Home

My version of home and your version of home may be different. I frequently like to joke that I am homeless. In my short lifetime I have lived in six states and I have actually changed addresses about fifteen times. I lived in three states before I got into preschool. I kind of hate moving at this point although I have it down to an art form.

The first state that I actually remember living in is Mississippi. A part of me still considers that home because I have some great memories there. Basically, it is cemented in my mind as my real childhood. My elementary school was almost like a private school in the amount of interesting and fun things we got to do. Seriously there has never been a better field day then what that school used to do- I could go off on a tangent about that but I will refrain. (Side note- do kids even have field days anymore?)

I also made my first best friend there. She had big brothers that were my big brother's best friends so this family was amazing to me. They were the kind of home where you didn't have to knock to come in- you were just part of the family.

This is approximately the last day of my life that I could wear a bikini. I also like my missing teeth. When my parents decided to move us to North Carolina it was pretty traumatic. We were leaving a small town to go to a HUGE city- at least that is what it felt like.

I also proceeded to break my leg on my friend's trampoline the day before we moved- and when I say I broke it I really mean my best friend's brother landed on it. I think he felt bad about that for awhile, but it was really our fault. I distinctly remember knowing that too many people were already on the trampoline, but when you are young you don't really care about that.  It also just so happened that our home in North Carolina was the first two-story house we ever lived in- I planned that, I desperately wanted to bump down the stairs on my butt for a whole summer.

I moved to North Carolina with a large blue cask on my foot and the country accent from- well you know. Luckily, I moved in the summer so the only people I had to meet were the church community where my dad was now the Minister of Music. Ahh- that sounds easy.

Not so much, I was basically ridiculed for the entire summer because I sounded like "a hick". This still amuses me. I sounded like a hick to North Carolinians- ironic. Remember that friend of mine who is still my best friend:

Yeah she was one of the worst ones! I'm glad we grew out of that.  

By the time the school year rolled around I had taught myself not to sound like that anymore. Now I highly doubt that you would know I spent my childhood in Mississippi.

I also claim Georgia. I was born there and it is the only state that has been a consistent part of my life. My extended family has always lived there, so I have spent every Christmas and parts of the summer in Georgia. Georgia is home because it is very intertwined with my family history and memories from every age of my life. It is the only place I can say that about.

North Carolina is now where I call home. I have lived here the longest and obviously most of my memories are here. I still say I am homeless though because my parents are in Texas. For some reason it is hard for me to relate to North Carolina as home when my parents are no longer here. I am slowly getting better about this since our recent move and the feeling of stability that comes with a married partnership.

Hopefully at some point in my life I will have that "settled" feeling. I always feel like I am on the go and ready to prepare for the next move. At least I finally know that for the next two years or more we will stay put! It's a start.