Moving In, Part 2

The guest room is ready. As ready as it's going to be until I do the Marie Kondo thing and dump everything in the middle of the room and start from scratch. Which will be never.

My husband and I have examined the rooms the little guy will be in and done our best to figure out what could be an unnecessary temptation or just plain dangerous and eliminated all that we could. We also agreed that it was most likely wasted effort since we can't think like him. Not even close.

So, in theory, we're as ready we can be and we're prepared to make adjustments as they become needed. But that's the physical house. That's not the biggest challenge of this new arrangement.

We're going to have to work out how to blend two families with very different schedules and needs into one living area.

The design of our house has plusses and minuses. The kitchen and living area is one big "L." A great playing area and perfect for prepping dinner and keeping an eye on small kids. But it's very communal-- there's no privacy. There are three large bedrooms which will provide our only escape.

I've talked to my daughter about how we're going to blend and so far it seems that it's going to work best if we continue our lives the way we're used to, just occupying the same space. For instance, our food preferences are quite different and we eat at different times. We're willing to compromise, but some things just don't work for us. So be it. Live and let live. And other clichés that aren't coming to mind right now.

I'm sure my daughter will adapt--after all this was her home once upon a long time ago. And I'm hoping our son-in-law will feel comfortable fairly quickly.

The challenge for my husband and me will be walking away. My husband is doing part-time consulting and I, you've probably noticed, write. When they are here for a visit, we spend the entire time with them. It's a treat. It's going to take some practice on our parts to say, "I have to go work now." And then do it.

All I know for sure is that we'll work it out and enjoy their company immensely.

And then we'll all be immensely happy when their new house is ready.