Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Honest, I'm just trying to welcome the new neighbors

One of the nicest surprises when we first moved here was a military wife showing up on our doorstep with a plate of freshly-baked cookies welcoming us to the neighborhood. This simple act of kindness left such an impression on me that I decided to try to extend the same hospitality to any new people that move near us. I got my chance this week. A new military family, assigned to Husband’s same unit, recently moved into a house on our street. I decided to bake some brownies to welcome them. (Of course, I had to sample one to make sure they were up to brownie standards. They were. But I had to eat a few to make sure.) The only problem is that I’ve stopped by twice to deliver the brownies in person, only to find that there is no one home. (I would call first, except I don’t know their phone number. Or even their name.) I fear that all of my trips to their house are quickly moving me from “Hi, I want to welcome you to the neighborhood” to “Hi, I’m the neighborhood stalker.” And I can only imagine what our other neighbors think when they see me traipsing back and forth to this house with a plate of brownies. I was hoping to deliver the brownies soon, so they would still be fresh. Because I’m assuming that a plate of nice and stale brownies says a lot of things, except probably not “welcome.” I’m going to stop by just one more time tonight. If I’m not successful, I might as well surrender to my stalker status. Or, I’ll just have to sample a few more brownies to check their freshness.

7 comments:

Joanne said...

Or you could send them over to the coffee shop at my blog and we'll all finish them off with a fresh cup of coffee! ;)

Seriously, little gestures like that are so thoughtful, and mean a lot to people, especially when they're busy and settling in. Keep trying!

GypsiAdventure said...

I think delivering them is such a nice gesture...Hopefully they will be home again soon!
~K

Ann M. said...

you are sooo much more determined than I am. After the second time, I totally would have left the brownies and a note saying Hello.

Then I'd just be the weirdo that left brownies on their front steps that probably attracted all the animals in a 20 mile radius to their doorstep....

good luck!

Unknown said...

Nothing wrong with a stalker as long as they bring brownies!

Ann On and On... said...

Jumped over from Jill's blog, hope you do not mind.
Don't you hate it when your good intentions could be perceived as creepy. I hope they answered the door tonight. If nothing else leave a note....as a nice neighborly gesture. :D

Annie said...

This is a wonderful gesture and one that is seldom made these days. Perhaps you'll catch them over the weekend. At any rate, nice job!

Keri said...

That's so nice! I wish you lived in my neighborhood ;)