Wordless Wednesday

The Easter bunny thought it was a good idea to give hair pretties for Easter rather than candy.

More pictures here.

A Pair of Shoes

My children are friends with the little girl across the street from us. At one point she used to be here from dawn till dusk and no one ever came to check on her. Since we have become a lot busier, she is often only over in the afternoons and the girls play outside in the backyard. I noticed a few weeks ago that the little girl had a huge hole in the toe of her shoe. Her parents are never one to rush out and get the girl anything that fits properly or replace things that are worn. In the past I have given her clothes, a bike, sweaters, etc. Today when she came over she was still wearing the holey shoes so I asked her what size she wore. She told me that she wore a size 1 and I went searching through the house for the proper size. My girls usually wear out their shoes, but I did find a pair of size 4 tennis shoes that I had gotten at walmart as an extra pair of shoes (I think she probably wore them once or twice) when Em went to camp a few years ago. I had put them aside in the goodwill pile and dragged them out. I offered them to the little neighbor girl and her face lit up. I told her to try them on first and see if they fit. Her little feet swam in the big shoes, but she declared that they were "great because I still have room to grow!" I think she has about 3 inches to grow into them. She tightened them up and wore them the rest of the afternoon while the kids played. I wonder if she will wear them tomorrow to school.

I also wonder if she has a winter coat.

Coffee & Saturday

I went to a coffee yesterday afternoon with some ladies that I know. I have never really had coffee except for a frappacino from Starbuck's, which according to my husband is just a milkshake. (love their pumpkin ones though!) I had a cup yesterday since I didn't want to be rude and I loved it! So while sitting here this morning and waiting on my German breakfast to be delivered, my husband (who has been known to put instant coffee in his mouth and drink cold water because we didn't have any coffee while on the road) brought me a huge cup of coffee fixed just how I discovered I like it.

The girls have soccer this morning and then we are headed to GT to have a cookout for my nephews' birthdays and pick pecans. I still need to get presents for them. Boys are so hard to buy for!

I want to go to the pumpkin patch next week, something we used to do in WA all the time. I told my husband that it was about an hour and a half away from here and he voted that we go to Walmart instead. Doesn't he understand we are going for the pictures???? I won and if everything goes as planned we will squeeze it in next weekend.

German Breakfast

When we were stationed in Germany, my mom and dad flew out to spend a few weeks with us in May 1998. Em was about 7 months old at the time and a big, chubby perfect little girl. We lived in Butzbach which was north of Frankfurt and a rather small town. Every morning my parents would load Em up on my dad's back and they would walk downtown and pick up a German breakfast for us to enjoy. They became such regular customers during their visit that when we went on a trip to Austria, the bakery owners told my parents to come around back before we left in order to pick up our morning order. (I do have pictures!)

My in laws used to live in California and they have a huge German store out there with a bakery, deli and restaurant. One of the things that DH's family does is go to German restaurants anytime we go somewhere. (There was a great one we went to in DC with his brother and his wife complete with a woman in a dirndl singing to us while playing her accordion) Anyway, when we would travel out to CA we would go to the German store and get brotchen, ham and bierschinken and some German butter and sit outside and have a picnic.

Now that my in laws live in town, they go to the local German bakery/deli and pick us up breakfast every Saturday morning. They deliver pastries, brotchen, lunch meat, cookies, bread and usually some German crackers or the like for Junior to enjoy. Recently DH told his mom that our waistlines couldn't take much more of eating all this good food on Saturdays. She understood and agreed not to bring any temptations over. Today was to be the first Saturday without our German breakfast.....until my husband called them. We put in our request since they were luckily still on their way out to the bakery. Maybe next Saturday we will be able to be strong and eat plain old cereal....

Three more weeks

And I will be hiking the trails on Oahu, kayaking, snorkeling, going parasailing and drinking something with a little umbrella sticking out the top. DH and I aren't much to lie on the beach and be bored and goodness knows I don't want to literally hang out of a bathing suit, so we will slather on the sunscreen and stay busy! He always says he needs a vacation after a vacation with me.

Okay, so I did make us get up one morning in NYC at 4:30, but that was only so we could get started and it was usually around 6 after that day. Besides, I was the one who was pregnant during that trip and if I had the energy then he should too!

I better start my list making today and get started on the flow chart, maps and everything else my mom needs to manage this crew for those 10 days. I'm sure there will be plenty to keep her busy....

All is well

Abs is back in fighting form. Thanks for all the well wishes and the emails.

I am hitting the gym tomorrow, no excuses. My feet still hurt, my knees still creak, but I have to get back in there to lower my stress level. Maybe I should do core pilates instead of run....

I made the front page...

I really need to get a life.

Click here.

Then you will see my family on the second button on the top I think. (The hot soldier with the three cute kids next to him) Click on that too.

That's all...not too exciting, but I appreciate it!

Nothing says I love you like a clean toilet...

Abs is sick.



The school called after I was already a half hour away at work. I didn't hear my cell so they called my MIL who dropped everything and ran to get her. She called FIL who then got a hold of DH who was headed to the field for the day and couldn't get away. DH got a hold of me, I left to go get Abs with Junior in tow. Got to MIL's house and apparently Abs had thrown up in her car. Poor kiddo. Of course MIL was not bothered by that (maybe 6 puppies prepared her for that?). I have to admit, my MIL would do almost anything for us and I really appreciate that.



I don't do well with sick kids. We came home and got Junior squared away with a bottle and put Abs in the shower. She was cleaned up, put in pj's and into bed with a glass of water and a barf bucket. She's asleep now, which is how I know she is really sick. Usually Abs will urp once if she has strep, but she rarely throws up more than that. She doesn't even sleep at night, so for her to take a nap during the day definitely means she is under the weather.



