| Biographical Non-Fiction posted August 4, 2013 | Chapters: |
...7 8 -9- 10... 
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My husband and I become homeowners
A chapter in the book Chasing the Elusive Dream
A Slice of American Pie
by BethShelby
From the start of our marriage when visiting Evan's parents, his mother always asked the same question. "When are you all planning to start your family?" The question was never "Are you" but "When are you..." His sister and sister-in-law must have been getting the same message, because both complied and produced babies born only one day apart the year after I graduated from college.
For us, the question hung loosely in the air. We talked about it, and neither of us could decide if we even wanted children. As an only child, I had never been around babies. As long as I was in college, we had an excuse, but college was behind me, and the job field didn't look too promising.
We never made the decision. We had just became increasingly less cautious, and nature decided for us. Within the week after my second job ended, I suspected I might be pregnant. A visit to the doctor confirmed my suspicions. We didn't really want to bring a new life into an apartment with characters living below who might possibly start another fire. It was time to start looking for a house.
One thing turned out to be a blessing. As soon as my in-laws learned I was pregnant, they moved back into their original house. This released the property which Evan had purchased for them, ihoping they could eventually buy it. We went over and repainted and did a bit of modernizing. We were able to sell it and earn a small profit. At last, those yearly mortgage payments were behind us.
Houses were cheap in those days. We were able to find, an almost new, three bedroom, one bath home in a nice neighborhood for $12,500. The lot was nearly an acre. No down payment was required and all we had to pay were the closing costs.
The money we got from the sale of the home his parents had lived in went toward furniture. So far, the only appliance we owned was the washing machine which had overflowed causing the plaster to fall from the ceiling in the downstairs apartment. We also had the small television which had distracted me to the point I didn't realize the washing machine was overflowing.
We combed the want ads looking for nice used furniture. We soon owned a 3-piece mahogany bedroom set, a gold colored chaise lounge, and walnut dining-room furniture. Style and color didn't matter so long as we filled the empty rooms. From a bargain furniture store, we purchased an inexpensive sofa, chair, coffee table and a yellow Formica dinette set. The new house came with a gas stove and our brother-in-law got us a deal on a small refrigerator from the B.F.Goodrich store he managed. For the time being, a bedroom and den remained bare.
The following week after giving notice we be moving from the apartment, we learned all the tenants would be leaving because the house had been sold. It would be torn down in order to build high rise apartments. I couldn't help being sad to see the lovely old Victorian which held special memories for us destroyed in the name of progress.
We moved in October of 1959. Our baby wasn't due until February so we decided to wait until nearer the date to buy baby furniture.
It was exciting to be in a new house. It had a large partially-fenced backyard filled with trees. The front was landscaped with Crepe Myrtle, roses, and gardenias.It also had a carport and detatched workshop and laundry area.
During the following months, I got to experience staying while pregnant. My maternal instincts kicked in. Mom loaned me a sewing machine, and I taught myself how to sew. I made baby clothes, maternity dresses and curtains for the windows. I became acquainted with the nextdoor neighbors and made monthly visits to my obstetrician.
One of my favorite pastimes was studying a prenatal care book and trying to visualize the various stages of fetal development. I was thrilled when I was far enough long to realize our baby had passed the tadpole stage and was starting to look human. Another pastime was trying to think of a name for the baby which Evan and I could agree on. He didn't want a junior if it was a boy. He couldn't come up with any names he liked, but he kept his rights of veto power.
"How about Kenneth, if it's a boy,?" I asked.
"No way, I've got a cousin named Kenneth."
"Well, so what's wrong with that? Do you like John or William?"
"No way, I've got cousins with those names too."
"What about Patricia or Jenifer if it's a girl? "
"No, there's got to be better names than those."
"Well, forget about the names. Can we get a puppy?. Your mom said we could have one of Sandy's puppies." Surely, Evan couldn't be quite so picky about naming a dog.
The following weekend, we became dog owners. I knew about as much about housebreaking a dog as I did about babies. When dark water-stains began to appear on the hardwood floors, Evan decided to finish fencing the yard. With a Cocker Spaniel mother and Heinz 57 father, Dusty looked nothing like his parents. When we took him to the park, people would say "Oh, what a beautiful Weimaraner." We just smiled and looked proud. We'd never even heard of a Weimaraner, but we fingured it must be something special.
