Hometown & current location:
I grew up in Kansas and then my family moved to Forsyth, MT my senior year of high school. I’ve been living in Bozeman since early 2003.
What does your life look like now?
I met my husband in 2005 while we were in college, we got married in 2011 and had our first (and only) child, Annaliese, in 2015. I have been a stay-at-home-mom since we brought our little bundle home. We also have a 12-pound princess of a dog, Schatze, a Maltese Yorkie mix.
What is it like to walk in your shoes every day?
When we aren’t homeschooling, I am running errands and doing lots of experimentation in my kitchen. I love to cook and bake and try new recipes – or tweak old ones. One of our favorite pre-Covid days included hopping on the Streamline bus and going downtown to the library and to parks and trails. Or we would swim at Bozeman Hot Springs, visit the Museum of the Rockies, go on hikes, or meet up with other families for play dates. Homeschooling has been a great way to fill our days now and it’s been fun to learn (or re-learn) alongside my daughter. Though some of the best days are ones when we stay at home and just play or relax. On the weekends we usually do home projects or go on longer family hikes.
I am hopeful that my daughter will amass social and emotional gains by growing up in a neighborhood like this. I love the idea that she will have neighborhood friends and can have hours of unstructured play.
— Megan Welborn
What drew you to cohousing?
My family doesn’t live close enough to see as frequently as I would like. And like many college towns, the friends you make during that time in your life who become your family, often move away. I miss the camaraderie of frequent, shared experiences with friends. Once I became a mom, I realized more than any other time in my life I needed and wanted community. There are so many benefits to living in a cohousing neighborhood but having a community of people who are invested in one another is important to me. Also, as a mother, I want to make sure my daughter is raised in a safe, supportive and nurturing environment. I love the idea that she will have neighborhood friends and can have hours of unstructured play doing things like riding bikes on the pedestrian pathways or splashing around in the creek.
What is something that makes you hopeful for the future?
I am hopeful that my daughter will amass social and emotional gains by growing up in a neighborhood like this. I like that she will develop a broader sense of the world by living with and learning from a diverse group of people.
What do you feel is one of your greatest strengths that you have to offer the world?
I feel I am at my best, that I have a sense of purpose and satisfaction, when I am helping others. I enjoy working collaboratively or on my own.
What do you hope to be doing 10 years from now?
Living the cohousing dream with my family and friends! We love Bozeman, so I can’t picture ever leaving.