Moving On
What’s worse than packing and moving? Doing it with a head cold. Yesterday was moving day and Iām beyond thrilled to get this behind us. Tomorrow will be even busier when they deliver our things to the house we rented. There will be weeks if not months of unpacking before we feel settled into our rental but there’s no rush. I plan to leave as many boxes packed as possible because we’ll be moving again in a year or so. This has been a massive amount of work and makes me want to embrace minimalism. Big time.
I was already exhausted when my feet hit the floor yesterday morning and it got worse from there. Itās funnyĀ that I thought I was ready until the truck pulled up and I realized how many small loose things were not packed.
I remember it took a long time for our house to feel like home. Iām guessing that theĀ rental we are moving into will never feel like home because it won’t be. Life feels surreal. Almost like we pulled the rug out from under ourselves. Of course, thatās what we needed to do to get out of our comfort zone and make a change.
As we were getting the last things out of our backyard I noticed that one of our palm trees is about to bear fruit. It only seems to do that every six years, so it feels kind of special when it happens. I had a momentary feeling of sadness that I would not see those fruit ripen and fall to the ground. Then reality sunk in as I remembered the violent diarrhea Lucy got from eating them.
This move feels bittersweet. We loved our little house. Perhaps because we gutted it to make it exactly the way we wanted…right down to the antique FrenchĀ Chandeliers (which we have brought with us).
I wandered around taking pictures after everything was out and realized this house was for another time in our lives. I’m now looking forward and excited to see what’s next.
Are you planning to move in retirement?
Thanks for reading ladies and have a great day.
I’ve been following along on your saga and admire the positive way you are approaching this upheaval in your life.
We are in our late 50s and still have adult children at home, so we foresee another ten years in this home. In fact, we’re embarking on a remodel this summer which will get our house exactly the way we want it to be. However, I can easily imagine the day when we give this big (4,000 sq. ft.) place up for a smaller home and that is, right now, the plan (but you know what they say about the plans we make…).
Prices in our area – Silicon Valley – are so expensive that I cannot imagine moving into another home here, so I would imagine that we’ll be looking elsewhere on the West Coast. I am also hoping to convince my husband to buy a small place in France…we will see.
Lots of adventure ahead for us! In the meantime, I will live vicariously through you.
A small home in France would be awesome! Sign me right up for that. The Bay Area is very pricey which is one of the reasons we left:)
Moving is a physically and emotionally exhausting process. I would not be surprised that it caused your cold! I just moved my parents into a retirement community and we are in the process of selling their home. My husband’s Uncle and Aunt are moving into the same community and so we start all over again with downsizing and moving. I have been in my home for 25 years and we are in the process of renovating. Sometimes I would love to just toss all the stuff and move into a lovely little cottage. Sigh.
Wishing you all the best in your new, temporary home, and I hope you find just the right place soon.
I often feel like just tossing everything too! For now I will keep pairing down and see how minimal I can get
Oh yes, moves can be bittersweet.. Wishing you all the best with the move, and feeling better. Wow, looks like so many of your readers are moving. We have been retired a few months but no plans on moving at this point.
Iām surprised how many are moving too! Itās a busy time
Good luck! You’re leaving a pretty house, but it’s going to be fun to put your special touch on a new place, and meanwhile you can keep paring your way down.
It will be fun. Iām pairing down every day and hopefully the next move will be easier.
Hi Jennifer. I too am going to move this summer, and I doĀ“nt know where. After 39 year! I am 66 and after divorce, we got to sell our apartment in Stockholm city , near the see. I am so nervous, because I doĀ“nt know where I can buy a new apartment and how big it is going to be. My wish is to live in the same area, because I feel safety here. Safety is totally necessary for me. But I love to live alone now and do what I want to! Good luck to you!
Good luck Ulla! I hope you find a great place. I agree that feeling safe is critical at our age.
Oh this resonates. I’ve been in temporary places before (including where I am now, although it’s long-term temporary) and it is unsettling. It will be so lovely when you find your forever home. I have a few lights I bring with me from move to move as well. I’m starting to pare down in anticipation of a next move which will be a size downsize, as I return from suburbia to the city. I’m in a new era of less and it feels very good! I hope you feel better soon. XO
I want less of everything now and more time for fun! I didnāt know you weee moving out of suburbia. That will be great for you Jen! Xo
The home you moved out of was gorgeous and you both have so many happy memories from your years there. Now you get to explore a new place of creation and a fresh routine of life. It’s going to be fabulous creating all this tailored to you and your husband.
We are certainly looking forward these days!
