Two Months and Still Going

   Well, I changed my mind, I was going to continue blogging through reintergration and then reality happened and I decided to take some time for me and mine and walk through the transtion without sharing it with the world. We are finally at a place that we have a new routine for our family with work and school. The boys just got out of school for the summer and we kicked the summer off with a family visit to Branson to celebrate summer and my mother-in-laws birthday. So thankful to have my hubby back and helping out with things around the house and also to just have an adult to hang out with again. Hope everyone else is enjoying their summer.

He's Home!

   My hubby is home! He got home this past Friday. The welcome home ceremony was full of so many emotions, of course excitement that he was home, anticipation to get our reunion started, and also honor and grief for the soldiers that were lost this deployment and their family and friends. My hubby's Mom and her boyfriend came, along with Adam's best friend, Steven, and his wife, and then of course the boys and I. This was the first welcome home ceremony that the boys came too. They did really good. Nathan's smile was from ear to ear when he first saw Daddy and Jacob just kept taking pictures with his phone that he uses to play games. We are so glad to be back together as a family and are taking the reintegration transition one step at a time.

Spring Break and Reunion is Coming!

   I took some time off blogging over Spring Break. I needed a break. My sister's family came to visit from Pa for Spring Break. It was a lot of fun. Unfortunately, it rained almost the whole time that her family was here but we stayed busy with inside activities and even made it to the zoo on the one dry day they were here. It's nice to be able to spend time with family.
They left early Friday morning and about the same time I found out that my hubby is back in the USA! Can't tell you how excited we are as a family that this time is finally here! Only a few more days and we will be a complete family again!

Whew what a week!

   It's been a crazy, busy, and productive week. I'm also anxiously awaiting for my sister and her family to arrive tomorrow evening to officially kick off Spring Break with them. Then my hubby is coming this direction soon so I've got lots to anticipate over the next couple of weeks. This evening the boys had their first t ball practice for this spring. I'm so glad that they are on the same team this year, less practices and games for Mommy. Jacob really enjoyed getting out there and playing with the older boys too. Last year it was hit or miss for him so I'm hoping he continues to enjoy it this year. He's already asking to play soccer and football. I told him Mommy is too busy, one thing at a time. Besides, Daddy will be home soon so then he gets to take it up with him. I'm going off Mommy duty for a little bit when Daddy comes home to let him experience a bit of what our lives has been like while he's been gone the last year.

Homecoming and Grieve

   This really isn't my post to write but I feel it needs to be said and I'm not one to keep my mouth shut when I think something needs to be said so here it goes... I'm just as excited as all the other wives and family members that our service members are coming home, especially my hubby! It's been quite the year. However, there is a whole different reality that this deployment has brought with it that the other two I've experienced haven't and that's the loss of life that our guys and us family members have experienced. I've been seeing all these homecoming pictures online. Yes, they make me smile, cry, or just think happy thoughts, depending on the day and mood. It also makes me anxious and excited for my own homecoming with my hubby soon. The boys and I are definitely counting down the days.
   However, the other side of the story is that at these homecomings there are 14 pictures of the men and woman that we lost overseas this deployment. Yes, they deserve this honor, and so do the families that have to find a way to go on with their lives. It just makes me sad for them because I can't even imagine the process that they are facing and I know words will never be adequate but my thoughts and prayers go out to the widows and family members that are only beginning this journey.

The Picture Perfect Vs Reality

   I just got done watching The Bachelor. Yes, I enjoy this show and The Baccalaureate but the truth is most of those relationships don't end up together because it simply isn't reality. They set you up on amazing and once in a life time opportunity dates and then they come back to the mundane of life and have to figure out how their relationship is going to work and stay strong. Plus, they go through some grueling media publicity that drags them through the mud. It can make them stronger but the going is initially hard.
   The reality of my life is being a Mom, work, being a wife, trying to maintain and grow in my relationship with God. The daily things matter because they are what end up shaping the journey.

Spring Forward

   Loosing an hour of sleep is not one of my favorite things. I set my alarm clock this morning to make sure I got up for church but I turned it off and barely woke up in time to rush out the door to make it to church. The boys got breakfast bars and I got coffee at church. We got to church and I realized Jacob had his buttons done wrong, I corrected Nathan's before we left for church. Nathan also wore his new Sunday shoes I bought him but forgot to wear socks with them. And then when I went back out to my car after dropping Jacob off at Sunday school and to get Nathan settled into his class one of my doors was wide open. Whew, we made it, with more caffeine for Mommy throughout the day, but we did make it. Hope everyone else had a good day.