We're home in 2 days!!

I can not believe this trip is almost over! It feels like we are just settling into to the rythm of being away! Where did the last 2 months go?
Yesterday the girls and played a little game of "I can't wait to..."
I can't wait to see my friends and family, of course! But that was true for all of us and it quickly digressed to Shannon wanting old Cheddar Cheese and Olivia dying for a decent cheese slice. We all want to drink milk that doesn't have that funny after taste and normal tasting butter. I can't wait to have REAL peanut butter!
I can't wait to sleep in my own bed. Here we have a King size bed and a twin duvet cover each and in T.O. we have a queen and only one duvet so things might get a little ugly.
I can't wait to go to a grocery store and know where everything is and WHAT everything is! Who knew I'd miss No Frills!?
I can't wait to use the phone. The only person I've talked to on the phone since we been here was Bruce and then a couple of receptionists for hotels!

Then we moved on to "I will miss..."

I will miss the cheese here. I think I've been ruined by the great cheese. I'm afraid there is no going back either. Odd about the cheese theme. Who knew the Fairleys were so passionate about cheese. Too bad the kids have not acquired a more sophisticated taste for it though. Oh well!
I will miss all the time with just the girls and Bruce. Although being so isolated has not been easy it has been an amazing time for our family.
I will miss Jen's and Uli. Carsten and Gabriella. J.M.
I will miss having the world at my doorstep. Europe is an amazing place to live as a visitor!

I hope we continue to...
I hope we keep the TV off. Not so hard here, it's all German language. It has been a great experiment for the girls to learn to amuse themselves by means other than the TV. Don't get me wrong we watched quite a few movies, we were by no means screen free! I'm pretty sure we would not have made it without the computer either.

Here they eat a big meal at lunch and then a smaller meal in the evening. Just cheese, bread, and veggies. I love eating that way. It works now but I think in February it might be allot harder to keep that up. Time will tell.
I hope to bring home some of the great recipes I have discovered here too. I think our picnic lunches for skiing are going to be allot better this year. Here's hoping!

Things I have learned...
I can't beleive how hard it is to live in a new land. I really appreciate how hard that is for immigrants. I never understood why people came to Canada to start a new life and then seemed to do everything in their power to make it just like where they came from. Now I totally get it!
When we went to Anne Franks house there was a video of her Father. He talked about how close he was to Anne. It is true, she adored him too. He warned parents that although they had a great relationship that after reading the diary he realized he had no idea what was going on in her mind. He really wanted to share with parents that we don't know what are kids are going through. That is something I've thought about allot since then.

This may be good-bye for now. The next couple of days will be crazy with packing and trying to fit in as much birthday festivites for Shannon as possible!

Auf Weidersehen, thank you for sharing this incredible journey with us.