At the age of 8, my parents decided to make one of the biggest changes in our family's life. They bought a resort halfway across the United States. From then on I became known as the resort kid, Joel and Tracey's daughter, as well as the little girl who talked to everyone.

Growing up on a resort presented a great deal of pros and a few cons. I learned social skills right off the bat. I was able to communicate with individuals older than myself, make friends of all ages, and be socially connected throughout the resort months. I learned how to clean extensively, do yard work, and what it meant to have a job early on in life. I learned what being in the hospitality business meant not only to our customers, but to me as well. I learned how to manage money, do inventory, how to be efficient, especially on turnover days. I learned the joy of seeing returning guests year after year. It was my first taste to countless other things in life.

Because I grew up on a resort and was introduced to a variety of people and backgrounds; going to college was the jackpot on the other side of that door that had opened for me. There hasn't been a single day that something I learned at the resort hasn't been brought up. For example, I have a certain way that I clean due to cleaning cabins. I approach complete strangers with ease and people look at me with uncertainty, but I'm used to it because there's an average of seventy-plus new people every week that I encounter. The list is honestly endless.

Just as there are pros, there also are cons. A few of those cons are "me time" and "personal space", two things of which there aren't a plethora of. When you live on a resort, you're always doing something. Whether that's making sure people are following the rules for certain things in the resort, or you're catering to their needs in the lodge, or simply doing up-keep. As far as personal space, I neglected to realize that my yard is also the guests' yard. That my beach is also their beach. Eventually you become used to it, but there is definitely a value in personal time and personal space throughout the resort season. And lastly, until leaving the very place that became my home over the past twelve years, I never once realized how much I had taken living on a lake, for granted. It's most definitely a gem that I learned to cherish each and every time I was able to come back home, and certainly will be one that I will be enjoying every chance I can this summer.

From being a little 8-year-old girl, to being a resort kid, to an adult that has learned and grown from living on a resort, looking back I can't see my life being any other way. Living on a resort taught me so many things that I can't even put into words. It's provided me with a foundation in various aspects of life, and it's something that I would recommend to any family considering something that will challenge them, grow them, and ultimately bring them closer together. Owning and maintaining a resort takes far more than taking reservations and raking the yard. It's not a constant vacation as some like to think it is. But one thing for certain is that after every season, the reward of the hard work is absolutely satisfactory.