THE END IS NEAR

Despite my I hate DEPLOYMENT comments we really are coming to the tail end of things. We are talking weeks not months any more and soon enough we will be talking days. NO, I do not know any dates or even really a small time frame. My honest guess is he will be home on New Mexico soil by September 25th. Thats just me guessing. Troy will not even know the day he flies to Kuwait until the day he leaves. He has to spend time in Kuwait and Fort Lewis, Washington and then he will be home. I do know that some of their replacements have been arriving so thats a good sign!

So in a nut shell and give or take a few numbers this is what I was looking at when he left a year ago and what we are looking at now.

How many times I had to clean the toilet before he came home: 112

HOW MANY TIMES I HAVE TO CLEAN THE TOILET BEFORE "A" DAY: 12

How many oil changes before he came home: 4

OIL CHANGES NOW: 0

How many times I went to church without him: 110

CHURCH NOW: 6 (I will be gone one)

How many times I should have made my bed: 400

MADE BED NOW: 45

How many times I laid in bed at night wishing he was next to me: 400

Laying in bed at night NOW: 45

How many seconds I would miss him: 34,560,000 seconds

HOW MANY SECONDS NOW: 3,888,000

How many times I bawled like a baby b/c I missed him: A million

BAWL LIKE A BABY NOW: 3 shooting for 3

How many times Hinks bawled like a baby: About half a million

HINKS BAWL NOW: 5 shooting for 5

How many diaper changes before he came home: About 2,000

DIAPER CHANGES NOW: 225

How many times I bathed the kids: (Thanks dad for helping with that!): 400

BATHS NOW: 45

How many fast Sundays: 56

FAST SUNDAYS NOW: 1

I could go on about how many bedtime stories, prayers, etc. but I will stop boring you with details...

Troy has sent home 3, yes 3 foot lockers and a few packages. This is my new nativity set carved out of Iraqi olive wood. It has a really cool story behind it and who carves them and I didn't unwrap all the pieces to it but you get the idea...

I LOVE IT BABE THANK YOU!

I have only opened one foot locker so far and I found his little photo album that he carried with him every where. I got really emotional looking at the pictures that are all outdated to a year ago. So much we have been through in this year. So much he has missed. So much I have missed. GAH. How many times did he flip through these pictures and wonder what we were doing at that exact moment? How many times did he look at these pictures and wish and dream he was home? I NEVER WANT TO DO THIS AGAIN, EVER! Thinking back to a year ago I never imagined we would make it to this point. I am SO THANKFUL we are here. We have no clue what life will lead us to but I CAN'T WAIT TO GET MY BEST FRIEND BACK.