Wednesday, February 13, 2008

The formative years



After 5th grade we moved alot. It was on from Colorado to Pennsylvania. Then to Louisiana. Then Missouri. I then stayed in Missouri for college and law school. I don't really know when this photo was taken. It could have been Colorado but I'm not certain. I think it is funny that I have a rainbow striped shirt on because one of my favorite things to buy for my girls is . . . yep . . . you guessed it! . . . rainbow striped shirts.

I have often considered myself lucky for having lived in so many places. If you count the fact that many of my summers were spent with my Dad, who has lived in the Southwest and the Pacific coast, I have lived in (or spent whole summers in) nearly every region of this country. I've always thought that moving from place to place has made me adaptable and resilient. I was often the "new girl" at school and that has it's advantages. If I screwed up friendships in one place . . . poof! . . . just start over in another place and be the new, adaptable likeable girl. It wasn't until I was an adult that I realized the pitfalls of that mentality. It wasn't until I was an adult that I realized that that had been the cycle of my life either.

It was always my desire to put down roots. Live in one place. Become part of a community. Have children and know that they would stay in the same school system from kindergarten through high school graduation. This is how Razor was raised and it was no brainer for him. Thinking about it now, marriage is really what taught me about long lasting, sustainable, no-turning-back, can't leave and start over, shut-up and say your sorry kind of relationships. And, shutting-up and saying your sorry kind of relationships are hard work. Really hard work. And, really, really, incredibly worth every bit of work.

So, now, here we are in a community where we have definitely put down roots. My children are in a school that we love. The area affords the outdoorsy lifestyle that we all enjoy. Life is good. Now if I could only find one of these . . .




For me, Boo and Licious. ::hehehe::

-dana

3 comments:

First City Events said...

we did move alot didnt we. i always thought it was pretty tough. i guess b/c i suck at making new friends. i agree with u that it is important to stay in one area if you have kids in school. think of the lifetime relationships they will have. for me, it's a complete contrast b/c i dont have one single friend from my past that i keep up with. like it was all a mirage or dream, but with pictures to prove it. wouldnt that be cool if you could take a camera to bed and take pics of your dreams to have in reality? dont get it twisted though (mom, if u read this) i wouldnt change anything b/c my past made me who i am today, it has givin me my wife, life, and i am living my dreams.

laura capello said...

i was raised in the same school district and loved it. it was awesome to go through everything with the same set of kids despite friendships beginning and ending.

but once i got to the dating years, i didn't date. cuz i wasn't about to date the boys who ate glue. no way.

Stacy A. said...

Dana,

Wow, If I just changed the top picture of this post, your words could describe how my early life played out as well. As I became a young adult I continued moving and moving because it was the only way I felt comfortable. I wasn't good at long relationships, and like your brother, kept in touch with no one from my youth. Then I met my husband. I have really had to learn how to trust him, and myself, in order to make it work. But every second is worth it. Thank you for putting in to words my own scrambled thoughts. It always helps to know others in this crazy world understand.