Apartment Memories

Y'all know I'm a pictures girl.  So it's very sad and strange to me that I only know of this one photo remaining from either of the apartments I've lived in.  =(  Me and Megan in my first home out of my parents' house... The Mansions Apartment #801 in Tulsa. 

That was back when the buildings were painted pastel pinks and yellows, and mine was yellow.  Mom and Dad thought it was important that it be on the first floor, have 2-bedrooms, and have a garage -- I didn't care much at the time, but I'm glad I took their advice!

I was 22 when I moved in on December 30, 2006.  I turned 23 there, then moved to my first house in August of 2007.  I remember most of the layout of this apartment... I can mentally walk through it in spite of having no photos.  My two most vivid memories there are as follows:

1.  The Bug! lol -- This won't surprise those who know me well.  One very random day when I opened my front door because there was a girl with three cute puppies walking by and I thought I might go pet them, then a huge, gross bug came in... I dunno what it was - something between a cricket and a praying mantis that hopped - and my entire being flipped out in panic.  I couldn't move or close the door for a couple minutes... then I finally pulled it together and ran to get a broom and escorted the bug back to his home outside!  The puppies were long gone at that point.  And I'm not sure I ever opened that door again.  Yay, garages! lolol

2.  The Letter! -- Also not a surprise.  As I was driving up, I could see a large manilla envelope taped to my garage door.  That was odd, but my first thought was that it might be something from my realtor because my offer had just been accepted on a lovely home in Jenks!  Got out of the car and grabbed the letter, then pulled into the garage and went in.  I recognized Josh's handwriting on the "Lindsey," and my first thought was definitely not what I found inside... a three-page letter cutting me out of his life from that moment on, along with documented evidence to prove his point.  #lawyered  (He printed out and highlighted some of my not-so-shiny emails.)  Anyway, my memory of that moment is crystallized because it was a legit trauma moment for me.  I knew him well enough to know he MEANT THAT.  And sadly, at that point, I did *not* know myself or my worth or my strength well enough to believe I would survive it!  Life without him seemed unthinkable.  Relationships can be strange that way.  I refuse to lose myself in any human being on that level ever again.  I remember sitting down at my desk and reading my Amplified Bible (a gift from him, ironically) and praying, somehow knowing that what I did first was important.  I remember later that night sitting down at my laptop computer in the guest bedroom and deleting all the photos and blocking him on Facebook.  Then I remember having to walk outside into what is now my backyard (so look, I spent some time out there) - because I couldn't stop myself from crying on the day we did a walk-through after inspections.  I'm extra thankful that I didn't back out of that contract, because the thought definitely crossed my mind.  Anyway, I could write about that all day, but I'll spare you that. lol

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Although I cannot for the life of me remember the layout, I also have some clear memories from our first apartment... the Warwick West apartment our family stayed in for a few months when I was in third grade (while the 9121 house was still being built)!

1.  The Christmas Tree! -- Mom (understandably) wasn't planning to get our Christmas tree and ornaments out during our short apartment stay.  But Rach and I were sad about the thought of not having a tree... then Grandad surprised us by bringing a little tree, and I remember that being special and super exciting to me when I got home from school and saw it there!

2.  Father of the Bride! -- My favorite movie in that season (still love it), and we watched the VHS of it a lot there!  I have an oddly vivid memory of brushing my teeth with the stupid 2-minute sand timer the dentist had given us while watching George and Nina meet Bryan's parents for the first time. =)

3.  Praise Aerobics! -- Another VHS tape from that season... I remember doing this one several times and thinking it was fun. lol

4.  Snowy Stairs Walk! -- I remember going to see Aladdin with Dad and Rach, then having a snowy walk up our stairs when we got back.  (We were on the second floor and did *not* have a garage entrance there.  Maybe that's why they had that advice for me years later. lol)

5.  The Drive to CHA! -- It was a longer drive, and I very randomly remember Rach commenting on the "I-40 West, Live Buffalo" billboard a lot - not sure now if she wanted to go see them of if it was just a landmark she paid attention to.  My guess is the landmark because my parents didn't deny us much that we wanted, and I have no memory of going to see buffalo. lol

6.  Ray Boltz! -- Lol not sure why this sticks out to me, but we had a Ray Boltz CD, and his songs are the soundtrack of that apartment season in my mind!

7.  Balcony Fun! -- We had a tiny little balcony with a view of the highway, and Rach and I made the most of it, going out there to play and run back and forth and watch the cars and make up games!

Okay, that's really all!  I just wanted to jot those down to have some sort of keepsake from that period.  Having no pictures is kinda sad, but I trust God has all those memories stored for me.  I might ask Rach if she has anything to add to the Warwick West list. lol  Anyway, have a lovely week ahead!!