We were both a little hesitant about heading back to Texas during August, the hottest month of the year. But, the worst part of this visit back wasn't the daily 100 degree heat, as I thought it might be, but it was all the driving we had to do. Of course this was exacerbated by the fact that we stayed like 40 miles away from where all of our family and friends were, but still, everywhere we went included like 20 minutes in a car. In the week I was there, we drove 869 miles, which is more than the distance from Dallas to Albuquerque. I definitely got sick of driving, but even with all that driving, the large Texas sky wasn't as smoggy as I expected, which was nice.

The food was a highlight of our visit. It's been very nice to have a lot of very good food that many people have paid for. Unfortunately, the food is all so heavy and all the meals have been so filling, so I'm glad to be back in our own home again so that we can make healthy-sized meals.

My complaints don't overshadow how nice it's been to spend time here - though it was a very long visit for me (7 days) - but they underscore why I'm eager to get back to Seattle. Now that we're back, I'm looking forward to relaxing and getting some exercise.