How old?

4 year old! FOUR. YEARS. OLD.

Today is the 4th anniversary of my little piece on the internet. I seriously cannot believe that I've been writing on this very site (http://graceful.blog-city.com) for this many years. But I have. And it's been great. It's been so nice to "meet" others out in cyberspace who visit my site regularly. I've followed YOUR lives and you've followed mine.

A lot has changed in four years. When I started, we were in a small detached townhouse with a year-long lease. It was a temporary place because we wanted to have a house built. We'd just moved to this new city due to the Hubs job. It was just the four of us venturing into this new place. No family. No friends. The Hubs worked all day. I had two kids at home all day. But at least the townhouse was nice. It was a 1-story, 3 bedroom, 2 bath 1100 square feet structure with a small enclosed backyard. YES! A backyard! No. There was no grass. It was a gravel backyard. But at least the kids could run around and be safe. We were in the back end corner of the complex. Behind our fence was a church. So it was a quiet location. The only time there was any noise was when they had a couple holiday bazaars.

Like I said, I started this blog because I was alone. I didn't have anyone to talk to. But now? Things are different. I've got two part-time jobs. Both kids will be starting school in just over a week. We live in our "big" house. We live in a great neighborhood with lots of kids and parents who care about the other kids in the neighborhood. I have to say that I'm comfortable with any of my neighbors correcting my kids when they are out of line. If I see one of the neighborhood boys walking slowly home from the bus stop in the 100+ heat, I'll have him hop into my car for that short drive to his house. Not a problem. It's that feeling of "it takes a community" to raise our kids. Yes. THAT is the kind of neighborhood I live in. We're there for each other and it's a wonderful feeling.

My life has changed. It has. But I continue to write about whatever is in my gut. What makes me happy. What makes me sad. When I'm frustrated. When I'm in need of support. Just knowing there are people out there that read and care. It's a comfort.

So if you're out there....give me a shout out on my blog's anniversary!

Happy Birthday to my blog...Happy birthday to my blog...Happy birthday bloggy-blog...Happy birthday to you!