sweet goodbyes

my sister, rebekah, joined the air force right around the time that
david and i got married. the first place she was stationed was
here in tucson at davis-monthan afb.
we have really enjoyed having their family so close by.
while we don't get to see each other too often just
because of her busy work schedules, we still find
the time to get together. her abby was born just weeks before
our jenna, and for awhile last fall, abby stayed with us a couple
afternoons each week.
a few months back, rebekah got the news that she would
be going to iraq for 6 months. of course, that means
the family stays behind. i'm sure most people would freak out,
but rebekah handled it all so well. she understands that it
is the way it is, and to just make the best of it.
so instead of being sad and depressed about leaving,
she decided to just think of it as an adventure.
(don't worry, she works at the command post, mostly answering phones and what not.)
she's spent the last few months getting things in order with
her family, making sure everything is cared for-
AND found out that when she returns in september
she is being stationed at Ramstein AB in Germany!
that is super exciting news; she is thrilled!
as much as we love having them close by, and seeing the girls
grow up together, we are excited, and a little jealous, of their upcoming
adventure in europe (we are planning to take both kids with us
spring break 2010 to visit not only rebekah and her family,
but dave's brother rob and his family while they are still there).

now for the point of my post----
rebekah's deployment date got shifted two week up- which means she left today.
she only found this out with less than two weeks to finish getting her affairs
in order. we wanted to make sure and get some time in to spend with
her, but with all the 'goings ons' we almost ran out of time.
we were ableto squeeze in yesterday afternoon to
have them over for brunch at linner time. :)

jenna loves her auntie bekah!
she always gives her such great hugs, but was really not interested in stopping
her current activities for a photo shoot.

what rebekah did not know about the sunday activities, was that
i had invited my family from phoenix to join us. my sisters were able to
surprise her by visiting for the afternoon. auntie rissa was more than eager to
read library book after library book to richard.

i don't know how i didn't get a picture of auntie katee (sorry kate)...
a picture of the sisters would have been nice too... sometime i think i should compose
a blog before events, so i know just what picture would work great.

we ate delicious french toast, cheese omelets, sausage, bacon, hash browns...
all followed by another yummy cake.
it was a really nice family afternoon, and we are so glad to have
had the time to be together.

here is a quick shot of my 'oh so handsome beardless husband' trying to
hang onto both little girls. (don't you love how sometimes it's impossible to
get a clear picture because they just can't stay still!!?) abby loves her
uncle dave, and jenna likes to claim her territory when she's around.

i think that's about it.
*thank you bek's for squeezing us in on your last afternoon with your family*
*thanks to rissa and kate for making the drive and visiting with all of us*

see you in less than 200 days.

love you!