I Can See the Finish Line

For those of you who don't know (I don't know how you couldn't...maybe you're new around here, or maybe you haven't been paying attention cause I'm pretty sure I've whined about this a LOT...) but for the last five months my husband has been in South Carolina (Fort Jackson, to be exact), he joined the Army National Guard here in Washington, and Fort Jackson is where he was sent for his Basic Training and also his Advanced Individual Training. So thats where he's been.

While he's been gone, he's missed:

*our oldest daughter's 7th birthday
*his parents' anniversary
*Valentine's Day
*me dislocating my knee
*my birthday
*St. Patrick's Day
*his brother in laws birthday
*Easter
*the Spring Fair
*the birth of his fourth child
*Mother's Day
*two of his niece's birthdays
*our son's 2nd birthday
*his sister's birthday
*his daughter's four lost teeth
*Memorial Day
*his other sister's birthday
*his sister and niece graduating
*our daughter finishing first grade
*143 dinners together

And of course, countless other things. Family BBQ's and birthday parties and thousands of dirty diapers.

And then he gets in on his dad's birthday, and gets home just in time for Father's Day and his own birthday. Do you think he planned it that way?!

I cannot even begin to tell you how excited I am for him to get home! Although I hope I never EVER have to do this again, I really have learned some valuable lessons that I hope I never forget. Here's another list (yippee!) about what I've learned:

*most of the stuff that we nitpick at, really doesn't matter.
*you never know what you have until you don't have it anymore.
*writing letters can be extremely romantic.
*Being a single parent is so incredibly hard.
*I never want to have another baby/newborn by myself again.
*Absence really does make the heart grow fonder.
*You know when you see some couple's that seem really hesitant to show any affection in public? I NEVER want to be that way again. If my husband's sitting next to me, I will hold his hand, I will let him put his arm around me. It is not "weak" or whatever to show people how much I love my husband.

*I never want to fight with my husband again, it just seems silly.
*If someone's snapping a picture of me and my husband, I will grab him and hug him tight!
*I can do hard things. Maybe I didn't accomplish everything I wanted to, maybe I even made a big mess of things, or did the bare minimum; BUT, I didn't let my whole world fall apart, I didn't cause any calamities. I got through this, and now I know that I can do one of the hardest things I could imagine.
*its okay to not be perfect and its okay to accept help.
*sometimes its hard not to roll your eyes when someone's complaining about something you feel is...um, petty. But then you have to realize that everyone's problems are hard and we all complain and its okay.
*I don't care nearly so much about worrying over other people and stupid little things, I'm trying much harder to see the big picture.
*having good friends and family can make a WORLD of difference in your life.

Okay, I'm sure I've learned LOTS more things, but I'm also sure you're sick of reading about it. :)

All I can say is, I love my husband and I'm so glad he'll be home in under 48 hours! Hallelujah, its almost over!!