Time to Fly (and Cry)

So another week has flown by!

Y’all, like for real!  WHERE DOES TIME GO?!!!

I love Mondays because I look at my calendar and have 5 days to get things done, and then BOOM!  It’s Friday!  And I’m like, Huh?  Wha?

Do you feel that way too?

Well, this week was a little extra busy because I took Jonathan to “church camp” in the middle of the week.   (Watch the video to find out what “church camp” is…)

 

 

Y’all, I’m not even gonna lie.  This mama’s heart is hurting.  {Please pray for me.}  I know many of you have been through the same stage of life and know exactly what I am feeling.  He is our first child to leave the “nest,” and it’s just not easy. 

While in Nashville, Jonathan wanted me to take a picture of him in front of this beautiful wall art.

He posted it on his Instagram account on the way home, and added the text “Time to Fly.”

Yep.  It’s time for him to stretch out his wings and FLY with the gift that God has given him.  And I know that it is going to be a crazy awesome year for him.  I am so excited to watch it all unfold. 

And while it’s definitely time for him to fly,  for me, it’s time to cry.  It’s a very sobering cry as I look back at how quickly these past 18 years have gone by.  And I am extremely sentimental right now, so if you see me in real life, be ready for me to start crying at the drop of a hat.  It doesn’t take much these days, y’all. 

Many of you have been with me from the start of my blog, and you have watched Jonathan’s journey along the way.  

From my very first blog post…

To Jonathan singing at my mom’s funeral in 2009….

 

And getting his new pair of hearing aids…

Getting his first guitar…

From his many trips to the Kentucky Opry….

And many performances with his brothers in tow….

From his auditioning for Season 10 of The Voice…

To making it on Team Pharrell!

THE VOICE — “Blind Auditions” — Pictured: Jonathan Hutcherson — (Photo by: Tyler Golden/NBC)
THE VOICE — “Team Pharrell Battle Reality” — Pictured: (l-r) Emily Keener, Joe Vivona, Nick Hagelin, Caity Peters, Brian Nhira, Hannah Houston, Moushumi Chitre, Jonathan Bach, Jessica Crosbie, Maya Smith, Pharrell Williams, Jonathan Hutcherson, Abby Celso — (Photo by: Trae Patton/NBC)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From PRESS and Magazine Features…

 

And lots and lots of music videos…

And now it’s time.  Time for my baby boy to go “do this thing” in Nashville.  

God has blessed him with a great place to live and two great guys to live with.  And the Lord has also connected him with an amazing Christian community down there over the past two years.  I have a peace in my heart that God is in charge of this new journey for Jonathan, and I know that He will be with him every step of the way. 

I’ll continue to share Jonathan’s music journey here on the blog, and I’ll be racking up the miles on my car going back and forth to Nashville.  ha!  (We might even be living there someday, who knows?!)

36 Comments

  1. Traci,
    You totally have my heart on this post. My youngest son will be graduating college and has applied to out of state universities for Grad school. I’m so proud of him for his determination and bravery for wanting this adventure, but…out of state!!! I am a homebody and I don’t fly anywhere because it makes me so anxious. It sounds like another lesson in growth for me. I can honestly say that premenopausal symptoms and empty nesting both show up at the same time for most of us mama’s…I send a hug, I understand being excited to see our children bloom into awesome adults, but it does cause a few years too.
    Love to you,

    Beth

    1. Beth-
      My daughter left a year and a half a go to attend her freshman year at University of Wyoming (19 hours) away from home in Michigan. She now lives in Colorado. My journey for the last 1 1/2 years has been led by the word growth. Her and I have both grown in SO many ways that neither one of us could have expected. I have learned to give the hard stuff to God and trust in him to keep her safe. I once read a quote that says ” Worry is our way of telling God he can’t handle it. ” I go back to this all the time. Good luck to all of us momma’s that are learning to let go and let them fly.
      Brandi

