Audrey, Claire, and I are spending some super-quality time together as Matt has several weeks of training that takes him away from us. Yes, another TDY. We've gotten a few days under our belt, and the girls and I are getting in to a new routine. We miss Daddy tremendously, but we are praying for him each day and praying that the time moves quickly.
Even though we have gone through these separations before, they never get any easier. In fact, in some ways, I had a much harder time saying goodbye to Matt as he left this time. I think several factors contribute to this - we have a young infant, Audrey is extremely attached to Matt (missing him when he has long days at work), and I know that when Matt returns, we only have weeks until he has to leave for his deployment. So, I've carved out extra time to spend with God in the morning. I am NOT a morning person, but I have been waking up about a half hour prior to Audrey's wake up time just so I can pray, read my bible, journal, and have a cup of coffee before the day really takes off. This simple act has been revitalizing for me. The peace and solace I gain from that time with God is priceless. I know that God is walking with me through this entire separation, each minute of each day, and THAT is my comfort.
I have actually shed many tears for Audrey. For the first few days Matt was gone, she really had a hard time. When he called, she would cry. When he skyped, she would cry. She even woke up crying one night because she realized Daddy wouldn't be there in the morning to get up with her. Thankfully, each day is less traumatic. We talk about Daddy, we have an M&M jar for Daddy, we pray for Daddy. She'll tell me stories that she is making up to tell Daddy when he gets home. While she didn't want to talk to him on the phone when he called today, Audrey also did not cry or get upset while I was talking to him. I know that she'll soon be ready to talk to him on skype and on the phone.
Thankfully, Claire is still too young to realize what is going on. I do show her her Daddy Doll (see www.hugahero.com if you have no idea what a Daddy Doll is - they're great for military families) and play his recorded message for her. She'll sit and look at the computer when Matt skypes, and she actually started smiling when she heard him talking to her the other day! She has also started sleeping long stretches at night - usually 10-12 hours at a time! That means I am getting so much more sleep! This is another huge blessing for me, and it couldn't have come at a better time!
We're now looking forward to a visit from my parents, a trip to visit my brother and sister-in-law, and a visit from one of my best friends! Here's praying that the time speeds by AND we have some great girl time in our house...
5 comments:
Praying for all of you! I can't imagine how hard this would be. Sounds like you have some fun visits to look forward to!
I love the blog! and all of the pictures. The girls are beautiful!
What precious granddaughters we have!
I can't wait to participate in "girl time!"
Thank you so much for your honesty... carving out time for the Lord is so difficult when the routines change!
We will be praying for all of you, and especially Audrey as the TDYs roll right into another deployment.
And you seriously have 2 of the most beautiful girls I've ever seen!!
Erika reading your blog brought tears to my eyes recalling a time not so long ago we were going through the same thing. It was so hard for Bill when Kaity didn't want to talk to him, but when they saw each other again she couldn't leave him alone. What you said about leaving for this TDY being so hard even though it is just a little one really rang true as well. It is so hard to see it as that when each passing day and passing TDY brings you closer to that dreaded day of a much longer separation. While Bill was gone I did the same thing as you. I woke up about 45 minutes to an hour earlier than Ryan would wake up to have some much needed time with the Lord. Even though I really wanted to be sleeping and to hit snooze, the difference that time made in my day was so much more valuable than the extra sleep would have been. On the days where I skipped this time, I felt rushed, on edge, less patient, and filled with a little less of the Spirit than I wanted to be. Keep up the good work my friend. I love you and miss you a ton! Kiss those beautiful girls for us.
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