I've been a little neglectful of my blog :(

In my defense, I have been very busy, just not online.  I had new flooring laid in most of my house, and have been busy painting, cleaning, and decluttering.  I'm contemplating putting the house on the market and downsizing.  I really don't need this big, old house any longer.  It was a great place to raise my children, and they have wonderful memories of growing up here, but it's just too big now.

I'm doing all of the projects I always wanted to do.  It seems quite sad that I'm doing all these things and won't get to enjoy them.  I have completed a long, long, LONG list of things, but my list of things still to do is just as long, and I'm running out of steam.

I come home from work, change into my work clothes, and get to work on my list.  I work as quickly as I can until it's time to sleep, and fall into bed exhausted ... only to wake up, go to to work, come home and put on my work clothes and start all over again.  As I'm working I remember things I need to add to my list or discover another "project" that will make the house more attractive to buyers.  Hence, my roster of things to do seems to be an ever-growing list.  Fortunately, my list of things I've done is growing, too, which bolsters my spirits and gives me energy to continue.

When I bought this house in 1999, the kids and I moved from a tiny two bedroom bungalow to this rambling, giant house with more room than we dared dream of.  Even though we had long since outgrown that small bungalow, we'd been there a number of years and leaving was emotional.  We've been in this house three times as long and have many more memories here.  I know I need to sell this place and get something smaller, but leaving will be very difficult.

I'm trying not to think about how hard it will be to leave, and concentrate on the next young family that will move in and make their own wonderful memories here in this grand home.  As I clean, paint, and mark off task after task, I'm working on my next book in my head ... and dreaming of what my office will look like in my next home :)