Sad To Be Home, For Once

Usually my "back home" posts are ones I look forward to - full of relief and routine. My last post was written ~12 days ago, and if you've been following along, you know ALASKA happened.And Alaska is something that resonated in me so deeply, I am not sure how to tell you about it yet - though I did keep a travel journal which is half-way done, so I do have some notes on it all...But that's not what I want to write about this morning.Like every August, our trip ended with us coming home to a dog full of fleas. Flea season gets us every time, usually August/September, when the weather heats up and Carter Cash spends a lot of time outside. Luckily, we have our new vinyl floors downstairs and my sister cleaned our apartment while we traveled, so I wasn't freaking the shit out after noticing fleas all over Carter's butt right after the taxi cab dropped us off.In less than 20min of being home, Carter and I went into the tub for a full-on-offensive-attack bath.Then we biked him to the grocery store to restock our fridge. Henry suggested I make chili for dinner, so as he unpacked the groceries, I chopped veggies and browned turkey meat. We ate on the couch while watching a National Geographic show about Alaska (I know, I'm obsessed).Later on we unpacked suitcases, vacuumed the dog's crate, washed dishes and took hot showers. We were asleep by 10pm.I woke up this morning at 7am, with the blazing SoCal sun beating through the sliding door.Our dirty vacation clothes were packed already sorted into whites / darks / colors (because we're crazy like that) so I was able to run a few loads of laundry this morning as I cooked breakfast. I did a hiit workout and ran the dog 2m. I drank water, hung up jackets, put away travel sized toiletries, and folded laundry. I tried to not feel overwhelmed by the piles of stuff left from the frenzied day before we left or panic about having to go back to work tomorrow.I'm reading Four Seasons in Rome by Anthony Doerr and sinking into his descriptions of being a new father in a new city - his detailed descriptions of Rome echoing the fleeting grasp I have on Alaska. "As it always is with leaving home, it is the details that displace us. The windows have no screens. Sires, passing in the street, are a note lower. So is the dial tone on our red plastic telephone..."Usually the details of home settle me back in - my travel is work or family related - and I crave my own boundaries and comforts. But this time I am sad. Our trip was packed, full of amazing happenings and really great family time, but it went so fast - I can't believe it's already over.H went to play roller-hockey and when he returns, he'll be transferring and backing-up the almost 1000 photos and videos we shot during the 11 days away. I hope spending some time with those captures helps this feeling of loss, and that writing about it in my travel journal and here for you keeps the deep satisfaction of my experience right where I can hold it.