Back to the beginning: with my parents in Iowa

We have officially come full circle. This is the last place we were in the States before we took off for our world tour. My parents have been walking around with big smiles now that their 'baby' is home safe and sound. Mom has cooked all my favorites and is doing her best to bring Andy back to his pre-food poisoning weight. Dad also bought the biggest Iowa steaks he could find and grilled them up. We've been in food heaven.

We have showed my parents all of our 5,300 photos from the trip. It has taken several evenings to get through every photo. We are impressed with their endurance. Just when Andy and I are getting sick of looking at our own photos, they are asking to see the next round. It has been really fun to share our pictures and stories with such excited people. Mom has even been comparing our pictures with the encyclopedia and proudly deciding that our pictures are much better.

Andy and I have also been able to visit with some of my friends from school, both high school and college. Everyone has been really happy to talk to us and ask us about the trip. But everyone says how glad they are that we got back just after the war began. It is so nice to hear that people worried about us!

Next we go to Michigan to see Andy's family, which means more eating, more photos and more story telling! We can't wait!