It sounds terribly tacky of me to even be thinking it, much less saying it, but I suspect as the only child of people who were very comfortably retired and owned their home free and clear, the daughter is going to get a substantial inheritance. Not that it makes up for the loss, of course, but her kids are never going to have to worry about paying for college.
She lives in the same city, and if I were running her life (why nobody ever asks me to, I cannot imagine!) she would empty the parents' house of things she does not want to keep, paint, tile, carpet and otherwise customize it so it's no longer to her parents' tastes but hers (and is less filled with memories of them living there), and move in. The house is in good shape, the street is quiet, the view is nice, and it's both larger and in better condition than her own house.
Today we have our first warm day of the spring, with highs expected in the mid-70s. I have lots of yard clean-up to do, even though parts of it remain under water. And I suppose I need to spend a good bit on topsoil and mulch, since I skipped both last year. My trees' roots are above ground again, and most of the mulch of seasons past seems to have disappeared. It's a mystery!
Maryn, who would not read that mystery