This week it’s a little personal. I’m showing you a family portrait. Some of my family, anyway. Our wacky, goofy, misunderstood family. Yes, I’m talking about my side of the family. We’re about as dysfunctional as they come but these are the people that let me be who I am with no apologies. (Okay. Sometimes I have to apologize).
And seeing my son get to really know his extended family? It warms my heart. So while I have friends I’ll miss terribly in NC, this is the homecoming I’m looking forward to.
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This week, I have photographic inspiration for my post. It’s not so much the photograph as it is the feeling I’m feeling in this picture. It was taken last Monday. I had made yet another long car ride to continue our quest for the perfect house/yard/community. P.S. Still haven’t found it.
More importantly, my trip (intentionally) coincided with my older brother’s arrival from China. He lives there with his wife and two children. I see him every couple of years. As you can imagine, it’s not the easiest place int he world to visit (but I have visited!)
It’s the first time in a long time my family was all in the same country, let alone the same state, at the same time. Missing from this picture is my husband (boo – he had to leave for a meeting in Richmond) and my younger brother (working late that night).
As we look for places to move, I keep mentioning to Sean how I want to stay pretty close to my family. Not SUPER close. But close.
My sister and I have been staying up late chatting at night when I visit her house. It’s girl talk. We haven’t done that in a long time. We don’t talk about nails and shopping. But okay, we do talk about hair (mainly to complain about our genetics in that department).
But I left home for college at 17. I never went back. I never thought I was leaving for good. I would come home on breaks for no more than 3 weeks at a time. My mother kept a room for me but it was never my room again. I haven’t lived too close to family since then.
My mother lived in Raleigh for a few years. It was a tumultuous time for both of us. But my sister — I haven’t lived in close proximity to her in 20+ years. I’m kind of excited about being close again.
And my brother is looking at possibly buying a house nearby for part-time living arrangements. I don’t exactly understand it but he’s my brother. I never really understand him.
14 comments
My family has basically scattered to the wind — I have a brother in NC, a brother in Hawaii (about to be deployed to Afghanistan) and a sister in Louisiana. I never thought I would miss them like I do, but I have come to really treasure the rare times that we are all in the same place at the same time.
You have so much to look forward to, finding the perfect house and moving close to family again. I envy that and am very excited for you. 🙂
A few years ago when I was thinking of having more than one child, I
randomly wrote an email to my scattered siblings asking them how important
it was growing up with brothers and sisters. Surprisingly, they all wrote
glowing notes about wonderful it was to have each other growing up. It was
nice and surprising at the same time. I’m looking forward to losing some of
my stubborn independence!
Love today’s post. Â I’m an only child so family is small.Â
My mother was an only child and so was her mother. My father had one brother
who one son. So outside of our immediate family, we had a very small
extended family. While my immediate family is now small (just the 3 of us),
I’m excited to be closer to my now-extended family!
Before having children, I never really “got” the importance or value of living near family. In fact, I can very honestly say that I, at one time, was in a very big hurry to move away, establish my own identity, and be rid of them.
Now that I have a child and am wiser, however, I realize that I was wrong. For better and worse, we all need family (whether biological or otherwise), we need people who care about us enough to be there when we need them.
I love that picture of your family!
I, too, made an effort to move and stay far, far away. I think I’d still be
okay with it if I didn’t have my son. I love watching him around my family
and how he somehow knows they are family without me even explaining it.
How lovely! My family is scattered all over the US, the UK, Dubai and Egypt (we are in France!) so I won’t even get into my inlaws!Â
Either you must miss your family a lot or you get to travel a lot! I hope
it’s the latter. My brother has always been scattered but at least it got me
to visit Germany and China. Now, if he would just move to Bermuda…
I have pretty much all of Canada between me and my immediate family. I live on one side and my twin sister, younger sis, parents and two grandparents live on the other. Sometimes it sucks, especially since my kids are the only grand babies for my parents. I take the together moments when I can get them, try (sometimes fail) not to pick fights 😉 and Skype a lot!
Glad you’re enjoying your time with everyone.
Wow – that must be so hard! Especially since I always heard that twins are
so close. I hope someday your family will be closer because it’s really
nice, isn’t it? (as long as you like your family!)
Good luck in the househunting department! You will be find. you will find the perfect house!
That’s what I keep telling myself.
I waffle between wanting to live close to my family or not. Then I remember the dysfunction and realize it’s better to have my kids away from that, then in the thick of it. When I want to visit, I can and they can get to know family in short spurts…because as they get older they will realize in short spurts does wonders for the psyche.
Hope you find your dream home soon!
I used to feel that way. Truly. But maybe everyone is older and more mellow
or maybe I am. I just like having my son have other people around and it
takes all of the burden off of me. It gives me more of a peace of mind when
we’re together. I hope it stays that way!