It’s been a year and several days since we did it. The day David and I packed up a large moving truck, giant storage pod and 35 years of memories and moved out of our cozy 3-bed, 1-bath Cranston, Rhode Island, home where we raised our three daughters. As our youngest grandson swept the final dust away to get ready for the new owners, we all shed a few tears and fondly reminisced. In retrospect, I wish I had written something about the experience of letting go of the past and looking forward to the future, but packing and moving proved to be a daunting task, one which left no time for anything but sore muscles and exhaustion.
Why the move? It’s a long story and one for another blog. Suffice it to say that due to a favorable seller's market, the time was right. It all happened fast and efficiently in a whirlwind of paperwork and timing logistics. With the help of Sally, our ever-patient and professional agent, we found a buyer for our Cranston home and a perfect new one in record time, closing on both homes the same day - November 12, 2021, and meeting David’s ambitious goal of getting us in our new digs by Thanksgiving.
Our new home - The one-year anniversary.
Downsizing, you ask?
Most home owners in their golden years look to downsizing. Not us. We were retired, but not. Our new home wish list included a 2-car garage, a home office for me, a music studio/office with separate walk-in for him, a decent size yard, some privacy from the neighbors, and one-story living. Most of all, we wanted to maintain a tradition of family gatherings. A retirement condo simply wouldn’t do. With the exception of the one-level living part, we found the home we were searching for, with some sweet bonus items thrown in, like central air, in-ground sprinklers, and a full security system. And, yes, we wound up upsizing - from 1,700 square feet to over 2,500.
About that one-level living - almost, but not quite. The garage, driveway, walkout studio, and laundry room are all on the lower level, requiring a dozen steps to reach the main level. We look at it as exercise. Our family wonders where the handicapped ramp will go. Good point, but no worries. We already have a designated spot for an elevator.
You moved to … Woonsocket?🤔
When we told people that we were relocating 30 minutes north to the city of Woonsocket, RI, reactions ranged from “really? ... why?" to "oh" followed by a confused moment of silence. You see, compared to our former city of Cranston, Woonsocket is low on the list of desirable places to live. In defense of our choice of homestead, we simply got more bang for our buck here than if the house sat in some other “nicer” part of the state. Best of all, we're 2 minutes from the Massachusetts border and closer to the grandkids by 20 minutes.
Besides, we live in the fashionable “North End“, a neighborhood of stately old historic tudors, mediterranean and colonial style homes dating back to the mid-1800s for the city’s well-to-do bankers and mill owners. Our particular street is a mix of well-maintained ranches, colonials and Capes. Woonsocket is an old mill city and, as such, a river runs through it, namely, the mighty Blackstone - as does a railroad (I can hear the seasonal “Polar Express” train whistle as I write this). In fact, the term “can’t get there from here” takes on new meaning in these parts. GPS will take a driver one of 50 ways. It’s also a city of hills. We live Uptown - literally. If I want to ride the bike path down by the river, it’s a heluva a climb back up. The fact is, there is a lot to love about Woonsocket: diversity, architecture, and it’s mill history. It's got the Stadium Theater, for live performances and a great Autumnfest. And churches. I think there is a house of worship on every corner, representing every denomination of every size, ranging from simple to elegant. The hills aside, our neighborhood is very walkable, with paved sidewalks, friendly people, lots of dog walkers and a lovely park and playground in walking distance to keep the grandsons busy when they visit .
It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a …. turkey vulture!
As we sat at the kitchen table the morning after we moved in, we looked out the window and saw a sky full of huge gliding black birds. I immediately retrieved my binoculars to get a better look. At first, I thought they were hawks, but a Google search of big black birds revealed that they were, in fact, turkey vultures and that the North End was their favorite hangout from fall through spring. Once I figured out that these circling raptors weren’t out to murder us, I decided we could share the neighborhood peacefully. Admittedly, though, they are ugly things with a fondness for feasting on roadkill, and when they’re not soaring overhead, you can usually find them digesting their meals on the tallest of roof, chimney or tree tops.
A Mid-Century Marvel - Far Out!
Our new home is one of the newer ones that surround us - a sprawling custom ranch built for a lawyer in 1960, as illustrated by the fascinating blue prints left by the previous owners. It has many blasts to the past that you’d find in a 60’s TV sitcom: sunken living room, pocket doors, swinging kitchen/dining door, crystal chandeliers, and a really cool foyer adorned with a “screen” - a kind of groovy decorative room divider.
