If you didn’t know, “LDR” stands for long distance relationship, and if you have ever been in one, you know.

The Man and I are lucky in that we have the ability to see each other every six weeks or so, sometimes even sooner.  We usually talk for at least an hour a night on the phone, and more often than not, we’ll call each other a few times a day to say hey, or to share something exciting that just happened, or just because one of us is having a moment.  Those moments creep up sometimes when you actually allow yourself to realize how much you miss the person you love, miss looking at their face, or holding their hand, or just breathing the same air.

The good that comes from this is that we don’t take each other for granted.  I’ve mentioned before that we are perfectly content to just ride around in his truck when we are together, because WE ARE TOGETHER.  The flip side of that is going through the other weeks of your life without your partner, experiencing it like a person who has a cold and can’t taste food.  You know you have to eat, but it’s just not as much fun.

The day or two after you say goodbye are the absolute hardest.  I still cry. every. freaking. time.  I give myself a day to be a baby, and then I force myself to put my big girl panties on and face the world partner-less again.  The next couple of weeks are hard – the times when you say to yourself, “I’ll have to tell The Man that when I get home,” and then you realize he won’t be there when you get home.  The middle weeks are the most bearable, but only just.  And then the closer you get to seeing your love again, The fog kind of lifts, and the harder it is to concentrate on things like work, getting dressed, and driving.  You start to think, “I actually get to touch him in a few more days!” and then shake your head at yourself, that you are so excited to be able to touch another person’s hand (Hey! What were you thinking?? Get your mind out of the gutter…).  And then the day comes and you are excited and happy, but it’s also awkward because there are other people around, but there he is, and Wow, I’m looking as his real-live actual face – Gah!  And then a day or two before we say good bye again, I start to get sad again, and the cycle continues…

I get to see him tomorrow (YES, tomorrow!), and I can’t wait.  I will be so thankful when we won’t have to do this ever again (see how I tied that upcoming holiay in there, huh?).