Where Is 2017 Taking Us?

So you all know by now that we sold our oversized house two days before Christmas and we’re now packing and purging our stuff. But what are our actual plans?

Some of you asked when we’re actually moving. Well, we finalize this sale on the evening of February 27. That’s when the new owners take possession of this home. That’s when we all (two-legged and four-legged) – along with all our crap stuff – have to be out of here.

We are not planning to move all our crap things out on that day. We’ll likely be doing that for two or three consecutive days prior to that. We’re undecided on the dates because February is such an unpredictable month. So instead of renting a truck too far in advance, we’ll watch the weather forecast around the third week of the month and select the best possible dates. And hope for the best.

Why are we moving? And what will our next home be like? We’re moving to downsize into a smaller place (single home, detached or semi-detached) that will be much more manageable in every which way. Our present home is way too big for us empty nesters. We are actually using only half of our house right now.

All of this most of my longtime blogging pals already know. But what no one knows is that back in late spring last year we decided that once our house sold we would leave our beautiful city of Kingston and settle down in a new area that is much closer to our families and all our longtime friends. We are going to be between the city of Ottawa (where my younger daughter lives and studies) and the city of Montreal (our hometown where everyone else we know lives). How close? It will take us anywhere from 40 – 60 minutes drive (one way) to visit any one of these beloved people. Right now it takes us two hours to go to Ottawa and three hours to go to Montreal (one way). And not only will we be closer to friends and siblings and parents, but we’ll be much closer to the two girls. I can’t tell you how excited I am about this. I’ll be able to see my beautiful daughters any time I want and I’m especially excited about being able to do this with my older one that I hardly see at all now! It is a 40 minute drive to her house from our new city. Can you say coffee and lunch and shopping dates galore? YIPPEE!

Oh, yeah, where are we moving to? We’re moving to Cornwall, Ontario. It’s a small city of about 46, 000 people (in Kingston there are about 123,000), so we’re downsizing in that way, too. But it has everything we need, especially a short distance to family and friends. It is very heartbreaking leaving this area that we adore but you just can’t beat what our new city has to offer, which is being close to the people we love most!

So we’re very excited about this move, which is coming soon!

(Incidentally, if any of you ever visit the city of Ottawa or the city of Montreal, I’ll be able to easily drive there and meet you for coffee. Just thought I'd mention it!)