home again, home again, jiggity jig

Dorothy, in The Wizard of Oz, said, "There's no place like home!" as she clicked her ruby slippers together. While I don't have ruby slippers, I do agree with her statement. We finally arrived back in Arizona and I haven't stopped smiling! It's not that I didn't love our time on the East Coast, it's just that it's great to come home.

We have a group of friends affectionately known as MR KLUD (Mike, Richard, Kristin, Laurie, Ursi and Doug) who "coerced" Janne and Adam (who were staying in our house) into letting them "decorate" for our homecoming. They did an amazing job!

We thought the pink flamingo was an especially nice touch!

The front entry way was decked out in a tropical theme...

... which continued into the house! The flower lights were awesome! Cheese, salami, crackers, mini bottles of wine, fruit, nuts and chocolate- what more could you need? 

Maybe a beautiful bouquet of flowers? 

While we were gone, we relied on the kindness and generosity of our neighbors to keep an eye on things, especially during the times no one was staying at our house. They made sure newspapers and flyers were disposed of quickly. They cleaned out the pool when there was a storm. They got our mail. They did a million little (and not so little!) things. And they, too, welcomed us home.

The Whites have been our neighbors for almost 24 years. We have shared many good times- and a few sad times- together. And Claudia knows my fondness for fresh flowers =)

Another neighbor, the Taxiers, brought us a homemade lemon meringue pie. I wish I could say I took a picture of it- but Vicki is a superb pie-maker and it was cut and eaten before we even thought of getting the camera. Our other neighbors have stopped to chat or waved as they drive by.  Janne and Adam moved out of our house and into their own house a few days before we got home- but they made sure we had some essential groceries like milk, cereal and a frozen pizza. 

I am reminded of Proverbs 17:17 which says, "A friend loves at all times." We have certainly felt loved and taken care of by our friends and family. And there really is no place like home!

The very next day FedEx delivered the 25 (yeah, we left with 13...) boxes we had shipped and it was back to the real world.