2013 In Photos

 Couch time with Mama at her and Dads new home in Joplin.

 I just love these chickens!

 Parents version of a "selfie"

 Shelly with her purple hair!

 Mom and her new do

 Jack frost made his debut on the farm

 I mustache you a question...

 Shelly with Pugs!

 "Presidents wife hair"- Shelly

 Flying high baby.

 Sisterly love

 Equestrian lover

 Dad and Rocky at Zios

 New specs

And last but not least... Our new puppy! She is waiting on us in Mo. See you in December sweet baby!

Leap Year, New House and Visitors

Happy Leap Year!

We moved in to our new home on 2-1-12 and I haven't yet told you anything about it. I'm a bad blogger due to my business! So let's remedy this...

The basics are: It's a 3 level, 3 bed, 2 1/2 bath, town home with a back yard! 

I cannot tell you how nice it is to have grass and trees around your property after 3 years. I will give you pictures and a tour once I feel it's more "presentable". Let me just say the colors/wall paper throughout the house are... atrocious. My parents came to visit us for a week so they helped me paint my two spare bedrooms. One was bright blue and the other was red! Okay maybe I will show you one or two pictures so you can understand the gravity of my situation.

I told you it was atrocious! But thanks to my awesome parents, we got both of these rooms painted a lovely gray color and it looks 200 times better. Since the red room was painted so poorly, I have to Kilz the base boards also because they didn't tape them and the room now has red and white base boards with pretty gray walls.Ay yi yi!

Other than painting, we also got my patio area cleaned and ready for warmer weather, did some front landscaping prettiness and got my garden ready for planting! I'm so ready to get back into gardening. I plan on doing a lot of canning too. If you've never had "fresh" salsa in the winter time, your missing out! It's like summer in a jar, I swear. We, of course, drove my Corvette. They really loved it and my dad was very impressed. He gave me an awesome Vette parts book so I can put some more love into it. I'd love to do some headers and an intake manifold to really make her go! We did the usual site seeing, tourist stuff and went out to eat. My parents haven't been to the East coast much and had never seen D.C. so they really loved seeing the WH and all the historical building and monuments. I promised mom some great photos of the cherry blossoms for her dining room. It was really nice to have people come to visit us for a change as well. Though, they're getting here is a story itself! But I will shorten it for the sake of your attention span; They decided to do a 40 minute layover to save $500 but that 40 minute layover turned into a 3 hour one because some idiot on the plan was smoking dope on board! Mom said they had to of taxied for 5 miles because they were waiting for the cops to show up and as to not raise suspicion for the, I'm sure, already paranoid man. They did finally arrive to arrest the man and got to D.C. at 1am. That was a long night! I dropped them off yesterday and it doesn't get much easier to say goodbye even when I know I will see them in April. They gave me lots of direction on what to do, project wise, for the house. I hope I can gets lots more done with my new found second wind! 

Other than fun-filled week, I have had a few promising jobs come my way and I hope to be employed soon. Kind of nervous but I'm sure I will do great. Shelly is coming here for her Spring break! She's been under a good deal of stress lately and I'm so happy for her to come here and have some much needed sister time. She's my best friend and I miss her like mad. She's only flown once before, so this will be another worldly experience under her belt. Tyler and I have tossed around the idea of her spending summers with us. He has so much he wants to show her and teach her. He is the best brother in law!

It's raining here today and I have a ton of neglected housework to do. Reality is calling....

37 Year Old Valentines Day Present

My 1975 Corvette Stingray L-48. No words can express the love I feel for this car or my incredibly amazing husband for getting it for me. I just looked at him and said, "Well I guess this is better than candy..." and then proceeded to hug him way to tight! I am all too excited to begin "working" on it! Not that it needs much, I mean look at it!

And I promise to blog about what has happened since we moved to DC... Just, after our household goods finally get here tomorrow.  I am a happy girl and my life is way more fulfilled than I could have ever imagined. My only problem now seems to be what to name my "new" car :)

John 1:16

Since being home I've had the opportunity to go to my "home" church and be around all the people who've watched me grow up the Christian faith and it became so clear to me how much I had missed attending. I know so many wonderful, strong Christians and felt so overwhelmingly happy to hear them speak about all the events that happened to them in 2011. As we left church I began to think about my 2011...

