Wonderful weekend

I do have to say that I had a great weekend and it was much needed.  To start, I was able to get off of work early on Friday evening and had supper with my dad and sisters.  I really do loathe working 2nd shift( because of the lack of family time I have those weeks), and was happy to actually spend some time with Austin Friday evening.  After supper we went to Wal-Mart to get a couple of things, then we came home and went to bed.  Saturday morning was a pretty lazy morning. I spent most of it reading Stephen King's "Under the Dome".  I was hooked! I couldn't put the darn thing down.  Then I finally started getting ready for a lunch with group of former co-workers from La Petite.  I have never worked somewhere before where I have met such wonderful and lifelong friends.  Just as I was getting ready to leave my house, I saw Jeromey was online!  I was so excited, and lucky for me my Facebook app on my phone allows me to chat with him without having to be on a computer.  More often than not, the chat on my phone doesn't work.  I'm so glad this was not one of those times.  As my friend Alex drove us to Iowa City, I spent the ride chatting with Jeromey.  Normally his time on the computer is very limited but he said no one else was waiting to get on so we were able to chat for a while.  We dropped Austin off at my sister's apartment, so she could take Austin to a movie while I had some "girl" time.  Alex and I arrived at The Atlas (where we were having lunch) a little early and decided to have a couple of drinks while we waited for everyone else to arrive.  It was nice to just sit, have some adult conversation, and relax.  All while still chatting with Jeromey.  Because of the time difference, it was pretty late for him and he was tired.  He has been working 12-16 hour days!  Poor guy.  At least he is being kept busy, so I hope that helps the time pass quickly for him.  Although I think his days all blur together because he didn't realize it was Saturday, he asked if I was working.  After he was done on the computer he called and it was great to hear his voice.  It is hard to explain the feeling of having a spouse, but only being able to talk to them every so often and for limited periods of time.  Before this deployment, Jeromey was just always there, and always available.  Even at work, we would talk on my breaks, and text each other constantly.  So we became so accustomed to just always having one another.  Now, when I want to pick up the phone and call, which I can't, or send him a text I have resorted to sending him Facebook messages.  I post on his wall daily. It makes me feel better even though it is not the same because I don't get a response.  I guess for me, these phone calls are what makes this bearable and keep me going.  He calls when he can, and we try to fit everything thats been happening into a phone call.  Of course I never remember everything, and he can't tell me ANYTHING it seems.  But we definitely have more than enough to talk about before time runs out. I know this post probably sounds so much like the others, "there is never enough time".  I am hoping that someday soon he will have the chance to Skype, because I would love to actually get to see him.  I am not holding my breath on that one though because it will probably be a while.  I have to just live by the motto my friend Andrea told me, "Hope for the best, but expect the worse".  She means in regards to how often we communicate and basically if I don't expect him to call for a week or two, then I won't be disappointed when I hear from him sooner than that.  I'm getting better at this, but it is so hard to not be a little disappointed each day I don't hear from him.  I do have to admit though, when he called earlier this week, my mood improved by ten fold and my spirits were lifted for days.  We talked for a while, I let Alex know what I wanted so she could order for me while I talked to Jeromey on the phone.  He seems to be in pretty good spirits and that makes me happy to know that.  Even thought there are a lot of things he can't tell me, he tries his best to give me an idea of whats going on but about all I know is they are building buildings over there.  I already knew that was basically what they would be doing over there so this isn't news.  Sometimes it's a little tricky because he will open up as much as he can, but its not something I really want to hear.  I am constantly worried about him as it is.  I don't want to discourage him from talking to me about stuff and opening up to me, because I am his wife and I am here to support him.  Same as he is my husband and is my support. Just because he is deployed, our relationship hasn't changed.  I need him to be there and listen to me just as much as he needs me to listen and be there for him.  Who else, if not his wife, can he confide in?  I confide in him more than any other person, and there are things that I tell Jeromey that I would never tell anyone else.  So while we always try to keep our conversation pleasant, there are times he brings things up I just really don't want to think about.  I just say "honey, right now that is not what I want to hear or talk about".  I read online that some couples keep journals, and when the journal is full, they mail it to the other spouse.  Maybe this would be a better place for him to talk to me about things I don't want to hear and same with me.  This way, if there is something stressful at home that happens, I don't have to spend our limited phone time talking about it, but I will still feel better writing about it and sharing it with him when its over and better.  I asked how he was eating, he said that the base he is on is not an American base, but the people who run it have been cooking for him.  I guess the other night they had steak!  I was sure he was pulling my leg, but he promised he wasn't....
He promised to call again as soon as he could, which is never soon enough if you ask me!  Of course there is not day or time for me to expect his call so I will continue to have my phone with me at all times.  After our conversation I went back to lunch with my friends. It really was some much needed girl time and I can't wait to do it again.  Last night Austin and I went to a wedding reception.  It was a lot of fun, and we even danced a little. If you know Austin, you know he loves to dance so he was out on the dance floor before I was!  It is always a great feeling to be surrounded by friends and family and we had a good time.  Today, I did a whole lot of nothing.  I think maybe I had too much fun at the wedding reception?  :)  I did finish my Stephen King book and am trying to decide what to ready next.  Keep praying for the men and women who leave behind the comfort of home to do something so selfless!