Major Changes in 2022

by Mollie Johnson - 09/05/2022

Whewwww! What a year.

January started off fairly typical…recovering from my annual bout of sinus infection and whatever else was going around and preparing for a busy client season. My husband had applied for a job out of state, which is something he does every few years. It’s no secret we always hoped to either move back to the Pacific Northwest or at least out of the humid south, eventually.

In February, we took our first vacation in forever to attend my one and only nephew’s wedding. What a blessing to welcome his sweet bride into our family. The tradition continued with me making the wedding cake (aka "Mollie Cake".) It was wonderful to visit with family and friends for a couple weeks.

We spent some time in the eastern part of the state with our good friends, who showed us around their new stomping grounds.

Oh, and did I mention there was an impromptu meeting with my husband’s (now) boss?! Long story short…he was offered a job and he accepted! After 15 years in the south, we honestly didn’t think this day would happen. As soon as we returned home to Louisiana, I whipped the house into shape, had our beloved realtor photograph and list it right away. 1 weekend, 42 showings and 17 offers later…sold!

We packed up my husband’s vehicle with everything he would need for the foreseeable future and off he drove to start his new job and live in a small furnished apartment until I could join him. Over the next couple of weeks, with the help of my team, I packed up our house, closed and moved out. I definitely oversimplified it here -- it was a ton of work in a short span of time.

Oh, did I mention, I was the caretaker of our cat (Beskar) during this time? Long story short: I don't like pets. Eventually, I relented and my husband got a cat in January 2021. I am pretty much terrified of animals. Everyone thinks their pet will change me. Nope. I'm nearly 50 and not converted yet. Oh, and Beskar didn't like me either. So, instead of getting rid of him, my husband and I decided to give him to our son, since he was moving back. Because we got a kitten for Drake when he was young and I gave him away while he was visiting family for the summer, I really felt like I owed it to him to put up with the daily cat attacks. I made it. Again...not easy, but I made it!

A week after we sold, our son flew down and closed on his new house. Many of you followed along on that journey as I fixed up our #sonsvintagedigs in the spring. Yes, we are sad to still not live in the same state together, but we are all where we need to be right now.

I just had to add this photo for posterity. It truly sums up the crazy ride we were all on for Drake's first home purchase. I won't bore you with the details, but it was honestly touch and go up until the last few minutes, through no fault of those shown here. To all of my Louisiana friends, we highly recommend Danielle Musso. She is top notch, goes above and beyond and we wished we could take her with us. Ha!

When I wasn't making due with a small motel room, I was living at our son's new house in sketchy conditions. These were sacrifices I was happy to make, but there were days my sister and husband had to give me pep talk texts to keep going. I was pretty overwhelmed there for a while.

Shutting down a business is no easy feat. I appreciate everyone who has been so patient with me. I am still working with Louisiana clients through 2022 and plan to start up in Washington early next year. In fact, I will be returning in mid-September to wrap up several projects and sell off a bunch of stuff from my shop. Let me know if you’re interested in taking a look!