photo by Savannah Grandfather
Guest Post by Amy from The Finer Things in Life
After living and working in a suburb for seven years, my
husband and I felt led to move to a small town to raise our family (we’ve dubbed our new town, Tiny Town, since that’s what it is). This decision was a leap of faith for us, as
his salary would be cut drastically and we both knew that I needed to be home
to raise our children.
Although far removed from bargain shopping and mainstream
entertainment conveniences (we live 15 miles from the nearest grocery store and
55 miles from any real shopping), we
have found that Tiny Town living lends itself nicely to our frugal lifestyle. In fact, even with the salary cut we were
able to save and invest nearly 15% of his income last year!
I wanted to share a few of the ways this major move to a tiny town has been a big blessing in our lives:
Our Home
::We sold our 1,200 sq. ft. home with no basement and purchased for just over half of our selling price a 1,400 square home with a basement in Tiny Town. More space. Less money.
::We now have a big yard–three city lots big, to be exact. That makes for some nice garden space, which has given us lots of practically free food. My black thumb has turned a lovely shade of green!
Our Vehicles
::My husband’s vehicle now sits in the garage much of the time, as he simply walks one block to work. The gas and maintenance savings have been incredible, and we are able to save that extra money for the rainy day when a new vehicle will be needed in order to avoid car loans.
My van sits a lot, too. All of the daily errand-type things that need done are within four blocks of my home. We walk to the post office, bank and library if we need something.
Shopping
::Living in Tiny Town has honed my organizational skills and my creativity. I refuse to drive to the nearest store every time I’m out of an ingredient for supper. I keep a detailed list of things we need, check the store ad before we go, and scour the aisles (coupons in hand) to stock up on special deals while we’re there.
::I keep a bargain bin of small gifts in the basement for unexpected party invitations.
::We have wonderful family and neighbors who help each other out. They’ll pick up something at the store for me if I’m not headed that way.
::It’s harder to develop a case of the "wantsies" when you’re far removed from all the latest and greatest things in the store windows.
::Oh, and sales tax here? 5.3% Not too shabby!
Entertainment
::Our awesome library carries a nice selection of dvds for checkout. Free.
::We have a lovely park and walking path and quiet streets for bike riding. Again, free.
::Eighty dollars buys us a full family summer pass at the city swimming pool.
::We stay very busy with church and school activities. Supporting the kids in our community is fun and free for us. It’s also the best way to stay involved because in Tiny Town, pretty much everything revolves around school activities.
Tiny Town living has been great for our young family, in
more than just frugal ways. If you’ve
ever considered leaving the city behind, take that leap of faith. Your family is sure to benefit!
A stay-at-home
mom, Amy gave up an eight year teaching career at one of the largest schools in
her state to move with her husband of nearly 10 years and their three children,
ages 5, 3, and 1 to Tiny Town two years ago. Amy takes joy in caring for her family, finding a good deal, volunteering
at her local library, and blogging at The Finer Things in Life.
It sounds heavenly!
Great post! When we have visited tinier towns, I often have this sense that I could really enjoy living in one, especially if the church was very strong there.
I think I used to drive through your tiny town about 4 times a year, going back and forth to Edisto Island. Remember it fondly as a landmark on the path.
Thanks for a thougthful, gratitude abounding thought. Your tiny town is close to mine–don’t ya love tiny SC towns!
I was just wondering, did you have family members and/or friends in that town before you moved there?
~Susan
I grew up in the country, 14 miles from the nearest town (population: 800). We still think about moving back there when my husband finishes his degree in this college-town. The best way to describe it? Peaceful.
LOL! I know that place! I lived in the area (closer to town) for 14 years. I was a real estate appraiser and did lots of work out there. Always loved that little post office 🙂 We relocated to tiny town, VA 2 years ago. I do love it but I REALLY miss the beach. Traded the beach for the mountains, so all is not bad 😉
At least you’re not TOO far from CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid, Publix, etc. Glad to hear you’re enjoying it!
You will not regret it!
I really enjoyed your post, and I just had to drop you a note to say that I recognized the building pictured immediately. My parents lives in Edisto, so we drive past the AR post office frequently. We’ve dubbed it the “mini post office”, and it’s a landmark of sorts for our family…when we pass the mini post office it means we’re almost to Grandmas! I’ve many times admired some of the beautiful older “country” homes (I’m a big fan of the front porch! LOL) in that area and thought how wonderful it would be to call one home. I’m just a tad bit jealous!
Thanks for the great post and the side benefit of reminding me to call my mom! 😉
Some small towns are better than others! I grew up in the largest town in my county. We had 2,500 people. Unfortunately, we had no pool and a very small library with very few books and no other materials to checkout. We had two grocery stores, until one closed. When I was in high school, KMart opened. Walmart came when I was away at college. My town didn’t really have much community or atmosphere.
I would love to live in the type of town that you’ve found!
I think it depends on the town. When I was 11, we moved to a tiny rural community where everyone was related to everyone else. We were always the “outsiders.” Maybe things are different nowadays, with so many people being mobile. But sometimes little towns can be very unfriendly to newcomers. Especially if you are a different ethnicity/race/religion.
I’m so jealous! I grew up in a very small town in the heartland, population 300. Needless to say, you’ve stirred so many good memories 🙂 I wish you and your family all the best in your New Home!
We live in a “Tiny Town” and love it!! :0) When we visit family in Ct. we cannot wait to get home!1 :0) People seem so rushed, consumer orientated, and have a lesser sense of community then in a “Tiny Town”.
Found a freebie!!! http://www.bargainist.com/deals/2007/10/kmart-free-halloween-candy-coupon/
Kmart free candy coupon! WE dont’ have any Kmarts here! boo!
I enjoyed your insight! We lived in a small SC town for 23 years and had to move to a much bigger town for my husband’s career. It has proved very difficult for us because of the enormous “abundance” we witness each day -too many stores, too many cars, too many things to do. We often have to enclose ourselves in our home to rest from all the stimulation. We miss our small town days immensely, especially the relationships with the people there – proving “things” truly do not make one happy.
We’ve lived in a small town for the last 5 or so years. You are absolutely right about how it affects your organizational and shopping habits. We also are within walking distance of many things and try to take advantage that. We eat out less, we get more creative with shopping locally and any time we do decide to venture out to do ‘real’ shopping, it becomes an exciting family road trip.
We have a good sized yard, but quite a few trees, so vegetable gardening may not work (we’ve been in our present house just a few months). I also have a black thumb, but it may be time to reevaluate how we’re using our space and try setting something up. Maybe it can be turned into a good family project.
great post! I would love to live in a small town!
When I was 8 my family moved to a tiny town in north Florida. We were 30 miles from the nearest grocery store. My parents hated it but I remember the one year that we lived there as the best of my childhood.
Hi Amy,
I loved your post! Thank you for sharing. My husband and I live in a rural area kinda near several small towns.
While you share many great points the one I can relate to the most is not developing a case of the “wantsies”. Our area is not spendy or trendy and it is SO wonderful, it’s hard to explain. People are not always trying to one up the other with all their possessions.
It is such a relief to just be ourselves and to let our neighbors be themselves. Out here, we find that life is so not about what movie you see, the latest thing you bought or the latest vacation you took. We absolutely LOVE it.
Take Care,
Trixie
http://farmhomelife.blogspot.com/
Those are great and so true! I just posted a bit ago about “forced frugality” while my husband is in graduate school and it’s kind of some of the same things – walking more, using the library, friends that help out, etc.
It’s neat, too, to see that you took a step of faith and now see blessings from it!