Well, it's been a whirlwind trip to be "home." First of course was New York City for 4 days, which was simply wonderful. Vegetarian dim sum, Indian food, lots of walking and subway riding, vegan cupcakes, and some new passport pages! I can't tell you how wonderful it feels to shower--and how unnecessary it seems at times--I mean I'm not even filthy! Same with washing my clothes :) What luxury we live in here.
Then to the midwest: Des Moines for a couple days, then a brief stop in Iowa City where I got to eat at one of my favorite restaurants in the universe: Red Avocado, saw some dear friends and experienced a friend's backyard prairie, visited with my 2 favorite midwives outside the wonderful New-Pi Co-op. Then to Madison, WI to visit a very pregnant friend (I was hoping for slightly better timing so I could catch her birth, but wasn't that lucky). There, I was delighted to find my longed for breakfast burrito and shocked that there is not only a Peruvian but also an Indonesian food stall!! I was also delighted to see the abundance of tulips as well as to see that people are not crazy about killing dandelions: there are actually thriving yards and fields of them. Then back to DSM, where I on 2 occasions was very pleased to eat rhubarb: thanks mom!
Next to Kansas City to visit more wonderful family, where I sit right now, packed and ready for Guatemala tomorrow. Today my mom, grandma, and I had a lunch of crepes and cappuccino downtown and went shopping--a truly girly treat, then we had dinner with the boys at a steak house, where I had a sweet-tea infused vodka drink. Kansas City is full of surprises :) I also learned more about my family history: that my great great grandparents homesteaded in Colorado and that I have some Scottish ancestry and that my great grandma's mom died three weeks after she was born--of course my big question was: who breast fed her then?? My grandma didn't know. My great grandma then went to live with an aunt in Boston before reuniting with her family in Colorado years later. As I heard these stories, we drove around and looked at different houses which relatives had inhabited at different points in time over the last 70 years, which was made especially beautiful considering the green-ness of everything this time of year and the roses and irises in bloom. In the evenings we played hearts and gin rummy and my dad and grandpa beat me basically every time.
Less than 48hrs till I see Justin, and less than that until I eat a piping hot tortilla.... :)
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