TabyanInn

The TabyanInn has moved! We recently moved from our historic home in Uptown Oklahoma City to the west side of town, just west of Wiley Post Airport. There are a number of reasons for this move—which anyone who has moved a household will know takes longer than you expect!

Why We Moved

Good question. The biggest reason is because we were looking for a place that was more elder-friendly, something with no (or fewer) steps and just some place that was easier to take care of. As we get older, that was a big concern. Not only that, but as Traci’s parents age, we wanted to have a place that could accommodate them as well.

On top of that, we wanted to buy a new house while she was still working. Both of us want to get the delta between what we bought the new place for and what we get the old place sold for to be paid off before she pulls that trigger. Then we could settle into full retirement a lot more comfortably without worrying about a mortgage.

As we started looking, we wanted to stay as close to central OKC as possible. What we found, though, is that the price per square foot was higher in that area, and that started pushing us beyond what we really wanted to pay for the new place. We also found that most houses we looked at had some parts of the house modernized or renovated, but not all of it—we would have still had to pay money to have some work done, even after we moved in.

The place we found actually checked all of our boxes and was still pretty recent (it was built in 2015). It is a little further from her work place and my Mason Lodges than would have been ideal, but we’re getting used to it. The benefits, though, are that we definitely got a house that meets our needs, is bigger than the old one, and will be easier for us to maintain for the next 20 years or so.

Ah, the Trials and Tribulations of Moving

But as most folks know, that is when the hard part begins… moving. Let’s just say that we got through it with the help of family and friends. We paid movers for the Big Stuff, but Traci’s family came down and helped with tons of other things during that time.

We did pay to have new carpet installed and the interior painted (thank you Rug & Carpet of Oklahoma and OKCity Painters!) The previous residents had dogs, so the house had a distinct pet smell. The new carpet took care of that. We also had a designer help us with the paint and carpet choices (thank you Conni Lovelace Interior Design!). So in the end, the house is just what we wanted.

On the other hand, even after her family helped do some improvements like adding flooring in the attic above the garage for extra storage, redoing all of the outlets and switches and getting a new wireless network installed, we still need to do some more work. The biggest things that remain are installation of a sprinkler system, expanding the patio and adding more cover to it, and just general landscaping—all normal home improvement projects.

It has been a very tiring process, too—and one that is not over yet. We finally got everything out of the old house, but we are still working to get things out of our storage unit. It’s a slow process, day by day. We could just move it all at once, but we are taking the time to go through things and whittle them down: what gets trashed, what gets donated and what we keep. I think by the end of July we will be done there, too.

What To Expect From Us Now

So what does all of this mean to YOU? Well… for starters, I’ve been away from writing for a while (been kinda busy!) but I’m starting to get back to it. I’ve managed to finish posting all of the recipes we have so far, and I’ll start working on new ones. One thing to note: the recipes will not have pictures. I want to get them published, but I will go back and add real pictures as we make the dishes again and I get some decent photos.

Another thing to expect from us is info about a new area of town, especially the smaller suburbs neighboring Oklahoma City. This really includes Yukon and Mustang. There are a lot of new places for us to explore and try out, and we are looking forward to seeing them all!

In addition, I am starting to get back into herb gardening. We have a larger back yard, and we are going to take our time establishing a larger garden back there. We’re not sure where we will put everything yet, but it will fit in among the landscaping we put in. I’m really looking forward to this—and using the fresh herbs and veg in our cooking. Definitely more on that in the future!

So, yeah. We’ve been very busy, with a LOT of change. Things are starting to slow down, though, and we are ready to start our next chapter together…

Marc