Another week, another weekend away from Home, and back Home again.
We're in a predicament here. Our "house" is far from what we consider our "home." We travel "home" frequently, and leave our "house" in shambles between our spurts back and forth. Home, for us, is where our families live. Parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, Aunts & Uncles, Great Aunts & Uncles, troves of cousins, second and third cousins, and friends are bound to surround to us to every visit "home."
This makes our life richly blessed. It also makes it complicated.
We arrived back at our house at 2am this morning. Mark had to be at work early, and yet we couldn't peel ourselves (or the kids) away from the fun we were having. The house is always the same, meaning, it's always the way we left it--in a rush to get out. There are towels to be washed, sheets to be changed, dishes to put away, and maintenance unending. Add a heaping pile of dirty clothes from the weekend and the largest Samsonite you've ever seen left to be emptied, and I've got my work cut out for me. In only a few days we'll start the cycle all over again.
"Home" is complicated, too. A sweep through my diaper bag revealed that I still have the sunscreen I borrowed from my sister, and I seemed to have left my most lightweight nursing blanket behind. Nuts! The big boy is upset because we can't find his parade candy, and the toddler is overtired and bug-bitten from head-to-toe.
Even after careful planning, there are still things amiss. Travel is tough, there is no doubt. We return to our house with an empty fridge that needs to be filled strategically so that nothing goes to waste by the time we're off again. At home, we try to bring as much food along with us as we can so we don't clear out the cupboards of our generous loved ones.
It's all worth it, though. Despite the travel and mess, and the chaos that greets us at our house door, we still find a good excuse to pack it all up week after week. It's probably not even a tough decision, because along with the fellowship of friends and family, we get to enjoy this all day long.
We're starting the little one young. Here is his napping in his Britax next to the Deere. A nap by the water never hurts, right?
4 comments:
What gorgeous lakefront! I'm still mad my parents moved off the lake. :)
We're headed to the beach today - happy Minnesota summer to us all!!
This is just down the road from your parents' old house! This is at my grandparent's home in Deerwood. We've spent hundreds upon hundreds of hours sitting down and enjoying this view.
Enjoy the beach! We're in the middle of horse flies and pine trees today!
That's where my sunscreen went!
Sorry! I owe you a juice box, too! I'll get it back to you.
Post a Comment