Best Town For A Family? (Des Moines, Cedar Rapids: transplants, house, employment)

[steel03]

Norwalk and Indianola sound just about perfect for you. Adel wouldn't be bad either.

[jmgg]

Originally Posted by steel03

Norwalk and Indianola sound just about perfect for you. Adel wouldn't be bad either.

Good call on Adel. I went there last year for a football game. Nice independent little town still close to I-80 and easy commuting to anywhere in Des Moines.

[ElleTea]

Originally Posted by TonyMacaroni

Awesome guys, thanks for all the input. We're a young couple so we want to stay somewhat close to Des Moines, about 30-45 min away so we can still attend concerts and such at the arena. But prefer the quiet outskirts living. We're not religious in any way so not sure how much of a factor that plays into some of those towns.

We live in Phoenix but we're in the far north outskirts of Phoenix. It takes us about 40 minutes to get to downtown Phoenix. We live in the suburb called Anthem which is nice but, hot, crowded, and snooty people all around. I think the tipping point for wanting to move was about a month ago I saw this guy with his son who looked to be about 9 or 10 on a motorcycle at a red light, once it turned green a car cut in front of them and they both wiped out on their bike. Wasn't too bad of a crash, but the car that cut them off just took off, and the 5 or 6 cars behind them just honked their horns and drove around them, no one bothering to get out and check on the two other than myself and one other person after I already had. Kinda dawned on me that I really don't want my kids to grow up around these type of people. Not to mention the public schools here are terrible.

I just moved from Des Moines to Phoenix in November. I live in Deer Valley and love the location. I am lookng forward to the hot summer! I haven't had any reason to go downtown yet other than the St Patrick's Day parade and festival this weekend (which was actually more fun in Des Moines!).

As for what you talked about above with the motorcycle...I wouldn't be surprised if the same situation could play out in Iowa. Many people would help, but many would also just prefer to mind their own business, unfortunately.

I loved Des Moines, it is a very pretty city, especially in the spring when the trees are blooming. There is always something to do. But I couldn't take the winters anymore. You are in for a HUGE shock with that! Winters in Iowa are rarely mild. It snowed last year on May 3rd! (that was my final straw)

Cost of living in the 2 cities for me have been pretty much exactly the same. My rent is lower than my mortgage payment in Des Moines was, and I find food and gas and entertainment to be the same as I was used to in Iowa. The major thing would be purchasing a house, you can get more for your money in Des Moines in most cases. I didn't run my heat more than a handful of days this winter which was a huge difference! (heating costs in the winter can get pricey when it is way below zero and the wind is howling)

If you are looking at Des Moines specifically I can probably give you some inight as to the comparision between there and Phoenix if you like.

[TonyMacaroni]

I'd love to hear some comparisons, I actually don't live too far away from you. I don't understand how you're excited for summer. It will hit 110 and stay between 110-120 for about 2-3 months straight. Leaving you with pretty much nothing to do outside unless you want to sweat and get sunburnt. Spring sounds awesome there, in Phoenix it's just the same year round. No spring, no fall, just hot as hell and then for about 1-2 months its somewhat cold.

Right now we're looking all over, but wouldn't mind being about 30-45 min away from Des Moines. We don't want to be in the city but also want to be close enough that we can drive there for things to enjoy.

[ElleTea]

Originally Posted by TonyMacaroni

I'd love to hear some comparisons, I actually don't live too far away from you. I don't understand how you're excited for summer. It will hit 110 and stay between 110-120 for about 2-3 months straight. Leaving you with pretty much nothing to do outside unless you want to sweat and get sunburnt. Spring sounds awesome there, in Phoenix it's just the same year round. No spring, no fall, just hot as hell and then for about 1-2 months its somewhat cold.

Right now we're looking all over, but wouldn't mind being about 30-45 min away from Des Moines. We don't want to be in the city but also want to be close enough that we can drive there for things to enjoy.

The heat makes me happy. Being cold does not. I LOVE that the weather is always the same in Phoenix. No worrying about a sudden change in weather ruining plans. In Iowa, things like "surprise blizzards" can happen. Or just rain and nasty weather. You can't plan anything outdoors, really from November to April, and even after that there is always a good possibility your outdoor activities will get rained out. I can't count how many times July 4th fireworks have been cancelled due to rain, or how many Memorial Day weekends I have spend bundled up in a hoodie because it is cold and rainy. I went to an outdoor concert a couple of weeks ago here and it was gorgeous out. In Iowa? No outdoor concerts in March. It's too cold, and likely raining or snowing. Being stuck inside in the winter with the furnace running nonstop is not how I want to spend my time. Wishing the winter months away so I can LIVE again.