Luckily we are close to school so we called and Em is walking home and we have nothing else planned for the rest of the day.



I have scrubbed the toilets, washed the towels and blankets to make sure we had plenty, chicken soup is on the stove and DH who ended up not having to go to the field for the day is coming home with sprite during his lunch.



Maybe we can make it through this. I'm just glad DH is here and I don't have to do it alone.

Update: It's after 5 and Abs is still sick. Poor kiddo. My usually bouncing off the walls strong willed child has been lying in bed all day with no complaints and taken two naps. I've put us all on the sick diet just in case. Em hates it when I do this!

Wordless Wednesday

More pictures here.

Hate

After almost 5 years of living on post I remember why I didn't let the girls play with the other kids for the first 4.

There is a new family that moved in next door and the lady is a single mom with three kids by three different fathers. Her deadbeat brother lives with her and is a drunk and spends all his money at the bars and this is just what the kids told me!

Anyway, Em and Abs got in a fight with the middle kid over there about something--typical kid stuff. What came out of Tiana's mouth thought was not typical by any means and could only be learned at home. She told Em and Abs that they were stupid because they were white. She went on to make more comments but all of them ended up with her referring back to their skin color. I was livid. If my kids had said anything like that to her kids, I am sure that everyone would be up in arms. Em was devestated about it since she is not like that at all, and Abs was mad.

Yesterday I heard yelling and went outside and Tiana was throwing rocks at my kids (not the first time) and I guess it was too much for Em and Abs and they threw a rock back. Of course I immediately sent them inside and they were in trouble. I went over to Tiana's mom's house and realized after about 20 seconds that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. The lady is totally ignorant. She basically said that my girls got what they deserved and what her daughter says is true about them being white and stupid. The neighbor across the street came over to tell me that he saw the girls throw a rock at her daughter and I told him I saw it too and they were going to be punished for it, but that they were attacked first by this little brat. He of course said that she was just a kid (same age as Abs) and she wasn't at fault for that reason even though he did see that little brat throw rocks several times at my kids.

I am still pissed. The girls are grounded for now but they won't be playing outside again unless we are away from this place. I am so ready to move away from this hell hole.

Strollers & Puppies

When we were stationed in Germany, we bought a really nice umbrella type stroller. Now 10 years later it has cratered and doesn't steer very well. I have spent the last several weeks reviewing strollers, searching the internet for the best deals and finally today made a decision about what to get. Hopefully it will serve it's purpose and now I can stop cornering moms outside of the schools to find out their opinions on their stroller--which they all loved to give!

Before the internet I would have gone to the store, tried out a couple and then made a quick decision. Now with the abundance of information I spend weeks even months trying to choose something. It took me over a year to pick a car.

On the puppy front, my inlaws have decided that they are going to keep 4 of the 6 puppies and their neighbors are going to take two. Looks like we won't be visiting them anytime soon! I am not a huge dog person, much less to go into a house that has 6 of them. These puppies are going to grow into big dogs and their house is only 1800 square feet. Perfect for a family of two and 2 dogs, but 6? They are already talking about having to replace the carpet and everything that the dogs have already ruined. My MIL mentioned possibly building an air conditioned dog run in the adjoining lot that they own. My FIL mentioned that they might open a dog rescue. I save coupons and donate old towels and pillows to the cause right now.

Wonder how many legs of lamb they will have to cook up each week to keep all those dogs in style?

Ear Infection & Soccer

After Junior screaming for several hours last night I got him an appointment in the weekend clinic (since I tried for two days in the regular clinic to no avail). One of his ears is full of green snotty gunk. Ewwwww......I don't handle sickness well. Junior is a trooper and started on antibiotics, but is worn down. He is nestled into bed and hasn't screamed yet so I am hopeful that a good night's sleep will result in a happier baby tomorrow.

The girls had their first soccer game today and had a great time! I took tons of pictures and have some opinions about parents being wayyyyyy tooooo involved in soccer games when their kids are 5 and 6 years old. We really lucked out on coaches though and they at least share the same opinions about how the games should be run that I do, so the girls will be fine.

New battery

My scooba battery died. I love the thing, but I guess I missed the fine print that says if you don't use it for more than two weeks disconnect the battery and store it in a cool, dry place. I wish I had known that before we went to DC! I ordered a replacement and it arrived today!! So my scooba is doing it's job and I am free from mopping the floor again. Thank goodness!

Masters Anyone?

I got my master's when we were stationed in Germany. So far I have yet to use it. I did enjoy the classes and learned a lot, but I kind of wished I had done something different along the way.

Today I had to call Germany in order to track down a transcript and because it has been so long--makes me feel even older--I had to contact someone in the States. Then I went to a community college one summer in order to get some basics out of the way, so I had to get a transcript from them as well. I contacted BU and ordered several from there to go to various places as well. All that hoopla and the community college has already texted me to let me know that they are on the way. I wish all of the schools were that efficient!

So now I have done my part for the new plan and I just have to wait and wait and wait and hope that everything else goes just as smoothly.

Field Time

Dh is set to deploy sometime this year. They are out in the field for gunnery for the next two weeks. Luckily they get to come in every once in a while for showers and clean clothes. He leaves clean and smelling good and I am left with dirty uniforms, smelly socks, mud all over the place and an empty fridge.

I wouldn't change a thing.

He loves his job. I love my Soldier.

Self Portrait

This is a self portrait Abs did at school. I love her view....

Wordless Wednesday--sort of

So this won't be very wordless since this picture means a lot to me. This is a picture of Em when she was about 3 1/2 years old and my Dad. My dad passed away in April 2006 and I miss him a lot. Em had a really hard time with everything because she spent so much time with him and loved him so much. I do know that she has a lot of good memories of him and I hope that those will always be with her.

