What a memorable home leave! It was definitely worth the 3 year wait. So many good memories, experiences and connections to carry with us into the next phase of Cambodian life.
As we were preparing for home leave, I was challenged to consider the purpose of home leave. It was/is so many things! I discussed this with Charles and one of the primary purposes that came out of our conversation was that we wanted home leave to be a grounding in American culture for our kids. The Misunderstood book I use as a reference for raising third culture kids shares stories of how kids often feel disconnected and lost in their passport culture. I knew that a few months wasn’t going to make them totally familiar with American foods, experiences or cultural touchstones, but at least we could give them a taste of it. And wow – did our home community deliver! Here is a not-comprehensive list of foods and experiences that I would consider American (or Canadian) which our girls got to have:
- Foods
- Apple Pie
- Hamburgers
- Hot dogs
- Steaks on the grill
- French toast with maple syrup
- Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries
- Chocolate chip cookies
- Shoefly pie
- Smores
- Peanut butter and jelly
- Cereal
- Takis
- Hoagies
- Experiences
- NJ Board walk
- Trash-free beach with lifeguards and flags
- Falling asleep to the Yankees game on TV
- Pull-out couches
- Grass! Lots and lots of lawns covered in soft grass
- Rolling down hills
- Creek stomping
- Car seats
- Toilet paper
- Bath tubs
- Hula hoops
- Thick pine forests
- Ice cream truck
- Wooden playground
- Ropes course
- Berry picking – wild raspberries and saskatoons
- Libraries
- Harvesting garden vegetables
- Weeding
- Mud pies and blanket forts in the yard
- Fair rides
- Costco
- Caves with admission, guided tours, stairs and railing
Thank you to everyone who listened to our stories, asked us questions, shared your wisdom and experiences and took time to just catch up with us. And thank you to everyone who was part of giving our kids a great North American experience.
So glad you were able to take home leave. What a gift!
So thankful you could be here!!
Thanks for forwarding!
We loved our time with you guys!!
Very interesting list! Love the photos. And thank you for broadening my own horizons with your visit and communications from Cambodia. Blessings!
It was truly a gift for us as well to have you around again… thanks for sharing both the new and familiar pictures, God bless!