Day 19: a sweet memory from my past

Well, day 19's challenge was to write about a sweet memory from my past. There are a couple of stories that actually have been fresh in my memory very recently for one reason or another. I will share them all (instead of just one).

1) I was probably 10 or 12. I had a tight perm, elephant ears, and bangs and wanted to be Debbie Gibson. I was the "not so cool" kid and my cousins were the "cool" kids. My cousin Jill spent the night and we were driving to school in one of these only yellow with brown paneling and a third seat in the "very back" that faced the back.

Jill and I were in the "very back" and on our way to drop her off at home before school. She was holding up a curling iron and a blow drying the entire way to her house. When I asked why, she informed me that she didn't want people to think that she was ready for the day and she wanted to make sure that they knew she hadn't done her hair. She rode all the way to her house holding up her stuff in the window so everyone could see. I love Jill to death and what's extra funny about this show now is that Jill grew up to be 100% natural and "hippy" like. :) Funny stuff. :)

2) I can remember when my brother Aaron was born. I was about 8 or 9 years old. Aaron was born at home and I can remember the excitement in the house when I went to bed. I remember being woken up and taken in to meet my new baby brother. I already had 2 brothers by this time, but because I was older when Aaron was born, I can remember the really strong "care taker" feelings I had for this tiny crying thing. That day I can remember being the "big sister". The one everyone else would look up to. I also remember being pissed that it was another boy. :)

3) My favorite years growing up were spent in the woods. We lived in the boonies between Marysville, WA and the Tulalip Reservation. It's WAY more developed now, but when we were growing up, there were a lot of trees, animals, and cousins and that's about it. We had rabbits, a horse, cats, the occasional baby cow, and whatever else came across our yard. We had a swinging rope, a big trampoline, and TONS of tree forts and "secret" places. I could walk to grandmas house via the trail in 3 minutes or take the turn off and be at my favorite cousin's house in 4. There was a horse ranch next door and I LOVED horses. They had show arabians and they used to let me help out by mucking stalls and grooming. I loved to walk over and just watch them train. My favorite memories were in this house. This house that my family built from the ground up through sacrifice and over the course of many years. I have so many memories from those formative years. I often think back on those times and yearn to have that much freedom and no worries. When all that mattered was that you were home before dark and you had good manners while you were away. I'm glad for my upbringing and the memories we created.