A bit over one month ago, Mary and I moved into our new home, and it has been quite an adventure. We hadn't moved for quite a while - we lived in our previous house for 12 years (to the day!), and the lifestyle changes were huge.
We went from a 5600 sq.ft. 2-story home on a 2 acre lakefront lot to a brand new ranch-style home less than half that size on a 10,000 sq.ft. lot, so there was a lot of mental and physical adjustment necessary. But it was a very good move that made a lot of sense in many ways.
Two people living in a 5600 sq.ft. home was insane; even with the dogs, we only really used about half the house for our living space. The stairs were putting a lot of stress on my garbage knees, and moving hopefully gave me a bit more time before the inevitable replacement surgery - I'm just not ready yet. And fortuitous, although unanticipated, market conditions have left us in a much better financial situation.
There have been some interesting surprises along the way. Everything is a lot more expensive than it was 12 years ago (Duh!), like movers, carpentry and especially landscaping. And we hadn't realized it, but living with HVAC systems and appliances a decade and a half old had left us unaware of some technological advances. We spent a very confused evening early on trying to poach some salmon in our broiler, completely unaware that newer ovens required the oven door to be closed for the broiler unit to heat up. And I'm still puzzling over that barely perceptible micro-second pause between hitting the light switch and having the overhead lights come on (is the speed of light slower in new construction?).
One of the biggest adjustments is the necessity of dealing with less storage space. In the old house, we never had to worry about where to put anything - there was always space in the storage rooms, an unused closet or the oversized 3-car garage. So our space planning skills were a bit rusty and much thought had to go into what was making the trip with the rest of the team and what was donated, sold or jettisoned. And after we moved in, we had to adjust a variety of routines - especially kitchen and bathroom ones - to accommodate different work flows. We're still working on those. And trying to remember what drawer we put stuff in.
But other than the basement and garage - current dumping grounds for the deferred remaining difficult decisions - we're about 95% there and taking a break for a couple of weeks to just enjoy being here.
We haven't had time to think much about our old home yet, and it will take a while to put that into a meaningful perspective. We spent 12 very happy years there and have more great memories than we could ever count. We miss the lake and the wildlife, fishing and kayaking at sunset, awakening to gorgeous sunrises, and the constant awe at our luck of being able to live in a home like that. But for now, we need to focus on the delights of our new home and look forward to our new lives here.
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the impact of the move on our dogs Lulu, Grover and Mario, and our kitty Sheldon. It was stressful and confusing for the dogs, beginning with the arrival of moving boxes and the disappearance of the sofas, sent out to be reupholstered. Extra care and attention during the weeks of packing kept them calm (as did the CBD oil, now available in all 50 states). They spent time at their favorite kennel during the actual move and the couple of chaotic first days in the house. Once they arrived, the presence of all of our things helped them get settled, and along with a lot more care and attention, they're now pretty much into new routines and seem happy.
Sheldon was a different story. From the arrival of the first cardboard boxes, he's been in Cat Disneyland. Here at the new house, he hasn't stopped purring and has now tested every flat surface in the house for it's napping potential. He has even slacked off a bit on tormenting Mario, whom he has always treated as prey. He's a very happy cat, but he'd be up for doing it all again tomorrow.
And on a final note, we have refreshed our awareness of, and empathy for, what our clients are experiencing every time they buy or sell a home. And we can offer them some current useful advice about the planning tools, packing techniques and other resources we used to make our move a success. I hope those remain relevant for a while - we're not doing this again anytime soon.
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