Of course it had it bout's of bad: Missing family milestones, parents being ill/surgeries, ect. But for most part, my year was full of blessings. I prayed, what seemed like a ton, more than I had previously. I fully believe my prayer "vigils" helped both me and my family through those bout's of bad times.

My blessings are too numerous to count but some of my 11' highlights were: Beginning and ending the year in Mo, surrounded by our wonderful family, growing and learning in my marriage, not getting strep for a whole year (first time ever!), being healthy, exploring Seoul more on my own, being monetarily secure/debt free (no more college loans!), sister graduating high school and completing her first semester as a college freshmen, along with buying a house, leaving her loser boyfriend, working and getting her CNA, brother and Marissa remodeling their house and Rocky getting a management position at his job, our nieces and nephew all growing up and still loving us from an ocean away, Tyler being my rock and loving unconditionally and for being so patient with me, getting the White House job, moving internationally for the second time without any hang-ups, and SO much more!

Wow, seeing that all written out is almost exhausting! 

Anyway, all that made me want to read my Bible and learn more about my Lord who has blessed me with such a wonderful life! One verse, John 1:16 really stuck out to me:

"From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another."

I'm just about as happy a person as you can get! I have been to busy to post but now I guess you understand why :) I can't wait to see what He has in store for us in 2012!

Duty Station Declaration!

Finally it's time to fill you in on our next duty assignment! This entire process has taken us about a year to accomplish. Much paper work and hoop jumping were needed but I can fully say it was worth the wait.

Our report date: Jan 10, 2012
Destination: White House Communications Agency, Washington D.C.

Told you it was worth the wait! He will be on whats called a Presidential support team. Lots of traveling of course. Tyler has worked very hard to get to this point and I couldn't be more proud. He is completely humbled at this opportunity and cannot wait to serve his commander in chief.

There are a few hang-ups of course. As of right now we are trying to get home before Christmas. Pushing for around the first of December but I am not holding my breath. I've told our families not to expect us. The Army is supposed to give us 30 days in between duty assignments. While we would certainly love to get home to our families, just being stateside would be fine for now.

I am researching neighborhoods trying to find the best fit for us. We are sure of one thing, we aren't living in an apartment if it can be helped. We miss the quiet, having a back yard, porch swings, and having a place all to yourself. There is a ton to do in and around the D.C. area! I was afraid that if we didn't get this wonderful assignment, we may miss the culture and business of Seoul. This will not be the case!

 I am ready to explore our new home of the next 4 years, ready to meet our president,first lady and members of congress, ready to eat fresh seafood, smell the ocean everyday, go fishing with my dad, buy a boat, go to the Smithsonian and every other museum and show they offer, be surrounded by english speaking people on the subway, take a train to NYC, take Missy to the ocean, drive the coast...

This is such a blessing for us. We honestly couldn't be happier or we'd be sick! I will of course keep you updated on the Hammond Happenings. For now I've just been putting things away slowly in boxes, purging rooms one by one, and trying to plan out how to live in a suit case again after 2 1/2 years here in Seoul. Thank you to all of you who helped and encouraged us along the way. And if your ever on the east coast... :)

New Blog

I have started using tumblr! I am sorry for not posting this sooner but I wanted to give tumblr a test run :) Hope to see you there!

The Future

I am so blessed to have someone that when I look at him, I see the future!

I’m tired of talking about the past
Time to take these stones out of my pack
I’ve been walking way too long with all this weight here on my shoulders
Hard to move while you’re looking back
You, you’re like a light in the darkness
You, you got me on track

Now the future is a big wide open highway
I wanna drive it our way
Just keep rolling all along, rolling along
Oh, the future is a wind that keeps on breaking

So hold my hand, let’s dive in
Into the blue
Cause I look at you
And I see the future

No ropes, no strings to tie us down
Nothing to keep us on the ground
I don’t need to know and I don’t care just where we’re going
I just dont wanna turn around
Don’t wanna turn around

Cause the future is a big wide open highway
I wanna drive it our way
Just keep rolling along, rolling along
Oh, the future is a wind that keeps on breaking
So hold my hand, let’s dive in
Into the blue
Cause I look at you
And I see the future

I don’t wanna miss another minute
And now that I’ve got you by my side

In the future there’s a big wide open highway
I wanna drive it our way
Just keep rolling along, rolling along
Oh, the future is a wind that keeps on breaking
So hold my hand, let’s dive in
Into the blue
I look at you
I look at you, girl
And I see the future
Tired of talking ‘bout the past

3 Years

In September, Tyler will have been in the Army 3 years! So much has happened. My friend and I were talking about some of the things we’ve seen and done since being in Seoul… It’s honestly overwhelming when I think about the last 3 years. I can say now, I am ready to leave but glad I came. My hometown of 500 will always see me as the way I was in highschool but I can assure you I’m definitely not.

