I just spent two weeks helping my daughter Maude get settled in Charlotte, North Carolina. I received a ton of questions about what Maude is doing in Charlotte, and what I was doing to help her get settled, so I thought it would be fun to answer some FAQs.
It’s fascinating to me that Maude is doing something similar to what you and your family did several years ago: research where to live, decide on a place, and move there (France for you, Charlotte for Maude).
I’d love to hear how you and Maude have gone about researching and deciding where to live. How do you decide what factors are most important to you? What sources do you use to research? Please tell us all about it.
Our kids are both college aged now and we are in the process of moving from the NY area to Charlotte. So glad to hear that the city made a great impression on you and Maude! It seems so young and vibrant. Good luck to her! Also, I loved the article about liberal LDS members. Not all religious people are on the right; seeing a diversity of opinions in the Catholic, LDS, etc. faithful is good to see.
I love North Carolina so much! My husband and I met and fell in love there. We are currently having a hard time living in Utah after living on the East Coast our whole lives. (We moved here to be near our kids.) I'm wondering what the politics of Charlotte are. Did you get a sense of that while you were there? I think we would love to move to Charlotte if moving wasn't so hard. (We're 69) But, the politics where we are living is so disturbing for us, and Charlotte sounds divine. Speaking of that, the Washington Post article was so on the money. I felt like it really covered so many issues that we are facing in the LDS church. I love following you and everything you are doing.
So smart of Maude to hit pause on her education! She will know so much more about herself and what se wants when/if she decides to go back. My oldest paused and took a year working for Americore in Chicago (also a place she had never been) and came away with much more focused and motivated to continue her educational journey. I'm now encouraging my second who will graduate from college in 2022 to do the same.
I grew up in Charlotte and now live 2 hours west in the mountains of NC (Asheville). It’s been so fun to see Charlotte change and grow. It’s a totally different city than I lived in as a young adult and I’m excited to hear how Maude finds it after living there a bit. For my family, we wanted a slower pace of life and a smaller city with easier access to outdoors activities and have loved being in Asheville the last ten years, but it’s so great to have a large city and all its offerings only a short drive away.
I was very happy my college grad wanted to live in DC to start her career. Manageable, livable cities are a great place to build one's skill set (and chops). Good luck, Maude!
My husband and I have moved many times. We have lived in 7 states in our 25 years together and traveled in many more. It has been hard to stay on one place for so many years while our children grow. I have been chomping at the bit to move somewhere new. We have long considered moving abroad. Our oldest just moved away to college and now Im really feeling it. We're looking at the EU in the long term. I wonder if you find that after moving so many times, it becomes part of you and its hard to stay on one place? Being rooted in community can be so meaningful, especially as kids grow up, but the adventure of moving makes life so interesting and fun. It looks like you are marrying pragmatism and fantasy in your movesDo you imagine that you will settle somewhere permanently at some point? Our current long-term fantasy plan is a small hut in the EU and another in N America, and renting out the one we're not in. You?
My husband is in the hotel business, and we moved to Charlotte when our oldest daughter was 3, and I was pregnant with twins. We landed in South Charlotte in the quaintest little neighborhood, and we fell in love with the city immediately. We made lifelong friends there, and when it was time to move on for my husband’s career three years later we were heartbroken. We have lived all over the US, including Boston, Atlanta, and Tucson, and I’m originally from NorCal. Now we live in Bali, Indonesia. Charlotte is still our favorite place, and we would move back there in a heartbeat. It’s the perfect place —great climate, culture and atmosphere, dining and music scene, and affordable to boot. My oldest went to a public magnet elementary school that was a language immersion school. So if Maude ever ends up finishing her teaching degree she will find plenty of interesting options that would marry her international experience well. But if she doesn’t want to stay in Charlotte, maybe she should also look into international school teaching! We love our IB World School, and I think if I could do it all over again I’d seriously consider living and teaching overseas. Good luck to her!
I enjoyed this post so much...lovely following your journey with Maude. You're a good mom. I've only been to Charlotte a couple of times but I remember that it is a beautiful city. So glad to hear it's got a bit of a liberal bent. One thing I thought I'd mention is that when I moved to England from Arizona, I sold my car through Carvana in Phoenix. I received a very good price for it and since I had so much to do to prepare for my move, it took a lot of pressure away.
I meant to respond sooner so not sure how Maude's work search is going but I do know my office is looking for a receptionist if she's interested and still looking: https://ls3p.hua.hrsmart.com/hr/ats/Posting/view/145
The office is uptown (downtown for those not in Charlotte ;-) ) I've been living in Charlotte since 2007 and love it. Thanks for highlighting what an awesome city it is for those who didn't know!
Charlotte is a great city! I am happy for Maude. I like the Washington Post article. Over the years my politics to have evolved. While I would say I am Republican by nature, the party has been hijacked by lunatics. My thoughts and feeling has also changed in regards to the LGBTQ community. My husband and I lived for many years in downtown Seattle and we had an actively gay man who played the organ for our congregation. Our ward loved him and were thankful that he continued to come to church each Sunday. I have decided to let Jesus make the judgement calls and I will love all those that I meet. While I can't put my money on it that the church will change its stance on the issue, I can see hearts are softening and believe that it is possible. When one puts the issue into historical perspective it wasn't too long ago that the majority of the population saw this as an evil/perverse thing. Remember when Oprah did her town meeting on AIDS. I would say a good many of my ward members in Atlanta feel similar to the way I do and that is it is our job to love everyone. I would say a good percentage are democrats. I am holding on!
