The in-laws are coming! The in-laws are coming!
Actually, a whole bunch of in-laws are coming. Both Jen's parents from Florida, her aunt from Boston, and her sister-in law and her niece and nephew from Virginia are all arriving tonight. And with Jen's brother Mike already stationed here, it's not only one of the largest gatherings of her family in Hawai`i... it's one of the largest gatherings of her family in a while, period.
The bigger news, though, is that when Jen's parents leave, Jen and the kids are going with them, "visiting them back" in Daytona Beach for three weeks.
These admittedly infrequent trips are still painful, emotionally and financially. But just the way Jen glows and smiles the moment she knows she can go makes it almost worth it.
Besides, on the bright side, I can play bachelor for a while. (Not that I'm all that good at it, though.) Anyone wanna see some movies?