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Do you remember that scene in You’ve Got Mail when Kathleen Kelly locks up The Shop Around the Corner for the last time, and she catches her breath when she turns back and sees her mom “twirling” her six-year-old self by the cash register?

I’ve been feeling like that this week as I walk through my old house, the one we’ve been in for almost fourteen years. I catch my breath as I see myself pacing the living room floor with a restless baby Jack, and two-year-old Sarah doing the hokey-pokey by the fireplace. I see tiny Lucy (now six) snoozing in the moses basket on the dining room floor, and Silas tearing down the hall naked, again.

It’s been a happy house. I’m surprised how much I miss it, and we’re not even gone yet.

But we will be soon. It’s Moving Day, and we’re headed to Narnia.

You don’t get to our new house through the wardrobe of a charming, ancient house in the British countryside. Nope, from our old place, you take a left, and a right, and another quick right, and you pull up to a mid-century brick with a driveway and a dishwasher. (Mr. Beaver wouldn’t know what to think!)

But when we were house hunting, the garden light post reminded me of Lewis’s fantasy world. If the home you’re checking out reminds you of Narnia, you go with it.

Lewis isn’t here to complain. But even if he was, he was prone to flights of fancy, too. I think he might indulge mine.

We’ll be settling in to the new house this weekend (and for months to come, if your moving stories are any indication).

Your encouraging words (and your great tips!) have been much, much appreciated. Thanks so much for those.

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36 comments

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  1. Definitely caught my breath at this one! My baby girl has lived in four different homes (she’s 5!). And each one holds precious memories with her and my boys as we keep adding a child.

    I’ll never forget moving away from the first childhood home I remember in Elkhart, Indiana. I was 7, I think, and my mom said, “That’s where you made you first blue berry muffins.” She was very teary – and I was, too!

  2. Suzette says:

    Anne,
    So happy for you and yours! Praying for peace during this emotional experience. 🙂 and hoping for a Mr. Tumnus in the new neighborhood!

  3. Michele says:

    I love the lampost! My mom is a retired real estate agent and she had a saying: “New house, new baby!” This saying came true for a lot of her clients once they moved into a new home. Congratulations and may your new home be filled with lots of joy and love.

  4. Laura says:

    Oh my, I so relate to this! We just sold our house of 13 years — the first home we owned after grad school apartments and where we brought our babies home. So many sweet, sweet memories. We’re moving a just about a mile away to a house we’re dreamed about for over a year, but I still feel a catch in my heart as I contemplate moving away from a space that’s been sacred to our little family.

    • Anne says:

      Laura, yes!! That’s almost exactly our situation. (Well, except for the dream house part. We kind of tripped over this one, sooner than we expected to find something, but I think it’s going to suit our family really well.)

      I feel understood. 🙂 Thanks for sharing!

  5. Tim says:

    One tip for making it feel like home as soon as possible is to take time – even among the still full boxes and stacked up furniture – to sit down with the kids and read them a book or play a game of cards or something that will tell them this is their home, the place where Mom and Dad are there for them.

  6. Keri says:

    We moved 3 years ago & the home we purchased has a gas light in the front yard. Our kids were so excited to have a Narnia lamppost in their yard. When our daughter brought her boyfriend home from college the first time he commented on our cool Narnia light.

  7. kelli says:

    Good luck with the move and all the emotions that come along with it… yours and the kids’! I’d totally buy a house based on a lamppost in the yard…

  8. Molly says:

    I love your way of looking at things, Anne! Moving to Narnia, what a fun way to look at a bittersweet event. I hope the move goes smoothly for you. Say “Hi” to Lucy and her siblings for me.

  9. Megan says:

    I am so confused! Are you really moving?! The post yesterday from the guest blogger made me think you were moving but then I realized it was a guest who wrote the post. Have you talked about moving before now? I guess I missed the big announcement…I’m still confused!

  10. Anne says:

    Bittersweet! All those memories…..well, congratulations on the new house, here’s to new memories, and I hope the drive to the library is short!

  11. Danielle Hicks says:

    “You’ve Got Mail” is one of my personal favorites. I wish you many happy days in your new home. If Kathleen Kelly were your neighbor, I would imagine she would bring you a bouquet of freshly-sharpened pencils. 🙂

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