You are getting ready for a transition, so let yourself get used to it.
I have a friend that is going through this, and I have cautioned her not to make any drastic and quick changes in her living arrangements, as her first thought is to follow her 21 year old son to another city, live in a separate apartment from him and his girl friend, because she can't stand for him to be one hour away.
Things will be different, and indeed a little sad, but you will be surprised just how quickly your 'new normal' might take shape.
Go through your home and make sure that all windows and doors have adequate locks, and if not, have them installed now.
Look at how secure you are in your daily patterns. Do you keep the doors locked when home? Do you have your car parked outside (if so is it locked at all times and do you look before you go to and get out of it?). If you have a garage, do you keep it locked?
Do you have security lights outside? If not consider getting them and getting them up.
Do you have phones in several places (if you still do landline) or do you know where your cell is at all times, should you need help from a break in to a fall? If some extra extensions would help you feel more connected and safe, do that now.
Do you have blinds, curtains, or other window coverings at all windows, so that at night, you can close them and know that people can't look inside and see you alone?
Do you have a routine with the dogs? If so, can you begin to schedule where they go outside before dark, so you will be outdoors less during the dark hours, if that is something that might bother you (here we have coyotes at night, and I don't like to be out with the dog if I don't have to).
Don't advertise the fact that you will be living alone. People really don't need to know that, even neighbors you think you can trust. People don't keep things to themselves and the fewer people who know you are alone the better.
In other words, go through all the safety kinds of things that, because you will be living alone, should be in place and in practice as routine. It will make you feel much better about things, knowing you have thought it all through, done what you need to do, and have started new routines for being alone.
Try not to be afraid. Having dogs, no matter how small, are great alarms and great company. Unless you are in a dangerous area, your chance of something happening aren't really much greater now than when others lived with you, it just seems a little more scary now, for a while.
To combat the sadness, plan things with your kids regularly, and having things to look forward to will help a lot. Same for friends, volunteer things, or social things you do. Make plans, have people over, just try to be busy which usually leads to happy.
And best wishes as you embark on the latest chapter.
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