I’ve officially launched my house hunt.

The neighborhood in my sights is a suburb. The houses are adorable. There are plenty in my price range (thanks to the housing bubble burst) and the schools are top-notch. It’s not a cookie-cutter suburb, it’s an old suburb, but a suburb nonetheless.

Tomorrow I am cramming three house viewings into my lunch break. So tonight I popped Benjamin in the car for a little trip … our mission to get a feel for the neighborhood in the evening.

First we stopped and looked at a few houses from the street, like this one!

Benjamin said, “House, house!” I looked back at him in his little carseat, “You want that one baby?”

“Ya!” he yelped.

“Okay, honey, we’ll see…whatever you want my little angel.” Then he threw his sippy cup at my head and shattered the moment entirely. But, hey, it was still cute.

We stopped at the park, just a quick walk away from the house. Unlike my downtown park this one was bursting with families, some rebel teens smoking cigarrettes and little girls climbing trees. Pleasantville. I asked a mom how she liked it here.

“Oh, it’s fantastic. We’ve been here for five years.”

“What about getting downtown, is that a pain?” I asked.

“Downtown! We never go downtown. We’re always here.” Always here. Here, in the suburbs, how is that possible? What about the coffee shops, the street musicians, the bars…the art galleries? But then I looked at her daughter and all of the other happy kids. They were safe. Cozy. Comfortable.

And then….Benjamin discovered the rock climbing wall. One you can only find in a super, duper fancy suburb neighborhood. And then he started climbing…

And climbing…

And climbing…

Until he reached the top. All by his little two-year-old self. The happy married couples were shocked. “That was pretty impressive!” Yep. That’s my kid. This is just SO funny because his day care ladies, my mom, his dad – everyone who knows him always jokes “This kid is going to be a mountain climber or something.”

So after relishing in the glow of the Pleasantville playground we jumped in the car for one more spin around the neighborhood. On one street I actually had to pull over because there were at least 20 kids outside playing – in the street! Just like when I was a kid. Amazing.

I called my older sister tonight. Told her how torn I am about the idea of moving to the burbs and she said, “You know what? The kids are happier. They just are. And sure the parents are kind of stuck out there but it’s so good for the kids.”

So what do you think… a hip single mama out in the suburbs? Can it happen? Will I go nuts out there? And isn’t that house adorable!!! [I'm seeing it on Thursday]

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