Your first home

I grew up in a big Spanish style house. It was old, built in 1920 and had extremely tall ceilings. I loved that house. The living room had a mantle that ran the length of the room. I can recall the day I could finally reach the top of the mantle and thought I was rather tall. My room had dark purple carpet and periwinkle walls (hey, it was the 70's and my older sister picked out the decor). The bathroom had dark blue carpet and no shower, just a bathtub. And the doors! The doors were solid wood with crystal doorknobs. They were beautiful. The front of the house was distinct compared to the other houses on the block. There were two large palm trees in the front, a statue of the deer and a small wall surrounding the house. I remember walking along that wall trying to avoid getting stabbed by the bushes nearby. It's because of that house that I yearn for a Spanish style home.

What was your childhood home like? How many rooms did it have? What was the decor like? Why or why not did you love your home? Please take 15-20 minutes to write about your memories of your first home.

Family Trips

Growing up, we really didn't take many family trips. The ones we did go on were when I was too young to remember. However, one trip I do recall (I must have been 4 years-old) was visiting my greatgrandmother in Utah and sleeping in the basement (it was finished!). My ggrandmother had an old toy monkey that when you wound it up, it banged two cymbals together while opening and closing its mouth and shrieking. I loved it! I also remember my sister teaching me how to do dot to dot puzzles. Lastly, I went fishing with my father and brother and remember being rather bored and smelling fish. I love this memory because I loved my ggrandmother so much. My best childlike memory of her is that she would always take out her false teeth for me!

Today, think about your earliest memory of a family vacation or your favorite family vacation, either as a child or with your own children. Take a moment to jot down your thoughts in a notebook. It could be a fancy leather-bound journal or a $.99 composition book (that's many times what I use). Whatever you use, spend 15-20 minutes writing! Once you start, you'll be surprised by what you remember.