Erik and Amanda just bought a house. Everyone is so excited for them. For the last two years, they’ve been renting a condo from my brother, Dave, and his wife, Jen. They’ve loved having E & A and the girls as tenants, but the family is growing and they need a little more space. It seems like the stars just lined up for this sale. The house they’ve purchased is only a quarter mile from the condo, and was owned by one of Erik’s work colleagues. With three bedrooms, two baths, two living rooms, and a 2 car garage they have more than enough room for their little family.

Probably the best feature is the sizable backyard with playhouse, and a play set. Well, almost a play set. At the closing, the mother who had purchased the structure put pressure on the sellers to take it with them. Erik called that night very stressed, as that had been one nice selling point.  One of the nice things about being an empty-nester is the ability to come to the rescue for your kids during times of trouble. This was one of those times. Throughout the week we traded suggestions and finally came to an agreement on a set we all liked. I priced the cost of installation, and determined it would be cheaper for Grammy and Papa to fly to Missouri and assemble it ourselves. And that’s just what we did. In the course of three days, Janet, Erik, Dave, Jerry, Karla (Amanda’s parents) and I became play structure construction agents while Elizabeth played on every piece as it was completed.

There’s a real satisfaction knowing you can help your adult kids as they raise their own. Jim, June, Barb, and Al (Janet’s and my parents) modeled this behavior, and we are happy to carry on their legacy. Enjoy the structure Elizabeth and Amelia!

“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.” – Helen Keller