One Month Down.... Twenty Three to Go!

We made it through one whole month of Tom being away on his mission!  That’s a milestone for us, and a blink of an eye for most people.  I have to admit, it has not gone by quickly, or not as quickly as I would prefer.  We are, however, adjusting and getting used to him being so far away.  We have settled in to a new routine that is a little different.  There is a void in our family, though and that weekly e-mail is not quite filling it the same way as if he were here.  Don’t get me wrong… we love, love, love the e-mails and completely look forward to the next one each week.  Even Em and David get really excited when the e-mail finally comes.  I really do miss coming home from work each day and just knowing Tom would be there, usually in the living room, playing video games with Toby on his lap!  The thing that makes it all OK though,  is thinking about what he is doing and knowing he is learning, growing, maturing and just becoming a more worldly person.  It’s like a co-worker of mine told me the other day…. when you think about a person or “kid” Tom’s age going out on a limb and dedicating himself to something so much bigger than himself, you just have to be a little awed!  In today’s culture where we tend to spoil our kids, protect them, take care of them much, much longer all of the time, to think of a 19 year old wanting to do something like this is pretty amazing.  We are really proud of him and will continue to cheer him on and will look forward to those e-mails on Tuesdays! Hey… 1 month down and only 23 to go!