What happened???

When we were in Pueblo this last weekend watching M throw the discus, we decided to run by our old house and see it.  I was there for a funeral last year and saw how horrible it looked and got pictures on my cell phone.  But my hubby was anxious to see it in person.  It has even gotten worse since I saw it and we were stunned at how run down it looked.  Here is a picture of our house when we lived in it......

Look at all the bushes and trees and the lovely green lawn....the nice wood blinds in the front windows.  Even though it is an old house, it was really the best house on the block.  You have to know that area of town we lived in was a very old part of town and not too far down the street was the start of the not so good part of the area, but it was a great first house and we really made it home.  (We put that lawn in ourselves with a lot of blood, sweat and tears)

Well, this is the house today......

Granted it is winter and the other picture was summer, but YIKES!  We were so shocked and very sad that it now looks this bad.  Rocks instead of lawn....no bushes or trees or anything growing at all there.  The paint is peeling off, the wood blinds were replaced with verticals and cardboard in some windows, the gate that we built is gone....even the lilacs we had growing down the side of the house are gone and everything is rock.  (low maintenance, I guess)   It now looks like all the other houses down the street and is by far, not the nicest house at all anymore.  We couldn't help but wonder what the inside looks like now.

We had that house and yard looking sooooooo good and now, the only word I can think of is, YUCK!  Life goes on I guess and things change but all that hard work to keep that place looking beautiful is down the drain.  I am sure the old lady next door doesn't think we were the worst neighbors after all (inside joke)