City people

We just spent this amazing weekend in Park City, Utah. When the sun was out, it held you like a sweet goodbye to summer. The trees were green on the mountains with just a spattering of autumn colors peeking through. We were visiting close friends who left the West Coast eight years ago to move to Utah. They have family there, they all ski, and they had small kids so it just made sense. Now having visited for the second time I can really see how much sense it makes.  It's beautiful, the schools are great, you get more for your money and there is so much open space.

It's not difficult to look at real estate in LA without wanting to flee the city. The prices have climbed to ridiculous numbers. People seem to be buying the tiniest of shoe boxes just to own something in a desirable neighborhood. Most places outside of the big cities like NY, LA, and SF you can actually buy a nice home for a reasonable amount of money.  I felt this way in Massachusetts this summer too. I saw beautiful homes with nice sizable yards and day dreamed about moving there. I just know there are too many things I would hate to say goodbye to in LA.

Everything is a trade off. I hear people say that all the time when they are talking about places to live. We left our beloved house in the hills two years ago to move to an area where we could walk, bike, and have a community of people around us. It has been the best decision we made for us, as a family. We love how this is a real neighborhood that feels a lot like what I imagine a small town USA town is like -- yet, we are still in a city. It is diverse both racially and economically and is close enough to anything we are willing to fight LA traffic for. Or now we can take the Metro which has been super easy. We also have an amazing public school system and we have been so impressed with it so far. When I look at the money that goes into the schools in Utah it seems like it is this brand spanking new school. It is nicer than most of the private schools here. They even have their own snack truck with the schools sports teams logos painted all over it. We could sell everything we have here and get a really nice house there with money left over, but we would freeze half the year and there are no Trader Joe's.

So we will stay here, because we love it. Well we love the area, but we do miss our house. We miss the natural beauty that welcomed us home everyday as we drove up the hill away from the city. We miss the quiet mountains that surrounded us. We now live in a town house that we love, but wish it wasn't attached to someone else's house on one side. We don't exactly love having a board that keeps reminding us of the rules of living in this complex. We also don't love paying the HOA fees each month. There is the trade, though. I love the convenience, the friends we have made, the grounds here, and the pool. It takes a while for someplace to feel like a home, but I am really settling in. Sure I can up and try something else if we needed too. I don't want to though. I'm making myself comfortable.