Our home is officially on the market and it’s been a lot harder to let go of it than I thought it would be. When we first moved in 11 ½ years ago, it was just a house but over the last decade plus, it’s become more than that – it’s become home. It’s welcomed two children, numerous fish and four dogs. It’s hosted Christmas parties, wedding showers, family get-togethers, birthday parties and countless other celebrations and has handled each occasion with aplomb.
Home sweet home.
When the work day has been stressful, it’s offered a sanctuary and a “Breathe, you’re home” welcome that always put me at ease. It’s never failed to keep us safe during storms and when we needed a moment of clarity, all it took was a glance out our windows at the peacefulness that pervades our backyard to bring us back to what really matters. A river runs through it, or rather a creek, and it’s become my go to place to clear my mind. There are few things that will make you appreciate what you have more than the symphony of moving water, rustling leaves, a crackling fire and singing birds.
Always home for Christmas!
It has stood resolutely as we taught our two kids to walk and then dance, comforted them in the middle of the night and read them bedtime stories as another day came to a close. It has wrapped its brick-and-mortar arms around us as we said goodbye to two of our beloved dogs and given us a big backyard to bury them so we could keep them close.
Those strong arms offered comfort when my wife and I said goodbye to our dads, in both instances way too soon. As we became accustomed to our unwanted new normal, it offered us a peaceful spot to lay our heads and faraway corners to lash out when the weight of the moment overcame us. When the world seemed unfair, its unassailable walls became our fortress, keeping at bay the oncoming tide of reality.
Now it’s time for us to move on and soon our current home will become someone else’s home. And while there are sentimental reasons you should make our home your home, they’re only sentimental to a select few. For those of you considering our house, though, there are many more fun reasons you should fork out a butt load of money for it. In no particular order:
Our Neighbors Are Better Than Your Current Neighbors
You can’t overestimate the value of good neighbors and if we could put a price tag on that, you wouldn’t be able to afford our home. Mark and Sandra and their daughters started out as the family next door but have become our very good friends over the years. Our daughter adores them, especially Mark, and I have no doubt you will as well. Our other neighbor Steve pretty much stays to himself but if he’s driving by and sees you outside, he will stop his car every single time and ask you how you’re doing. And you can tell he genuinely cares. The neighbors two doors down in either direction or across the street? They will wave at you with a friendly smile, strike up a conversation with you if you seem in the mood and mind their own business if you don’t. When it comes to neighbors, we have the best.
The Walkout Basement is Lit AF
Seriously, it’s completely finished with a bedroom, a full bath, two huge rooms to entertain in, has a humongous three seasons room attached to it and has the coolest bar you’ll find in any house currently for sale in the area (liquor not included). There’s also a 60” plasma TV mounted to the wall above the fireplace that will draw you like a moth to its 600 Hz 1080P high definition flame and brand new shiplap flanking it. It’s over 1500 square feet of “Give me your best shot” fun. Our basement rocks and you will, too, you rock star. Time to rock on.
Our Backyard is an Oasis
You want room to roam? We’ve got you covered. Offering enough immaculately mowed grass to let you throw a football around, house a playset, anchor an inflatable double-slide playground and throw a bonfire ALL AT THE SAME TIME, it’s the backyard you know you’ve always wanted. That creek I mentioned above? You’ll find it in the backyard. You’ll never even know you’re two minutes from downtown Warsaw.
I’ll miss this view!
It Has Cornered the Market on Curb Appeal
You will love the view greeting you as you pull into your driveway every day and if your visitors happen to use the front door, they’ll be amazed at the patio. Nicole has landscaped the crap out of it, the bushes are neatly trimmed, the grass is precisely cut and the floor on the front porch is a custom install where every 12×12 ceramic tile was cut at least once to make the design. It’s that kind of special.
Our Hood is the Shizzle
Ain’t no snootiness allowed in Melody Acres. Just a bunch of hard working folk with nicely manicured lawns who will wave at you when you drive/run/walk/drunk stumble by. It’s all good in our hood. Unless you don’t like the sound of children laughing and having fun. Then you might not like it … and you might just be a grump.
You Probably Won’t Change a Thing About It
We’ve updated the look of almost everything you can in the house. The basement bathroom still has a lot of the original stuff (the shower and toilet are new) and the storage room is, well, the storage room. Ain’t nobody got time for that. Other than that, you’ll probably love what we’ve done to it and if you don’t, we’ll just kindly disagree with your tastes and then Facebook stalk you to see what you’ve changed/made worse.
So many great memories with these two around the kitchen table.
The Pluses
Grill and Chill
If you like grilling, you’ll love our home. The back deck is a sliding glass door away from the kitchen and looks out over the backyard oasis mentioned above. Throw some meat on the grill, crack open a cold one and gaze out at the land you lord over. Life will be good, my friend.
Storage
You want storage? We have storage. Lots and lots and lots of it. You’ll be amazed at how much storage you can cram into a house. The custom built storage shelves in the basement are so sturdy that we carved out a small nook as our tornado shelter. I’m still surprised every time I open one of the doors and don’t find a small family living in there. For reals, homie.
******FOOTNOTE******
Since I wrote this article, we have accepted an offer on the house. I still wanted to post this, however, and share just how much this house has become our home. It’s mostly for sentimental reasons and a chance to look back, something I find myself doing a lot lately.
Tags: home