Moving from Kauai to Cedar City, UT (Provo, Orem: obgyn, home)

[MAMA42]

My husband and I have lived and worked on Kauai in Hawaii for 20 years. We are originally from Santa Monica, CA. And, we are expecting our first baby in October!! In the past year we have felt God's calling and believe He is prompting a move. Cedar City has emerged in our seach. So far all doors seem to be opening. We have made contacts with a realator and other searches seem to be fruitful for the transition. As we continue to listen to HIS still small voice, we remain filled with curiosity and lots of questions....what a move!! We have faith and hope in God's plan and that someone out there might be able to give us feedback on what we can expect about the weather (long winters), health care, employment (my husband does home remodels and currently owns his own businees), best place to purchase a home (we've been looking at Parowan) and overall quality of life (shopping, entertainment, crime). We are Christian with LDS family ties so we embrace the family values of the church. Thanks for the prayers and insight as we heed God's call. Cedar City looks like a great place to raise a child...what else should we know?

[stycotl]

congrats on the baby.

i only know cedar city from my trips through it to get to zion national park and the other places i play down there, so i know nothing of the neighborhoods or anything.

that area down there is hot during the summer, and cold during the winter. ceder city is up on the edge of a plateau--i don't remember elevation but i think it is somewhere around 5-6,000 feet. someone correct me.

the thing i like about cedar city is its location. its a smaller city that has access to some world-class outdoor recreation on all sides.

aaron out.

[MAMA42]

stycotl,

thanks for the info! after looking at all the online sites it seems like an active spot...lots to do in the fishing, camping, hiking, biking, skiing arena. We are excited about this. Glad to get your endorsement on this end of things!! Maybe someone out there will know something about the economy there right now...construction related fields....

Aloha from Hawaii.

[toby04]

We have lived 45 miles west of Cedar City for 12 years. Just got home from a day of golf! If you are into shopping and dining, limited choices. It is growing, St. George to the south was just voted one of the best places to live. I think Cedar was last year. As far as construction, we are doing better than many areas. A lot of retirees from California sell and move here. My husband is a painting contractor, construction slows during the winter, last year was good, have quite a bit lined up for this year. There are a few planned communities going up, hopefully this year! Utah has some of the toughest licensing requirements, check out Utah Division of Occupational & Professional Licensing. The local paper is The Spectrum - www.thespectrum.com -.

[MAMA42]

tobyO4

We checked out the Licensing site. This is really helpful as my husband runs his own business here in Kauai. Thanks for the heads up!! Good news about the "retiree" population as there is always a need for repairs, etc. We find Kauai has a similar population and he's had many repeat clients this way. Glad to hear your husband is busy too!! Where they are painting they are building too! The employment news sounds encouraging!! Do you know anything about health care?? We are expecting our baby in October. Any OBGYNS that are recommended will be helpful.

Aloha and wishing you a blessed Spring!

[EdLo]

Aloha from San Jose. My wife is from Kauai, KHS 1955 (yes, she's almost 72 but acts 21, lol) I'm from Hon. (UH 71) Our son, 4 grands and 7 great-grands live in Kapaa. Perhaps you've heard of him. He's a part-time entertainer. Name is Eddie Lopez. Anywayz, welcome to the forum! Question. Why are you moving to Utah? Is work hard to find in Kauai? I know all about the cost of living there, and all the Islands. We left in 1976 (I was with HPD) HPD was the lowest paid department in the U.S. Still is. I knew we could never make it if we stayed. Now I have a beautiful home in San Jose and a more beautiful home in Highland, in Utah county. We were planning to retire there sometime this year but unfortunately I was diagnosed with throat cancer last year and now must stay in the area for continued treatment. So sadly, we are selling our Highland home. btw, I never smoked in my life. The doctors said I may be a victim of second-hand smoke.
We looked at properties in St. George but did not find that area very exciting. I heard about the severe summers and winters. Highland is also closer to big cities (SLC, Orem, Provo) in case we need to go to big big-city events such as concerts, festivals, etc. The St. George area was just too small (Highland is much smaller, but like I say, close to big cities) plus in Highland we're close to a large major international airport. That was an asset as we had planned to do a lot of traveling. But alas, as I said, we may never experience life in Utah. However, there is always the hope that I'll conquer my current health issue and maybe, just maybe some day enjoy beautiful Utah.
Good luck to you and your husband. May you have a beautiful baby too! (We have five children, 12 grands and 8 great-grands.)
Aloha
Eddie

[MAMA42]

Aloha Eddie from Oahu/Kauai!!

Would you believe that I have been a teacher at KHS for almost 20 years at KHS. Work is not a real problem for us here....it is the ability to pay/purchase a home....I have worked my entire career here and even married it will be a stretch to purchase a home that isn't single walled structure for less than $450,000. SAD! This is a beautiful place....but, now that God is blessing us with a child and life is taking a turn... Cedar City just "feels" right...we've both been through Utah and think it beautiful....we appreciate a small town and Cedar City seems like it might just "meet us in the middle" with affordable housing and 2 hours out of the next big city when we're feeling "rocky mountain feaver". Kauai is a PARADISE, however, hard to "really" live here unless you are lucky enough to own...and, even then....expensive to travel, etc. and isolated (sometimes in a good way). We are ready to go on this adventure and see what Utah might have in store for us. Still, we have lots of questions...always wondering about the unknown. So far it seems like a great place to go. We will pray for you health Eddie and that you might have the luxury of healing in your beloved retirement destination. Thanks for the hello. I'm going to ask my husband if our pal Eddie is Eddie Lopez....just might be...he sings as far as I know. I'll keep you posted.

Blessings from Kauai.

[donira]

Most of the retirement communities in St George/Hurricane areas are new. There are many handymen with more popping up daily.
I'm a life long resident and see more small handyman companies springing up as more California people move here that don't golf.

[BuhByeCalifornia]

I can't add much since I'm not familiar with Cedar City but I just wanted to wish you a warm Aloha to these boards!

My hubby and I celebrated our 10th anniversary in Kauai (almost 5 years ago) and we ACHE to go back! Such a beautiful island!

Congrats on your baby and your upcoming move!

[MAMA42]

donira,

Thanks for the feedback on handymen businesses. We'll hope that they remain busy as more arrive.

Aloha