307 Dudrey Court
On this Friday before Memorial Day my back aches, my eyes are tired, and I have bruises (and paint) all over my body. I just spent the week scrubbing walls, painting trim, purging stuff and cleaning everything. Our super long fix-it list we've manifested over nearly 10 years has been completed in just seven days. I'm exhausted and I'm ready. It's finally time to sit back, cross our fingers and wait.Today is the day we put our house on the market.Just over a week ago, out of the blue and without looking, we found the home we can see ourselves spending the next 15-20 years. It's the right size - not too big, but big enough to keep our family sane. The house fits us, and both my husband and I knew it. We jumped on the opportunity and before we knew it we had a contract and a closing date.Oh, crap.Truth be told, the idea of moving has consumed our thoughts for about a year. We love our little house but with each passing year, we've felt more cramped. Our kids are getting older and soon will no longer want to share a room. We want a place to store all our bikes and our car, a section of yard to plant a big garden, and a house that breathes just a little more for our family of 4.But, our house. Our charming abode. I remember our excitement when we found our little gem. We had viewed over a dozen houses in our price range and had a darn of a time finding a house that felt like home. Plus, we were stubborn. We wanted to live in Fargo and we wanted a garage. But after about the 14th questionable house, our realtor Karen suggested we drop a few of our wish list items. So, we ventured across the bridge to Moorhead. After a few more duds, she brought us to 307 Dudrey Court. We walked in and we just knew. It had all the character we craved without the creepy basement or faux wood paneling. After excitedly viewing the house, we took a bitterly cold stroll around the neighborhood. Yep, we were sold. This was our neighborhood and this was our house.That was over nine years ago. Two kids and a million memories later, we are so happy we made that decision. Our house is a lovely little house and I'm going to miss it so much.I'm going to miss our beautiful wood trim and floors, the old doorknobs and wood doors. The kitchen that we gutted and modernized - my IKEA fantasy - I'm going to miss that too. I'm going to miss our shaded backyard canopied by large trees which kept our house cool in every single summer. I'm going to miss all the hidden storage in our loft, which we've found this week can store an entire house worth of furniture. I'm going to miss that big ol' cast iron bathtub, deep and warm and wonderful.And then, there is our location. I'm going to miss being able to walk my little guy to preschool and heading over to our friend's garage for a nightcap or two (and not have to worry how to get home). I'm going to miss being within walking distance of not one but TWO ice cream shops, my studio (just six blocks), the library and my favorite grocery store.But mostly, I'm going to miss Dudrey Court. Saying that we have wonderful neighbors would be an understatement. Sometimes, on random Tuesdays, our neighbor Carrie will deliver us baked goods (and if we're really lucky some new beer from her husband's brewery). On summer afternoons, our daughter Edie will head across the street to chat up our neighbor Shari who is laughing on her front porch with our other neighbor Sue (who, let's be honest, has the best laugh in all of Moorhead). Oh, and the kids. All the kids. Because Dudrey Court is basically a paved alley, on any nice day you'll find 2-8 kiddos riding their trikes, drawing elaborate chalk art on the sidewalk and playing hockey in the street. It's straight outta of 1953, and it's so wonderful.When we moved to Dudrey Court we first met our kiddy-corner neighbor, Roger, who told us that he grew up in our little house. Back then our house didn't have a finished basement or attic, so when the fourth kiddo came along the house felt too small for the family of six. But, his parent's loved the neighborhood so much they couldn't bear moving away. So when the BIG house on Dudrey Court came up for sale, they snatched it up and moved across the street.To this day, former residents of Dudrey Court and the surrounding neighborhood get together for a picnic every year or so and talk about the old times. There is even a facebook page for Dudrey Court and an old picture of our house serves as it's profile picture. That is pretty darn awesome.I've had all the emotions this week. While I'm super excited for our new adventure, I'm also sad for what we're leaving behind. To live in a place with so much character and history and warmth has been incredibly special. I can only hope that our new home and our new neighborhood are even a sliver as great as this one has been. My wish for this house is that the next occupant of 307 loves this place as much as we have. It deserves no less.You can view our listing on Zillow and if you know someone who would appreciate this house and our neighborhood as much as we do, we'd love if you could share this with them.