Little Boxes

Yikes! News just came out today about housing assignments for next year at our school. I think we might be the only family in the world to consider downsizing before having two babies. Let me give a little bit of back story for this one. . .

Chad and I are fortunate to work at a school in Delhi that is wonderfully progressive and equitable in how it treats all the staff regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, etc. We both feel quite privileged to work where we do. Most of the teachers and administrators at this particular school are ex-pats, and as part of our benefits, the school provides us housing. Some of the teachers live off of the campus, and some live on campus. Generally, singles and married couples without kids live off campus, and couples with children live on campus.

There are benefits to living on and off campus. But, some of the reasons why we requested to be moved on campus are that the buildings have central air, central heating (which is more of an issue than you'd think in Delhi), reverse osmosis and uber-purified water in all taps and showers, and that the community is very supportive of parents and raising children. There are at least two other couples (hopefully three!!) that are pregnant right now along with us. So, there will definitely be other first time parents going through this experience right alongside us.

That said, imagine living where you work. I can't say that the idea of sleeping fewer than 500 feet from my classroom is very appealing to me. Further, one of the big benefits of living off campus is maintaining a relatively private existence. Being able to leave work, and having some solitude are things both Chad and I enjoy. Not to mention that we like our current apartment and its location.

Well, today, I am working very hard to remind myself of all of the positive things about living on campus, because seeing how small our apartment is going to be next year was definitely a shock. It's significantly smaller than the apartment we're in now, and I find myself wondering how we will all fit in such a little space.

In the big scheme of things, I know that this is not a very big deal at all (pun definitely not intended). We are moving for our children, who will be safer, cleaner and warmer because they are in the tiny little box of an apartment on campus, so this is really a no brainer. This is a sacrifice that I am so definitely--and happily--willing to make.

But, if anyone has any creative space-saving ideas, please leave them in the comments.

And meanwhile, here's a little folk music love for everyone.