On Being Away From Home

I’ve been away on a business trip since Friday.  Back at home, 1100 miles away, things have been nuts: my older daughter got carsick on Friday night (puking all over herself) and the water heater broke on Saturday (leaking in the basement, and resulting in no water for the showers or dishwasher).  My mom is there to help, but I wish that I were there, too.  Today I’ve been on my cell phone calling the builder of our house (it is only four years old) and a local plumber, and it looks like they’ll have warm water again today.

But I’ve missed not only the crises, but also celebrations.  Yesterday our church threw a shower for Jessicah and Cana, giving them a nice bundle of new baby clothes and an extremely generous gift of cash.  As we begin to deal with several expenses related to the baby, this gift is amazingly helpful.  And as we’re still relatively new to this church and neighborhood, this touching embrace and wonderful support is very heartwarming.

Today my older daughter came home from daycare with two stamps on her hand – meaning that she had two successful trips to the potty!  This is great news.  She turned three years old last month, and until recently has showed little interest in the potty.  I talked to her on the phone, and she is so darn excited and proud of herself.  Of course, so am I.

I wish that I were there to celebrate these things with Jessicah, Tali and Cana as a family . . . times like this make me really, really resent business trips.  I’ll be home tomorrow.