  2. Traci,
    You totally have my heart on this post. My youngest son will be graduating college and has applied to out of state universities for Grad school. I’m so proud of him for his determination and bravery for wanting this adventure, but…out of state!!! I am a homebody and I don’t fly anywhere because it makes me so anxious. It sounds like another lesson in growth for me. I can honestly say that premenopausal symptoms and empty nesting both show up at the same time for most of us mama’s…I send a hug, I understand being excited to see our children bloom into awesome adults, but it does cause a few tears too.
    Love to you,

    Beth

    1. Thank you, Beth. You definitely can share in my feelings. Tears are strong right now, but will hopefully get better over time. xoxo Traci

  3. So happy for Jonathon and his musical journey. I have a cousin, Martin McDaniel, that is a musician and has a band in Nashville. They are doing vey well. They play at The Stage a lot and play out in California a lot. He actually got to attend the Grammys or CMTs. I can’t remember which one. And his band played at the after party. He has a website. Just Google Martin McDaniel. He’s a great young man. He’s written some great songs and has several recordings. I wish the best for Jonathon.

    1. Thank you, Jan! I will tell Jonathan about Martin! I know that Jonathan will LOVE being around so many people that live and breath music like he does.

  4. Well that last sentence sounded like a hint. LOL Jonathan is going to soar and enjoy having your Kentucky home to come back to now and then. I will following the blog and anxious to see his success. Hugs!

  5. Ah Traci! Those pictures are adorable. Jonathan has sure grown up fast! I’m so close with my boys too and it was so hard saying goodbye the first time they went off to college. I cried my eyes out! But they came back, and so will Jonathan. I’ll certainly be praying for you. How far away is Nashville from your home? God has a hand of protection over Him. What a blessing it is that see him follow Gods calling. Hugs sweet lady 😘🙏🏻

  6. Love the video and “church camp”! I found you because of the decorating but have stayed to follow Jonathan’s journey. All the best on this journey to the stars, Jonathan.

  7. With the sound of your sons voice filling our home AT THIS VERY MOMENT, I could bawl and yell in excitement at the same time for all of you! Time to fly is hardest on mama but God has so obviously set this all in motion!! It’s gonna be epic and when we boot one of our neighbors out of the neighborhood (very sooooooon), we can cry and yell together!!! LOL … and those PICS! OMG! the cutest!!!! #churchcamp #timetofly #jhutch #campgusloveschurchcamp

  8. This post really hit home with me. We have one daughter and she is graduating next year. She will be attending college – she wants to live in a big city – and auditioning for dance jobs (Rockettes). So she will no longer be at our breakfast table every morning. I am going to struggle – hard. She is my daughter, but also my best friend. I like the idea of going to church camp(: While it is so amazing and such a blessing to watch our children live their dreams, it is painfully difficult to let them go. Best of luck to your Jonathan as he works toward his dream! And I was finally able to watch your oil video yesterday about menopause! Super helpful. Thanks! Be blessed!

    1. It’s hitting us all hard right now. Even his brothers are having trouble realizing that Jonathan won’t be here every day. He is such a blessing to our whole family and there will definitely be a void without him being here. But I know that God’s got this, and He will be with us through it all!
      God bless you, Susan!

  9. You’re killing me here! My now 22 year old daughter chose to stay home (in Louisville, Ky) to attend college. My husband and I were thrilled and looked at it as “extra time” for her to be at home. Fast forward 4 years. She graduated in May and is teaching full time. She chose to move out a few months ago and it felt so strange! Like you, I had to trust God fully to take care of her. Take care of her coming and going to work, supporting herself, eating right, safety, etc….all those things we moms think on. I also trusted God to “take care of me” in the process, too. In my quiet time, God revealed that all those years preparing her were now answers to my prayers. What kind of mother would I have been if I (and my husband, of course!) had not prepared her to leave our home and make a wonderful life of her own? So, basically, you did a great job!!!
    A friend pointed out that if she were 30 and living at home I’d probably be looking at things much differently and wondering when in the world she was going to move out! LOL!
    A fellow mom, empty nester, sister in Christ and Kentuckian :-)

    1. Aw, thank you, Tracy. You are so right. I know that God has been preparing me and Jonathan for the past 18 years, and I know that God goes before him, making a way. It gives me such Peace to know that God is with Him at all times.

