From there to here

I'm not kidding when I say I felt like my heart had been ripped out.  It felt like nothing would ever be the same again.

It hasn't been.

Nothing-ever-the-same-again isn't all terrible though.  When he entered the scene on a snowy day in January 1997 he made it so things were never the same again.

Thankfully, happily nothing has been the same since then.

The time span of Braeden's mission has been a time of trial and testing for all of us in different ways--and some shared ways.  We've more or less held our ground and I'd like to think that we are emerging stronger and more committed to each other and to the Lord.

Never the same again.

Sunday a dear woman, one of many who took such good care of Braeden, texted me a whole raft of pictures.  She'd fed them dinner and invited our whole family to visit sometime.

Here are some of my favorites of the pictures she sent.

I never imagined that I would make friends that feel like family as a result of Braeden's mission.  Stella is certainly one of those people.  The Justesens are linked to us too.  They got up early this morning and gave Braeden a send off at the airport.

And then, because Rebecca is awesome like that, she sent me a picture:

I couldn't be more happy that he's coming home.

I couldn't be more grateful that he served a mission.

It may feel like your heart is being ripped out at the MTC, but believe the hype.  Missions are worth it.