"Home"

We finally made it back to San Francisco on Saturday, August 7th. A few days before we left, Nanny and Papa visited and as always, were a HUGE help in getting us ready to move. I really don't know how we would have accomplished the storing, cleaning, packing, etc. without the extra 2 sets of hands. With 2 kids to watch after, this moving stuff is getting to be more and more difficult. Thank you, Nanny and Papa, for always being there for us when we need a helping hand. Half the time, we don't even know what needs to be done, but somehow you always help us accomplish our goals. Can we ever say thank you enough?

The flight to California was interesting. We were in separate seats on the flight so Mark took Maddie for most of it, and I sat next to Jacob. Maddie slept for 25 minutes on the whole flight and Jacob slept for...oh, none of it. This is the first time he has ever (EVER, in his whole life) gone an entire day without napping. He was grumpy at times, but I was actually surprised at how well he handled it. I know his napping days will end eventually, but for mama's sake, I hope it's later rather than sooner. His naps have been back on track for the last couple of days so that is a great sign.

We are staying in a 2 bedroom, 2 bath apartment in Foster City while we do a few things to the Belmont home before we move back in. We weren't expecting to move back to that house but as it stands now, we will be taking it off the market and moving back in as soon as we change out the carpet and potentially convert the garage to a play room. It's a tiny house so any additional space we can use will be helpful.

On Sunday, we went to the mother's club anniversary party at Burton Park where we were reunited with our friends Jaemie and Owen (Nathan was at home with his Daddy). My heart has been a bit heavy since we left Dallas but my spirits were lifted when we were finally back together with our friends. I am so thankful for that! Jacob and Owen have barely skipped a beat and now Nathan and Maddie can become fast friends as well. On Monday, Jacob started camp at the Little Gym 3 days a week for the next 2 weeks and he really had a great time. The owner there knows us well and it was fun to see her again and introduce her to Maddie. Ironically, when we arrived, one of Jacob's old playmates, Roxy, was there attending camp too. I was shocked and excited to see her mom, Christy, especially b/c she is now expecting another baby in 6 short weeks! We used to spend every Monday morning at Christy's house when we lived here before so it was a super fun and unexpected reunion.

Since we've returned, Jacob has made numerous comments like "Mommy, I want to go home. I want to go back to Texas." My heart breaks every time he says it and I try my best to explain to him what is going on, why we are here, and the wonderful things he has to look forward to while we live in California. Still, though, I can't help but worry that all of this moving around might have a negative impact on him and it makes me even more certain that this is only going to get exponentially more difficult as he gets older. Which is why we've decided to make these moves while the kids are young...but I'm realizing that Jacob isn't so little anymore and he's understanding what it means to be "home".

"Home". That word. A year ago, our "home" was here. We lived here and worked here and played here every single day. And we were happy here. A year before that, "home" was Chicago where we had an enormous group of friends and family that made that "home" an awesome one. Then we got the opportunity to live in Dallas and sure enough, we had a happy "home" there also. A child's definition of home is so literal. When Jacob asked what we were doing today, I said "We're going to go to the grocery store, then to Owen's house, then home to take our nap". To which Jacob says "home to Texas?" When I respond with "no, home to the apartment", I can tell this poor kid is just utterly confused. "Home" has so many meanings, it's hard to explain to a 3 year old and even if I tried, I'm sure it still wouldn't ease the transition, knowing that Texas isn't a place where we'll return. Maybe it's better that he doesn't understand. Instead, I just try to explain to him that "home" is where mommy, daddy and Maddie are. All the time. No matter what. And, as the expression so wonderfully explains, "Home" IS where the heart is.