  10. Oh, my gosh, Tracy! Sending you a big hug! My oldest one will go to high school next year, and I already wonder where time has gone! What a beautiful post you shared with us! So full of strength and hope, and happiness in a way! Thank God for allowing us to see our baby boys grow! I have five boys amd one angel. Prayers for y’all and warm hugs!

    1. Thank you, Nidia. I think that is what has stood out to me the most….how quickly time flies. I’m so thankful that God has allowed me to watch them grow. We are so very blessed. xoxo

  11. I’m very excited for Jonathan but I know exactly how you are feeling. It will be better but saying good bye is never easy. So I’ll be praying for you. May God’s peace engulf your heart and soul so that you find comfort and rest. and may His Presence surround you so that you can find joy in the midst of the sorrow.

  12. Praying God’s blessings on your household and Jonathan as he makes his way in life! So exciting on one hand but sad for your first born to be leaving but I’m sure you’ve prepared him well, but the best thing is that God goes before him!

  13. Oh my goodness Traci! I can see in his face and words that Jonathan has a sweet spirit! I can also see how much he loves you! Yes, letting those children take their wings and fly is so difficult on the parents and so proud of them, too! I love his accent! Love the idea of church camp! Be ever so safe in your travels!🙏🙏

  14. I understand! Had a very hard time when my boys left for college! We are a close family and then boom! they leave. It was bad enough when the first one flew the nest, but the 2nd was worse. My boys weren’t very good at staying in touch (especially as often as I felt they should!), they got busy with their friends, their jobs and their studies. It was very difficult for me! We somehow got through it, and I am so proud of both of them and what they have done with their lives! Good luck to Jonathan, and my advice to him is “CALL YOUR MAMA!! A LOT!!” Hang in there, Traci!

  15. The time does fly. I remember the empty nest when our daughter left for college.
    Now I am a grandmother, and it will only be a couple of years until my oldest grandson
    will be college age…..I share your tears.

  16. Oh Traci…I don’t even know you and we live clear across the United States from each other, but I feel so connected when you share your stories about your family. I’m in tears after watching Jonathan sing Amazing Grace. What a blessing and thank you for sharing his journey in this post and the song. I hadn’t heard about his hearing lose and wearing hearing aids etc. Makes his music making even more of a miracle and gift from God. I haven’t followed your blog for very long yet. I found you through Cyndi. Jonathan is so talented and with God on his side, he will go far. I’ve gone through 3 kids leaving the nest and now have been emptied nested for almost 5 yrs. Its never been easy, as each child is different, but I do remember the 1st leaving. I cried every time she came home on breaks and had to go back. You will miss him and have a hard time at first, but once you see how much fun he’s having and watch all his success and how he will grow, it will all be worth it. The holidays come around so fast and he’ll be home for those, hopefully or like you said, you can go there. I so enjoyed this post and getting to look back at previous post when he was little. I was so blessed on your story about your mom buying his hearing aids and wanting to save up for the better ones. How precious for Jonathan and you to have her legacy. I look forward to meeting her someday in Heaven. Enjoy this time. I love how you called it off to “Church Camp.” :) I remember how that use to be hard. Ha Ha

  17. oh momma, can I relate! My daughter, who is now 26, lived at home while going to college. As a then single mom, to an only child, when she got married at 24 and moved away (not far) my heart literally ached. Now don’t get me wrong, I love my son-in-law, he’s the son I never had, but oh my goodness I missed my girl. As a matter of fact, after she got married every time she and her husband came over I cried when they left…every.single.time. My poor SIL would hurry to get in the car when they would leave because he couldn’t handle “momma” crying. It’s been over 2 years now since she left home; I have remarried in that time, and life has changed so much. But I will tell you that watching your child grow into an adult with their dreams and successes, well, that takes the sting out of the hurting heart, and I’m sure you will feel that way in time. Rest assured Traci that you have raised him to be a man of God, to be a strong independent thinker, and he will soar beyond your wildest dreams. Here’s a virtual hug from one momma to another!

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