Tyler threw me into this Army life that I was totally inexperienced with and only knew that we would travel, and travel a lot. I went from working 45-50 hours a week in Manhattan, for 2 family practice physicians to being a housewife. From there we went to Georgia, a state I wouldn’t care to go back to, to put it nicely. Then in Georgia we got our first duty asignment: Korea. Never been one to look at things negatively or be scared to try new things, I was excited and ready. Our parents were excited but sad. I remember thanking God that we got to attend my brothers wedding before we had to leave. When our 15 hour flight came to a close, we looked out the window and saw Seoul for the first time. We squeezed eachothers hand and smiled. “We’re really here.”

As we explored Seoul, we saw lots of differences. Not only the type of people but the atmosphere of the 2nd largest city in the world of 20 million. Quite the culture shock you can imagine. Here I’ve had many firsts: first visit to a foreign country, living abroad, major plane flight, public transit like cabs, buses and subways, my first few years of marriage, not being near my family, 14 hour time difference, speaking a foreign language, not being able to attend college, not working and the the list goes on. My new favorite saying is: Being cultured only makes you appreciate your own even more.

For example, Korean food is much different than I was used to. I’d never eaten kimchi or eaten things the way they eat them here. They love spice, cold noodle soup, slurping their food/talking with their mouth full, fatty pork (they eat bacon as a main meat), coffee shops, clothes, counterfeit goods, and rice. Many times while eating the simultaneously hold chop sticks and a spoon in the same hand. How ever they can’t do much else… like drive.

The traffic here is wretched. People still walk/bike on the highways, not seeming to notice or care about cars going 60 km/hr right by them. Buses are rude! Taxi drivers are so crazy that I get nauseous when I ride with them because I feel as though we are going to crash at any moment. Traffic signals and the like are taken as more of a suggestion than a rule. U turns can be anywhere. Many times its faster/cheaper to take the subway. They have reserved “group” seating: Mothers and expectant mothers sit together, old people, and wheel chair bound also have sections.

Now let’s talk customer service:

I was in dire need of a cut/color and forced myself to make an appointment at the local salon. I have never been happy with the outcome and they are highly over priced. But I was desperate. So as usual, 30 minutes late, the women tries to tell me how bad my hair is and tries to get me to spend and extra $100 on a “hair health package” “It very good for you.”, she said. I told her I wasn’t interested then she procedes to tell me that I need more layers and then tells me I need to cut my hair shorter than what I had requested and still goes on about how “damaged” my hair is… blah blah blah. This whole entire endeavor, nothing extra included, cost me $145 plus tip. I get buyers remorse each time I am forced to go in there. I am able to just, not go. I don’t like looking like I don’t care. So that is my most recent event in the area of excellent customer service. I may create a review online to warn others. Good idea eh?

I’m just glad fall is around the corner and home is getting closer. I can drive again, get my hair done the way I want for the price I want, go to a drive-thru (oh Sonic I miss you!) get groceries somewhere other than a commissary, go back to college, see my family and friends, watch football, shop at the mall, watch hulu or netflix, and best of all, be in America! Oh it’s going to be so great to be home. 

Think of me as the little tea pot in this post. I'm all steamed up and need poured out... aka I need to voice some frustrations :P

I will start from the beginning so you all can get up to speed and I don't sound crazy. Our original leave date was June 30, 2011. When we got here, I was issued a "rations card". This card, along with my military ID, is my golden ticket to the base. My card is now expired. This means I cannot go to the commissary or the PX. Tyler got me a piece of paper that says it's okay to come in as long as he's with me. That's better than nothing but it's still a pain. Ty says we will save on groceries since he has to shop for us. He's been really great about all this.


