A place to call home..

Sis and I, circa 1975, yes my mom made those costumes...

As a young adult in the Army, one of my least favorite questions was "So, where are you from?".

There was no clear answer: if I said "WI" then I had to explain why I didn't go to college there or that my parents no longer lived there.

Our house in Torrington, circa 1983

If I said Wyoming, then there was the whole "yeah, but now my dad lives in GA". Followed by the then very emotional question "Well, what about your mom?".

Our house in Cheyenne, circa 1987

You can see why this simple question never ended with a simple answer!

When Hubby and I got married and decided we wanted to leave the NoVA area, one of the main concerns for me was having a place we could call home.

Sure, loads of people call NoVA home but for us, we didn't care for the fast paced way of living (the go-go-go style where your neighbors leave even earlier than you do, arrive home only to promptly lower their garage as they pull into their slot on that never ending row of townhomes).

The cost of living was another major concern. In order to afford that house in the 'burbs, both of us would have had to work full time and spend long hours in the traffic that is D.C. metro area.

Yep, not what I wanted...

I wanted what all my Army buddies had talked about...a place to call home....as corn-ball as that is...the place where everyone knows your name. A place for the boys to come home to on college break

After 12 yrs here in PV (and almost 13 in Colorado), I know that we are there....

Last night I had the PLEASURE of attending a school play put on by the middle school students.

For starters, it ain't what we did in middle school....the parts were all very well cast and hardly anyone "over acted" (yes, you know what I"m talking about....a middle schooler thinking her lines as whatever is worthy of an Oscar. and you cringe when she turns her part into something more than it really is). The costumes were eye catching and the set design was clearly done by middle schoolers with some talent worth highlighting.

Many times I found myself laughing out loud and just smiling...

Not that it was THAT great (yes, Wicked remains my favorite theatrical production that i've seen this week: Go SEE WICKED...even in the cheap seats it is bound to make you glad you went!)...it was that I KNEW so many of those kids...

• Thing One went to preschool with the handsome prince
  
• The King's trusted assistant is the son of my former boss


• One of the mice went to Water World with my boys this past summer


• That page over there? Well, she's in Thing One's class and her younger sister goes to school with Thing Two.


• Another chorus member? Well, her mom was sitting in front of me and during intermission we caught up on some HOA issues....


• And tonight, I would love to go and watch the second crew...because Mrs. Kravitz's daughter is the fairy godmother and one of the Evil Step-sisters is without a doubt one of the nicest girls you will ever meet.

Yes indeed, I have found a place to call home...and already I'm seeing the beauty of giving your kids roots...and watching the little ones in your community bloom and grow!

So, you may keep your D.C monuments, your plethora of museums (that are free), you can even have your Cherry Blossom festival...I've got Park View-Centennial and it is all that I need (and then some....)