Wednesday, April 9, 2014

our future neighborhood and Andy

Hi everyone! 

This is a long post for me...warning.

I remembered my camera when we were in our new neighborhood last night. The light conditions were not favorable but here are a few shots of our street and lot.

Fresh ferns had popped up since we visited the other day. Wish there was a way to save them but they will undoubtedly be crushed when construction starts. The lot is long and narrow. The house on the left was just finished. They chose yellow siding, at least it is a happy color. We will go with a cream most probably.


 All the trees are flagged for the survey. We will lose all the oaks in the center and try to keep those on the perimeter. 


This is the view towards the marsh from the lot. The limbs on the left are oaks that will remain and obscure part of the view which is fine with us. They will provide shade in the hot summer and differentiate our lot from the others that do not have trees on their frontage like ours does. So our front garden will have more shade, we prefer that for the double porches.


View towards the neighbors. The clump of oaks to the right of husband will remain.


Our lot is between the two houses here.


Husband checking out the view which we love! The lawn is protected park space but rarely do you see it being used except at sunset. There are swings to relax and enjoy. Most residents stroll over or ride bikes and the older residents tend to bring their cocktail or wine and arrive on golf carts, departing the moment the sun sets. So the street is very quiet. We feel blessed that we will be able to see the sun set from the house.



This view says South Carolina!



Looking down the street in the other direction. Park on the left.


 This farmhouse styled home is just down the street. It sits on a small pond on a beautiful lot.



Looking back towards our end of the street. You can see the beautiful garage apartment with a screened porch in the rear of the house.


Across the small pond is the large neighborhood pond. There were two people fishing yesterday. One fellow was fly fishing and an older lady had parked her bike and was fishing all by herself which I thought was awesome.


Wish the sky was blue, these shots would have been prettier.


The fly fisherman is on the left, you can barely see his blue shirt.




We will love walking and biking our neighborhood.



We happened upon a Red Buckeye or Aesculus Pavia in a naturalized area next to the pond. The stems are pink.


Moving away from the pond towards the rest of the neighborhood. You can see that husband is alone... 


We lost our sweetheart Andy last weekend. He deteriorated very quickly. Appearing normal on Wednesday, he slowed down a bit on Thursday but Friday morning, he suddenly could not walk and did not respond to strong pain relief. He could not lie on his side, the lump increased in size as the day went on and he stayed in one position most of the day. Friday night he stayed in a frog position all night and every time I checked on him, he was awake. The pain relievers should have allowed him to sleep but had no effect. 

Taken two weeks ago.

Our soft lovely boy was not going to suffer, he went to heaven on Saturday. We never saw him ill until the last two days of his life! A blessing he went so quickly but a shock to us. He seemed to be so happy and had not lost his appetite or his handsome body, except the stupid hump between his shoulders that haunted us. Needless to say, we feel very lonely without him. Trying to figure out how to live without him right now. I know we will adjust but right now it feels very sudden even though of course we knew what was coming. Losing a pet never gets easier, no matter how many you have said goodbye to.


This photo of Andy was taken in our last house two summers ago after a bath and trim.  A typical stance, he is watching me cook but checking out the black squirrels that were always under our bird feeders. We also had chipmunks that lived around our patio and scampered around us as we sat outside. They would run right by him but he accepted them as he did all the frogs on the edge of the pond. Squirrels were another matter though and he was always chasing them up the maple trees. He only caught one once and it was not pretty.

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So that is all for now. 
Having more free time now that I no longer have children at home, no longer have to care for a  big house and yard or have a big dog to take long walks with everyday, I am going to start blogging more often. I will share some gift ideas as my go-to last minute gift drawer has depleted and need to find  some nice things to replenish  it with. May even do my first giveaway with some local goods from the Low Country. So come back soon!

Thanks for visiting!
Cindy


8 comments:

  1. Dear Cindy -

    I'm so sorry to hear about Andy. Really sorry! As my mother would say when we lost a pet, Andy has gone over the rainbow bridge. Our Panda (14) and Mocha (13) are beginning to show their age. Panda has lost his hearing. Mocha has little accidents and needs to go outside more often. And both have arthritis. But they are still spunky, happy and healthy otherwise. I will miss seeing photos of Andy very much.

    What a lovely setting for your new home - so gracious, peaceful and lush. And the homes in the area are all beautiful. I wish I could come get those ferns :) I need a bunch for Maine.

    My best,
    L

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  2. Cindy, I'm so very sorry about Andy. You're right, it's never going to be easier. What a gift that Andy didn't have to suffer. And I'm so glad he enjoyed South Carolina this winter.
    Your lot is beautiful and what a gorgeous view.

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  3. I am so sad to hear about Andy, it just makes me cry every time a pet dies even if I don't know them, because all our pets are sooooo darn special. It will take some time getting use to not having him
    Your dream house sounds fabulous

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  4. Oh Cindy, I'm so sorry. You know I have a special place in my heart for Goldens, I loved him and every post that included a photo of your beautiful boy! He was so fortunate to have such a loving family for all of those years. Thinking of you and sending hugs to all!

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  5. So sorry to hear about the loss of your sweet Andy. I have no words besides i am really, really sorry.

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  6. Hi Cindy: I am SO sorry to hear about Andy. Oh yes, I certainly remember the last few days with our 13 yr. old Westie. It is more than heartbreaking to see them go. They are our children for those few, brief years they are with us. You have so many new things to think about and do, but life is not the same.
    However, your house site is just wonderful and so very Southern! A very good friend in California built her house and it was so exciting to see from start to finish (but it's never finished, right?)
    Stay well, and I'm glad you will be blogging a bit more often. oxox

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  7. Cindy, what can I say that hasn't already been stated above ... I am deeply sorry to hear about Andy. I know how lonely and sad you and your husband are feeling. Only time will heal the pain, but you'll always have sweet memories of your beautiful Golden. I know you will love living in South Carolina near the water, and I'm glad Andy was able to experience life in the South, even if only for a short while. Enjoy your new town and the process of building your new home. I'm excited to share the journey with you.
    Claudia

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  8. Dear Cindy,
    Deepest, deepest sympathy on the loss of your beloved Andy. I'm a teary mess writing to console you because, like so many of your blog friends, Andy's death reminds me of our own dog, Beau. This spring we buried Beau's ashes under a white dogwood tree in our yard. It made us both feel so much better to plant that pretty little tree. Perhaps your new garden will have a spot for a special dogwood, too.
    Best wishes, Suzanne

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