Upstate NY (Suburbs of Syracuse) Here We Come!

[proulxfamily]

Head down 81 south, from the Syracuse area, and get off the Tully exit. Turn left at the stop sign and you'll come to another stop sign. That's Route 80, which runs east-west in the hills or the "higher elevations", as the local weathermen are apt to say. lol.

Directly across the road (straight through the stop sign) is the road that heads to Song Mountain (http://http://www.songmountain.com/ - broken link)... just a few minutes away. That resort can actually be seen from 81 for a long ways... beautiful sight to see as you leave Syracuse in the winter. If you turn left instead, you'll be on your way toward Labrador (http://http://www.labradormtn.com/ - broken link)and Toggenburg (http://http://www.skitog.com/ - broken link) Mountains, each of which are no more than 10ish minutes from the exit. I'm partial to Tog, myself, especially since I can ditch my non-skiing friends there while I do a few runs... at the Snow Tubing center. Haha! I learned to ski at Song Mountain when I was 3 and we went there until I was 9. When I was 10, we started getting season passes to Toggenburg and that's when I really started to *enjoy* skiing and gradually turned to snowboarding. GREAT family atmosphere. My grandparents used to take my mom and aunts to "Lab" in the 60's and early 70's, then switched to Tog. Love it there!

Welcome to Central New York!!

[BoundtoRetire]

NYBound, congratulations on your move. Have you figured out where you want to live yet?

I am no longer living in CNY, but spent 15 years near Bayberry. Our daughter went through Liverpool schools K-12 and received a wonderful education thanks to the dedication of L'pool's excellent teachers and administration.

We really lucked out when we bought our house. It was on a wonderful block with the friendliest, most welcoming neighbors we've ever had (we have moved fairly frequently). Our daughter didn't have to go far to find a playmate. On our block, there were 6 boys her age and also 6 girls one year older plus a boy year older -- fourteen children born within a two year range. Plus all of their parents were mindful of what was happening with their children. Certainly our block was the embodiment of the adage, "it takes a village to raise a child."

Our location was terrific two -- 2 blocks from the high school and about 3 blocks from the elementary school. From K-2 our kids took a bus to school and they were bussed again to middle school. Otherwise they walked to school and school activities -- also to the local swim club. When they were old enough, the kids could walk or bike to Bayberry Plaza, walk to church, etc. Oh, and did I mention the forever green park behind our house that was maintained by the town of Clay?

I hope you have the good fortune to find such a neighborhood for your family. Unless there's been a radical decline in the schools (which I sincerely doubt) since we moved to Texas in 1995, Liverpool is a terrific choice (i.e., the Towns of Clay and Salina). However, B'ville/Radisson are also great areas too. Just look for the right mix that suits your family.