If you haven’t had a chance to listen to our latest podcast episode or read the transcript, we wanted to put our big news into a proper blog post. This is one of the biggest life changes we’ve made in the last decade, and we want to get everyone up to speed. Thank you so much for all the support and encouragement you’ve shared about this new chapter. We’re excited to simplify, spend more time outdoors, and yes — eat even more fresh-caught shrimp than we ever imagined. We also plan to share plenty about downsizing, moving, renovating, and finding a sense of home in a brand-new place.
Wait — is this an April Fools’ joke?
Nope. We’re officially moving to Florida — full-time. It might sound sudden or wild, but this has been something we’ve discussed on and off for years. We’ve hesitated because we’ve built a life here in Virginia: 14 years in Richmond and nearly seven years in our current home, surrounded by friends, family, and neighbors we adore. But after a lot of thought, it finally felt like the right time. In short: we were ready to stop talking about it and actually go for it.
Where in Florida are you moving?
The question we heard most often was where in Florida we’re headed. We’ve chosen a spot in the Florida panhandle on the Gulf Coast that feels like a great fit for our family. The water there is the beautiful blue-green you expect from the Gulf, and the climate is milder than many parts of southern Florida — which suits our family’s love of warmth without extreme heat.
We aren’t sharing the exact town yet because our offer was accepted but we haven’t closed, and the house is currently a vacant fixer-upper. We’ll share more about the neighborhood once it feels right. Many readers guessed Destin because that’s where we flew into while house hunting and where we’d vacationed before (the photo above is from that trip). We looked at homes there but ultimately found the right fit elsewhere in the panhandle.
Why move? To simplify.
What finally convinced us was the simple promise of one smaller house that meets our needs year-round. Summers at our Cape Charles beach house taught us how much we love being near water, walking to shops and restaurants, and enjoying a small-town, walkable lifestyle rather than a suburban driving routine. Being close to a beach is part of the draw, but the real attraction is a calmer, more walkable lifestyle that encourages more time outside and fewer errands.
We considered living in Cape Charles full time, but the colder months there limit outdoor activity and many local businesses close in the off-season. The Florida panhandle offered much more of the warm, walkable, beachy lifestyle we wanted for more months of the year — not a perpetual vacation, but more sunny days to be outside and walk to local shops.
We also wanted many of the conveniences we enjoy in Richmond — good schools, diverse dining and shopping, and everyday amenities like hardware stores and movie theaters. One home that satisfies those needs would free us from maintaining multiple properties and reduce utility bills, yard work, and general upkeep. In short: fewer houses, fewer problems.
Why move? To downsize.
Beyond simplifying logistics, this move is a deliberate downsize. Our Richmond house is around 3,200 square feet, and we’ve long felt it’s more space than we need. Our beach house — closer to 1,800 square feet — suits our family better. The new house we’re buying is less than half the size of our current home and closer in square footage to our very first home, which means we’ll be paring down possessions and learning to live more simply.
We know downsizing will be a challenge — deciding what to keep and what to let go of. Living at the beach house this summer reinforced that we can thrive with less, but moving into a permanently smaller home will require thoughtful choices about storage, layout, and day-to-day living.
Why now?
A recent life pivot helped make this possible: selling our duplex earlier this year changed our mindset. Letting go of one property gave us a sense of lightness and the courage to consider other big changes. Another practical driver was our kids’ schooling. We want to move while our children are still in elementary school so the transition is easier. For us, making the move before the new school year in August felt right so our daughter can begin the school year with her peers.
We’ve tossed around this idea for a few years — conversations sparked by friends who moved to Florida and reports about how well their family was doing. Last year we drove around while on a Florida trip to see if any neighborhoods felt right, and this year we returned with clearer intentions and more urgency.
That urgency was partly practical: in some of the neighborhoods we considered, fifth grade is located in middle school buildings, so to avoid disrupting our daughter’s school year we wanted to move before the school year started.
