So, it's really cool for the kids to get to grow up in all these different places, go to the pyramids, Ephesus and all of that. And, I'm pretty sure they don't appreciate it at all. Sometimes I overhear them playing games with other kids (also in the Foreign Service) and the kids are like "Let's pretend we're going on a trip!" "First we'll have to stop in Munich!" "Let's pretend we're watching a movie on the plane." "Are we going to Istanbul?" "No, Paris!" "Not Paris! I want to go to Barcelona instead."So, that's just how they play and they aren't really aware that some kids don't move all over the world 8 times before they turn 10.
People always say how awesome it is that the kids get to have this experience of living overseas, but when we're not travelling it's kinda ordinary kid stuff with words like Turan Gunes and Cagdas thrown in the mix. There's gymnastics, play doh, piano, sleepovers, bike riding and playing Qwirkle. I'm pretty sure what it comes down to is the small stuff. A frequent walk we take is to a local grocery store, today I paid attention and took pictures. Sometimes when we see 'nature' it's in the form of a thistle growing next to a barbed wire fence and a field of trash.
They are used to walking on sidewalks made of dirt, hanging out around grafftti, feral dogs and litter. I don't know why I like that they're used to this but I do, it's not all manicured lawns and maybe this is good to know if you ever volunteer to work at a soup kitchen or makes for less squeamish ness if your college roommate is a herion junkie. They're used to hearing other languages spoken around them and sometimes making friends through mostly hand motions.
Cort's being exposed to all kinds of new things...for instance, this lamp post has exposed wiring .
