I was built in 1960 by an architect named Frank Albright. I am a bright yellow house, and I’m located on Odessa Lake. I have witnessed dozens of families visiting every year. I belong to the Carpenter family, and I’ve had the chance to watch not only their own son and daughters grow up, but also their grandchildren.
I hold so many wonderful memories for the Carpenter family. Louis and Caroline bought me in 1973 when their oldest daughter, Mallory, was born; their son, Steven, followed in 1975, and then finally my favorite kid of all, Josephine, was born in 1978. Once they were done having kids, they finally decided to get married in 1980. I wasn’t just their vacation home; I was the home that they raised their family in, so I got to bear witness to many wonderful things.
I have a spacious living room where Mallory, Steven, and Josephine used to play when they were younger. Steven used to pretend that my carpet was a tropical forest where all of his toy dinosaurs used to roam. Mallory and Josephine used to pretend that their Barbie dolls were in a fashion show, so the carpet also served as a runway. As Steven turned seven, I became an airplane runway where he would practice flying his toy airplanes. Mallory and Josephine used to imagine that their living room was their classroom. Mallory would always be the teacher, and Josephine would act like a student. Mallory and Steven were always teaching Josephine how to do all sorts of things, like reading, writing, baking, and riding her bike.
Now you’re probably wondering what Louis and Caroline were up to while their kids were busy playing. Caroline was a wonderful cook and baker. She made many fabulous meals in the kitchen, and I can still remember the way they smelled. She would make homemade fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, meatloaf, and chicken pot pie. I can only really remember a few times when her recipes didn’t work out. During Thanksgiving of 1983, she burnt the Thanksgiving turkey because she forgot to set a timer so she’d know when it was done. Of course, the smoke detector went off a lot, and the fire department had to be called so they could stop the burning smell. However, the scent of burnt turkey still lingered for a few more months after that despite the various kinds of candles that were lit to prevent the kitchen from smelling like smoke. She also burnt a birthday cake once for Mallory, but that’s a different story.
While Caroline was always busy in the kitchen, Louis was building furniture in the family’s two-car garage. He built tables, chairs, liquor cabinets, and bed frames, but my favorite thing he ever built was probably the children’s bookshelf. It was made of walnut; he painted it pink, purple, and blue so that each child could have their own shelf to store their books. I liked the bookshelf the most because I knew it would hold all of their favorite storybooks that they loved reading. Louis was a hardworking man, and outside of showing off his carpentry skills, he worked as a dentist. Meanwhile, Caroline ran her own catering company from home called Caroline’s Creations, and it was rather successful because all of her family, friends, and neighbors were always ordering food from her for major life events, like birthday parties and graduation parties. She had even catered a few weddings before, too.
If you head up the grand staircase in the living room, you’ll be led to four bedrooms and two bathrooms. I still remember when each of the kids moved into their own rooms, took their first steps, big fights that broke out between them over toys they weren’t sharing, and other things. One thing I’ve forgotten to mention so far is that they had a dog, Simon, and a cat, Lola. Simon and Lola always seemed to cause some sort of trouble sometimes. One time Simon pooped in the middle of the hallway and Louis ended up ruining his favorite blue slippers after he stepped in it. Lola threw up fur balls in just about every corner of the house, and there were several times when everyone would step in them. Among their bad habits, though, they both seemed to get along pretty well even though most dogs and cats dislike each other with a very strong passion.
As for bathrooms, I remember when the kids flushed Caroline’s makeup down the toilet; she ended up losing her favorite red lipstick, some mascara she had bought at the local makeup store, some of her blush, and a bottle of Elizabeth Taylor perfume. By the time she had found her makeup clogging the toilet, it was too late to save any of it. And although you may think I’m just a house, I remember everything that has ever happened within me.
There is a swimming pool where all three children learned how to swim for the first time, and the grass where Mallory, Steven, and Josephine used to have water balloon fights, and the family’s picnic table that was built by Louis with the help of Caroline when they first got married. Their family has had countless barbeques, picnics, and celebrations at that picnic table, and their backyard has always been their favorite place to spend the spring and summer months.
At the beginning of my story, I told you that Josephine, the youngest of the Carpenter children, was my favorite, and you’ve probably been wondering why and what’s so special about her. Josephine isn’t just a girl to me; she’s always been my favorite because she was the only person to ever realize I was listening to what went on. She used to tell me hello and goodbye when she was little, whenever the family would come home from a vacation or go somewhere. She’s definitely always had a special place in my heart because of that. She was the last of the children to grow up and leave home since she was a bit younger than her siblings, but I always knew she would do wonderful things when she got older. When she left home for college, she ended up going to school to become a kindergarten teacher, and I’ve always admired her passion for helping other people; that’s why I’ve always been very proud of her.
So, as you see, I’m not just a big yellow house beside the lake; I’m just like a person because I can still remember all of the wonderful memories I’ve held for both the Carpenter family, and that’s why being their home is so important. As life has progressed and the family has grown, the children and grandchildren have gotten older, and I love being able to say that I’ve witnessed so many wonderful parts of their lives.
This was written by our Founder and Editor-In-Chief, Hanna Peters.
Image Source: Pexels, Efrem Efre
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