Pictures of Our new home

before the road.....

Tonight was our last dinner with both girls. The weather was so perfect we cooked on the grill and ate outside. Christina leaves tomorrow to head home to Tennessee, after staying with us for more than a month. She was very easy to have here, even while we were showing the house- and boy did we show it a lot in the last few months. Jess leaves for Boston on Sunday for a week. During that week, we have a lot to get done. although the appraisal hasn't come through yet, we are going to have to start proceeding as if it will. We need the next two days of full work to get a good start on sorting and packing stuff. Paul picked up the truck yesterday- an F350 Dually- very nice- but HUGE!! I haven't driven it yet. Jess would love to drive it...hmmmmmm. Today he got the hitch which turned out to be a bigger decision than we thought. we were thinking to pick up a used one for about $300. Well, no, that didn't work out. Turns out the cheap ones have no suspension, so the 5th wheel rattles down the road. Since we'll be towing our "home" and we have no experience doing it, we decided to cough up the money for an air ride hitch- they are supposed to make towing much easier. A lot of money, but peace of mind and lower stress levels are worth it. Sometime in the next week or so we will pick up the Everest. Timing is tricky- we can't get it too soon, but we have things we need to do to it before we leave, so we'll need it here for a week or so. Thats the fun part- first we have to get through some more work stuff...........

before the road.....

Ok, so I got the idea of blogging from Michele, who suggested it so she and others could follow our travels throughout the U.S. Today we had the home inspection, which went surprisingly well. We are both waiting for the other shoe to drop, I think. We also received the money for the boat, which really is a bittersweet thing. I guess I have to keep reminding myself that keeping the boat will not serve our purpose and won't bring back boating like it was in MA. IF everything goes according to plan, we should close on the house on July 21st. Paul is very busy selling things through Ebay and Craigslist. If the appraisal goes well, we will really have to start getting it in gear. I feel like I am at the start of a race, crouched in position, waiting for the gun to go off. we can't do too much until the house appraises for the selling price, at which point our sale has a better chance of going through- but if that happens, we have exactly 4 weeks to pack up and get out. We have been getting as ready as possible for the last few months, but there is a lot that has to wait. We already had and lost one buyer, so we don't want to assume anything. In this area of the country, the house isn't sold until after it closes, for sure. People lose their jobs at the drop of a hat around here it seems. We lost the last buyer because they lost THEIR buyer- a school teacher who got laid off at the end of the school year, 5 days before closing on her first condo. She eventually got her job back but our deal fell through in the meantime. This whole thing started due to Paul losing his job with Ford, in February. He was one of the lucky ones who actually got a retirement package. Most people don't. Living in the Detroit area is extremely depressing right now. So many people are struggling- willing to work hard, but there are no jobs, no matter how willing you are. As Paul looked for work around here, and further south, it quickly became apparent that there wasn't much out there for him. In April We went out to California to visit friends, and while there, casually looked at some 5th wheels, thinking in terms of retirement in a few years. Soon after we got home, after looking at our finances, life situation and a lot of other factors(we even took a whirlwind trip to SC to see if we would like it there, if he could find a job) , we decided that we had been given an opportunity, and if we let it pass by, we would be sitting on the sidelines of life rather than living it. After weighing the pros and cons, we decided that IF we could sell everything (the boat and the house, basically) that we would be able to spend a year (or so) travelling the country, exploring anyplace that sparks an interest. A week later the house went on the market. That was April, this is June. Not too bad for Detroit. We lost a lot of equity, but we really feel that this is the right choice for us right now. We take turns feeling anxiety, Paul and I, and it seems like whenever I am calm, he is frazzled and vice versa. Thats a good thing, I guess. Two frazzled people would be too much in one house. Just ask Jess. On the rare occasion Paul and I are both stressed at the same time, she probably feels it the most (sorry sweetie). As usual, she is a trooper and understands why we want to do this. It wouldn't be her choice to do right now, but she has her own things going on, and has really been supportive of our decision to take advantage of this opportunity. More later...................