They are the hardest part about moving

Tell me again why I want to move?? 
is the thought I kept having this week while spending the afternoon 
with the best neighbors we've ever had. And for 26 years!

Heidi, Dee, and Terry
Their daughter Heidi drove over 4 hours to come see Tyler and 
Karen and the house.... and us in it one last time. 

Richie and Leo went crazy for her.

They wore her out and when she went to rest a bit from it all, 
there they were again, all over her.



Love this capture of Karen and Tyler in the background serenading 
their boys and Heidi with Leo's ukulele




If there were a way we could take the Garvins with us and plant 
them next door to our new home we would in a heart beat!

I was sad and down about moving after the Garvins left. I kept 
asking myself....what in the world are we doing?? Yet, I have to 
remind myself that we know this is the right thing to do. Just hard. 

Just hard as I think of .....

watching as our kids played in the cul-de-sac year after year
taking care of each other's kids
the shared birthday parties
those 4th of July twelve hour block parties year after year
watching our kids swim together
all those times Tyler as a little boy knocking on the Garvin's door just to talk to Terry
So grateful for their high morals and standards and the influence they had on my sons
Dee was the first one I called (after 911) as soon as I hung up when Bill 
said to me on the phone, "Call the cops"
their son Brett spending that first night with us comforting McKay and Tyler 
all-night-long after their Dad died
Terry taking over pool maintenance after Bill died and then teaching me how to 
Tyler and McKay knocking on their door Sunday mornings so Terry could fix their ties before church
Heidi made all those teenage parties better with her gift for reaching out to everyone
welcoming Dennis into our lives and neighborhood
Dee coming right over during our 2 ambulance adventures
taking care of our house and Alex the cat when we were out of town
and so many many many more 

Instead of feeling sad, I am trying to feel just grateful for what we have had.
And determined not to let them go. After all, we will only be a mile away.

Years and years ago I found this quote somewhere:
 "We choose our friends, but God chooses our neighbors."

Thanks be to my Father above for the Garvins.

3 comments:

Susan Anderson said...

Moving is always hard, and the worst are the goodbyes. Every time we said one, I started thinking we had made a mistake.

But we were doing the right thing. It was just sad!

=)

grandmapeg said...

That is one of the hardest things to do to leave our friends and neighbors or have them leave. It's heartbreaking but you are fortunate that you aren't moving that far away. Just make time in your schedule to go visit these dear friends of yours. I remember you talking fondly of these neighbors/friends.

Heidi G. Ballas said...

Thank YOU for letting me crash your family vacation!! It was a blast seeing you all. It's crazy to think when I first met Tyler he was four - the age Richie is now! So good to see and to hug everyone. :-)

Look what happened last night

  Just a little pre-graduating gathering for our DIL Amy.... Not everyday a Mom of 7 and a Grandma of 7, graduates from college. It was not ...