Check out more pictures here.

Puree anyone?

My sister sent me this link yesterday about the Oprah show with Jessica Seinfeld and her new cookbook. I DVRed the show and am in the middle of watching it and it sounds good to me! My kids are better than most in that they eat peas, carrots, green beans, corn, sweet potato, etc. I don't even eat peas! We do eat a LOT of mac and cheese while their Dad is gone, flavored up with some ham, so adding butternut squash puree or cauliflower puree sounds like a good idea to me.

I'm definitely putting this on my list of things to try.

Last summer my mom had a huge amount of zucchini in her vegetable garden plot at the community garden. I was pregnant so I loved it cooked with a little bit of onion, but the girls would have no part of it. My mom ended up making a mock apple pie using the zucchini. It was good, but I couldn't enjoy it because I knew it was zucchini and the thought just bothered me. The girls absolutely loved it and I scored points being the coolest mom and letting them have apple pie for breakfast. I'll take whatever victories I can.

Who designs these houses?

Since I married my DH, we have moved 6 times in 13 years. Not a big deal, I love to move, and I would really love to move somewhere else besides Texas for a little while so I could have a change of scenery.

Anyway, you would think that as many times as people move in and out of housing that they would design these houses to make it a lot easier. We just had Em's furniture delivered and it was a bunch of maneuvering around sharp corners and moving things around in order to get it to fit down the hallway. (I had a friend who lived in Hanau in the officer's quarters and this one set was gigantic and had massive hallways. I want that house now!

On the way in, the movers didn't secure the armoire door and it flew open and jammed into the driveway. This caused the doors to be misaligned and one of the doors was damaged. The mover noted that and said they would bring out a new armoire. I called Rooms To Go customer service immediately after they left and sure enough it was already in their computer system and they setup delivery to replace the damaged item. Woohoo! Finally a company that really does value customer service!

Junior is down for a nap and I guess it is time for me to start moving all of Emily's things back into her room. I have a class tonight and DH is in the field so the outlaws are coming over to watch the kiddos.

Where did the time go?

10 years ago today we became parents for the first time! Em was 8 lbs 6 1/2 oz and was born while we were stationed in Germany. (they say you come back with a schrank, a cuckoo clock or a baby--we came back with all three)
This is Em last Saturday with her dad.

Hard to imagine what the next 10 years will be like.

Happy Birthday!!

Things I learned at the Dermatologist

Today Junior finally had his appointment with the dermatologist. After he greeted everyone in the lobby and all of the staff we were finally called back. In such a small area he went from his sweet little self to a little imp that wanted to get into everything. He really wanted to stick DH's car keys in the light sockets. We avoided that and he was more than happy to let the nurse take his picture for his files.

They said that we were doing the right things for his eczema. They do have one set of medication that is better and they gave us prescriptions for it, but suggested other things for us to try.

1. I didn't know that since he has eczema we should either put him in the tub and get him directly out or let him soak until he is a little old man. Anything in between is not good.

2. Their moisturizer of choice is.....CRISCO! Apparently it doesn't contain anything to be allergic to and it won't hurt them so we can always lather him in Crisco and then put on pajamas.

3. When you coat them with crisco or vaseline, put a set of wet pajamas on and then put a dry set on top of those and it will really help get that stuff down into his pores and end any dry skin.

4. When he has a bad break out of eczema we are to treat it and then wrap that body part (usually for him it is the arms and legs) in saran wrap and then put him in his pajamas.

I'm sure Junior is going to love all the scrapbook pages I can make out pictures of him dressed like this!

Expos, Birthdays and Emails

We took the kids to the Kids Expo in Belton today. It wasn't too crowded when we first got there and the kids had a great time. They got to rock climbing, jump in the bounce houses, get lots of free stuff and watch some shows. We left before a lot of the more exciting things were on the stage, but we had places to go. I love to go to little things like this with DH when he is home. He misses out on so many things in their life.

Went to my mom's house and then my SIL and brother showed up. They are running an Ironman Triathalon tomorrow. Wish I could do something like that. Maybe for my 40th birthday? I'm still nursing a sore foot. Maybe the beer tonight will help?

We celebrated Em's 10th birthday tonight with my mom and sister and her boys. Em had a lot of fun and loved her gifts. Her new furniture gets delivered on Tuesday. I can't believe I have been a mom for 10 years. I can't imagine when I am old and gray and will have been a mom for 60 years! Em is mastering the being a teenager early and it is driving me nuts.

I came home and the electricity had gone off so somehow all my emails had disappeared. I needed recommendations for my new plan, and I lost all the information I had collected so far. Frustrating. Tomorrow is a new day, I will eventually get it all back together.

It is almost 10 pm and Abs is still up and singing in her bed. I wish I could function on such a little amount of sleep....

Cooking Crepes

I am not a good cook. When I was about 11 or 12 I tried to make a stir and frost cake. I read the directions carefully, and I still swear, to this day, that it did not say to stir the mix after I added the water. My family still makes fun of me.

When I was in college I was cooking shrimp and I called my mom to see how long they needed to cook and she told me until they turned pink. I hopped off the phone quickly as mine had been boiling for over half an hour. I don't remember them being tough though.

