Easter, minus 1

Holidays are great!  A time for getting together with family and friends...that is unless your husband is in PA school.  Now I'm not saying that holidays are NO fun, they have just taken on a new meaning (along with birthday parties, anniversaries, weddings, and other normally joyous occasions).  I used to get invitations to parties or texts for dinner on Saturday night with friends and think "Oh, let me look at the calendar and see if we are free."  Now, I think "Oh, let me look at Husbands class schedule and see what exams he might have in the following week that might effect his ability to de-stress long enough to enjoy doing something fun and be a normal person for 3 hours (not the distracted person he is when he thinks he should be studying instead of doing whatever it is we are doing)."  Whew.  Yes, my blood pressure goes up thinking about it.

With that said, this Easter we celebrated with my in-laws who were in from out of town.  They joined us at our amazing church for a wonderful service and an great brunch buffet (insert over-full stomach).  Then, it was off to my side of the family's celebration but it was minus Husband.  He had to study.  This was his first year to miss Little Man's Easter egg hunt.  And yes, it was pointed out that Husband was missing from the picture by the tree in my grandmothers yard (long standing family tradition).  A year ago a comment like that would have caused me to melt down, cry, scream, and then haunt me for days (or weeks, but who's counting).  But yesterday I proudly responded "Well, this will just be 'that year that Husband had to study'."  And confidently pointed out that it shouldn't happen next year because Husband will be on rotations! YEAH!

The take away lesson from this is that traditions are great, but that doesn't mean we have to be devastated or disappointed if they happen a little different one year. As for the picture by the tree?  We got one, just by a different tree!  Pretty good compromise if you ask me.