Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Things I Love Most About Being in Rockford

After singing the praises of Charleston yesterday, I felt I would be remiss to not give a shout out to the things in my 1st hometown of which I have been gratefully reunited with after my recent move. Here we go, in no particular order...

1. Less Humidity-

Girls let me tell you, my hair thanks me for this relocation! On any given day you CAN have a great hair day sans Moroccan Oil, who knew?! Don't get me wrong, I'm still using the Godsend oil, but, I can walk out of my house and not undo the last hour of hair effort that just took place that morning. It's amazing. Plus my make-up rarely feels like it's sliding off of my face and onto my neck here, which is always a bonus!

2. Soft Grass-

Granted we're in a HUGE draught here, like kill all of the farmer's crops kind of draught, but typically we have real, actual grass. The kind of grass that begs you to kick off your flops and explore the day barefoot. If I could go barefoot here all day without being called a freak or tree hugger, I most certainly would.

3. Beef-A-Roo-

It may not sound delicious as neither beef nor roo are the most appetizing words, but these people know how to make a french fry y'all! Their season salt is straight from the Lord above and if it ain't in Heaven, along with McGriddles, well then I'm not really sure what I believe anymore. Poor Tim, my marathon, Ironman running husband, typically tries to stay away from fast food, and with me, he doesn't really stand a chance when it comes to Beef-A-Roo. If you've never experienced their roast beef, cheddar fries, and a shake, come on down for a visit and I will ALWAYS be available to take guests to the Roo.

4. Attending Family Functions-

After almost 16 years of missing out on family dinners, birthdays, and really any other excuse to see one another, I've got some making up to do and I am pumped. Who knew going on a random Thursday to watch your little cousin play softball could be so fun? Giant snow cones with my hubby at the ballpark, okay! I realized recently that I had never, ever been to one of my uncle and aunt's homes and they had lived there for years and years. Well, that is just sad and inexcusable. Not anymore, fam! Ready or not, I'm making my rounds. If you don't want to see me, turn off the porch light and close the blinds, otherwise I'm coming in!

5. Exploring My Hometown As An Adult-

When I moved away in 1997 at the ripe age of 18, there was not too much to do legally in the area. Sure you could go to the mall for the 11-billionth time, or see a movie at the $1 theater (which was a date favorite with my now husband when we were 18 and broke), or attend the typical high school house party (hence the illegal matters of underage partying like fools, sorry mom). But now, there is something to do every weekend! We must live in the capitol of festival and fairs, I swear, and you KNOW I love it!

I always used to tell people in Charleston "if you're bored here, it's your own fault", and I'm beginning to think that could become my tag line here as well. Granted, there's no beach, but we have concerts, fairs, The City Market on Friday nights which rocks my face, movies in the park, trendy little spots downtown, and what should be award winning sushi at Mark's Fusion! I hope Tim's ready to grab our weekly "Go" section and get a little Christopher Columbus up in this place.

6. Seeing My Husband Every Single Day-

After dating long distance on and off throughout our adult life, seeing his handsome face every day is a special treat that I don't know will get old. People tell me it will, but I'm determined to prove them wrong. Whether it's running errands, quietly reading books on the couch, or laughing ourselves to sleep at night, just being with him is a welcome change from what was our norm of daily phone calls and 3 day visits every month or so.

I recently saw something that said "marriage is getting to have a sleep over with your best friend every night of the week" and it made me smile from ear to ear because it's so true! Our evening hang outs are the highlight of my day, and in a world of change for me, this guy tries to go above and beyond to help me adjust. If he can do something to make things easier, well, he does it and it doesn't go unnoticed.

I still have a lot to learn about being back amongst my Midwestern roots, but in the meantime, these 6 sunny spots in my life are giving me something to sing about. Yes, literally sing. Just ask Tim.

Well hello there, Rockford, good to see you again!

4 comments:

hmgarver421 said...

I love this. Love!

Heather said...

"and get a little Christopher Columbus up in this place"

prime example of just why I love you so much!

TracyE said...

I just found this blog of yours. I still had an old one on my favorites list. Anyways, i loved this one so much! And i love that you are enjoying Rockvegas so much. I was actually missing you a ton last night. I was thinking...she should be back from vacation any day now...until i realized you wont:( But I am glad b/c you seem SOOO happy now!! But I can still miss you right?

Mom said...

Have I mentioned how much I love having you home! Driving up in your driveway and having you just hop in my car to hang out for the afternoon. PRICELESS!