Counting our Blessings: What I Have learned...

I have been accumulating this list, and waiting to post it since last year. After 363 days apart, my husband is coming home. It has felt like a lifetime at times, but I survived with the help of my family, friends, and a little bit of wine! Here is what I have learned over this past year....

How to pay the bills
How to not be so nice to people who don't LISTEN (people at big companies who don't know there is a war going on in Iraq apparently, refer back to November and December for more clarification)
How to plunge a toilet
How to get rid of a spider/bug by myself (NOTE : I did not say kill, I covered it up with a cup, then slid a paper underneath and freed it outside)
How to make a claim on our house insurance (Refer to January and the fallen tree)
How to get a car fixed and NOT panic (Refer to December and Michael's Honda)
How to get rid of a mouse (GROSS, even though I learned I will NOT do it again)
Train for a loooong run
Use the weed wacker
How to get the furnace fixed (Refer to March)
How to sleep by myself (not so well, but I did it)
How to burglar proof myself (There are certain checks I perform every night, you have no idea!)
How to fix a lawn mower (Refer to May)
How to get the air conditioner fixed (Refer to August)
That little fights that you won't remember the next day won't matter
Anyone who said to me 'It will be here before you know it' or 'Time will go by so fast' has never been apart from someone they love for an extended amount of time and deserves to be punched....in the face....more than once
Even if Michael spends all night on the computer instead of spending 'quality' time, he is still here and with me, and that's all that matters
I will never take for granted the time he vacuums, cleans, takes cares of the dogs, or fills up my car with gas. Although I felt at times it wasn't enough, it is more than I could ever ask for
I love him more than one can imagine
Wine, while tasty, can be the devil when you are already prone to sadness
How to fix the lawn mower
How to recharge a car battery
How to fix the weed whacker (Seriously, what haven't I fixed, cut me a break)
How to deal with the State Department of Education and TRY to get my husbands classes to count (I would yell at anyone for him)
How to take advantage of money earned while he is deployed and take MORE classes...what else is new
How to ask for help when I need it (sometimes)
How to move an ENTIRE upstairs, and then move it back when you get new carpet installed (NEVER moving again without him....he got out of that one)
How to connect with my husband emotionally, verbally. You have to when you are 6000 miles apart
How to get a payment back from the city that you weren't supposed to make
Soldiers are not the only ones who sacrifice, military families deserve gold stars for what they endure
Never waste a moment to tell someone you love them, hug them or hold their hand. Those are things you miss the most. (And pizza night)
Being apart from someone you love is unbearable at times, and physically painful
But having them come home in one piece is worth more than I can ever express