It didn't take much to make us happy. Ours wasn't a life of luxury, by any means, but with a new house and a baby on the way, it seemed we were living the American Dream. Fate had some hard lessons in store for us, but for the moment, we were content.
From the start of our marriage when visiting Evan's parents, his mother always asked the same question. "When are you all planning to start your family?" The question was never "Are you" but "When are you..." His sister and sister-in-law must have been getting the same message, because both complied and produced babies born only one day apart the year after I graduated from college.
For us, the question hung loosely in the air. We talked about it, and neither of us could decide if we even wanted children. As an only child, I had never been around babies. As long as I was in college, we had an excuse, but college was behind me, and the job field didn't look too promising.
We never made the decision. We had just became increasingly less cautious, and nature decided for us. Within the week after my second job ended, I suspected I might be pregnant. A visit to the doctor confirmed my suspicions. We didn't really want to bring a new life into an apartment with characters living below who might possibly start another fire. It was time to start looking for a house.
One thing turned out to be a blessing. As soon as my in-laws learned I was pregnant, they moved back into their original house. This released the property which Evan had purchased for them, ihoping they could eventually buy it. We went over and repainted and did a bit of modernizing. We were able to sell it and earn a small profit. At last, those yearly mortgage payments were behind us.
Houses were cheap in those days. We were able to find, an almost new, three bedroom, one bath home in a nice neighborhood for $12,500. The lot was nearly an acre. No down payment was required and all we had to pay were the closing costs.
The money we got from the sale of the home his parents had lived in went toward furniture. So far, the only appliance we owned was the washing machine which had overflowed causing the plaster to fall from the ceiling in the downstairs apartment. We also had the small television which had distracted me to the point I didn't realize the washing machine was overflowing.
We combed the want ads looking for nice used furniture. We soon owned a 3-piece mahogany bedroom set, a gold colored chaise lounge, and walnut dining-room furniture. Style and color didn't matter so long as we filled the empty rooms. From a bargain furniture store, we purchased an inexpensive sofa, chair, coffee table and a yellow Formica dinette set. The new house came with a gas stove and our brother-in-law got us a deal on a small refrigerator from the B.F.Goodrich store he managed. For the time being, a bedroom and den remained bare.
The following week after giving notice we be moving from the apartment, we learned all the tenants would be leaving because the house had been sold. It would be torn down in order to build high rise apartments. I couldn't help being sad to see the lovely old Victorian which held special memories for us destroyed in the name of progress.
We moved in October of 1959. Our baby wasn't due until February so we decided to wait until nearer the date to buy baby furniture.
It was exciting to be in a new house. It had a large partially-fenced backyard filled with trees. The front was landscaped with Crepe Myrtle, roses, and gardenias.It also had a carport and detatched workshop and laundry area.
We never made the decision. We had just became increasingly less cautious, and nature decided for us. Within the week after my second job ended, I suspected I might be pregnant. A visit to the doctor confirmed my suspicions. We didn't really want to bring a new life into an apartment with characters living below who might possibly start another fire. It was time to start looking for a house.
One thing turned out to be a blessing. As soon as my in-laws learned I was pregnant, they moved back into their original house. This released the property which Evan had purchased for them, ihoping they could eventually buy it. We went over and repainted and did a bit of modernizing. We were able to sell it and earn a small profit. At last, those yearly mortgage payments were behind us.
Houses were cheap in those days. We were able to find, an almost new, three bedroom, one bath home in a nice neighborhood for $12,500. The lot was nearly an acre. No down payment was required and all we had to pay were the closing costs.
The money we got from the sale of the home his parents had lived in went toward furniture. So far, the only appliance we owned was the washing machine which had overflowed causing the plaster to fall from the ceiling in the downstairs apartment. We also had the small television which had distracted me to the point I didn't realize the washing machine was overflowing.
