Just lying around.

This is us.

Lying on the bathroom floor on a stack of towels while the kids take a bath. As we relaxed on the floor, I thought back to my childhood to see if I could remember a time when my parents laid on the bathroom floor together. No such memory came to mind. I asked Andrew, and he couldn't remember his parents doing that either. I said that our kids will have plenty of memories of me lying on the bathroom floor, because I seem to do it alot.

In fact, I lie on any floor alot. (In my house - not in public.) I am a floor lier. If the kids are coloring, I will lie on the floor to watch them. If I have been standing for a long time cleaning or whatnot, I lie on the floor to take a break (rather than sitting on the couch). Maybe it's because I'm lazy. Maybe it's because we have a ridiculously large bathroom, and nice little patches of carpet in the house that just cry out to be put to good use.

It's really nice to have someone to lie on the floor with me. I am having a bit of anxiety today as I begin mentally preparing for Andrew to start traveling again. I'm not sure I remember how to do this alone. I'm feeling that suffocating desperation I used to feel when we were long-distance daters and we were about to say our good-byes for a few more weeks.

So when he leaves this week, you know where you can find me. Lying on the floor, wondering what to do without him.

{This post is giving me chest pain from my grammatical uncertainty. Is it lying, or laying? Do I lie on the floor, or lay on the floor? My grammar class seems so long ago. Please don't mock me for my errors. Yes, I did major in English, but that seems like another lifetime now.}

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Family pics

My dear friend Melanie took our family pictures last week and she already has some up on her photography website. Go look at them. We are the first family one, there is one under the portrait section of Leighton (did I really have a hand in making that beautiful boy?), and then a few of Andrew and me in the couples section. Can I confess that I think we look amazing? I have been staring at our little family for several minutes and for some reason these pictures make me want to cry. Is that really us? For real? Thank you, Melanie. You are the best.

Wedded bliss

I put a little bit of pressure on myself to write a stellar blog post about Andrew coming home. Seeing as how it was the greatest event in my life so far (besides marrying him), I wanted a blog post to match. But after having him back for 11 days now and having that long to think about what I want to remember about this time, I decided to lose the self-imposed pressure. Because all I really want to remember about these weeks is how incredibly happy I am.

















When we got married, I remember wishing we had taken a picture of our rings together. You know how people do that - their rings stuck in the bouquet or some other staged photo like that. But a few days after Andrew got home, I got my own, unstaged wedding ring picture. We were in the kitchen doing the dishes together, and the kids were playing nearby. I glanced up on the window sill and saw our rings sitting there together and got the most overwhelming feeling of contentment. We belong together. I am so happy to have my Andrew home.

Homeward Bound

Andrew is on his way home. He started his 32-hour flight this morning and will be returning sometime tomorrow evening.

As I spend my last evening alone, I find myself reflecting on the past 128 days, I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude. As I said our family prayer this evening, I got teary-eyed as I thanked the Lord for this experience and his protection over all 4 of us.

There were many hard moments, and I did many hard things that I'm proud of. I potty-trained Eva. I flew alone with both kids 6 times, once where we had the stomach flu. I went through airport security alone with both kids 6 times (which deserves its own mention, don't you think?). Most recently, I dealt with all things financial when my wallet was lost. (Thankfully, it is now restored to me, along with my peace of mind.) I mowed the lawn. I nursed sick kids back to health several times. I registered the van and the motorcycle. I went grocery shopping at least 30 times with both kids. I went to church 20 times, and every time I left that 3-hour block I felt like I had just won a major battle (although many times I also felt defeated). I fulfilled my calling in Young Women's. I finished reading the Book of Mormon. I lost 16 pounds. I kept our beautiful children fed, safe, and happy, for the most part.

128 nights in a row, I prayed for our protection. And 128 nights in a row, we were blessed with exactly what I asked for. Now, on the eve of our reunion, I feel grateful and triumphant. I have come to the end of the hardest time of my life so far, and tomorrow it will all be over.

Thanks be to God - we did it.