Why the timing isn’t perfect
Yes, the timing is imperfect. We just finished a major bathroom renovation and still have other projects in mind at our Richmond house. It’s bittersweet to leave a newly refreshed space, but renovating reminded us we can create a beautiful room once — and we can do it again if we choose. Homes are places we invest in emotionally, but lifestyle and family needs sometimes call for different choices.
We don’t want to minimize how hard it is to leave a house we love, but we’ve thought a lot about community, schools, commute, and daily routines — factors that go beyond paint colors and countertops.
How did you find the neighborhood?
Earlier this month we took a reconnaissance trip to the panhandle. Our friends who moved there a few years ago hosted us, and for 2.5 days we drove from morning to night, touring towns and neighborhoods, visiting more than a dozen houses with a realtor, and meeting a contractor to evaluate a few fixer-uppers. We walked the routes to local shops and the beach, checked drivability to grocery stores and everyday amenities, and tried to get a real sense of community and walkability — things you can’t fully judge from listings alone.
We had saved many homes online and I even pinned them on a map and made a spreadsheet of details — old habits die hard — but the property we ultimately loved most was one I almost dismissed from satellite images. In person, the neighborhood’s wooded, walkable feel won us over. It even had deer wandering nearby — a charming reminder that we could have both a beachy and a connected, nature-friendly neighborhood.
Once we loved the neighborhood, we unexpectedly found “the house.” It wasn’t even on our short list online, but after a couple of visits, a contractor assessment, and a quick offer, the sellers accepted while we were still traveling home.
Tell me more about the new house
We’ll hold off on detailed photos until closing, but the house meets the key goals: it’s much smaller than our current home, nearer the beach, and located in a walkable community with local shops and amenities year-round. It’s a fixer-upper — a single non-functioning bathroom, no running water at the moment, a broken HVAC, and some floor damage — but it has a charming footprint and a wooded, compact lot that eliminates the burden of large yard maintenance.
The lot is a fraction of the size of our Richmond yard — roughly a tenth of an acre — which means far less upkeep and more time to enjoy nearby parks and the beach. We’re planning practical renovations to add two full bathrooms and create three usable bedrooms after a few layout changes, and we’ve already lined up a contractor to make the house safe and livable before we move in with the kids and our dog. Long-term plans include modest additions like a small guest space and possibly a pool, but the immediate priority is turning the house into a comfortable, functional home.
The real upside is the neighborhood lifestyle: a warm climate, walkability to a grocery store and shops, and a close-knit community that fits the slower, outdoor-focused life we want. After years of suburban driving, the idea of walking a few blocks to everyday places is surprisingly thrilling.
Are you selling your houses?
Yes — we plan to sell both our Cape Charles beach house and our Richmond home. It’s bittersweet to close these chapters because both houses hold deep memories for our family, but we also feel ready to move forward. We’ll remain here through the end of the school year in mid-June to prepare both homes for sale, finish packing, and give our Florida contractor time to get the new house livable.
What about family and friends?
Leaving friends and family is one of the hardest parts. We plan to visit Richmond often and host friends and relatives at our new place — they’re already excited about a free place to stay near the beach. Our families are spread across the country, so we have examples of how relationships can thrive despite distance. My parents have offered to drive the moving truck, and we’re grateful for the emotional and practical support we’ve received so far.
How do the kids feel?
Our kids have actually been campaigning for this long before we were ready. They love warm, beachy places and have spent many spring breaks in Florida. They’re excited, so our current task is helping them exercise patience while we finalize details. If they weren’t on board, we wouldn’t make this move — their well-being is a top priority.
We’re feeling a blend of emotions — nostalgia for what we leave behind and excitement for the life ahead. It’s a big change, but it aligns with long-held goals: a smaller home, a walkable neighborhood, more outdoor time, and a warmer climate. There are still details to figure out — like exact listing dates for our current homes — but we’ll share updates as plans progress. For now, we’re grateful for the support and looking forward to this next chapter.