Jennifer, I am retiring June 23 after being a school librarian for the last 25 years and I feel as exactly as you do! I am also moving from NY to California – I think we may be in the same neck of the woods (or should I say desert??). We bought in Palm Valley CC in Palm Desert. I’ll be leaving a totally renovated condo on the east end of Long Island to a condo in need of a major overhaul. Against all advice from friends, I am following my children to the West Coast – what if they move back east? Hubby and I decided it was time for us – away from the snow and where we can play all day! Good luck on your move!
Linda, we followed our kids too, five years ago and itās the best decision we ever made! We didnāt want to miss out on life with our only two grandchildren. We went from a small town to a much bigger city and weāre having a ball. So much to do! And if the kids move, then I guess we will too! Enjoy California!
That sounds fun Susan!
We love Palm Dessert! Youāll have a great time there. Weāve moved closer to family for now and we will see how we like the community. We wanted to try an active adult community on for size and what better place than close to my grandson? Good luck!
So, interesting to read all these stories of “moves”, Jennifer…mine took place 5 years ago after 45 years in the same home. Having searched in this local community for a number of years and not finding anything I really wanted; what a joy to just happen to come upon a perfect home for my new stage of life one afternoon; I made an offer within 10 minutes! All fell into place perfectly after that “find”! (No question, STRESS, yes; but grateful to this very moment for what I now have.).
Thatās wonderful Marlene! Congrats
Wishing you a smooth a day or more settling into your new temporary place. You mentioned being closer to family so that will help with the adjustment pains.
Thanks Julie. Yes, we get to watch our grandsons baseball game this Sat for the first time. Iām really looking forward to spending more time with him.
Love your blog, and look forward to hearing more about your new adventure. Hope you get well soon.
Thanks Norma!
Like so many others, I feel your pain, Jennifer. My husband & I are in our mid-60ās & Iām mentally preparing for our ānext chapterā (while he continues working & pretends weāre still young:).
Having emptied my MILās place of her lifetime of accumulation after she passed in May of ā12, then doing the same as my Momās health deteriorated 4 years ago (we moved her to an assisted living place near my sister, as the prices in ATL where I am are double what they are in MO), I am about to begin the big purge at my place. I plan to sell very few things, but will, hopefully, make some people very happy with mass quantities of donations (of household items, furniture & clothing). I do not want my sons & their wives to have to deal with all of that.
Hang in, feel better & embrace this next chapter! Weāre all cheering you on from here:)
Itās so exhausting to go through our own stuff, let alone our parents. I donāt want to leave all the mess for my kids to desk with. Good luck Linda. Starting early means youāll be ready.
I think it’s very smart to move now. Most of our friends have apartments ready to move into soon–they’ve retired and are getting fed up with yard work and house maintenance. A couple of friends have already made the move from their big houses to apartments conveniently located in city centers, near their kids. They’re all still very active and it means they are still able to build community in their new homes. My parents wanted to stay in their house forever, but they were very isolated, since everything was accessible only by car and my dad had to stop driving; then his health took a dive and they moved to assisted living at ages 85 and 90. My mom, who also had health issues, took it very badly and got very depressed. That’s why moving earlier, and by choice, not necessity, is so important.
Oh Taste of France you are SO right on this one. My parents are in their nineties and insisted on hanging on to their townhouse. Their doctor told me it would take a ‘crisis’ to get them into a retirement home and unfortunately that crisis came at Christmas. My Mom was hospitalized and was told she could not return home so my brothers and I struggled to find an appropriate place for both parents (she needs assisted care, he is independent). With luck we did find it, but it is not where my Dad would have chosen. He had been been given many years to look for a place but chose not to do so. They have settled in but out of necessity not choice. I don’t understand that generation’s stranglehold on their homes! My FIL is exactly the same, my MIL is in a nursing home and he is rolling around a big house by himself. He is not eating properly, not taking his meds..and her nursing home has a retirement home attached where he could live and see her every day. My husband and I are planning on selling our large home next year and buying a condo(we do have a seaside cottage as well which we rent as income property) We loved having the big house but it no longer fits our lives. I actually can’t wait to put it on the market and retire!!
Yes it is best to make these moves whilst its our choice. While we can downsize and take what we want with us so that the day that ‘crisis’ arrives our children/friends/family aren’t left making decisions they wished we had made when we could!
My mom was the same way and insisted on staying in her home. It wasnāt a healthy choice for her but her stubbornness won out.
I completely agree! I have no desire to keep moving around and look forward to getting settled in a home we love.