For my next complaint- I have the worst luck/timing of anyone you've ever seen. It's almost like magic. Black magic. Here's a good example: The other night I was getting so bored from being "cooped" up in the house I asked Tyler if we could go to the movies. He agreed and we got ready. As we were pulling out of the garage we became fully aware of the time. Here in Seoul rush hour is from about 3-9pm. We were leaving the house at 6:30! Traffic, as you've heard me say before, is horrendous. People love to park their cars in lanes of traffic. They also love to merge with no warning, scrape your car to get in, bus' rule and we drool, and cabs are the worst! So we finally get onto base just in time for the 7 showing. I got some popcorn and a drink. While snacking away on the popcorn, my stomach gets all flippity because there is too much butter on it. Had to scratch the popcorn. The movie we were watching was "Something Borrowed" because it has John Krasinski in it :) He was great but the movie seemed to go on forever! It's the classic: I love you, I don't, I love you, I don't. Movie finally finishes and we head for home. Just at the tail end of rush hour. Still tons of cars so we have a repeat of heading to movies. Finally we make it home and both say to each other: "We are never leaving the house again!"


All that happened because I decided I wanted to see a movie! A movie that wasn't even that good! I'm telling you it's like I'm cursed. I'm glad I am a positive person or else I may have needed medication long ago.
On a positive note, if you can imagine, I've had some good fortune. I'm babysitting again! We had lunch with a family that's new here and they offered me a job. It will be nice to be needed outside the house. I can't wait to work when we get stateside. I've worked with the worst people in the world over the years but I'm ready to try again. I'm grateful for a husband who lets me decide if I work or not. Believe me, with some of my stories, you'd never want to work with people again. So it's nice to have that support.
My tea pot is now empty. I feel better. Thanks for helping with that Blogger.

Family Ties

I love the days when I can get a hold of all my family members! I talked all morning on Skype. I thought I would make it a point to update you all on my family and what they have been doing.

We will start with Rocky and Marissa since they just got back from vacationing at South Padre Island. I miss them so much. It's unbelievable the hole you can feel while missing your siblings. They are so much fun to be around. I had a good cry while looking through these photo's but I feel composed enough to look through them now :P

Rental car fun.

Marissa is so gorgeous! Inside and out :)

Visiting the "Sea-turtle Haven"

Got any food?

Got to have a South Padre sign pic!

Rocky is inappropriate... And it's awesome!

Ahh... Young love.

Marissa apparently really loved this fish!

 Aren't they the most gorgeous couple?! Seriously. Other than the great vacation, they have gotten into the dog breeding business. Marissa's parents have been doing that for about 25 years and are showing them the ropes. They are just about finished with the kennel. I don't think I could give away the puppies... It would be a problem to say the least.


Shelly is still doing CNA courses but is now on the clinical hours side of things. AKA: I work a full time job and don't get paid. She's starting to grasp how hard it is to work in a nursing home. I've told her plenty of my own stories but it's one of those things that you can't appreciate it until you do it. So for now she's tired and stretched pretty thin but says she's learning everyday. Her 19th birthday is this Sunday. We've sent her a gift but it's definitely not the same as being there.







My Mom is getting ready to have surgery on the 11th. I've been beefing up her Ipod touch so she can have something to do while she is recuperating. The good news is she gets 6 weeks off of work. A nurse needs that kind of break every once in a while. She works in an adult psych ward... Yeah it will make you as crazy as your patients!

Dad is doing well. We've been talking gardening and cars lately. He is so great gardening. Even in the Mo drought he can make everything green! I can't wait for him to help me plant my own. He also can't wait to take a drive in the Jag. I know he will love it!

As for Tyler and I... We are looking into having a layover in Hawaii on our trip back to the 48. Missy would have to stay at the airport but it's very cheap for her to stay, $14 a day! Ty said as soon as we get orders we will get the ball rolling on our "layover vacation"! Other than that still just waiting for something to happen. As always.

Thanks for reading and stay cool!

Extended...

For the last 6 months, Tyler has been in the process of getting a permanent stateside job. We were supposed to leave Korea this Friday... But due to this job opportunity we have extended ourselves 1 month. I am hoping all goes according to plan with this job. We are supposed to contact them mid July to find out more details. I cannot believe we have this opportunity and I'm more than willing to wait it out but 6 months of limbo/uncertainty wears on us. It would really help if we could have a solid date of leave, but as of now, we are at their mercy. Not that it's not a blessing, it is. It's just a long, drawn out blessing. So that is where we are at currently.

