Homesick

Sophia cried herself to sleep last night. Homesickness has hit her first and early. She misses our dog, Wolly, her own bed, and maybe most of all, her friends at school and her teacher, Ms. Bistra. She knows that the rest of her friends will be going to caves this week for an outing and that is really hard on her to miss out on that.

As a parent it is difficult because we know that the experiences we are having are also educational and that this is great 'family time'. Still, it is hard to make transition, even for a short three month period. Sophia knows that her friend John will be gone for a year when she returns in the fall and that her friend Jana is moving away for good. Goodbyes are so difficult!

I found my heart missing Bulgaria as well. We went to Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle yesterday. As we walked along, our host, Brian took us into a little Italian store and then watched our response. It felt just like a store in Bulgaria. It was amazing - the atmosphere, the layout, the selection of cheeses - everything so different from the layout in an American grocery store. As I walked through that little store, my heart began to swell - it is so easy to miss home. As we continued to walk along, there were open air stalls with all of the fresh produce - again, so much like home. We ended our journey with a rest on the hills overlooking Puget Sound. Almost immediately, the girls had made friends with two little girls from Taipei and spent the next hour placing tag together.

The photo is at Puget Sound - the girls are posing with their friends Olivia and Bella who are sharing their bedrooms and toys with us until the end of May.