Our Big Project since coming home from the Beach has been moving my mother-in-law Helen from her house across the street from us to an assisted living apartment about 5 minutes from us.  She is 92 yrs old and, having suffered a blood clot in her lung in August, agreed that it was time for her move to assisted living.  We are all very happy with her new living situation – and think the socialization and stimulation will be great for her. 

As anyone who has emptied a house knows, it is a lot of work.  And when you are emptying out someone else’s house, you have challenges.  What will she need and want in her new digs?  What will fit?  What should we hang on to and what should we give away?  What is really just trash and what is actually treasure?!  We did this all while Helen was recuperating in a care center – she (wise woman!) was glad to leave it all to us.  And we knew she would be happy that we were taking some of her furnishings into our homes (ours and our kids’).  Dishes, too, and family heirlooms.  It is interesting what good, useful stuff no one wanted and what not-particularly-useful and really kind-of-odd stuff we could not part with!  That there was pretty much consensus on these decisions tells you something about our family.  But it is probably much the same with other families – it is the shared memories. 

There are boxes of “stuff to sort” at my house now – including a stack of old linens.  Helen’s mother was of the era where every respectable flat surface had its doily and I think every one she ever owned had found a place in Helen’s house!  Mostly, they were crocheted, but there were 3 knit doilies.  I washed them all and dried them in the sun.  Sarah had great fun arranging them in Helen’s apartment – but there were more doilies than there were places to put them.  So, a few came home with me – coincidently, the 3 knit ones were among them.