we were inundated with heavy rains. I couldn’t see the road and would have stopped driving but I was following Kent and just clung to his taillights for my life. We finally drove out of the storm, listening to the radio we heard that the area we had just driven through was being pounded with ping-pong ball sized hail and 60 mph winds. Apparently we had pushed through the leading edge of the storm and were the better for it. I would later find out from Kathy that it was at just about that time that she had a call from K-Love asking her for prayer requests and she had asked for prayer for us. How cool is that!? Now driving in the dark but stormless night, we saw dozens of red lights flashing in the sky. Stephanie and I determined that we were seeing a windfarm at night. More on that later… We rolled into Davenport at 1:40 am. Exhausted but glad to have made our first goal.

Stephanie and I mostly saw one of two views on the drive...

Corn

and the back of the Penske truck.

And Laela was Kent's traveling companion. She did so well!

Preliminaries and Loading Day

Saturday, July 31st / Sunday, August 1st – Moving preliminaries. Steph is camping at Heavenfest for one last hurrah with her friends. Meanwhile, Kathy, Kent and I load Kent’s pickup truck with furniture for Valerie from Kathy’s house - dressers, armoire, antique sofa, vanity… The truck is packed with the overflow in Kathy’s SUV. We are ready to drive down to the moving van on Monday morning.

Sunday morning is my last church service with Stephanie for a while. We sit together and hold hands. I realize I’ll probably cry all the way through the next Sunday I’m at church mourning the absence of our Sunday’s together. It has become a kind of tradition that we sit together at church on Sundays and then that is our day to spend together doing things we need or want to do.

After church John and Elaine host a going away picnic for Steph. A dozen of us enjoy a beautiful afternoon, delicious lunch and fellowship.



Monday, August 2nd - Loading day has finally arrived. I get up early and head to Kathy’s house, where I leave the car and drive the pickup to Steph’s apartment with Kathy following. We drop the pickup and Stephanie gives us a ride to the Penske location. I’ve been a nervous wreck about this portion and spent a lot of time praying for calm. I finish the necessary arrangements for the rental of truck and trailer and then, with Kathy along for moral support, I drive the rig to Steph’s apartment, park and detach the trailer for the day, and park the moving van for loading. All went well. Then Kathy drives me to the airport so that I can pick up our rental car for the trip. We arrive and the place is packed. I waited in line for 45 minutes. When I got to the counter, they told me that I couldn’t pick it up because the credit card was in Kent’s name only. Only he could pickup. He who was at work for a fourth 12 hour day. I was distressed to add this to his list of things to do that evening. Kathy drove me back to Steph’s where loading was going well. Our pastor, John, had arrived and was heading up the team of movers and supervising all the placing and securing in the truck. With things in his capable hands, I hopped in the pickup and we headed back up the mountain to return it to our house. As we neared the foothills, we could see a fire ahead. The fire was burning brush and small trees on a hillside next to E470. We drove right past the excitement and at that point traffic hadn’t been shut down. After returning the truck to my house, we fetched my car from Kathy’s and parked it at the foot of our road. Then back down the hill to pick up Kent at work. He was able to leave our Jeep in his work parking lot, where it will be very handy for us to retrieve on our way to the car rental office when we return to Denver. The three of us went back to the airport car rental location where Kent and I picked up the car and Kathy headed on to Stephanie’s apartment. We followed and when we arrived most of the packing was done. There was the usual final odds and ends and wiping of surfaces. Friends had helped fill the truck and clean most of the apartment before they had left. We are so grateful to John Busch, Sam and Jessie Mazurek, Josh Leiberman, Anne Miller and Joan Moxon.

Stephanie headed to our house with tears in her eyes. Kent hooked up to the car trailer and I followed him to Lookout Mountain Community Church’s enormous parking lot where we left the van and trailer for safekeeping overnight. Then we stopped at the foot of our road so that Kent could drive our car home while I drove the rental. And what did we get for a rental car to drive cross-country? Why, a white Subara Outback like we drive every day. I guess they wanted us to feel comfortable. Though the rental is about 12 years newer than our car. I must say, the 2010 version is quite comfortable and pretty plush. It’s a pleasure to drive.

I Couldn't Have Said it Better Myself

It's loading morning and I'm on the run but I took time to check in on my lovely niece, Valerie.


She has made the post I don't have time to make myself. And with a lovely prayer I hope you'll all join in on. Thanks, Val!