Night and day

I am realizing how different my childhood was from my kids'.  Megan is almost 11.  By the time I was her age, I had already been to 10 different elementary schools and moved at least a dozen times.  She has moved 6 times in her life (only once that she sort of remembers), and has been at the same elementary school for grades K-5.  Alisha doesn't ever remember moving, went to one preschool and one elementary school.  We have been in the same ward for the past 7 years, so it's the only one Alisha has gone to.  I grew up with 3 brothers and 3 sisters, and it was quite noisy and chaotic all the time. We just have our 2 girls, and although they like to wrestle and tackle each other and scream, for the most part, things stay relatively quiet around here.

Maybe all the chaos made me more adaptable to changes.  We just got used to it, because that is just what happened all the time.  We even got bored if something wasn't new or changing.  When we stayed in a house for more than 6 months, we'd get trunky and switch rooms with each other or rearrange our furniture.  I was always the new kid, always struggling to make new friends, and always moving on.  So it just baffles me when my girls struggle so much with anything new.  When the school was being built on to make new classrooms for their school, Megan worried about going to the "new" school the next year, even though it was still the same school and 10 steps from the "old" part.  Anytime a new class or activity is starting, both girls are really nervous about not knowing what to expect.  Megan is getting better as she gets older, but they don't realize how lucky they are for the stability they have had. 

Another difference is I never flew on an airplane until I was 15.  I've lost count of how many times the girls have been on planes as we have flown back and forth to Utah for various weddings and trips to see our families.  I had never been East of Utah (aside from being born in Italy and living there for a year after that) before I got married at 19.  The next year, we moved to DC, was there for 3 years, and where Megan was born, and then in New York City for 4 years where Alisha was born.  They both want to take a trip to the East Coast and see where they were born.  I really want to start traveling a lot with them, especially now that they are older and are more interested in other places.

Another difference is their activities.  I never took swim lessons as a kid, so I never learned how to swim.   I took a couple of classes as an adult, and I can proudly say that I can now tread water and do the backstroke.  But even Alisha is going to pass me up, probably this summer.  She graciously offered to show me side breathing so I don't try to breathe in so much pool, but it's a little embarrassing to be shown up by my 7-year old.  They are both in a swim club for the summer, and Megan also does a year-round swim club.  There are swim meets every Saturday for the summer, and once or twice a month for the year-round club.  Over the years they have done ballet, soccer, Girl Scouts, band, and now swimming.  They've also expressed an interest in Tae Kwon Do, but I can't take on any more activities until I am done with nursing school.

Probably the biggest difference is I grew up around a lot of cousins and other extended family too, and we always had family functions together of some sort.  We don't have any family around now, so my kids don't really know their cousins very well.  It's getting better as they get older, and they can remember visiting our families and the fun they have had together.  I am sad that they don't know our families like Chris and I do.  I'm sad they don't get to grow up around their extended family.  I'm sad our families don't love and adore our kids more because they don't know them.  But I'm grateful for adopted families who are there for me and my girls and bring back memories of the chaos when the kids are running around crazy together and making up games in the backyard.  My girls have it pretty good, I have to say.