A Whirlwind

Oh Dear, I guess this was supposed to have been posted two weeks ago... Well here is it now!


I have been sitting here trying to start a post and all I can think is I don’t know where to start! Since Friday of last week so much has happened!

On Friday, Phil’s grandpa passed away after a four year battle with cancer. He was a great man that welcomed me into the family without a second thought and will be missed! Phil and I both were quite sad that he would not be able to make it home for the funeral since he is in Germany. However on Sunday morning, I got a text from Phil letting me know that he was literally boarding a plane and would be landing in Chicago that night. I was so excited to see him I literally ran through the house yelling with excitement. With only text messages to plan, we decided that I would drive to Chicago and pick him up so that we were already in the area for the funeral Monday morning.

Before I left for Chicago I was able to get the house cleaned and ready for a house full of family this week and then hit the road. The trip down went really well. It was pretty quick, however I was SO excited to see Phil I think that distracted me from six hours of driving. I made it to the airport half an hour before his flight landed and forced myself to wait in the car for a little bit. I was so excited I could barely sit! When he finally got through customs and out I had waited about an hour, but every moment was worth it :)

Monday morning the visitation for his Grandpa started at 9:30. It was so nice to see  family we have not seen in a very long time. I am so glad that Phil was able to say goodbye and have that closure. We are extremely grateful for such a awesome company that would send him home for this. The rest of the day was spent with family at his Grandma’s house.

Once we left, we stopped and had dinner with my brother who lives in Milwaukee WI. It was awesome to see where he lived this last year and spend some time with him, even if it was just for a bit. He is coming up for the week today, so it was nice to know we would have more time later in the week to spend together.

Once we hit the road again to head home, Phil was so jet lagged it was almost funny! Needless to say, I knew he just needed to sleep, so I had brought a pillow and blanket knowing he would be wiped out and he slept almost the whole way home. I was so tired as well, but really wanted to get home to our own bed and not pay for another night in a hotel. Almost every time we passed a sign saying there was a hotel at an exit I was so tempted to stop! I pushed through though and we made it home a little after 1am in the morning.

Tuesday we slept in and just enjoyed a great day together. It was beautiful weather so we spent a lot of time outside. We also went to Como Zoo and had a lot of fun enjoying the animals and each other! I think because it was such a last minute trip, all day I kept on pinching myself that he was actually with me!

Since graduation is on Saturday, his boss was amazing and said he could stay and walk for the ceremony! I have cried so many times because I am so happy! It was really hard for me to think about graduating without him. In the past two years we have both been working so hard together and helping each other out as we do school, it just didn’t seem right to not finish with him. I am amazed at how God arranged everything so that he will be there. Seriously, every little detail has fallen into place!

Yesterday Phil and I were talking about how blessed we feel. Honestly, just thinking about it now gets me choked up. God has been so faithful to us and continues to do things that are totally unexpected. Phil being able to come home for graduation is just a small part of a huge picture. What a great and mighty God we serve!!

Today the week just gets sweeter because my Mom and Sister from New Mexico and Brother from Milwaukee are all flying in tonight and staying for a week and a half. I have not seen them since Thanksgiving and have missed them all so much! I am so thankful for this time we are going to spend together and JUST CANT WAIT TO SEE THEM TONIGHT!!!