The Altus Effect

So today the boys and I took a trip to Target...They have all been sick this week and we were going stir crazy so I asked A-Man where he wanted to go and he said Target or Warmart, yes warmart, that's how he says it :) So of course I need no excuse to go to Target so off we went! And it got me to thinking about all the things that I appreciate so much after living in Altus (even if it was only 2 years). I still, even after 6-plus months, get giddy when I see a Starbucks, a Target, a mall. I can't even explain to you the excitement of a Super Target with a Starbucks inside. I have to remind myself that I can get a coffee whenever I want now and I don't "have to have it" anymore! Living in that small of a town was a bit of a culture shock, but I learned so many things from those two years. I learned how to really cook. With the lack of restaurant options, Applebees, a few Mexican restaurants, the bar that went from a cantina to a sportsbar, to a half cantina/half sportsbar, back to a cantina all in a year, I learned that if we wanted good food I needed to cook it. I also learned that an hour drive to the nearest Starbucks was worth it especially if you could fit in a trip to Hobby Lobby and Ross before naptime. I learned that our base preferences will always be near a big airport. Driving two hours to the nearest decent airport makes for little to no visitors. I learned that an overnight at a hotel in the city was worth every penny to keep our sanity: Athen loved going to a "Texas!" I learned the art of online shopping, I still have our debit card and credit card numbers memorized. I learned that military hops are the best way to fly. The C-17 is one of the coolest planes ever! I learned that Braums has the best ice cream hands down!!! I learned that people can be baptized in a horse trough. I learned that it's not where you live it is what YOU make of it. Most importantly, I learned that friendships can make any place one of the greatest places you have ever lived!