I wish, now, that I had been in the mindset and able to pull out the camera during our trip back to the States, but I was not. I will have to try and get my mom’s pictures that she took and add a few later. But, regardless, I wanted to share with you some of the fun surprises and unexpected things that we have had to adjust to coming back Stateside.

We walked through security in Montego Bay, Jamaica, and it was a different world! There was even a Dairy Queen!!!!!! What!?!?! There was one part we walked through that had very shiny, black tiles on the floor with recessed lighting on the ceiling. Maya didn’t want to walk on it because she didn’t know what the bright spots on the floor were (the lights reflecting). Once we found our gate and got settled, I went to a water fountain to fill our water bottles. Maya tagged along and when I started she said, “Mama, what IS that?!” I told her a water fountain. “What do water mountains do?!” (Yes, she calls them water mountains to this day… no typo there!) So I had to explain what water fountains were and that they were safe water to drink. Wow! My 4 year old didn’t know what a water fountain was… but then again, how could she? We don’t have any water fountains in Jamaica! Whenever she and Micah see water fountains now, they have to attempt to drink from them. Let’s just say they’re still learning how to drink from the stream of water.

Other things that were fun, new, or surprising to us:
1. Escalators. The kids weren’t sure of them at first, but after a ride, found them to be a lot of fun.
2. Flying. Neither of them really liked the first part of taking off on the first ride, but ended up really liking flying. Micah decided he didn’t want to see being above the clouds and shut his window, but other than that, enjoyed himself. Micah was also relieved that the airplane wasn’t as loud as he thought it would be!
3. Conveyor Belts. The kids really, REALLY wanted to ride the conveyor belts that the suitcases rode on. I mean, really, who doesn’t at least one time have that thought cross their minds…’It would be fun to hop on that thing and ride!’ 🙂
4. SO MUCH STUFF. When we walked out into the Miami and Reagan airports, it was almost like I was hit in the face with how much STUFF there is! Even in the airports! There isn’t just a few things to choose from but a bazillion! We couldn’t walk by a store that had kids things or candy without Maya stopping and telling me she wanted every. single. thing. for her birthday. Her telling me that is normal… it taking so long because of how much stuff there is, is abnormal. Oh. My. Word. Consumption.
5. So Many Whities. Going through the airports and D.C., I didn’t notice it as much because of the cultural diversity, but once we got into VA and stopped at a gas station with DQ, I was a bit embarrassed of myself because the thought that ran through my head was, “Whoa! There are a LOT of whities here!”
6. No JA Accents. Also at the DQ was an African American man who started talking to Rodney because he liked Rodney’s Jamaica shirt. I had to do a double take because the guy didn’t have a Jamaican accent! Re-frame the mind, Eve!
7. Public Restrooms. A few things: there is toilet paper in all the restrooms (soooo nice), the restrooms are so clean, and we have to change our thinking and doing with the whole ‘If it’s yellow, let it mellow’ saying.
8. God’s Provision. We were so overwhelmed when we arrived at the house we are staying at. It is more than we ever thought or imagined God would provide us with! And it was stocked with the basic necessities and pantry items, AND gift cards to different stores and restaurants. I cried (surprise, surprise), and I think we were just pretty speechless by the blessings. There were oranges in the fridge… oranges here are SO orange!!! Crazy-go-nuts.
9. Carpet. What?! My kids can wrestle and tumble and whatnot and have a soft place to land? So nice. The kids think so too. 🙂 To go along with the carpet, a vacuum. The kids don’t remember seeing one before. Micah’s still scared of it, but Maya has fun cleaning with it now (score! 🙂 ).
10. Eggs and Stove. The shells of the eggs are white…. like bleach white! (The chickens we have in JA lay brown eggs). The first couple times I used the stove, I was searching for the matches to light it. Yep, it’s an electric stove. Whoops.
11. Sweet Tea. Any time we talk about sweet tea, Micah thinks we are saying ‘sweetie’ which is the name for candy in Patois. He cannot be convinced otherwise.
12. COLD. When we first got here, the weather was rainy and COLD! (I thought so anyways.) And then the AC! Whew! So I turned off the AC and kept the windows open until I was told our AC is for the other family’s bedrooms. Whoops! So it’s on, but all the vents are closed. I can’t stand how cold it is! I’m gonna be in for a hard time when we come back and it reaches to fall and winter.
13. Cooking. Cooking’s probably been the hardest thing for me, Eve, to get used to. Beef is expensive and we rarely get it in JA. So I have adapted to cooking with a lot of chicken. But now, we have a whole heap of beef and hamburger in the freezer. What in the world am I supposed to do with it all?! I don’t have any of my recipes that I would have used before we moved to JA. Slowly but surely I’m coming around. It’s been really nice to have people invite us over for so many suppers to help with that transition!
14. Driving. Just had to keep saying to myself, ‘Stay right! Stay right!’ Coming out of parking lots is the hardest to remember which side to be on.
15. Parks and Playgrounds. It’s like a bit of kiddie heaven to be able to go to the parks and playgrounds around here. Really. Maya and Micah beg to go back to the parks and playgrounds because they are so nice!

All in all, the transition hasn’t been all that bad. It helps knowing that we will be going back to Jamaica, though. Isn’t it funny that Jamaica feels the most familiar and comfortable right now? We have made it through Micah begging to go back home, some meltdowns with all the new culture (Rodney…. just kidding. 🙂 ), a MRSA scare with Micah, fever, cold, and pink eye with Maya, having a baby, and having so many new friends to play with and places to play at! We have been so blessed and have really enjoyed time to spend with friends and family! We are looking forward to more family time as we start to travel mid-July. Good thing we’ve got the driving thing down before we start that journey! 😉

Wagon Ride Fun.

Wagon Ride Fun.