A mixed bag of emotions. Happy and sad. Eighteen days with my friend and her little ones. So much more than we had expected, yet not nearly long enough.

I had such a good time visiting with Amy. Having her and her kids along on our vacation was so great. Getting to spend some more time with them once we got back to Tennessee was the icing on the cake. The many miles between us makes her leaving especially hard. It was easier last time, when we knew we would get to see each other in only about a month’s time. This time, though, we don’t know when we’ll get to see each other again. We both have school. We both have kids in school. Mostly, though, we have 573 miles between us. It’s tempting to just feel bad about the fact that I have this great friend that I can’t see nearly often enough, but, after I think about it, I should really just be thankful that God blessed me with her friendship in the first place. It really is amazing.

We didn’t even know each other before this summer. I had left a couple of comments on her blog at the beginning of the year, but that was it until right before Chris went to Fort Jackson. A week or so before he left, Amy sent me an email with her phone number in case I needed someone to talk to while Chris was gone, being all chaplain’y. We began chatting, and, after Chris left, we started talking a lot. With both of our husbands gone for the Army, we had lots of empty time to fill up. I actually kicked my horrible, time-sucking t.v. habit because of all of the time I spent talking to her online. Through just random commenting on blogs and email and IM conversations, we got to be great friends. Five weeks or so into a new friendship, Amy got on a plane and flew to Nashville where I picked her up, having never met in real life or even known each other online for more than a few weeks. She went with me to Fort Jackson, and then stayed with me for a week. We spent a week hearing each other’s stories, talking, listening to music, and even praying together. Even now, writing this, it astounds me at how quickly we became friends. It was definitely a God thing. We both needed each other, and the miles and circumstances that normally would have prevented us from ever meeting were nothing to God.

So now, at the closing of my summer, I can’t help but be amazed. I was awfully lonely when this summer started. God has filled it up with good things. These last eighteen days have been so good for me. We have enjoyed our visit immensely. Our kids enjoyed it, too. They alternately played and fought, sang and tattled, played outside and played on the computers. These are definitely our kids. It’s kind of sad when, in a house with four computers hooked up and online, we had a computer shortage. Our kids spent hours with all four of the big kids sitting together in my desk chair playing the computer, on opposite ends of the kitchen table playing with each other, or crammed onto the chair.

I love this picture. They are still all hot and sweaty from playing outside, and are laughing like crazy over some silly computer game.

I expected Kyra and Sarah to spend all their time playing girly things like Barbies and baby dolls, but, while they did like to play with each other, it was Jeremiah and Kyra who hit it off the best. They spent hours and hours and hours playing computer games together. They also had some pretty spectacular, freaking out arguments. Is an arranged marriage out of the question?

It was so cool to see our kids having fun together. I really love those Maxwell kids.

Amy was pretty fond of my kids, too, but I think it was pretty obvious that she love, love, loves Owen the most. Shh. Don’t tell.

We had such a good time, it’s hard to see the visit end. Instead of being all sad about it, though, I’m just going to be thankful. Thankful for good friends and the opportunity to spend time with them.

God is really good to me. Really, really good.