ROAD TRIP to the Pacific Northwest...In Conclusion



 

In Conclusion

The main purpose of the journey was not to buy a house in Oregon. It wasn't to visit my family up in Western Canada. Instead, it was for one reason and one reason only. We knew that Justin's family was missing their dad/husband. He still had a couple of months to serve in the Middle East before returning home. His home was already void of his presence for over 4 months and that is a long time.

Kerry and I thought that by visiting them, we would be doing many things at one time, including helping them deal with Justin being gone; being there for them to go see football games or hand out candy on Halloween (things Justin would be doing if he were home). So this road trip to the Pacific Northwest wasn't a longtime planned vacation. It was more of a "Let's go and visit the kids," kind of sudden impulsive vacation. Sometimes those are the best kind.

Because it was such a long drive we decided to break it up and use Oregon (Kerry's brothers place) as a rest stop for both going up and returning. And of course, being so near the Canadian border we decided that a few days with my family in Canada was appropriate and long overdue. We ended up spending almost 10 days with Justin's clan - 10 wonderful family together bonding and loving days (except for the being sick part of course).

 

As we left McChord Air Force Base for the last time, as we headed south, we had no idea that we were going to buy a place in Oregon. We knew we were going to look at the house for sale across the street from John, but not out of interest in buying it. It was more a curiosity as to what one would get for their dollar in the Oregon real estate market.

We planned the extra travel days so we could be in Eagle Point (John's house) for June's birthday. John really wanted us to be there for the party. Why not? We were both retired so we could do whatever we wanted to do. We could spend a month on the road, if we had a mind to do so (3 weeks was long enough away from home, this time).

As we looked at the surrounding real estate market we started thinking about the amazing love that was flowing towards us, from all directions. It was over whelming! What if we moved here? How would that work? For every question we asked ourselves a dozen others would arise. What about our house in Tucson? What about our church family at New Life? What about Justin and Nick? Every question was weighed and considered. The only two issues that were difficult to consider was our boys and our church.

 

After much debate and consideration, we were resolved to the fact that as far as the boys and their families go, Nick was already living in Alabama and he wasn't going to be moving any time soon. Did we want to live in Alabama? Nope, too humid. Now for Justin. He was soon to retire, or at least that was his plan. There was also talk of his staying in for a little while longer because of the benefits. We knew that he wasn't interested in staying in the Tacoma area once he was retired, whenever that would be. So, as far as where he would plant his roots, we weren't sure where that would be.

There was talk about both Justin and Nick moving to Oklahoma City where there is a large family population (mostly on Nicks in-law side). Kerry lived in Oklahoma City before and said she would never live there again. I don't blame her...too humid in the summer and too icy in the winter. Then there was talk about Justin moving to Florida, where he would be closer to his brother in Alabama. Would we want to live in .Florida? That was the "all-important" question. Florida has a lot to offer but one thing it has that we do not have any interest in is extreme heat in the summer. We lived in Tucson for the past 14+ years and getting away from the heat was a positive thing about moving to Oregon. Add to the Florida heat the high humidity and what you have is a climate that would be uncomfortable for Kerry and me. At least in Tucson there is no humidity. Yes, living full time in Florida was out of the question.

This was when it hit me...the solution that served everyone's needs. If we sold the house in Tucson and moved to Jacksonville Oregon, we could stay in Oregon from March to December (more or less). Just before Christmas we could drive to Florida, stopping in Tucson along the way.  After spending a week or so in Tucson, visiting out church family and friends, we would continue our way east until we hit the warmth of the Florida beaches. We would be there for Christmas.

We would probably rent a small furnished apartment or maybe even buy a condo. With Nick only living a few hours away, we could spend January and February visiting both of our boys and their families. That works out to a month with each family, almost 4 times longer than we see them now.

The other benefit of this plan...I don't like the cold. I lived in the Pacific Northwest (Vancouver Island) before and really, I don't mind rain. But being born and raised in Montreal, getting as far away from the cold as I could would be a goal of mine during my entire life. Once Oregon starts getting colder in the winter, Kerry and I would simply close up the house and take off for a couple of months, until things started warming up in Oregon once again.

That was the answer- the missing puzzle piece. Now the idea of moving to Oregon was not so difficult. When we were told that our final offer was accepted, we were overflowing with joy. We immediately contacted our kids to let them know. Were they pleased? Well let me say this, they were less enthusiastic then we were. Most of them finally accepted the reality...all would have to adjust, including us.

Working with Judith (our Oregon  real estate agent) we had set up a complete house inspection. John agreed to show up for the final hour of the inspection. This way, the inspector could go over any issues he found with John. John would, in turn, report the details back to us. The inspector agreed with our opinion of the house (and John's as well) that the house was beautifully made with top end quality materials. There were a few issues that needed to be addressed and those were noted down in his final report to us. Now the real negotiations began.

It took some going back and forth before a final agreement was reached. She (the seller) would reduce her price and we would allow her to stay in the house for 2 months so she could take her time finding a new place to live. That worked out well for us because we would prefer the house not sit there empty. We also enjoyed a reduced purchase price...to help cover some of the things that needed to be repaired. 

On December 7th, exactly one month after we signed the papers with Judith so she could submit our initial offer on the house, a final agreement was reached, signed and filed. The house is ours and we will close on December 31st. We now have a house in Oregon.

 

We contacted a real estate agent in Tucson who came highly recommended by a friend of ours in church. She just sold her place and used this guy, a young go getter who uses modern techniques (like demographic analysis and market algorithms). We were impressed. He arranged to have a professional photographer come by and shoot a series of photo's for the listing. One day, when I went to get the mail, there was a for sale sign on our property. Strange!

So, as you can see, this was an amazing journey that took us down a path, one we never planned on taking. We not only drove 4040 miles in total, consuming 184 gallons of gas, we also veered into the unknown, a path that is taking us to an entirely new chapter. We will soon be loaded up and on the move to the Pacific Northwest, on one last road trip, for now.

I want to thank all of you who have been following my BLOG. My goal - to keep writing, telling stories, bringing my world into yours.

 

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28)

 

Oh, I almost forgot...

Do you remember when we were driving north, at the beginning of our vacation, when we contemplated stopping in Redding California to visit Adrienne and Nick (Kerry's cousins)? Then, as we headed south at the end of the trip we wished we had more time so we could stop in Redding for a brief visit. Well, you will never guess who called us on our second day home. That's right, Nick and Adrienne. They were travelling in their RV and wanted to stop by in Tucson for a visit. They parked their rig out front and for the next couple of days we were able to share some quality time together.

Now, how weird s that?

And one last thought...Sorry Pat that Ontario was not on the agenda, this time. But you never know when that day will come, when there will be a knock at your door. At that point there will be no hiding, no turning back, no running away.  

Hugs from ours to yours...