The other night I was trying to scrounge up something for dinner that was quick and easy since I had to meet a friend to go to a visitation. I finally made some turkey bacon, cut up some fruit and made some crepes. I was trying to flip one of the crepes and it was kind of stuck so I picked up the skillet and kind of turned it over and tired to scrape it off. (Looking back I think it wasn't ready to be flipped yet, but I was ready for it to flip) I finally turned it over and shook it a little thinking I would catch it with the spatula. It sounded like a good idea! Instead the little crepe fell into the gas flame and caught fire! I turned off the gas and it continued to burn so I grabbed the spatula and tried to move the crepe to the sink. That led to me picking up the burner with the burning crepe on it and causing a bigger mess. By this time I am yelling out to DH that I have a burning crepe and he and the kids come running to see this giant flaming crepe wrapped around the overturned burner. I finally beat the flames out on the crepe with the spatula. Then without thinking I pick up the burner to put it straight on the stove and I burn my hand.

I finally gave up and served what was made to find out that the girls didn't even like crepes.

Stampede...

Last Saturday after picking out furniture DH, the kids and my mom and I headed over to her town's Chisholm Trail celebration. We hit the park first where they had a chuckwagon cook off. We missed the food tasting but saw about 6 chuckwagons that were setup and people dressed up in period clothing while one of the women played a mean fiddle. There was a "sheriff" that answered all the girl's questions about what was going on there and about the wagons, etc. I love it when people take the time to answer all of their questions....and Abs has lots of them!

While they were handing out awards Junior wandered over to one of the wagons and started hanging around near the front. Got some great shots! One lady said she was an artist and wanted to use him as a subject and took my name and number. The newspaper guy came along and wanted to take his picture for the paper but by then Junior was off and running to the next interesting item.

After the chuckwagon cookfoff we went over to look at the cattle for the cattle drive. There were a few in the pen and we figured that they had the rest kept elsewhere. The kids checked out the longhorns, pet a horse and we were off to downtown to see what it had to offer.

We got down there and after a quick stop for ice cream we headed to the square. They had (plastic)longhorn heads pushed into hay bales that they could rope, horseshoe toss, corn grinder, face painting, longhorn petting, music, dancing, roping and tons more that they could all do for free! (Free, my favorite word!) The girls had a great time and after seeing everything we finally took a break and sat on the sidewalk to wait for the cattle drive. We watched a roping demonstration and then the horses came, one of which was carrying an American flag. The National Anthem was sung and there were still people that weren't even standing! The number of hats left on amazed me. Guess I am used to a lot more respect in the town where we live. But, there were still a lot that did stand, take their hat off and show respect, but it is always those few that didn't that stand out to me.

So after about 1 1/2 dozen horses and riders came the cattle drive where about 6 longhorns were surrounded by another 8 riders, all led by one tiny little white longhorn. A lot of hoopla for such a small amount of cattle, but it was a lot of fun and the kids really enjoyed it so that is all that matters. They are already talking about next year...

and we took some pictures....enjoy.....

Already Thursday?

I remember when it used to take forever for Christmas to come each year and when summer vacation would last forever. Now I turn around and another week has passed and then a year. I'm getting old. What's worse is it means that the girls and Junior are growing up way too fast!

I took Abs to the doctor yesterday and she is going to have to have her tonsils out. They are enlarged and there are some other problems so hopefully their removal and the adenoids removal will clear them up. She is excited about it and looking forward to having ice cream. I'm not going to have it done until right before Thanksgiving though so she won't have to miss as much school.

Em's new furniture arrives next Tuesday and I haven't finished switching out rooms. I thought I could do that this week....I better hurry.

Junior is getting funnier every day. Never a dull moment. He's still asleep this morning, so I think I can actually say he slept through the night again? I guess he didn't know that he was supposed to do this regularly by 15 months, not let this be his 3rd or 4th time.

Gunnery is coming up. Hopefully Chris will get some great pics while he is out there. He is slowly getting better about having someone take pictures of him while he is gone. Reminds me of when the guys went to Iraq the first time and a friend of mine got a roll of film from her husband. We raced over to Walmart to the one hour photo, dropped it off, and waited patiently with all the kids while they were developed. The hour finally ticks by, we pick up the pictures and she is so excited about seeing him (This was in the first 6 months of OIF I when we had no contact but a 10 minute call every few weeks). We searched through all the pictures in order to find her husband and it wasn't hard at all to not spot him since every picture was of the desert! The guy hadn't managed to take one picture of himself! Chris says it is because they don't want to ask. I told him to suck it up, I need pictures. How else will I be able to use all this scrapbooking stuff I keep buying?

The girls start soccer practice tonight. They are excited and I am hoping it means they will go to bed and not talk for an hour. They used to play some game that they made up which was a combination of Deal or No deal and American Idol. Had to put an end to it because every time Abs sang Em would tell her no deal. Poor little kiddo would then cry. Ah sisters, you have to love them!

Sacrifices & the Military Challenge

Michelle over at A Cup of Tea with Friends, has a husband who is deploying in the near future. She was challenged to give up three items during his 12-15 month deployment to show her support for her husband and his fellow Soldiers. How can I argue with that! This will be Chris' third deployment and I know I can follow suite.

Three things that I will give up during this deployment:
1. Ice cream. My husband and I love it, and this will be hard but if he can't enjoy Blue Bell, I'll wait until he can.
2. Diet Coke. This will be a hard one too as I have a several-can-a-day diet coke habit.
3. Frappacinos. Another weakness.

Hmmm....all these center around food.

Michelle also takes on the following challenge:

But then I got to thinking. In honor of the freedoms they fight for, maybe I should try three new things because as Americans we have the luxury of making choices, whereas in many other countries people are persecuted for going against their society. So in honor of their fight for our freedoms I will:

1. Try something new every month (they give up their hobbies and liberties to protect us)
2. Workout at least 4 days a week exercising (my husband had to run on a dirt track that surrounded the FOB when in Afghanistan)
3. Participate in at least two activities a month that include other spouses (support is a valuable asset during a deployment.)

These are great!

