A Shy Extrovert

I am a shy extrovert. This "condition" sounds like an anomaly to me, but, it's probably more common than I realize. All through high school, I could never understand why I needed to be around people so much when I could barely bring myself to speak to them before they started talking to me. During my last years of college I definitely started growing out of my shyness, but it was a challenge to say the least.

I remember when I first got my driver's license. --I was so excited to be able to take myself to the places I wanted go. But, I soon realized that going places in the car byself was...lonely-- not really fun.

After Dave and I got married, I realized that I still felt kinda lonely a lot of the time. I was used to living in a house with my parents and syblings. There was usually someone around to watch t.v. with or to give a hard time. I thought that after Dave and I were married, that we would get up together, make dinner together, shop together, drive everywhere together, and clean together. But, Dave is very independant, and wasn't in the habit of doing everything with another person - at least not the same person. He even had a hard time adjusting to sharing a room with me.

Now that I'm a mom, I'm never alone! (That's one of the things I love about being a mom.) It wasn't until after Julia was born that I started feeling like I really, really needed some alone time. Dave was shocked the first time I asked him to go somewhere else so that I could just unwind quietly, by myself. I guess down time is something everyone needs...even shy extroverts.

Another thing I love about being a mom is analyzing my kids behaviors and thinking about what sort of personalities they are devoloping. Dave and Julia are also extroverts like me, but neither one of them is shy. Especially not Julia. Lydia isn't shy either, but Dave thinks she is an introvert. Out of all of us, she is definitely the one who can spend time playing by herself the longest.  Who knows, Dave may be right. --(I'm excited to see what our next little one will be like, and how dependant he or she will be on other people.)

So, what are you? Are any of you out-going introverts? Do you really just crave alone time, or do you think it is more fun to be with others? God made us all so differently! I'd love to hear a little about you. -Amber