The lists

The lists have already started forming at our house and it's only February! What lists am I talking about? the USA lists of things to stock up on in the summer when we come home. Maybe it's because we bought our plane tickets this week (July 10th!) or maybe it's because we just ran out of macaroni and cheese and chocolate pudding. I didn't ration it out as well as I thought I had. Or maybe because we all have cabin fever around here...we have all been sick, one at a time, passing it around to everyone in the family for the past few weeks. Whatever the reason, I've been getting very excited about coming home this summer.

Lately, after the kids go to bed, I've found myself sitting in front of the computer, browsing through safeway.com, aisle by aisle. What would I buy if I were there? Mint chocolate chip ice cream? Reeses? Hostess? Basically anything with sugar. I also go through websites like, Gap, Macy's, Gymboree, etc. preparing to stock up on our year's supply of shoes and clothes. Not that I necessarily shop from those stores, it's just fun to look. And I've also been wondering what is in style back home. Fashion is so crazy over here--right now I'm seeing a lot of hot pink tights, purple boots and short dresses that look like oversized men's shirts that make you think, "did she mean to do that or did she actually forget to put on pants this morning?" At any rate, here are my lists so far--mostly post-it notes stuck all over my kitchen cupboard.

• Books and Movies-- I order TONS of used stuff off Amazon and bring it out a little at a time for birthdays, Christmas, rainy days etc. I'd love any recommendations! Especially any good movies that have come out in the last year.



• Food-- This is always the longest list, that is always changing. Too much stuff, not enough suitcase space.



• Clothes and shoes...for five people...this is a big project for me, but really fun because I love to shop. We do this because it's way too expensive over here, it's hard to figure out the sizing and the styles are, let's just say, interesting. I only buy stuff here when absolutely necessary...like Jacob's $50 pair of shoes he got last week. so cute...and also the cheapest I could find.

And so it has begun. 10 suitcases, 50 pounds each and 10 carry ons. We're going to make every pound count.