My heart broke at my daughter's face, the way her bright blue eyes looked up at me, begging me for an answer. I knew the kids missed their father, they didn't quite understand what he was doing. All they knew was he was under the water. Surrounded by a large metal tube that they would commonly refer to as a subbie.

The kids didn't know what submarine Logan was on, and it was better that way. The less they knew and the less they had to worry about the better. But in this moment I wished I could tell them everything, could ease Maze's mind and tell her about all the things her dad would be doing.

But I didn't even know what her dad would be doing.

The more I thought about it, I wasn't even sure how to tell a six year old what was going on. Why her father had to leave every so often, and he was just gone for six or nine months at a time. When he came home he wasn't able to talk about it. How do you help them understand those feelings?

"Mom my sink is crying again!" A panicked cry rings through the air from the twins bathroom. I set down the washcloth I was using to clean up the dishes. An exhausted sigh escapes my lips as I bend over and grab my toolkit from underneath the kitchen sink.

When Logan gets home we will buy a house.

I have to keep reminding myself of better days.

We were doing fine, living in a small town just outside of his base. We had a nice enough apartment, mostly so we could save money for the home of our dreams. One on the hill overlooking the water, just like Logan wants, and Victorian style with a wraparound porch like I want. We weren't sure if we would have to build or buy, but we couldn't do anything until Logan was home.

The struggles of being a Navy Wife without power of attorney.

I lug the large toolkit into the kids bathroom quickly shutting both of the sink faucets off. Marcus would usually panic when this happens and leave the water running. I shook my head, getting down on my knees in the water soaked floor.

Just a few more days.

Placing the bag beside me, I reach for the adjustable wrench. It was already set to the correct size due to how often this has been happening. Placing it on the pipe I begin to go to work on tightening it.

Marcus watches carefully over my shoulder, cautious to fully expose himself. Mazie runs to grab towels out of the linen closet, and soon enough she was bringing me their 'Minions' beach towels.

"Mommy, why does it do that?" Marcus questions. He seems shy, and timid, he is noticeably scared. The sudden water leaking out the bottom of the cupboard will freak him out.

"Cause it's old, it needs a new seal, and well it's just cheap." I grit my teeth as I put as much force into the last turn. If Logan was here he would just fix it, or call the landlords--though they were never any help. But when he is gone, it's all about surviving.

Just a few more days.

I remind myself once again, now that I was finally finished with the faulty pipe. There were so many other things I needed to do around the rental. I needed to dust window seals, vacuum the carpets, donate the kids clothes that were too small for them, wipe down the kitchen counters, fix the lock on the bathroom door, and repaint the portion of the wall that Marcus bashed his scooter into last week.

The list was growing, because it didn't even count what I still needed to do for the kids tonight. They have their bedtime routine, each needed to take a bath and brush their teeth before cleaning up four toys each. Once that is done I will read them a story and off to bed for them.

I shook my head, feeling the stress build up in my body, but then I remembered my knees. They were soaking wet from kneeling against the bathroom floor. Marcus had let the water run long enough for it to cover nearly the entire bathroom.

I cursed myself for not getting here sooner. I grabbed the nicely folded towels that Mazie had ruffled up when she brought them in. Dropping the first one on the floor I went to work on my first chore of the night.

The kids watch carefully as if I was an elephant in a tiny cage. Peeking around me to make sure I got all of the water.

Soon enough the job was done. My knees begin to ache, only slightly relieved when I stand up and rush the dripping towels to the washing machine.

I nearly trip on a pile of toys left outside of the door in the hallway, stubbing my toe against the wall. Using my shoulder to stabilize myself I allowed the searing pain to wash through my body. Marcus and Mazie rush to the living room shouting after one another about some space monkey game they've been playing. Once I was finally alone I allowed myself to relax--even if it was just slightly.

"Shit." The word fell out of my mouth like poison, but it tasted so sweet against my tongue. The pain of my throbbing foot, the stress from my large list of chores, and the emotions of missing my husband were all piling up.

"Kids, come clean up this pile of toys...Now!" I barked, holding the towels as high as I could to make sure they didn't drip on the carpet. The two of them come rushing around the corner, arms wide as if they were airplanes soaring through the crowds.

"We dropped the package in the wrong location, and master chief is ordering for us to redeliver!" Marcus shouts, rushing past the pile of toys before making a sharp turn at the end of the hallway. "I'll get the tractor you get the dinosaurs!" He shouts once again before making a static noise with his lips.

