Moving Our Parents
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Moving Our Parents: It’s a story many of us are starting to tell. Here’s Jill’s story.
A little over 2 years ago, I went north for spring break to help my parents leave their home of 40+ years and relocate to Wake Forest, NC – only 10 minutes from me in North Raleigh. I’ve always had a hunch, but now it’s confirmed: I am clearly their favorite child. We left Illinois in a two car / one u-haul caravan with the figurative sign on the window “NC or BUST”. It was a (very) emotional goodbye for them to leave the house that built our family, and it was equally as emotional for me to drive down the backside of a mountain as the white-knuckled captain of a loaded down 20-foot road hog with brakes that I can now smell through the air vents. Honestly … what the hell were we thinking? This move, this uprooting, this whole new life for them!?! And where the hell is the next runaway ramp FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!?!
My super-active-younger-than-they-actually-are parents had everything they needed in Illinois: some remaining family, familiarity and friends, and a great shop for my Dad to do his woodworking (and a place for my Mom to put him for their own collective sanity). But it was all getting to be just too much. The 5 acres of land, the snow, an older home, the grandkids in other states, the SNOW … so they decided that it was just time. The spring market was just getting rolling, so the timing was perfect. I was so proud of them for making this decision, and to help make the transition easier, they even had the perfect new house in mind (eerily similar to what was on the other side of that mountain, mind you). You know, something super simple: right downtown Wake Forest, a one story ranch with a basement, updated kitchen, dedicated room for a shop, walkable to town so they could stroll in for a beer at the brew pub, or grab lunch at a café [riiiight … like that exists.] Now I think they might actually be losing their minds. Maybe this move was timed better than I thought.
Flash forward to today. They are in the historic district of downtown Wake Forest, living in a new construction ranch with a basement, a great kitchen, a huge room for a wood shop, and they have wandered home from a street festival or two with their amazing new neighborhood friends. I can’t believe it – they actually sold their forever home for a new adventure!! Sounds like a lot of our parents, doesn’t it? Or maybe it needs to sound like this for them. I am here to say that it can be done, but be ready for the emotions and unknowns that go along with it. No story will be the same, and if it is, I am NOT driving your parent’s u-haul. But maybe since I have been through this already, I could help guide your plans and give some advice from experience. From festivals to cute cafés, local microbrew pubs to small town feels, Wake Forest turned out to be perfect for our family – both near and far. And if they keep adding walkable things like this for them to enjoy, we might have to take away the keys to my Dad’s “fun car”. He won’t need it anyway. If you are looking to Buy a Home in the Raleigh Triangle Area contact us today!