[MoMark]

Originally Posted by misshome

I could really use some help in making a decision.We moved to las vegas 16months ago.We have 3 children,all in school here. It really takes alot to get used to. I'm from a small town in Ohio. So this is very scary here. The crazy drivers here are unbeliveable. But i'm getting used to it.My children really want to move back home. We miss the snow, the fall, and the small town feel.But my husband has a better job here. To be honest the people we have met here are all really great. People here seem to be more friendly and outgoing. I hear you should give it at least 2 years until it starts to feel like home. Is this about right? Or if i'm not used to it by now maybe it just isn't for us?

It may be different for families versus single people. I moved there in October of 2000 and instantly loved it and felt right at home, but then, I bought a home in Southfork right by St. Rose Hospital and it's a very comfortable part of Green Valley to live in. I agree most people are friendly and what seems like crazy driving is actually following a strange etiquette somehow..you get used to it, though the four lane lane-changers who make abrupt decisions to take an exit I never got used to!
I have heard the schools are rough and tough, and nothing is more miserable for young kids than a tough school experience. I think you have to make the decision that works best for your family! A lot of people never get used to Las Vegas, or, they accept the first two or three summers, but then skip town because the climate is just too extreme for them. I wish I could give you better advice. I just don't know what I'd do if it were me in your situation with children to think of either, though I agree with other posters that it's usually hard to go back to where one came from because it....and you...change, even if it's slight, and it'll never be the same as it was, which can be disconcerting too. That happened to me when I tried to go back home to my original home in California..I just wasn't the same person and my relationship to it had changed to the point that it seemed foreign and familiar at the same time, kind of like going into your parent's house as a long independent adult and feeling funny about opening their refrigerator to grab something to eat...it's no longer YOUR house and although they're family...you feel the change and the distinction and can't go back (plus my parents eat nasty natural stuff now..ick) ...

[lvkewlkid]

I have found that if you move to the older, established neighborhoods, especially near Pecos and Tropicana like Flamingo Crest, Montara Estates, Biscaya Circle, the people are very nice and have been living there since the houses were built and don't move away as much as the newer communities.

[euroASD]

I have moved around for shorter periods quite a bit. I think you really have to work at it to make the best of it. If you sit around and wait for it to come to you it won't happen. Try to find out as much as you can about the city. I love to read up on everywhere I go. Get to know the history (not just the mobsters) or the architecture or whatever. Find out what's going on in the city (I find the upcoming art district very interesting) and in your community. Get involved in something if you can.

Also, it is human nature to remember the good things about places. But that's never the complete picture. I love everywhere that I have been. I love romanticizing about those places and reflecting on it. You don't have that if you don't move. Maybe that's just me because I have merely had good experiences. Or is that just in my memory?