So I vow to do the following:

1. Try something new every month (this is a great one and will hopefully get me out of the house and help me to meet some new people).
2. Complete an unfinished project a month. Hmmmm...maybe my mom should join me on this one.
3. Complete at least 4 fun runs/walks/rides or something. I really want to do this with my husband, but I'll just be in tip top shape when he gets back. Not to mention if I have to carry three kids on my back across the finish line that will help me along!

I'm off to work, but who else wants to take on this challenge?

Wordless Wednesday

A hole in a rock at the park. Of course we all had to look through it.

See more pictures here.

Soccer and Pound Cake

I missed the sign up for soccer, but they called today and they have room for both girls. I have to run over there and pay after my MOPS meeting, and then they will be assigned to a team. I am hoping that this will be a positive experience for them. Abbie just needs to run off some energy and Emily needs to get out and meet people and not be so shy. My children are total opposites.

They will have to be on different teams, so I just hope that the practices and games and all that workout since DH is going to gunnery soon. The Army never times things for when it works well for me.

On a side note, I wanted to take pound cake today for my meeting so I asked DH to pickup some when he went to HEB last night. He called and went over the flavors for me and I asked him to get three since I thought that would feed the hungry crowd of moms. He came home with HUGE bags! I couldn't figure out what extra stuff he got so I took a peek and he bought 4 HUGE creme cakes, not pound cakes. So now one cake will feed the masses and we have three to eat for ourselves. I better make room in the freezer so that I can still fit into my clothes before Hawaii.

Plan #756

I have figured out what I want to do with my life. Hopefully it will work out and I will be accepted into the program. Guess I need to get busy!

On a side note, GMAT only keeps scores for 10 years, so now I have to go take the THEA test. I believe this is like the TASP test I took way back when. I am sure that those scores are gone too. Oh well, I looked at the practice test and it seemed simple enough.

Wish me luck!

Pink Dyson

5 minutes for mom is having a drawing for a pink dyson. For each pink dyson that they sell they donate $40 to breast cancer research. A very worthy cause. Leave a comment in their comment section and the drawing is Monday, Otcober 1st.

New Favorite Shoes

I ordered from shoebuy.com some shoes for us to wear hiking in Hawaii and I absolutely love them! I do wish that the women's came in black, but I guess the mermaid colors aren't too bad. All I know is that these shoes are comfortable and can go in the water as well.

I bought Em shoes there last year and I always get Junior's Robeez there as well. They ship fast and free and have easy returns as my mom found out. They usually put out a 20% coupon, or the above link will give you $10 off. Also if you use ebates.com you can get 10% back on your purchase.

Anyway, that's what I do to buy shoes these days, it beats dragging three children out and hearing them complain the entire time and then finding out that the store doesn't have their size anyway!

It's All About Me.....and Tag, You're It!

TripleE over at Oh! That's Going to Leave a Mark tagged me. I am supposed to reveal 7 things that most people don't know about me. I'll keep it clean since my mom reads this too, and I am betting my family will probably know most of these...

1. I was born in Sydney, Australia, and thankfully was NOT named Killara, the suburb that we lived in, like my mom wanted to. Thanks Dad! (My brother was disappointed I wasn't a boy named after him and my sister thought "Plantaxley" would have been a better choice. While my name is unusual, I gave my children three very normal names.)

2. I sailed from Florida to the Bahamas with a group (Sea Explorers) when I was 16. I don't know what my parents were thinking letting me go!

3. I love to run on the treadmill at the gym, but I have to count when I do it. Hmmm..maybe I am a little OCD.

4. I am terrified of roaches. I can handle spiders and stuff, but roaches....my skin crawls thinking about them.

5. I love to go to the dentist.

6. I have never been in a tanning booth.

7. I love fried gizzards with sour cream and now the girls eat them too. I also like okra and artichokes, but the taste of celery makes me sick.

I had a hard time with these as I am a pretty open book. My husband thinks it is weird that I make lists, that I use those dry erase boards to make more lists. He's just not use to trying to organize and coordinate for three children on his own.

I tag....

Gypsy
A Cup of tea with friends
Michelle

And anyone else who wants to do it!

Wordless Wednesday

Blueberry pancake morning....

See more pictures here.

Lunches

When I went to school, lunches were 75 cents for elementary students. I remember I would get three shiny quarters from my mom in the morning, put them into my black bookbag and trek of to school. I also remember losing them a lot. I would tell my teacher things like "My mom doesn't want me to eat because my Grandma is coming in town and we are going to have a big dinner" and other off the wall things. One time the teacher asked me if I had enough money and I assured her that my mom didn't want me to eat lunch.

Here on post, our school offers breakfast and the girls like to eat there in the mornings. They also allow you to check your child's account balance online to see if there is enough money in their account to cover their meals. I checked tonight and the girls should have the same amount of close to it. Ab's was considerably less. I pulled up what she had ordered to eat and one morning she ordered off the ala carte menu and had a luxurious breakfast (that was stuff I know she wouldn't eat) and spent $2.85! Yikes! Tomorrow morning we will be talking about what menu she can order off.

School

The school sent home a flyer last week advertising a free class tonight titled "How to preare our children and stay involved in their education during deployment...". I thought it would be a beneficial class for DH to take and he agreed so I signed him up.

I had a class to go to somewhere else so off he went with all three children in tow. And from our school with over a thousand kids, guess how many parents showed up......TWO (and that was including my husband)! I just don't get it. Maybe everyone thinks that they know everything there is to know about preparing for a deployment and staying involved? Maybe they are too busy? Don't care? Have better things to do? This will be DH's third deployment to Iraq and he did one to Bosnia for a year before kids, but it still doesn't get any easier. Every time our children have been different ages, at different schools and doing different things. I'd go to a dozen classes in the hopes that I could gain one idea from it to make my life or his life easier during this deployment.

