I Miss/I Love

I miss seeing the American Flag.
I miss seeing Halloween decorations in August and Christmas decorations in September.
I miss inches, yards, pounds and feet.
I miss pennies.

I miss tipping.

I miss driving.

I miss driving in the car with the boys in the back listening while listening to kid music.

I miss driving on the right side of the street.
I miss 120 V.
I miss the real McDonalds.
I miss Jimmy Johns.
I miss the really long straws at Starbucks- you know for the venti drinks?
I miss walking down the street and NOT smelling cigarette smoke.
I miss Tilamook cheddar cheese.
I miss Lou Malnati's devliveries.
I miss italian sausage, real salami and chicken that is not scary big.
I miss Target and Fred Meyer- hey, I even miss Safeway.
I miss walking the isles at Metro Market and spending $60 no matter how much or how little you put in your basket.
I miss Old Navy.
I miss the aroma of Tacoma. Not.
I really miss Target.
I miss the pink iced cookies at Capers.
I miss my yard.
I miss my back porch.
I miss my porch furniture.
I miss our creaky stairs.
I miss walking through UPS.
I miss Rachel's swim lessons and Melissa's music class.
I miss preschool.
I miss Scholastic Book orders.
I miss mail on Saturdays.
I really, really miss Target.
I miss good cell phone reception and 7 digit phone numbers.
I miss phone books.
I miss affordable shoes and clothing.
I miss cherries that do not cost $27/kg, bananas that cost $11/kg and grapes that cost $12/kg.
I miss TV shows that start at :30 or :00 instead of :05 or :20.
I miss NCAA football on Saturday mornings.
I miss someone who is not afraid to cut my boys' hair.
I miss Fall and snow.
I miss Amazon and Half-Price Books
I miss our vet, our pediatrician and our dentists- heck, I think I even miss our UPS delivery guy.
I miss spontaneous outings with friends.
I miss wine at Cork.
I really, really, really miss Target.
I miss playdates.
I miss sitting on my friends' couches just talking about nothing and everything.
I miss long phone conversations with my family.
I miss knowing our neighbours.
I miss my family.
I miss my friends.

I love the powder chai latte mix I discovered.
I love the icing sugar and the recipe on the back.
I love almond meal.
I love the shining sun.
I love the view from our apartment.
I love having my dog food and wee wee pads for the dogs delivered.
I love the fact that they will count your change for you here.
I love seeing cockatoos and rainbow lorikeets where ever you go.
I love other Americans.
I love packages and mail (hint hint).
I love email, texts and Facebook.
I love having a swimming pool in our building.
I love that I know how to take the train, bus and ferry.
I love that I can give people directions now.
I love that I now know the difference between Thai, Malaysian, Japanese and Chinese food.
I love the fact that everyone here loves my boys.
I love kangaroos, wombats, dingos, platypuses, echidnas, emus (really?), wallabies and koalas.
I love that I have petted and fed kangaroos, wallabies and a koala.
I love all the adventures we have had.
I love spending each and everyday with my boys!