They're Home

well today I am so thankful to have my kids home.

we picked them up this week and i was more than ready to get my hands back on them.

i'm thankful that they get to spend time with family but still as their mama i

do a lot of exhaling when their back in arms distance. 

i was thinking about it as we drove to meet up with my mother and father in law in Alabama. 

how we've lived in a lot of different states & houses and none of it holds me.

or has a hold on me...but my kids_ being with Jode_ they are my home. 

and when we're apart pieces of me are missing.

speaking of Alabama. that's kind of a half way mark between us and mawmaw so it was 

awesome that they met us there. helped us not have to go so far and it helped

split the trip up a bit. we were all able to have lunch together before departing and 

heading back our separate ways.

no matter how we sike ourselves up and know that goodbye's are coming...it's still hard.

and this time was no different.

when Jode and i pulled out of the driveway in leaving the kids they were

crying. and i tried my best to smile_ tell them how much fun they were going to have

at mawmaw's_ and wave till we were out of sight.

the thing is they knew and they wanted to stay but seeing us go was still hard.

they want us all together. with no one having to say a goodbye.

and i get it. and i want so bad to take away the pain and torn feelings.

but i can't and so i hold them close_ i rub their backs_ we talk of future visits and all that we have 

to look forward to _ and i pray. the Lord knows. so i pray that He would comfort and bring

peace. that He would guard their hearts & minds. that's when & where i'm able to find my rest.

and i also am thankful for this man and our time spent together.

i told him that when thinking of things that we could do together that we needed to ask the question

"do we do this with the kids? with us all together?" and if the answer was yes then we needed to 

figure something else out. so we did things that we normally don't do.

for example, we don't usually eat at Seafood restaurants bc my Gray is allergic.

so we made sure to eat out one night at a Seafood place we had never been to.

on another day Jode drove me from one side of our city to another hitting

all the thrift stores. Bc my kids wouldn't mind 1 or 2 stores. but 

to stop at more than 5 would've been pure torture to them. 

oh, and i know this is kind of silly to some. and we could totally do this with our kids but

this fell under the "first" category. that's a whole other post. but we like to

experience things we've never done before_for the first time_ together. so we 

rode the trolley all around the city one night. it's the little things.

but i'm thankful on this thursday for these little things that mean the world to me.

and i'm thankful for my babies_ our family_ our home.

linking up with Carina

.heather