As Our Year in Huntsville Comes to an End...

This time last year, I honestly did not know what to expect. Thinking about Stephen being gone for an entire year was just too much to handle; it weighed heavy on my heart and my mind. Besides knowing that we would miss each other like crazy, what upset me most was the fact that he was going to miss an entire year of Eli and Bella's lives. A year. That is a long time. At their young age, how would this impact them and their relationship with Daddy?

Would Bella even know Stephen when she saw him? How was Stephen going to feel not being able to see us and the precious things Eli and Bella do each day? He, after all, wouldn't have any family there. How was I going to manage all that needed to be done for Eli and Bella? Would the house ever get cleaned? How would I bring myself to kill a bug when one appeared in the house? Thinking back, this seems like this was just happening a couple of months ago, but it was actually one year ago! I could not imagine what this year would have been like without Mom and Dad.


They are awesome parents and grandparents, everyone knows that, but they both really stepped up, went above and beyond. If I needed them, they were there. If I didn't ask, they were still there, doing what they could to enrich Eli and Bella's lives and make mine a little easier. I can't tell you how many times Mom did my laundry or my dishes, took the kids to playground, played with them in the floor, took off work to watch one so I could take the other to the doctor, rocked Bella, read to Eli, fed them dinner... .
Dad gave numerous baths, got in workouts throwing Eli in the air, bounced Bella on his shoulder I don't know how many times trying to get her to go to sleep, took Eli to Lowe's to build things, read books, made snacks for Eli, went to all of Eli's t-ball practices/games, ... and the list goes on.

I am so grateful to them for all they have done for us this year! Eli and Bella have grown close to them, and I know they will miss Grandma and Grandpa just as much as Grandma and Grandpa are going to miss them.

Aunt Kathy has also been a great help this year, meeting us during her lunch hour (or two) to eat lunch with us, or just coming over to play with Eli and Bella.


Just having someone here for just a little while so I could get dinner started, check the mail on a cold day, or even pee without an audience was a great help. I remember when Stephen first left, Aunt Kathy told me, "This year will go by fast. It won't feel like it, but when you get to the end, you'll think it has gone by fast." What? That made no sense at all, but now that I am "at the end," I know exactly what she was talking about.

When Uncle James was here, and not traveling the world or in T-town, he would play with Eli and Bella and spend time with them. That was always nice to see. James plays with Eli the way Stephen does. Between Dad and James, I'm so grateful Eli and Bella had such positive male role models in their lives during Stephen's absence. I guess you could say they had a second mom in Mom. Heck, they both call her Mom.


Being here this year also allowed us to spend time, or more time, with those we would not have normally been able to see. We were able to see Momma every Sunday,

visit with Mamaw and Papaw a lot more than ever before,



play with cousins,




attend birthday parties,


reconnect with family we had not seen in a long time (Eli and Bella met Jeni and family for the first time.),


eat at Rosie's :-) ,



hang out with old friends,




and make new ones.


Yes, Stephen and I missed each other like crazy, and he missed Eli and Bella so much, but having the webcam and knowing we would be able to see each other a few times gave us something to look forward to. Eli and Bella loved Stephen as if he had never been away. I took tons of pics and videos, and those helped Stephen get a little taste of home, and it turns out he made some great friends there. Somehow I did manage to do all that needed to be done. At times, a lot of times, the house didn't get cleaned, but that was okay. It turns out that I was able to kill bugs. I wouldn't want to do this over again, but I thank God for getting us through this year.

Here's to the next chapter of our lives and our whole family being together! Watch out TX, here we come. I wonder if this means Stephen will have to be a Cowboys fan now?