It's been a little over 10 days since our return from Nice. We traveled for 2 days and were there for 9 – the longest vacation I can remember having. Even though I was just getting the hang of things when it was time to go, I was missing Sophie and the conveniences of home. But now that I'm here, there's so much there that I'm missing.

For one thing, I noticed snowflakes swirling around the back door this morning as I was tossing out Tonka and Jackson (the expressive little darlings have been demonstrating the phrase "pissed off" in the house). The weather in Nice was always around 60° F – cool but comfortable (our roadtrip through the Italian Alps to Wittelsheim France is another story for another post). Shortly after our return, I realized just how beneficial the Mediterranean climate was for my arthritic joints... a realization that makes it that much harder to live in Central Illinois.