Oops. This post got started and left in draft form, so you're just now getting it off the press.
~written August 15, 2014~
My goodness. What a glorious, mixed-emotions, why-in-the-world-isn't-my-husband-here, can-we-take-Grandma-home-with-us-please-mommy last two weeks it has been. Every penny of that plane ticket was well-spent and has paid in rich dividends in family relationships and a strengthened marital relationship. Seriously, I got home yesterday and Blake and I have practically been transported back to the newlywed stage, which is completely delightful.
Me saying that sounds a little funny (and perhaps borderline TMI) because as of Monday, we've been married for 3 years. I think some of the 60-years-married folks out there might still consider us newlyweds, but whatever.
Because I'm feeling scatter-brained, out come the plus sign bullets:
+Happy Anniversary to us! Let's give a shout out to the saintly husband who let me buy a plane ticket that was going to get me home the day after our anniversary (but consequently save us 200ish dollars). Being apart on our anniversary actually had some benefits. I'm reminded of the 17-day internship Blake took in Mexico while we were dating. Gushy, desperate lovey-dovey texts galore. This time, we also had the benefit of being able to call and skype at will. Absence makes the heart grow fonder. :) We're actually going to have a belated anniversary day this weekend so we can celebrate our marriage together. Because marriage--even the normal, growing, sometimes--really-challenging, kind--is worth celebrating.
+Eliza slept in a portacrib for 2 weeks and apparently got used to sleeping back in a cage because she just fell out of her bed during her nap. Oops. Hopefully that'll be a one-time deal and her subconscious edge-of-the-bed boundaries are now revitalized and up and running.
+North and South. My goodness, what a gripping chick flick. I've only seen it once and I hadn't remembered that pretty much it's a heart-breaker 99% of the way through and the last 1% is glorious because of the previous 99%. I love it. I could watch that final scene five times in a row and still be breathless. Side note- what are the chances that Blake and I look like that when we kiss?... Hmmm...
+I was shocked to have the sliding doors open at the SLC airport and not be assaulted by humidity. It was wonderful! It was rainy and quite chilly for what we've been used to and I wore a hoody on most mornings and a jacket almost the whole trip. :) Silly Texas heat...
+So pretty much the only parenting I have to do when I'm at the Hulls is diaper-changing and making sure Eliza gets a nap and goes to bed at a decent hour. There would be hours at a time where she'd be off having the time of her life with the kids--and she'd come toddling in with a huge smile on her face. She had so much fun! She also loved the Utah grass. It's like lush carpet compared to the stuff we have in Texas. I almost wanted to get down and rub my face on it, it was so soft.
+Courtney is home!! We really missed Blake, but I'm so grateful Eliza and I were able to be there at the airport. I know missions are wonderful, but families are just plain meant to be together and it's so nice to have that together-feeling when someone's been gone for so long! The night she got home, Mom, Courtney and I stayed up girl-chatting for several hours. We just couldn't help ourselves! The lack of sleep landed me with a cold for the rest of the trip, but it was so worth it. It was the first chat-fest of many while I was in Utah. There are very few things I love more than that.
+This was outrageous: how was it that BETH was the last family member that I got to see once we got to Utah?!? Seriously. Not even funny. But we had some grand old times together! We did some much-needed shopping (mostly for Eliza), enjoyed being in the garden, girl-chatting, going to the temple, gushing on Eliza, and just being together. I was so grateful that Beth took a few days off work so we could all be home together. Thanks for a glorious weekend, Hun!
+While we were home, we got to meet sweet little Miss Abigail, Jake and Christy's daughter and Eliza's newest cousin! She is tender and beautiful--I forgot just how little they come. She was just about Eliza's size when we brought Eliza home... I could scarcely believe it. It was fun hearing Jake and Christy's perspectives on making the parenting switch from one to two. It definitely sounds a little bit daunting, but Jake and Christy do such a good job at incorporating humor and a take-it-one-day-at-a-time attitude to tough things. They're such great examples to me and I'm so grateful they're making this transition first so I can call Christy for advice when our #2 arrives!
+We had an awesome Briggs BBQ at Dan and Karen's while we were home. The whole family together (minus Blake who we missed!) with great food, balloon launching, karaoke (yesss!), and even a home improvement project for the boys. It felt so, so good to be together. Aside from the little things like home-grown peaches and corn-on-the-cob, that feeling of being together is what I crave most when I'm home in Texas.
+Notice how I said 'home' in Texas? I haven't doubted that Texas is home, but it was interesting to be sitting at the DFW airport and feeling like I was leaving home. But at the same time, going home in a way, too? That house on 2500 will always be home to me, but 'home' is really being with the ones you love... Although I was surrounded by family that I love dearly, I felt very incomplete to not have Blake there as well. I guess this is just evidence of the Blake and Annie Hull family really blossoming into its own entity.
Well, there's definitely more where that came from, but this post is approaching novel-length so I'll wrap it up. We were so glad to go, so glad to be with family, and so glad to come home and be with Daddy again. Family is seriously the best. I'm already looking forward to Thanksgiving! :)
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