We arrived home at approximately 6:30 pm, Monday, June 23rd (our time), no real delays, nothing too eventful on our travels and for that we are so grateful. Out of NY to Vancouver, Sophia was already way past her bed time, and too tired. On that five hour flight she wiggled and fussed some and would not settle down no matter how much we said 'night night, Sophia.' We looked at each other despairingly and thought: "we have 30 more hours of traveling, ugh, this is awful." Somewhere during that time David said to me, 'tell me what Cathi said again, I need to hear it.' Earlier that week Cathi, from TCC, told us that she had woken up at 4:30 one morning, thought of us, prayed for us, and knew from the Father that 'we would have all the strength we need.' And at that point we clung to those thoughts! The next leg, the long thirteen hour stretch, Sophia did awesome. She slept for about the first four hours, woke up happy, played well in her seat, ate well, slept a few more hours. Perfect. David and I were able to sleep some, and watch a few movies.
In our hometown we were welcomed at the airport by our wonderful friends and their son (who greeted Sophia with a sweet Kiss). Again, we were so incredibly blessed by their service and love. Our apartment was clean, there were meals in the fridge (even food made for Sophia), awesome poppy seed bread, and much more. We were astounded! Our first full day was spent unpacking, and we will do it all week, but we did sneak out for some 'over the bridge noodles', that we had been missing so much. And yes, everyone once again has taken to Sophia, but this time she can talk back (babble). The friends we have seen are amazed at her growth, and she has not been shy. One neighbor kept saying how fat she was and asked what she ate to make her so fat? I just laughed and said 'everything.'
It is sticky hot here, but refreshing too, refreshing to be where you are supposed to be. We love this place. The rice fields are wet with the week's rain, making the greenness seem unreal. The pineapple is like candy, and the mountains seem even bigger. We know this 'wowness' will wear off as we grow weary with daily life, but for the moment we are enjoying the heightened sense of purpose and love that comes with returning home.