Houses & Ramblings

The house I wanted to buy is under contract. Not that I know where we will be after this next deployment, but I still wanted it. Sigh.....

Junior went over the the outlaws today and I think that will be the last time for quite a while. They need to get rid of some dogs. With the puppies they have 8 dogs right now and it smells like they have a hundred. And I thought potty training children were messy....yikes! If I even had one ounce of desire for a dog (which I don't) it was squashed today by visiting over there. Junior had fun chasing the puppies and playing with them though.

Dh and I went to the gym tonight for a body step class. I absolutely love it, although I think my old class had better classes or I am just out of the loop with the new releases. (BTW the old gym called last week and offered me a good deal and I reminded them that I was happy over there and if they had offerend me the low prices they were offering now I would have stayed! About 3/4 of the way through class they came and got us because Junior threw up. Not sure if he did, or maybe it was his reflux (I have to remember to pick up his prescription tomorrow), or maybe he was sticking his hands down his throat--his latest trick, or he has a cold and if he coughs too much he will throw up. Hopefully it is nothing serious.

I'm not liking Dh's new job because he has to work late every day. I know it will be better once he is in Iraq though. We just want to spend as much time with him as we can before he does go.

I read a report the other day that our car--the Toyota Highlander--was rated one of the top 10 cars to own. It is supposed to last till over 200K. Anything has to be better than our Saturn! Actually I love our highlander though, especially since DH and the kids cleaned it out the other week.

I went to the volunteer orientation at the girls' school this afternoon. There are hundreds of kids at this school. Anyway, out of all these children only 6 parents, including me, have registered to volunteer. Are all schools like that? When the girls went to private school it seemed like almost all the parents were there for every function. This just seems like an awfully low number to me.

Abs got her new homework packet and I am supposed to write down how many minutes it takes her to read her reading assignment each night. So I timed her tonight and it took less than 20 seconds. I know she is a great reader, but the poem was really short. It took her about 10 minutes to choose what colors to use to color her pattern worksheet. Hard decisions you know!

Em is making an island in social studies in the shape of a book. They have to include all these different items in a legend. She gave her island five cities and then didn't want to connect them with roads. I told her she could use a train, but then she would need a station at each town so she went back to the road idea and tried to lower the amount of cities that she was using. I am not raising a city planner.

I need a change of scenery...how many more days till my vacation?

Still here

I think I had food poisoning. The outlaws took us to Texas Land and Cattlle for Dh's birthday dinner and I got shrimp and I think that it was burnt on the outside and raw on the inside. I could never eat sushi. I think I am on the mend now though....I hope. On the bright side if it is food poisoning that means I don't have to put up with the four other people getting sick. I am not good with that.

I spent the day with my mom today who is back in town. We had a great time and then my sister made a wonderful dinner with chocolate covered strawberries for dessert. And to think that when I got married I did not like any shape, form or flavor of chocolate. I still can't eat plain candy bars but any other way I am sold. To think of all that I missed out on.

Junior is starting to get better finally. Poor little guy still has a rough go at night, and is up early but thankfully Dh was off on Friday and could take of all of us sicklies. Today DH went with both the girls and their Girl Scout troop to tour Inner Space Caverns. We've been there several times but the kids love it. Junior went along for the ride and slept through the entire tour. Now if he would just sleep through the night.

Sleep is a crutch?

I need my sleep. I love to get at least 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep every night. I don't think that has happened in years though.

Junior has a horrible cold and keeps coughing up stuff (someone listens to you Grandma!). Around 3:30 am the girls were up talking and telling stories. Their dad went in there to tell them to be quiet and go back to sleep. Shortly after returning to bed the door shut. He got up and went back in there and they claimed that it was because the ac went on. DH opened the door, told them to be quiet and go to bed. He came back and gave me the scoop and I reminded him that the ac had been on. Then the ac went off and shortly after the door shut to Ab's room. (They have been sharing a room the last week or so because they wanted to and Abs has bunk beds). So DH got up again and went and opened the door and told Em to get in her own bed. Well of course to them changing beds means you move ALL the blankets, pillows and thousands of stuffed animals with them. So I hear the complaining and get up to tell Em to grab a blanket and a pillow and get moving because it is 3 am and now is not the time to be playing around. Everyone gets settled back into bed and we go back to sleep. Then Junior starts gagging on snot. Really gross. I cleaned him up and he is back in bed asleep. Guess I'll skip the gym again to keep an eye on him and not get anyone else sick. Poor little kiddo....I sure hope he takes a long nap today because I think I am going to curl up on the couch and join him.

Wordless Wednesday

 

From when I took pics last Friday when DH was off. He was leading Junior to the backyard for more pictures.

See more pictures here.

Moving on...

When we got here, DH was assigned to a company that everyone told us you could never escape from. Now almost 5 years later--while everyone else has left except for one or two others--we are FINALLY getting to leave. We will be stuck at Fort Hood--didn't expect them to make me deliriously happy--but DH will be moving to a different company. We never even thought we would see that. While his current CO is great, I am hoping that the move will be a nice change of scenery and will provide him more opportunities. I can try to be optimistic! Now if they would just lower the promotion points all would be well.

Memories Revisited

 

I finally moved to all digital, but I continue to find old rolls of film that I haven't gotten developed. My husband has been home since Dec 2nd of last year and these pictures were taken as he saw the girls and then met his son. Yes, the only picture of me was chosen because you can't really see me in it! But checkout those curls! How in the heck did only Junior get the curls? These aren't in order because I couldn't figure out how to do that, but the one where DH's mouth is open is seeing Junior.

