Small town living….

As a kid I couldn’t appreciate or understand the gift of being raised in a small town. As a young kid it was freedom, we rode our bikes everywhere from sun up to sun down. Not a cellphone or parent in sight. We would bounce from park to park, yard to yard or swim at the public pool in the summer months. My youth was filled with too much ice cream and popsicles, bologna Sandwiches, and off brand Dr. Pepper. My curfew was “be home when the street lights come on”. There were no watches worn, just basing your day of street lights and sunshine.

As a teen I felt suffocated at times, I started to feel like living in a small town was annoying. That once watched over community feeling began to feel like a microscope stealing my freedom. This of course was because I was trying to bend and break rules and curfews set my by my Mom. That’s hard to do (although I managed just fine 🤪) in a small town, because that saying “it takes a village” really happens here. My friends Moms were my Moms too, people in town would keep an eye out for the neighborhood kids. Everyone knew everyone and if you were caught doing something, they knew your Mom and her phone number.

I’d eventually spread my wings and fly away for a bit. I’d live in bigger cities and enjoyed access to more shopping, grocery stores, and nightlife. At that time in life it’s what I needed to really appreciate where I came from.

Weeks after Cooper was born I began to feel this tug at my heart I’d never noticed before. I was longing to be “Home”. Suddenly all the conveniences of a big city seemed so unimportant. I wanted the safety that comes with knowing most of the faces who pass me on a walk. I wanted to have my family 10 minutes away and have babysitters that were grandparents. As I held this new life, I wanted him to experience the freedom that comes with living in a small town.

3 months into motherhood we packed up and moved back home (well one town over to Elmore). As I sat at my kids elementary school yesterday I was feeling nostalgic watching them all shop at Santa’s workshop. It’s a memory I still have from my own childhood. I saw teachers that taught me, and friends I grew up with.

Thank you to my small town for helping shape me, raise me, and now support me as a small women owned business. I can’t think of a better place to raise my kids. We have something special going on here, and I’m so glad my children will get to experience it. ♥️