quick hello to you and a how do you do....

Howdy,
I have sooooo many blogs still dancing in my head from India, our trip home and now being in our new home, which is really our old home. Same same, but different, ya know!! so you get a very quick little spiel on our excitement since my last post (oh, good grief, that was Alina's birthday.... sooooooo much has happened!!)
- last day of school (totally worth a whole blog entry) In an expat school, turn over is very high and soooo very drastic... folks going "home", to new countries, or staying behind (the hardest, by far)
- last day in Chennai with friends - pool, pizza, laughs, hugs, and a few tears.
-gotta a call from Texas, looks like the management company dropped the ball, no utilities at the house. no worries, phone calls at midnight, by 12:30, all were arranged for connection the next day between 9 & 12. Not in India!! ha! Which reminds me, I need to put on my Indian-let-me-deal-with-this face and call that management co!
- last day in Chennai - finally got hubby to go shopping with me only problem: WE ARE LIMITED IN OUR LUGGAGE SPACE!!!
- last night in Chennai - Anna cracks her head on the coffee table (yes, falling backwards during a pillow fight!!! what is to be expected with 4 kids in a hotel for more than 2 weeks!) call to Texas to our local neighborhood ped ER dude (thanks, Dr. A) - sent photo to his phone, waited and bleeding stopped, hair covers it, fat thingy sticking out not a big deal, friend has "glue"... Anna made it through the night... I REFUSE TO GO TO THE CHENNAI ER IN LESS THAN 36 HOURS TO DEPARTURE!!!
- last night in Chennai - slept through an earthquake. (and one of my paranoia's the WHOLE time we were in India was a tsunami! How ironic - the last night. phone call and then a ping from the tsunami alert. ugh. no tsumani, whew.)
-very last day in Chennai - argh - how to pack all of those end of the school year packets of papers, art portfolios, backpacks and treasures. And yes, we have LIMITED LUGGAGE SPACE. because...
-we stopped in Brussels for a little trip down memory lane... with our 10 suitcases, 8 carry-ons, and 6 people. What a clown car... getting from airport to hotel in one European minivan!!
- enjoyed the Gran Place, chocolates, waffles, Waterloo, Villers-a-ville, old Montessori school, model train store, eating, and even the grocery store... bought sauce and chocolates (to put in our LIMITED LUGGAGE SPACE)... then poor Jamie got sick, really really sick... poor guy, no more waffles for him.
- got our 10 suitcases, 6 carry-ons (yes, a packing miracle occurred!) flew from Belgium to DC to Austin... whew... all suitcases and people made it with no incident...
-greeted by Grandma, Papa, Aunt G, Uncle W and BABY T... WONDERFUL
-came home to a house with rental furniture, stocked with groceries (thanks Mom, G & K!!), happy dogs and neighbors!!
-storage JUNK will arrive tomorrow. Air shipment is still in Chennai (a full 10 days after we left - go figure!) next - get kids registered for school and proceed with our "normal new life"
- today, enjoy sitting my my back yard without the worry of staff walking around the corner. drive my own car. work in my own yard. wash my own clothes. (ok, that's the limit, I miss having Priya fold them!!!)
Hugs to you all, enjoy today!