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Thursday, October 9, 2008

My Prince Charming...

I was hoping to post this yesterday, but life got in the way, sorry. I have something pretty big coming up next week, I am so filled with a range of emotions, I can't even begin to explain it all.

 What is coming up you want to know? I'm going away to my first scrapbook retreat. I will be leaving here Wed afternoon & driving (with the Princess) to my parent's house. My dad will take me to the airport Thursday morning & he & mom will keep the Princess for me until I get back in town on Monday. Yeah, I'm sure some of you are thinking "yeah, so big deal, I do stuff like this all the time". Well, for me, this is a first. I have never left my kids before & gone to do something just for me. I have never been away from all of my kids, EVER. Yeah, I'm excited, but also extremely nervous. Yes, I know they'll be fine, infact, things will probably run smoother & at least, on the homefront, I won't even be missed for those few short days. I KNOW the Princess will have a BLAST with my mom & dad, I even know that *I* will have a ball spending time with my friends. Knowing this doesn't make it any easier though.

Anyway, I was talking to a good friend of mine about this upcoming trip & trying to explain some of my feelings to her. She laughed & said something to the extent of "Oh, you just wait, you'll so enjoy your freedom, you'll want to go all the time". I kind of laughed it off, but ya know, that has really stuck with me. As much as I'm looking forward to this, this won't be something I will do often, in fact, in reality, this may be a once in a lifetime opportunity for me. I'm okay with that. This is such a huge sacrifice for my family (even extended) for me to even be able to go. I can't even put into words how grateful I am for Prince Charming to make this possible. Why has her comment stuck with me? Well, for a number of reasons, 1, I LOVE staying home with my kids, I love going to all of their sports activities (I'll be missing C-Man's last tackle football game & it's killing me), yeah, life is extremely hectic right now, but ya know something, it's MY life & I LOVE it. I wouldn't want it any other way. Another reason it's stuck with me is because financially, this isn't something we can afford to do, Hubby is having to cut back on his hours (& work is SUPER busy right now) so he can play taxi driver for the boys.

A lot of things have had to be worked out so that I can go. The "funny" thing is, when I first read about this retreat on the board, I so wanted to go, but didn't say anything, I didn't want hubby to feel bad having to play the bad guy by telling me we couldn't afford it. My friend Desi talked me into bringing it up to him. I finally did, kind of as a joke, guess what, he asked more details & told me to "go for it". HOLY COW, I was SHOCKED!!! Desi just laughed at me, but was so excited. When gas prices went sky high, I thought for sure I would have to back out & forfeit my deposit. Nope, another friend found me an incredible deal on airfare. (Thanks Amanda). This was really looking like my dream could become a reality. Here it is, less than 1 week to go & things are falling into place. I'm really going to meet all of my friends that have become such a huge part of my life even though we've never even "met".

Ok, back to my Prince Charming... I just want him to know how much I love & appreciate him & his support. He is so supportive of me & my "hobbies", (it probably helps that that is a total 2 way street). I swear, I don't know anyone who has more hobbies than he does. Okay, well, possibly his buddy J, but that's okay! LOL I know that his hobbies are what makes him "him" & give him his much deserved break, it makes him happy (& therefor, ME happy) when he gets his "break". M is such a great dad, I'm not sure who is looking forward to me being gone more, me, or the boys knowing they get daddy all to themselves! At this point, I'm just rambling, so I'll end with some of my fav pics of my Prince.







Thanks honey, for this great opportunity & for just being you, I love you!

7 comments:

~~Carrie Ann said...

Have a blast! I'm glad to get this chance to do something for YOU! Oh, and you certainly got yourself a real catch! :)

Char said...

That is so great! You will have fun I am sure! I wish i was going so I could meet you too!

mimi said...

BRENDA I AM SOOOO EXCITED for YOU! Have a wonderful time:) I love all of your pics:) How great that you and (M) are so supportive of each other. It makes me want to be less selfish and more supportive of my hubby's hobbies:)He's totally supportive of mine and this helped me to see the importance of it going both ways.
I can't wait to hear all about your trip when you get back!!!...:)

Shirlene said...

Oh, I'm so excited for you. You and I have a lot in common, as far as not leaving our children to go on a trip. I've never gone on a girlfriends retreat or trip. People in my neighborhood are always going on trips as girls like to Hawaii, Cali, Florida, etc. I'm not critical of them. I know they have a blast. It's just not something I'd ever do. I love being with my children, and I'd feel guilty leaving them and also vacationing w/o my best friend, my husband. But that's just me personally. I'm sure one day I'll break down like you and get to experience one. It's good to get away and do something just for YOU. And I'm sure when you come home your kids will even seem more cute and sweet after being away from them.:) So good for you. You deserve it! What a great husband you must have. Have tons of fun!!!!
p.s. when are you coming to Utah??? If you want another girls trip, bring Princess and come visit!!!:)

Sherry said...

Yea!! This is my first scrap retreat too and I am so excited. B~ I love your family values and I don't think there's anything wrong with wanting to be with your family. You WILL have fun though, and it will be good for the family when you come back refreshed and ready to serve them again (and by serve - I mean that in a good way-that's what I do and it's an honor!)

Vivian said...

What a wonderful tribute to your husband! You have me in tears! I can't wait to see you at the retreat.

Amanda said...

Awwww what a sweet post! By the way, I can't go anymore. HA! Just kidding. Can't wait to have you here :)