30 October 2008

Choosing the City

I signed up to contribute to this blog. I thought I might start with a little background. I am a father of a 17-month old. We have lived in the city for a long time. Before moving to Mt. Auburn, we lived for about a decade in Mt. Lookout. When we moved here a little over three years ago I think everyone closed the "will they ever have a kid" book on us. I joke that I waited until we moved here so that our announcement would be a total surprise, but that is actually not true. We moved here with no intention of raising kids in the city. But it really wasn't until we moved here that we felt ready. There are more factors than just location, but I won't bore you with that. What I want to focus on is our mindset on deciding to raise our family in the city.

I appreciated finding this blog. A nearby friend with a kid (now two kids) sent me the link. I like hearing about other folks bucking the trend to head to the suburbs. We have had a few friends and family ask us if we planned on moving when my son gets to school age, but most folks already knew the answer. We are huge fans of our neighborhood, and well, let's just say my personal mantra is "everyone's entitled to an opinion... specifically mine." So, assuming Mike does not realize what a terrible, terrible mistake he made giving me access, I think that will tend to be the theme of my posts... what is good about raising your family in the city.

To be clear, I don't feel especially "brave" or "cutting edge" in my choice. I'm not really sure what a "hipster" parent is, but I'm pretty certain I am not one. We're just a regular family of three, who have found our dream home to raise a family. It's a 130-year old Italianate on a small parcel in the city, rather than a 2-story home on a large lot in the suburbs. There are definitely challenges in our choice, but there are challenges in all choices.

We have never regretted our choice, and I look forward to sharing what little I can about the city. Who knows, maybe it will help someone come to the right decision. And to be clear, that may not be the city for them, but it is for us.

4 comments:

Radarman said...

Welcome to the club. Our two daughters have turned out wonderfully well. They went through a little adjustment when they went to Walnut and started seeing Amberley and Hyde Park living standards, but they got over it. They're incredibly fun and thoughtful. And, thank goodness, forgiving.

CityKin said...

Yes, welcome bsherm. I look foward to your perspective from the hillside, especially since you are more recently a father than some of us here.

Mel G said...

Welcome, bsherm! As more and more of our neighbors in Mt. Auburn have children, being a family in the city becomes more interesting and less of an odd thing. We are grateful to CityKin in helping to bring us together, not only in the virtual world, but in reality - slowly but surely.

Anonymous said...

WELCOME! Its great to hear of more parents in the neighborhood. I hope you can make it down for the Opening Day Parade party. There is a good turn out of downtown parents and plenty of kids.
Citykin spouse