OUR HOUSE ISN'T KNOCKED DOWN!

We're home!

After five weeks away it feels so good to be back in our old man smelling home (You know how you don't really notice the smell of your home until you've been gone for a long time? Ours totally smells like an old man....at least he was a very nice, clean old man).

The flight wasn't nearly as bad as I though it was going to be....I had an awful bout of sciatica last night and could barely walk, so I wasn't too thrilled about getting to lug two 1/2 kids through a few different airports and onto various planes.....but they totally behaved themselves, I even got to watch a movie lousy b movie while Charlie slept.....it felt like heaven.

My dear friend Liz picked us up and delivered us and 5 weeks worth of baggage to our dear "Cabby Cap" (this is the name that our kids gave our house last year.....no idea where it came from.

The kids were THRILLED to be home. They ran around (at midnight) wired and screaming in glee. The last two hours of the flight Charlie repeatedly said that he wanted to "get out of this plane and go see Cabby Cap!" When we finally pulled up to the front of our house Charlie exclaimed in glee "Our house isn't knocked down!" Poor guy, I don't know what he thought was happening to our house while we were gone. But he spent about an hour after we got home pointing out in utter amazement and excitement that all of his precious things still existed. "Mom! my chair is still here!" "Wow! My excavator isn't gone!" "Look! My bed is still in my room!"

Hazel went right upstairs and checked on her beloved doll Pinky who she'd accidentally left at home. She was devastated when we left her and was only calmed down when I assured her that her teddy bear Sugarbag would take good care of Pinky while she was gone. A few days before coming back she called Sugarbag on the phone to ask how Pinky was doing. This is how her end of the conversation sounded (all in a very adult....mom like voice):
"Sugarbag, how is Pinky? Have you been taking care of her? Oh really? Oh, don't tell me that! Pinky died? SUGARBAG!!!! Oh, it was just a game you were playing? Oh good, you were just pretending that she died?....."
So, of course, when we came home the first thing she did was go and get sweet Pinky and put Sugarbag in a much deserved time out.

It was hard to put them to bed because they were spinning with excitement.

I love it that I get to leave.....that I get to be surrounded by so many dear family members and so much beauty and freedom and fun for a month each summer.....but perhaps the thing I like most about it is being able to come home and really appreciate the crazy busy, but steady and normal family life that I have here. There's a lot to do after leaving life for so long, but I'm ready to dive in.....let's see if I'm that positive about being dropped back into life two days from now.

For now I'm just going to enjoy this feeling of being home......but man, I'm already excited for next summer.