Thursday, August 26, 2021

Thursday, August 26, 2021

Tonight's picture was taken in Easter of 2009. Like so many holidays, we were in the hospital. That day, friends came by and held an Easter egg hunt for Mattie in the middle of the pediatric unit hallway. The eggs were creatively placed so that Mattie could reach them from his wheelchair. Everyone knew Mattie wasn't interested in candy. So instead the plastic eggs were filled with little toys. Mattie loved it!

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins.

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 38,374,252
• Number of people who died from the virus: 633,479

Though Peter and I were exhausted last night, I couldn't sleep. Sunny and I were up all night along. Most likely for numerous reasons. First, we couldn't sleep on the second floor because the air conditioning system died on the second floor. It was an oven up there. So we slept in the family room. We were too tired to deal with aeromattresses, so I gave Peter the couch and I slept in a big rocking chair, which I used to use for Mattie. I couldn't get comfortable and literally at 2am, I got up from the chair and went to lie down on Sunny's dog bed. He wasn't using it, so I did! It is actually very comfortable, but I still couldn't sleep. I am not used to the all the quiet around me. We both got up at 6am because we had many of the trades coming at 7:30am. Peter snapped this photo during sunrise. As you may have already figured out, what drew me to the house in the first place was the backyard. 

I spent a good portion of the day trying to dig out of boxes and bags in the kitchen and pantry. I really appreciate several of the emails I am receiving.... both of support and sharing your appreciation for hearing more about Mattie through many of the memories I have shared over the course of our move. I truly love hearing that my stories are helping you get to know Mattie better. You are right... Mattie will be integrated into every room of our home. 

In 2019, Peter was awarded the Unsung Hero award by the Washington Nationals. He even got to throw a pitch from the mound and meet a player, and get a ball signed. Peter was acknowledged for his Mattie Miracle work. In the background of this photo, you see the chair I was sleeping in and my fleecy Mattie memory blanket. Peter made this beautiful gift for me one Mother's Day! 

I am slowly trying to put each room together. I have to purposefully tell myself that it is OKAY to change things up. That things don't have to be displayed the same way as they were in DC. Which is freeing because trying to fit an expectation is hard. 

This is the dining room set I was telling you about in a previous blog. My neighbors were moving back to Ireland and sold me the table, 6 chairs, and two table leaves  for $200. It is a lovely set from Macy's and I am glad to have a this set which ties me back to our DC life. 

On a side note, Peter reminded me that on August 24, 1994, we moved from Boston to Washington, DC. Rather ironic that almost exactly 27 years later, on August 25, 2021, we moved out of our townhouse to Oakton. 

The house has a new addition to it. The former owners called a portion of this new space the hearth room. I call it the music room. There I placed the piano our neighbor gave Mattie (in hopes he would take lessons) and a Victrola that Peter's family friend gave me years ago. It is on the Victrola that I place Mattie's ashes. 

A close up of the beautiful music box that holds Mattie's ashes, and on the box I always display Mattie's foot and hand prints. Along with a memorial candle, including a plastic spider. Mattie would approve! 

In the kitchen, I am displaying a beautiful plate a friend of Peter's made for us years ago. It features a profile photo of Mattie. On top of the range hood, I have two of my hot plate tiles that remind me of Mattie Miracle sun and in the center is a plate that we got from Peter's maternal grandmother. It talks about how friends who visit always land up in the kitchen. They LOVE her kitchen the best.  

In the kitchen I am also displaying two of Mattie's favorite rocks, as he loved collecting them, along with a mini brick that a family of a preschool friend created for Mattie. It basically acknowledges Mattie as the "King of the Legos."

Mattie's preschool teacher, and my close friend, Margaret, got me started on angel collection. She gave me my first angel and the center stone featuring a little boy angel. 

For years I have held on this mantel clock. My in-laws gave it to me. But I never had a mantel to display it. 

It was another hectic and stressful day. It started with electricity being SHUT OFF completely in the house at 8am. It remained off until close to noon. It was ridiculous and something I wasn't expecting. I couldn't work in closets and therefore had a hard time unpacking. 

In the midst of dealing with electricians and the electric company, the HVAC folks showed up. They were ready to work on installing a new air conditioning system for the second floor. The problem was they needed power. With the power off they couldn't work and they were ready to leave. 

That is until Peter lost it on these people. He got them to work together so that the HVAC people wouldn't leave and could start working, as we really needed air. 

We had the HVAC people with us for 8 hours! I really thought they were going to sleep over. It is close to impossible to focus on unpacking when you are managing people all around you trying to fix things. When they finally left at 6pm, I went upstairs and was stunned. The walls were a mess, some were scratched and chipped. I frankly wanted to have a hissy fit, given we just painted the entire house. Instead I got out my sponge and started to clean the walls and even the ceilings. I got most of the dirt and junk off, but under my breath, I wasn't happy and kept saying.... who does this kind of stuff? Needless to say after a very full day and lack of sleep..... cleaning floors, walls, and ceilings wasn't high on my list.  

The fun continues tomorrow with the plumber. But the extensive repairs we have had to do to this house is noteworthy. Thankfully the electricity is now up to code. We have replaced two out of three air conditioning condensers, added a new water heater and water filtration system, and next on the list is dealing with a leak in the living room ceiling, replacing all the gutters and fixing a portion of the roof which is rotted, getting a structural engineer to evaluate a chipped beam (uncovered doing electrical work) and finally dry walling the hole in our wall between the laundry room and garage and then painting the garage. So basically it isn't over any time soon. With all these folks coming in and of the house, it is virtually impossible to keep it clean. I am constantly cleaning, but it feels like trying to drink the ocean up, with a teaspoon.