40 Hours

That's about how much time I have left in this house. I'm looking forward to getting settled in our new place, but man I'll miss this house! It was built in 1914 and has been extended a few times, so it has lots of character. It's comfortable, well laid out, and has many beautiful details. Also, it has 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, whereas our new place has only 3 bedrooms and 1 bathroom. (In case you're wondering why 2 people need 4 bedrooms: 1 bedroom for us, 1 guest room (which we use frequently), 1 workroom for sewing and painting and 1 office.)

Fortunately, the new place has some extra little spaces that are almost rooms in their own right, so we will still have enough space for everything. (For example, there's an open space at the bottom of the stairwell that is large enough to be used as a small office.) The new place is sweet and has nice touches that give it some character, and will make it comfortable and livable. But... it just doesn't have what this house has. I'll miss the recessed, moulded ceilings, the coloured walls, the open floor plan, and the few steps leading up to the guest room or down to our bedroom. I'll miss the way the house looks really tiny from the street, then you walk in and are surprised at how far it goes back, and how spacious it is. I'll miss the extra bathroom!!

I'll miss the huge trees in front that prevent any natural light from entering the living room. I'll miss the incredibly conventient proximity to Safeway (2 blocks!) and the Skytrain station. (Our new place has an excellent location for public transit and has just about everything we need within close walking distance, though, so I can't complain too loudly.) I'll miss our front yard in the spring, which is constantly teeming with little wildflowers that change very few weeks. The photos on the left were taken last April (click to make big). Even now, there are little daffodil shoots poking out of the ground.

Goodbye, little house, our first home in this new city. We will miss you. Thank you for being so good to us.

(Note: My blog will be down for a few days, and I will be without email access for that time. I hope to be back online Tuesday or Wednesday next week.)