We combed the want ads looking for nice used furniture. We soon owned a 3-piece mahogany bedroom set, a gold colored chaise lounge, and walnut dining-room furniture. Style and color didn't matter so long as we filled the empty rooms. From a bargain furniture store, we purchased an inexpensive sofa, chair, coffee table and a yellow Formica dinette set. The new house came with a gas stove and our brother-in-law got us a deal on a small refrigerator from the B.F.Goodrich store he managed. For the time being, a bedroom and den remained bare.
The following week after giving notice we be moving from the apartment, we learned all the tenants would be leaving because the house had been sold. It would be torn down in order to build high rise apartments. I couldn't help being sad to see the lovely old Victorian which held special memories for us destroyed in the name of progress.
We moved in October of 1959. Our baby wasn't due until February so we decided to wait until nearer the date to buy baby furniture.
It was exciting to be in a new house. It had a large partially-fenced backyard filled with trees. The front was landscaped with Crepe Myrtle, roses, and gardenias.It also had a carport and detatched workshop and laundry area.
During the following months, I got to experience staying while pregnant. My maternal instincts kicked in. Mom loaned me a sewing machine, and I taught myself how to sew. I made baby clothes, maternity dresses and curtains for the windows. I became acquainted with the nextdoor neighbors and made monthly visits to my obstetrician.
One of my favorite pastimes was studying a prenatal care book and trying to visualize the various stages of fetal development. I was thrilled when I was far enough long to realize our baby had passed the tadpole stage and was starting to look human. Another pastime was trying to think of a name for the baby which Evan and I could agree on. He didn't want a junior if it was a boy. He couldn't come up with any names he liked, but he kept his rights of veto power.
"How about Kenneth, if it's a boy,?" I asked.
"No way, I've got a cousin named Kenneth."
"Well, so what's wrong with that? Do you like John or William?"
"No way, I've got cousins with those names too."
"What about Patricia or Jenifer if it's a girl? "
"No, there's got to be better names than those."
"Well, forget about the names. Can we get a puppy?. Your mom said we could have one of Sandy's puppies." Surely, Evan couldn't be quite so picky about naming a dog.
The following weekend, we became dog owners. I knew about as much about housebreaking a dog as I did about babies. When dark water-stains began to appear on the hardwood floors, Evan decided to finish fencing the yard. With a Cocker Spaniel mother and Heinz 57 father, Dusty looked nothing like his parents. When we took him to the park, people would say "Oh, what a beautiful Weimaraner." We just smiled and looked proud. We'd never even heard of a Weimaraner, but we fingured it must be something special.
It didn't take much to make us happy. Ours wasn't a life of luxury, by any means, but with a new house and a baby on the way, it seemed we were living the American Dream. Fate had some hard lessons in store for us, but for the moment, we were content.
One of my favorite pastimes was studying a prenatal care book and trying to visualize the various stages of fetal development. I was thrilled when I was far enough long to realize our baby had passed the tadpole stage and was starting to look human. Another pastime was trying to think of a name for the baby which Evan and I could agree on. He didn't want a junior if it was a boy. He couldn't come up with any names he liked, but he kept his rights of veto power.
"How about Kenneth, if it's a boy,?" I asked.
"No way, I've got a cousin named Kenneth."
"Well, so what's wrong with that? Do you like John or William?"
"No way, I've got cousins with those names too."
"What about Patricia or Jenifer if it's a girl? "
"No, there's got to be better names than those."
"Well, forget about the names. Can we get a puppy?. Your mom said we could have one of Sandy's puppies." Surely, Evan couldn't be quite so picky about naming a dog.
The following weekend, we became dog owners. I knew about as much about housebreaking a dog as I did about babies. When dark water-stains began to appear on the hardwood floors, Evan decided to finish fencing the yard. With a Cocker Spaniel mother and Heinz 57 father, Dusty looked nothing like his parents. When we took him to the park, people would say "Oh, what a beautiful Weimaraner." We just smiled and looked proud. We'd never even heard of a Weimaraner, but we fingured it must be something special.
It didn't take much to make us happy. Ours wasn't a life of luxury, by any means, but with a new house and a baby on the way, it seemed we were living the American Dream. Fate had some hard lessons in store for us, but for the moment, we were content.
 Recognized |
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