Anyone moved from SoCal to SA? Nervous. (Dallas, San Antonio: income, living in)

[dweej]

Okay, first let me say that I am not *from* SoCal...I am from Dallas . DH and I moved here 7 years ago to be near his family, but now that we have three kids and one income, the cost of living and the general "mood" in SoCal is not working for us. Now, I love my smallish, suburban town. I even write a blog about it: all the fun things to do, yummy restaurants, ways to save money and stick to your budget.....I mean, I like it here. And that is why, if we do decide to make the move, I will be apprehensive, even though Texas is "home" to me. Soooooo, that brings me to my question: is there anyone here that moved to SA from SoCal and is glad they made the move? What are your most favorite and least favorite things that you didn't know about before you made the leap? Any advice? I want to do what's best for our family in the long-term, but a big change like that is always difficult in the short term. Oh, and the reason we're looking at SA rather than Dallas is that hubby lived in SA growing up and the topography, history, proximity to the coast all make it a more attractive place to take 3 kids who are used to living in Southern California.

Thanks in advance to anyone who can give me some reassurance....

[quest51210]

Hawaiian Punch moved from hawaii to san antonio and according to some of our messages he loves it.

[majormadmax]

You've lived in Dallas and SoCal and you're worried about moving here?!?

I've lived here on numerous occassions during my life. First was USAF basic training in 1981, then AFROTC training in 1987. I came back for a few months in 1989 for some more training, and visited a few times after that. We finally were stationed here in1999 then left three years later for another assignment in Europe. When that was ending, and I was close to retirement, my wife and I talked about the best place to settle down. There was no competition, San Antonio was on the top of both of our lists. It was a decision we have yet to regret.

I've only been to California once, and although there were a lot of things I loved about it; I could never live there. For one, it is too expensive. Two, the government is too liberal (but I am still a big Schwarzenegger fan and wish he could run for the presidency). Heck, they don't even recognize the Second Amendment! Lastly, it was way too crowded.


Cheers! M2

[dweej]

Mostly what I'm worried about, I guess, has to do with it being unfamiliar. I'm sure if I visited even once, all of that would fade away.

Thanks to anyone else who can offer their insight as weel!

[Chaka]

I am from SoCal, but didn't move to SA directly from here. I was living in northern Indiana most recently, so SA was more like 'home', even though it was some 1000 miles away.

I wouldn't move back to SoCal, unless I could live on the beach in La Jolla . I grew up in the LA area and have no desire to live there again. However, suburban SA reminds me a lot of Los Angeles in the 70s and early 80s, just as it was beginning to sprawl in earnest, except that in SA it's happening over 5-10 years rather than 20-30 years. for me, that's not a good thing.

What I love about living in SA is downtown/near downtown, so for me, it's great, but because I live in the part of town that makes SA unique. If I was living in the suburbs (which I did briefly upon first arrival), I probably wouldn't think it was all that different from SoCal.

[dweej]

Chaka- that's all the kind of stuff I wanted to hear! For me, reading what real residents go through and do on a daily basis gives me a better picture of real life than just looking at city and visitor bureau sites. I mean, we're not gonna be going to Sea World everyday, ya know?

Even though we have kids and all, I'd like to live fairly close to downtown (10 miles or less?) because I don't like the idea of going "downtown" as being some sort of crazy excursion. I like to take my older girls to cultural events, museums, historical landmarks....I think it's so important for creating a well-rounded life experience. In our current town, although I love it, there is not a lot of opportunity for that sort of thing. And Socal in general is so "new" that the history here is....well, not very historical yet .

Can you (or anyone) recommend an area of town that is family friendly but still that close to downtown? I don't need (or want!) a huge, new, cookie-cutter house. Character and big trees? Yeah, those are on our list Oh, and we're practicing Catholics so a parish that has lots of kids would be good too. Thanks!

[ocgirl_13]

My husband & I moved here from Orange County 3 years ago. I lived in So Cal my entire life. We love it here. The people are very friendly & the cost of living is great. I do miss the beach from time to time, but SA has alot to offer. Good luck.

[dweej]

Okay, ocgirl....I'm starting to feel a little better . Big change is always hard, but it's easier if there's something to look forward to. Plus, we don't get to the beach very often, so I'm not gonna worry about that part too much....

What area of town, if you don't mind my asking, did you guys choose? There seems to be a lot of variety and I haven't done *any* narrowing down yet.

[svg210]

I only miss the beach good riddance to the smog.

[Chaka]

Oh yeah, I really miss the beach.

I answered in your other thread, and will DM you now.

btw - if 'being close to everything' means being close to Walmart, Target, HEB (the only grocery store here), then my 'hood doesn't have it, but we have everything else.