The Idea

Don't forget to add that it was three years of work! By the time we finished working on this house (will we ever really finish?) we were so used to eachother that moving in together wasn't such a big idea after all. I mean, the family that grouts together, stays together!

But I don't think we really even realized how well it would work out. Sure, we laughed in the beginning when we needed a cup of sugar or some lemon juice and it was only a flight of stairs away. And I still get a kick when we forget that we're on the phone and meet in the laundry room, continuing to use the phone instead of talking face-to-face. But I think the real proof of our success was in our lives. Suddenly other people began to take notice.

Not a single one of our eleven house members is taking antidepressants, blood pressure medicine, sleep aids, or diet pills, and we're all eating better, walking more, and working less! We throw away less money for gas and electricity and keep our houses warmer and brighter. We enjoy better, fresher, organic food, but are too busy to eat all day. We walk instead of drive, exercise daily, enjoy the weather in all seasons, and save money on gas...all without even trying.

When friends would invite themselves over, bringing notebooks to take notes so that they could duplicate our new brand of success, I think that's when I started to realize that what we were doing was worth writing about. The idea we had was a smart one, but the reality was so much more than we had expected. This isn't just the story of our lives together, but the story of how being together made us so much better!