Aug. 18, 2025
Dominique's Going Away Party
In this heartfelt episode of We Are the Hansons, we celebrate Dominique’s going away party with love, laughter, and plenty of family fun. From balloons to memories, our big family gathers to honor Dominique’s next chapter and reflect on the joy of being together. Tune in for stories, laughter, and the special ways we make goodbyes unforgettable.
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Welcome back to We Are the Hands in the podcast
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where family, faith and chaos meet laughter and love. Today's
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episode is one that hits the heart. We're sharing our
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trip to Illinois for Dominic's going away party before his
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deployment to Kuwait for an entire year. It was a
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weekend filled with family, swimming, laughter, and yes here's as
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reality set in for all of us, especially little toeign.
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This episode is about what it means to say goodbye
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or as we say, see us soon, the way kids
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process it, and how families stick together during hard times.
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The drive to Illinois was long, but we made it
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into an adventure, snacks playlist and the usual are we
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there yet questions from the back seats. The kids were
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excited because they knew cousins would be there and nothing
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beats cousin time in the Handsome family. When we finally
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pulled up, you could feel the excitement in the air.
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Dominic's party was the reason we came, but for the
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kids it was also about play, laughter and swimming. The
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first hugs were strong ones. Family you don't see every
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day always gets the biggest squeeze, and of course food
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was waiting. No hands in family trip is complete without
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table loaded with dishes everyone brought to share. The kids
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spotted the pool instantly, swim bags in hand. They were
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halfway changed before we even got our shoes off. Music
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was playing, people were laughing, and the energy was light.
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Even though the reason we gathered carried weight. Dominic, in
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his calm and humble way, kept smiling and thanking everyone
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for being there. You could tell he was soaking in
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every second with his family before leaving for such a
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long deployment. We set up chairs around the pool while
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the kids cannonballed in water, splashing everywhere, swimming the whole
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day away. Nothing says family like wet towels, dripping swimsuits
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and kids yelling watch this every thirty seconds. The adults
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sat and caught up on life. Who got a new job,
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who just had a baby, who's moving houses? Family news
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travels fast at these gatherings for us. Dominic went from
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group to group, hugging everyone, laughing and sharing stories like
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it has always been. You could tell he wanted to
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make everyone feel at ease, even though deep down we
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all knew it was a hard see you later. Meanwhile,
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the kids made up pool games. One group decided to
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race from one end to the pool to the other,
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with cousins acting like referees. Torn of course, was all
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about showing off her biggest splash, and so was Anna,
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and how long they could stand heer water. Every time
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they'd jump in, the whole pool erupted in laughter, because
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somehow the splash always found its way to the parents.
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Anneline was more about putting on the goggles and going
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under the water and seeing how long she could be
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pretending she was exploring the ocean. Maddie took her role
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seriously as the older cousin, keeping watch and making sure
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everyone stayed safe, but still had fun. And the laughter, oh,
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the laughter was non stop for a few hours. The
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weight of deployment didn't exist. It was just family, summer
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and joy. As the sun began to set, the grown
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ups gathered around Dominic, you know, and everyone praised for
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his safety. It was a powerful moment. Hands held hugs,
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words of encouragement the kids, even though they were squirmy
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and restless. Since the seriousness of the moment, we took
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a lot of family pictures and got a lot of
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pictures with Dominic. Torn held on too Dominic's hand for
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a long time, squeezing tight, like he didn't want to
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let go. After prayer, we ate more food and laughed
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a little, you know, But underneath all of it was
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the knowing this sea later. Knowing the sea later wasn't
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like the usual sea at Christmas. This was a year
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long goodbye with uncertainty and distance attached. On our way home,
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after our hugs and love you and goodbye, Torn sat
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in the back seat in tears, and when I asked
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her what was wrong, she said she wanted Dominic. She
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didn't want him to go away for a year where
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she couldn't see him. So then I had to explain,
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he's going away, he's got to go work. He signed
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up for this. You know, he's gonna be fine. He's
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gonna be all right. And he definitely gave each of
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the kids that extra hug, reminding him that he would
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be good and he would keep in touch. So that
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did help a lot, but she was still sad, so
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Dominic actually gave her a phone call video call, so
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that he could talk to her and kind of help
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her with that sadness and ease that a little bit.
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When I heard the sniffles in the back seat, I
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knew you know them sobs. It's hard and the only
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thing as parents we can do, you know, because hearing
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that kind of heartbreak from your child just shatters you.
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We've reassured Torren, telling her, you know, we will see
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Dominic again, and technology helps us stay connected. But to
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little Torren, a year feels like eternity. She cried so
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hard and eventually, you know, I was able to comfort her.
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So one of the sweetest things was, you know, Maddie
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and her other siblings telling her it's it's not forever
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and a year would go by quick. Dominic told her
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by the time they're done with school, he'll be home.
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So the moment reminded us kids feel goodbye eyes in
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raw and honest ways. Adults sometimes hide, and that's the truth.
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As parents, it made us pause. We sometimes forget that
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children carry deep bonds, even if they can't always express them,
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until a moment like that. Torren's tears reminded us that
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love is powerful and that family connections run deep in
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our family. It also reminded us that the sacrifice is
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made by those who serve and the families who have
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to say goodbye. We thought about Dominic's courage, but also
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about the courage of his parents, siblings, cousins, all of that, grandparents.
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Everyone has a role in this kind of sacrifice. For us,
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it's staying in touch, keeping his spirit alive in conversation,
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and making sure the kids feel connected him from miles away.
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For the kids, it's about writing letters, sending photos, and
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keeping him close to their heart. Family moments like this
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teach us something valuable. They teach us that joy and
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sadness can exist side by side, that a pool party
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filled with laughter can sit right next to tears in
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a car ride home, and that both are okay. Both
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are part of life. We want our kids to know
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it's okay to cry when you love someone so much
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that's saying goodbye hurts. We also want them to know
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that even distance doesn't erase love. In fact, sometimes love
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grows stronger when you have to work harder to show it.
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That's what this trip to Illinois reminded us of. Now,
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as we wait for updates from Dominic while he serves
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in Kuwait, we're holding on to laughter and memories from
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that party. We'll keep reminding the kids that this isn't forever,
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it's just for now, and we'll show them that family
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bonds don't break under pressure. They stretch, bend, and stay strong.
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We'll keep encouraging Torn and the other kids, letting them
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know their tears come from a place of love and
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that's something to be proud of. And we'll keep Dominic
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close to us in spirit until the day he comes
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home safe. Trips like this are never easy, but they're
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always worth it. The hugs, the swimming, the food, the prayer,
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all of it stitched together into a memory will never forget.
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And even though the goodbye was hard, it reminded us
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how lucky we are to have someone worth missing. That's
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what family is all about. That's what we are the Hansens,
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is about love, laughter, and courage through life's chaos. We'll
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keep you updated on Dominic, and we ask that you
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keep him in your thoughts and prayers too. Until next time,
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Hug your loved ones tighter, because goodbyes, no matter how long,
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always remind us how much they mean. Thanks for listening.
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Get on over to We Are the Hansen's website. Also,
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get on over to our We Are the Hanson's YouTube
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and subscribe. Go check us out on our We Are
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the Hanson's Facebook page. Until next time, We'll see you soon.
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And keep keep again until intil intet include again again
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