Homers

As we left our heroes, my family and I were in housing limbo.  The start for this entry should be familiar to those who read regularly.  Not one but two tries at purchasing a house were thwarted by feeble attempts of trickery or by pure unadulterated close-mindedness (the referenced second house fell through before we even got to request repairs from the inspection report…repairs which were absolutely necessary).  That said, I am happy to say that, on the 3^rd try, we hit pay-dirt, and now reside in beautiful, downtown Scotch Plains.  Move-in was last Saturday, and the wife and I are working furiously to get the house organized after 2+ months of our things being in storage.

That said, let’s take a break from the narrative to publicly thank my father-in-law, brother-in-law and sister-in-law.  You may have thought that your asks of your family to be out-putting…but when we needed a place to stay, my in-laws opened their house, their rooms…their showers and fridges, with open arms.  It was, admittedly, a tight fit, but now, I bet, the house never felt bigger.  I mean, we took over my bro’s bedroom…all of our personal belongings invading every inch of their domicile.  Yes, it meant more quality time with each other…but it also added levels of stress to my extended family, including the need for some repairs on lightly used items in the house that were all of a sudden getting daily use…like the extra shower that wasn’t grouted well…sorry about the hole.  My children ravaged the delicate magnets on the fridge…and my father-in-law had to replace the clothes washer after 1 week.  More to remember us by?  Anyway, Jake, Bruce and Emily were instrumental at making us feel welcome and allowing us to invade their space for the better part of 2 ½ months.  We couldn’t have done it without you and we are forever in your debt…until we forget and need babysitting.  But I think the clause for that ask limits us to 2015 requests.  Dad’s also a lawyer and I need to read the fine print.

So, about the new house.  Completely redone/updated kitchen and updated (albeit small) bathroom.  All electrical outlets in the house, built in 1958, were updated with grounded, 3-prong outlets.  Roof was recently replaced, as well as the furnace and oil tank.  House is in a WALKABLE COMMUNITY!  I mean, we are 3-blocks from the local pizza place, the comic book store, and 2 nice bars (the schools too…but let’s stick to what’s important), woot!   House is surrounded by families with kids.  Next door neighbors have already introduced their 5 year old to my 5 year old and the two, every day after school for the last week, have played together!  AND, he’s got older sisters to babysit (eventually)!  Mom and dad are into yoga and wine…and have already introduced us to other neighborhood kids who live around the block.  And, while it’s early in our tenure here, the feel is already the polar opposite of the situation that we left in Westfield.

To say we’re happy is an understatement.  For the first time in months, my daughter is sleeping through the night.  I know I’ve jinxed it now, but it’s worth it.  This is our home, and we’re truly excited to re-start our lives.  Now, I hope I bought enough candy (the good stuff, i.e. chocolate…none of that off-brand Smarties crap!) to impress the kids who will be by tonight, enough to make them (and their parents) think “those new people are alright.”  Bribery is certainly not beneath us, and we’ve got many first impressions to make! Happy Halloween!