Home in Chicago

Nearly an 8 hour flight from London to Chicago. Very short considering our last flight! :)

Brandon did well on the plane, but his sleeping schedule was off. This was probably the most difficult flight of our recent flights. That could have also been because we were anxious to finally get back to Chicago...

A friend picked us up at the airport that evening.

So strange to be back in the States. Even as soon as we got off of the airplane, I noticed that I wasn't in Asia anymore. Visually, I noticed a different racial composition of people.

Maybe we will have a little culture shock back here in the US?

When we arrived back at our condo, I expected to feel a sense of relief and a sense of home. Rather, our condo did not feel like home to me. It felt foreign. It felt lonely. I felt a emptiness in my stomach.

It didn't smell like home.

I cried that night. Overwhelmed by so many emotions. And pregnancy hormones, I'm sure. :)

Brandon seemed thrilled to have arrived in a new setting with new toys. It was like Christmas morning. He rode his red Lightning McQueen car around the house. When he saw all of the books in his bedroom, he said, "Oh, wow!"

I can't tell if Brandon remembered our home or not. I sensed that something about the place was vaguely familiar to him, but I don't think he really remembered that this was once home.

I realized how much Brandon has changed in the last few months. I also realized how much time had actually passed since we left Chicago in March. All of the pictures on the walls were of a little Brandon - not the big boy we returned with. I think that part of me felt that time stopped while we were on our SG adventure. Being back in our condo, I realized that time hadn't ceased. For Mommy, it was a sad reminder that her baby is growing up...

As it was nighttime, we headed to bed a couple of hours after arriving. I couldn't sleep. I was exhausted, and I don't think the insomnia was related to jetlag. More, it was because my senses were overwhelmed by new stimuli, and my mind couldn't stop spinning. As is rare, Steven fell asleep long before I did that night.

The jetlag wasn't so bad. Brandon didn't seem to have trouble with his days and nights. He did cry a few times in the night for the first few nights, but after that he was sleeping solidly through the night again.

I would say that it took us at least a month to get readjusted to Chicago and our "new" home. Oh, how I missed our kitchen! How I missed our cars! And, yay! It was amazing to have my cell phone back.

My parents came to Chicago the first weekend we were back. So good to see them again. We enjoyed the short walk from our house to the beach on Lake Michigan.

While the weather was still warm, I took Brandon to the Lincoln Park Zoo. Needed to satisfy our zoo addiction.

Some things Brandon is doing -

He knows how to hail a cab. He raises his arm and says, "Taxi!" He loves the SG and London taxis we brought back for him as souvenirs.

Brandon is such a happy boy! He is learning so many new words by the minute.