Coping With a House Move to Another Area in Your Senior Years
As some of my readers will know we decided to move from the East Midlands to Brighton to be nearer our married siblings. Our daughter is having her first baby in mid-August which is our first grandchild and a bonus to us, as we had planned to move before we even knew she was pregnant.
My father passed away last October after spending 3 months in hospital 80 miles away from where we live at the moment. At the ripe age of 93, myself and my twin sister felt we could never leave Dad alone while in the hospital and worked out our itinerary for those 3 months. It was totally exhausting and we decided we could not put our children through what we had been through and so the best thing was to move closer to them.
It was a big decision to make as all our friends are here. We have lived in this house for over 30 years and have a bucket load of memories but we still felt the time was right.
Of course, moving further south meant a much smaller house but they say when you get older you should downsize. We eventually found some lovely new houses being built in a lovely village only 15 minutes from our daughter and set our heart on one of these. Getting both the selling and the buying of a new home at the same time was quite an ordeal but we have managed to get there in the end. This pretty little (half the size we have now) house is just so adorable it made me cry when we decided to buy it. And the best thing is that everything is new which is what I really wanted.
The move once we have exchanged (fingers crossed) should be in the next month so we have been busy deciding what pieces of large furniture we want and what we think will or won't fit. The whole process since the beginning of this year when we put our house on the market has been both therapeutic and also emotional. We would come across pictures that we had forgotten all about, baby items we have kept forever, letters from loved ones tucked away in a desk and an abundance of friends saying they will miss us.
We decided right from the beginning that we would have packers do it all for us as I would not be able to manage it but as we are moving into a smaller house it will be an easy move for the professionals.
Last week a good friend organised a lovely surprise lunch for me. There were 12 of us and yes my tears did fall when I opened the card from them all with vouchers in it for a garden centre. We are moving a long way from where we live to the south coast but I have told all my friends that I have done it many times on the train on my own (to go and see my daughter) and that it is a doddle. I just told them to always remember to take their stick as there really are some very kind people out there who will offer you a seat or help if you need it.
Even my Doctor was a tad emotional but she could not emphasize what an amazing thing we were doing and she wished some of her elderly patients could do the same as us. My pain consultant gave me the name of someone in Brighton he wants me to see as he does the same treatments as him. We decided to keep the same dentist as we will be popping over to see friends and can tie it in with that so I've no worries about who and where I go for my treatments.
The new house will be a doddle to keep clean, the small garden is adequate for us and the perfect size for hubby to look after. I have seen on the village's website that there are lots of clubs and other activities if we could join them but my priority my first grandchild due in a few months time so I think I will just relax until he/she arrives.
What has astounded us most is what you collect and just pop into a cupboard or in your garage and there it stays until probably your family have to deal with it like we did with Dads. We have not only downsized in our house size but we have also downsized in the bits we kept which are really just junk. We have both felt 'better' for sorting things out and I have already decided that when we settle into our new home that once a year I will go round my small home and throw anything away that is of no use to me. It is actually quite liberating.
It was a big decision to make as all our friends are here. We have lived in this house for over 30 years and have a bucket load of memories but we still felt the time was right.
Of course, moving further south meant a much smaller house but they say when you get older you should downsize. We eventually found some lovely new houses being built in a lovely village only 15 minutes from our daughter and set our heart on one of these. Getting both the selling and the buying of a new home at the same time was quite an ordeal but we have managed to get there in the end. This pretty little (half the size we have now) house is just so adorable it made me cry when we decided to buy it. And the best thing is that everything is new which is what I really wanted.
The move once we have exchanged (fingers crossed) should be in the next month so we have been busy deciding what pieces of large furniture we want and what we think will or won't fit. The whole process since the beginning of this year when we put our house on the market has been both therapeutic and also emotional. We would come across pictures that we had forgotten all about, baby items we have kept forever, letters from loved ones tucked away in a desk and an abundance of friends saying they will miss us.
We decided right from the beginning that we would have packers do it all for us as I would not be able to manage it but as we are moving into a smaller house it will be an easy move for the professionals.
Last week a good friend organised a lovely surprise lunch for me. There were 12 of us and yes my tears did fall when I opened the card from them all with vouchers in it for a garden centre. We are moving a long way from where we live to the south coast but I have told all my friends that I have done it many times on the train on my own (to go and see my daughter) and that it is a doddle. I just told them to always remember to take their stick as there really are some very kind people out there who will offer you a seat or help if you need it.
Even my Doctor was a tad emotional but she could not emphasize what an amazing thing we were doing and she wished some of her elderly patients could do the same as us. My pain consultant gave me the name of someone in Brighton he wants me to see as he does the same treatments as him. We decided to keep the same dentist as we will be popping over to see friends and can tie it in with that so I've no worries about who and where I go for my treatments.
The new house will be a doddle to keep clean, the small garden is adequate for us and the perfect size for hubby to look after. I have seen on the village's website that there are lots of clubs and other activities if we could join them but my priority my first grandchild due in a few months time so I think I will just relax until he/she arrives.
What has astounded us most is what you collect and just pop into a cupboard or in your garage and there it stays until probably your family have to deal with it like we did with Dads. We have not only downsized in our house size but we have also downsized in the bits we kept which are really just junk. We have both felt 'better' for sorting things out and I have already decided that when we settle into our new home that once a year I will go round my small home and throw anything away that is of no use to me. It is actually quite liberating.