- After six years in Los Angeles living with my two young children, we decided to move to a small village.
- Our children grew up in close proximity to their grandparents, which was very important to us all.
- We didn’t feel like we could enjoy L.A.’s many attractions.
“This place is alive,”As I got out of my car in southern Illinois, a town of 5,000 people, I thought.
My family moved from Los Angeles in August 2015. It was bustling with restaurants and busy freeways. The small community was vibrant with the sounds and songs of crickets, owls and blowing trees. It was literally alive.
My husband and I spent years contemplating staying in Southern California, with its high cost of living, hit-or-miss public schools, and distance from family — we spent thousands of dollars flying back and forth to the Midwest to visit them. We stopped chasing our dreams after a point.
L.A. is a great place to live, but we didn’t do enough.
Six years we lived in L.A. and loved it. The cultural diversity, endless places to explore and my husband’s love of the Pacific Ocean surfing and skiing down Mt. Baldy in evening.
I too liked the idea that we could have outdoor adventures, Disneyland, or the beach near us to visit with our kids. It could take hours to reach these wonders even though we live only 20 miles from them.
It felt at times like we were in a prison cell. Although we were close enough to feel the attraction, we couldn’t drive between 6 and 10 a.m. then we had to get home before 2 p.m. or we would be stuck in horrible traffic.
After a failed single-parenting attempt at Disneyland, one of the most difficult days in my life was. We missed 2 p.m. “avoid traffic”deadline and left at 02:45. We sat in traffic hours. My two-year-old daughter and six-month-old son were in traffic for hours. They were strapped into their carseats, screaming so loud that they threatened to drown me and their vocal chords.
We couldn’t afford to give our children the life they deserved.
We were worried about our ability to afford to live in a high-cost area. This added financial stress made it difficult to see how others managed to do it. A rising appreciation of home values was a major financial benefit. We could also use the high down payment to make more stable, cash-flowing investments.
Our stage in life was the real deal. Two small children lived with us in an apartment with no yard, while our families lived 30 miles away. After the sudden death of one of our parents, we wanted our children and parents to have enriching experiences together during this crucial phase.
My husband found work from home and I was able start my master’s degree with support from my parents.
We miss the amazing people and friendships we made in L.A., as well as the chance to attend movie screenings and do some hiking. My daughter tells me she wants to be an actor and a ballerina. Sometimes I wonder if it was the wrong place.
It was exhausting to leave on that one-way flight. Change is difficult. We are still enjoying the new Midwest things, such as visiting the local creamery and eating lots of artisan cheeses and ice cream.
We have the opportunity to enjoy the four seasons of snowball fights and thunderstorm watching, as well as the flowering of spring and pontoon-boat rides during the summer. Of course, grandma’s and grandpas’ love is a great gift.