We're back home!

Wow!! It's hard to believe we've been home for almost 2 weeks. We've had a fabulous time catching up with everyone and familiarizing ourselves again with the Seattle area. We're amazed with all the changes occurring on the Eastside, especially in Bellevue. As I look outside our hotel room, I can spot 4 cranes hard at work erecting huge buildings. I believe there are about a dozen cranes in downtown Bellevue alone. It's entertaining to watch. I'm sure if I had 4 boys, they'd be glued to the windows, mesmerized by all the action. Not so with our girls... :-)

While we've enjoyed our time at the Bellevue Marriott, living out of suitcases in adjoining hotel rooms can get old pretty quickly. We've done our fair share of shopping at Bellevue Square and Factoria Mall--of course we had to load up on cool-weather clothing. I discovered the girls and I each owned only one pair of closed-toe shoes (tennis shoes) and all the rest were flip flops and sandals. While that's all you need in Queensland, that just won't work here. And it's taking awhile to get acclimated to the colder temps which makes me thankful we came home in the summer instead of winter!

It's funny to see some of the modern conveniences we're getting excited about: toilet seat covers, paper towels and soap in public bathrooms (in Australia, I had to always keep a little bottle of liquid soap in my purse); eggs in the refrigerated section, as opposed to sitting at room temperature in the baking aisle alongside the flour and sugar (I could never understand that, especially when the box says to refrigerate immediately when bringing home...hmmm ); normal shopping carts; and water fountains (almost non-existent in Brisbane).

Of course, we've already made several trips to Costco and Trader Joe's (what a treat!) and about half our meals have been eaten at Mexican restaurants (we've sure missed authentic Mexican food).

Marc and I are slowly getting used to driving on the right side of the road. Our first day out, Marc pulled out of the hotel parking garage directly into oncoming traffic. I was a little flustered, to say the least, and offered to drive instead. Of course, I thought I wouldn't have any problems--it's just like riding a bike, right? Later that week, I let my guard down and made the same mistake. I discovered it's easy to do when there isn't much traffic on the road. Normally, you just 'follow the leader', but when there isn't anyone to follow, you can easily get confused. And just the other day, as Michelle and I chatted away while walking to our van, I found myself standing on the right side of the vehicle (ready to get in and drive away), while Michelle ended up on the left side. We had a good laugh about that!

On Friday, we have the privilege to housesit for our dear friends, the Spears. They will be on a 1-1/2 week road trip to Yellowstone National Park. The girls are so excited to be able to care for their dog, cat and rabbit while they are away. And Marc also leaves for a 2 week trip to Brisbane. His replacement still hasn't been decided, so he'll be juggling 2 jobs for awhile.

That's all for now...

36,000 feet Back To America

If any of you are reading this in America on Sunday then we are zooming back to the States as you read. We are scheduled to arrive Seattle 10:15PM Sunday evening. Our last week has been a great week filled with friends and fun, amidst all the packing. On Friday night the Boeing Australia Executive Council treated Marce and me to a farewell dinner at Marce's favourite restaurant called Manx. A picture of us was taken at the right. Our dinner started at 7PM and we rolled out at midnight. I know I will sure miss working with these great Australians. During the week as we had been doing our packing, our close friends,the Grzesiaks, watched the girls for us while we could focus on the home. David, Marcia and children Ryan, Connor, Sarah and Lucas are US expats from Long Beach. They attended our church and also homeschool, and have become very dear friends. Saturday afternoon we had a great time with them at their home along the Brisbane river. They have a couple of acres of land which includes a tennis court and an old sheep paddock where the kids have a great time. Below are some pics of them having fun one last time at the Grzesiak estate.

Marina tries to keep up with Sarah & Madeline on the downward driveway

Michelle, Meagan, Ryan & Connor have a last round of tennis on a warm Queensland winter afternoon

Saying goodbye to our Grzesiak friends in the CBD (city business district)

The girls enjoying the Qantas Club in Brisbane while we wait for our flight