Moving Out of State

[Kirby]

DH and I have lived in the same small town in Montana our whole lives. (around 32k people) We both really want to leave and are planning to move to the Denver/Boulder, Colorado area in two years. We were hoping that it could be sooner than that, when I graduate college this spring. But we haven't been able to save enough money, and Jon recently got offered a job here that he couldn't turn down. With the new job we will be able to save plenty of money to move, but he has promised them two years.

I feel like the next two years will be the longest of my life because I am so anxious to move. Also, there are pretty much no jobs in my field here so I am afraid that I will still be waiting tables even after I have my degree and student loan payments. :bbconfused:

I am super excited to move away from home, but also kind of nervous. The big city life will be a change, and we will have no relatives or friends near us. Actually, we have one friend there, but I don't know if he will still be there because he likes to move a lot.

What is it like to move so far away from home? Is it hard to meet other people? I've read that it can be hard to meet people who don't have kids there (we plan to be child free for awhile, at least). I am also nervous about finding a place to rent with our two large dogs, although Denver is supposed to be very dog-friendly.

Is there anything that we should be doing to plan and prepare? I've been researching a lot and we are going to take a trip there soon to explore. I have never been there but Jon has.

Anyways, I am super excited! :bbmrgreen: Is anyone else in this situation? Or has anyone done this before that has some advice to share?

[SkippyNXC]

i have picked up and moved twice in my life... the 2nd time being our forever move to NH...

it's is scary, esp. moving to a place where you don't know anyone... this last time i moved out here 2 months before FH so i literally just sat in my apartment doing homework for 2 months by myself!

it can be hard to make friends, FH has made some thru his work... recently I joined a dodgeball league and ended up making friends on my team... i think that is the best idea i can give u friend-wise, join something... something u like but that isn't all too serious! it's even better if you have to be on a team b/c then you need to be friendly w/ppl ;)

def. takes some trips to get to know the place before signing any committment to it... what if ya hate it there, ya know?

idk how far you'll be from family but at my farthest i was 6 hours by car... n it did kinda suck... now we're 3.5-4 hrs away MUCH better... i like being able to go visit on a weekend if i can... but i mean it's not awful living away from fam... just something to get used to...

[mitch]

DH moved 300 mile to be with me. Leaving four kids, a home, a car, a job etc. His "Trade" of Painting and Decorating was hard to get into here. So for a while he packed shoes into a box for minimum wage just to pay rent. (We lived with a friend for three months before finding a place to rent)

It was through word of mouth that got him into the job he does now. Complete change of career from Decorating to Digger Driver.

Because we had left Spouses to be together. Friends and family disowned us. So everything had to start from stratch. Living together, finding somewhere to live, getting a car, finding a job, making friends etc.

With a trusty map. A few books on the local area. And a bit of time. DH now knows more about the local area than i do. Even driving through London he knows better. :boggle:

Together we have got through it. Have made some great friends. Have moved from a one bedroom apartment into a three bedroom house. Both have Vehicles and work.

It was a big change for DH. What with leaving the kids etc. But it has all worked out for the good in the end.

My advice.

Just hold hands tight and jump together. Good Luck. ;)

[mj512]

DH and I moved 1000 miles away a few months after graduating college. It is very likely that we are going to be moving back this summer. BUT I am very glad we have had the experience of living here. We love Florida, love the weather, love what it has to offer ect. We just have no ties here. We are not emotionally connected here at all. We're basically moving back to be closer to my family. Our jobs both keep us working at night, so we don't have any real friends down here seeing as the majority of the people in the world are not kept inside at work as much as we are, or at the same time. (I literally can't leave the dorm from last Friday at 3pm until this upcoming Saturday at noon except for tomorrow starting at 1pm until the next morning)

We aren't 100% decided. It is a struggle for us because we like Florida A LOT. We just really miss my family and everything that comes with being near family. I can never call up my mom and see if she wants to go to lunch. She is a 17 hour drive away. Of course we do randomly call each other and ask each other for dinner, see a movie ect just kidding around. But I wish so much I could actually do that. I also have a niece who the first time I saw her she was 2 weeks old, seeing her at Christmas she will be over 3 months old and so much different already.

