Waxing nostalgic

So, as I ponder an upcoming move (which I'm hoping is imminent), I find myself a little sad. There are some things I will really miss about living here. I thought I'd make a little list for posterity's sake.

In no particular order:
We live within walking distance to an amazing Rec Center. The two top-rated community pools in the state are supposedly the Cottonwood Heights Rec center (where I grew up) and the KOPFC facility, which I can see out my front window. We have taken advantage of swimming lessons, dance classes, aerobics classes, fitness center and more. Across the street is the high school where we've done more dance & cheer classes, tumbling, and even a cake decorating class. I love community ed classes!

On the same campus is the Utah Olympic Oval- the Fastest Ice In the World- or something like that. It was the home of the speed skating events in the 2002 Winter Olympics. How cool is that! Literally! Two summers ago we spent A LOT of time in there during June & July as we built a float for the Days of '47 parade. We watched Derek Parra coach up & coming skaters a few feet away from where we were working. And we got to come in the secret back door, cuz we were special!

My Wal Mart greeters- I try to do my shopping and errands right after I drop my kids off at school. When I go to our Wal Mart, it is almost always 8:20 am. My same sweet greeters have been there for years. Brad- the gentle giant is always so sweet to the kids and helped me pick out the most amazing watermelon! My other favorite greeter is this sweet Polynesian grandpa. He is forever whistling a happy tune, which you can hear throughout the store. I also see him at the temple sometimes. We smile a knowing smile at eachother and carry on. I need to tell their bosses how awesome they are!

Sonic. I could throw a rock and hit Sonic from my back porch. Almost. What will I do without happy hour on the way to pick up my kids from school. I might have to drink tap water.

It goes without saying that I will miss my amazing friends. I am so richly blessed to have made wonderful friends here! Friends from my ward, neighborhood, PTA, Curves/Weight Watcher... and on and on. The people in Kearns are so genuine. There is no pretense. No one lives here because they think they are special or better than others. I am almost afraid to move to another place for fear of encountering mean people. I have never met a mean person here. Strange, perhaps, but never mean. :)

My kids have wonderful friends, too. I dropped Jenna & Aubrey off at a birthday party last week and 10 girls literally ran to our car and scooped them into hugs, so excited to see each other. Some of them had been at school with them an hour before, but they were genuinely glad to be together again. I feel like a mean mom to take them away from that. I fear that we won't find that again elsewhere. My kids are generally quite social, so I'm sure they'll be fine, but I know they will miss their dear friends here. We will keep in touch with them, just like we have with friends who have already moved away from our area.

(My heart just broke a little as I wrote that last paragraph)

Speaking Spanish- I have the opportunity to converse with people- sometimes friends, sometimes strangers- in espanol nearly every day. I feel useful at the school when I can bridge that gap for parents trying to do the best they can for their kids. The blessings of serving a mission are never-ending.

I am quite enamored with our central air. Don't worry- I'll have it where I'm going. Count on it!

The satisfaction of making our house a home. It was a wreck when we bought it. There is no wall I haven't painted at least once. We ripped out the crappy old carpet by hand. Tim has planted every single tree and shrub in our back yard- at least 30. We have harvested gardens year after year. We did hire the tile done in the kitchen, but before we could afford that, we had linoleum tiles that Tim put down after my mom & I arranged them just right. We have learned a lot here!

Walking to Harmons to get a Christmas tree. We have a tradition of walking to Harmons grocery store to pick out our Christmas tree, usually as part of Family Home Evening. (Across the street from Sonic- not a long walk.) It might seem odd, but it is fun. Maybe not as much for Tim, who carried the tree. But we all enjoyed it!

To get myself back to the mindset of wanting to move (because I'm on the verge of tears here) I WON'T miss:
- Having to choose whether to sew or feed my family dinner, since both things happen on the same table.
- Not having a separate family room & living room. Polite company and piles of toys have to share the same space.
-North-facing driveway. Ice-rink in winter. Enough said.
-PTA president-hood. It was fun last year, but I'm warn out. We all know I'll get myself into some other project somewhere else, but I need a breather.
-My kids trying to climb over each other in our petite house. It was great when they were smaller & fewer in number, but we have out grown our "blue big house." (That's what Jenna called it when we moved in.)

It has been a wonderful place of learning, growth, service, love and fun, but all good things must come to an end. We will always treasure our time here, but I am excited for new things ahead!

(If you know anyone that would like to enjoy our house, let me know. I'll think up some kind of referral reward!)