I’ll take a house, please. Make it a small.

My husband and I have been looking for a home in Decatur for two years.  We’ve been through ups and downs with this market and we’ve decided we want a smallish house that suits our family as it is.  No extra rooms for maybes, no bonus space or extra extra baths.  We have downsized to a degree that continuously makes my parents cringe in order to make this happen.  It is a difficult place to be, but it is peaceful and it has taught us about true necessity and the difference between needs and wants.

At one point we had a large 5 bed 4 bath home in a quiet lakeside community near Chattahoochee Hill Country.  We only ended up in Decatur because my oldest child was diagnosed with Autism and attending a special school in the area.  We pitched a tent.  Since then our lives, marriage, finances, health and spirits have been tested.  But we learned through it all that we are a unit.  We know now that we don’t need space as much as we just need to make a home.  That home needs to suit our needs, not anyone else.  And our definition of success no longer includes what our house looks like.

We are hopeful that our search will pan out.  We desperately want a home that doesn’t over extend our family.  Our first house required me to work outside the home.  This house will not.  Our first house required my lawyer income to keep it running.  This one won’t.  Our first house had empty rooms.  We’ll likely bust out of whatever we find in Decatur.  Whatever that is, it will be filled with the love and joy that accompanies our revised lives.  Live that appreciate everyday and are filled with peace that never existed in any other houses we’ve owned.

Decatur Where It’s Greater

I am having a good time watching football today.  Right now it’s looking like the 49ers may take the Saints (ain’ts in GA).  The Broncos play next and I’m happy about that.  I usually surf the internet and watch football at the same time, and in doing so I came across an article that expresses the sentiments of a large number of people living in or moving to metro Atlanta.  If you want to know why Oakhurst Elementary is at capacity and has kids being bused to other schools in the City of Decatur school district, look no further than the AJC.  Article

The couple in the article have small kids and a good school system was atop their wishlist during their home search.  As well it should be!  When we moved here, we were told that about half of the residents of Decatur sent their kids to private school.  If that was true I am sure that statistic is changing.  People are placing an emphasis on quality of life these days, not just quantity of square footage.  If my kid can attend a great school within walking distance of my home, I want to do that.  I don’t want to drive an extra 20 miles a day for schools and I want to live near where I work.  I want to live in a community where I can walk to a restaurant or pub and get back and forth to work in less than an hour.  Decatur is one of the few places around Atlanta possessing all of these characteristics.

I have mixed emotions about what is happening to our little town.  I’m happy that other people are discovering what we’ve known for sometime.  I’m glad that folks are prioritizing and putting material possessions lower in the pecking order of life.  Make no mistake, most people are sacrificing square footage and vehicle storage to move here.  I’m concerned about what Decatur will look like as it grows and whether the great school system can stay great.  My suspicion is that the small size has contributed to its greatness.  I’m also concerned about whether the laid back, hippie-esque vibe of my city will be strong enough to convert the newbies.  I have my fingers crossed about that.  I’m also concerned that because of the cost associated with living in Decatur, the already scarce socio-economic diversity will all but disappear.  I will remain hopeful but I’ll have to keep one eye open.  We’ll see how it goes.