Week 1

Well, we made it through Week 1 of J's absence. The general feeling in my heart this week has been one of calm and peace. I feel good about his climbing adventure. I really feel that he'll be fine and will return to us in 3 1/2 weeks.

So, what have I done this week? Here's a general overview...
Saturday (4/28): Dropped J off at the airport after a family dinner at Chipotle. Went to a friend's house to watch the REAL Salt Lake soccer game. She explained to us what was going on (we were blissfully ignorant of the rules of soccer up to that point) and had a lot of fun watching the game, playing with her kids, and taking turns on the elliptical.
Sunday (4/29): Navigated 5 hours (!!! I know!) of church with the monkeys. They did awesome during Ward Choir, and church was business as usual, since I don't get to sit with J during Sunday School anyway. I wonder if his Primary kids missed him though... Great, relaxing afternoon with the boys after church.
Monday (4/30): S turned 10 years old!!! We had celebrated on Friday with J -- kids swam, off to dinner at Pizza Pie Cafe, birthday gift from J and me (his own camera -- he loves it!) -- so on Monday he woke up to the traditional birthday cookies and the Lego Architecture set of Fallingwater from G&G Kim. He loved that too! (I'll give him his own birthday post soon.) Early-out day and swimming, plus breakfast-for-dinner (love that kid!). I managed to get a run in because one of my many awesome friends watched H for me.
Tuesday (5/1): Nice, slow day (besides scraps of paper everywhere from teacher appreciation posters. Poor house. Not a stellar day for being clean.) I taught a violin lesson in exchange for voice and piano. Once the kids got home from school we just hung out and had a relaxing late afternoon. I love days like that!
Wednesday (5/2): This is our day of insanity around here. During the day -- not so bad. Another awesome friend watched H so I could run. (My friends are great! All believers in sanity!) The boys all survived the craziness that is our 5-7:30PM (3 activities during that time back-to-back, dinner in the car. Nuts.) The little gift that was a blessing in disguise was my little H pooping for 10 minutes so I could just sit down and have a quiet bowl of taco soup. It was enough to give me the needed energy to do the last of the pick-ups from activities, get the kids home and to bed.
Thursday (5/3): All the kids went to school. I ran errands. Yet another awesome friend came and weeded my garden with me (as if running 6-8 miles with me every other day isn't enough!) Piano, dinner at the neighbors. Orem Chorale while another incredible friend (sensing a trend here?) came and put my kids to bed.
Friday (5/4): Other friends (yes, even more of them) watched H so I could run, though the hills kicked my butt. Teacher Appreciation posters (2 at 2 separate schools -- never again) done and up! Piano recital went well. Blessed with extra strength at the end of the day to clean the kitchen before I went to bed. It almost was left till the morning.
Saturday (5/5): Attended a niece's baptism and following brunch. It was a great baptism -- such a cute little girl and so sweet to see her take that step. Went to the greenhouse and bought our garden. Came home, S mowed the lawn, O & H moved dirt, I prepped the garden. We got most of the plants in before we went to dinner at Chili's. Home for ice cream, baths, and bed!
Sunday (5/6): 5 hours of church yet again, but then I cancelled Ward Choir for the rest of the month. Great block of church meetings. S bore his testimony in Sacrament Meeting for the first time!! I was so proud of him! The kids have gotten out the Duplo Legos and built a town. I love it when they do that! I even snuck in a cat nap this afternoon. We had a great Family Home Evening by S on temples. Coloring pages and videos on lds.org and then bed. All the monkeys sweetly asleep and safe and sound.

Whew!

So tonight I was panicking (because I make stuff up in my head and then worry myself sick about it) because I hadn't heard from J since last night at bedtime when he called to talk to the boys. I knew today was going to be a rest day, and J knew we had church and then would be home, so around 10PM my heart starts beating hard, freaking out because I was sure something had happened to him. All the peace and calm of the week just went out the window. Why did he not call to talk to the kids today? Did something happen? Is he sick? Buried under an avalanche? All kinds of crazy talk. I forced myself to stop trying to technology-stalk him and made myself read my scriptures again. After I was done, I offered a fervent prayer for his safety and to know that he was safe so I could go to sleep and be able to take care of everyone tomorrow. (Yes, I know I'm up blogging. I promise I'll go to sleep soon.) About 30 minutes after I last checked all of J's regular check-in spots (facebook, his blog, my email), I pulled out my computer one last time. Just after I finished my prayer he had sent the spot device message. It may have been coincidence, but I don't believe that it was. I know beyond a shadow of doubt that Heavenly Father heard my anxious, fervent prayer and put the thought into J's head to message me. I know that Heavenly Father has been blessing me with the peace and calm I've felt this entire week. I know He is mindful of me and my needs. Although I want to be strong and independent, making it through these 4 1/2 weeks on my own, He knows that I need help. He has sent me so many angels this week. My friends are amazing! I can't express how much I love and appreciate every one of them. A line from one of the hymns has been running through my head this whole week: "...and walking by faith I am blessed ev'ry hour." (You know, which is odd, because the hymn it comes from is a little weird and not one of my favorites :))

Truly blessed every hour...