The Difference a Year Makes

Just over a year ago the Coffee Queen and I put our Saint Paul, MN house on the market.  We had an offer a week later.  Less than two months after that we left Minnesota and headed south.

Sold! Farewell, Minnesota!

A few weeks ago we moved into our new house in Atlantic Beach, FL.  We hadn't planned on buying a house here so soon, but when we saw this cute little house (just renovated) on Zillow we thought, "Hey, what not take a look?"  I have now learned there is no such thing as "just looking" at houses.  We bought the house.  The first (and only) house we looked at.  We're still unpacking and settling in, but we're loving this house.  (And we have real water pressure in the showers.  Never underestimate the importance of good water pressure.)

New house! (Someone's a little excited)

I still can't quite believe that in less than a year we sold a house, moved cross country, and now are living a mile and a half from the beach.  The Coffee Queen has settled into her job (which she loves), and the Little Scoot thrived at his preschool this past year and is super excited for kindergarten (sorry, Saint Paul, we've better schools here, too).

Which all goes to show, don't stay where you are, don't not make a change just because you can't see where the road will take you.  Selling our Saint Paul house was hard after so many great years there, but by letting go of it we've found something new that's great, too (did I mention it's a mile and a half from the beach?).  And that's what I'm learning from this adventure: to let go of the safe and familiar in order to embrace something new.  Scary?  Yes.  Worth it?  Yes.

Now if you'll excuse me, I think I hear the ocean calling my name.

This is why we moved here

Jacksonville in Pictures

Jacksonville Beach

Beach by bicycle

Some more beach time

The view from our patio.  Palm tree included.

San Marco square

Jacksonville skyline, note the dolphin swimming by

Settling in

Last week we officially moved into our townhouse in Atlantic Beach!  The day after Labor Day the moving trailer arrived and movers came to unload it all.  Aside from the fact we have WAY too much stuff (and we gave away so much before we left!), it's nice to have our things back.  It was like Christmas for the Little Scoot - all his toys, books, and stuffed animals were finally back!

Moving in: How do we STILL have so much stuff???

So we've spent the last week and a half unpacking, as well as taking care of little details like driver's licenses.  And seeing this morning that Saint Paul woke up to temperatures in the 40s, I have to say, I'm not regretting this relocation.

I leave you with a few photos of our new home:

Fishing pier at Jacksonville Beach

Chasing seagulls on Neptune Beach

And this is what it's all about: sea, sand, sun, and scooters.

We Have a Home!

Just a quick update to say that we have found a place to rent in the Jacksonville area.  It's a townhouse in Atlantic Beach within a few miles of the beach.  We're very excited to move in on the 1st and get settled!

The Coffee Queen and the Little Scoot outside our new front door