Looking Forward...

Apologies for the long absence!  It was a combination of excessive busy-ness and a rather long internet outage.  It was very eye-opening how dependent we are on the internet; we were all crawling through the city like zombies until late in the night, seeking a place to get wired...Anyway, here is the post I've been meaning to share:

Lately, I've been feeling ready to go home.  It's not so much living in Jordan that I'm tired of, but the "camping out" lifestyle: No, we don't have to live in a tent, but we are roughing it in the sense of trying to survive in a place that is not and can not be home, with only a few of our personal belongings and none of the things that make life easier.  At home, I always considered us to be on the poor-end of the spectrum of society; but after living with even less, I am ecstatic to go home to our abundance of wealth!  A little perspective is all it takes.  

Here are some of the specific details I am looking forward to (in no particular order):

1. Having a bathtub...mostly for the kids' sakes.
2. Readily available hot water...I'm not a fan of the guessing game of when will it or won't it be hot, since it's different daily.  I would prefer to shower myself and bathe the kids when it's convenient for us rather than squeezing it in to the water's arbitrary schedule. 
3. Having a shower larger than the width of my body...it's very confining.
4. Using a hair dryer!  Again, I chose not to bring one in an effort to lighten the luggage, and I could buy a cheap one here, but choose not to. 
5. Having all the kids' toys, books, and baby gear.  It's really challenging to be without proper beds, crib, walker, high chair, etc...It may be better for their creativity to be without the toys, but it would be great to read to them!  
6. Not having to wash our underwear in the kitchen sink...What a luxury to have a washing machine and dryer!  Can't wait.
7. Having pump soap to wash our hands...This is just an issue of pinching our pennies; we could buy pump soap, but bar soap is provided for us, so it seems excessive.  
8. Being able to go to the park or museum without being mobbed by hundreds of school girls.
9. Not being stared at or treated like a foreigner.  They treat foreigners in a very friendly manner--don't get me wrong--but sometimes I just want to blend in. 
10. Walking in a stroller-friendly environment, so I don't have to worry about suddenly getting stuck somewhere or having to maneuver carrying 2 children, a stroller, and bags full of groceries up and down stairs and across busy streets. 
11. Having a car!!!  And having our OWN car.  And going un-walkable distances whenever we want.
12. Having our own stuff: our own sheets, our own towels, our own dishes, our own kitchen tools, etc, etc.  Having more clothes than just a few outfits' worth.  Having more than just 4 of each dish, utensil, or cup (which means we must wash dishes at least once or twice a day).
13. Cooking my own food!  One, for health reasons; nutrition has been a sacrifice while being here, and I want to be in control of that again.  Two, my home-maker side is itching to get in the kitchen and create delicious food and try new recipes!
14. Having hot pads in the kitchen!  I'm tired of using a towel in a flame-gas oven. 
15. Having a stove/oven that can be lit without a match.  Maybe I'm just lazy, but saving extra little steps sure does help!
16. Sleeping in a normal-sized bed...Here, they give us 2 twin beds shoved together, so someone (usually me) is always falling into the crack.  We finally had the genius idea to put the mattresses horizontal, but I still find myself falling into the crack the other way.  
17. Being able to go to play groups, Bible studies, outings with friends, social opportunities.
18. Not worrying about the language barrier whenever we want to do something like the above, or just when going to the supermarket, or anywhere really.
19. Perhaps this seems unappreciative of me, but I'm also really anxious to be in charge of cleaning my own house.  I guess I'm just one of those people who would rather do it myself...I'm just tired of having to put things away that we don't want them to touch, and being invaded every Tuesday morning, and I want to clean things when they're dirty rather than at a set time every week.  Having housekeeping service, for me, is more stressful than it's worth.  (Sorry to those of you who wish you could have it!)
20. Diving into a myriad of sewing and creative projects I have swirling in my head, that I've been designing and dreaming over.
21. Trying, in the midst of unsettlement, to create a home, an oasis of rest for our souls.
22. Buying oatmeal and cereal without paying $10/box. In fact, buying ANYTHING at regular price...it's expensive here!
23. Not having to wear pants and long sleeves when it's 90 degrees outside.  
24. When we buy something, not having to worry about "how are we going to get this home?"
25. This one is silly, I know, but: I can't wait to put toilet paper IN the toilet once again.
26. Having consistently working electric outlets.  And having proper plugs on the outlets (some of the plugs on outlets here are impossible to stick anything into...they're just poorly made).  

When we do finally go home, I'm sure I'll have a long list of things I miss about Jordan.  That's just the way it goes: we always miss what we can't have.  Which is why I'm making a very concerted effort to enjoy being here while we're here, but still savoring the promise of home!