Show and Tell Tuesdays: The Mixtape of My Life

It's Tuesday so that means I'm linking up with Andrea today for Show and Tell Tuesdays and today is all about the mixtape to different stages of our life! Ohhhh, this is a hard one.  I love music and am always singing a song of some sort so to narrow it down is going to be tough.  Just go ahead and assume that if I could, I would list every Taylor Swift song, but I'll try to limit myself.

My earliest memory of music is this song:

Ironic by Alanis Morisette

I must have been about 5 and my dad and I would drive around Miami to "get gas" (meaning we drove for 45 minutes to an hour listening to this CD, sipping Dr. Pepper and finally stopping for gas).  This is one of my earliest memories of music and I loved that time spent with just my dad listening to Ironic. Along with Alanis, he would also throw in a little bit of this

Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison

because I'm his brown-eyed girl.

Elementary school brought lots of Hanson, 98 Degrees (my first concert!), NSYNC, Britney Spears, Spice Girls, Christina Aguilera and my introduction Broadway.

I knew every word to every song of "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown" before I ever saw the show.

Then 5th grade hit and so did 9/11 and Black Eyed Peas released the most perfect song to put into words what we were feeling

Where is the Love? by Black Eyed Peas

I'd be lying if I said I don't remember every word to this song, especially the rapping.

Middle school brought around feeling left out by my friends and this song

Welcome to My Life by Simple Plan

What pre-teen or teen didn't relate to this song at one time or another?

Then, in high school, my world changed.  I still loved pop and Broadway music, but I was introduced to country music by way of Taylor Swift.

Teardrops On My Guitar by Taylor Swift

This song was on repeat probably all of high school and is still one of my favorite songs of hers to this day.

Don't Stop Believin' by Journey

My sophomore year of high school, I was in the show CATS and we played this song nonstop: before shows, after shows, during intermission, whenever!  I still can't help but smile with this song comes on because CATS was a really important time in my life when I made so many new friendships and deepened others.

In Better Hands by Natalie Grant

Tragedy struck my small down several times during high school and this song helped me through.  A car accident claimed the lives of two school members my sophomore year and then my senior year, a friend's mom and sister died in a car accident.  I remember hearing this song and just crying thinking of the lives lost and knowing they were in better hands.

Then came college.  I had never been away from home before so moving 4 hours away was a change for me.  While the transition was fairly easy, I did have a rough month or so and this song really helped me get through that time.

Sweet Silver Lining by Kate Voegele

And speaking of being away from home, I can't forget these songs

Country Roads by John Denver

Home is Where the Heart Is by Lady Antebellum

I love listening to these songs when I miss West Virginia because they both give us a shout out!

Valerie by Amy Winehouse

Performing at an open mic was something on my bucket list and this was the first song my brother and I performed together in public.

Play it Again by Luke Bryan

Because who doesn't love some Luke Bryan and I definitely play this song again and again and again.

Welcome to New York by Taylor Swift

This past October I packed up my life and moved to right outside of New York.  This song was on repeat my whole drive and still makes me smile!

Touch the Sky by Hillsong United

I discovered this song during the fall and immediately fell in love with it.  I'm talking crying my eyes out in the middle of church when I heard it for the first time kind of love.  It's such a beautiful song and a great reminder of what prayer can do.

But if I had to pick one song to be the soundtrack to my life, it would be this:

This is Me by Rachel Reinert

Rachel is a member of the group Gloriana, but she put this song out by herself.  This song describes me to a T and I love it.

I can't wait to see everyone else's mixtapes and be introduced to some new music!  Happy Tuesday! :)