The End 2013

**Confession: I wrote this at the new year and forgot to post it, oops!**

SO.

Last time I wrote was a LONG time ago.

Over two MONTHS to be exact!

So much has happened over these last two months it's going to be hard to narrow it down to keep from writing a book, so here's a long story written as short as possible:

First thing to bring up that sets a precedent for all that follows from here on out is that John joined the Army in 2006 and since has done three deployments, the shortest one being a year. He's been gone for easily the majority of our marriage, was gone for well over half my pregnancy, thankfully was there for her birth, but then was gone for thirteen months out of her first year and a half of life.

This doesn't include the endless list of schools, mostly out of state, and field training that all soldiers do.

With lots of really long and hard conversations, prayer, and seeking lots of council, John has decided that his career with active duty Army is going to be put on hiatus for now and is planning on finishing out his time with this current contract and going back to finish school and complete his degree. There is still a lot to be determined, the main thing we are figuring out is whether to go back IN once he's finished. As much as we've not loved everything we've done through the Army it has its perks and one we're fearful of letting go. The best part of this situation is we've been blessed with lots of options as far as what the future holds and that is a GREAT problem to have. We'll keep you up to date on what we are working through as it comes!

This current contract ends in December of 2014, so with it coming time to move back to Fort Bragg, we made our plans to be what we consider a temporary set up until this contract is over and we move on to new things.

With that came, where do we live for just the year?

We are so blessed to have friends that still live in the area that were willing to be our "boots on the ground."

Stephanie, along with her three kiddos, went and toured different properties I sent her information too, helping us figure out our plans.

We decided since our situation is a temporary set up that we were going to rent an apartment for a year leaving a lot of our things in storage.

Steph sold us on a brand new apartment community in the town of Spring Lake, which is a Fayetteville suburb, and we couldn't be happier. It's close to her (haha) and it's much closer to John's work than we were before, so there are a lot of wins!

Homecoming at DIA.

John, along with more of our friends still here at Bragg, helped get our entire house out of storage and moved into our new place and on sight storage.

The government shutdown postponed John's leave to get to Colorado some, but finally things got pushed through, and John arrived at DIA with Brynlee, grandma, and I to meet him on October 21st.

Our reunion at the airport was seriously so beautiful.

We kept talking to Brynlee about seeing daddy, but how can you gage what a 20 month old can truly understand?!

Finally daddy walked out of the terminal and she reached right to him and gave him the biggest and longest hug I have ever seen her give to this day. She just laid there on his chest, easily for 3-4 minutes just not even moving, just resting there and letting us all get super emotional-not expecting this action from her at all.

We were finally a family again and it has been awesome.

We spent just short of a week in Colorado Springs making the rounds and saying our goodbyes. It was definitely bittersweet.

I can't tell you how blessed we feel to have so many people in our corner as we venture through this chapter of life and what is coming in the future. Thanks to all of you there, here, and even from a distance that have loved us, supported us, and been so generous to us. We appreciate it more than words can describe and thank God everyday for your relationship with our family!

Headed to NC!

My dad and John, along with a Penske and a tow, drove the horribly long distance from Colorado Springs to Spring Lake, with my mom, me, and Brynlee flying along to meet up with them a few days later. We couldn't have made the trip to NC more hectic by deciding to fit a trip into DC along with my parents while they were with us!

We spent our Halloween on the road, a 5 hour drive to DC, and got there in time to do a little sight seeing before passing out from sheer exhaustion of moving and traveling during the week! 

We had a really awesome weekend in DC.

John and dad had never been, so mom and I had fun (hopefully they did too) dragging them around to all the sights. 

Arlington, DC

Granted, with a 21 month old, tolerance was limited at times, thank goodness for the metro and shuttles to and from the hotel! 

Brynlee was such a champ though.

We know she has no clue what all she was seeing but giving her the opportunity to experience other places is something that is really important to us, so even if it's looking back at pictures and seeing all the things we've experienced as a family, that's a win to me!

I have to say riding roof top on the shuttles were probably her favorite, but she was also quite the trooper when it came to walking around Arlington and also along the memorial walls. 

We were there at the very end of the fall peak of colors, so it was beautiful. 

Beat the turning aspens of CO if you ask me! 

My parents flew back to CO from DC and we made the trip back to NC just the three of us back to our still boxed up new home. As I mentioned before, John took the full 30 days of leave that was available and we used that time to just do everything and nothing all at the same time.

It was really awesome getting to rediscover our house again.

Things I knew I missed and things I didn't realize I missed, and even things I've learned I could go without. Not having your house for a year can really make you prioritize way differently than not, so it was actually a very enlightening experience!

We unpacked and set up enough to be able to call our apartment home, but keeping enough packed away knowing it's going to be moved again within the year. 

Thanksgiving 2013

Our main focus was making B's room her "place" again and also making sure the whole living space was functional for all, even though child toys still dominate the whole house.

We celebrated our first family Thanksgiving with the Hendrixson's who have been ever so gracious to opening their house up to us on so many occasions.

Steph and I had been plotting our Thanksgiving feast for a while, so it was actually really exciting to finally get to execute. Steve, her husband, had just finished a year long TCS to Korea and moved home in time for their third baby to be born. This Thanksgiving held a lot of firsts for their family too, so it was fun for us all to soak it all in together!

Christmas 2013

Obviously in December we celebrated our family's first Christmas which was seriously really exciting. However I'm not sure who was more excited, B or John.

Watching the both of them celebrate this holiday together was so special-from cookie decorating, playing with Baby Jesus, to Christmas Day itself, it was fun to be the background

"worker" watching them experience all these father-daughter firsts together.

The weekend after Christmas I left John and B alone together for the first time while I flew out to Kansas for my dear friend, Kristen Cook/Miller's, wedding. Honest truth, I wasn't nervous for Brynlee, I was nervous for John. I knew she'd be fine, haha. 

New Mrs. Miller!

By their lack of communication I just kind of forgot about them and enjoyed the weekends festivities and when I got home they were both still alive and even had dinner on the table, so obviously they BOTH survived just fine without me. I got some great mommy hugs though, which made it all ok. :)

New Year's was pretty uneventful, we're old, we've accepted that.

Here we are in January 2014, a week from B's second birthday and we are often intimidated by the long year we are headed into. We know we are in for some things that are very uncertain and honestly scary. We feel very optimistic in what is ahead but are not 100% sure how it's all going to happen and how it's all going to pan out.

On the flip side we know we have a slew of amazing friends and family that not just support us but have helped us in so many ways, unconditionally, and we are already so grateful for the prayers and support we've already received as we venture into this new chapter.

Updates to come as things get figured out!