A Home Called Shalom: The Ten Things I'll Miss the Most

We're moving out of our home called Shalom.

Yes, I realize that it's just a house and I'm being a little ridiculous by getting all sappy.

But while I know that it's made of wood and drywall and concrete and vinyl and just a little carpet, our house has been a good companion to me these past few years. It's more than just a house, I guess. The time we spent here has been a chapter in our lives.

I have trouble letting go, sometimes.

Don't get me wrong, our move is a good one. I'm so excited to move into our little farmhouse- I'm excited for the new season of our lives, for the hard work of home ownership, for the remodeling projects that are underway. I'm excited to have something that's ours, a place where we can put down roots.


But that doesn't change the fact that I'm going to miss my little home called Shalom. Many dreams for this place weren't fulfilled. Many lessons were learned. Many prayers were said. And lots and lots of fun was had, laughs were heard, and memories were made.

If I had to choose just ten-- these are the things I'll miss most about our home called Shalom.

1) The Name

Let's be honest, naming a home is hard. So far, we've gone from calling our new house "the property" to "the acreage" to "the new house"... but none of those are great, let's be honest.

Shalom was already named. Already inspiring me to live a peaceful life within its walls. And it's way cooler to say, "I'll see you at Shalom," than it is to say, "I'll see you at the acreage."

2) The Doorknobs

Just so cool.

3) The DISHWASHER.

Probably one of the more practical items on my list, but oh-so-very true. <Sigh> Goodbye, you beautiful dishwasher.

4) The Wood

Oh, the wood. Shalom has wood paneling on the walls- not 70's yucky paneling, but original, beautiful paneling upstairs and classy, rustic modern downstairs.

And hardwood floors. (Which, to be fair, the new house has as well... but I didn't have to scrape glue off of the ones in Shalom.)

5) The Commute

50 steps to work is pretty awesome, let's be honest. And we rarely had to buy gas.

6) The Fireplace

Trevor spent a good chunk of last fall getting our fireplace up and running, and it cozy-ed up our house all winter long. Hopefully the fireplace in the new house will do the same (and not be a trouble maker).

7) The Giant Built-in Cabinet in the Bathroom (and the BIG bathroom itself)

All the storage. And a random door.

8) The Bright Kitchen

White-ish floors, white cabinets, white walls, white appliances, and south-facing windows made our kitchen seem way bigger than it was. And clean, even when it wasn't. (I took a page from that playbook when choosing colors for our new house!)

9) The History

Our little house is chock full of old Camp history. It makes you feel like you're a part of something bigger.

10) The Memories

Okay, so I'll be taking these with me.

We've made lots of memories in this house.

Trevor turned off the light in the bedroom before we left last night (I'd been packing in there), and as we got ready to head out to our new home, it hit me.

We're actually leaving this place.

We've spent 2/3 of our marriage living here. This is where I learned to make a housekeeping schedule (and failed terribly at maintaining it). It's this place where we've done most of our laughing and crying. The tub downstairs has been full of sand from little niece-feet when they came to play at the beach. We've had friends over to dinner here. Trevor's surprised me here. This house is pretty well full with lots of love, lots of prayers, lots of dreams.

And now a new family is moving in, and this little home called Shalom will be chock full of their memories, too.

And we'll be moving into your yet unnamed new home, and filling it with new memories.

The adventure continues.