It is a good experience and like I said I am glad that we have done it. Some people move away and love it and never look back. Other people move away and love it but are drawn back. Then other's hate it and go back. We are certainly the people who moved away and love it but feel drawn back. I really think it just depends on various different things.

For what it is worth I think we would be 100% staying here if our jobs would have allowed us to create emotional ties here. So if you do move (which I think it good to do at least once in your life) try to find a way to be connected emotionally to the area.

[gwenshack]

What fun! :)

I've moved back and forth between Virginia and California a few times. It's scary at first, but it's exciting because you really do just sort of get to wipe the slate clean. New everything! After the initial shock and excitement wears off I always tended to be a little homesick, talking to people back home all the time, but slowly moving toward new things and new people, until the people and stuff back home didn't seem all that necessary anymore.

Meeting people in a new place is hard. The first time wasn't difficult at all because I went for college, but trying to meet people when you're self employed = very difficult. LOL. I think as long as you have a job, hobbies you want to persue, organizations you want to join, etc then you will have a pretty easy time meeting new people. Meeting people you like might take a little longer. :rofl:

[WebLady]

DH and I want to move to Florida one day; I wish it was sooner than later, but we are just not in a place for it yet.

I am anxious to move because I don't like where we live now, but I would also miss my friends and family. But we will always be able to keep in touch.

We sometimes talk about moving closer to where he works (still in GA) for a while and put off the move to Florida until we retire. That would be fine too since we would build a great new house, but this would still be an hour away from our family; of course not as much as the 6 or more hours it would be in Florida ;)

Sometimes I feel like we will never move or that it is just so far away and it depresses me. But I keep having to tell myself that we are doing all we can and that we will get to where we want to be and we are taking all the steps we can right now. I need to stop obsessing and just try to enjoy the journey and be happy where we are now. Even though we want more for our lives, we still have a lot to be thankful for and I need to keep that in mind too.

[William Petruzzo]

I've never moved significantly out of my hometown, but I've had plenty of situations where I needed to make new friends without the help of old ones. I think the key is shared interest. There are all kinds of clubs around, joining on about something that interests you is bound to make connections with people.

I don't think the move will be too bad. Though, the next two years in anticipation of the move might feel like forever!

[Kirby]

Thanks for the replies! :smile:

I have been browsing meetup.com (http://www.meetup.com/) to browse groups of people with the same interests as me. There are a lot of them for things such as photography, wine, young couples, new in town, dog owners, and girls' nights. (all things that are I am interested in or that are applicable to me)

This looks like a great way to meet new people. Anyone else in the same situation should check it out! Has anyone had any experience with this site?

[Dani]

I moved to IL without knowing anyone but DH. I started my job without knowing anyone and became quick friends with them.

Most of my friends are still back home, whom I keep in contact with. However, I did take quiet a few dog classes with Summit and have met some great people there also at the dog parks.

It feels odd at first not knowing anyone, but you will quickly meet new friends!!

[William Petruzzo]

Yeah, I've used meetup.com a few times to make some connections with other business people in my field. My experience ranges from painfully awkward to really enriching.

[ksherlin]

I have only lived in *get this* one house my entire life!!! I HATE it. I love change! It would be soo fun to move and experience a new town/state! Excited for you!

[mitch]

I have only lived in *get this* one house my entire life!!! I HATE it. I love change! It would be soo fun to move and experience a new town/state! Excited for you!

Oh my giddy Aunt. One house!! I would be climbing the walls.

I've moved so many times. I think i've lived in every Postcode in town now.

I've had eleven addresses in total. :blink: One address i did live in for 21 years though. My Brother still lives there.

But we have vowed to stay put here for keeps now. ;) The only cardboard boxes i want to see are those going out with eBay sales in. LOL.