steve and i have talked about potentially moving (a close-by town; no job changes, etc.!) since we have been married. we have weighed the pros and cons and deliberated about the kids and schools and finances and the real estate market and when the right time was… and we just never took the plunge for one reason or another. until this last spring. we finally decided to, and had a spring full of open houses and texts and emails with our realtor, and showings and cleaning our own house for those, and really talking to the kids to make sure they were on board, and checking for new houses on the web every fifteen seconds, and putting offers on houses to only have them fall through because more offers came in that weren’t contingent, and then an offer on our own house, and then selling it and deciding on a closing date whether or not we had something to move into, and having a back up plan of a friends’ home in case we didn’t find anything. and, if you’ve moved, you get it. a lot of ups and downs, moments of laying awake in the middle of the night wondering if you’re doing the right thing or if it’s all a big mistake, and then the moment when it’s too late to turn back, the offer has been made and accepted and then you really worry if you should be doing this.
it was a stress-filled spring.
i mostly kept my head on straight, remembering that a house is just a house and all these people that have made it a home were coming with me to the next one. but there were some moments where i walked around and thought, “i’m really going to miss these walls.” this is the house i began babysitting for the hunt kids, where the hunt kids became my kids. where we were married by the justice of the peace a few days before our wedding, where we said goodbye to our first yellow lab. where we have had wicked fights, and learned to be married, and learned to make up. where i really learned to cook for the first time and where we celebrated christmas. where i found out i was pregnant for the first time, and then that i wasn’t a few days later, and then where i found out i was pregnant again, and where we brought parker home. this one time i began packing up parker’s room and i was listening to music at the same time. van morrison’s queen of the slipstream came on and i just lost it. i haven’t cried about the move since. i know i will cry when i drive away from this house for the last time though. we all will.
after a lot of searching (every sunday for weeks was spent going to open houses) we finally came upon one that seemed like a big secret that no one else had discovered yet. it was beautiful, a lot smaller than our house (by almost half, but downsizing was a part of our goal.), and seemed nearly perfect all around. steve and i went to lunch afterwards and weighed the pros and cons. do we or don’t we? is it more than we want to spend? can we? is it a good investment? mind you, we were coming upon our own closing date in a short four weeks and the market wasn’t showing us a lot of new houses in our price range. after sleeping on it, we decided to go ahead, make our offer, and hope everything worked out. that was a few weeks ago. so far, it looks like it is working out. i’m afraid to jinx it until we hand over the keys to this house and walk away from it for the last time. but, i’m whispering when i say this, we’re really happy. we’re really tired, but we’re really happy.
i’d be remiss to not mention steve and how incredibly motivated he is. let’s just say if you’re moving, he is the guy you want on your team. the man does not stop. he works from morning to night taking breaks only when i force a plate of food and a glass of water in front of his face. he is the hardest working person i know (and william, bless him, is right by his side most of the time) and i couldn’t be more impressed. he is the man. now i just need some of his non-procrastinating ways to rub off on me…
please send us your good vibes, that all continues moving smoothly as we near our move out date. i’m well aware that things can simply fall through and after all this working and hoping and praying, it’d be pretty sad for that to happen. we’re ready for our next adventure and to make another house a home.
Ahh! Good luck!! Selling/Buying/Moving can be so stressful!! Hope everything continues to go smoothly for y'all!
it can be! we are really lucky, so far things seem to be moving smoothly. hoping it continues that way!
Best wishes on your move! Sounds like some great things are on the horizon for you guys. Looking forward to hearing more about downsizing & how you are accomplishing that with all the stuff in a house. 🙂
thanks so much shay! steve and i are serious purgers already… so we're fairly light on "stuff" — it was just a few pieces of furniture that we didn't LOVE that we ended up either donating, giving to family, or selling at a yard sale / craigslist. we're both looking forward to even less stuff and less cleaning!!
ahhh, good luck. I so feel your pain.
We sold our house and found/bought our new house this past Fall and it was SO STRESSFUL. We ended up having to lease our old home from the new buyer for a month until we could close on the new house – we were very lucky the new buyer let us lease back to give us some more time so we wouldn't have to move twice! So many things can go wrong – but I'm hoping for the best for you.
Being in our new home (for 8 months already) is the greatest thing ever, and I realize all of the stress was completely and totally worth it! and it's totally fun being in a new town and joining a new community!
seriously… so many ups and downs. so glad you're in your new home and happy, allie!
our moving truck comes monday! with two kids under 5 here it's been an exhausting, terrifying, overwhelming, awesome process. we'll be in newburyport in our forever (fingers crossed) home soon. i wish you tons of luck & best wishes!
good luck to you erin!!!! seriously – it's hard to feel like you're accomplishing anything when you're always playing interference with a toddler. parker has watched more cars and tangled in the past few months than i care to admit :-
Killer opening photo
oh you. thanks girl.
Good luck and all the best wishes for you I got a bit emotional reading your post. For me it was more than "just a house" too, it was like a song or a special smell I connected with memories. It was good and painful – leaving some of them behind (not really, but in some ways) but I loved the fresh start and I hope everything goes just the way you wish it to be for you all.
Sending you the good juju mama. I have a feeling all will work out 🙂
How fun and exciting to be embarking on a new adventure with your people! Sending good vibes your way for all to work out the way it's supposed to!
Good vibes all the way! Wishing you all the best as you settle into your new home.