It is hard to make that change, especially when you have made it yours, but kudos to you for going ahead. It is exciting to see what new adventures await. – Amy
I’m actively looking for a house on Cape Cod. I lived there when my husband was alive and life in Massachusetts is not as hectic as life in New Jersey. Also, since I have custody of my just turned 13 w/o grandson and 7 y/o granddaughter I want to give them a stress free life as far away from their birth parents as possible. I’ve had 9 years with Eric and all 7 with Shel and all 3 of us really need our lives stress free. They check my emails daily to see if our realtor has sent some new houses and get so excited when I say to Skyoe their uncle and ask him to check out this house or that house. It’s exciting for them and exciting and terror filled for me.
Bravo Trish!! You got your hands more than full but it sounds like your move will be joyous. I love Cape Cod. Such a special place.
Love your blog…and hoping you take us on your next adventure. We just moved in January, not by choice, as we were flooded in Harvey. We had lived in our home for 26 years. We had to replace couches, our master bedroom, and some clothes. Most stuff we are not replacing. We bought a brand new one story house, and counterintuitvly, it is larger.Anyone who was NOT flooded tells us how exciting this is. Well, yes, but not in a good way. And not at our age…You are making the right decision to choose your new life. Moving is always hard, but feeling in control of it is everything. Trying to embrace the change here in Texas. Hope all goes well for you.
Good luck to you Molly. It must have been heartbreaking to be flooded out! So sorry. Moving isnāt easy no matter the reason.
We are newly retired and moving to another state in a couple of months. I also feel a bit bittersweet. I have loved this place and my cozy house, but feel that it is time to turn the page. Good luck in your move and embracing change. PS, Love your blog
Thatās where we were Maggie. It was just time to move on. Good luck and thanks for being here.
Making a change at this age can be a wonderful thing. I recently moved into a beautiful town house after letting go of our big family home. The kids were sadder than we were, but they are grown and have homes of their own. Anyway, this town house just spoke to me and I couldn’t be happier. Yes, moving is exhausting, but what an adventure. Enjoy it in the end!!
I think I could be quite happy in a townhome but hubs wants a yard for now, so itās probably going to be a house for us. I agree, in the end itāll be about what speaks to our hearts.
It amazes me to learn that we are all moving at the same time! I told my husband we had to make the move before I got too old to pack everything up. Now itās happening! Our realtors found a young couple that want to buy our house so I have to be all packed up by mid-July. I think I can do it. Then we will move to our house at the shore. Only downside- 90 minutes from our granddaughter.
90 minutes isnāt too bad but being by the shore sounds heavenly. Good luck!
Jennifer – your post was indeed bittersweet…but the excitement comes through loud and clear! You are ready to move on! We are also getting ready for a move at our house over Memorial Day weekend. But the move involves our daughter, who is getting married the 1st weekend in June. She and her fiance have bought an older ranch style house that was remodeled in the “Fixer Upper” style – cute as a bug! Hubby & I plan to do a little “fixing up” at our house….and staying there! After 35 years in this little house, raising our family here, we have no plans to move. It really feels more like a “re-claiming” of our house…kind of like it was when we 1st built it as a young married couple. After we retire in a few short years, we will be heading out to all those places we have been putting on our “someday list” … and it will be a cozy little place to return to after our travels. Enjoy your newest “adventure”! š
Congratulations Shirley! That is an exciting time. Cozy is always how I love our home to feel. Fingers crossed we find it soon.
We are building a home in Florida , moving from Massachusetts – leaving the only home we’ve lived in for 40 years (we were married in the living room!) So many decisions to make (what to take, what to leave – New England furniture doesn’t really work in a Florida home) Between building a home in one state and selling one in another is very anxiety provoking!
Not to mention we’re leaving our family. But we’re looking forward to a new type of lifestyle (which includes a pool that we can use every day!!) and after all, family is only a plane ride away. I look forward to reading your rental stories, as we are trying to find a rental in Florida until our home is ready in JANUARY 2018! We have a cat, so it’s not so easy. Please keep us posted as to how it’s going.
Wow thatās exciting! Renting feels very different and is freeing in many ways. Iāll keep you posted good luck
I feel your pain…Iāve moved 17 times but know the next one is to an independent living community. I often sit and ponder what will go with me next time!
It is so freeing to see things go after a while! All you need it the sweet people around you!
We have lived here for 14 years, longest of my adulthood. We’ve combined two homes, taken in our parents things and given away more than most people ever had! I love my home so much but know the next will bring new happinesses. I wish the same for you!
And oh, I just am recovering from a sinus infection so wear something with pockets for all those hankies!
