We are two small town girls living in the Twin Cities. I moved up here about a year ago with my husband and work as an interior designer at construction2style. Carm is majoring in Organizational Communication at Bethel and loving life on campus. Both of us love living in the Cities, the church that we go to, and how there is always something fun going on. Deep down though, we will always be small town girls. There is nothing better than heading out of the Cities, cranking the country, and pulling into our hometown.

Most of the time when people ask where we’re from, we explain that we’re from Mountain Lake where there is no mountain, but there is a man-made lake, that it’s in southwestern MN, and that the population is 2,000 people. Some people think that’s crazy, but we are proud to call it home.

There’s something unique and special about growing up in a small town, so we thought we’d share some of our favorite things about small towns.

You know you’re from a small town when…

1. You can always find a place to park and you never have to pay for parking. THE BEST. Parallel parking on the driving test was basically just a formality.
2. Friday night football is the major event of the week. It’s where everyone gathers to cheer on the hometown team and the best place to catch up with people when you’re home for a weekend.
3. When something happens, people are there for each other and genuinely care about their neighbors.
4. The 40 kids in your class have likely all been there since kindergarten and you get to know each other really well. Like knowing their dog’s name and their sibling’s middle name.
5. Town celebrations are big reunions and the talk of the town for the summer.
6. You were a three-sport athlete, in band and choir, part of the musical, in FFA, and president of the student council, so school was your second home.
7. The nearest Target is an hour away so it turns into a whole day event with lunch, shopping, and stocking up for a month.
8. There were tractors at prom and snowmobiles in the parking lot during the winter.
9. You’ll likely run into everyone you know with a quick trip to the grocery store, library, or high school sporting event.
10. Whether you’re running on the trail, driving around, or on a walk, everyone waves to each other.