Week 1-2

I started this blog with the intention of writing daily. That did not end up happening so I will have to catch you up the past two weeks of time (as you can see, it is May 17 and I will be posting about events taking place from May 1 to now).

We agreed that the summer priorities would not be the inside of the house but rather the outside. During the winter, when we are cooped up inside, we will strengthen and beautify our home. Right now, the house remains cluttered, but somethings are coming together. The kitchen, for instance, is fully running with appliances, water and electricity (none of which was cheap, the only saving grace was the sales tax out of city limits is 1.5% less than in city).

We also have TV and internet, which we typically fall asleep in front of because we are so tired. It is nice to have the amenities, but sometimes it feels like we don't need them. At Sumner (the street our past house was on in Lincoln), we needed them. Weird, huh?

Outside, however, is starting to take shape. First off, I bought a riding lawnmower. A lot of work, a lot of time, a lot of fun. Here is a picture of my new baby, and now that I have mowed the lawn with her, I know this is going to be a great relationship.

Using a tiller we co-rented with our neighbors (who are great, by the way) we carved up some earth and are installing a herb garden...well, Amy is doing the majority of the work, but I am still sore from using the tiller--what a work out. Other projects include some gardening (again by Amy). I am waiting for the school year to end (May 27 can't get here soon enough) so I can start some of my own projects.

Thanks for reading, more soon!

Day Two

April 30, 2011
Did that really just happen? I’ll open my eyes and I’ll be back at Sumner. Oh, apparently not. 7:15am, that’s not a typo, Ayla wakes up to a nice cough and we go to her aid. My mother came in from Lincoln and brought us breakfast. Our kitchen didn’t come with appliances, which is a great thing because we go to pick out brand new shiny ones. The problem, however, is that we had zero food in the house for breakfast.

After a nice start to the day (thanks Mom!), we started to unload boxes. Before we know it, the appliance guys are going to be early. They deliver our new fridge, dishwasher, and range. We are spoiled and thrilled. Sumner had decent appliances, but they were not new and certainly not ‘pretty’. It also lacked a dishwasher. Amy invoked a “Whoever cooks, doesn’t do the dishes” rule early on in our marriage. Needless to say, I have done dishes the better part of the last four years. A dishwasher is most welcome.

Family comes and we unload our second moving truck. We are starting to see how little we had at Sumner. The Sumner house had 1090 square feet and we loaded it to the brim, we couldn’t wait to get out and have more space. Our new home has 2216 square feet, more than double. We are realizing that we don’t have a lot of stuff at all.

The house, although littered with boxes still, is starting to take shape. The kitchen received some much needed organization and both bedrooms are beginning to look like people live in them. The dining room has zero clutter in it. On the other hand, the living room and office are where we see the piles of boxes. The priorities are clear!

The day ends with a great meal with family and a sense of accomplishment. Everything is now inside, things just need to be put in their final spot. We are happy and loved and enjoying our quiet chunk of America.

Move-in Day

April 29, 2011

We’re home. It sounds strange. How did this happen? For months we have been preparing for this move, and now that it is here there are a whirlwind of emotions. Leaving our old house was hard. It was our first home as a family, it was where we went home after we were married, it was where we brought our little girl home from the hospital, it was where we learned who we were. Upon leaving the Sumner house, I couldn’t get over the fact that I was leaving the place where I read books to my little girl. I will never forget those amazing memories and will cherish them forever.

It was also hard because unlike most people who sell their first homes and move to nice suburban cul-de-sacs, we are moving to the edge of Lancaster County. Our new house sits on a 5.61 acre plot and was built in 1903. It has great old bones which has allowed it to exist for over one hundred years, all by one family. It is an awe-inspiring thing to know that in a 108 year family history, a certain lineage just came to a crashing halt on one day.

Moving is always a crazy day and this one had some moments. First off, the wind gusts were over 35 mph, making it difficult to move anything from truck to house. I don’t know how we didn’t lose anything, at times it seemed like anything could blow away (including ourselves). We were lucky that Amy’s parents came up from Kansas to help watch our daughter and help with the various behind the scenes aspects of moving. If they hadn’t come up I don’t know how we would have made it through.

I personally had a difficult time. Selling the Sumner house was hard for me, as you can read above, but it didn’t really hit until around 2pm. The mover’s were scheduled to come out at 3pm and everyone else stayed in Lincoln to take care of this-n-that, which left me at the house completely isolated and alone. I went through about every emotion one could name and at one point I didn’t know if I could pull out of it. Luckily, by three everyone was here again. The presence of others, and the sight of my beautiful daughter pulled my spirits up and reminded me that we can do this. We’ll just need help, a lot of help.

The day ended with one truck completely unloaded and our second truck still full. We were nausea from the wind, were developing a nice sunburn and were exhausted. I was pleasantly surprised to see how light it is out here, there are dusk lights abound and plenty of “neighbors” shining lights into the night sky. Instead of falling asleep to my usual cars-rolling-by-on-asphalt or dogs-barking-all-over-the-neighborhood sounds, I slept peacefully to the sound of…nothing. ~Rob

Welcome to Lancaster's Edge!

Hello, and welcome to Lancaster's Edge, where you will get the opportunity to follow the life and times of a family who traded in cushy city-life for country living. Now a little bit about the family.

First there is Rob, the most uneasy about this new move. His skills are suited much more towards city-life and much less towards country living. He is a music teacher by day. His wife, Amy, is the one who hatched this crazy scheme. She’ll tell you that Rob knew all along that this was her life dream, but he will claim she never mentioned it until last year. Lastly there is Ayla, the daughter who received this acreage for her second birthday. Time will tell if she is thankful for this move or not. So far she has showed nothing but her typical enthusiasm.

Why Lancaster’s Edge? If we were to step outside of our property line we would leave our county: Lancaster County in Nebraska. We hope you enjoy reading about our life and times, struggles, successes and just plain craziness.