Giving Thanks: Day 4

Our House

I still find it hard to believe that we have a house. We honestly thought that it was a long way off. Through many miracles and some generous people, we were able to move into our first house 3 months ago. We have put a lot of work into it these last 3 months. I find that I try harder to take care of it because I know how hard it is to fix up. I think that we will always remember the many weeks that we spent and will spend improving this home. Not only will we remember them, but I think we will remember them fondly.

Due to spending 3 years in New York City, the reasons that I am so thankful for this home are probably a little different than they might otherwise be. In fact, I often find myself feeling grateful for things and then laughing when I realize how silly they sound. Here are three of the more unusual reasons that I am grateful for our new home.

#1 I get to control the thermostat
All of you New Yorkers know exactly what I am talking about. During the winter, we had no control over the heat in our apartment because our building had a boiler system with radiators in each room. They could either be all the way off or all the way on. This meant that we were either freezing all the time, or unbearably HOT. Living on the 6th floor was horrible during the winter because the heat from all the apartments below us would rise and bake us. Now, I can set my own temperature and adjust it whenever I want. It feels like heaven.

#2 Less stress over my noisy kids
Living in apartments, I often felt so much stress to keep my boys quiet so that we didn't bother our neighbors. In our last place, there were 3 apartments within 5 feet of our front door as well as one directly below us. I found myself scolding my boys for being too loud time and time again. During one of Andrew's crying fests in the middle of the night, someone rang our doorbell and left. We got their point and felt horrible, but what was a poor, tired mom to do? That experience only intensified my anxiety.
Since the move, I have found myself so thankful that I do not have to worry about that anymore. My children love to run, jump, play, and yell, and now they can do it in the privacy of our own home. It has definitely helped my mental health, and that is a good thing.

#3 Counter space
New York is notorious for lack of counter space and space in general. Moving into this home has been great because I have a whole long counter that I can do anything I want with. I never thought that I would be grateful for this, but now I think about it all the time when I am preparing dinner. I love when simple things make me happy.

I am so thankful that we have a place to live, to be warm, to make memories, and to be together as a family.  I know from experience that it doesn't really matter where we are or what kind of home we have, but we feel especially blessed to be here at this time in our lives.