"My home is not a place, it is people" - Lois McMaster Bujold

This is a picture that was taken shortly before we moved to Dublin. It looks like we were getting ready to move, probably the last speech therapy session. When I look at the apartment I feel nostalgic and it seems like a lifetime ago that we lived there, not four months. So much has happened. The boys have grown up so much. About an eighth of their life has since passed. They can discuss (with varying levels of clarity) anything that is on their mind now. The pants that we brought here are now too short.

We are about to head back to New York for the first time. It was home to us for so long, and in some ways it always will be. Tom is actually looking forward to being there, and then looking forward to coming back here. He thinks that the anticipation of getting back to our house, to our own beds, our own routine will really make Dublin seem like home to us.

I think that it is all about having a place, an environment, people that allow you feel comfortable and secure. And hopeful. I have that here.

So, next week will be about spending a little (less than I anticipated) time with some family and a few friends. We will spend a short time with Tom's family in New England, and then Thanksgiving with my family. There will also be a party at my brother's future in-laws, and we are really looking forward to meeting them! One friend that I probably won't get to see this trip is my friend Jen, who just had her third son. Congratulations to Jen and all of her boys!

With Thanksgiving around the corner, I'd like to just use this post to proclaim my gratitude for my family, my friends, my home!!!