We are home!

 Whew! What a busy couple of days we have had... It all started Friday morning when we finished up packing, locked the door of our beautiful home, and rode with Mary, Susan, Joe & Krista and their kids, and Nick, to the airport.

We said farewell to Mary, who won't be with us next year, and shed some tears.  We will so miss that girl.  She was Josh's sanity when he was there alone, and she was my sanity when I'd been in the house too many days.  I am so happy to have met her, and was very sad to see her go.

 Soon we boarded our Caravan charter and the adventure began.  Susan was up front with Logan, Jack & Aaliyah in rows behind her.

 Josh was on the other side, with Wyatt & I, Joe & Khasia, and Krista & Khaila behind him.

 Wyatt was a perfect angel the entire flight.  We just gazed out the window, fascinated by all the geography below us.  We got lucky, and it wasn't too cold, but it was windy.  The flight was a bit shaky.

Lucky for us, we were able to make it Marshall to Bethel (about forty minutes) with no problems and landed safely with plenty of time to eat and let the children play while we waited for our flight to Anchorage.

While we were in the Bethel airport I met a woman in my shoes- SAHM to a couple little boys in a rural village- and it was so good to talk to someone who knows exactly what my life is like. 

Our stay in Anchorage was short & sweet. We landed, got our luggage, found our rental car, checked into the hotel and hit the mall. I was able to take Wyatt and shop for new (smaller!) clothes at Gap. I nearly cried (and did hug the girl Kelly who was helping me) when I found out I could wear a size ten.  My last pair of Gap jeans were a 16.

While Mommy shopped Daddy & the big boys got haircuts and shoes that fit.  Then we met back up for dinner at a restaurant!!! We ate at Red Robin where the boys got milkshakes and the baby tried his first french fry.

Before we knew it it was Saturday morning and we were boarding our final flight.  On this flight I made another friend, Julia, whose baby boy Joel was just edible! Thanks to our visiting, the flight went so fast, and I was blessed to have the third seat in our row empty.  The twins' behavior was perfect and the baby slept for most of it.

Before we knew it, we had landed in Portland and were making our way toward our family.

I'll let the pictures do the talking...

Our homecoming was heartwarming, just as I imagined it would be, and we felt so loved. There must have been nearly twenty people at the airport to meet us. It has been an awesome week, spending time here with Carol & Carl (whom we will stay with for the summer); spending time with Josh's sister Julie & her boys; and spending time with my sister, her boys & my mom at my mom's house.  Despite the rain we have had all week, we are happy to be home, and grateful for our loved ones.