For the last 10 years or so, Corey and I have played a little game we call, "If We Could Live Anywhere, Where Would We Live?"
(Catchy title, no?)
It's not a hypothetical question, seeing as we're somewhat nomadic (although most of our moves keep us in the U.S., unlike Planet Nomads who routinely move to Africa). We have fun speculating on the pros and cons of different cities.
Me: "I really like seasons. Maybe Colorado? It has snow in the winter, but it isn't -10 in January."
Corey: "I don't like snow. Maybe San Diego?"
Me: "But the cost of living in San Diego is so high, especially for a family of our size. What about Oregon? Talk about natural beauty."
Corey: "I don't like gray. Maybe San Diego?"
It's scintillating.
Today, over at 5 Minutes for Parenting, I'm ruminating on why I'm happy to be right here, in the Twin Cities, as I raise my kids. This is a fantastic area for families, and we tend to get high marks in other surveys as well. (Tons of link in the other article, if you doubt my veracity.)
I don't know if we'll stay here forever, but I sure am thankful for what I have today.
So head over and tell me what you like about raising kids where you live. I love learning about the different parts of the country (and/or world).
And who knows? If you give me a good description, your city could be the next contender for "If I Could Live Anywhere."
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Amen, and amen! Check out my Minnesota post a couple posts back! :)
ReplyDeleteAlthough, what am I saying?? I don't even live there anymore...BUT it's still home!
ReplyDeletewe play that game sometimes too. i say tennessee or north or south carolina. but i'm very happy in arkansas.
ReplyDeleteWe play that game every week.
ReplyDeleteWe are currently working on contentment, however, so we are trying to maybe play every other week...
I'm not a fan of the -10 degree weather either, but I sure love living here. There's just something about it. I suppose pretty much everyone feels that way about where they live though :)
ReplyDeleteGoing over to 5 minutes now...
Dearest Kelly...have I not been persuasive enough????
ReplyDeleteCorey sounds like a smart guy. I too like San Diego because there is abundant sunshine and no snow. The cost of living in San Diego is about the same as anywhere else EXCEPT the cost of real estate. That has all changed thanks to the real estate debacle - so move back already!
ReplyDeleteJordan wants you to move to SD because he wants to play with Teyla. But, he understands that MN is a nice place too. When you live in SD, you try to convince everyone to move here, instead of figuring out where to go. It's a different kind of dilemma.
ReplyDelete(Sea World, Zoo, Wild Animal Park, Legoland, 60 minutes to Disneyland, 2 hours to skiing (yes, SNOW here too - just an hour to Julian), Hash House, Chick-Fil-A ... Oh, and the endless beaches and perfect weather).
Does Jordan count as a benefit ? :)
Okay, I'll just "head on over" now...but first I will tell you that I grew up in California, and I love that I live in California and that "In January, it's not 10," and that we can go to the beach connected to the Pacific Ocean whenever we want, and we can collect all of the sea glass or sea shells we want, too. If you're into snow, skiiing and snowplay and snow sports are only 3 hours away, and "The Happiest Place on Earth" is a 6 hr drive away, or an hour flight. We live in a big city, but we have mountains and hills and beauty all around us, and the weather is fantastic. I don't think it gets better thant that.
ReplyDeleteWell, I know where you don't want to live and that's here!
ReplyDeleteWe dream of moving away from the rat race, my husband commutes 90 minutes each way into the city so we can live out here in the far west 'burbs where housing is a bit more affordable. But even still, the property taxes are killer.
We'd love to be in South Carolina, Tennessee, or Arizona! But what can you do when the job is here? Nothing but dream.
I live in the Ozark Mts....Arkansas. I like that we have 4 full seasons. My favorite is always the one I am in. Love the small mt region with lakes. My town is fairly small with cool things like a town square, farmers markets....we walk to church, eat out and many places. We have ok shopping but that is OK....less tempting.....We are a college town too so we stay pretty hip :)
ReplyDeleteWell, we live in Connecticut...it's pretty and pretty expensive most places here. I wouldn't recommend unless you are relatively affluent. Also, we lean to Democratic and Roman Catholic tendencies - plus or minus depending where you yourselves lean.
ReplyDeleteI did most of my undergraduate work at the U, and my sis went to Carleton. If the Twin Cities weren't a 30 hour drive from family, we'd be living there. I've lived many many places, and Minneapolis was a tie with Anchorage, Alaska for my favorite.
We play a similar game "How long before we get to move to Colorado?" We traveled there after our first son died, and whatever the reason, it's where we want to return. I guess I consider it my place of restoration.
ReplyDelete