As of last week, my parents officially live in Richmond. This rocks for several reasons (free babysitting) so we’re excited to have them (as free babysitters) just about 15 minutes down the road (close enough to easily babysit for free). Plus, you’ll probably get some peeks at their new digs as they settle in (between babysitting jobs) and as we help them tackle some projects around their house (perhaps in exchange for all of the free babysitting). And if you follow us on Flickr, you’ve noticed that we wasted no time breaking in their community pool as soon as the moving truck was returned:
Three days after closing on their new house, my parents also celebrated their 39th wedding anniversary (days before my mom had a birthday- May’s a busy month for us celebration-wise). Since 39 years doesn’t have an assigned anniversary gift theme (35th is coral or jade and 40th is ruby), my sisters and I planned something to commemorate the 32 years they spent at their old house (seen below). This was in addition to the painting we gave them last month as moving gift.
My mom has always collected “The Cat’s Meow” keepsakes, which are small wooden blocks cut and painted to represent specific buildings, landmarks, and even people. My mom is particularly fond of the meaningful ones that represent places that are special to her – like the Dolles taffy shop in Rehoboth Beach, DE (our traditional family vacation spot) or the West Virginia State Capitol (her home state). So when I discovered that they accepted custom orders, we jumped at the chance to commission this:
Using the photo above of the house, they created this custom wood block of my parents’ place. It’s a service they call “My World” and it took roughly six weeks and was about $99 for two (we got one for their new Richmond house & one for their beach house). Hundred dollar gifts are kind of the sweet spot for us kids since there are four of us (and we each toss in $25). Oh and do you see that little black cat sitting in the window? That’s in every figurine that they make (it’s their signature) but it acts as the perfect stand-in for our family’s black cat named Duncan (who now lives with my little sister Carrie).
They did a great job with it (though it’s a bit bluer than in real life – it’s actually grey – but maybe our photo is to blame for that). They even let you customize a message for the back. Their standard collection usually includes the name of the place and some historical facts, so I wrote something to sorta summarize the “history” of their house.
In case you don’t feel like squinting – it reads:
This lovely residence in Burke, Virginia became home to Tom and Kathy Petersik in 1979. Their four children, Katie, Emily, John and Carrie, loved growing up here – from playing with the other neighborhood kids in the cul-de-sac to eventually pushing their own children on the swings behind the house. In their 32 years here, [their street number] played host to Christmas mornings on the stairs, Easter eggs hunts in the backyard, and countless family feasts.
(To explain, we had a tradition of making the kids gather on the steps on Christmas morning before running to open presents. We didn’t actually try to open gifts precariously crammed onto the staircase.)
As we hoped, the two wooden replicas of their former home were a big hit with my parents (who opened them this weekend while we were at the beach). I think they’re excited to have this small reminder of their “kid-raising” house to display at their new “grandkid-babysitting” home (my words, not theirs).
Cheri says
Great gift idea! I used to collect Cat’s Meow….and still have a few favorites. My best friend made me a replica of our house in NY before we moved to MN.
Oh, and the stairs on Christmas morning….totally get that! My kids are 23, 24, 25 and when they are home on Christmas morning, they still sit at the top of the stairs til we say “ok” to come see the “tree”. I’m sure this will be a tradition carried on to the grandkids too!
Carley says
Cute gift idea! Great to have parents close by!
LindseyR says
first: john you are funny!!! second: awesome gift idea!!!
Amy L. says
That is such a nice gift, and a great idea!
We, too, have the Dolle’s one at our house. Love the Delaware shore!
SherL says
Your parents gift of love to you, as shown in the memories you have of the house, the yard, the Easter Egg hunts, the traditions and so much more, will be the memories you are now building for Clara.
So very sweet to read about your loving family.
Kimberly says
Those are neat.
Caitlin says
a) Fantastic personalised gift!
b) Congratulations on your new babysitting service.
c) That photo of Clara is an absolute hoot!!!
Ginny-Beth says
I grew up having 3 grandparents living in the same town as I did. I can remember having 2 occasions of babysitters; not two babysitters, but two times that someone stayed with me that wasn’t a g-parent. It was amazing, and never felt like I was getting “shipped off” because it was part of our routine. Clara is a lucky girl!
katy says
ummmm, AWESOME! My mom used to collect those too. She has a ton of them. I would LOVE to have a custom one done for her. Wow, thanks!!!
Grace says
What a small world! I grew up in Burke, too. Did you go to LB? Such a great idea. I’ll have to look into this for my parents.
YoungHouseLove says
I actually went to TJ, but I would have gone to Robinson. Such a small world.
-John
Jennifer V says
Oh wow – I have 2 Cat’s Meow blocks in my house! I’m originally from Maryland and Ocean City is near & dear to my heart! I have one from Alaska stand hamburgers & one from Thrasher’s fries, both from the OC boardwalk. I LOVE THEM! Makes me feel closer to home. I had no idea they did custom work. What a beautiful, original gift!
Trude says
What an awesome keepsake! So glad for you guys on all counts – I’ve purposely stayed near my parents and brothers for that exact reasons, even though I’m not even married yet! :) I’ve been thinking of doing something similar for my parents, since their birthdays are a month apart – there’s an Etsy seller that does custom hoop embroideries of your house.
Tricia says
Oh my goodness!! I love this gift idea. My Mom has always collected these, and I love how you can personalize. I’m flagging this site and will 100% be ordering for the holidays. Thank you so much! Your house for your parents turned out beautiful. :)
Jules says
Oh wow I have one of these! Thanks for the heads-up – was always wondering what that random black cat was up to.
Sara says
This is such an amazing idea! When reading about your parents move and your original post about the house, and your referencing Northern VA, I thought..hmm, I bet that house is in either Burke or Fairfax Station. And I was right! I grew up in Burke Centre myself and went to Robinson for high school.
I love your blog, thank you for writing it!
Sara
Lida Mathews says
I am just catching up on your June posts and saw BURKE, VA in this post! I used to be a Burke’anite?!’ – long time ago! I left Burke in 1998! Too fun!
Love you guys! :) Can’t wait to see your house progress!
Carrie @DreamGreenDIY says
Thank you so much for the inspiration!!! After reading your post, I decided to DIY Cat’s Meow gifts for my mom and mother-in-law-to-be this Christmas. It was a hit and I have you to thanks!
http://dreamgreendiy.com/2011/12/28/home-sweet-home/
YoungHouseLove says
Adorable!
xo,
s