I still love Austria and I’m still enjoying my time here.  I still feel happy, and I love to be in Vienna. I’m looking forward very much to our summer vacation plans that we’re in the process of making and I’m super excited about the school we’ve chosen for B next year.  I still think our life here is pretty amazing, and very cool, and good for all of us.  But I’m ready to go home.

This isn’t the desperate, hiding under the covers feeling of homesickness.  It doesn’t come from feeling overwhelmed or incapable of managing the challenge of being here.  I don’t feel sad or lonely.  Given infinite money and infinite opportunity to travel, I’m not sure I’d want to go home yet.  I really do like it here, a lot.

The real issue is that, however much I love Austria, I miss my family and friends at home terribly.  I want to be able to see them more often — not just for a few weeks on vacation, which is lovely but always too short and with too few chances to see and talk to everyone.  I want a chance to be part of each other’s day-to-day lives again.  I want to see my brother on his birthday.  I want my mom to be able to come to the school plays.  I want to have my sister over for dinner.  I want to go camping with my kids in my dad’s backyard.  I want to have a lunch date with a friend.  I want to ride my horses again.

I miss my people from home.  I love Austria very much, but not enough of the people I love are here.