My Hardcore Hubby

Drew has been over in Afghanistan for a little over a week now & this is the first picture I've seen of him in all his gear.  Doesn't he look real tough with two guns!?  This was taken before he left the States.  He has to carry both guns with him if he ever goes "outside the wire" or off base.  If he is on base then he just carries the one strapped to his leg.  It's strange to see my husband packing heat!

And he's off...

Drew left for Afghanistan tonight.  I already miss him a whole bunch, but I'm so proud of him, know that the Lord is taking care of him, and hope that the time will just fly by.  It was really nice that today was St. Patrick's Day (Happy St. Patty's Day!) so that I could have some distraction to take my mind off of Drew leaving.  My friend Erin had a wonderful Irish party, complete with delicious corned beef & soothing Irish coffee for this rainy Saturday.  It was wonderful to be around a bunch of wonderful people & I'm so thankful for that!

Now our 210 day countdown begins until Drew returns.  We are both kind of glad that he's on his way over to Afghanistan now so that he begun his deployment and now we can just focus on him getting back. It was hard having him gone in training for so long and knowing that it was just the first step on his journey.  We will miss not being able to talk on the phone and text each other, but we are both hoping that he will have good internet access & that we can skype occasionally.  Thank you all for your love & support.  It means the world to us.  We are so lucky to have each other, and to have such supportive family and friends.

Oregon Trail

I blazed my own Oregon Trail this past week when I went to visit my family in Sandy, Oregon.  It was a wonderful trip & I was even treated to a snow storm!  It's not everyday that I get to be outside when it is actually snowing & wake up to a white winter wonderland.  It was great!

It was wonderful to see all of my Mom's side of the family.  We made great meals together, played lots of games, chatted up a storm & just enjoyed being together.  I even got to meet my three new second cousins - they're too cute!  Also, I got to see my darling friend, Kara, who just moved back up to Portland.  I was so lucky that it worked out to see her & I got to explore the awesome city of Portland a little bit on my own.  It was a fantastic trip. Here is my own Oregon Trail in pictures:

A beautiful, sunny day in Portland

I got to watch the bridge open up - me & a group of 4th graders

Annabelle & Levi with their grandpa

Cousins!

The whole clan

Silly Mark

Little Avery

Avery & her papa

Nighttime snowfall

Morning winter wonderland

My sweet Aunt Gay

Mementos

I've been cleaning out my mom's desk this past week and have found all sorts of wonderful mementos that she kept and treasured.  She kept practically every Valentine's Day card and Mother's Day card that my brother & I ever gave her, special thank you notes from past students, parents, and friends.  She also kept all kinds of encouraging cards, poems, sayings, and Bible verses that she had just jotted down.  I found quite a few touching ones that I kept to lift me up when I need some cheer and to remind me of my mom.  Here is one that we all need to be reminded of now and then:

So many people need you in so many ways, and no one 

can take your place. No one else can play your role.  No one 

else knows your lines. You are uniquely created to fit in the 

special you-shaped space God formed in this world. Never 

wonder if you are needed. The fact that you are here proves it! 

Looking through my mom's desk also got me thinking about how much what we keep says about us.  Why don't more of us collect encouraging notes, jot down Bible verses, hold onto special cards from our friends?  Instead we often collect meaningless things, try to hold onto material objects just to have more.  I hope that someday when my desk is emptied that what I have in there will be an encouragement to those cleaning it out, that it will be a testament to how I lived my life and what I held important.  

On that note, I have the most wonderful husband in the world & will most definitely keep the little card that he sent me today along with these beautiful flowers.