Highlights from our trip "Home"

Our first trip home was a bit ambitious- lasting 4 weeks and spanning 4 locations. We crammed a lot in and got to see several of our favorite people (but still missed out on time with many loved ones). Our first stop was Lafayette, LA. 

My parents relocated to Lafayette from The Woodlands after we moved to Thailand. Not gonna lie, I'm still grieving hard about the fact that we no longer live a mile away from each other and likely never will again. BUT it's kind of cool that they've returned to the town I grew up in and their house and neighborhood are totally gorgeous. It was the perfect landing point to stretch out and relax and recuperate from our journey. 

This leg was a little tough for me because I was very ill the whole time, preventing me from enjoying Christmas (spent the day in bed with a box of Kleenex and Powerade) or seeing my immunocompromised BFF who lives there. That's one of the really sucky things about ex-pat life. There is so much pressure on these home visits and if plans get derailed- like that's it. My sister in law's dad ended up in the ICU during our time with them as well so that visit was cut short too. It's just hard, y'all. Life happens and when it happens during your 2 or 3 day window to see certain people it just doubly stinks! 

From Lafayette, I headed to Jasper, AL to see my other BFF and we then went to Atlanta to see LSU demolish Oklahoma. This may have been my favorite part of the trip! I got to see Talia, got to see LSU, got to drive by myself (something I miss while living in Thailand) and got to sleep un-interrupted 2 nights in a row for the first time since leaving Bangkok (which helped me to finally start feeling better). 

When I left for Atlanta, Jon left with the kids for our next destination- Perdido Key, Florida. 

We stayed here for nearly 2 weeks and had my brother and sister in law plus my sister and her 4 kids come for visits, so that was really nice to get to kind of settle in to once place and get a routine going. 

Plus, we stayed in the same complex as my parents but rented our own condo which always feels nice to have your own space and not feel like you are wearing out your welcome in someone's home. We enjoyed cooler weather, beautiful walks on the beach, nice trails and parks, and lots of fun outings and restaurants. It was fun to pretend we were just normal people living in the US again. 

When leaving Target, I impulsively ordered 2 ICEEs from the snack bar. Forest, who'd never had an ICEE remarked, "Mom it sounds like we are about to do something delicious."

Ahhh..the zen of a child-free Target run. 

Ah the simple joy of an American grocery store. 

My parents and Jon's parents both have condos down there so we had lots of family time and tons of help with the kids as well! I especially enjoyed our mahjong games! 

Mahjong+Bachelor = naptime goals

The last leg of our trip was Disneyworld. That deserves it's own post for sure. What was I thinking tacking on a trip to Disneyworld with a 5 month old baby? I have no idea. But I was the one pushing for it and everyone else was less than enthusiastic. But we committed and did the Disney thing. 

Once again, we rented a 3 bedroom condo. My parents came along but ended up getting sick so didn't do much Disney. My dad was a super (storm)trooper and managed to hang 2 full days with the grandkids at the parks despite not feeling his best. That's enough on Disney for today because I do think it warrants it's own post so I don't want to spoil too much. 

Mainly my top highlights on being stateside were enjoying the cool, clean air, the many conveniences that come with being in the US, seeing Star Wars with Forest, playing mahjong with my parents, watching LSU vs OU with Talia and then seeing them handle Clemson like a boss, time with my sister and nephews, and morning runs on the beach. 

meches donuts were also a highlight

The biggest bummers on the trip were not getting to see April, not getting to see my brother and sis-in-law enough, and being travel weary, sick and jet lagged for the about half of the time. But honestly, now that we've been through the gauntlet of travel we do feel a bit more confident moving forward. A trip with the kids without Jonathan to Phuket in February seems easy breezy in comparison! Maybe we'll even tackle Japan this Spring!

I'll try to write more this week on Disney and I also owe y'all a post on Juliet's 5 and 6 month milestones. Sat tuned!