I can give you positive opinions about the city, but NOT the weather.

[steel03]

Originally Posted by TonyMacaroni

Right now we're looking all over, but wouldn't mind being about 30-45 min away from Des Moines. We don't want to be in the city but also want to be close enough that we can drive there for things to enjoy.

Adel -30 min
Norwalk - 20 min
Carlisle - 20 min
Indianola -25 min
Grimes - 20 min
Polk City - 25 min

[TonyMacaroni]

Originally Posted by ElleTea

The heat makes me happy. Being cold does not. I LOVE that the weather is always the same in Phoenix. No worrying about a sudden change in weather ruining plans. In Iowa, things like "surprise blizzards" can happen. Or just rain and nasty weather. You can't plan anything outdoors, really from November to April, and even after that there is always a good possibility your outdoor activities will get rained out. I can't count how many times July 4th fireworks have been cancelled due to rain, or how many Memorial Day weekends I have spend bundled up in a hoodie because it is cold and rainy. I went to an outdoor concert a couple of weeks ago here and it was gorgeous out. In Iowa? No outdoor concerts in March. It's too cold, and likely raining or snowing. Being stuck inside in the winter with the furnace running nonstop is not how I want to spend my time. Wishing the winter months away so I can LIVE again.

I can give you positive opinions about the city, but NOT the weather.

lol probably just opposites since I've lived here my whole life and I've had about enough of the heat. Hit an outdoor concert in July and let me know how ya like it, after a life of heat and no snow or rain really, I would LOVE to have it. Bundling up inside in a hoodie sounds like paradise.

[Meemur]

To be fair, I think if one is truly willing to dress for the conditions and not suffering from SAD, the winter is not that bad. I've been through worse in Upper Michigan.

As I've written, Des Moines has more sun than the Great Lakes area, so no SAD for me this year. Granted, I did need to make special trips to Mills Farm Fleet, etc., for heavier thermo underwear and a lined hoodie to wear under my short winter coat (not my parka), but once I had those items and some 80 gram (not 40 gram!) thinsolete gloves, I was fine!

My one regret was not getting to cross-country ski this year, but that was my fault. I spent a lot of weekends working on my house.

But be warned! SAD is not a made-up problem. There is significantly less light out here in the winter than there is in Phoenix. It can be overcome to some extent with light boxes and spending time outside walking and playing, but that and having to deal with ice and snow are among the reasons that many older people leave Iowa. On the other hand, some folks choose to retire here because of the four seasons, so it's hard to say . . .

[smpliving]

I think you and your family might find the winters exciting ... I know we did when we moved to Iowa 20 years ago from Southern California. At the time, my kids were 4 and 6 and winters were a blast! Lol. Also the change of seasons were such a welcome change from the same ol' weather year round ( I'm a native Californian). Also, you can't beat the public schools here. It's been a very positive experience raising our kids here.

I also get kind of depressed if there's no sun for a few days or more. As Meemur mentioned, the sun does seem to come out every few days, so that helps. I spent a few months in Seattle, years ago in the summer, and it was really depressing for me with endless weeks of no sun. Couldn't handle that.

There are many good suggestions as to small towns on here. Good luck!

[TonyMacaroni]

Originally Posted by rigizug

I think you and your family might find the winters exciting ... I know we did when we moved to Iowa 20 years ago from Southern California. At the time, my kids were 4 and 6 and winters were a blast! Lol. Also the change of seasons were such a welcome change from the same ol' weather year round ( I'm a native Californian). Also, you can't beat the public schools here. It's been a very positive experience raising our kids here.

I also get kind of depressed if there's no sun for a few days or more. As Meemur mentioned, the sun does seem to come out every few days, so that helps. I spent a few months in Seattle, years ago in the summer, and it was really depressing for me with endless weeks of no sun. Couldn't handle that.

There are many good suggestions as to small towns on here. Good luck!

What part of Iowa did you move to? And what is SAD?

Yeah winters would be fun, we have to drive about 3 hours north to find snow for the kids to play in here. And what are these things you call, seasons?