Good To Be Home

After being gone for the better part of August, I can honestly say it’s good to be home.

We had a glorious time away from regular life, settled near our favorite beach for two weeks.

The pace was relaxed, the ocean beckoned every day and the time with Andy was so very good for all 3 of us ladies :)

Coming home from the beach is usually a real downer.

Staying in bright, beachy condos generally makes our small brick bungalow feel especially cave-like.

I remember arriving home last year in May and feeling practically smothered by my little dark blue living room.  I went on a mission to brighten things up and had fun picking up a new white chair and coordinating curtains from Ikea, spray painting one of our end tables ivory and swapping out our dark framed mirror for a big silver-framed mirror that used to hang in my mom’s childhood home.

It certainly didn’t transform the room into the sprawling pastel beach house of my dreams, but it was a fun change and definitely brightened things up.

This year we were gone so much longer than usual that I thought for sure the house would feel cramped and dark in comparison to our digs on vacation.

I thought that crossing from Ohio into Michigan after hours upon hours of beautiful North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia landscape would be depressing.

But unlike our return home this May, Michigan didn’t seem so icky this time.

Sure the first leg of road in Michigan was a bustling, smoggy landscape of factories but this time it felt familiar.

The usually-oppressive view of downtown Detroit from I-94 seemed more like a sad chapter of an epic urban tale.

Our exit, although somewhat run-down, also reveals a peek at our church.  A big beacon of God’s love on a corner of a hurting city.

Driving down our street to the soundtrack of Grace squealing, “Newcastle!” felt peaceful.  Like we were home.

I didn’t notice any careless renters or overgrown grass.

Each block was quiet and well-groomed.  We passed the homes of our wonderful neighbors and noticed that a couple were enjoying the perfect weather outside in their backyard.

Walking in the side door, we were met with a familiar smell, albeit a little stale.

It smelled like us.  Like home.

Instead of feeling tiny and dark, this time our house felt homey and cozy.

I didn’t clean meticulously before we left, but everything was tidy and the girls were elated to play with the toys they hadn’t seen in more than two weeks.

We flung open the front door to let the evening air swirl around the house.

Avery rolled around the living room rug, army-crawling to reach the toys scattered on the floor.

Grace ran to her room, found her purple princess dress, and gathered up her favorite toys to carry around the house in her typical fashion.

Andy unloaded the bulk of stuff from the car while I started unpacking in a frenzy to get everything put away so we could rest.

Sitting in a car for 8 hours is hard work ;)

We got carryout from one of our favorite Mexican restaurants (the very one that Andy revealed his idea to go to medical school!) and we stuffed ourselves with beans, cheese, beef, chicken, chips and salsa.

The girls were tucked snug into their own beds and Andy and I settled onto the couch to watch a total “guy movie”.  I didn’t even make it halfway through before falling asleep on his lap, but the cuddles were worth it.

Laundry, grocery shopping and cleaning have commenced, but even still…it’s good to be home.