4 Months in a Nutshell

Well, here I am. After far too long of not posting, I've made it back. I've been fine, really, so I apologize to any readers (if there are actually any of you out there) for not posting since October. Midterm is always terrible for me, and apparently it was so bad last year that I didn't find time to post again until this semester's midterm!

Here is my quickie catch-up for the past 4 months. Warning! November and December are rather depressing. Read with wine and anti-depressants nearby.

November:

I kept busy with school, grading, students, etc. I dreaded the thought of Thanksgiving without Ken here and me having to do family rounds without him. As a result, I went into major hiding from the week before Thanksgiving until January 1. I basically just didn't want to deal with the holidays and since the major ones start in November, I was almost inaccessible for two months. Another reason for not posting much since then. Work and helping my friend Lynn with house remodeling projects was about all I could manage.

December:

December was worse than November with all the wonderful snow and holiday spirit being thrown around by all. I just couldn't get into it all and didn't even want to try. Once the semester was over and final grades were turned in, I resumed being in hiding for the majority of break. This was a really tough time for me. Trying to deal with Christmas without Ken was a nightmare, and though friends and family tried to reach out for support, it was difficult for me to accept help. I decided that if I ever have to spend any future winter holidays without Ken, I am going far far far away from home. It's too hard to deal with the memories and loneliness at home. I don't know how others manage to do it after a spouse is gone. The best thing about Christmas was when Ken Skyped me from overseas on Xmas. I was able to see him for the first time in about 6 months, and I got to watch him open the box of presents I sent him. That was the best gift I could have ever received. Seriously, I'm getting teary now just remembering it. It was one of the brightest spots in several weeks of feeling terribly sad.

January:

Once the last family Christmas gathering was done, I felt an enormous weight lifted off my shoulders. I awoke that day with renewed energy and a sense of being ok. I've never felt such a sense of exhaustion being swept away. Amazing what a calendar change can do to a person. Though school was about to start again, I had Ken's two-week leave visit to look forward to. He was home and we had a wonderful time together. It was just like before he left, wonderful. We spent time at home, with family, and then traveled to Wisconsin to see friends. We also took a trip to Branson to get away. The time went by far too quickly, and before we knew it, he had to return.

February:

Thank goodness for short months. I've been keeping busy with work, sewing, and knitting. The last two are my two hobbies that I picked up at the start of this year. So far, I'm loving them, and am working on quilting, which is something I've wanted to learn how to do for a very long time. It's a slow-going process when there is so much other work to do on the weekends, but I've been trying to make time for myself.

March...?

March begins tomorrow. Only 2 weeks left until Spring Break. Boy, am I ready for it. I'm feeling better, but have reached the point where I just want this deployment to be over. I need life to get back to "normal" or at least for us to figure out what "normal" actually means. For starters, I'll try to be better about posting. :-)