I am one of six kids and was the first one to move away, well, the first one to move away and stay away.  My older sister went out of state for college but then came back closer to home.  I went out of state for college, 4 and a half hours away, and then got married and moved 6 hours away.  The first couple of years it took some getting used to, being in a new place and having to make new friends.  I missed my family.  My sisters and I were all pretty close.  I had pretty much gotten used to the fact that I was going to be the lone sister.  But then, Anna, one of my younger sisters moved here after college and lived with us for 6 months until she found a place of her own.  It was so much fun having her here, getting to see her whenever we wanted, doing dinner, shopping, pedicures, etc.  And 2 years later, my sister Staci joined us when her husband got out of the military and became a police officer in the DFW area.

I don’t know what I would do without my sisters, all 4 of them.  But I especially don’t know what I would do without the 2 who live here.  We have always been close, but having them here has brought us even closer.  Staci has two little boys of her own, both just a few months younger than my boys.  We are the best of friends, and our boys are too.  It will be so fun to continue to watch our boys grow up together and start our own “family traditions” away from home.  Being the first one to move away, it was hard for this place to feel like “home” for a while, but now, especially with family so close, it’s home.