list-making is important

For many years now we have been family of nomads. Happy nomads. It turns out that I am good at starting over. Give me three or four months in a new place and I can be well on my way to building a life there. I'll know my way around, have new friends, have joined all the appropriate museums and zoos. And I'm happy here. The last week or so though, I have been in a funk. A homesick kind of a funk. Home for me is Salt Lake City. I haven't lived there in eight years and when we left I knew that we probably wouldn't be back. I was O.K. with that. Still am, most of the time. This week my heart aches for home. I have decided to address my issues by making lists, because, of course, almost everything can solved with lists.

Things I miss about home-
1. Purple mountain's majesty in every direction. Hiking, climbing, caves, snowboards, camping, all things mountains. Oh, how I miss my mountains in this flat, flat place.
2. My sisters. Dear ones, I want to see you and touch you and talk to you all the time, like it's no big deal. I want to have you over for dinner and watch you play with my kids in the backyard. I want our children to be the best of friends, for my children to not be able to pick a favorite aunt or uncle because there are just many wonderful choices around them all the time. (Nate, I miss you too, but you live far away, like me)
3. Grandparents for my babies all around. We are so lucky to have all four of our parents around to enjoy our babies (plus my grandmother too). I wish they could be a regular occurrence instead of just special occasion.
4. Only a few hours drive to our beloved red rock country.
5. Big city living. Concerts and shopping and restaurants, oh my.

Reasons I love where I live right now:
1. The sky goes on forever. It's bright blue, clean and often full of the kind of puffy clouds that make artists weep.
2. Wichita has more days of sunshine than southern Florida- we don't believe in overcast here, even in winter.
3. Dear, dear friends whom, I think, I couldn't do without. Friends of a lifetime.
4. Winter is weak and short, Summer is long and serious (today it's 105 and I am thrilled).
5. Ty can come home for lunch, or ride his bike. His office is three miles from our house.
6. We have the perfect house for our lives right now, I never want to sell it.
7. A garden with 21 kinds of roses, three kinds of melons, two kinds of squash, with peppers and pumpkins besides.
8. Small city living- family centered, slower-paced, great gossip.
9. Real, mid-western thunderstorms, nothin' like 'em.
10. Here, we are thriving.

See, I feel better already.