The past three weeks have been a whirlwind. Many people assumed that because we are now “retired” we were just taking it easy and relaxing. Unfortunately, we haven’t really been able to do that. Waking up with no alarm has been the best part of it all, although we both still get up before 7 anyway. The nice part is starting out our day having breakfast together and talking about what needs to be done.
The “to-do” list was long and very daunting. But together we got through it. We were able to get together with some people we hadn’t yet had the chance to. Some people were surprised that we thought of the things that we were addressing. We made sure our phones and debit cards were Canada friendly, met with our insurance agent to be sure our house, vehicles and liability insurance was what we needed it to be. We met with our financial adviser and did our wills and put together our legacy folder for “just in case”. We’ve typed out a lease and instructions for taking care of our high maintenance house for our renters and were able to meet with them and go over it all.
Craig worked on the trailer and truck stuff and I did the seed, fertilizer, wood chips, cleaned the gutters, and stacked wood. We packed up personal things and put them in storage. The house was cleaned so our renters, who are also are friends, could move into a nice clean house.
As much as we’d love to say we just picked up and took off, that is not how we want to leave our home or our family.
I stopped in at my Grandpa’s this week to say goodbye. This is a really hard thing for me because my 91 and a half year old grandpa isn’t doing well. His heart, that has always been so full of love for us all, is weak and they cannot fix it. My Grandpa has always been on the go. He has traveled a lot and has had the chance to see amazing sights. But leaving now is tearing me up. I know he wants us to go, to go live our lives and see amazing sights like he did. It doesn’t make it easier. So to help him out with his sprinklers and get his cottage on Ford Lake open, even if he never makes it up there this year, was important to me.
What is really great is Craig and I continue to be on the same page. We’ve had to balance out the things we need to do to be ready to leave with the things our family needs us to do. That’s just what you do when you have amazing families like we do.
So here we are, a few days after we had originally thought we would leave, and a day after most people thought we had left. Leaving is exhausting and emotional. But all of the chores and lists are completed. We are ready to put the normal life behind us. We are packed up ready to go, we are finally on the road!
We are going to see amazing sights and make new friends and catch up with old ones somewhere on the road. We are going to embrace this goal that we have achieved and come back with memories that we will never forget. Thank you to all who have been so supportive and we hope you continue to send us notes, advice and stories of what is happening here at home.
So it’s not goodbye, it’s see ya later