Junior this morning....

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

My what big feet you have!

More pictures here.

My appointment

I had to work today so I scheduled an appointment to use my microdermabrasian gift certificate while I was out there. I got in to the room and she told me how to wear the velcro towel--don't laugh, I wish someone had given my little sister and I lessons like this before we made fools of ourselves at a spa trip a year or so ago! I got underneath the nice warm blankets, put my hair up and started to relax. She massaged my face and I was on the verge of falling asleep. Then the MDA started. It wasn't that bad, a little uncomfortable until I got used to it, but not bad at all. It was the step afterwards where they rid you of blackheads and whiteheads that about killed me. Instead of being on the verge of sleep I was on the verge of tears! Then she went back to the relaxing stuff again and all was well.

My face is a little red, but it sure feels better. Of course I had to buy new products to use on it and I need to schedule another session in 4 weeks.

I might have to choose this over the trainer....

Personal Trainers, Daycare and Play

Has anyone ever used one? Are they worth the money? So tempting as I see the results of those that follow the program. My doctor recommended a program but that costs money too. Maybe I should just go get certified to be one, can't be anymore expensive, just more time consuming. Of course I still want to be a paralegal--maybe? (I need your input on that Jess about the job and the program) If only I could figure out what I am supposed to be when I grow up....

Junior went to his first three hours at hourly daycare today and had a ball. He loved every minute of it, scarfed down his food and was ready to take a nap when we showed up. I brought him home and he napped for two hours. Tomorrow he is going for a longer period of time since I have to work, but I am sure he will be fine. He's a great little guy, just busy busy busy.

The local theatre is putting on The Full Monty next week and they are offering tickets one night to military families. I got two thinking that DH and I could go, but our moms are both out of town so there goes our evening babysitters. My friend that I would take just had a baby so I guess I will go alone. How sad is that! I'll be the person in the back of the theatre trying not to look like the loser, lol.

Puppies

Yesterday DH and the children went over to his parent's house so that they could help change out the bedding for the pups. I stayed home and did laundry...it was so peaceful....but I digress. The puppies are growing fast and are going to be so pretty, but huge. Anyone want one or two or three?

Ordered

I finally ordered a computer armoire after someone came to my door and saw my current method of the ottoman wedged in with the computer chair wedged in with the play pen wedged in with the chair. It worked most of the time though! I wonder what Junior will do with all his new found time since besides playing with the basket of unmatched socks his favorite pasttime is to try to find new ways to get to the computer.

Miss December

I know a colondar girl! Way back in 1999, I worked a hellatious job where I met a girl named Heather. We became fast friends and even went through our second pregnancies together and our daughters were born a day apart. Heather moved off to California and while driving through there we stopped off each time for a visit. As most people know in the military, true friends are friends forever.

About two years ago Heather was diagnosed at the age of 28 with stage IV rectal cancer that had spread to her lungs and liver. During this time Heather created a blog in order to let people follow her courageous battle with this cancer. Heather is candid in her blog and lays it all out on the line as she went through treatment, went into remission, and once again had the cancer return.

I recently got a letter from Heather that she said I could share, and I am hoping that others will support a good cause. I'm so proud of her and all that she does to make people aware of how colon cancer CAN happen to those that are young. She speaks out on the issue and is active in several organizations all while being a single parent to two beautiful children.

Dear friends,

For those of you who don't already know, in June I became part of a really cool project - the 2008 Colondar.

The 2008 COLONDAR is a 12 month wall calendar of 12 colorectal cancer survivors who have been diagnosed under the age of 50, and I am featured as Miss December. Each months model/survivor's photo is accompanied by a short bio about his or her experience with colorectal cancer.

I do have to warn you, its a pretty "sexy" calendar, although it was designed to be beautifully artistic and tasteful. All of the models (including me!) are "showing off" our scars by baring our bellies - so if you are easily offended by things like this, you might want to skip looking at the Colondar!

Our goals with the Colondar are 1) to show that anyone can get colorectal cancer at any age, 2) that colorectal cancer can be detected early and BEATEN, and 3) that it is beautiful to be a survivor.

Go to www.colondar.com to check out the pictures, read the stories, and find out more. The 2008 Colondar makes a great gift for friends and family, and of course your nurses and doctors! You can order them online or from me and save yourself the shipping!

We hope that everyone enjoys the 2008 Colondar - please let me know if you have any questions!

Thank you for all your support!

Heather

Change

Since DH is gone so much he misses out on so much with the girls and Junior. When he returned from Iraq last December Junior was just over 5 months old and he had only seen him for the first 13 days of his life. DH carried Junior in and was going to set him down on the ground as I was busy putting down the diaper bag, etc. I heard him ask the girls if he could sit up yet and they told him no. It kind of hit me then how much he had missed out on and how even with pictures, letters and phone calls he still didn't know his own son. We quickly remedied that and he has always been a very involved father with diaper changes, baths, medicines, etc. with each of our three children.

A lot can change in a month. DH left knowing his son and in that month he grew, changed and started new routines. So yesterday he spent the afternoon and evening learning what his son likes and dislikes now. He learned the new way of putting Junior down for the night and (since he still doesn't sleep through the night)what Junior was looking for at each time of the night--bottle, binky, time to wake up. I didn't realize how much Junior had changed during this time. I mean I knew, but I can't imagine what Chris sees when he comes home to such big changes in a little guy. The girls grow up and change a lot but it is not nearly as drastic as Junior. He is climbing on top of the furniture, starting to throw little fits, knows to wait by the door when it is time to go "bye-bye", can work a lot of his toys and much much more.

