Life in the 'Burbs

If you're trying to reach us and can't find us, check Home Depot, which is our second home, apparently. We know the store layout like the back of our hands by now.

Owning a home with a yard is quite different from owning a condo that has a management company to do your dirty work like shoveling and mowing. Since we've moved in, we've had to buy a snow shovel and rock salt; a lawn mower, weed whacker, edger, and hedge trimmer; and have hired people to try to get rid of the bamboo that was planted in the backyard. This is the hardest stuff to kill and grows back almost immediately after it is cut down. It's like a curse.

We are also living in a house with an original furnace and air conditioning unit (which are more than 40 years old and are most likely on borrowed time). Thankfully the kitchen appliances are all relatively new.

We live on a cul-de-sac with great neighbors. The neighborhood is turning over from older couples who have been here for 30-40 years (and whose kids are grown and gone) to younger couples like us, some of whom have young children. It's not an uncommon sight to come home at 5:30 and see several neighbors outside on someone's lawn talking while the kids and dogs play on the lawn. It's a very good feeling to know your neighbors and know that they know you, too.

In the end, we are all adjusting well to the change. Stacey's commute to work is fairly painless. Aleck's commute, well, it now involves some stairs whereas before it was just a step down the hall.

And Luna, though she was incredibly confused and homesick when we first moved in, has adjusted quite nicely to the new place. She is truly making it home, as you can see, and has even made a friend with our neighbor dog, Cookie.