We moved into the house we live in almost 19 years ago. It was April and a really nice day…thank goodness! Even though we hired a moving company, there were still so many boxes that I had packed myself because I didn’t want anything to break and I brought all of those boxes down the street, the 3 or so blocks we moved…in multiple trips. As luck would have it, Baldy was out of town that day and I was left to orchestrate the move. It’s true that we didn’t move far, but I’m not sure it really matters because when you pack up your things, it’s still always an event.

I knew when I woke up that morning that it was going to be a long day and I was already tired! I got the girls off to school and got busy taking boxes over to the house.

When the moving truck pulled up, I didn’t really have a plan as to where things should go, so I did the best I could telling them where to put it all. There was furniture that I had no idea how to place and boxes were everywhere. The house was beginning to be a mess and I was overwhelmed, but still, the stuff kept coming in the door and I kept having to come up with a place to tell the movers to put it. Needless to say, it was a long day and we were only getting started. I was truly wondering why we had decided to move in the first place but that’s another blog post.

Three o’clock that afternoon came quickly and it was time to pick up the girls from school. They were getting ready to walk into an unsettling mess even though I had tried to at least get their rooms somewhat together. This is a big house…finished basement and 3 floors and I ran up and down the stairs all day long (and have been doing so ever since), trying to bring some order to things. I don’t remember what we had for dinner, but I can remember getting sheets on the beds, so exhausted that I could hardly stand up.

The girls were busy exploring and looking for their things when suddenly, it was bed time in a new (but very old) house. I think they were 8 and 12 at the time (our oldest was in college). That’s when the tears came…they were scared to sleep alone and wanted to go back to their old rooms in their old house. I was low on patience because I was so tired and didn’t know what to do when suddenly the door bell rang. Now, you can’t make things like this up and I promise this is a true story…

It was such an odd time for someone to be at the door and it made me feel a little uncomfortable but when I answered the door, it was my friend, Sheila, holding a warm pound cake, fresh from the oven. I have never been and probably never will be so grateful to anyone as I was to her that night. I cut the girls a generous slice and put them in the bed with their cake (we don’t normally eat in bed). They were so happy and their fears seemed to melt away as they ate their cake! They fell asleep and I fell into bed feeling so grateful! It was in that moment that I realized how important small gestures of friendship can be.

Never underestimate the power of a warm homemade pound cake or the power of the generosity of friendship. I felt so blessed that night and my girls slept well in their new old home in a bed together.

Below you’ll find a few bestsellers from last week as well as some things that caught my eye!

We’re packing up the car and leaving for Bald Head Island for two weeks…I’ll be blogging from there and I hope you’ll follow along! Happy Monday!