We were very happy to fly back in to Faiz on Saturday morning. After a month in the States and time in the capital on each end of our trip, we were all ready to be in our own house and swing of things again.
The more we travel, the better we get at it. And the more we do the same things when we return home. Little t had been pining after his own bed and his guitar for a few weeks. He immediately searched the house for his guitar when we arrived. He picked it up and began singing, “ohhh, we are back in Faiz and we got no worries! We are so glad to be back home in Faiz and we got no worries!” He then proceeded to bounce from room to room, playing with his favorite toys, lounging on his bed, watching a few minutes of a movie, painting a picture, going outside to play, looking for the turtles, checking for eggs, hanging out with the chickens, etc. He just has to cover his bases of his favorite things in the first few hours and then he can settle down! J
Baby Z also had to adjust a little to being a more proficient walker in our house. Each room has little steps up or down. She spent most of the day learning which way to step. Poor thing fell quite a bit and was mad, but had the house conquered by the end of the day. She was very proud of herself, thought that she could easily step over the metal grate in the sidewalk that she has been terrified of up until now.
I used the energy of having a mostly clean house and distracted kids to wipe things down…though the dust wasn’t nearly as bad as we anticipated (thankfully) and put some things in order. I have learned that I need to take advantage of the first week or so back home after a trip. I am always motivated to clean and organize and set things up in that week. If I don’t tackle projects then, the likelihood of them getting down is very slim. So, I try to jump on things right away. I am excited to have brought back some fun decoration things and I am looking forward to finally putting some finishing touches on rooms.
A.P. went to work taking care of us as he always does. He worked on fixing the shower, shopping for groceries, doing odd jobs and helping us get settled. He is amazing.
As happy as we are to be back, there are always quirks:
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- Little t was frustrated all day with how dirty the floor was and kept asking to vacuum. I assured him that once the power came on (we only have power in the evening) we could. He kept forgetting…I kept reminding.
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- We are back to cloth diapering…that means extra work of rinsing diapers at night. It is work, but worth it.
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-Little t is easily frustrated and agitated in the first few weeks we are home. We notice more outbursts and naughtiness. It is exhausting, but good to now realize that it is part of his adjustment and he will quickly return to his happy, intense, easy-going self soon.
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- I am back to cooking here. It is hard work and takes a lot of time and preparation and creativity. I am not super good at it, but my family has to eat, so I have to work at it. It is also a sad realization that a lot of the things we love to eat (deli meat, cheese, cheese, cheese) aren’t available. My kids are picky (there, I have said it…I have been in denial about it for a long time, but it is true) and I struggle to find things they will ingest happily.
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- I am also trying to get my hair back in the swing of not being washed every day…or every other day even. It is a hard change to make.
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- Baby Zar is tired of being jostled around between beds and having some trouble sleeping. I am tired of being up a lot at night and hoping that some time in one place will help us all get more rest. Thankfully Little T has down us on this trip that he has grown up to be a stellar sleeper, so we are hopeful that Baby Zar will get there eventually as well.
We don’t have any more travel planned until the spring (and we are really happy about that) so we are looking forward to settling in for the winter and getting into some good routines and having a time of growth. I am looking forward to blogging more, trying new recipes, learning more about knitting, getting back into my exercise routine and devotional routine. Travel is fun, but I am looking forward to laying low for a while. We are happy to be settling in.
