Graduating high school, leaving your friends and family, and heading off to college is difficult enough on it's own, moving far away for school is even harder. You suddenly realize, as you are getting settled into your new home away from home, that you are going to be missing out on all the little things that you love! When family is everything, it is hard to move away and start out your adult life.

You start to realize that your younger family members aren't so little anymore!

Being close to your younger family members is one of the biggest blessings you can get! They teach you how to be patient, especially when you are helping them learn something new that they don't get on the first, second or sometimes even tenth try! They teach you how to have fun and let loose! Going through high school with these nuggets by your side teaching you not to stress about the small stuff or just to be a kid every now and again is a blessing, and it is hard to let go of that! Especially when transitioning to a new town, new state or even new part of the country! This is when technology becomes an amazing tool when it comes to keeping up with your family.

You start to miss the simple things from your hometown

There is that one restaurant that your college town doesn't have that you HAVE to go to whenever you go visit home, even if you never liked it before you left for college. You miss your friends' go-to hang out spot after football games or music concerts. You miss the way the air smells right before it rains, because somehow even that is different. You miss all the little things that you took for granted when you moved to college. Even the simplest things can leave a gigantic hole in your heart when you leave.

You realize that your Mom truly is your best friend

A girl needs her mama! I call my mom every damn day and I am not sorry. I went from spending a ton of time with her to not seeing her for weeks at a time and that takes a toll on a girl, especially when it comes to the latest gossip in the small towns you live in! You never realize how close you are to a person until you can't go and see them everyday.

Finally, you miss your best friends

This is true no matter if you went far away for school or just a short 30 minuet drive. Whether you best friends have 4 legs or 2, go to a different college or are still in high school, you miss them all equally. I went from spending 5 days a week and 8+ hours a day with my high school friends to not seeing them at all. It takes all of my being some days not to drive the 3 hours home and go snuggle with my dog. Texting with my besties and calling my grandma on FaceTime just to see my puppers are some of the ways I can cope with being far away.

Being away from home never gets any easier, becoming an adult it difficult. Realizing that you can't afford to take time off of work to go see your cousin play in the football championship, or to go see your little brother's first hockey game of the season is incredibly hard. But it is all apart of growing up.