6/2/2021 0 Comments Big Changes - the storyA few years ago when our youngest son was finishing up his first year of college, we took a mini-vacation to drive down to pick him up at the end of the semester. As history buffs, we traveled to see Harper's Ferry, Antietam, Monticello, and did a day of driving the Blue Ridge Parkway to Asheville, NC where we visited the Biltmore Estate.
Our drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway was a glorious day and we were smitten. When we returned to NH, we talked at length about all we had seen and the areas we had discovered. We began to plan to return and explore further as we were becoming disillusioned with NH - the weather, the taxes, and the politics/people. Our son going to school in the south had made us aware of a completely new part of the country and the people who lived there seemed more kindred spirit than those where we had always lived. We had planned a trip for the end of April 2020 - it was cancelled when the world was turned inside out & upside down due to Covid. Life was changed - permanently. We finally managed to plan our return trip for late September of 2020 and found ourselves in Alleghany County, NC with the intention of researching Ashe Country as a potential for relocating eventually. God had other plans. Alleghany County was special - we drove virtually every road of the county in about a week. We did travel to Ashe County, but found it did not bring the joy we found in Alleghany. The mountains, rolling hills, open farmland, the cows on the hillsides, views, and of course... the people. We were home and we were certain of it. Our plans were to scout out some land and eventually retire and build a home. Again, God had other plans and surprised us completely. With the Covid situation, Steve's working from home had become full-time and looked to be permanent. We discussed the idea of going sooner rather than waiting, but it seemed crazy. Until a random text from a family member set wheels in motion that moved along faster than we'd ever imagined. In February a much-loved niece and her husband came for a visit to see the house, at the end of May we all sat on a sunny back patio at a local real-estate title company and signed papers - they became first-time homeowners and we began a whole new adventure! Another trip to Alleghany in March had yielded a gift from the Lord again in the form of @ 6acres of land in a lovely spot - exactly our hearts desire for a home-site. At the end of April we'd done a whirlwind trip of 4 days to put a truckload of our belongings into storage, purchase the land, and drive to TN to see our youngest son graduate from college. Now it is the first week of June and we are fully moved into our rental house with the 4 cats and the dog - all of whom are pretty well recovered from the trauma of a 14+ hour drive to our new home. A million times Thanks have been said to my brother for driving a big Uhaul truck, and our daughter for doing the whirlwind round-trip drive to help us with moving the cats. We are now embarking on the new adventure as we start the chapter of being just the 2 of us - as all the kids are grown and starting their own lives. As for my sewing/quilting and the future of Applewood Quilts.... everything is mostly on hold until we get our new home built with a new studio space for my Lenni. I have one featherweight and a few projects here at the rental house, but no machine quilting will be happening for quite a while. All good things are gifts from God and I'm thankful beyond words for every step of this journey! He is faithful and I am blessed.
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November 2023
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