dreamer
New Member
we have been in our house 19+ years. It is the only home my kids have known. It is my first house I owned.
It was not new, and it is very tiny (900 sq feet)
when we first moved here, I was beyond ecstatic to HAVE a house, after living in tenements and dumps etc for several years on my own (since age 12, self supporting) I was also a brand new parent, and had my head in the clouds, LOL. Then my husband got ill and I was SO overwhelmed for many years, with babies, toddlers, sick husband, sick kids and working 2-3 jobs to just barely keep us going. Our poor tiny house got VERY neglected, I mean to the worst extreme, cuz I was in most basic primal survival mode. Then I got so ill, and was totally dependant - etc.....for a few more years. 2 years ago I began to get better, and looked around at my poor house and family and yard. So slowly I began the LONG process to try to make up for the decades of neglect. Turns out, I found I LIKED working outside, but, I was so weak, and it can be costly, and well, we have no money. VERY slowly I began the long process of trying to rejuvenate/renovate my yard. Original owners had worked in concrete and rocks etc, and had laid some stunning giant rocks n cement all over my yard and then planted some amazing gardens, well, it was all so neglected, I had to dig it all out, massive amounts, and do it by hand, and oh boy was I SLOW. our bushes had all overgrown beyond redemption, we lost several trees to lightening over the years. But I began.....and by hand I carefully dug out the debris so our giant rocks could once again be seen in all their glory.
I lovingly planted new flowers in places I finished.
Last year I began to wonder about the people who originally owned our house. I went to library but found precious little. So, I continued to do my best, mostly outside, LOL, I found I liked working inside less and less.....
Inside we still have ALL the original paint, carpet, appliances, floors etc etc. NOTHING is different.
I can say the quality of everything inside and out is the best money could have bought, altho it does all now need replaceing, I am slowly doing my best. BUT I am not getting very far.
SO today we were working on replaceing the railing for the front stoop. Wanted to make a front porch, but, bldg codes would not permit it. And money ran short, too. So just putting in a new railing, now.
A man and a young teen stopped out front, was looking at us. LOL.
Turns out the man was a young boy, original owners of our house, his bedroom was what is now my sons bedroom. His father put all our lovely rocks in, all the gardens, all our extremely high quality carpet, heavy duty extreme paneling and exotic trimwork etc. He exxplained to me the color choices of everything here, the rocks etc. He had with him his own son, a year older than my son now. LOL. I took him and explained to him about diferent trees in our yard, flowers, rocks, etc. SPots I have not yet finished in yard, he told me what was there originally.
Then he looked up and down the block and was shocked to see everyone who lived on the block way back then STILL lives here. I am still the newcomer on the block!
He left with tears in his eyes, glad to see how much I adore and treasure the rocks, turns out I had read that just before I bought the house, there was one specific and exceptionally large rock here in my yard, his dad had moved several states away, and then passed away, his wife came back and begged the owners of my house at that time to permit her to TAKE that largest rock and move it---to his grave! (and they let her) I read that and wondered just where in the yard that rock had been, LOL, now I found out today.
The man was gracious to me, I was some embarrased, but he said he could tell how hard I have been working to try to restore the beauty of the rocks. He was tickled to hear, my kids and I faantasize about lottieries but always my kids insist even if we won millions, they do not want to move, even tho our house is far too tiny for all of us........(and since me and husband do not work and have not for years and 2 of the 3 kids are homeschooled, the house is ALWAYS full)
So it was an interesting morning to get to talk to a man who was a boy and part of the original family of our little house in middle of just another cookie cutter neighborhood. (All the houses on our block are identical- just slight outside decor variations)
That was fun.
It was not new, and it is very tiny (900 sq feet)
when we first moved here, I was beyond ecstatic to HAVE a house, after living in tenements and dumps etc for several years on my own (since age 12, self supporting) I was also a brand new parent, and had my head in the clouds, LOL. Then my husband got ill and I was SO overwhelmed for many years, with babies, toddlers, sick husband, sick kids and working 2-3 jobs to just barely keep us going. Our poor tiny house got VERY neglected, I mean to the worst extreme, cuz I was in most basic primal survival mode. Then I got so ill, and was totally dependant - etc.....for a few more years. 2 years ago I began to get better, and looked around at my poor house and family and yard. So slowly I began the LONG process to try to make up for the decades of neglect. Turns out, I found I LIKED working outside, but, I was so weak, and it can be costly, and well, we have no money. VERY slowly I began the long process of trying to rejuvenate/renovate my yard. Original owners had worked in concrete and rocks etc, and had laid some stunning giant rocks n cement all over my yard and then planted some amazing gardens, well, it was all so neglected, I had to dig it all out, massive amounts, and do it by hand, and oh boy was I SLOW. our bushes had all overgrown beyond redemption, we lost several trees to lightening over the years. But I began.....and by hand I carefully dug out the debris so our giant rocks could once again be seen in all their glory.
I lovingly planted new flowers in places I finished.
Last year I began to wonder about the people who originally owned our house. I went to library but found precious little. So, I continued to do my best, mostly outside, LOL, I found I liked working inside less and less.....
Inside we still have ALL the original paint, carpet, appliances, floors etc etc. NOTHING is different.
I can say the quality of everything inside and out is the best money could have bought, altho it does all now need replaceing, I am slowly doing my best. BUT I am not getting very far.
SO today we were working on replaceing the railing for the front stoop. Wanted to make a front porch, but, bldg codes would not permit it. And money ran short, too. So just putting in a new railing, now.
A man and a young teen stopped out front, was looking at us. LOL.
Turns out the man was a young boy, original owners of our house, his bedroom was what is now my sons bedroom. His father put all our lovely rocks in, all the gardens, all our extremely high quality carpet, heavy duty extreme paneling and exotic trimwork etc. He exxplained to me the color choices of everything here, the rocks etc. He had with him his own son, a year older than my son now. LOL. I took him and explained to him about diferent trees in our yard, flowers, rocks, etc. SPots I have not yet finished in yard, he told me what was there originally.
Then he looked up and down the block and was shocked to see everyone who lived on the block way back then STILL lives here. I am still the newcomer on the block!
He left with tears in his eyes, glad to see how much I adore and treasure the rocks, turns out I had read that just before I bought the house, there was one specific and exceptionally large rock here in my yard, his dad had moved several states away, and then passed away, his wife came back and begged the owners of my house at that time to permit her to TAKE that largest rock and move it---to his grave! (and they let her) I read that and wondered just where in the yard that rock had been, LOL, now I found out today.
The man was gracious to me, I was some embarrased, but he said he could tell how hard I have been working to try to restore the beauty of the rocks. He was tickled to hear, my kids and I faantasize about lottieries but always my kids insist even if we won millions, they do not want to move, even tho our house is far too tiny for all of us........(and since me and husband do not work and have not for years and 2 of the 3 kids are homeschooled, the house is ALWAYS full)
So it was an interesting morning to get to talk to a man who was a boy and part of the original family of our little house in middle of just another cookie cutter neighborhood. (All the houses on our block are identical- just slight outside decor variations)
That was fun.