Mom Of 2 Says Moving From Her 5-Bedroom ‘Dream Home’ Into A Studio Apartment Brought Joy, Freedom & More Quality Time With Her Kids
She downsized her space and upgraded her life.
fizkes | Shutterstock When Sona Avetisyan moved her family into her dream home, she thought it would bring them happiness. She and her husband saved up for years to buy their 11,000-square-foot house, but it didn’t provide the fulfillment Avetisyan was hoping for.
“Instead, it brought me overwhelm and anxiety,” she revealed on Instagram, which led to her making a major lifestyle change.
The mom of 2 said that moving from her 5-bedroom ‘dream home’ into a studio apartment gave her joy, freedom, and more time with her kids.
After buying the house, Avetisyan realized the extra space needed extra upkeep, which took her attention away from what she loved: “Quality family time and entertaining.”
“At first, I didn’t understand why,” she said. “Then, I realized it was because time is not limitless. The more things you have to manage, the less time there is for other things.”
Upgrading her home meant she had more to care for. She shared that even though her home “looked beautiful,” the sheer amount of stuff her family acquired left her feeling frazzled. Having a big house meant that her attention went to housework, not spending time with her family.
As a professional organizer, Avetisyan helps families pare down their clutter so they can have calmer lives, and she did just that for her own life, too.
After her divorce, she and her two kids moved to a studio apartment, which gave her the gifts of time, freedom, and joy. Avetsiyan shared the reasons behind her decision to move into a studio, saying, “I choose time.”
“Time gives me options,” she explained. “It gives me freedom. It gives me joy.”
“It gives me more opportunities to make memories with loved ones,” she continued. “It gives me rest.”
The decision to go minimalist changed how she was able to show up for her kids.
Moving to a smaller space allowed to the working mom to go from “annoyed and anxious” to “peaceful and happy.”
“I want my kids to remember me as happy and full of joy, not rushing and annoyed because I’m managing ‘eight times the boxes,’” she said.
fizkes | Shutterstock
Avetsiyan noted in another post what the minimal mindset is all about, saying that it's “not about spending less money. It’s about quality over quantity.” She shared that the rent in the beachfront studio where she lives with her children is similar to the 11,000 square-foot home where she used to live.
“I see so many moms that are spending their entire days just cleaning up and organizing… Not just organizing their physical spaces but organizing their schedules and trying to fit in more birthdays, more activities, more extracurricular things for their kids,” she said. “But if you’re just constantly doing, doing, doing, doing, that doesn’t leave any time for being.”
It's no secret that moms, even moms who have jobs outside the home, spend more time on housework than dads do. Moms carry the mental load for their families, and a bigger house means a way bigger mental load.
“Things have literally taken over our lives,” she said. “I was spending all day just picking up after my kids. That huge house came with so much space. By the time I was done with one room, my kids had already made a mess in the other room.”
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A | Shutterstock
Avetsiyan asked an important question: “Is that really how you want to live your life?”
She acknowledged that not everyone has the means or the desire to move into a smaller space, and she emphasized that the choice that was right for her might not work for other families. In sharing her story, Avetisyan aims to help people locate their own joy by asking if their lifestyle aligns with their values.
Downsizing allowed her to recommit to the activities that make her happy, which have nothing to do with material possessions and everything to do with the love she has for her family.
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers social issues, pop culture analysis and all things to do with the entertainment industry.