1,300 Miles

You know when you walk in to a house and it feels like "home"?  I mean, there are plenty of houses that I have been in and I feel completely comfortable.  And that's a great feeling too.  But I'm talking about that house that literally feels like it's your home. 

Well, that place, for me (us) is sadly far away from here.  It's 1300 miles far away. 

We (well, not just us but all visitors there) have our own little guest cottage with our name on the door.  H and M, of course, sleep in their own room in the main house and like the fact that they are in a different house than us.  I think it makes them feel as if they are on a vacation without us.  And, that's way cool.

We have been there many times.  But it's never enough.  Each time, we immediately start talking about when we can go back.  

H and M learned how to swim there. 
It is there were they had their first knitting lessons.  (They need to have another knitting lesson soon.) 
We played our first game of Mexican Train dominoes. 
H and M saw their first real live orange tree and alligator...or was it a crocodile??
We eat delicious food, drink too much (well, some of us) and I make extra batches of sauce to be frozen and eaten once we head back home. 
We tool around in a golf cart, laughing the entire way.
Last year, we celebrated La Befana (or as I called it, "La Botswana").  We made homemade Christmas gift tags for next year.
We have become obsessed with one visit each trip to "The Sweet Tomato" (pronounced "to-MAH-to" in our house) and sometimes, "The Sweet Tomato" staff shows up in our kitchen back home.
We pile in to the car with enough food and drink to last us a lifetime, on our way to visit Mickey. 

On paper, there are only two children in the car.  But in our hearts, there are six.  Because it is impossible to not giggle, squeal and practically fall on the floor with happiness when with these two.

We swim, we eat, we drink, we cook, we laugh,  we read, we relax. We live.  We love.

You know those people that are in your life that you thank your lucky stars for? Well, we've got two of them.  I honestly cannot imagine life without them.  We share them with many (they are VERY popular peeps) and we are so grateful for every minute with them.  They truly have taught me (and many others) how to "be".  It's that's simple. 
And I am missing them dearly. 

Love you, Verena and Fred.  Love, love, love you !!