Home again............

Well, I'm home again. You may not have known I was gone again, but I was. My friend Ashley and I took off yesterday morning and went to Little Rock to see Rascal Flatts and Kellie Pickler in concert. We went and saw R.F. two years ago in Little Rock and decided that anytime they come close we are going to go. They put on an AWESOME concert and Kellie Pickler was great too, believe it or not.

We had a great time and I'm so glad we went. I wasn't necessarily looking forward to being away from home again, but it was only for a night, so that wasn't bad. I'm home for awhile now though and I'm so thankful! I'm looking forward to sleeping good in my own bed.

Despite the fun we had this weekend, it was also a sad weekend. I have an "Aunt" (by common law marriage) and Uncle who live in Altus, Arkansas. Picture in your head the typical "Arkansas Hillbilly" stereotype and you will have my Aunt and Uncle. Debbie, my Aunt, was put in the hospital earlier in the week and the word was, she might not make it. At the last possible minute yesterday, I pulled off at the Clarksville exit and we set out to find the hospital. We found it, asked where Debbie's room was and surprised my Uncle and cousin. When I walked into the room and my Uncle saw me, he just hugged me and we both bawled like babies. We didn't stay long, but that didn't matter, what mattered was that we showed up. We have no family in this area and my Uncle was all alone, except for their son who is 32 and mentally disabled. I know my Uncle loved the fact that someone was there for him and I was so glad to be that person. My mom and her other brothers had all offered to come be with them, but like any man, he wasn't ready to accept any help. It broke my heart to see my Uncle so heartbroken. He said "You know, sis, we lived hard and we played hard....we knew it would eventually catch up to us and it did." Yea, I bawled.

Debbie died a little bit after midnight last night. She was 52. I'm so thankful that I was able to stop by and see her and Uncle Gary one last time. I'm so thankful to have been the one to hug Uncle Gary and comfort him when he was so sad and down. He has told my mom numerous times since yesterday how our visit made his day. I can't put into words how much that means to me. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that our visit was totally a God thing. I'm so thankful to Him for making it possible to be there to comfort my Uncle when he needed someone in his corner. I am honored to have been that person.

My mom came down this evening. She is staying with us until tomorrow then she'll go on to Clarksville. Her other brother is with Uncle Gary right now, so she knows he's in good hands. Dad stayed home, which is something he's never done. She did ok driving down though and I'm sure will be fine. I know she's anxious to get to my Uncle so she can make sure he's ok. She and I are going to hang out in the morning before she leaves. I'm looking forward to that, as rarely do I get to spend time one on one with my mom.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week. I think it will definately be a much slower week at our house. At least that's what I'm hoping for!