Where Do You Live?
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So. I slept in. ‘Tis true. Per Husband, my alarm did in fact go off at 5:15am, but I managed not to hear it. I blame Middle Girl who had to go and contract Pink Eye yesterday and then climb into bed with us circa 1:45am. Alas.
So. This will be short and sweet. But interesting too.
Where do you live?
As you know, I was born and raised here in Manhattan. I am a city girl at heart and now I am raising three little city girls. And I love the city. For far too many reasons to enumerate and explore now. But know this: I love our life here. It’s pretty likely we will be here for the long haul.
So. Today. I want to ask you: Where do you live today and is it where you grew up? Do you love where you are settled today or do you long for a logistical change? Do you think it’s bizarre that I am so enthusiastic about rearing my children here in this wonderful concrete jungle? Or do you get it?
Your turn. Tell me where you are now, whether you love it there and why. Do you have hopes of moving one day or are you satisfied where you are?
Fun idea! I live in the suburbs of Minneapolis, just a couple miles from downtown. I grew up in a small college town near here, and someday, I think I’d like to live in a similar community again (maybe even the same one!). Between college and starting my family, I lived in other parts of the country, including D.C., Massachusetts, and Illinois. I’m glad that I got the chance to branch out, but now that I have kids, I’m thrilled to be back in Minnesota near my family.
I imagine that this is quite the trend – moving around during the years between formal education and starting a family. Part of me wishes I had done this, explored a bit more territory while largely untethered, but I stayed put, a fact that for me demonstrates how much I really love this place. (Or, more problematically perhaps, how unadventurous I am.) I am infinitely intrigued by the concept of home and how that concept evolves over time. A friend has a blog called Neighborhood Nomad which is really wonderful about the concept of home, and place, and I encourage you all to check it out – http://neighborhoodnomad.wordpress.com/ – I have agreed to do a guest post there about raising a family in Manhattan, so stay tuned!
Minnesota is a fabulous place to live, work, and play!! And despite what people say, the ‘burbs here aren’t bad at all!
I live in Miami and love it. Love the sunshine, the beaches, the year-round warmth and outdoor living. Love the international flavor of the city. I grew up here and moved back when I was ready for family. It is so nice to be near my parents especially now that I have little ones – I think I would be really sad to be far from them during this stage of my life. I love it here and hope to never move! That said I have lived in NYC, Boston, L.A., Atlanta and Tennessee, and each place has enriched my life. But for me, home is Miami and I love it here.
You know what, Jess? When we came and visited you guys there in Miami in November, it was plain as day how much you love it there. I was amazed at how relaxed your home felt mere weeks after welcoming little K. It was really good for me to see you there, immersed in your family and your life. Obviously, we miss you guys tons and in many ways wish you had stayed here, but I understand why you didn’t. Just keep the comments and pictures of your sweet babes coming to make up for the distance. Deal?
Deal!
. I love that you were able to visit us here. We will do the same – can’t wait to visit you. K is, knock on wood, sleeping well so as soon as we finagle it with hubby’s work schedule I’ll let you know! Love you.
I live in Ascot, UK…just outside of London! I just moved here a few months ago and am loving it so far (except the driving…I don’t love that). I grew up in a college town in Texas, so this is a pretty far stretch from there. I went to college in Tennessee, then moved back to Texas (but quite a distance from my hometown), then to Wyoming, then back to Texas for about six months closer to home, and now to the UK.
Mostly, I love that I am getting to see the world right now, which is something I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to do. I love the history this country has and the beautiful countryside. I also love that I can take a train to Paris for the weekend or a short flight to Italy or Austria or Spain! I love that I will spend my birthday this year at a small vineyard in Burgandy, France and only have to take one day of vacation to do it!
All that said…I will only be here for 3-4 years, and then I will be heading back to the states…closer to home and family, to start my own family. It’s then that I’ll probably stop moving so much (I’ve had 4 addresses in the last nine months…no joke). All in all, though, it’s possible that even though I will move closer to “home” to raise my family, I will look back on these times of constant relocation and find that I am most at home in this state of perpetual motion…maybe. Maybe not.
I am going to be the black sheep of the group!
