I had 40 minutes to ready the house, get one kid to nap, and nurse another. In the end, they loved it and placed an offer on the spot. And then the couldn't secure financing.
A home is a sacred place. We felt violated. Their realtor said that they were pre-approved, otherwise we would've never let them in the door. The whole experience left a sour taste in our mouths and we really didn't want to list the house for sale, for real.
A month or so later, the realtor approached us again. "I have a couple that is interested in a house your size...and they have cash."
We hemmed and hawed. Did we really want to sell? Would this opportunity ever present itself again?
We readied the house before the weekend came around. They toured our house but wanted to see other models and possibly build a new house in the same community. Another week passed while they toured other options. On the third week, they had a second walk through. They were the only couple to come through. We never even had a For Sale sign in the yard. They offered money, we countered back, they accept and we walked away with a bit of cash in our pockets.
We closed on the sale last Friday. Over the weekend, we moved out of our house and in with my parents.
It's bittersweet. I had never wanted to live their long term, but I spent eight years there. I learned how to be a wife there. I taught piano lessons there. I suffered through inferility and an empty nursery there, but I also brought three babies home there.
A year ago when Aaron and I went through the hardest year yet of our marriage, I would have never thought this day would come. There was a time last year when I thought we would lose our house to the hardships we were facing. We lost friends, loyal companions, and an income, but we never lost that house.
So cheers to new beginnings and to raising my children with a village. May they remember this time and look back with fond memories on the time that they get to spend with their grandparents.
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