To celebrate Thanksgiving, I'm going to write about one thing I'm thankful for everyday (hopefully) this month. I'm already a day late getting started and the reason for that is what I'm thankful for!
For the last 18 years, my husband and I have owned a small lawn business. This included mowing, fertilization, snow removal, bush trimming, weeding, mulching-the general stuff. I've always hated lawn work. Despite my love of the outdoors, I think I was traumatized as a child when my father gave me a pair of hand clippers (for the younger generation, hand clippers were kind of like a huge pair of nail clippers. There's no power source except for you squeezing, squeezing, squeezing). And then he pointed to the two rows of spirea that ran the entire length of our 3/4 acre lot-on both sides- and told me to clip around the bottoms of them, after mowing, every week, for all spring, summer and early fall-in other words not necessarily as needed but as he desired. If my brother were alive, he would tell me that he had to do it too and to stop whining. But what he doesn't realize is that the older siblings only have to do it until they move out or the next sibling is old enough to take over. Being the baby almost guarantees that you will do it more years than any of your siblings ever did. And then as soon as you move out, all the sudden a weed-eater appears! I think dishwashers were invented that very same year too. Thanks Dad.
Now that we know what I'm not thankful for, let's get to why I'm thankful for our lawn business. It's over! I don't mean just for this season. I mean it's over forever! I've been released from lawn business hell! Yesterday we mowed our last 5 lawns-forever! Today as we sat at the park at lunch, eating DQ Blizzards, my husband and I actually enjoyed looking at the grass knowing that we can vacuum our vehicles and they will stay relatively clean, there will be no gas smell on the steering wheels anymore and when it snows, we can sit on the couch with our matching slippers and coffee mugs and sing with gusto "Let it Snow, let it snow, let it snow!" When school is over, we can actually go somewhere on vacation. When Christmas vacation comes, we will be able to go visit family without worrying about having to come home and shovel everyone out if it snows. We won't have to work until dark in the fall. We won't have to be in the sweltering heat in the summer, unless we want to be. Can you say Cape May?
It's been a long time coming but the days of "when we can get rid of the lawn business" have finally come!
I have to admit though that there were some things that were beneficial about the lawn business. I learned the hard way the importance of sun screen. I wrote many Lawnmower Devotions (my old blog) for your reading pleasure. I learned that I could choose not to complain. I listened to a TON of sermons and entertained the neighbors with my off key singing as I mowed. I met a whole bunch of nice people that I wouldn't have met otherwise. I helped to provide for our family.
Lawn Businesses are generally referred to as "seasonal businesses" and I can't even begin to describe how thankful I am that this season has passed!
For the last 18 years, my husband and I have owned a small lawn business. This included mowing, fertilization, snow removal, bush trimming, weeding, mulching-the general stuff. I've always hated lawn work. Despite my love of the outdoors, I think I was traumatized as a child when my father gave me a pair of hand clippers (for the younger generation, hand clippers were kind of like a huge pair of nail clippers. There's no power source except for you squeezing, squeezing, squeezing). And then he pointed to the two rows of spirea that ran the entire length of our 3/4 acre lot-on both sides- and told me to clip around the bottoms of them, after mowing, every week, for all spring, summer and early fall-in other words not necessarily as needed but as he desired. If my brother were alive, he would tell me that he had to do it too and to stop whining. But what he doesn't realize is that the older siblings only have to do it until they move out or the next sibling is old enough to take over. Being the baby almost guarantees that you will do it more years than any of your siblings ever did. And then as soon as you move out, all the sudden a weed-eater appears! I think dishwashers were invented that very same year too. Thanks Dad.
Now that we know what I'm not thankful for, let's get to why I'm thankful for our lawn business. It's over! I don't mean just for this season. I mean it's over forever! I've been released from lawn business hell! Yesterday we mowed our last 5 lawns-forever! Today as we sat at the park at lunch, eating DQ Blizzards, my husband and I actually enjoyed looking at the grass knowing that we can vacuum our vehicles and they will stay relatively clean, there will be no gas smell on the steering wheels anymore and when it snows, we can sit on the couch with our matching slippers and coffee mugs and sing with gusto "Let it Snow, let it snow, let it snow!" When school is over, we can actually go somewhere on vacation. When Christmas vacation comes, we will be able to go visit family without worrying about having to come home and shovel everyone out if it snows. We won't have to work until dark in the fall. We won't have to be in the sweltering heat in the summer, unless we want to be. Can you say Cape May?
It's been a long time coming but the days of "when we can get rid of the lawn business" have finally come!
I have to admit though that there were some things that were beneficial about the lawn business. I learned the hard way the importance of sun screen. I wrote many Lawnmower Devotions (my old blog) for your reading pleasure. I learned that I could choose not to complain. I listened to a TON of sermons and entertained the neighbors with my off key singing as I mowed. I met a whole bunch of nice people that I wouldn't have met otherwise. I helped to provide for our family.
Lawn Businesses are generally referred to as "seasonal businesses" and I can't even begin to describe how thankful I am that this season has passed!
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