Oh Jesse...

My Handsome Man left me for a week.

The house is so quiet and empty without him!

He chaperones the week of Outdoor Education that the 6th grade class gets to go on every year.  He loves this week to bits.  It takes him back to his days as a camp counselor, and I can bet my money that he'll dance through the door on Friday afternoon singing every camp song he ever learned...and then he'll sleep for 17 hours straight.  When he wakes up, it'll be more lively camp songs until I have to beg him to stop.  He loves it!

I don't love this time away from him, though.  I hate being away from him--even for one night, let alone 4.  I'm thankful that he isn't away from me often (probably a total of 3 weeks a year) compared to my friends' husbands who are deployed, take extended business trips, or work 24 hour shifts at a time.  Still, these times away from him are more than enough for me.

I sat on our bed last night helping him pack his bag.  Up in the mountains, it's supposed to be in the 30s and 40s during the day, dipping much lower at night.  I insisted that he bring along his heaviest jacket, as well as a medium-weight hoodie so that he could layer as much as he needed to during the day.   He laughed at my concern, but was thankful that I helped him find his gloves, hat, and boots, too.

Before we went to sleep last night, we sat at the kitchen table together and wrote 5 notes to each other: one for each day.  We've always done this--ever since we were dating.  I'm sure it's mostly for me; I hate being left behind and looking forward to curling up in bed at night to read a love letter from him keeps me going through the day.  (But I suspect he enjoys them, too).

Also, according to tradition, he put some of his aftershave on my pig.  I'll have to put up a picture of the beloved stuffed animal that keeps me company every night Jesse's away from me.  Way back when we were dating, I slept with the pig every night.  Jesse started scenting it with his aftershave (I love that scent so much!  It still makes my heart flutter to smell it on his neck when he comes home) so that it would sweeten my dreams.  I loved that he did that, because the longer we dated, the harder it was to say goodbye to him at the end of the night.  I couldn't wait until we were married and could "say goodnight and stay together!"  Aaaaaaanyway, Jesse still scents my pig on nights that he is away.  I love it.  (And don't worry, when I have something much more attractive to sleep with, the pig occupies a lonely chair in the corner!)

I took as long as I possibly could to get out of bed this morning.  It's hard to leave warm arms when you know they won't be wrapped around you for 4 more days.  Jesse got up, helped me pack my lunch, and waved goodbye to me from the porch as I drove off to work.

I came home to an empty house tonight.  Jesse usually isn't home until after I am, but on nights when I know he's not coming home, the house seems much more empty without him.

Guess what I found on our bed, though, next to my freshly-scented pig?  Jesse's jacket, hoodie, gloves, and hat, with his boots on the floor below.  Ack!  Crazy man!  How do you head up to the snow-covered mountains and forget your SNOW GEAR?!?  Lol, only my guy...

Now I'm just praying he doesn't freeze.  I really want him home on Friday.