The Month of Good-Byes (and a Hello or Two)

It seems like all we do these days is say good-bye to our children and watch our children say good-bye to each other. I hate good-byes, especially when they are for such a significant amount of time. We sent Eric off to Guam this morning. I wonder if I will ever not cry when I have to say good-bye to my children. Earlier in the week, we had to say good-bye to Gage as he left for Priesthood Leadership Conference, knowing he wouldn't be back before Eric left or we left for Ukraine. Then I had to watch Gage and Eric say good-bye to each other. They won't see each other for three years. Then I had to watch Quinn and Marissa both say good-bye to Eric. All of us have had our own individual melt-downs of sadness this week. I guess it's good that it hurts so much. We all know we love each other.

But in a few days, Michael and I will be saying hello to someone we don't know yet, someone that lives halfway around the world. If everything goes as planned, this "someone" will become as important to us as our other four children. I'm excited, scared, and nervous all at the same time. We fly out tomorrow morning at 8:30 a.m., stopping in New York City, and then on to Kiev. We will arrive in Kiev Sunday morning. My next post will be from Ukraine!