Moving to OKC in a couple of months...questions (Tulsa: to rent, house)

[momto5boys]

Hi everyone,

I've been reading and reading this forum and am so glad I have found it! I have had lots of questions about moving to OKC and have had many of them answered by reading here.

My husband is going to be accepting a position in OKC and we're not exactly sure when we'll be moving there, but it will probably be as soon as my oldest son's school year is over. His last day is May 30th and then he will get his driver's license here on June 4th, which is his 16th birthday. In Missouri, he doesn't have to take driver's ed in order to get a license and I have read that he does have to do that in OK. He doesn't want to wait another couple of months to finish a class to get his license, so he'll take the test here and then we'll all go down and get our OK licenses together within 30 days of moving there.

We will be selling our house in Missouri and are hoping that it won't take forever to do that, so we can buy a house there asap. We really have no idea where to look, but I'll list my "dream area," so that someone can give me an idea of where we might find the house we're looking for.

1. It must have a good school district (only my oldest son goes to school...high school...the younger ones homeschool).

2. Price range between $200K and $275K

3. House on at least an acre of land...preferably 2+

4. Either a newer home or an old home that has been refurbished.

5. One with a swimming pool would be a top pick.

6. Not right in the middle of a city, but not more than 30 mins. from the city.

7. Lake nearby would be great, but not completely necessary.

8. Great homeschooling community.

9. Health food store within 30 mins. drive would be a huge plus. (Are there any good health food stores in OKC?)

10. Health club or family-type gym within 15-20 mins. of home.

11. One within an hour of Enid would be great because I currently belong to a natural foods buying co op and the closest one to OKC is in Enid.

12. My kids play competetive baseball and we will want to continue this in OKC, so that is important.

Is there anything like this there?

Also, does anyone know about high school football? My oldest is so bummed that we're moving right when the football camps start. He has been waiting all his life to play high school football and doesn't want to miss it. So, we'll want to pick a school district and live in that area, even if we have to rent until our house sells in MO before we buy a new one. Does anyone know if it's difficult for a newcomer sophomore to get onto a football team at any of the local high schools? Maybe I need to call a high school in the area we're thinking of moving to.

Thanks for any help anyone can offer! I know this was long....sorry!

Jodi in MO

[calitook]

I really think you're going to want to look in Edmond. We moved here from California and we are very happy in Edmond.
Edmond Public Schools and Deer Creek Schools are the best in the state. Most of the newer developments here don't have a ton of land, but you can definitely find some where you are not right on top of your neighbor.

As far as health food.. well.. adjusting to the food culture here is a serious shock. There is a place called Akin's, but I find it to be terribly overpriced. I just make the best decisions I can at the normal grocery store. We don't have Whole Foods or Trader Joe's

There are two YMCA's in Edmond. The lack of gym chains was also surprising to us. We joined the Y and it's fine. Not great, just fine. We probably won't renew next year because there are way too many kids hanging out there, playing around on the equipment. But if you have kids, then it is probably the place for you.

[momto5boys]

Calitook,

Ugh....please don't tell me that the food isn't healthy! Can you tell me if there's a good selection of fresh produce at least? I used to live in San Diego and wish we could move back there.....the selection of healthy foods is wonderful!!

No gyms either?? My 15 yr. old will die. He LIVES for going to Gold's Gym. He won't want to work out where a bunch of kids are hanging out and I work out at home, so not a big deal for me. Is there a good selection of workout equipment? Is the building in decent shape or is it old and crummy?

Thanks for your help!

Jodi

[Amazonchix]

Look into the Edmond, Deer Creek and possibly the Yukon areas to live. As far as produce: hit the farmer's market in Edmond (which is seasonal) or Crest Foods in Edmond. Crest offers a large selection and tries to carry produce from local or regional growers. Akin's is very over-priced, Target is over-priced and offers a small selection and Walmart's produce is often bruised and in bad shape. There are several gym options in the Edmond/OKC areas other than the YMCA's! There are even 24 hour gyms. The facilities around here are nice. You guys should try to come down for a few day to help you all finalize a decision. Hope this helps.

[calitook]

Yeah, some other gyms are Pinnacle, Aspen, and 24 hour express or something like that. We will probably join Pinnacle when our Y membership is up. In CA there are tons and tons of gyms to choose from, and honestly none of the ones here even come close to what is available there..
I don't know what the age requirements would be for the non-Y gyms.

I agree that Crest has the best selection of produce. I will occasionally shop at superTarget also, just because it is convenient if I also need other things. As far as restaurants, we pretty much stick to Panera and PeiWei, other than the occasional "splurge" night. We eat out a whole let less now that we live here, but I guess that isn't completely bad

[stiffnecked]

When it comes to food the Okrahoma state motto is:

If you'll try it, I'll fry it.

Deep fried everything. Dripping in hot sizzling grease. And if it's not fried it's smoked.

If you want to live a healthy lifestyle just stay where your at. No sense in coming here and being miserable. Oh, but wait, we got sports coming. Pro basketball. That'll make the whole state 10x healthier. You can go down to the Ford Center, drink beer and eat fried okra, smoked pork ribs and deep fried pickles.

Just the walk from your car to your seat should be plenty of exercise for the whole week. I try to walk 5 miles every day. People out here get offened when I tell them I'm out exercising and don't need a ride. Had one guy ask me "Why would you do that?"

[calitook]

I think it is possible to live a healthy lifestyle here, you just have to be committed. Just because Oklahoma is known for its obesity rate, doesn't mean I have to contribute to it
Also, many of the neighborhoods in Edmond have greenbelts and walking trails built into them.
To the original poster, it sounds like you make health a priority, so I don't think you'll have any problem keeping up your good habits here.

[shadow42]

calitook,
I currently am living in Orange County and will be moving to Edmond in June. It is nice to hear that you are happy there, and hope we will be as well. Our older boy has asperger's syndrome, so that is just another concern of ours regarding the services available in the school district.
Also was wondering about healthy type foods, and I figured it would be disappointing, but hoping I can get at least some stuff that I buy often out here. Hoping Whole Foods will put a store there soon as I know there is one in Tulsa.
Wondering if you have found the neighbors to be friendly out there. That is huge for us. We have 2 small boys ages 5 yrs and 3yrs. Our neighbors here are totally into themselves and I just hate it! Also wondering if you have any recommendations of neighborhoods. Probably looking in the $300k-400k range, but looking to spend as little as possible (also depends on what we end up getting for our home out here). We will be coming in to look around the week of 4/7 and I have asked to see the following neighborhoods....Coffee Creek, Steeplechase, Bella Terra, possibly Belmont Farms. Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[peggydavis]

In California fresh foods are grown year round. In Oklahoma we have winter, so most of the year any produce is trucked in from California, south Texas or Mexico, so it will not be as fresh or as cheap. It's just geography.

In the summer you can get fresh produce at the Edmond farmer's market or the OSU market near 10th & Portland in OKC is open all year I think.

As far as football, Edmond schools are extremely competitive (6A I believe) so unless your son is really talented you may want to try for a smaller school.

I don't think you will have a problem finding a great place in your price range.

[Sooner_Nation_60]

There are actually some decent health food stores around. The one in Norman is excellent (Earth Natural Food).

Health Food Stores - Oklahoma Food Cooperative - Local Food, Local Farmers - Farmer's Market, Natural, organic, health, sustainable, locally grown, meat, vegetables, nuts, produce, bread

There are a couple of Gold's Gyms around the northwestern part of OKC. You shouldn't have any problem finding a good place for your son to work out. You could try Aspen Athletic Club in Edmond. I hear it's really nice.