Do you live close to lots of your family?

OnlyaFool · January 2012

I don't live near any family (immediate or extended). The closest ones are, I guess, about an 8-hour drive away.

I have been reading posts on this site for a while now, obviously, and it always strikes me how much time people spend with their families if they live near them. I truly have no idea what that life is like. "Oh yeah, I just stopped by my mom's for a few hours this afternoon, no big."

What is that like? I have no idea.

Seeing any of my family is always very orchestrated and planned. Plane tickets, lots of $ spent on traveling, etc. Sometimes I wonder if I would like having some of them close by, or if I would grow to hate it. Who knows.

Eh. Just random thoughts on a Tuesday.

LadyLissame · January 2012

I live 10 minutes from my parents. I like that because they are far enough away that they are less likely to "just drop by" but close enough they can be over in an emeregency (had that happen once).

jm5855 · January 2012

My dad lives several states away..but my mom lives in my neighborhood and my brother is only 5 minutes from me. All of my best friends live within 20 minutes of me. Cant tell you how huge that was for me when going thru my divorce. I know how lucky I am to have that support so close to the kids and I.

PhoenixRising11 · January 2012

I do live close to my parents' house, which I generally like. However, when I want to lie low and not see or talk to them, it makes it difficult. My mom was sick this summer, though, and I was glad that I lived close to them because I didn't have to disrupt my normal life as much to be with her when she needed me.

trafficgirl · January 2012

I live 45 mins to an hour away from my parents, and about 20-30 mins away from my closest relative (an older cousin). I see my parents mostly at holidays and birthdays - it probably equals out to about once a month.

Sometimes I wish I lived closer, b/c I actually really like hanging out with my parents (especially my mom). But right now it's just too far of a drive and I'm busy with other things.

If I had kids, though, I'm betting I'd see them more - they would be grandparents for the first time and I know they'd want to spend a lot of time with their grandkid(s).

ReturnOfKuus · January 2012

I don't live more than 45 minutes away from any family members that I know of, and this is as alien to you as it is to me. Hell, my parents only live 15 minutes away, and seeing each other is a major production that involves lots of planning and ample travel time for my dad to slowly circle in toward my house. My ILs live about the same distance, and while they do stop in from time to time when visiting my next door neighbor (a friend of theirs), it's pretty similar with them overall.

Mia2700 · January 2012

My immediate family is no more than a 20 minute drive away, my parents are like a 7 minute drive and my bro is like a 3 minute drive.

My moms extended family all live in West Virginia, which is a 5 hour drive, but we've been traveling there several times a year my whole life so that distance is nothing to me.

I can't imagine having to "plan" to see my immediate family. That would stress me out. What if you really just need to go get some coffee and talk or something? You have to settle for a phone call? I would not like that at all!

HoolyGo · January 2012

I live half a mile away from my parents and most of my extended family lives no more than an hour away. My mother has a "small crowd" for Thanksgiving this year. A small crowd to her was about 16 people. Also, my family has a loose definition of who is considered family, so that bumps up the count considerably.

PrettyInPearls23 · January 2012

I currently live 30 minutes away from my parents. I work in the town where they live (my hometown) and FF's house is literally 3 miles away from them. I can't wait to move back to my hometown. It's closer to all of my friends too.

The only reason I'm living where I do now is because it's in a town that was exactly halfway between mine and XH's jobs. I think part of me hates living there because it was for all the wrong reasons. Thankfully I do love my house (and the affordable mortgage), as well as DS's DCP. She's awesome.

GhostofZeldaFitzgerald · January 2012

My family is about an hour and a half away. It works nicely. No random stopovers, but it's easy to arrange to see them. We get together around every 4-6 weeks, and we alternate who drives to whom.

NinjaPaants · January 2012

I love two hours from my family. I see them every couple of months. It has been like this for a bout six years now. At first it bothered me, but when I am at home for holidays I find myself being thankful that I live a little farther. If you all haven't gathered from my posts, my dad can be kind of cynical of my life and that gets too be a little much when in close quarters.

jaksmom8808 · January 2012

I live at home currently until I close on my house. I lived in GA when DS was born and 1.5 months later my mom came to get us so that I could get help with the baby and a job. Then the day after I moved is when XH had his mistress move in our home. My move was just temporary until XH came back from his deployment but XH apparently had other plans.

That being said. I'm glad I did move home. They helped me through thick and thin, gave me an opportunity to get back on my feet and give DS the best life I could without drowning in debt.

OnlyaFool · January 2012

Mia2700:
I can't imagine having to "plan" to see my immediate family. That would stress me out. What if you really just need to go get some coffee and talk or something? You have to settle for a phone call? I would not like that at all!

LOL. This doesn't happen to me Huh?

I get all of that out in my journal. The people I have the most intimate conversations with now (other than The Artist) are two of my close girlfriends.

I am not awesomely close with anyone in my family, including my parents, but I don't know if that's because I don't see them often, or if I'm okay not seeing them often because we're not close. Toss up.

ReturnOfKuus · January 2012

Yeah, I can't imagine really needing family like that, either.

MintChocoChip · January 2012

I'm currently living at home with my parents. Before that XH and I lived about 30 mins from them. I'm an hour from my brother. I'd see my parents about 1x a week when I lived with XH and see my brother every few weeks.

When I was living abroad I was super far from my whole family and saw them every 6 months or so. In law school I lived 4 hours away and saw them on holidays only.

LandOBiscuit · January 2012

All my family lives on another continent. I have 0 family here. Which freaks me out a little bit.

DakotaDangerDog · January 2012

My sister is about 20 minutes away, my parents are about 45. We work together though, so I see my parents a few times a week and I see my sister whenever she shows up which isn't really all that often. outside of work we usually only spend time together for holidays/special occasions.

chiualover · January 2012

Parents are gone. Brother lives in St. Louis, I am in South Jersey. Daughter

is in Limerick Pa, if traffic is on my side, about an hour & half away. Cousin

is hour away in University City, Phila. I hardly have any family.:(

Edt: oops! thought I was on P&CE.

UDscoobychick · January 2012

Only, I'm with you. My sister lives about a 5.5 hour drive away, and my parents live a 10 hour drive (otherwise known as a plane ride) away. I see them about 4 times a year. This is a-okay with me. It was my choice to go to undergrad 6 hours away and my choice to move 4 hours further south for grad school and my subsequent professional life. I love my parents very much, and I email them about once a day, but I like my space. My parents were very strict when I was growing up, and being so geographically far away from them has helped me to have the freedom to live my life how I want. That being said, I am fortunate that when XFI and I broke up, they had the financial means and job flexibility to book last-second flights and come help me move into my new place, since he was the one who was supposed to help me move.

hainesherway · January 2012

My brother lives about 10 miles away and my parents live about 25 miles away. I usually see them a couple times per month.

onemomsbattle · January 2012

My sister is four hours away but the rest of my family is 2000 miles away---too far!

lovelybb · January 2012

My parents are about 2 hours away, then one sister is on the east coast, while the other is on the west. Sometimes it sucks but for the most part I kind of enjoy it. I like being able to do my own thing without all the family commitments taking up my schedule.

Do you live close to lots of your family?

Re: Do you live close to lots of your family?

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