Sounds like you are very conflicted with all of your various thoughts and have developed a case of of, "paralysis of analysis". It also sounds like, you need to be reassurred, this is the right move for you.

Renting for several months might be your best option, as it will relieve some of the fears of unfamiliarity, It does take a period of adjustment to get used to new things. New roads, doctors, and in general, just getting around.

Weather is a consideration for you and hubby, but you will never know, if you don't spend some time down here, in the months that concern you the most.

Cold feet. Definitely no, as the winters were too brutal for me.

Nervous? Defintely yes. It is a major change, that one will have to get use to. Family and friends can come to visit and Disney is a great attraction, for younger people.

Only your new friends will "reassure" you this move is right for you. Others who have never been here, can only give what their experiences, but it doesn't totally relate to living in TV. I have a cousine in AZ that would probably look at me, like I have two heads, if I tried to explain TV to her.

It will take several months to become totally familiar with your surroundings but once use to them, you will love it here!

You have to ask yourself. "what is it worth to get on with the rest of my life".

Projecting too far into the future leads to uncertainty and confusion.

Certain people deal with change better than others.

What do you value the most?

Only you, can make a final decision.

I hope this helps.

"paralysis of analysis"

Me like's

My feet are burning to get the %$@ out of here.

Question; Did anyone have cold feet before listing your Northern home?


Answer; Yes.


And there are times I would like to be surrounded by people who have known me for years and years, trust me, love me, know my history, and with whom I have made the major part of the journey of life.


There are times I know I am needed for small and ordinary things by our children and grandchildren. There are times I want to hear familiar accents and ideas from familiar people.


Sometimes I wish for a roaring fire on a cold ugly day and the beautiful green of Ohio grass.


Sometimes the challenge and patience in making new friends overwhelms me and I long for the comfort of old ones.


But most of the time I find happiness here with all of the new things God has sent me. Most of the time.

Gracie - I couldn't agree more. And, we have lived in Florida for 26 years! I still miss my old life!
Senior - we lived on a beach in Florida for 25 years - The Villages is considerably warmer during the day and feels much more humid. It is wet here especially during the night.
If it were me, I would keep a house up north and winter in Florida until you are sure about moving.

We have cold feet. I'd worry about our decision if we didn't. I'd be afraid our decision was based on the grass being greener on the other side.

We plan to down size big time in PA and be part time in The Villages when we retire. This is the right decision for us at this time. Our logic is we keep the door open to return to PA, we can stay full time in The Villages if that becomes our first choice, or we can continue having what we classify as the best of both worlds.

This is our personal choice and may not work for everyone.

I think a lot of people made the move the way you are describing, we certainly did; but, after two years of paying someone to clear the snow from the roof up north, snow plow the driveway, check to see that the power was on, open the house up for us and turn up the heat so that we did not freeze to death for several hours, we had had enough. At that time we were also traveling back and forth with a large dog, (in those days not too many hotels took a large dog), add to that fighting the traffic through Washington DC and then through the various big northern cities, we decided enough was enough. Of course we miss our children and grandchildren, but they are working all week, two of them are traveling every week, the grandchildren are in various colleges all over the USA - tell me what is to miss? They know where we are, we know where they are ........... We visit at the holidays and they get to enjoy Florida during the winter months.

We are happy and our children are happy ................. The future will take care of itself and I'll worry about that when the time comes.

This is what we have already done - small places (CYV in The Villages, condo in Ohio). To be able to afford it, we had to be happy with rather major downsizing. What I think people also forget is that as they age, they often want to downsize anyway.

This is our 4th year of snow birding, directly from retirement. In the process, we did spend 7 weeks in our Villages home about 3 years ago during the summer. I would be ok living there year-round, but not Ohioboy, although at this time, I also prefer the snow birding. I can see that as we age, we may not want to do the long drive, but that could be solved by keeping a car up here and flying back and forth. We also have family in NC, and stop for a few days fall and spring.

