We found a place to call home. Let me know if you need our forwarding address. ---SM

Cottage cheese is a very sticky thing. After begging for someone to wipe off his fingers, Lennox eventually decides to just eat it. ---SM

(A Big Reason) Why It's Good To Be Home: Auntie Staci. How we missed her!

(Another Reason) Why It's Good To Be Back Home: Playing on my parents' back yard swing set.

Lennox wasn't quite old enough to climb and slide by himself when we left the U.S. Since we've been back, we can't keep him off the swing set. He climbs the ladder then slides so hard he lands on the ground on his bottom. It's a hoot.

And, there's nothing like swinging with a shovel in your hand, right, Kellen? ---SM

It's what to do on a rainy day when you aren't exactly sure what you should do. And yeah, there are a lot of people at bowling alleys in the middle of the week mid-morning. We saw leagues, teenagers, two guys on a business lunch. I mean, who knew the place would be bustling?

Thank goodness for 6-pound balls and lane bumpers. Of course, Lennox thought he should kick the ball... ---SM

Some things just make home what it is: home. We're staying at my parents' house for about a week until our place is ready, but it still feels like home. We miss the U.K., but we love being back. ---SM


[Above: Lennox sits in my parents' kitchen in the high chair that was mine when I was a kid. I think it has been used by a half dozen babies, my sister and cousins, since me.]

Goodbye, London. We will miss you and all of our friends. Or, as they say around here, "Cheers!" ---SM


[Above: Some of our American friends that also live in London came to visit us at our neighborhood park just before we left the U.K.]

Valentine's Day was special this year because I got to tag along with Justin on his work trip to Berlin. While that might not sound romantic, it was just the two of us in mainland Europe for a few days while my mom watched the kids. Enough said!

Anyone who thinks London is cold in the winter really doesn't understand cold. Berlin was more Chicago-like: it was freezing and snowing almost the entire time, but the weather didn't stop me from doing a little sight seeing during the hours Justin worked.

The main thrill? Treading the places I've so frequently seen in documentaries, films, and read in history books. The Brandenburg Gate. Are you kidding me? Checkpoint Charlie? Wow. I walked to both from our hotel---mostly they are tourist stops, but who would have guessed that sixty years ago?

Another cool thing: the East Side Gallery, aka the Wall. Artists have painted over the surviving portion of the wall in memory of what the wall represented and what the wall means going forward. Some of the art is breathtaking, especially as a colorful backdrop for a wintry white day.

Justin and I completely lucked out as our trip coincided with the Berlin Film Festival. And we love film. While we didn't get to see more than a handful of films (and no outstanding ones at that), it was fun to be part of the hustle and bustle and even have the chance to walk the red carpet for one of the competition films. My seat was in the row next to directors Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman and actor James Franco. Not quite as handsome (or straight) as my hunky husband, but the trip in its entirety got my heart a-pumpin'! ---SM


[Above: A painted section at the Berlin Wall, aka East Side Gallery.]