Simply, it's where we all learned the true value of family and loving one another.
It was taking our first footsteps. It was learning how to cook eggs properly from Pop. It was learning how to swim, then us believing the ice cubes Pop threw in there really made it freezing cold. It was rolling the meatballs with Nanny. It was learning how to make the Banana bread.
It was sledding down the little hill when it snowed. It was hitting the window multiple times with the wiffle ball. It was throwing the tennis ball at the door on repeat when nobody wanted to play catch. It was Pop letting us move the cars up and down the driveway. It was watching Ellen with Nanny at 3:00 when it aired.
It was sitting down at the dinner table, banging our hands saying "we wanna eat." It was all the parties and events held there. It was making ice cold tea and lemonade and having a stand down the street. It was eating popsicles and sitting on the curb. It was laying towels down all over the driveway after swimming.
It was begging Pop to put the sprinkler on for us. It was the cousin sleepovers because Nanny and Pop never said "no." It was where we all danced in the rain during the down pours.
Nanny and Pop didn't realize how much impact they had on those little things they did and allowed all of us to do.
As soon as you stepped into the house, you were instantly taken care of. It was a house full of growth, loving one another was always something we did, cherishing the little things was always taught, leaving with an empty belly was never an option, cookies were always stocked in the kitchen and the love was always endless
The years went by, and somehow, we all grew up.
The place where we all learned our first footsteps will now be a place where we leave our footprints and hold onto all the memories. Somehow, there will be another family splashing into the pool, another family shooting hoops on the court, another child with no connection to us taking their first steps and learning how to talk.
But, somehow, we were all taught how to be strong, and leaving the house is nothing because all our memories come from the inside.
As a child who only ever knew Nan and Pop's was a home away from home, it is unfathomable to just believe that this is what happens when 'adulting' happens, and you grow up. When you're a child, things like that never cross your mind until they do. We never thought for a second that one day we would be living in the 'good ole' days' and that the house we knew, would just be off to another person.
I am incredibly grateful to have that bond shared with my grandparents because the more of life you experience, you realize how rare it is to have that love.
I know that we will ALL be OK because Nan and Pop would want us to be OK.
It's about learning that things don't last for lifetimes, but the memories you hold will. They will never fade. We hold the key to memories, and that opens the door to every house in our lives.
I pray someone will cherish and value that home like we all did, and they will enjoy all the value it holds. When they see those handprints on the sidewalk, they will know it was a house of love.
We loved, we grew, we gained strength, we learned values and we learned the true meaning of family.
