Things We Will Miss

It's hard to believe that Tonico only has 6 days left in Charlotte! On March 20th he will pick his brother up from the airport, they'll jump in the Uhaul and be on their way back to Minneapolis. This is all becoming very real and in many ways, exciting! But lately, I've been spending a lot of time thinking about everything I'm going to miss!

Like these little faces

 Ashton, 4

Owen, 5

Aydin, 10

These three little boys have been my world for the last 10 years! I've watched them grow from tiny little babies to the unique, goofy, sweet individuals they are today. They have been the thing I've missed the most over these past two years in North Carolina. Every time I see them it is like they are new people -talking more and continuing to amaze me with how smart they are! Thinking about how much more we will miss while in Belgium makes my heart hurt! To top it all off, I talked to my mom one day who told me Ashton wants to know if he's "ever going to see Lauren again?" Thanks Mom!!!

And just when I thought my heart could not possible love any more, my brother and his girlfriend brought this beautiful little girl into our lives. I'm counting down the days until I am home to snuggle her for days!

Adelaide, 4 days old

Thank goodness for technology! We have been able to get our parents set up with Skype so that Tonico and I can watch all of the littles grow up and keep in touch! The boys and I tried it out a few weekends ago - what a hoot! They spent most of the time checking themselves out in the little window and asking lots of questions about what they could see in the background. 

Next, of course, comes our amazing parents and siblings. They have been so supportive of us and our decision to move abroad. It's not easy for any of us but we are so unbelievably thankful for all of their support! Tonico's parents are generously donating their basement to essentially all of our furniture and personal belongings for the next 2+ years! Sounds like they are already planning their visits and for that, we couldn't be more thankful!

Tonico's sister Carla is turning 18 this year and graduating in June! She will be attending Iowa State in the Fall and we are so proud of her! She's going to have such a great time and even though we will miss out on the celebrations, we know we will be seeing her soon!

Here she is loving on her nephew dog Chucho!

Tonico asked me the other day what I will miss most about the United States (besides friends and family) and I did not know what to say. Maybe I am going to miss everything...but maybe nothing! I am not going to miss the politics - but then again, the EU (European Union) is located in Brussels, so I guess we will get our fair share of politics. I am not going to miss the packaged, preservative filled foods our country relies so heavily on. I have been told the food is much fresher. But I will not be eating at IKEA for fear of horse meat in my "Swedish Meatballs"! Having only spent a total of 6 days in Europe, none of them being in Belgium, it is hard to say what I will miss but I feel pretty confident I will find out verrry quickly!

Tonight is another night of packing...sigh...but the light at the end of the tunnel is that we HAVE to be done by Saturday so we can enjoy a day of St. Patty's celebrations! We will be joining a group of friends downtown Charlotte to catch the St. Patty's day parade, followed by a farewell dinner at our favorite restaurant Cabo Fish Taco (it's just fun to say!), followed by an infamous night out at our favorite local bar, Saeeds! This weekend will certainly be bittersweet as we begin to say "See ya later" to some of the greatest friends we have ever known (thankfully most of them are from the Midwest so we know we will meet again!).