Enjoying the Journey

CJ returns home tonight. He has been in Canada since last Friday. I am so excited to see him. Every time he goes on a missions trip I go through a mix of emotions. At the beginning of the week, I am totally stoked. I am so excited for him to be there. I know in my heart that God has neat things prepared for him and for those he will minister to. In the middle of the week, I begin to feel tired and ready for him to come home. Yet, I wouldn't want him to come home any earlier then when he is supposed to. By the end of the week, I am going through a list in my head of why exactly I am so thankful for him. Usually I will find myself saying one of my quick thank you prayers to God. You know the kind... "Thank you God for my husband. I love him so much." Except I probably say that prayer several times during the day.

You know that saying, "absence makes the heart grow fonder?" Well, I completely agree with it. The day before CJ left I was thinking, "okay, I have a whole week ahead of me, what am I going to accomplish, while he is gone??!!! Yahoo." By the end of the week, I am thinking, "who cares what I did or didn't accomplish, I can't wait to see him!!! I am always reminded of how much I love him by the end of the trip!

I did have a "list" this week of things I wanted to accomplish. It included things like, pay bills, clean apartment, finish application, buy all the supplies and make all our craft christmas presents with the kids, accomplish most of our christmas shopping, write our christmas letter, decorate the apartment, and fill, address, and stamp all the christmas cards. That was just some of my list... pretty ambitious, eh?

Well, I must have been in la la land, because I seemed to have forgotten that I would have two very busy boys all by myself.

I did accomplish some things. I paid the bills.... today. I am cleaning the apartment....today. I did buy all the supplies for the christmas crafts.... which are sitting in a nice and neat little box waiting. I put up the nativity set.... but the rest of the decorations are sitting in my closet. I addressed and filled out christmas cards from letters A to F in my address book.... and just bought the stamps... today. Forget the christmas letter! I did get some shopping done....mostly online, after the kids went to bed or during naptime.

Well I didn't manage to complete my list. But I did spend lots of time with the kids. We worked on our Daddy book every day. Took a quick trip to the other end of the state and visited with friends from back home. They did eat everyday and had baths regularly. We made it to church last night. And had lesson time a couple times this week. We even made some ornaments for the grandparents and sent them in the mail.

We made it. That is all that matters.

We are all looking forward to seeing CJ tonight. EJ is going to make a Welcome Home Daddy, sign. And we will stand at that airport waiting for him to walk through the gates! It will be a great homecoming.

I look forward to snuggling with him and listening to all of his stories!

Welcome Home CJ! I love you!