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Feel better. Those sinus infections are brutal. Iām lucky to have avoided one this time but my nose and face are chapped from blowing!
Moving is indeed bittersweet. I wish you best in your new adventures and finding the perfect place to land after the rental. I do love having pictures and periodically āgo backā to my previous homes, but in time itās less heart rending except for the good memories. The new home (wherever it ends up being) will be home soon.
Feel better! Stress always gets me in these situations.
The stress is breaking me out too. Oh joy:) Iām anxious to hop in our trailer and escape.
I am just a few weeks behind you. My new build house is about 3 weeks off completion and I am dreading the huge upheaval. It is the need to make a decision about every single item that we own down to the last paper clip that overwhelms me. We have been in our temporary home now for two crowded years having left our large and beautiful farmhouse with our huge garden. That was a time of growing children and doing the homesteading thing, but the children are grown and we have decided to live in our rural city close to work with a small house and little garden. I think that it is important to be able to change houses to suit each stage of life and to give Thanks for what you had but to move on looking forward to a new stage.
I agree Melissa. Good luck! It sounds like a great choice.
My husband and I were in the Military so we moved fairly regularly and the novelty wore off pretty quickly. After living 10 years in Saudi Arabia (where again we moved compounds) we have finally settled into our home in Australia. Even though we have both been retired for several years, neither of us can be bothered packing up to go anywhere. Besides, we have fantastic neighbours and everything we need is within walking distance. Good luck with your new adventure and try some zinc tablets to ward off (and reduce severity) of a cold. I find it works really well.
P.S Don’t blame you for taking the chandeliers.
I, too, lived in Saudi a few years back now. It taught me that the things you need are really just family!
Hello fellow expats! I lived in the Middle East for three years, in a tiny home, in a compound. It was a great adventure and taught me I can live in a small space. When we returned to Canada we bought a smaller home than weāve lived in the past, but itās all we need – beautiful home, great neighbours, laid back community, all in a nice town by the sea. It taught us that things are just things. I lived without them for years, so purging was easy.
This is an adventure, Jennifer. Enjoy!
Iām wanting to live in a much smaller place but need to get rid of lots more to do it. I wish my husband felt the same. Iām working on him.
Iām 62 and two years ago we moved in to a home with our best friends. My husband is ill, needed to retire and focus on health. My friend and I have been best friends for 58 years. While I had to give up many things I treasured, they are just things. We are truly having the time of our life and all encouraging Jeff on his journey of health.
Just like fashion is a lot about what you do with the pieces you have. Home is all about who you share it with and how comfortable you make people feel when theyāre there.
Enjoy your new adventure!!!
Thatās an excellent observation Cathy!! It all about people and quality times
Feel better soon! Your home is lovely, and your new home will be, with your touches.
Hope you do continue your blogging, however!
I’ve been in my home for 34 years…..just “purged”a few more closets, a room.
I love it here!
Ah, lucky you. Thereās something wonderful about living in a home that long!
Change is never easy, your home is lovely and your next home will be lovely, too. Different for the next stage in your life but you will be home again. Changes are coming for me, also, within the next three years, I need to find another place to live for this stage in my life (I’m 62 and newly retired) but for now, I am spending time with my family and traveling, I love it! Your tips for outfits for my trip to Washington DC was perfect! Thank you so much and I hope you get over this head cold soon.
Iām looking forward to traveling more too! I want to do it while we are still physically agile.
I officially retired June 30 2013 but moved across the country from the Midwest to the beaches of NC a week before. Itās been the best five years of my life. Enjoy your next stage but donāt stop your blog I enjoy reading them.
I officially retired the exact same day you did, Jeri! I agree completely: the past 5 years have been the best of my life. All that hard work and saving did pay off. A tip for everyone: investigate the lifelong learning community, if there is one, at your local college. Itās a great source of new friends, adventures, and opportunities to explore new interests.
I retired the very same day that Susan and Jeri did We moved from NM to NC. I moved far too much stuff. Volunteering at the local Habitat For Humanity ReStore has encouraged me to continue to downsize. I take in a box of donations every week. Iāve lived the past 5 years and the freedom to do all the things I never had time for while working. Art classes, a flower garden and lots of knitting and reading.
That sounds so fun! Iām going to continue weeding out as we live here.
I am excited for you! When I left my dream home after a divorce I felt no more than a brief twinge too. That time had passed and I had fond memories but it was time to move on. Now 15 years later it is time to move on again. Unfortunately our market is slow and prices have dropped but when it sells I will be ready for another adventure. I wish you many exciting times ahead!
Good luck on your move Janet