Wednesday morning after we arrived from the airport, we took showers and quickly headed to the grocery store (I love Publix!) before we ran out of steam. I had heard lots of horror stories about culture shock in the grocery store, but more than anything, I was just SLOW trying to figure out exactly what I wanted. The kids kept asking to go to the dairy department to get milk. We have all been so excited to be able to drink milk out of a jug instead of powdered milk! Shopping was so much fun - broccoli, squash, strawberries, zucchini, two kinds of apples, milk, bagels (since making them from scratch in the Solomons was a disaster!). We came home with loads of yummy foods that we haven't eaten in four years. We crashed for a long nap, and after sleeping more than three hours, we all felt like it was time for breakfast!
Thursday morning, I woke up early enough to go for a little exercise and enjoyed how cool the mornings are here. Benjamin and Katherine slept until ten o'clock when we finally woke them up! Then we all headed out to do a little shopping. Nobody had any shoes for church on Sunday - all we had were flip flops and tennis shoes. The girls enjoyed discovering the newest styles and colors in the shoe store, and we found that our kids got the "big foot" gene from me. Sarah is wearing a women's size 9; Benjamin, a men's 6; Olivia, a woman's size 7, and Katherine wears a child's 13. Wow! Not having bought anything but flip flops for the last four years, I was a little shocked at how much our kids have grown.
So, here's a sample of things that have surprised us or we have found interesting during our first few days back in the States:
-being able to hold Aaron's hand again in public (Joanna)
-turning on the windshield wipers instead of the blinkers (Aaron)
-seeking out water fountains because they are so fascinating (Olivia)
-being too tall to play on the Chick-Fil-A playground (Sarah and Benjamin)
-how smooth the roads are (Sarah)
-being scared of the toilets that flush themselves (Katherine)
-how dry it is, even here in Florida (Joanna)
-how fast clean up is when you have a washer, drier, and a dish washer (Joanna)
-carpets in the house (all of us!)
-how noisy we are now that we live in a house with all of the windows shut, and how much we miss hearing the outside sounds
-how noisy we are now that we live in a house with all of the windows shut, and how much we miss hearing the outside sounds
8 comments:
thanks for sharing friend... I LOVe the shoes:) What fun to try on lots of styles!
So you all are staying in Florida for your furlough?
Also, I came across an article today that I found interesting. What I think is so interesting is that the scientist are so interested in this!
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/mysterious-origin-solomon-islands-dark-skinned-blondes-revealed-175030129.html
Welcome home! I've heard from many who have lived in China for years that re-entry into the States is tough. I'm sure that you have totally different perspectives now. Surely the Lord will use this season too for good and for His glory! Blessings as you readjust!
Holly (who has one of your hand carved wooden bowls sitting on my piano in the living room!)
Welcome home!! I hope you will have a wonderful, refreshing, full of blessings stay here in good ol' U.S.A.!! So happy to hear about your family and the awesome work you are doing for Him and those precious people. We will be praying for you!
the Gilliam family in Michigan
Lots of fun observations :D At least your re-entry is in a warm place!
Julie
Your Olivia and mine wear the same size! :-) Of course, I have little feet, so for my Olivia's to be almost as big as mine means she DIDN'T get it from me.
I love the shoes picture. That's too precious! Purple high heels - how fun!
You know, I had a funny thought.
I'm sure that the kids' foot size is mostly genetic, but also... their feet haven't been cramped in closed shoes, either! They're probably very healthy feet :D
Jule
I love it all - especially the hand-holding!
Kayla
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