This is My Brain on Quilts: The journey to a new house.

Last year we made the decision to put our house on the market and move. We spent months painting, carpeting, making repairs, landscaping and staging our house. Despite the tough real estate market our house sold in 2 1/2 weeks, for full asking price. We were thrilled!

But we had no place to live. Our dear friends invited us to live with them. We thought it would only take a few weeks to find a house, then a few weeks to close and move in. But that was not to be. For us, the hard part was finding a house. Because the market was so soft, there were not very many houses for sale. People were waiting until things got better (which they clearly have not). After a month of searching and a few fallen contracts we were feeling desperate.

Then we found our dream house. The first weekend it was listed we toured the house. I walked into the front door and knew it was going to be our new home. The view from the front door is through the dining room and into the screened porch and then on to the beautifully landscaped backyard containing two fountains and a swimming pool. It is in an excellent school district, has a studio with a window and an exterior access door, a music room and a reasonable commute for my husband. It was immaculate and needed absolutely NOTHING done to it. We moved in the week before school started.

Surrounded by packing paper. Unpacking is an exciting chore!

For the first month we enjoyed the house. Only a few boxes were unpacked. Instead, we invited friends to come and enjoy the house with us. We had pool parties, barbecues, dinners. A sort of reciprocation for all the hospitality shown us while we were "homeless."

Olaf's Birthday Party! We stayed with Olaf (third from the right) and family for 5 weeks
while we searched and closed on a new home.

We pulled the girls out of school during the second week to go to San Diego to surprise my mom for her 80th Birthday.

Happy Birthday Mom!

While we were there we went to the San Diego Zoo. There was a very long line (30 minutes) to enter the Panda Exhibit. We decided to skip the Pandas since we've seen them many times here at the Atlanta Zoo. As we passed the front of the line, there was this Panda which could be seen from outside the exhibit!

October was a wonderful month. Most of the house now unpacked, we were ready for my mom to come visit. Our last house had all the bedrooms on the top floor and it was tough for my mom to make those stairs. As a result she had stopped visiting. Our new home has a bedroom and full bathroom om the main level. So my Mom came and spent the month with us.

My mom came and stayed for the month of October. It was glorious.

It was great to have her here with us while everyday life went on. We didn't have to rush conversations, or talk at all. We just lived with one another, sharing daily life, meals and chores. It was wonderful. I feel closer to my mom than ever before in my life.

She was here for Wacky Hair Day. . .

Sophie with her wacky hair, complete with blue hair, butterflies attached by wires and birds.
Sarah had a matching hairdo with green hair.

and Halloween!

Sarah was a Vampire Countess!

Sophie was dressed as a "Fairy Princess" and had very specific instructions for the face paint.

And both girls placed first in the PTA sponsored cultural arts program called Reflections. Sophie won for her watercolor self-portrait. Sarah won for an incredible poem she wrote. And they were both so excited for one another.