A Vision Spectacular In Grace

So, everything has been good. Life has been chugging along at a nice, slow, even pace. No curve balls, no forks in the road, nothing life altering or even remotely strange. It's been good. Very good.

The house thing is at a stall right now...okay, maybe more of a low idle. My parents have decided to go another route for some reason, so it looks like the big "living together" thing has taken a nosedive. I'm not sure what the reason is for them backing out of this...maybe they just wanted their own place, maybe they couldn't stand the thought of having to live with me....who knows. Either way, it was kind of a surprise after how gung ho they were about it at first. But hey, it's their life, their choices, their decisions. In one of life's great ironies, I find that I have to let my parents go.

We did find a house we liked though. A beautiful raised ranch with a full apartment underneath. It's a gorgeous house, and it would afford us more room AND a source of income if we were able to rent out the bottom. It needs a little bit of updating, but it was a foreclosure and the price is SO right. So right in fact, that we could move on it today, but we're waiting. The bank has lowered the price twice in three months that we've had our eye on it, so we're waiting to see if they lower it again. So either we buy the house or we stay here and expand. Either way, we win.

On a side note, the trees here in upstate New York are about to take center stage. All the trees now have brilliant tinges of strawberry red, yellow, bright orange, and eggplant purple and when the sun hits them just right, it's like they come alive in a sparkling array of glistening light. It truly is one of life's little pleasures to go out your front door and have your breath taken away by the wonder that nature can create. In two weeks time, the colors will peak, the roads will be packed with leaf peepers, and I'll truly remember why it is that I love this part of the country so much.

And then, with a brisk October wind, it will all be gone.

It's good, though. Because watching your children jump into crisp fallen leaves is ANOTHER of life's little pleasures. There's just something about kissing a little nose that's red with cold, cheeks that are flush with the uninhibited abandon of childhood. I sit here and smile just thinking about their faces all wide eyed with laughter and love and mischievous fun.

I mean, truly. Is there anything better?