Here We Go Again
Since my last entry, a new year has begun, and life is getting back to normal. We’ve been so busy over the last several weeks, that I think we are all ready for some down-time. It’s funny, as I look at the final paragraph of my last post, I was looking for a chance to slow down and a break in the routine – now, I realize we didn’t really slow down, and that I’m happy to be back into a routine! Are we ever satisfied? We spent three wonderful weeks in the U.S. visiting family and friends over the holidays. We loved being “home”, spending Christmas with our families, meeting precious Amelia Rose, and spending New Year’s with friends in Pittsburgh. We made it back to Brazil without incident this time around - thank goodness! It felt good to be back in our own home, after feeling like nomads for three weeks – I was tired of packing and un-packing.
Three days after our arrival, we received visitors – my Tia Chiquita and my cousin Karina – who joined us in Sao Paulo for 15 days. Karina is an architect, and was very excited to see many famous buildings, which had been designed by architects she studied in school. Chiquita and I didn’t always see the “beauty” in the buildings that interested her, but we humored her by going to various parts of the city and stood by while she took a million (it seemed) pictures from every angle of each building we visited. I have to say, I am now seeing the city in a new light. Karina is also fanatic about beaches, especially Brazilian ones. We spent six days at Juquehy, the first beach we visited last year shortly after our arrival in Brazil. It was as breath-taking and beautiful as I remembered it, and though it rained every afternoon, we were able to spend several hours on the beach during the day. The boys had a lot of fun in the ocean, riding waves on the boogie-boards that were in our condo – Matt joined us for the last 2 days there, and that’s when I was able to really relax and enjoy myself. Trying to keep your eyes on two very active boys in an ocean with a strong current is an exhausting job, and I welcomed the extra set of eyes!
Yesterday, the boys resumed their classes – I think they were ready for a normal routine, too – and Karina and Chiquita headed back to Argentina. This morning, after dropping off the kids, I sat in my quiet house and enjoyed a cup of coffee, listening only to the sound of the rain that was falling outside my window. It was a nice and welcome peace! Now, as we approach our one-year anniversary in Brazil, we will begin “Phase Three” of our time here. I think this time it will be much easier to settle back into a rhythm of activities – the kids will resume Kung Fu classes, I’ll get back into my volunteer work, and Matt will continue to stay busy with his work, however, he is trying to approach his job with a more positive attitude. We also have many things we are looking forward to doing – next month we will go to Argentina (Cordoba and Buenos Aires) over the week of Carnival, and March will bring more visitors – Cilissa, Kim, and Judy (along with a girls’ trip to Rio – fun!), and my parents later in the month. With my folks, we will visit Iguazu Falls over the weekend of my birthday. Matt and I are also planning a little get-away in May to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary. So, the next few months will keep us busy, and before we know it, we’ll be back in the States for our summer visit – and then we’ll be counting down the last months before we return for good. In the meantime, we’ll make the most of our time here, doing and seeing as much as we can – after all, there will always be time to slow down later!
