Home again

We're home.

Miles and I got up at 5am in Stuttgart, left for Frankfurt by 6am. We boarded our first plane at 11:10am; Frankfurt to Philadelphia. An eight hour flight. Then in Philly, we boarded a 3:25pm flight to Phoenix. Once in Phoenix, we hopped a 8pm plane for SLO.

Aside - I lived in Phoenix for 17 years. Sky Harbor is a big airport in a big city. I said to Miles, "I keep thinking that one day, I'm gonna see someone I know in this airport." As we sat at the bar, having a much-needed cocktail, a woman approached us, as if to ask for directions or something. It was Amy, Miles' colleague from the College of Engineering. She was on the same flight home.

The whole family was there to welcome us. The little girls were hopping up and down madly, shrieking, "Mama! Daddy!" I was tackled by Claire as soon as I cleared the entry. Which was great!

We got our bags and went home to my parents-in-law's house. We were much too tired to even think about driving home, so we had some dessert, told a few stories of our adventures, and handed out souvenirs to the gang. Then we all fell into bed.

This morning, we all got up, had waffles and told more stories of our adventures. Everyone asks, "What was your favorite part?" That's a hard question to answer.

I think my favorite parts were some of the quiet times. Wandering in the poteger at Versailles. Sitting in cafes, people watching. Chatting with folks. Watching Anton scoot backwards on the floor.

We didn't see everything we would have liked to, of course. Our explorations of Paris covered only a small slice of what the City of Lights has to offer. But, there will be other trips. Miles promised.