Chris came home for R&R on May 26th, and left on June 11th. We had a wonderful time! I knew to expect him around May 29th. My friends Ashley, Anna, and I all went to the Governor's Mansion in Nashville to attend a forum on deployments and military families on May 25th. Anna and I knew at that point our husbands had started their journey, but they were doing so much waiting, we actually thought they'd be later than expected! Imagine our surprise when we had voicemails leaving the event telling us they'd be in town 7:30am THE FOLLOWING MORNING! The three of us went to dinner, and Anna and I got back to Clarksville around 10pm. Needless to say, we pulled an all niter...house cleaning, laundry, etc to prepare for the boys!
They arrived in Atlanta the following morning, and landed in Nashville around lunchtime. Anna and I were both able to restructure our work schedules to accomodate the boys' early arrival. Chris and I stayed home and relaxed for the first week. It was perfect. Then we headed to Destin, FL. We dropped off Casey in Auburn while my parents were at work, and continued our drive. We stayed in Destin for 3 nights. The weather was gorgeous, and we were able to get a lot of beach time in--no oil. Our condo was on the 13th floor, and it was so relaxing sitting on the balcony and drinking with that view. The day we left, we stayed in Florida until lunchtime, and then headed to Auburn to cut our drive in half. We were exhausted. My parents hosted a small cookout since we were going to stay the night. The following morning we met Sarah, Chris's sister, for breakfast. Then we were on our way back home. Our final week we hung out with a few friends, took a day trip to Nashville for some shopping, and just spent time together at home. It was a perfect R&R.
So now we countdown 9 months. Saying goodbye this time was much harder than the initial goodbye. Anna and I are lucky to go thru this together though, and we've been trying to keep each other busy in an effort to keep the tears at a minimum. I'm lucky to have such a great friend.
This weekend I'm heading to Atlanta to meet my friend Laura who is stationed in Savannah. Her husband is also deployed. She's bringing her kids, and we are all going to Six Flags. I have a St. Augustine beach family trip planned in July. Trying to stay busy! Hope all is well!
Ashley and I at the Miro District in Nashville after going to the Governor's Mansion.
Chris and I leaving the airport!
Chris and I at home
Chris and Casey before he left. Saddest ever :(
