Leaving for Korea

Well, I stand corrected. Back in September I said that the hardest thing I have ever had to do was to send my husband off to war. Even knowing that we would be facing this challenge a few short months later, I still thought that would be worse because of where he was going and because we would be able to visit him in Korea. I was SO wrong! While the time leading up to Bill leaving for Korea was easier, dropping him off at the airport was THE hardest thing I have ever had to do. My family's heart was breaking and there was NOTHING I could do to make it better.

Kaity helping Bill with his bags in the check in line (I missed the really cute part).

We enjoyed the short period of time we had together that morning and everyone was doing really well. Until we got to the airport and Kaity started asking questions with tears in her eyes. How do you explain to a four year old why her daddy has to leave for so long? She helped him with his bags (super cute, but I was a bit late with the camera and missed their interaction) and after he got them checked in, we started to say our goodbyes. Kaitlyn did so well, emotionally speaking, with Bill deploying, so we were not prepared for her response to this move (I can't really call it a trip). It is so hard to be strong when your child's heart is breaking. She was so upset and just kept asking for tissues, which was kind of cute and grown up and made us smile a little, through our tears. She cried all the way to security where we said our good-byes and left Bill to be on his way. We opted not to get gate passes, since there was not really enough time to wait in line again through Delta (Korean Air doesn't give them at their counters for future reference) and we also feared that dragging it out would be so much harder on us all.

Bill and Kaity awaiting check in.

It turned out to be a good choice. After saying good-bye Kaitlyn turned hysterical. We couldn't even make it to the car. We got as far as check in when she said she just wanted to sit down. She was sobbing so hard, she couldn't even walk. We sat down on the floor of the airport and just cried together. What do you say? I knew there was nothing I could do but comfort her. She hit the nail on the head while I was trying to comfort her. I was telling her that we had just had a really great couple of months together and that we have had so much fun the past few days hanging out as a family. Really just trying to say something that would get her to focus on the happiness instead of the sorrow. Her response..."Well it just isn't fun right now!" What do you say to that? I absolutely agreed. My response..."You're right, right now it just sucks." I know that you aren't supposed to use that language with a four year old, but that was just how it was. It seemed to be the only thing that fit. She responded with, "Yeah, it's really bad." Fortunately, Ryan was oblivious and was just hanging out in his stroller. That made my job a bit easier and I could just focus on her. I have no idea how much time passed, but Kaity finally said she was ready to go home. I was relieved to get to the privacy of our car.

We got to the car and prayed for Daddy, for the safety of our family, and asked the Lord to provide us all with some much needed strength and comfort. Through our tears I thanked Him for this challenge he has given our family and we asked for His help to get us through it. And I truly believe He will.

Saying good-bye at security. Ryan's blowing Daddy a kiss good-bye.

After a few hours Kaity seemed to be doing better, and I had a 4 1/2 hour drive home. Many thanks to my dad who added me to his Audible account and to Bill for my ipod. Listening to books on the way home while the kids watched movies was a huge distraction for all of us. Bill definitely had the worst end of the stick on this one. We all left him and were going back home to our house to get on with our already established lives. While it was heartbreaking to walk through the door of our home and know that he probably wouldn't be back before we sell or rent it, we still had church, school, dance, friends, and each other to get us through. He, on the other hand, left all of us to board a plane for a 14 hour flight, alone with just his thoughts, and start a new life for himself 7,000 miles away.

Bill left the States on Saturday, January 17th and arrived to Kunsan, Korea very early in the morning on Monday the 19th. He had welcoming arms and some familiar, smiling faces to greet him at a stop in Osan (many thanks to Tess for meeting him and lifting his spirits) and at his final destination in Kunsan (also a ton of thanks to Chad for setting everything up and making his transition easier). We are all settling into a routine and are adjusting to the new normal. Most days get easier, but it does feel a little like two steps forward, one step back at times. Bill got internet in his room last week and the communication has been wonderful. Both of the kids are really cute with it, but I will write more about that (and other fun stuff) later.