NATCHEZ — Louise Peabody was not sure if retirement suited her.

“I was always working and owning businesses and I was always having to deal with stress,” she said. “I thought I would wake up in the morning wondering what do I do now.”

But she and her husband Ben Ledbetter are enjoying themselves.

“I knew I would have no problem with retirement,” Ledbetter said.

When The Dart landed on Cemetery Road in Natchez, Peabody and Ledbetter were about to take their daily dip in the small pool that they have in front of their house.

Their house is one of the four houses that make up Sunset View Cottages, which Peabody bought in 2010 when it was a bed and breakfast.

Over the next four years, Peabody and Ledbetter kept it that way.

“It was tough working day to day,” said Ledbetter.

He had worked as a graphic designer for 25 years and had also owned pool halls. While his life had slowed down as he and Peabody were just working the bed and breakfast he wanted to be fully retired.

Peabody, who owned the stores My Room and Intimate Home in Natchez, had a similar epiphany one day while working the bed and breakfast.

“I was shlepping the toilets in between guests,” she said. “And it dawned on me that life is too short.”

So she and Ledbetter decided to rent out two of the houses as long term rentals and live in the other two.

“Now they shlep their own toilets,” Peabody said.

And both Peabody and Ledbetter are full retired living in their home with an incredible view of the Mississippi River.

“Life is good,” Ledbetter said.

Now, their days consist of a lot of down time and leisure activities and that’s the way they like it, but they can always count on one thing to add a little variety to their life.

“We sit and watch the sunset each night,” Ledbetter said. “And it is always different.”