Back Home Again

We made it home from Norway late last night. It was 6am our body clock time and we hadn’t slept much since we left Norway, so we were all zombies by then, having been awake for 36 hours straight. We had an eventful trip home, which was a good thing, but I asked our friend to pick us up on Tuesday, not Monday, so that was a bit of a panic when I realized that mistake.  E-mail saved the day, and she was there right on the dot, thankfully.  And all my worries about coming home from Norway with an extra child that was not my own (Tobias, a 14 year old friend of Kaleb’s), turned out to be a waste of time (as worries usually are.) I won’t discount the power of prayer, however. The passport control guy didn’t even ask for the note his parents wrote saying it was okay for him to spend the summer with us, but it still never hurts to be prepared.




Our first day back home was filled with the usual routines; going through seven weeks of mail; unpacking; grocery shopping and yard work. Tobias’ parents said to make sure he works for his keep, so we planted his little butt down on the riding lawn mower and cracked the whip. He enjoyed it too much to call it work, so I’m not sure that’s what they had in mind, but I’m pretty sure he’ll be happy to do that job again. I wish I felt the same about paying bills and grocery shopping.



We took Tobias to a few stores today to buy some stuff. His eyes got pretty big when we entered Costco, as Norway has nothing at all on that scale. He just walked around in a daze, checking prices and seeing what was available. He bought a t-shirt at Old Navy, with an American flag on it, and he bought a camera case at Wal-Mart – another place where he was overwhelmed with quantity, size and price. “Everything is so cheap,” he said, over and over. He was most impressed with the dollar store and all the things that can be bought for just a dollar, but he didn’t buy a thing, he just looked.



Now I get to experience America through a foreigner's eyes. I bought Kory some beer to have with our BBQ tonight and Tobias didn’t understand why he couldn’t carry it out to the car. I had to explain that minors can’t be in possession of alcohol and he said he was just carrying it, so that was a dumb law. That won’t be the first dumb thing he discovers about America, guaranteed.



Kaleb’s best friend, Timothy, invited the boys over “to hang out” today at his house for a few hours. (Timothy’s mom informed me they are no longer called “play dates.”) The boys were outside all afternoon as it was warm and sunny and nature provided their entertainment. I was thankful for a few quiet hours to make phone calls and pay bills without interruption. Kory piddled around the yard as that is where he is most at home.



Our house was well cared for while we were gone and the yard looked great. I wish I could say we are glad to be home, but Norway is still in our hearts. I heard Kaleb talking in his sleep last night, and he was talking in Norwegian. I find that I talk to myself in Norwegian now, so I think we’ve crossed over to the other side, and it’s going to take a while to get back into the American swing of things. There’s no place like home, but we now have one in Norway, too, so home will have to be wherever we are.  East or West, Home is Best.