Starting to miss home

I was wondering when it would hit -- the first twinge of homesickness -- and I think it's starting. It could be happening because we've been here more than 3 months now. (We've been warned it would creep up on us between 3-6 months after settling in.) It could be because we've had an American-intense couple of weeks. Who knows.

I've been hanging out with some local American women and talking about a few American things (not many, but still) ... and we had visitors last weekend from the States (Jeff & Nina) ... and we spent the day with Boeing friends last Saturday (Joel, Mary & Gina) ... and last week, Natalia and I took the train to see our old friends from Seattle (Michelle and her kids) while our husbands were out of town. Each one of these visits was superb, and quite refreshing in its own way. As much as we enjoy living in London, home is calling -- but in a good way! We aren't sobbing with grief or anything like that.

We started making a list of things we miss. You can probably tell who misses what. I might photo-document these on Flickr too. Anyway, here goes, in no particular order ...

Things We Miss.

• Our dear dog Swede


• The view from our front windows in Seattle (pictured above), and the smell of the salty fresh air


• Our house!!


• The old Volvo wagon


• Our church


• Garbage disposals


• College football


• Restaurants in our neighborhood: Angelina's, Blackbird Bistro, Circa, Pailin Thai


• Hogue Fume Blanc (my favorite Oregon wine)


• Our dear friends and neighbors


• Torani sugar-free hazelnut coffee-flavoring syrup


• Trader Joe's supermarkets


• Metropolitan Market (formerly known as the local Thriftway)


• The ability to put holes in the wall wherever we want, however we want, whenever we want


• Real Mexican food


• Driving!

Natalia: What do you miss?

• My little green bedroom.


• My friends at the Boeing Family Center.


• My doggy.