Fiery Trial

I posted today on the Wives of Faith blog.  Please click HERE and check it out.  May it encourage you during whatever trial you may be going through. 

Has It Really Been A Year?

So I was looking through my facebook timeline the other night and something caught my eye....my status from Oct.13, 2011 (almost one year ago)

Here is my status:

 

"October 13, 2011 via mobile

Let's do this!!! The caravan of army wives is on a mission so don't get in our way ;)"

 

 

I posted that status at the very wee hours of that morning...one year ago.  As I sit here this morning reflecting on that morning I have such a huge smile on my face.  Our 3rd deployment was finally coming to an end.  15 months of worry, fear, anxiety, depression, sadness, loneliness...it was all coming to an end and my handsome husband would finally, by the grace of God, be back in my arms.  What a glorious day! 

 

That morning was much like this morning...cold and rainy.  I met up with 2 other army wives for a time of prayer before we got on the road to begin our journey to Camp Shelby. All 3 of us were beaming with excitement and anticipation.  There is no other feeling quite like the feeling you get as you anticipate the reunion with your soldier.  I remember my phone going off constantly with texts, phone calls and fb notifications from all of our sweet friends sharing in our excitement.  I remember my precious friend Melissa updating the blog for me as she has done for our previous homecoming.  You can read that post HERE. 

 

Fast forward several (long) hours of waiting and it was FINALLY time to get my man!  I was sitting at dinner with 2 friends when my phone (that never left my side) rang...it was J!  He was calling to let me know his plane landed and he would see me in less than 2 hours....I wish we would've had a camera on us....rushing back to the hotel getting "gussied up" for our men.  Making all the phone calls letting everyone know details about where to meet to see their soldiers (since we were the FRG officers)  How we accomplished all we did and still make it on time was a miracle in of itself...like I said I wish we had cameras on us for it was surely a great laugh.  You can read my quick update about that night HERE and also the more detailed version HERE  

Here is a picture of my hero and me just after he stepped off the bus! 

Here is our picture from the awards dinner that was held a couple nights later:

I still can not believe it has already been a year....a year since our 3rd deployment finally ended.  Also can not believe that we already know of the 4th deployment...but I can not let myself think about that right now.  Instead I am just going to enjoy the fact that my soldier is home right now :)

Fall Break

We are on fall break this week and we are all loving it!!! 

The weather is so nice and cool...we actually had to turn our heater on in the evening - I can not ever remember doing that this early in October.  Ah, but by the end of the week it will be back in the 80s.  Only in the south can you run heat and a/c in the same week ;)

We have been so busy lately with school, me subbing, Jack in travel baseball, and Madeline in gymnastics that I have not had time to do anything else...not even blog.  I have wanted to blog, but just have not had the time.  So I plan to try and "catch up" some this week before our schedules have us running like crazy again :)

I am enjoying the slow mornings...kids sleeping in...no rushing...just a little time for me to have a quiet time and try to process some things that are going on in our lives.  I am enjoying spending time with the kids.


To start the week off, J received free tickets to the Nascar race through a wonderful organization, IAVA.  He took Jack and our friends Kenny and Charlie.  They had a blast!  I am so glad these 2 daddy's were able to have some fun memory-making time with their sons.
Here are the guys before they left for the races:

Jack and Charlie (are they not the cutest boys ever!):

Jack at the race.  J said their seats were great and they could see the whole track!:

Madeline has been battling a virus and Monday was the first day she was able to get out of the bed.  I was so glad she was finally feeling better.  We had lunch on the deck and enjoyed playing around outside for a bit.

Today, we plan to pack a picnic and head to the park.  Have I mentioned how much I am enjoying fall break???

Hope everyone is having a wonderful week!