I apologize to all of my adoring fans (all 2 of you) who actually read this blog. I have been incredibly lazy the last few weeks. I actually got an e-mail from a close friend informing me that my web site needed to be updated. I made a mental note, then went back to eating my bon bons and watching Oprah.

Actually, I've had so much to write about that I don't even know where to start. I guess I can begin by letting you know that hubby returned home from deployment last week. Of course I'm glad to have him home, but I must say that the reunion wasn't all that I had imagined it would be, and the last 10 days have been rather tense around our house. My fantasy, which I had been dreaming about for 6 weeks, was like something out of a romance novel: He stepped off the plane, dropped all of his luggage, and ran to her with his arms open. He embraced her lovingly, kissed her passionately, and declared his undying love for her. "Oh, I've missed you so much! You are the most beautiful woman in the world! How did I ever survive all these months without you? You are my heart and my soul. I am empty without you!" He kissed her again, and they ran off into the sunset together, living happily ever after.

In reality it was more like this: He stepped off the plane, slight smile on his face, gave her a little kiss, then took his daughter by the hand and walked off, leaving her to wonder if she had a giant booger hanging out of her nose that disgusted him completely. Or if the 10 pounds she gained during his absence was a big turn-off. Or if he never really missed her at all and was heading to the squadron to sign up for another tour.

I have heard from several friends that this is completely normal. Family support gave us material on the homecoming, but I didn't bother to read it. I focused all of my energy on handling life while he was gone. I never thought that his return would be stressful! Boy, was I wrong. Chalk this one up to inexperience. I'm sure there are lessons to be learned here; when I do, I'll share my newfound wisdom with you all.

In spite of what the calendar tells me, it DOESN'T feel like spring around here! We've had rain every day for the past two weeks (at least), the highs are only in the lower 50's, and needless to say, I haven't started wearing shorts or capris. Such is life in southern Germany. Ugh.

On a brighter note, my flowers have started blooming. These are flowers that were planted by my neighbor, Petra, way back in October (reference my very first post). Aren't they cute? I can't really take any credit. I only watched her plant them, and God has done all my winter watering via massive amounts of freezing rain and snow. I had my doubts that they would even survive the cold, but here they are to remind me of the beauty that comes even in the darkest of days. And let me tell you, it's been pretty dark around here the last couple of months.

So next week is spring break for the kids. I don't know---can you call it "spring" break when there is still snow in the forecast? Maybe they should call it "not-quite-winter, not-quite-spring" break, at least for those of us in Germany. I noticed on TV today (yes, we finally bought our AFN decoder and joined the land of the living) that the temps in Georgia are in the 80's this week. Excuse me for a minute while I barf. How wrong is that? All of my friends and family are currently wearing shorts and T-shirts, and spending their weekends doing yard work and playing outside. Life is not fair. Both of the kids are playing baseball this year, and the other night at practice, I wore 4 layers of clothing, a knit hat, wrapped myself in a blanket, and STILL froze to death. Again, life is not fair.

On the up side, we have a trip to Holland and Normandy planned in the next couple of weeks! I'll keep you posted. Until then, I'll just try to stay warm.