One Page Scrapbook Layout - "Up in the Attic"

The attic in our old home was a place of great mystery. Our grandkids were so intrigued and curious every time we pulled down the stairway to take something up or down. They were dying to see what was up there! Just before we moved out of our home, we gave them the opportunity to go up and check it out.

Their Daddy helped them up and down since there aren't any railings to hold onto. Look at the terrified look on their faces! I guess it wasn't nearly as much fun as they thought it might be. 😏 They took a quick look around up there at the stacks of boxes and they were done! 

This probably seems like a silly thing to scrapbook, but it's just one more memory of our home  and our moving days that I'm trying to preserve. Our boys (now grown) were up and down those steps so many times during the moving process!! They just kept bringing boxes down....so much STUFF!! They were such good troopers about it. It brings tears to my eyes every time I think about how much help they were to us!! They kept us moving forward and were so entertaining in the process. I wanted to curl up in a ball and make it all go away, but their maturity, perseverance, and sacrifice just kept us going until finally it was all done! We really can't thank them enough. I've never been more proud of the amazing young men they've become. And...did I mention my daughter-in-laws!!! Holy cow! They were hoisting furniture, boxes....all in sub zero weather, blowing snow and wind! 

We're incredibly thankful and blessed to be in our new home. Yes, we still have an attic, but this time with a real stairway and a lot less junk! 

Two Page Layout - "Goodbye"

This layout evokes so many memories for me! These pictures were taken December 24, 2018 just days before packing up and moving out of our family home. We purchased it and moved in when I was pregnant with my oldest. It's a very tiny, 2 bedroom/1 bath home, so we planned to live there for 5 years, build equity, and then move to something bigger...Well, we stayed for 28 years!!

 Our second son was born two years later and they could easily share a room. We were loving our home and the neighborhood, and we just stayed! It really didn't feel that small until the kids became teens. There wasn't a lot of space to have friends over, or have family guests stay over with us, and then suddenly they were 6ft 4" and they were sleeping in bunk beds where they couldn't stretch out very well....but we still stayed. 😲

 The biggest reason we stayed was for financial reasons. We were paying tuition at a Christian school from Kindergarten through highschool, then college tuition...But we started planning, hoping and dreaming to build our own house one day.

 Meanwhile our oldest son got married and later on blessed us with grandchildren, our youngest graduated from high school and got engaged. He was living with us, saving for the wedding, etc. and we LOVED having him back with us again after college. But when the whole family was over, the walls were closing in on us. It was tight around the dining room table, and my youngest had to give up his room for the grandkids to spend the night. So, we started getting more serious about our plans, pulled the trigger on a beautiful little lot, and held off breaking ground for a few more months to save up the rest of our down payment.

I'm glad that we stayed as long as we did, though. We never had to uproot the kids from their neighborhood, and all things fell into place financially after we were finished helping with college tuition....We were out of debt and ready to make our dream home a reality!

These pictures are the last family photos taken at our old house! We made so many memories there together with our little family. My hubby spent so many hours fixing up that little house. That's probably one of the reasons it sold 6 HOURS after going on the market. It was the cutest little house in the neighborhood and the market was (is still) so HOT here in Fort Wayne. The timing was perfect in all ways for us and we give all the glory to God!

Thanks for sticking with me through this longer post. Thanks for reading! I will post layouts of our new home some time soon. We are loving it!