Surprise!

I've been behind on blogging lately because after two days in Berlin, Eric and I flew back to the United States to surprise our families for Thanksgiving!  We managed to keep it a secret from everyone except Eric's dad and a few friends.  There were hugs, tears, and some screaming.  (My brother and sister's response?  "Way to show us up on Thanksgiving, Laura."  My mom always says siblings are there to keep your ego in check.)  It was a wonderful way to end our eight months of travel.

Waiting at our gate at Berlin's Tegel Airport

Since then, we've been spending time with our families and starting to set up our lives back on US soil.  I feel like I'm still moving around as much as when we were on the road, but I do appreciate that I have access to my full closet now.  Soon we'll be settled in and I can finish blogging about the last few stops of our trip! 

Eating My Way Through Autumn

On Labor Day, my sister and I went apple picking.  It was a perfect way to kick off the fall, but since I had just returned from a summer vacation, the idea of autumn starting so soon made me panic a little.  September?  When did that happen?  However, as we picked Macintosh and Gala apples (as well as peaches, strawberries, pears and a few tomatoes - this orchard was massive!) I started remembering why I often consider the fall my favorite season: the beautiful oranges, reds and yellows of the changing leaves; new books and new classes (though not for me this year); the crisp air that seems like a relief after a humid summer.  As I imagined myself wearing a puffy vest and crunching leaves under my feet, I also realized that much of my love for the fall has to do with food. 

This photo goes along with an article in the UK's Telegraph about "leaf peeping" in New England.

That makes looking at foliage sound like an unusual, shameful act 

instead of something that you'd do as you go antiquing in Western Mass.