There is no place like home.

No matter how dreary and gray our homes are, we people of flesh and blood would rather live there than in any other country, be it ever so beautiful. There is no place like home. - L. Frank Baum, The Wizard of Oz

Happy freaking holidays, my friends! After a whirlwind Friday and a day of flying today, I am finally able to sit down and think for a moment. I am not saying I am going to get anywhere with it, by any means. But it's nice to sip a glass of wine in a relatively silent home and actually let some thoughts solidify instead of maintaining their typically ethereal quality in my mind. With that being said, I am done- after several days of travel, family, and friends, I am ready to tuck myself in for the night. So quickly, but just as meaningfully as always, I'd like to share my thanks with you.

Day Twenty-Five: Every year, on the Friday after Thanksgiving, we get together with Aaron's friends from Franklin and their families. Every year since 2003, the number of people has increased by an exponential amount. What began as a group of 12-13 couples (depending on the year), has turned into 12-13 couples with nearly 40 children among them! Every year we force the kids into groups of mixed ages and genders and not necessarily filled with kids they already know...and yet, every year, I am amazed at how easily they all work together and play together and enjoy each other's company. Not an argument, not a complaint, lots of sharing and playing- it's as if the friendship of their parents is so entrenched in their genes that they have no option other than to like each other. I think of all the possible outcomes of this mixed group and am so thankful for the fact that we were all given these children who are so fun and filled with life and love and who are continuing on a legacy of good people and solid, sound friendship.

Day Twenty-Six: Home. Home is what I am thankful for today. Not my house, my address, my couch or my bed, but the feeling of driving down the interstate, heading south from the airport, and knowing that every minute is a minute closer to your zone of comfort, of your own belongings and own space, your own time and your own world. Traveling is wonderful, and we are so grateful to have the chance and money available to travel as much as we do to see family, see friends, go on vacation, etc. However, no matter how much fun we have, no matter how much love is given and received, no matter how many sights we see, beaches we roam, dinners out we eat, nothing beats coming home. Home is not where your house is, home is not where you park your car. Home is not where your mail is delivered and where your pets run free. Home is where you can lay on the couch, in front of the fire, and feel whole and at peace. Good night, my friends. I am home.