Can you find Iowa on the map?
Yeah, admittedly, when we went for our first visit, we couldn’t either.

While not specifically mentioned in my Life List, I wanted to move outside of Ohio in my 30s. Actually, I wanted to in my 20s too, which I did, albeit temporarily, to Phoenix in 2004. We relocated five years ago to Pittsburgh and have loved it immensely — first living downtown before the big “boom” of the Cultural District and then living in an amazing neighborhood where we were able to sell our house in 9 days (!!!). I wrote about my conflicted experiences about “home” last year, then removed the post, because… there was something that made me feel unsettled about it; and with time for reflection, I think I finally know why. I want to move.

This last year has proved overwhelming at living a city lifestyle. For some reason, my desire for a more suburban, smaller (quiet) life is at critical mass. Maybe it’s age? Maybe it’s my social anxiety? Maybe it’s the noise… yeah, it’s partially the noise and the feeling that I’m drowning in busy-ness constantly. Maybe it’s just that a vibrant city life has worn out its welcome (on, in my opinion, is experiencing a “too big for its britches” moment). Maybe I miss the Midwest? And horses. I miss the horses.

We traveled to Des Moines in January to start the conversation about possible relocation — to learn about the city, shop houses with a Realtor… we even scheduled an executive tour of the downtown area and its suburbs. And since you now know about our official announcement, we obviously fell in love with our new home! So, we’re on the horizon of a move that’s quickly approaching.

The expressions on most friends’ faces (and the WTF comments) when they hear we’re moving to Des Moines tells us that most people don’t know much about Iowa. So, here’s a few articles to get you started:

How America’s Dullest City Got Cool {via Politico}
Iowa’s Heartland beyond the campaign trail {via NYT}
I’m not a hipster, but… Do the most hipster thing possible and move to Des Moines {via The Atlantic}
30 Things to Know Before Moving to Iowa {via Movoto blog}