Comments for everyone!

I changed my blog so that everyone can leave comments now.
I just got back from a walk around the resort. So many children...I think that once Lucy gets ready to travel, I really don't want to do "family vacations." I know this sounds mean and horrible, but we really want to expose our kids to things that are off the beaten path, where people don't bring throngs of kids to experience all the same things. And with a giant waterpark in the middle of the resort, it's hard to get them to do anything but swim.
I'd really like to take Lucy to Africa when she's about 6 or 7. I'd love for her to see a bunch of different cultures and people, and to learn that you don't need to stay in your own country to feel like you belong somewhere. I feel like raising a kid in the US really cuts your off from the rest of the world. Maybe it's because we're so closed off from other countries. I just think that there is a huge snobbery that goes along with being an American, where most US citizens never feel the need to see the rest of the world. There are so many amazing things out there, and so many people I haven't met. It would be a shame to never try to meet them. I don't see how anyone can ever stop moving around and settle in one place. It just seems like there are so many places I haven't tried. I need to see at least 13 more countries before I decide on the best place to live. What if my best fit is somewhere in Ireland, or Mombazique? I just hate to make a decision when I don't know all my options, and I'd hate to raise Lucy to think she doesn't even have those options.
I think that's what scares me about Allegany County. There are so many different things out there, and I'm so afraid to raise Lucy in a town full of people who are so set in their ways. I want her to approach people, ask questions, eat anything, speak many languages, plan less and never settle for what's in front of her. I want her to know that there is always another way to do something, and there is always someone out there who does things differently. I want her to know that there life doesn't begin and end with purchases, and that love isn't confined to Mom, Dad, your siblings and your grandparents. I think the biggest challenge in raising a child today is raising them to be free of the societies around them, and to challenge them to think bigger than themselves and their daily routine. I don't care if Lucy never goes to college, as long as she lives a life dedicated to serving the people around her. I'm not the most interesting person, and I'm definitely not the smartest, but if Andrew and I can raise a child who relies on compassion, empathy and wit to get the job done, I know that I will have lived the right life.