There's No Place Like Home

Traveling

It's no suprise that Alex turned out to be the perfect little traveler since he did so much of it even before he was born. He slept for almost 15 of the 17 hours during the trip from Brazil to the U.S. and about the same on the way back.

St. Louis, Missouri

Unlike Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, my little Munchkin and I landed in Missouri instead of Kansas (close enough!). It was great to visit Grandpa Ken and Grandma Alice as well as other longtime friends and family.

Alex had a couple of "firsts" in St. Louis, including his first walk at Creve Coeur Park, his first Chinese restaurant (something that is painfully missing in Rio), and his first pair of shoes.

Being at home is always nice, although it's a bit unsettling to see bits and pieces of my life in boxes in my parents' garage. At least we know that by this time next year we'll be semi-settled in a new place in Virginia.

Despite the reminder that we have plenty of worldly goods, I couldn't resist taking Alex to his first (and second, third, fourth...) garage sale.

Kansas City, Kansas

Munckin and I did end up in Kansas to visit my sister and her family. Cousins Hannah and Sullivan had a blast with their new doll--Alex. Also got to visit with my godchild, Luena, who was born in Angola but now lives in Iowa. Activities includes parks, swings, Hannah's soccer game, and a good old-fashioned pumpkin farm.

Boulder, Colorado

Sometimes I feel that Boulder is truly "Over the Rainbow". I continue to feel at peace when I am there and it was great to have Alex along to share that with. Met great friends Martha, Elizabeth and Cheri during our whirlwind (oops, we can say tornado visit to keep with the Wizard of Oz theme) visit.

Also had the special treat of getting together with my former colleagues from the Economics Institute (1986-1989) during their annual EI Ladies get-together.

And I felt particularly smaltzy when I took Alex to visit the place where Roque and I got married in Nederland (www.mountainpineslodge.com). Felt like another circle was completed.

Despite the great visit, it was nice to get back to Roque (who was full of saudades by the time we returned) and our routine in Ipanema.

Click HERE for more photos.