When I moved to the US, I dreamed of living in a large home. Mansions as seen on TV, represented my American dream.
When Scott and I bought our first house, we indulged my aspirations. But after seven years of living large, varied circumstances led us to move into a house half the size. The move presented logistical challenges and I worried about “status”, but I was excited about change.
Today, I have completely embraced small living, and could not even envision going back to big (I actually dream of smaller).
I have come to learn that bigger is not necessarily better.
Here are areas that I have found our small house has improved:
- Family bonds: We brush our teeth together, eat together, watch movies together, and even bump into each other ;), which sometimes turns into a wrestle (my fave).
- Housekeeping efficiency: Five minutes to pick up, two hours to deep clean. Cleaning used to take all day, now it takes a morning.
- Home maintenance cost: Although everything gets used more, there is less in quantity to break, and therefore less to repair. We can also easily stay on top of repairs.
- Community exchange: We reach out to friends or community for seldomly used items. Today I sent out an email for a pair of hiking boots size 6, by the end of the day, I had located two pairs (Thanks Tina and Mary!)
- Utilities cost: A smaller house is evidently cheaper to heat and light, but also cheaper to retrofit (e.g., insulation, windows, and solar).
