Missing Home

This morning I had to switch my driver's license over to the new Southern one. For some reason, this is always an emotional thing for me. Not like I get teary eyed or anything, but it's usually one of the last things that I do after we move and they never let you keep the old one as a souvenir, so I always feel like I'm surrendering the past few years of my life when I hand it over.

In our seven years of marriage, we have lived in four different states--each one having different struggles and pleasures--each one becoming a "home" in my heart. In Utah, I miss the mountains, the college life, the hiking of the Y, the extended family parties with all the siblings, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, cousins--I especially miss the dinners Dr. C and I would have once-a-month with my grandparents. I miss the fun camping trips with my sisters and the Friday afternoon scrapbooking.

When we moved to Missouri, it felt familiar because I was only an hour and a half from my growing-up hometown, but Columbia had its own uniqueness. I miss the cute shops downtown, the amazingly-kid friendly library, our first nice apartment with the golf course and the pools and the tennis courts (don't miss all the crazy geese though!) and the fun friends there that were always up for taking a walk or willing to loan a cup of sugar, I miss the fun park across the street with the lake and the walking trails, I miss the feeling of being a first-time mom and having all that one-on-one time with T-Man.

Our move to Nebraska was hard for me--I hated it for the first few months. But now that we've moved away, it has been the hardest place to leave. I miss the awesome children's museum, the cute children's zoo, the fun events downtown, the Dairy Store, Holmes Lake, Dimensions preschool, my big backyard with the swingset and the flowerbeds in the front where I planted tulips and daffodils, my familiar running routes on the MoPac, Mahoney State Park, the Lincoln Safari, the totally empty stores on Nebraska game days.

But most of all, I miss the people. I miss my awesome Young Women and their amazing examples of strength and faith. I miss all of my church friends and their cute little kiddos and our Tuesday morning playgroup and all of their crafty ideas and parenting advice and sisterhood. I miss all of my preschool-mom-friends and our chats about our lives in those five minutes of waiting before the kids came out and then the fifteen minutes of chatting afterwards. I miss all my Lincoln Mommies and their play dates and activities and answers to parenting questions and the laughter and tears and cookies and babies. All of these people (and more!) helped me love Nebraska--they all became my family when my family was far away. They made Nebraska home.

And I am missing home today.