It's Official

Sean's orders came in today and we are officially leaving Spain on Saturday October 4th. While it is nice to have a date so we can start planning all the gazillion things we need to do, it is also really, really strange that we won't be living here anymore. In about a month, we'll probably move out of our Spanish beach house into temporary housing on base... sigh... I've been keeping a mental list of the things I'll really miss, and the things I'm very much looking forward to in the states. Besides the very important and obvious (I'll miss our friends and lifestyle here, but can't wait to be closer to friends and family back in the states) here is some of my list...

I'll really miss:

- Tinto de Verano con limon, the light version of sangria. I know I can make it in the states, but I just don't think it will be the same, and I don't actually want it to be the same

- Siesta. This is such a uniquely Spanish (and Italian), wonderful concept. Everyone goes home from work/school at around 2pm for about 2 hrs and just chills out together as a family. Nobody really naps, but they just have lunch and hang out. It is all about family here. Not that we really took advantage of this, but i'll just miss knowing that it is going on. Even though sometimes it really drove me crazy when i wanted to shop at 3pm...

- The love affair with babies and children. Spanish folks adore children. Maybe Americans do too and i never noticed because I didn't have one of my own until last year. But everywhere we go we get comments and smiles and there are always kids dressed in adorable matching outfits getting away with murder.

I can't wait for:

- Restaurants!! Sean and I have been dreaming about eating at No Frill Grill in Norfolk for 3+ years. The Spotswood Melt and Funky Chicken Sandwich to be exact. But just some good variety in restaurant fare with reasonable dining hours will be amazing!

- TIVO! Yes, we love our tv. We can't wait to try out this cool DVR stuff and get addicted to a bunch of terrible shows, but not feel guilty about it because we can watch them in half the time without all the commericals!

- Fall weather. I love the sunny, mild weather in Spain, but it will be so nice to be moving back just as it is starting to get crisp and cool and i can buy fall flowers for my porch.

Anyway, just an update. More random thoughts to come in future posts.