We lived in South Florida for nine years before moving to the Carolinas. I’d grown up in Buffalo, New York, and had always wanted to leave the long, snowy winters. Florida gave us a lovely house, but the Carolinas finally felt like home to me.
During a vacation, we visited a close friend in our old neighborhood and stopped to photograph our former house. Jack felt a little sad: he’d been born there and lived there until he was five. We missed friends and family, even though we hadn’t regretted the move.
The house and water feature
We had tried to make our house different from the similar homes around it. The front water feature was one of those touches. On this visit, the blue planter and orchid hanging in the tree were still where we’d left them, and I was surprised by how much the crown of thorns had grown.
The pool, privacy planting, and backyard
We’d had the pool built and planted around the perimeter for privacy. The landscaping looked much fuller four years later.
The couple who bought the house had no children at the time of the sale. By this visit, they had two boys, and play equipment filled the small backyard.
Mike had always wanted a magnolia. We’d planted this one at least seven years earlier, but it looked smaller to me than when it first went in. Seeing it reminded me of the much larger magnolias around our Carolina home.
Colorful finds at Andeans
We also revisited Andeans, a South Florida home-decor store where I’d bought our kitchen table and other pieces. The displays were colorful, but I took only a few photographs in the heat. Much of the merchandise looked familiar from before our move, so I wasn’t as taken with the store as I once had been.
The hotel and a drive along A1A
These photographs show the colorful hotel where we stayed, including a fountain and a walkway between the buildings.
We took a drive along A1A by the ocean, passing coastal homes and buildings.
Four generations and old friends
One dinner brought four generations of our family together. We also had dinner at my friend Michele’s house.
Mike adored Michele’s Boston terrier, Buster. This photograph caught them together during the visit.
Time at the beach
Jack was still smiling at the beach, stitches and all. I had joked before the trip about spotting a handsome man there; the last photograph was my answer to that joke.
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