Thursday 15 October 2015

Heat and Succession


Each morning we greet the sun as she ushers in the day.   We have yet to put the furnace on in spite of several below freezing nights.  Seems we can manage well enough if we keep the day's heat in in the evening (with drapes and blinds closed).  Come morning, we draw everything open to let the sun warm the house once again (3 cheers for free heat!).

Our "new" home on the coast has a wood stove and believe me, we are very much looking forward to heating our home with wood again!  I just love that steady, constant heat and also, the exercise that heating with wood heat gives us.  I miss it.  Wood is plentiful on the coast (unlike here) and our land has a fairly decent tree cover so we should be able to get most of the wood we need right from our own property.

Let me tell you a bit more about our relocation plans... My parents are in their early 70's and wanted to downsize so they sold their home which was becoming too much for them to maintain (too large of a house and too much garden to look after). They want the freedom and ease of a small, level entry home and they want to be able to travel and know that someone is around to look after their home and little patch of earth.  Enter hubby and I!   

By combining resources, we are able to live on acreage (in separate homes) in an area that is desirable to us all (on the west coast of BC).  As it happens, after an exhaustive search, the property we found (and fell in love with) had only one family home on it so this means we have to build a home for my parents.  We had hoped to find a property with 2 existing homes but were unable to find anything suitable set up in way that would meet our needs.   We are looking at the opportunity to build as a positive, for it will give us the ability to build a passive solar, accessible, open plan home with wide doorways in case a walker or wheelchair is needed in future.  This will mean that my parents can stay in their home as long as possible and not be forced out due to accessibility problems.    It will also mean that the house will be energy efficient with very low utility bills (important for all, but most especially in retirement on a fixed income).

Thinking about succession (in true permaculture style), hubby and I will have options going into our own senior years.  The rental market is very strong where we are moving to so that second little home could be easily rented out which would bring in a bit of income to supplement our own retirement.  Alternatively, my hubby and I will have the option to move into the small home in old age if perhaps one of our adult children wants to buy in and move into the main family home.  With 5 kids, odds are that one may want to do so.    Nobody can predict the future, but providing the most flexibility is our goal for we know for certain that life can and will change.   We have always wanted to move "home" but until this opportunity arose (which benefits both parties), we never thought it possible.  

I shall tell more of our story as it unfolds...  stay tuned!














11 comments:

  1. That sounds like the perfect arrangement for all. What a comfort for your parents that you will be so close--and for you to get to spend as much time with them as you can :) being that close to family is not for everyone, but I understand the wish to stay together until the end. You are very practical to plan for wheelchair access, bathing etc. No one wants to think of aging but (if we are lucky) we are all going to need to think of these things. So happy for your family!

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    1. My Grandma did in February (at 94) and because I was physically the closest person to her for the last 8 years, I know first hand how aging can rob a person of mobility and freedom if accessibility isn't considered. Hubby and I want that for us, too (eventually) so planning the little home around that seems the right thing to do...

      There are a lot of seniors renting small homes in our new community, so should we ever choose to rent the little house out, having an accessible, open plan will be a big plus for us in attracting a long term, quiet tenant :)

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  2. Hello friend! Have missed you so, and what big things you've been working on. It sounds like a really wonderful arrangement. Looking forward to seeing your new property and all of the things you're sure to do to make it a home :)
    -Jaime

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    1. Hi Jaime - I've missed you, too! Thanks for the encouraging words XO

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  3. If only all people planned their retirements with as much love and forethought. This seems like an ideal arrangement. Perhaps your Mum might do a guest post (she could dictate if needed). I love to hear older people's take on what's going on.

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    1. My folks are still very active with no cognitive decline but they do find that they no longer have the same energy levels and sense of balance they once did. They both have arthritis, so that limits what they can physically do in terms of heavier home maintenance/garden work (cleaning gutters, heavy pruning, digging in the garden, etc).

      They enjoy travelling and see this arrangement (in the early years) to be freeing for them. They want to keep travelling as long as they can but when home, they'll help out with the veggie garden, the chickens and the bees, etc. Both love to be involved in those things, so I think it will work out. My Mom is an amazing gardener and my Dad is really fascinated with bees (he helped me do a hive check last time he was here) :)

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  4. Sounds like a great plan! How lovely that you can come to such an ideal arrangement for all involved.

    I would love my parents to live closer to me now they are older. They are still very independent so it could be a while yet.

    xTania

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    1. Hi Tania XO Yes, we are looking forward to being closer. Also, my husband's family (including his aging parents) will be much closer so we are VERY happy about seeing them more often. We miss them all terribly...

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  5. Your post reminds me of that famous quote from The Wizard of Oz..."There's No Place Like Home"...It sounds like the right move to me...

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  6. This all sounds so exciting!! I will miss all your gardening tips though because we live in S. Alberta and pretty much, everything you did in your garden would apply to my garden. I'm looking forward to following your new adventure. Where on the coast will you be moving to?

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  7. Such a sensible approach! I look forward to reading about it.

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