It’s fascinating to me that Maude is doing something similar to what you and your family did several years ago: research where to live, decide on a place, and move there (France for you, Charlotte for Maude).
I’d love to hear how you and Maude have gone about researching and deciding where to live. How do you decide what factors are most important to you? What sources do you use to research? Please tell us all about it.
Our kids are both college aged now and we are in the process of moving from the NY area to Charlotte. So glad to hear that the city made a great impression on you and Maude! It seems so young and vibrant. Good luck to her! Also, I loved the article about liberal LDS members. Not all religious people are on the right; seeing a diversity of opinions in the Catholic, LDS, etc. faithful is good to see.
I love North Carolina so much! My husband and I met and fell in love there. We are currently having a hard time living in Utah after living on the East Coast our whole lives. (We moved here to be near our kids.) I'm wondering what the politics of Charlotte are. Did you get a sense of that while you were there? I think we would love to move to Charlotte if moving wasn't so hard. (We're 69) But, the politics where we are living is so disturbing for us, and Charlotte sounds divine. Speaking of that, the Washington Post article was so on the money. I felt like it really covered so many issues that we are facing in the LDS church. I love following you and everything you are doing.
So smart of Maude to hit pause on her education! She will know so much more about herself and what se wants when/if she decides to go back. My oldest paused and took a year working for Americore in Chicago (also a place she had never been) and came away with much more focused and motivated to continue her educational journey. I'm now encouraging my second who will graduate from college in 2022 to do the same.
I grew up in Charlotte and now live 2 hours west in the mountains of NC (Asheville). It’s been so fun to see Charlotte change and grow. It’s a totally different city than I lived in as a young adult and I’m excited to hear how Maude finds it after living there a bit. For my family, we wanted a slower pace of life and a smaller city with easier access to outdoors activities and have loved being in Asheville the last ten years, but it’s so great to have a large city and all its offerings only a short drive away.
I was very happy my college grad wanted to live in DC to start her career. Manageable, livable cities are a great place to build one's skill set (and chops). Good luck, Maude!
My husband and I have moved many times. We have lived in 7 states in our 25 years together and traveled in many more. It has been hard to stay on one place for so many years while our children grow. I have been chomping at the bit to move somewhere new. We have long considered moving abroad. Our oldest just moved away to college and now Im really feeling it. We're looking at the EU in the long term. I wonder if you find that after moving so many times, it becomes part of you and its hard to stay on one place? Being rooted in community can be so meaningful, especially as kids grow up, but the adventure of moving makes life so interesting and fun. It looks like you are marrying pragmatism and fantasy in your movesDo you imagine that you will settle somewhere permanently at some point? Our current long-term fantasy plan is a small hut in the EU and another in N America, and renting out the one we're not in. You?
My husband is in the hotel business, and we moved to Charlotte when our oldest daughter was 3, and I was pregnant with twins. We landed in South Charlotte in the quaintest little neighborhood, and we fell in love with the city immediately. We made lifelong friends there, and when it was time to move on for my husband’s career three years later we were heartbroken. We have lived all over the US, including Boston, Atlanta, and Tucson, and I’m originally from NorCal. Now we live in Bali, Indonesia. Charlotte is still our favorite place, and we would move back there in a heartbeat. It’s the perfect place —great climate, culture and atmosphere, dining and music scene, and affordable to boot. My oldest went to a public magnet elementary school that was a language immersion school. So if Maude ever ends up finishing her teaching degree she will find plenty of interesting options that would marry her international experience well. But if she doesn’t want to stay in Charlotte, maybe she should also look into international school teaching! We love our IB World School, and I think if I could do it all over again I’d seriously consider living and teaching overseas. Good luck to her!
DM community, pls. do read the thread about the 7 year old. I am heartsick over it.
I enjoyed this post so much...lovely following your journey with Maude. You're a good mom. I've only been to Charlotte a couple of times but I remember that it is a beautiful city. So glad to hear it's got a bit of a liberal bent. One thing I thought I'd mention is that when I moved to England from Arizona, I sold my car through Carvana in Phoenix. I received a very good price for it and since I had so much to do to prepare for my move, it took a lot of pressure away.
I meant to respond sooner so not sure how Maude's work search is going but I do know my office is looking for a receptionist if she's interested and still looking: https://ls3p.hua.hrsmart.com/hr/ats/Posting/view/145
The office is uptown (downtown for those not in Charlotte ;-) ) I've been living in Charlotte since 2007 and love it. Thanks for highlighting what an awesome city it is for those who didn't know!
Charlotte is a great city! I am happy for Maude. I like the Washington Post article. Over the years my politics to have evolved. While I would say I am Republican by nature, the party has been hijacked by lunatics. My thoughts and feeling has also changed in regards to the LGBTQ community. My husband and I lived for many years in downtown Seattle and we had an actively gay man who played the organ for our congregation. Our ward loved him and were thankful that he continued to come to church each Sunday. I have decided to let Jesus make the judgement calls and I will love all those that I meet. While I can't put my money on it that the church will change its stance on the issue, I can see hearts are softening and believe that it is possible. When one puts the issue into historical perspective it wasn't too long ago that the majority of the population saw this as an evil/perverse thing. Remember when Oprah did her town meeting on AIDS. I would say a good many of my ward members in Atlanta feel similar to the way I do and that is it is our job to love everyone. I would say a good percentage are democrats. I am holding on!