What a Weekend!

On Friday, Prince William married the ridiculously beautiful Kate Middleton!
They say we as Americans are fascinated by this wedding (and these people) because it is like a fairytale. The Prince falls in love with a beautiful "commoner." Maybe. Or maybe it's because we watched Prince William grow up, and he was the cutest kid/teen. Or maybe it's because Princess Diana was every where in the media for so many years. Or maybe it's because when she passed we all made a special place in our hearts for William and Harry. Or maybe it's because America came from England. Or maybe it's that we are so fascinated by royalty because in this country the closest we have to Royalty are celebrities and politicians, and there's a thin line between love and hate with them. Yeah, I'm going with that. We DVR'ed the royal wedding on E! ...All FIVE hours of it. And I spent my Saturday on the couch watching the entire thing, fast forwarding through commercials of course. And I decided I am in love with hats, and both me and Olivia are going to where them whenever we can!
And I have two more thoughts on this wedding. The first is that I honestly, from the bottom of my heart, hope Prince William and Kate get their Happy Ending; Big, beautiful family, along with true, unconditional, unbreakable love. I do!
Second, there was a part of me that watched the wedding as a parent, being that I have been one for some time now. And I had to shed a tear or two, or ten, for Princess Diana. I couldn't help but think how I wished she was there, and how she could see her first born getting married. Once you have kids, you're not scared of dying... you're scared of leaving... you're scared of missing things. My daughter is not even 2 years old, and I look forward to helping her plan her wedding more than almost anything. And to miss that. Ouch. And for Prince William, or any child who gets married with a parent gone... how bittersweet. A Wedding day should be the happiest day of your life, with nothing bittersweet about it. So my heart went out to all of them there.
And that was Friday, and a lot of my Saturday.
Sunday Osama Bin Laden was announced dead. Osama Bin Freaking Laden. After ten years. TEN YEARS. Many, many, many thoughts traveled through my head. Disbelief, of course. As well as, "Why couldn't we have found him ten years earlier." Before so much was lost, before so much was sacrificed, before so many were sacrificed. At that same moment I was so grateful, because finally, finally, finally, we had a sense of closure. All gave some and some gave all, and at last... it was not in vain.
And then back to how much I gave. And I couldn't help but think not that it was not in vain, but that it was not necessary. The year plus I spent away from my husband. The seven months of my son's first year where my husband was away. Every single day being SCARED. I remembering bawling my eyes out the day he deployed, and how much worse it was when he had to go back. I was 24 years old with a 2 week old baby, and the moment I got back from dropping my husband off at the airport, to go fight in an unwinnable war, I walked in the door and fell to the ground and cried. Weeks with out hearing from him, praying and pleading with God on a daily basis... and all of that could have been prevented. And how ridiculous that these were my thoughts. But they were. Maybe it was my own way of coping, of allowing myself to be happy about someone passing.
This man, he didn't just hurt my country, my peers... he hurt me, personally. Even still, his debts are with God, not me. But I do feel closure. I feel that the pain that so many people I love had to feel, as well as people I will never meet... it was not in vain. We got the bad guy. And God Bless America.
As I said, what a weekend!