In other news-
Sister is doing well! She is getting stuff for her house, furniture, lighting, new bed... things like that. She is also getting her CNA right now for 2 reasons. 1 is so she can work while going to school and 2 is because it's required for her RN. She's following in Mom's footsteps :) She also has a new dog! AnnaBelle is a 18 month old female Pit. She's very sweet.

As for Rocky and Marissa, they are on the beach! They took a vacation down to Padre Island. I will fill you in on the details when they get back.

Mom is having surgery in July. All the more reason for this job to hurry along. Dad is doing well. He and Mom canned 40 pints of green beans over the weekend. I can't wait to try them!

Tyler's family is well. Everyone in the McFather house is doing great. Aven and Talen are both mobile! Now the real trouble begins :)

Tyler really loves his new car. I'm so happy for him. He works so hard and most days doesn't like his job, so it's only appropriate he have something nice to climb into after a hard day! Not to mention I get to drive it too... It's amazingly fast! Can't wait to get it out on the highway. Here in Seoul there's way too much traffic to get the full effect.

I'm  also trying to recover a couple of chairs... that should keep me out of trouble for today! Thanks for reading.

Day 15 - Advice to someone who’s thinking about traveling to another country

Be prepared and educated. The more the better! It will make your trip that much easier and much more fun. If you just decided to go to Korea on a whim... You would be very disappointed with what you see. There are parts of this city that you cannot know about unless you really do your research. I've been hear 2 years now and still don't know the entire city!
 

Try to learn the language. There's an app for that! :P

Know how much the exchange rate is. This will need to be done! It allows you to get familiar with their currency and lets you plan how much money you will need.

Pack light... Souvenirs are plentiful.

Get your passport of course!

Don't forget about home. Ask a family member or friend to watch pets, water plants, take your mail, or house sit.

Kids should come first if you want your trip to be the best it can be. Remember to pack entertainment for them. In your carry on luggage bring diaper bags, books, a few crayons, snacks, music, ect. If they get too squirming too much, feel free to walk with them in the aisle. Car rides need to start early while they are still asleep. It gives you time to navigate and get settled! Plus traffic is non existent at 4am.

Last but not least, the camera. Capture lots of memories! You will not regret taking the photo's. 

That is all that comes to mind right now. I'm officially done with my challenge! And challenging it was. Some posts took much more time that expected and I did skip a day or two :P but over all I did well! Thanks so much for reading. Look for updates on our new car next post!!!

Day 14 - What did you learn from traveling abroad?

• How to navigate an airport like a pro!
• Taxi lingo
• How to pack efficiently
• How to endure 18 hours on a plane... Movies, naps, word searches!
• The importance of Skype
• Photography
• Preparedness is the key to success
• How to communicate in a foreign language
• Subway navigation
• What it's like to live in one of the world's biggest cities!
• Cooking with "native" foods
• How to "haggle" for a good price while shopping. Don't be afraid to walk away!
• How to deal with not having family close 
• How to make new friends
• How to drive in Seoul traffic... ME first!
• To be more adventurous in eatting
• And lastly, getting to know how the Army opperates

I'm sure I've learned much more but these things are what immediately jumped to mind. I really hope the information I've posted has helped someone. Last post of the challenge is tomorrow. BOLO, aka: Be on the look out! 

Day 13- A favorite travel quote

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

I try to live a life free of regret. As much as possible anyway. I believe all things that happen to a person make them who they are. No matter what happens, you always learn and take something away from an experience. I believe that traveling has taught me a great deal. 2 years away from home can build you up in ways you never thought of. It also brought me sadness like I'd never known. I understand myself better and know I'm stronger for it. I honestly feel like I'm better suited to take on challenges. So take some steps outside your comfort zone. You'll regret it if you don't!

Day 12 - Someone who influenced you to travel abroad

I remember first being interested in travel while doing a report on Ponce De Leon. I don't remember exactly how old I was but I know I was in grade school. I thought about him on his huge ship sailing to places unknown and I realized there were a lot of places I didn't know about! One thing that I was sure about, was that I didn't just want to stay sedentary my whole life. Even at a young age I knew I liked adventure.

