Daddy's Girl............

You know, each kid is different

with how they handle David's

deployments.

The boys had each other to keep them

occupied when David would deploy

on the submarine.

I made sure that we always had alot to do

while David was gone to help pass the time.

We were in a fabulous community of friends then too,

which really helped the boys feel

a sense of "family" beyond family.

Madison had lots of tearful days

and some confusion when David would deploy

when she was very little,

but David really didn't deploy alot

during the time that she was 5-9 years old.

It's a whole other story with Bren.

The other night,

I heard her crying in her room.

I went to check on her,

and she was holding this photo

and was just consumed with sadness.

She just kept saying over and over again

that she missed her Daddy.

She finally calmed down

when I let her call his cell phone

and leave a message for him.

It went like this.....

"Da-da-daddy, I miss you!

I am cr-cr-crying for you right n-n-now.

I mi-mi-miss you and I love you.

bye."

Heart breaking, huh?

She's always had a special bond with her daddy
and I'm so thankful for their relationship.
She calls him her prince
and she has no doubt that
she's his princess.


From the very moment of her birth,
everyone could tell what a profound effect he had on her.
I had a c-section, so I was not able to
hold her immediately.
David was right by her side though.
We have the very first moments of her life
on video and when I played it back for the first time
I was sitting there with tears running down my face
and just in awe over what I was seeing.
Bren was fussy from the get-go.
She grimaced, seemed uncomfortable
and cried alot while I was in the recovery room
waiting to meet her,
but every single time her Daddy spoke to her
she immediately quieted and was very still and content.
She gripped his finger as he spoke softly to her.
It was amazing.
He'd stop talking and she'd start crying.
No one else's voice would calm her.
Just his.

There is just no denying the importance

of a compassionate, protective Father in a little girl's life.

Brendell and Madison are so very blessed.

But along with a bond this close,

comes pain at separation.

Bren has unfortunately already weathered

three long deployments and two mini ones

in her five years of life.

That kinda hurts.

And so, she has finally begun to express

her sadness in sudden and all-consuming

bouts of free flowing, shoulder shaking tears.

We all have our coping mechanisms

to get us through and right now

dramatic emotion is hers.

It's been a hard few days for her

as we round third base of this short deployment

and run like crazy toward home plate.

She has asked me about 20 times a day

when he'll be home.

Soon, baby girl.

Very soon.

She'll be at school when he arrives, but

you can bet that he'll be waiting at the

bus stop to wrap his arms around her.

Finally.

She definitely dileriously loves and adores
her Daddy
and is a proud Daddy's girl!
He leaves a big void here when he's gone.
In honor of David's fast approaching homecoming
the "Love Song" I'm featuring on my playlist today
is very appropriately
"Daddy's Home"
by Jackson 5.



Hang in there Bren!

You can hug the real thing very soon!!