A couple of hidden treasures surprised us. What appeared to be cabinets of some sort on either side of the family room fireplace turned out to be a built in bar and an entertainment center complete with built-in wall speakers. These spaces aren't terribly functional for their intended purpose in this day and age of flat screen TVs, but they do make for useful DVD storage and conversation.
Even the wall-to-wall carpet throughout the house has grown on me (a Roomba is high on my Christmas wish list!), and the family room wood paneled “man-cave” vibe isn’t so terrible.
A year of “firsts”.
First Thanksgiving. After the move, we had about a week and a half to unpack the roaster, dishes and serving ware. We have hosted Thanksgiving for our families for many years, and we decided that this year would be no different. I'm happy to report that Turkey Day was a success, and without the need for paper plates.
First Snowfall. Who doesn’t love a beautiful sparkling white snow scene. The morning sunrise beaming over the snowy white trees was picture perfect. I’m not a winter sports person, but how I love a good wintery scene. Our first winter turned out to be a particular harsh one, and the snowblower we bought from the previous owners came in very handy for our massive driveway.
First Easter. The tulips and daffodils were out in full bloom, and the family came over for our traditional ham and cheesy potato dinner. The highlight, of course, was an Easter egg hunt for the grandkids. Even in a yard of this size, it didn't take them long to find the eggs and hidden treats.
First Christmas. How do you fill a 2,500 square foot house with decorations meant for 1,500 square feet? Buy more, of course! One tree wouldn’t do. We felt our grand foyer deserved it’s own tree, and a sunken living room with a really high ceiling requires a tall tree so it doesn’t look lost. Only an 8-footer from the local lot would do. With the baby grand as the centerpiece, we found abundant space for holiday gatherings and room to display my vast collection of Byers Carolers.
Outdoor holiday lights had adorned our Cranston home for the past 35 years, so last Christmas we decided we would continue the tradition. Our 2021 display was simple and a bit on the skimpy side, but this year 2022 we have expanded it with a group of snowmen and an angel that we dug out of storage. David would like nothing better than to add some gaudy inflatables, but I nixed the idea, preferring a more subtle approach to decorating.
Our first Christmas in the new house would not be complete without a nod to the old one. Our best gift was an artist's rendition of our former Cranston residence that we had left only a month before. The artist, Erin Grocki, captured the essence of home and family down to every last detail in the back door, patio and landscaping. This heartfelt gift, given to us by our daughter Kristin and family, brought me to happy tears and evoked a lot of memories in all of us. Simply beautiful!
Spring open house. It took months to unpack and really settle in, just in time to show off the new house to a few invited friends, family, colleagues, and even a couple of new neighbors. We had a great turnout, and the house proved to be perfect for comfortably entertaining a large crowd. It might even become an annual tradition.
Halloween: Not wanting to be the party-poopers on the street, we did a little decorating for the occasion. We're glad we did. The North End, come to find out, is a major destination for Trick or Treaters. This past Halloween brought car loads of kids to our streets - hundreds of them - from all over. It was all great fun, but coming from a Cranston neighborhood with zero little goblins at our door over the years, we were ill-prepared for this kind of crowd, running out of candy way too soon. Next year, we’ll be sure to stock up.
Things we love.
The baby grand piano. The previous owners had this gorgeous instrument occupying a corner of the sunken living room. Rather than undergo the hassle of moving or selling it, they made us an offer we couldn’t refuse, and we were more than happy to take it off their hands and make it our own.
The master bedroom. My personal favorite thing in this house would be our bedroom, a huge, comfy space, which we immediately filled with new furniture including an adjustable king bed. The his-and-her huge closets were a big seller as was the 2nd bath off the bedroom, a retro relic which has turned into my own personal bath due to its layout more suited for little people. We have a plan in the works to re-imagine this bath into something roomy that works for both of us, but I'm in no rush to lose my own personal powder room.
The Landscaping. One thing I did not inherit from my Dad was his green thumb and love of gardening. I really wish he was here to advise me about the many hedges, shrubs, trees and flowers that adorn the yard, bloom from spring to fall, and provide natural barriers between us and the neighbors. I treasure my back yard privacy, and thanks to the second lot we own, we have it. I just hope all these great plants come back next year and that I didn’t kill them all.
