Goodbyes

Right now I am sitting in a hotel room thinking about how hard the last couple of months have been. We have literally said goodbye to at least one person every day for the last three or four weeks. Today we said goodbye to our parents. This was by far the hardest day. Brady and I are extremely blessed to have caring, involved parents and families who would do anything for us. Even more amazing is that they love us enough to know that this is a great opportunity and have tried to keep the tears out of sight when we are around. This must be why Brady and I keep our tears inside--I know, I know, most of you reading this have seen me cry at Hallmark and Folgers commercials(who doesn't when the big brother comes home at Christmas:) or Grey's Anatomy, but it is rare for me to cry in front of my family and friends about the real stuff. I know this is silly, but I think it is something that we all do to protect each other.

It is kind of funny when you really step back and look at how everyone handles grief or sadness. My dad is the strong silent type. I can always tell when he is sad because he won't say a whole lot and I have only seen him cry once (during Rudy:). Tonight, however, I almost witnessed a second time...I could hear his voice cracking and he hurried back to the car. My mom is the type to make jokes in order to lighten the mood...for example, in the car tonight she told us that she always that that "Dream Weaver" was saying "Train to Weba"--she seriously my shoot me for revealing that! She always eventually cries, but she holds in as long as possible. Brady's mom is similar to my mom; she holds it in as long as possible and then just lets it spill out at the last possible moment.

I guess I just needed to write this to let all of those who we love so much know that we are going to miss you so, so much. We have amazing family and friends and would do anything if we could just take you with us. I know that our parents are sad and I just wanted to let them know that we love them and are so proud to be their children. Please know that we have been praying for months for God to give you strength during this transition; here is a verse that I thought might help get you started...

But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31