2009, part 1
Oh, 2009, it’s time to say goodbye. While you were a year of trials & tribulations, at the same time you also allowed for great personal growth.
Last January we discovered J would be heading down to Fort Hood for a month & then spending the next 6 months in Kandahar & Bagram, Afghanistan. It terrified me – both being left with a 4 month old baby and worrying about J being in harm’s way. Fortunately for me, I found my way to wonderful playgroup full of moms who were going to be an amazing support for me while J was away. We went for walks, got together for coffee, lunch or shopping. It was so nice to have friends with kids who were struggling with all the things I was – fussy, teething babies, when to start solids, etc etc. Hardly earth-shattering stuff, but stuff that mattered to ME. Some of the baby brigade:
In March, J got a 3 day pass before he had to ship out, so Madeline & I packed up & headed to Texas to see him. [Just let me say that traveling alone with an infant really isn't fun, but we got there.] I was so grateful to have that time together as a family. We saw both of our parents and said a sad goodbye at the DFW airport.
This year I gained a whole new appreciation for skype. While we often didn’t have a great connection, J & I were able to see each other fairly often online…and he could see Madeline, too. She changed at an absolutely incredible rate this first year of her life and I am glad J was able to see a lot of it even though he was on the other side of the world. Let me add in here how proud I am of J. He did really valuable work in Afghanistan – he was directly involved in saving lives of our soldiers.
It’s no secret that I had a hard time adjusting to motherhood – but I feel I hit my stride this year. Madeline gave me a reason to get up everyday…and with J gone, I was all she had. I’m not fooling – it was hard. There were times I just wanted to lie in bed & cry…and times I did! But I have come to love her in a way that staggers me. You can’t really explain it to people who don’t have kids – I certainly didn’t understand before I had one – but something about having a child changes you. I look back and can’t believe how self-centered I was all those years.
Over the summer, Madeline, Sophie & I headed home to Texas to visit family. It was great to see all the Lucci Sisters and to help celebrate my dad’s retirement as well as mom & dad’s 40th wedding anniversary. Madeline liked getting in Nana & Papa’s pool, as you can see.
It was a good visit, but I was glad to get us all back to Washington. I spent a lot of time getting the house in shape – had a decorator out to help with color, got the downstairs painted, rearranged, etc. It was lots of fun! [I'll have to do another post on the house, I never put pics up of the finished product, did I?]
Anyhow, I learned a lot being a single mom for seven months. More in Part 2…