Breakfast Nook. Every kitchen I’ve ever lived with since I was a kid has been small, the kind with little counter space, few cupboards and a table squeezed in the middle of it all, where everyone got in each other’s way. I’m thrilled to say that I finally have a kitchen with a cooking area that is command central - everything laid out in a convenient U-Shape. Best of all, the table has its own dining nook, so no one gets in my way during meal prep.
Did I mention wine storage? I’ll drink to that! I’m not a wine collector but I always like to have a few varieties on hand for company - and myself, as I am the wine drinker in the house. I’ve always envied those who had a place for their bottles and every bottle in its place. Our cupboard under the stairs is a real honest-to-goodness wine closet with enough room to store around 80 bottles, give or take. I doubt we will ever come close to filling it, but thanks to our open house, we had a decent number of bottles gifted to us. As expected, we're consuming bottles quicker than replacing them.
More storage galore for the wanted and unwanted. It’s funny how when the kids were young and we needed the storage, we didn’t have it; now that it’s just the two of us, we have more storage space than we know what to do with, though ask us in 10 years and it may be a different story. Not only do we have the kitchen cupboard and counter space I always dreamed of, but each of the three bedrooms has good-size closets and the basement is huge, with plenty of room for storing all the stuff (or mess) that the kids will inherit some day.
Like, this one - my mom's antique sewing machine that my husband thought would look real hip on display somewhere in the house. It's collecting dust in the basement if anyone wants it, along with my old dining hutch no one wanted and I couldn't bear to trash. The one thing I learned in this move is that no one wants your old brown furniture.
A few improvements …
Our new home was in immaculate move-in condition and very well maintained. Still, a few updates were in order, including a carpet for David's office to replace the old linoleum and an update to the old 60’s era electrical breaker panels deemed unsafe by the home inspector. Then there was a repair to the existing lawn sprinkler system. After all, what good is a non-working irrigation system. It wasn’t a necessity, but sure would be nice to have, we thought, since it was there. We did eventually get it up and running. In fact, we just got the bill for all that summertime watering, and the jury is out as to whether they’ll be a second season of lawn irrigation.
Office/Studio Window. David liked it, but I couldn't understand how he could have a big old drafty window in his office that didn't open. I contacted our former neighbor and window installer, Doug, who ordered and installed a shiny new one that actually opens and keeps out the cold.
We are now a 2 1/2 bath home! Perhaps the most urgent improvement was the addition of an itty bitty half bath in the basement, so those of us with tired old bladders can avoid having to make the mad dash to the upstairs bath. I fondly call it the “water closet”. Because that’s what it was before we added the plumbing - a coat closet.
Fireplace. One item on our list that we have yet to get to is the fireplace. The chimney needs a liner before we can burn anything in the stove. That is the one thing that I do miss from the Cranston house. The wood burning fireplace insert and those warm, toasty nights by the fire. This job is on the list for next spring, with a goal of having a fire going next Christmas. In the meantime, it makes a great show piece, though while this is a beautiful old stove, we'd like to replace it with one with a glass door for so that we can see the flames.
Awnings. When we first viewed the house over a year ago, I snickered at the worn aqua blue fabric awnings hanging over the two large front bow windows. How old-fashioned and outdated. By the time we moved in, the owners had removed them for the season and placed them in their dedicated storage space in the basement. The house looked naked without them. We gave it some thought and decided to have them re-hung in the spring. After all, there must have been good reason as to why the previous owners would go to the trouble of hanging and removing awnings each season for so many years. We now know. The front of the houses faces southwest and gets full sun for most of the day. They proved to be a welcome respite from the heat of the mid-day blaring sun. In fact, we found them to be a perfect match to the retro theme, and we're having new ones custom made for next season.
Looking forward.
A year and a half ago, we never dreamed we would move. The thought of leaving our Cranston home and setting roots down somewhere else was never on our minds. Ok - maybe once for about 5 minutes, we wondered about Florida. In all reality, we figured we would spend the rest of our days in the house where we brought up our family. Plus, it was a year of COVID, resulting in a number of life changes for everyone. Who would want to tack on a big uprooting on top of that. But here we are, and we don't regret it one bit. In the end, the entire moving process was stressful, chaotic and exhausting, and to be honest, I would never, ever want to do it again. But it was also incredibly exciting, fulfilling and rewarding. We're in a good semi-retired place, and we look forward to what the next years in this new chapter will bring.
Be sure to read my other thoughts on life: Life Reflections
~ Jan