5 Things About the US....

Now for the US version...

That We are Looking Forward To Once we Get Home:
1. Family. It goes without saying that Korea is a LONG way away from our families. Even phone calls are difficult with the time difference. We are so ready to see some people that we know and love. :)

2. Target. Yes, the Korean shopping made my favorite list for here, but I am really looking forward to some good, old fashioned, American Retail Therapy. Malls with stores that I recognize and foods that I know and bathrooms that don't have squatter potties. And Target, Target, Target....hello Old Friend.....

3. Green Space. Something that is essentially unheard of here. Trees and hills and space with nothing on them but Mother Nature. Novel idea. Eastern Montana is sounding pretty darn fantastic about now.

4. A yard. To go along with the green space. Living in an apartment is rough with kids and 90 lb. Weimaraner. Can you imagine the ability to say "GO OUTSIDE AND PLAY!!!!" Poor dog doesn't even know how to pee off the leash anymore. :)

5. American food. Stuff that doesn't come from Chili's, the Bowling Alley, or the BX Food Court. Waiters that speak English, and are probably rude and not deserving of their 15%, but still, food that I recognize and can tell if it is edible or not. Can we say In N Out Burger??? And Wine!!! The wine selection here is for poop.....getting a little sick of Turning Leaf and Robert Mondavi.



That We are Not Looking Forward To Once We Get Home:
1. Traffic. Yes, the driving is terrible here, but we don't need to do it very often. In the States, we will drive everywhere again and deal with snails pace, freeway rush hour traffic and whackos on the road (some of whom are probably Asian!).

2. Crime. Korea is very safe, especially on base, but even off. I remember once this past fall that a gunman was on the loose and they literally shut the country down looking for him. There were road blocks and checkpoints everywhere and the school and base were on lockdown until they caught him. Can you imagine if they did that for every gunman in the States?? Yes, bad things happen everywhere, but the US isn't exactly a mecca for outstanding citizens. Once again we will have to think about our kids playing out front without us, locking our doors and windows all the time, and shutting the garage door (ooooo, did I mention we are looking forward to a garage???).

3. Cockroaches. We are moving to Alabama, remember??? I don't think they have cockroaches here, but don't get me started on the spiders.....

4. Getting all FOUR of our household goods shipments successfully, plus our car. They will all come at different times I am sure. I don't even remember what is in them at this point. Unpacking them all will be interesting, and American movers aren't NEARLY as quick and efficient as the Korean variety. Then we will only be in AL for a year before we need to do it all over again. I think that garage may have a few boxes in it. :)

5.My miscellaneous list that adds to more than 5! Gas prices; November Election build up; too many channels on TV; sweltering Alabama summer; driving across the country with two kids, three animals, and five suitcases only to arrive to an empty house and a carless garage; McDonald's on every corner, Southern Baptists (sorry to my SB friends, you know y'all are a little nutty in the South), having to make new friends, new doctors and dentists, new school administration, new peers (it just gets hard after a while).


But most of all, the thing that we are not looking forward to about being in the States again....MISSING ALL OF OUR FRIENDS HERE IN KOREA!!!! :(