"Aye aye Captain," Mazie calls following behind him with her arms just as wide.

Marcus swoops down, crouching as low as he can, bending his knees to slow the whole 'plane' down before grabbing the truck off the floor. He makes a whooshing noise before straightening up and sprinting away from the mess and back towards the living room.

"We will have to circle around to get the shipment back to the bedroom." Marcus chuckles, as he stops at their makeshift fuel station--the couch.

"Aye Aye!" Mazie shouts once more. She follows his actions. Swooping down to grab the dinosaurs scattered across the floor and quickly makes her way to the couch to sit next to her brother.

My heart is filled with so much warmth, the stress slowly fading away. It didn't matter if I had a million chores. The reason there are chores is because Logan and I made such a beautiful set of kids.

I finally drop the towels in the washing machine, and while waiting to hear the normal thud of them hitting the metal I check the time. It was half past eight. The kids were already behind on their bedtime routine, but at least it was a weekend. I glanced around the laundry room, noticing that I was rather behind on the clothes as well. The kids have piled their clothes in front of the hamper instead of in it, versus my husbands hamper that usually would house his uniform, but now was the host of the overflow clothes.

Add laundry to the list.

I flipped the light off before closing the door behind me. Laundry and the vacuuming would have to wait till tomorrow. It was too late now to even worry about it.

"Toys in your room now please, you guys need to take quick baths tonight. I mean it." I point at the kids as they jump from the couch and head straight towards their room.

I found my place at the sink once again, trying to finish up the last few dishes before I emptied out the dishwasher. Everywhere I turned there was something else that needed to be done. It was moments like this I wished I had the second pair of hands.

Logan was always so good with bedtime. He loved playing with the kids, helping them clean up their toys and reading them a story.

I missed him. The more I thought about him the more the pit in my stomach started to tighten. I had to keep reminding myself that this wasn't forever. He was still with us, he still cared, he just had a job to do. As much as I wish I could change that, the military has been an amazing thing for our family.

Mazie was the first to come out of the bathroom, she had already put on her favorite pajamas, a pair of blue ones with rubber ducks on them. She pulled the step stool out from underneath the kitchen sink and placed it right next to my feet. Her tiny little feet slap against the plastic stool as she reaches for her toothbrush. I hand it to her, closing the distance between her and what she needed. She wets it under the water, places some toothpaste on it, and begins to brush her teeth.

She watches me carefully as I grab a few Clorox wipes from under the counter. I'd be able to wipe the counters down while she did that and dusting the window seals wouldn't take too long either.

Soon her hero would be home. The kids would pay more attention to him than they would to me. Things will be hard.

My heart started pounding in my chest. The phone call they would make to inform me that his submarine was docked was almost the worst. The feeling of him being near land and not being close to us would kill me...every...single...time. It never got easier, it only got harder.

The more he leaves, the more the kids notice. The more they start to ask questions, pulling me out of my own mind and reminding me that my husband was away. I'd have to take a moment to compose myself before answering their questions. Giving myself that second was crucial to not break down in front of them.

I was grateful for all the chores I had to do, it keeps me entertained, and really the more I stressed out about laundry and dusting the less I stressed about my husband's life.

"You're good, go ahead and spit," I muttered looking up at the blonde-haired girl that was brushing violently until I told her she didn't have to anymore. She plops over, spitting into the sink before running the water to wash it away. She jumped off the stool and went to sit on the couch until her brother was finished.

Once the counters had been disinfected I grabbed the duster and head towards the windows. Pulling the blinds up just enough that I could dust underneath them. I wiped the pile of dirt away, making sure to trap as much of it as possible.

Mazie watches me like a hawk, her mind slowly ticking away.

"What are you thinking about baby?" I ask her, turning to give her a quick smile.

"Daddy."

Once again my heart breaks. My whole body is covered in trembling skin, overtaken by the thoughts of how she must be feeling. I shook my head, turning back to the windows.

"Okay I'm ready!" Marcus shouts, saving the day from the awkward conversation. I never knew a six-year-old could be my savior and my biggest downfall all at the same time.

I rushed over to the sink to help Marcus brush his own teeth before gathering the kids for bedtime. Maybe storytime would get their thoughts off of their dad?