We made it. Years of planning, hoping and hard work and we are finally full time Tawasians! When we found East Tawas 4 years ago we fell in love and made a plan to make it our home one day. It wasn’t always easy to balance our future wants with our current needs. Having to deal with the weekend traffic coming up on Friday evenings, or going back south on Sunday afternoons. Having to keep up 2 homes and sets of bills. Trying to make new friends and connections up here while still spending time with family and friends back home. But it was soooo worth it. We are home!
Those of you who have been following my blog since it began last December know I’ve personally had a lot of stuff going on in the last 6 months. Quitting my job, knee surgery, spending as much time with my mom as I could before we lost her in April, our oldest daughter moving out, our youngest graduating high school and moving into his own place. Leaving a town we called home for 17 years. My emotions have been running high. But now it is time to slow down and relax. Live a simpler, slower life. Discover the highs and lows of being an empty nester. We haven’t lived in our own in 25 years!
So how do I fill my time when Chad is working and I am home alone. The first few days were busy with unpacking the last minute things. Our new home is less than half the size of our old one and we purged a lot. I am happy to say we found space for everything we decided we really needed to have. Once that was done I had to hit the grocery store.
Chad took over the grocery shopping years ago. It may have something to do with the fact that I had little self control and often ended up getting a cart full of candles and decor instead of food! {I’m going to miss Meijer!}Since I am no longer working outside of the house, I am taking over all of the domestic duties. I am really excited about this new Donna Reed thing. I even bought a cute new apron. Anyway, I made a menu plan. I’m trying to consider what will make good leftovers that I can send to work with Chad the next day. So after some time on Pinterest and other recipe boards I came up with the menu for the first week. The list seemed small but when at the check out lane the bill was a little bit of a shock. I didn’t even get ONE candle or non grocery item. It isn’t going to be cheap to make these gourmet meals. Sorry kids….we waited until you were gone to buy the good stuff!
As I am pushing the cart towards the car I realize I am gonna have to haul all this crap into the house and unpack by myself. It’s usually a team effort. Chad shopped and we all rallied to help carry in and unpack. Those days are over. But I did it and felt very proud of myself afterwards.
So now the house was clean and the shopping was done. I went to a meeting for the Friends of the Lighthouse and State Park, I watered the garden and tried to prop up the zinnas that were slouching. I’m not so sure they are gonna make it but whatever I mess up this year I will find a way to correct next year. I met up with some new friends and did a hike out at the Point. I started a new book.
I am working on settling into a new routine while finding a way to also not be so regimented. Not easy for a list making, organizational freak like me. For the first time since having kids I decided I didn’t want to have a dry erase board with the weekly plans on it. I want to be SIMPLE and easy. I want to be able to function without a list. I’m telling myself that the 3 sticky notes inside the pantry door with the weekly menu, things to get from the store and things I want to accomplish today are totally not even remotely the same thing. Right? See, I don’t need lists!
I am not used to all of this quiet. I worked full time for years and was always talking to people. The last 6 months were full of visiting people and having 2 of our 3 kids live at home meant you were usually talking to someone. At any moment Jack was going to come bursting through the door full of energy and tell me about an exciting call at the fire station or something crazy someone did at work. It hasn’t fully hit me yet that those days are over. The kids are doing their own thing and I am doing mine. As soon as I figure out exactly what that means. It’s going to take time to get used to the peace and quiet. Nothing but the sound of the rain coming down and the traffic going by. Being able to hear the clock ticking is not something I am used to. There is something very calming about it.
As soon as the rain lets up I am going to walk over to the post office to get the change of address cards in the mail, go for my daily walk, finish the laundry and then put my apron on and start dinner when Chad is headed home. I may or may not cross it off my sticky note as I go!
Simply Shannone 