so what if you still live with your parents? im jealous

When I was a little girl I used to tell my parents that I was going to live with them until I was 35. By the time I was ready for college, I abandoned that thought and moved, what seemed like, as far away as possible. In reality, I was only a four and half hour drive away from them and a ten minute card ride to the beach.

I didn't move away because I resented my parents, but rather, I was eager to try life on my own. I was ready to create my own structure of life and schedule to my day--which meant the obvious, no curfew, and the not so obvious, no dessert. (My parents cook amazingly delicious food, which is almost always followed by a just as amazing dessert. Needless to say, it was impossible to get rid of my few extra pounds while living at home).

Now after four years of living on my own, living with my parents until the age of 35 doesn't sound like a bad idea at all. Discounting my years of oblivion, I had always judged people past the age of twenty who still lived with their parents. I thought they were all just lazy bums couch surfing and smoking marijuana in their parent's basement; however, in my more recent years, that stigma has completely vanished, and I've traded my disapproval for envy.

At the age of 22, I still cry whenever I leave my parents house. It's sad to think that life will never be the same as when I was a child. My brother, sister, and I will never again live simultaneously under the same roof as my parents. I don't get to see my family every day like I used to, nor do I have the chance to kiss them goodnight or even just the comfort of knowing they are just a hall away.

Sure I like having my own schedule, and of course, I have shed those stubborn pounds my parents blessed me with; however, in hindsight, those seem insignificant to what I was trading in: home cooked dinner, mom by my side when I am sick, dad to make cookies with, my brother to wrestle with, and my sister to share clothes with.

I just spent the weekend with my family in Lake Tahoe, and it was the most fun I have had in a long time! I don't care if that sounds boring to most people who think Tahoe is a place to get ripped and hang out with friends, I had an amazing time with my family. I love my parents, I love my brother and sister, and I love even more when we are all together.