Cheesy Beach House

It's like a mini-vacation everytime I go to visit my Mom now. She got a new place with her boyfriend. It was previously owned by an older couple- the first and only owners if that tells you anything...talk about eccentric! Cement lion statues adorn the front walk. There is a "Birdies Welcome" sign encircled by a fake wreath and planked by medieval axes and swords hanging on the front porch. The living room oozes a retro flowery charm with wallpaper, built-in planters and popcorn ceiling. The fireplace hearth and end tables have matching (chipped) handcrafted green tiling. One dining room wall is entirely tiled with mirrors, hastily glued to the wall. I have no idea what image I'm conjuring up with this description!

I'm overwhelmed with saltwater breeze most when I walk onto the back porch where the pool is. The bright blue slatted deck surrounds half of the pool, complete with ceramic seagulls. They've already set up beach chairs and barbecues- two of them because as you know when two previously married folks play house there's two of everything! The changing room for the pool has seashells glued onto the ceiling and sea creature posters. The garden is chock full of statues and homemade birdhouses. That was the older man's hobby apparently, and he must have retired a long time ago because it's clear he had plenty of time to devote to it. They weeded through and pulled out a ton of decor and still it seems cluttered. The previous couple just overdid it. That's what 50-some odd years of collecting and trying to display it all does I suppose.

The house has potential. The potential for my Mom to invite the boys back into her life. She was very strange about not having her own house before, so much we were at the point she wouldn't invite us over to her apartment because she claimed it was too small. As reluctant as I was to go to the new house, it wasn't so bad after the first time. Of course we haven't been there when her boyfriend is home yet. That's a discomfort I avoid when at all possible.

The kids seem right at home though, which is what I should focus on through all of this. They get to feed the multitudes of pond goldfish. The garden is their haven, free reign to arrange and rearrange the figurines as they see fit. Weston already has claimed the strawberry patch and gathered all the frog statues, naming each one of them after his beloved favorite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. They even have their own bedroom for when they spend the night. I've got to get comfortable with that idea still, with there being a pool and pond right out back!

All in all, this could work. I do enjoy a sand and surf vacation when the mood strikes.