Marley & Me

Christmas night all of the cousins went to Marley and Me. Auntie Martha and Grandma stayed home to babysit Kayden (who was not very happy to go to sleep with out his mommy!). The movie was really good. And it made me realize 2 things 1) we need a lab, Kayden needs his own Marley 2) we need to move north.
I've always known I want a lab as our family dog but with our tiny backyard and the heat here in AZ, I've put it on hold. I love my mom's labs, they are so good with Kayden and so much fun to be around. Kayden loves each of them so much, gives them hugs and kisses the whole time we are home.
And....I've always known I want to move back to four seasons, but the movie made me realize how much. At one point in the movie the family moves from Florida to Pennsylvania and at that point I started crying. The scene starts with the kids running to their parents saying "it's here, it's here" and they are referring to the snow. I instantly began crying realizing what Kayden is missing by where we live. I know lots of kids miss out on the joy of winter and probably are glad that they do. But Kyle and I are Nebraska kids and loved the leaves falling, the cool crisp air in the fall and then waiting for the first snowfall, making snowmen, building snow forts, sledding, bundling up, eating soup, drinking hot cocoa, sitting by the fire. And then praying for spring, getting excited when the temp is above freezing for the first time, blossoms and warm air and then the transition to the heat of summer, boating and warm summer nights. I want all those things for my kids, those memories are some of my favorites and I know that they need them to be in their memory bank the same way they are in mine.
This trip back 2 questions rang from everyone we saw "when is #2 on it's way? and Is Arizona your forever home or do you plan to come back sometime in the near future?"
Arizona is not our forever home. I do love the people that are apart of our lives here, I've made some amazing friends that are like family and I know that they are the reason we came to AZ, I was meant to have them apart of our lives and they will be forever. But AZ is not my home. It isn't where my heart is and it's not where I want to raise Kayden. So when the time is right and we can work something out with Kyle's job and our house we are going to go home. Home might not be Nebraska, it might be Denver or Kansas City, or Minneapolis or Omaha. But it will be somewhere that has green trees, green grass, 4 seasons and is a drive away from our family. (I mean really...did we think we could fly with more than 1??)

As for #2.....jeez you guys are impatient! :-)