• My family moved from South Carolina to Madrid.
• We recently visited the US, and my 12 and 9-year-olds were surprised at how different life is.
• The amount of ice in drinks and people in mobility scooters surprised them.

Just over a year ago, my family moved from South Carolina to Madrid. There are so many cultural differences between the two countries, but what has surprised us most is what our kids notice when we return to visit the US.

Things that used to be normal to us feel foreign to our 12- and 9-year-old boys, making them point out and bring attention to these things when they see them.

One of the best things about living abroad for our family is an introduction to a new culture and a new way of doing things. We always remind our boys that there is not one correct way to do something and to embrace the beauty that comes with different cultures. For our elementary-aged kids, sometimes differences may be a reason to tease or make fun of others doing something differently. Instead, we've learned to celebrate them.

They were surprised at how much ice people put in drinks

When we ate out with family in a restaurant in the US on this trip, our boys couldn't believe the portion sizes on the plates served to us. When we ordered a cheesesteak and fries, it filled the entire plate and was enough food for both of my boys to share. Having lived now in the tapas culture, our family prefers small plates or appetizers to share over large, huge meals. The portion sizes are much smaller in Spain, and the main meal of the day for us now is actually a late afternoon lunch instead of a big evening dinner meal.

When looking for salad dressing for my sister, our boys were shocked by the number of salad dressing options at the Wegmans grocery store. They could not believe that there were 50 varieties. They were equally shocked at the types of lettuce available. When grocery shopping in Spain, it is not uncommon to find one, maybe two, types of salad dressing available for sale. Spain is focused on healthy, additive-free foods, so it's more common for us to eat a salad with a splash of olive oil instead of a spoonful of Ranch dressing.

Another surprising, although small, difference that our boys noticed in the US compared to Spain was people's dependency on ice in their drinks. Our American family always reached into the freezer, adding cold ice to their huge Yeti and Stanley cups. In Spain, water is not commonly served at restaurants unless you ask for it, and when it is served, it is given room temperature. Additionally, the drinking water culture in Spain is much different, with no one walking around with water bottles to have nonstop access to water. Our boys have started to drink their drinks without ice while living in Spain, so they thought it was funny that our family needed ice for their drinks so frequently.

They weren't expecting people in mobility scooters

When we walked the aisles of a local supermarket in the US this fall, our boys couldn't help notice the number of mobility scooters that the older people used to get around. In fact, they couldn't remember the last time that they saw one of these scooters in Spain.

One of the biggest reverse culture shocks for our youngest son happened during a trip to Target. As we walked into the store, he noticed several people shopping in their pajama pants. Although it was a cold fall day, he still couldn't believe that they would leave their house in their clothes meant for sleeping. In Spain, when we leave our home for pretty much any reason, we are more formally dressed. It is very common to ensure you and your family in Spain are put together in appearance, even when grocery shopping or running errands.

In fact, one of the major adjustments for me was only wearing yoga pants in public after an actual workout. I now have learned to favor dressing up and focusing more on my appearance.