Bye Madtown...

Saturday

maybe if we keep sleeping, the day won't actually start...

sam's dad had flown in last night and we all (strater, james, sam and i) saw prometheus after the kids were put to bed. when we woke up, it was time to pack our van and head out to utah.

it was also time to say good-bye to our neighbors and friends. 

tessa.

isaiah, anna, tristine, dominic, and makayah.

the girls.

good ol' ascot lane apartment.

our neighbors, the L family. 

this street has been good to us.

packing up.

a stop to see the M family.

goof balls.

two peas in a pod. these guys have been best friends since preschool.

i'm gonna miss my buddy, too.

we love you M family!

another stop. this time at the union to snap a pic on the gigantic chair.

i was such ball of mixed up emotions. nothing about this day seemed real at all. i held my tears in and smiled like i was going to be back at the end of the summer. after all, it would be silly to bawl my eyes out, bidding my friends farewell, only to return in a couple months announcing that we're back. but, what if we didn't? i watched the green signs directing us back to our home on ascot lane whiz past as we drove westward. back to utah. back to where we fell in love. back to the start of our family. back. would it feel like home again? would we ever come back to see where isaiah and makayah went to preschool? kindergarten? where the babies were born? where daddy went to law school? 

as the darkness set in and we crossed the state line and officially left the state of wisconsin, i couldn't help but get choked up seeing the flickering fireflies along side the road and think back to when the kids would chase them during the warm summer nights after isaiah's baseball games in the park.

all i could do was hope that the many friends i didn't get to say a proper good-bye to would still be there when i did come back at the end of the summer. i needed to be optimistic. this can't be the last time i see madison.