getting closer to deployment...

August is almost over, and my October deployment is rapidly approaching! We are in full force with our planning for the upcoming year. It has been really tough for us to try to make the right choices about what our family should do during the deployment. As I have said on this blog approximatey 1 million times, Cris and I are beyond blessed with the awesomest families EVER! i can't imagine what these last 2 years would have been like without our families, who have done everything from fly to Vietnam to help bring home Juneau, to living in a tiny hotel room to take care of newborn Nova while i was stranded by myself in Michigan for 2 months.

This fall things get really complex. Cris is currently in Hawaii getting the school year started off, then he will come back to colorado until i deploy in October. He will then move back to Hawaii to teach until I am back from Afghanistan in April/May. We had originally planned for the girls to stay with the Matus gang in Ohio from October until December while Cris was in Hawaii. I loved this plan. The girls adore Aunt Coral and their cousins. In fact, today Juneau tripped and fell pretty hard and when she stood up she said "I didn't even cry! I'm tough, like Alex and Lyndsey!". It seemed like the perfect plan until Cris' last trip to Hawaii, when Nova pretty much melted down while her daddy was gone. This girl LOVVVEEESSS her daddy. It was really pitiful to see her completely stressed out, not eating much, not sleeping much, and spending a lot of the day crying and irritable. When i realized how much it was affecting her to be separated from Cris, I had to re-evaluate our initial plan. I am already devastated to have to be away from the girls for 6 months, and i suddenly couldn't bear the thought that they would be separated from both Mom and Dad. As much as i know they would absolutely love 2 months with their cousins, i just wasnt sure how much it would affect them to be away from both parents. and I know cris woudl be unbelievably lonely by himself in Hawaii without any of his girls (not even his huskies!). We decided that we really wanted to keep our little family together as much as possible while I am deployed, so I started to pray hard about options. Just about that time, my sister Becky told me about an awesome young couple at their church in Florida.

Meet Nelson and Katy....our new nannies!

Nelson and Katy sounded like a perfect fit from the start! They love kids, and are super involved in the Children's Church that my sister and her husband lead. They seem really fun loving, adventurous, and easy going! Becky called Nelson and threw the idea out there, and after talking to Katy they accepted our offer to move to Hawaii and watch the girls while i am deployed!!! we are so excited about this answer to prayer, and we hope Nelson and Katy love Hawaii as much as we do!