there are lots of crazy emotions and nerves involving these last few days. husband officially comes home next week… wow. it’s a very surreal feeling and kind of hard to explain, even to myself. i caught myself at whole foods yesterday, buying things that he would like. then realizing just how weird it is to buy things that he will actually be here to enjoy! i have no idea where he is at the moment, or exactly which day he will be home. in fact i probably won’t know until about 24hrs before…all i know is he is somewhere in the world, hopefully en route to Atlanta which is his first stop in the states. the last time we talked, he told me he really can’t wait to just be on american soil. and eat five guys :)
as excited as i am to have my best friend back, i do have some concerns. such as…who is going to win the battle over the down comforter? chris hates them. i love them. he asked that i buy whatever comforter i like, but to please not get a down comforter since he hates them so much. so of course i got the biggest fluffiest one i could find. i mean..he wasn’t going to be here anyways! i knew that at some point i would have to say goodbye, but of course now i am officially addicted to it, and just the thought that it could be taken away from me, makes me nervous of our future together as wife and down comforter.
i’ve been told that the “coming home” can be harder than when he is actually away. learning to live together again, to have to check in with someone, share finances, and just be “married” is all going to feel very foreign to both of us. chris hasn’t had to clean, run errands, pay bills, or make any of his own meals in almost a year. i haven’t had to share the tv or justify my spending habits. i’ve been told i need to let things go once he gets here. since sub-consciously you learn to run a self-sufficient household when your spouse is deployed, it is easy for them to come home and feel like they don’t have a place or anything to do. so i’ve decided to take this advice very seriously, and therefore i will sacrifice and let him take over vacuuming and mowing the lawn :)
truly though, i am so excited to have him home. just the thought of making breakfast together, or watching late night tv feels is so exciting and feels so so so strange. it doesn’t even feel real- more like a vacation we will be on. i’m sure we will work out all the kinks that will inevitably happen and start this new chapter of our marriage with lots of fun and down comforter stand-offs. for now i am trying to contain my excitement and truly live in the moment, and enjoy these last few days of living by myself. a few more pizzas in bed perhaps :)
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https://astridphoto.com/30-days/
https://astridphoto.com/what-i-miss/
https://astridphoto.com/196-days/
https://astridphoto.com/well-its-time/
https://astridphoto.com/astrid-chris-lifestyle-session/
https://astridphoto.com/76-days/
https://astridphoto.com/feels-like-home/
https://astridphoto.com/everythings-gonna-be-alright/
stay in the moment….where there are no expectations of the future, just the here and now. xo
I don’t think I’ve ever commented before, but I came across your blog post via Twitter this morning, and reading this made me think of my brother- and unfortunately how hard it was for him to adjust to being home and the difficulties he and his wife had with it.
Definitely enjoy your moments together when he gets back, but you’re right- eventually things have to get back to as normal as possible. You’re on the right track in letting him take over things in the household. :) Be patient as he gets used to being back- because as much as they always say they can’t wait to be home, part of them is still deployed. And definitely get him some Five Guys! (lol how is it that everyone I’ve ever known who’s been deployed always wants Five Guys?!) Good luck and enjoy! I’ll be thinking of you! :)
thank you so much lauren- your words are so thoughtful and i appreciate every one of them :)
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