I was raised in a town in Wyoming with a population of about 500 (it has since increased to almost 800 ). It is a tiny little mountain town with skiing not too far away with the nearest movie theater twenty miles away. That being said, I loved my childhood. Loved playing frisbee on Main St. in the middle of the night in the summers, knowing everyone in my graduating class of 40, and spending every given moment outdoors. I attended Montana State University in Bozeman, yet another ski town with a population of about 40,000. After college, I was craving some metropolitan excitement. I moved to Denver (yet again…me with the skiing 
), and made sure I had the experience I was craving … a downtown studio apartment with a Fortune 500 and office not too far from my apartment. I am back in Montana now. I miss the city excitement. I miss the culture. I miss seeing people in anything but North Face and Danskos. I wouldn’t be opposed to raising my future family in a city at all. With anything there will be pros and cons, but I think of everything NYC has to offer and am excited for your girls. They will get to do things little ones in the middle of the prairie will never even be able fathom. That’s pretty incredible.
I was born and raised in the Midwest but have lived in the Deep South for almost 30 years and THIS is where I belong. Grits, y’all, sweet tea and all. I embrace it. Love it and own in. My daughter, on the other hand, born and raised in the south….dreams of moving to the “Big City (aka NYC)” someday. At least it’ll be a fun place to visit….right?
I grew up in a small town in the Rhineland area of Germany. I moved to California when I was 25. That was definitely a change from how I grew up. I love it here, but I do miss family and friends in Germany a lot… so eventually, I see myself move back there, but for now I enjoy the Californian way of life
Home is an interesting concept to me too. I don’t know if I could ever feel “at home” without living in a house with a backyard. I spent a few years during and after college living in apartments and condos (no yard) and it made me crazy! I love being able to sit outside and to see some green grass and trees from my windows. I live in the suburbs of Denver now (where I’ve spent nearly my whole life – near the foothills of the Rockies) and the only thing that would inspire me to move is if I could have more outdoor space. I’m talking about a few acres of land, with a sprawling ranch-style home sporting a huge kitchen and lots of windows!
I am fascinated by you and your fellow Manhattanite parents – if I couldn’t send my kiddos to the backyard to burn off steam while I’m making dinner, I don’t know what I’d do! (of course you have 3 girls – and I have just one stuck between two rambunctious boys!) Ah, girls, they are so sweet and mellow….but that’s an entirely different post!
I too am raising girls in the city (2 of them in Boston). I grew up in the suburbs of New Jersey and lived in D.C., N.Y. and San Francisco in between. I love living in the city and even as a child I dreamed of living in one when I got older. I am shocked now that I sometimes have doubts about my choice. I see my daughters wide eyes when they spy their suburban friends’ “parks” right in the backyard. I wonder if I am depriving them of some idealized version of an American childhood, but I just can’t imagine doing it any other way.
I grew up a little bit of everywhere (hence the blog) and I guess I’m still growing up here in my current hometown of DC. I wholeheartedly love Washington… and yet I’m always imagining what it would be like to live elsewhere, to keep moving, to settle down somewhere new. For now I think I’m hooked on city living, but I wonder if that will change as I enter some new phase of my adult life. Curious to hear from this group whether a shift in family life has often coincided with a shift in locale. Aidan, can’t wait to feature you on Neighborhood Nomad!
I love where I grew up in NJ. It was perfect for me. Now I live in FL and this is where my children have grown up and I have come to realize that it’s perfect for them. I think that is what truly matters.
I overheard someone say last week that she had live so many places that she didn’t have an attachment to any of them. So from now on she doesn’t care where she lives. That broke my heart a little.
I have such a distinct sense of home: this place where I was born, this place where I’ve always lived, this place where I now live and work. I live in Southern Maryland, less than 45 minutes from D.C., and our town is considered a “bedroom community.” Pretty much everyone local works in D.C. or just outside the city, then comes home to sleep.
Though I love to travel and explore, I’ve never considered living anywhere else — I’m happy where I am, where my friends and family are, and prefer to see other places in one- or two-week stays!
i loved reading all those comments above and imagining how other people live…
i grew up in vienna/austria. i moved to first scottland then england after i graduated high school. i am now 26 years old and back HOME in vienna.
this will always be my home no matter how much i loved living in other cities. yes cities, caus i couldn’t imagine living in a town-ever!
vienna is beautiful, with loads to offer and i could not imagine raising my kids anywhere else. i guess you could call me a city girl but european cities are nothing compared to american ones i guess