We just moved too, in April to the next town over for the schools. We went back and forth for years too and my kids are probably a bit on the older side to be changing schools (4th grade and 8th grade), but in the long run, we feel it was best. But oh man, I feel your stress. It was touch and go there for a while. Also, because the town is very desirable, the home we could afford needs a ton of work, unlike the new construction we came from. It has been a total adjustment, but we are happy too. Good luck!
i know. a lot of what you're saying i totally resonate with. william and lindsey will be going to a new school, but for william it's the first year of high school so we felt like it was a good time to do it, if we were going to (he is much more sensitive to change than his sister is!). the older boys love the house too, even though they probably won't be spending a whole lot of time at it!
Good luck with everything! The stress will be worth it. We've been in our Chicago condo for six years, but now that we have a baby we're starting to think about our next move. I'm nervous about the whole process! Buying your first place is easy, when you're leaving a rental behind. But now, to sell and buy and make it all work sounds pretty stressful!
I've loved your blog from afar- this is my first time commenting, so first I just want to say I love your sweet family! Every move is tough- I sometimes feel like I'm abandoning those memories. I just moved, so I feel your pain! I, however, only moved myself (1 bedroom!). Can't imagine the stress involved in moving a whole house, family, etc. Good luck to you, and I can't wait to see the new space!! Best wishes!
thank you so much!!
So exciting! And stressful! I'll cross my fingers for a smooth move for you, and best wishes in your new home!
Good luck with everything! We have secretly also been looking at homes in a nearby town and have made several offers where our contingent offer has been rejected. Just so stressful. You give me hope that it will work out!
don't give up. there were many days where i was sure we weren't going to find anything and would have to take ours off the market. hang in there.
coming from someone who is moving to london in less than a week… YES to everything you just wrote. so much love and luck to you as you guys make this new move!! xo
Praying for the best for you!
Country Girl's Daybook
Wow! Just reading this reminds me how much you have on your plate!! Your incredible lady!! Here is to wishing you an incredibly smooth move and a lovely transition to a new home filled with exciting new memories to come!!
🙂 Rebecca
Bridget, I would be curious to know why you are downsizing. We are in the process of buying a big old house, and I am wondering if we will regret having so much house. On the other hand, I have three small boys and a very long winter…space can be very nice!
that's a really good question — seeing as we still have a large family, i'm sure the downsizing bit is a little confusing! our current house is really quite big, bigger than we need (and, really, bigger than we've ever needed even with all of us home.) so even though we're cutting square footage down significantly, it's still more than enough to hold all of us and really comfortably. we've sort of mapped out/talked with the kids about who will go where, including nathaniel and jordan when they're home for breaks and such, and everyone's really happy with what we've come up with! and, really, both steve and i have sort of wanted to just live with less? less cleaning, less stuff, less to leave behind if we travel, less to furnish, less to heat in the winter (the utility bills!!). with that said, the big old house you're in the process of buying is probably also going to be fabulous. there are huge advantages to both big and small. i know there will be times where i will miss the space (namely, the winter, like you mentioned!). there is a really good sized yard here, and a deck (more useable outdoor living space than we have now), so i imagine that being a real extension of our home that we'll end up utilizing at least two to three seasons (save the dead of winter, you know.). this house has more of an open floor plan so i think it'll end up feeling just as spacious in some ways.
but… i could be eating my words since you never really know until you're living in a place for a while. you will probably come to love your home too (though, at times, not the utility bills!!).
and good luck to you too!
well congratulations! i have my fingers (and toes) crossed for you! we just moved into our new place 14 weeks ago and from someone on the other side i don't envy you. it's nice to be settled and done. before you know it you'll be here too. 😉
can't wait to be in the settled phase. can. not. wait. and a belated congrats to you!
I can't wait to be able to get into a home of our own. My husband just graduated and we'll be looking to buy in the next year or two. Tonight, we went and bought a really nice, expensive bed. After we bought it I cried, "I cannot believe we just paid that much for a BED!!!!!???" My husband was like, "Wait until you see the price tag on our first home purchase." I am so scared about that, but so excited!! I'm sure you will love your new place, especially since it will be the place you have picked together! Best of luck.
Thinking of you and rooting for you and the whole fam as you wrap up at your current home with all its familiar, cherished memories and are preparing to step into the new, which will also fill up with beautiful, precious memories. Loved your wisdom in the comment about how all the things that make your home beloved are coming with you. So true. And yet bittersweet, too, to leave that first home behind.
As far as downsizing, my husband and I live with our sweet four-year-old in a condo in Chicago; basically a one-bedroom (the huz uses one bedroom as his office). We've never discussed moving; though it's challenging storage-wise, the space feels good to us. I love being able to hear and "be with" each other wherever we are in the condo. The fact that you guys are downsizing AND have an open floor plan? Even better!
Sending you all my best thoughts! And kudos on moving in early summer — think of all the weeks and months ahead to rock your new outdoor space! Hurrah!
It took me a little longer in finding a good apartment than the real estate management company originally stated but they finally found me one.
Palos Verdes real estate inspection
Good luck!! Hope it all works out
this is the story of our life right now, too. excited to see how things pan out for you guys! sending good vibes!
Thanks for your sweet reply! I hear you on less cleaning, lower utility bills. I hope it feels like home quickly and easily.
Sending good vibes to you guys!
Yea! Sounds like a fun adventure! 😉
Gah! As someone who moved across country last year and then moved again two weeks ago, I give you a huge cyber hug and hope all goes well. Congrats on a new place!
OK! I need a moving update! We are in a similar situation over here where we want to move to a nearby community but nobody will accept a contingent offer so we got adventurous and decided to list our house. THEN, hours before it was going to hit the market I completely broke down. All sense of adventure gone and visions of homelessness flashing through my head. There is a sale sign in our lawn but I delayed the listing a week. I saw on Insta that you are bouncing around for a day or two while odds and ends get sorted out. Any advice? How did you do it?? — Melissa