One Year Ago Today..

I can remember it as clear as day. It was 9:46 at night just like it is right now. We were sitting in my husband youth pastor office. He was a youth pastor then. Our boys were sitting under a brown knit afghan playing their gameboys and ds's and wrestling and laughing and fighting and being rambunctious. We were online looking up our flights and verifying that our plans were correct. Yes, we are extremely last minute folks. I just felt sick already from the hard day of planning and packing and making sure I had EVERYTHING I could possibly need. I'm not the best planner. I admit it. We had only been to Mexico and Puerto Rico. My husband had been to Greece. This international travel was new and scary for me.

I remember my husband checking our flights and hotels and I was on the laptop checking this blog and my friends blogs. I remember hearing about Tera that wasn't going to get to fly and get her baby doll. Mahlet's mom, who I was hoping we would get to go together and that didn't happen. You see Mahlet and Mahder are best friends:) Thinking of Jenny and praying for their safe return. Wishing we could have went together too.

Praying that our vaccines had taken to us and we were to be immune from any sickness. Praying for God's protection over our bodies for that. Praying that our girls were good and healthy too.

And then the sadness of leaving our boys. Oh, only by God's goodness was I going to make it through. They are our heart. Our family is fractionalized without us all together. I can honestly say that the fractions are smaller today but the whole is greater and that statement still stands. When we are not all together, it just isn't the same.

So here we were, checking itenerary, packing clothes for two girls we never met, charging batteries, packing our entire medicine cabinet, packing for 3 boys that are going to live with their grandparents for one whole week. Emotions racing like crazy. Excitement. Fear. Shear sadness of departing. Questions galore. Trusting the Lord like never before. Feeling His hand so tight on us we were safe and He wasn't letting go. Prayers ever ceasing.

I remember this night one year ago.

We had a fuel surcharge in Rome. We decided that we would get off for a couple of days knowing that we couldn't see our girls until Monday and our agency wanted us there on Sunday. Rome was dirty and smelly but beautiful to the sight. Glad we did it but I was ready to get to ET.