Welcome Back

We have been back in Delhi for nearly two weeks and the first day of school is tomorrow.  In this time, we have met most of the newbies, reconnected with our colleagues, been dazzled by how tall the other kids got, spent a fair amount of time in the pool, and (sadly) suspended our consumption of beef.

It was a terrific summer vacation.  We laughed a lot, got many hugs, and were spoiled by the generosity of family and friends. It was fun to watch the boys pick up right where they left off with cousins and the old neighborhood gang.  We shopped - eight pairs of shoes just for me (though this number was far surpassed by at least two of my colleagues).

We also learned a few things:

1. We would have struggled on the frontier.  Although we have no regrets about selling our house to the renters back in February, changing locations 15 times (and that was with a lake house rented for 3 weeks!) was a bit unsettling.  
2. Due to our frequent moves, we became obsessed with where all our stuff was.  And we kept accumulating more stuff with every stop, including a suitcase full of Lego sets. We left stuff in the dryer, out on the deck, under a bed, and who knows where those missing Lego pieces are. 
3. Spending 24-7 as a family for eight weeks is both a luxurious treat and somewhat ridiculous. Next summer, there will be day camp in the mix. 
4. We grossly over packed. Just because the trip is seven or eight weeks long, you can get by on a one week supply of clothes (especially when sleeping in new place every few days). 
5. Don't pack in a duffel bag if you have any hope of staying organized.
6. If you eat whatever you want for two months, you will come home and hear your kids' nanny say "You got fat!"
7. The nesting instinct is strong and we want to buy a summer house near a beach. It was great to stay with friends and family and also nice to rent a house, but we want to own our own space - a cozy cottage in a coastal town - where we will not have to spend our vacation hovering while keeping track of all our stuff. Know of anything? 

Coming back to Delhi and the American Embassy School for year two has been roughly a billion times better than being new just twelve months ago.  It's not that last year was bad - not at all, in fact. But to return to an apartment that looks lived in and to have a place to finally unpack those !&@# duffel bags, and to know how to get wine delivered to the door and to understand that there will be fireworks going off in the neighborhood on most nights.....to watch the kids racing with glee through the campus gate and into our house (our home!) that first night back - THAT is where one year makes all the difference.