April:
Well, we made it! We are home safe and sound and the kids are so, so happy. But not nearly as happy as mom and dad. We had an uneventful trip home. Business class made it bearable and the kids were really good. My dad met us in Frankfurt during our layover which was wonderful. Kai loves his Grandpa and we were so happy to have him meet Gracie. i don't know if he got his money back from his 1 way ticket to Istanbul. I'll bet he did. he's resourceful.
My mom picked us up in Boston and we had a nice trip home. So much better than last year when Kai lost it for most of the drive. Grace was asleep before we left Logan and Kai and I fell asleep about 1 1/2 hours into the drive. Kai was sound asleep when we got home and as he woke up and realized he was home his eyes got big and he broke into a big smile. I think he thought he was dreaming. Once he was fully awake he ran around the house and yard yelling "YAY, YAY, YAY!!!!" at the top of his lungs. Grace settled right in too.
We have had the usual jet-lag stuff. The kids have been up in the middle of the night every night so far, but I think we are catching up slowly.
The most amazing thing is the change in Grace since we got home. She smiles and laughs non-stop now. She is calm and relaxed and happy in a way she never was in Kaz. My mom says that it seems like she was reserving judgement on the situation until she had all the facts. Now that she realizes we are forever and this is home (or at least a place where her family is happy), she has decided to be herself and throw her lot in with us. It's awesome!
Kai is so gentle with her here and they are really enjoying each other. It's like, now that he is home, he is no longer threatened by her presence. He walks up to her and pats her head and hugs her all the time.
We missed the Tunbridge Fair which is a bummer, but there are lots of other fun fall activities for us to do. Kai is signed up for a toddler tumbling class, there are playgroups and library hour and MorningGarten at the Waldorf school. We have all our friends to visit and play with and of course cousins and family.
We are so happy to be home and the joy I feel at being a family of 4 is hard to describe. The kids were both sitting on the kitchen floor this morning playing together while I made some breakfast and I got the most overwhelming feeling of happiness and contentment. We are so blessed with these kids.
We'll keep posting weekly for a while and deal with updating the postponed entries once we are caught up with our sleep and chores.
Love to you all!
