simplify life:
Life has a way of throwing us curve balls. Just when we think we have it all under control, something unexpected arises and we find ourselves scrambling for a sense of order, trying to make sense of the chaos, knowing full well, what we absolutely must do, is take a necessary break. The beautiful thing is that so often when these unexpected necessary breaks come our way, they lead us to beautiful new beginnings.
One day you’re fine…
One day you’re fine. You’re doing all the things, keeping up with all the tasks, managing all the chaos. Then one night you wake up in the wee small hours of the morning with a fever. The next day it continues to rise… 101, 102, 103, 104, 104.2, 104.4…. and you can’t get it to come down. You spend the day shivering and shaking on the sofa watching old movies, drifting in and out of dream-laden sleep.
Then, as if by some miracle, your fever breaks and you stay at a normal body temperature all night the second night. But then, just when you think you’re ‘out of the woods,’ your fever returns… 102, 102.5, 102.7, 103. And off to the Urgent Care you go.
After spending what feels like an eternity (but was really just a couple hours) you go home with a shot in your booty and ten days worth of Cipro. And that’s when you realize, that what you need is a necessary break.
But there is so much to do…
But you have menus to plan and recipe cards to create, weekly cleaning checklists to make, packing to do, laundry to catch up on, and a roller-coaster of emotions to navigate. Because your son, your 21 year old baby boy, is moving to his first apartment. Alone. All by himself.
So on the tail end of being as sick as you’ve been in over twelve years, you power through the week ahead preparing for a move that will simultaneously give him the space he needs to spread his wings, and will create an open void in your newly empty nest.
Moving day comes and goes. You slowly realize he is only seven minutes away, and you can still see him any time you want. He lives in a community with friends and co-workers, and actually shares a wall with the apartment next door where his very good friend happens to live.
You sigh a great sigh and realize, he’s going to be alright after all.
Beautiful new beginnings…
Once his things have removed from the apartment, you suddenly realize you have additional space – and you begin to create for yourself a few new beginnings. You rearrange your living room furniture, swap out artwork, bring in new spring pillows, and light fresh candles. You put Nora Jones on the turntable and pipe her soothing voice to every room of the apartment, and begin to breathe a little deeper again.
For us, we brought in denim blue candles in clear glass hurricanes. We fluffed the white hydrangeas and stacked the gardening books on the coffee table.
We brought in sofa pillows in shades of navy, pale blue, and spring florals. Warm furry blankets got replaced with lightweight creamy throws, just perfect for a chilly spring evening on the front porch.
We filled the bird feeder and filled the fountain. We planted purple and white pansies and the most glorious hellebores.
And we realized that we just might make it after all. Our children are grown and successfully on their own. In one year’s time we sold both our house (April 2025), and our business (January 2026). We have planned this life for the last five years and now, we find ourselves on the cusp of the future. Our lease on this apartment is up in September. We are uncertain where we may go next, or what that timetable actually looks like. Only time will tell.
One thing is sure, we have beautiful new beginnings on our horizon. For now, we are enjoying a well-earned break, and resting in our current fresh new beginning.
xo, Billie
resources:
- When a Home Becomes a House: https://forwardourmail.com/when-a-home-becomes-a-house/
- When You Need a Fresh Start: https://forwardourmail.com/start-fresh/
- Moving Tips from Apartments.com