Unlike others, we are not doing this because of family, but because we really like our city (Columbus) in the summertime and also have good friends and ongoing activity groups we can fit into easily. I would categorize us at the moment as pretty active, both in sports activities and other interests. Easier (cooler much of time, not always) to play golf, tennis, etc. in Ohio than in Florida in summer. Even during hot spells here (Ohio) in summer, mornings and evenings are usually significantly more comfortable here than in Florida.

It has taken about 2-3 years to pretty much duplicate all our needed "stuff" in both places, but now we could get by with 2-3 suitcases if needed. We don't have a garage here, but could rent one for winter storage if needed - imagine you could find somewhere to do that almost anywhere in the country.

We do consider that if we are lucky enough to have long lives that we will eventually choose to be in one place - probably be The Villages, but who knows? Might also depend on support systems or if one of us needs more assistance than the other.

Right now we have no children/grandchildren in Ohio, but some of their lives are fluid, and it is quite possible that one or two of them might return. I have met several couples who retired somewhere to be near family, and then the family moved. As others mention, harder to move as we age, and it's true that some move better than others.

The person who knows you best (or hopefully does) is your spouse. If you can't decide, then let him decide. We have enough experience with our spouses of 4 or 5 or 6 decades to know whether they'll steer us into a ditch we can't get out of.

Vermont is one of the most beautiful states I have ever had the opportunity to visit. You may have the best of both worlds, Vermont June thru Nov. The Villages Dec. thru May.
Just a thought!!!!!!

We spend 5-6 months in Florida and 5-6 months in Illinois. This arrangement for personal reasons is a compromise. Following retirement we did sell our larger home and downsized in Illinois and at the same time purchased a Villa in TV.

One hat does not fit all. In other words, each person's situation may be quite different.

It was not difficult for us because we really wanted to live full-time in Florida and we jointly came to a conclusion that a half loaf of bread was better than no bread at all. Compromise is the key and if we didn't own a home in TV we would rent here or somewhere to get out of the harsh northern winters.

In a couple of weeks we will be moving to TV and leaving our northern home for good. I have a few nervous feelings about adjusting to the heat over the summer, but I am anxious to move to TV. I will be leaving my one son who is getting married next week here in the north and a daughter. That part isn't great, but I will plan to return to see them and I know my son will come to see me also. I am aware that there are adjustments to make and not everything about my new home makes me happy. I will miss my acreage for my dogs back north and all the space I had for things. But I am also moving because I expect things to be wonderful in TV and I am moving to TV because there are so many wonderful people, new friends and potential new friends and so many activities in which I want to become involved that aren't available to me up north. I weighed these things carefully before deciding to buy my home. I love the line from Sarah Plain and Tall in which Sarah says, "There's always something to miss." For me, that says it all. If you weigh both sides and still want to come to TV then put your fears aside and just do it. This isn't a prison sentence and a person can always sell and move back home. I agree that if you haven't lived in TV first then renting would be a great first step. But at least take THAT step and rent. Even doing nothing is a decision.

You can always rent in the winters instead of selling your Vt. home and buying in Fla.That's what I would do...:-)

Excellent post, good points. I hope OP will read this, especially your last line.

I cried for 6 years as my husband explained why leaving Staten Island, New York was the best thing for us. I left my sister and her family and my mom (who is 87). My daughter and granddaughter came with us. We had to set her up in an apartment and sell our house and buy ahouse in The Villages. We have been here 2 years and I have never looked back. The Villages is not just Florida, its The Villages and it could be anywhere and that is where we would want to live. That all being said, sounds like you have your mind made up. Maybe downsize in Vermont and rent for 3 months here. We have friends from the Netherlands who do that, April, May and June. As for the heat, I hate the heat, whether it be NY or Fl. To me its the same. As for power failures, again we had more in NY than here. Florida is used to power surge because of heat. Con Edision was not, oh and lets not forget my $400. a month electric bill in the summer!!!!!!Your husband does not sound healthy. Maybe it would be a comfort to stay where you are. Whatever your decision, its all a mind set. If you plan to be unhappy you will no matter what. Plan to be happy and who knows what the possibilities are, we are still finding them.