The perks and downs of downsizing

Last summer, my family and I moved into a new home. It was the first time I have ever moved, and even though I had lived in my old house for almost all of my life, I was not uncomfortable in my new home. It still had a open feel to it, with easy access to all of the rooms and a refrigerator downstairs. The carpeting was so plush, that when we were moving in I almost fell asleep on it. Speaking of sleeping, since I now live in town, I can get places a lot faster, and I can sleep later in the mornings that I have school XD. The neighborhood kids are odd, but very kind and active. My brother and I often swim in our neighbor's pool- usually after being begged to go by the neighbor kids- and is a great way for he and I to cool off. But, there are some downsides to downsizing. Our house is what many Realtors call "very centralized", meaning that the majority of the space is very open and connected to the center of the house. This may seem great at first, but there is one huge downside- My brother and I can't sneak around the house and avoid contact with our parents like we could in our old house. For the longest of time, we could hide behind walls between rooms, minimizing the chance to be seen to almost zero. Our parents, especially in the summer, would often get swept up in errands and chores that they needed to get done, allowing us to go unnoticed for hours. Eventually they would call for us, but until then we were free to roam outside and almost anywhere in the house. Sadly, Now that we are in a very open house, It is almost impossible to go somewhere else without being heard or seen by somebody. This does not mean that our disappearing act is over- just that it happens less often. One more disadvantage hasn't presented itself yet, but will be very relevant soon. Our house is two minutes from a school that my brother and I don't go to. That particular school is notorious in our new neighborhood for egging, tee peeing, and many other pranks that involve vandalizing. Our house has not been a target yet, but I wouldn't be too surprised if we become one soon enough. But despite the downsides, I really love my  new home.