Last Night Living in Blue Ash

I debated on if this post is more journal appropriate or Blog worthy and I chose the blog because its where I document our life for the girls.   I don't know how much the girls will remember the almost 7 years we have been living on this hill-house on Cooper Rd.   Amara and Aria have never had another home and tomorrow we are officially moving to Mt. Lookout.  I'm still not 100% about the decision but I am committed and hoping for the best.  Still, my heart is aching a bit for all the memories and love that this house has hosted.   So for my girls, and for my aching heart, I will capture some below.

1)  This the home that we found when I pleaded with Samir to stop construction in Amberley and find an existing house to move our two dogs, 18 month old Annika, and soon to be arriving Amara.   We were living in this house just over two weeks when Amara decided to pop out about 10 days early.  I'll never forget the details of where Samir and I were sitting as we argued about chores and planning of a future little girl, or where I lay in our bed, turned away from the window as I realized my tummy pain may actually be labor pains, or the nearby Speedway gas station we stopped at for a Twix at 2am as we filled gas before we got on the highway for the hospital.

2) This home has brought us closer to my family in many ways.  The seven years in this house living in Blue Ash have been critical for Samir and I becoming a closer team then ever. Also, it has allowed me the gift of proximity to my Mom (only 15 minutes away) and more importantly her fitness center which is about 7 minutes away.  She has been able to pop over 2-3 times a week and its made a huge difference during the years when the girls were young.  The last year with Aria has been so special as she gets to see my parents quite often.  She is attached to both of them and asks for them by name.  There is no one who gets a bigger smile than Nani and Paji.

3) This home has also been a home of ease.  Whether is the easy drive to Karishma's house, the quite and unbusy Target and Kroger, or the 5 minute commute to work, this home has made life much easier.   However, easy can be a crutch.  I'm praying that changing to a 15-20 minute commute to work will force us to be organized in our planning and allow me to have a more clear divide between work and home time.  I hope this new home helps us to be more present to where ever we are.

4) This home has our last memories with Samir's mom (Dadima) and many other anguishing moments in our life.  Although a fresh start with no history or heartache in it may be just what we need, I will always treasure that this home was there as reassurance during our dark days.  It helped us pull through time when we needed the strength of big house on a hill.  Its where our driveway was filled for days before the funeral.  It's where countless packages and flowers and piles of mail were shoved into a mailbox at the end of a long hill.  It's where we've been stuck inside during many snow storms but always felt safe.

5) This home's privacy and lush green surroundings have protected our family as we have grown in strength, wisdom, and courage.  This house is where I lived and walked as I prepared for the MCAT and then commuted from to medical school.  This house is where Samir's Dad lived with us for six months when he grieved heavily for his wife and then were he also wrote her tribute book, "Jay's Legacy." This home is where Amara and Aria learned to walk, where we can play in the front yard in our jammies, where we swing and spot cardinals, deer, snakes, rabbits, foxes, and even the elusive coyotes.   These are the stairs that we have all fallen down many time.  The counter that Amara has jumped from and the bannister where she made her first pulley system.  These walls have your growth charts etched in and so many silent observations of a couple who has learned to be a family.

6) These are the windows where the moon has shown on our sleeping minds through Annika and Amara going through Creative Tots preschool, then starting Kindergarten, and now on there way with confidence to 1st and 3rd grade.   The moon has been gazed upon so many ways and so many days.  I've walked these halls, dodging the creaky parts, so many night with babies clutched in my arms.  I've prayed into these stars and watched Annika say "airplane" into the buzzing small plane that would be traveling overhead back when Lunken was still an airport.  We've driven home so many quiet late nights to hear Amara squeak out, half-asleep, "I see Dadima's star - I miss her so much". 

7) This is the home that withstood the heavy shaking of Samir starting Solica.  I recall sitting in our bedroom hearing his conversations with his parents as they discussed the pros and cons of starting on his own.  Then I recall sitting in our bedroom, with the foot of the bed facing the fireplace, and working together to find the right name, logo, and equity for the new venture.  It also stood as I prayed and cried and studied myself into medical school.  

8) Its the bathroom that all three of girls potty-trained in, Aria is still at the very beginning but she has hopped on with high hopes of peeing in the potty already.   I recall so many anguishing moments with little Annika as we tried to convince her to use the potty and not run behind the couch.

9) This is the house we have all grown up in.   Samir and I have grown so much during our 7 years here.  We both moved here as naive, 20-somethings and are leaving at 35 and 37, much more worn but also wise for the experiences we've gone through.  We are grateful for the years spent living in this comforting, reclusive home. 

10) This is the space where we have built so much!  From really learning how to throw excellent parties, to building businesses, teams, and future dreams, we've done so much here.   We've crafted teachers gifts, finger paintings, sketches, held family photo sessions, hosted holiday gatherings, grown many rose bushes but many more weeds, and built so many legos!

So thank you Cooper home.  You have been just what we needed for the past seven years. I hope you can bring the same emotional security, expansive comfort, and foundational stability to a new family soon.