And the Countdown Begins!

If you haven't experienced an Air Force deployment, you might imagine a big farewell with American flags, sobbing spouses, and a big group of uniformed men boarding a huge plane while their families wave goodbye from the tarmac. It might be like that for Army families, or a whole squadron deploying from a stateside base. For our family, it was much quieter, with no fanfare, and nobody else around.
B said goodbye to Layla the night before since she would still be sleeping when he left the following morning. His flight left out of Frankfurt, a little over an hour away. It was a regular old commercial flight, not a military rotater. This also meant traveling in normal clothes, not in uniform. He had to be there really early, and instead of waking Layla and then having me drive back upset and alone on the autobahn, B took an Alex shuttle from our house. We got up at 3:45 am, and B began getting dressed. I stayed in bed until 4:00, enjoying the last few minutes of hearing him in the other room. His shuttle pick up was scheduled for 4:45, so we had forty five minutes to sit together on the couch, with the background noise of Sports Center trying to drown out some of the noise in our heads. We didn't talk much; what is there to say at that point, anyway? I went to the restroom at 4:40 and when I came out, the shuttle had arrived five minutes early! I know it was only five minutes, but they were MY five minutes and I felt so robbed. "No! Tell them they have to come back!" I remember telling my calm husband, so handsome in his khakis, button down, and blue pullover sweater. Of course, that wasn't realistic. I tucked the card I had written into his pocket, hugged him as much as I could with all of his gear he was carrying, and gave him one last kiss before picking up the dog so she didn't run out the front door after him. Thumper and I stood watching in the doorway as the driver loaded B's stuff and then quickly sped away from our house. I let myself cry in bed for just a few minutes, because what does crying really change anyway? Then I called my parents and let my mom comfort me, read reassuring emails from Gina and CeCe, and waited for Layla to wake up so I could snuggle with her. The rest of the day was fairly normal, just grocery shopping, post office, and a walk with Thumper. I purged the house of anything B related, meaning I did all of the laundry including sheets and towels, any dish he used, cleaned any foods he eats but I don't out of the fridge. I needed to not be reminded that he was just there, so close that I could almost touch him but not quite. I have to say, I really think that helped. It allowed me to move forward and not linger on the goodbye. B messaged me to let me know he made it, which was relieving to hear. I also heard from so any good friends and family. To everyone who took the time to let me know you were thinking of me, thank you. I truly felt loved and looked after. I had dinner with my wonderful neighbor, Jamie, who is my guardian angel here. After a bath for Layla, I crawled into bed, thankful to put deployment day behind me!