As I got a little older and began learning more about my parent's, they told me about their adventures in traveling and how much they loved it. Though they'd never traveled abroad, they'd always wanted to. They've been to nearly every state but said they always wanted to go to Italy.

It was really my husband who "took initiative" in that department when he joined the Army. Right from the beginning the traveling started. At AIT in Fort Gordon, GA, then our first duty station... Seoul, South Korea! He and I had always discussed traveling and vacation idea's but always thought it would be on our dime. Funny how life takes turns you don't expect. 

We got very excited when we got our orders to Korea. Sure we would miss our family and our home country but this opportunity seemed to out weigh all of those things. The whole experience of moving to a new country was prodigious! We have really enjoyed traveling abroad and feel much more confident in our travel skills and can't wait to put them to use again.

Day 11 - Did you have any milestones or “first's” while traveling/living abroad?


Many! 


First international flight (only my 2nd ever!), dealing with jet lag, being in a foreign country, cab ride, learning/speaking Korean :P, first duty station, dealing with foreign currency, trying many new foods (like kimchi), riding the subway, eating street food, first blog... 


I hope my life isn't so predicable and bland that I have no more first's! I'm excited and await them all!

Day 10 - A favorite foreign movie

Who doesn't love a good black and white filled with scandal? My favorite foreign film is La Dolce Vida. It's an early 1960's film that takes place in Italy about a, "Journalist and man-about-town Marcello who struggles to find his place in the world, torn between the allure of Rome's elite social scene and the stifling domesticity offered by his girlfriend." 

Such a great flick! 

Day 09 - A song you like from another country/language


C'est Si Bon! 

Day 08 - A favorite food from another country/culture




Today's topic is honestly too difficult for me to choose just one. So I will have to list by country.


Korea- Kalbe (beef on a leaf) I like this because it's not fried, dipped in butter or anything else to make it horrible for you. It's 90% vegetables and totally delicious! 


Italy- Gnocci and gelato. Need I explain?... I thought not.


Turkey- Kebabs, beef or lamb. The sauce is the key to this dish.


Mexico- Guacamole and queso blanco dip. If you put that on any Mexican dish, it's bound be delicious!


India- My go to dish is usually prawn saag or tandoori chicken with naan. Curry is usually pretty delicious too but you have be able to handle some spice!


Thailand- I love their national dish, Pad Thai, but my favorite would have to be tom yum goong soup. The herbs in the soup are amazing!


Japan- Sushi! Who doesn't love a Cailifornia Roll? I'm also a big fan of miso soup and wasabi.


France- Lots of people would say elcair or crepes... My weakness doesn't lie with bread. I'm more of cheese and butter gal! Hence why I love French food. My picks would be, beef bourguignon or roast chicken. Though their chocolate mousse is pretty tasty.




I have many more world cuisines to try of course, but for now this will have to do. I'd love to stay and chat more but I'm hungry now. Thank for reading!

Day 07 - Besides people, what did/do you miss from home?


Living in another country has made me appreciate "the little things". Like being able to ask for directions when your lost in English (my Korean is so broken) reading street signs without my Korean language book, driving myself, my beautiful muscle car, drive-thrus (like Sonic!), church, watching football, ordering food at a restaurant in English, talking/texting on the phone, Wal-Mart, having a job, college, clean air, but most of all I miss beauty salons! I can't wait to get my hair done... sigh.

Seoul is a really wonderful place with lots to offer but 2 years of it wears on person. This city has so much shopping and dining! I love being able to take the subway, pretty much anywhere, get out and find something to do. Kansas City's public transportation is like non-existent. That makes me sad. 


Shopping is so very frustrating here. Korean women are, on average, a size 2-5. They also are very, pardon my bluntness, flat/without curves. Where as us American girls, are NOT! They have some of the most beautiful clothes I have ever seen here but finding your size is nearly impossible. I usually end up window shopping and day dreaming. I have found a few outfits but I got very lucky. I love all the adorable accessories here. Tons of scarves, head bands, earrings, bracelets, watches, purses and shoes. I've got enough accessories for the rest of my life. It's really fun.


Seoul, has a lot of things that America doesn't and vice versa. Tyler and I are definitely trying to soak it up while we are here but "there's no place like home".