Yes the countdown continues! ! ! We are down to just about 50 days, the funny part is that for the next 20+ days HE ISN'T HOME! Yes although they are deploying soon, the unit is in the final training prior to leaving for deployment. So we are spending the month of June apart, but hey we have all of July to spend together with the kids & family so that's what matters.
As I look back I would rather go back to 2007 when Sean called me on Monday and said "honey I am deploying to Iraq - and I am leaving next Monday"! Everything was so rushed I didn't have time to think about what was happening, it just happened. Once he was gone I had time to sit and think about it. This time, having a year to prepare, the anticipation is horrible! Last deployment it took a few months before I stared crying at sad movies & commercials. This time he is not even gone and it has already started (not that I would admit that to him though LOL).
So for the month of June - I will keep busy with the kids and work until he comes home.
In July - we will celebrate with friends and family members for the 4th of July with picnics, BBQ's and of course we will give Sean one heck of a going away party!
Then when the time comes, the kids and I will take Sean to the airport, put on as strong a front as we can, try our best to hold back the tears and with a heavy heart put him on a plane to begin his time away from home. We will watch his plane taxi down the runway and take off, all the time hoping and praying that this is not the last time we see him.
(On a side note I have to tell you, I attended Sean's cousins wedding a few weeks back and learned something that the lovely bride does; when she ends a phone call or is seeing someone off after a visit - she does not say goodbye! She chooses other words; see you soon, until next time, see you later etc. I think that, especially during the time that Sean is away, this is something I am going to adapt. Goodbye is so final, I don't want to leave every conversation with him with a finality.)
So for now, I will look at the empty pillow in my bed and know soon that he will be home. A small relief because I know that it is only for a short time and then he is going for a year. I will make the best of every phone call and every minute we share together. I will cry at sad movies and commercials, and I will love him more & more everyday.
So, until next time....
