Our first visit to America in two years

I was nervous to go home.  Would it be a good visit?  Would it be hard to see my dad after his two strokes?  Would it be weird to be back after being gone for so long and would it be hard to come back to Japan?  I think the answer is yes to everything.  It was weird, it was good, it was all the things.  We had a lot of things we felt we needed to do like buy stuff for Will's mission and find shoes for the kids and pants for me.  We also had a long list of things we wanted to eat that we were missing.  We were able to do a bunch of the things we wanted to and even if we didn't find everything we needed or wanted, I think we were satisfied with what we did do.

We rented a house about a mile from my parents and since we were getting over jet-lag, we really took our time each day, not filling it with too much.  We spent a lot of time at their house, playing games, eating meals, talking, and going for a walk around the lake.  I enjoyed having a place to go back to each night and it felt nice to be in a real house again with a yard and garage.  

Felicity loved hanging out with Ammon and enjoyed playing candyland with him and watching movies with him.  One day we had some things we needed to do back at the place we were staying and she asked to stay with grandma, grandpa, and Ammon.  She made a fort in grandma's room, watched a movie with Ammon, and laid on the bed with grandma and looked at pictures.  Saying goodbye was really hard for her.  She cried a lot and did not want to leave, asking if they would come with us to Las Vegas.  

It was hard for me to say goodbye as well.  I think I mostly felt sad for leaving mom and dad behind.  Their lives are hard right now.  I think they don't have a lot to look forward to and I think having us there for ten days was a good break from their normal.  I wished I lived closer so I could come take mom to get ice cream or go for a walk with her or to play a game with Ammon.  So, it was sad to say goodbye.  I worry about them.