10/16/2026
“Every closing chapter writes the opening line of the next one”.
Sometimes the winds of life change and blow you in a direction that you never saw coming.
Those of you who follow The Cottage In Moorhead are familiar with this property’s past and its ties to me, from its very beginning. You’ve read the stories of how this house was built in 1920 for my Great Aunt Augusta’s mother to live in. The stories of “First Friends” that Barb and I have shared as to how we met when her family moved from Germany and into the home. You’ve read how Leo and I grew up riding goats together while his mom did my mom’s hair every week, and you’ve followed the complete renovation we did together on the house. You’ve seen the photos of how plants and flowers have moved from town to town, friend to friend, from one side of the street to the other, and sometimes back again. The point is, you’ve seen how this property has been woven into the very fabric of my life for over 100 years.
Next week, the cottage will transfer to a new owner. The winds of change blew me in a direction that I never saw coming. And it all happened within about a week.
But does my story about my ties to this home stop here?
Of course not! So with every closing chapter comes the beginning of the next chapter……
When I was 5 years old, I was the flower girl in Lynette W’s wedding. Lynette has returned to her family home in Moorhead and so I see her often. Mom and I are driving down the street one day and we see Lynette outside so we stop to chat with her as we often do. Lynette says, “You know, our friend Carolyn (who has stayed in the cottage previously and our families have known each other for generations) really wants to move back to Moorhead. She loves your cottage. It would be the perfect home for her”. The conversation moves on from there and I didn’t give it much thought because I had never even considered selling the cottage. But the next day a different friend contacts me about the cottage, so now those ‘winds of change’ have really gotten my attention.
Carolyn and I talk and within what felt like the flash of a lightening strike….
Carolyn will be moving back to Moorhead. I can’t wait to be her neighbor ☺️
Thank you to everyone who has been a part of this journey! It has brought me so much joy, so many friends, countless treasured memories, endless plants and flowers, and one torn rotator cuff from that time Leo handed me a sledge hammer and told me to, “Tear down that wall”.
But because life in a small town is always connected to something else in a million different ways, be looking for a new airbnb in Moorhead! My cousin Eric and LoAnn have opened one! Look for information on RUSTIC LODGE OF MOORHEAD, coming soon!
As for Carolyn and me...we look forward to coffee parties, sharing plants, and we've have had a giggle or two about our two families, across 3 generations, ruling the intersection in Moorhead. Because that's how life works in a small town...and I love that!