So when DH leaves soon I will make a point of putting everything down on paper for him, more scrapbooks, and tons more pictures (if that is possible!). I meant to do it last time but ran out of time, but this time I want to do a Year in Review album and put down the highlights of each month at the END OF THE MONTH (and now wait since I know I won't have time to do it then) for him to enjoy.

Headed Home

Dh should be home soon and of course I caught a cold. Hopefully he doesn't get it as the world stops when he gets sick!

Took Junior to get his picture taken today by my frind Molly at Photographics Unlimited. I can't wait to see the proofs! They have a great setting there and can do a lot of outdoor shots which I love. I like variety. We will go back before DH deploys and get some shots of DH with the kiddos. I know I should get in some pictures, but I am not ready for that yet! I got three microdermabrasian sessions for my birthday (what I wanted) and I have an appointment next week. Maybe I will look/feel younger?

Girl Scouts starts tonight and the girls will be in the same troop this year. It's a big group of girls so I am hoping that there are no problems.

.....he's home and we are off and running. When does life ever slow down? I'm looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow and having my sweetie home.

Also Abs was on green today and did not get in trouble at all. She saw the doctor yesterday and got her medication adjusted and hopefully we are headed in the right direction. The teacher said she is extremely bright and can do everything asked of her and do it correctly. She does have a referral out for an ENT and we will talk about the tonsils.

Paperwork and Deployments

Today I had an appointment to get the kids enrolled in Child and Youth Services on post. This will allow the older two to have access to School Age Services if needed and for Junior to be enrolled in hourly daycare and have some interaction with other kids on occasion. I was early for my appointment as I usually am for every appointment--I may not be organized but I am prompt! I actually did have all the paperwork I needed except for the girls' physical. It took more red tape for me to enroll three children than it did for my husband and I to get married and it cost more to enroll them for one year than it cost me to give birth to all three! (Em and Junior were free and Abs cost me $11 for my meals)--it was $40 to register them. We can get that money back if DH gets a letter from his commander stating that he will deploy in less than 90 days. First I told her that it was more than 30 days and then I started to think about it and realized it wasn't. Then it hit me that he was leaving us...again....and he's not even home yet from training and still has another month of field time.

Anyway, because Junior is allergic to eggs they gave me a meal substitute form that I have to get filled out by a doctor and submit before he can be seen at the CDC. I called while she made copies and they said they didn't have the schedule out yet and it would be out later that day. I asked them if he could be seen this week and she said no it would be more like the middle to end of September. So then I told them to book Junior an appointment for his skin problems and he will be seen tomorrow and I'll have the doctor fill out the form. We aren't waiting for a specific doctor, just any random doctor in the Peds clinic. One drawback to military life, but one that usually doesn't bother me too much.

Once all this paperwork is completed and DH deploys I can get 16 free hours of daycare a month and one Saturday a month as well. They have really increased the amount of care, so maybe I can schedule a massage once a month!

I had lunch with the outlaws since my MIL kept Junior this morning for me. Saw the puppies which are going to be huge and cute. I still don't think they need two more dogs, but they don't seem to listen to me....imagine that!

Abs still hasn't had a perfect day at school yet, but she is doing better than I expected and I still have hope that she will get it altogether one day. I hope her teacher realizes what a precious gift she is! Em is doing great and working hard and loving her math class! I never thought I would hear that come out of her mouth, but I bet my dad is smiling hearing that!

Back to the deployment....with it looming around the corner I am going to try to get some free time (yeah right) and start on some of the projects I want to get done before he leaves. I would like to make him a deployment countdown calendar this time (I had intentions last time but with everything else going on it just didn't get done)and of course a scrapbook of our family. I am scheduling family pictures too with a friend of mine who is a great photographer in November and I promise I will get in these!

Wordless Wednesday

 

Abs....we don't leave lotion down anymore.

More pictures here.

The Carnival

The girls spent hours planning a carnival that they put on yesterday. They designed games, came up with prizes (toys they didn't want anymore), made tickets and setup. Abbie banged on a drum that Emily designed out of material and a bucket (I really should have taken pics)and yelled "Carnival" at the top of her little lungs. They had different stations setup and they had one person come and they made 10 cents. They were so disappointed (I got to play for free) but they haven't given up and when DH gets home they plan on trying again and this time making it bigger and better. I told them that they might make more money having a garage sale with their toys, but they decided that wouldn't be as much fun as a carnival.

They even have a box you can sit in and rest...

UPDATE:

I guess I must have missed it while they were planning, but they are raising money for the local non-kill animal shelter, Second Chance. When the puppies that their Oma and Opa have from their stray dog that they adopted are old enough, 4 of the 6 will go there and they want to make sure that they are well taken care of. Such good hearts.

Long Weekend

We didn't do anything too exciting, but the kids and I had fun just hanging out, visiting the inlaws (who even kept them for a few hours on Saturday so I could get some things done!), and even got in some shopping.

A word of advice--never take three children swimsuit shopping even if it is 75% off at Dillard's and they have the handicapped dressing rooms that all of you and the stroller will fit into. I did find some good deals as well as got to hear a lot of comments about what I looked like in the bathing suits. They were nice about it all just told me "yes" or "no way". Em kept trying to get me to try on bikinis, but I am in no way prepared for that!

Dh should be home on Saturday morning! I can't wait! His dad is going to pick him up so that I don't have to go out at 2 am to get him. If he had been gone longer than 4 weeks I would have ventured out, but the thought of dragging three children out in the middle of the night just doesn't appeal to me. Junior doesn't sleep as it is, so I don't need to give him a reason to stay awake!

I am trying out this new menu thing where I select my meals, print the grocery list and then just cook them up. Of course everything I selected can be prepared in less than 15 minutes. So far so good.

I've had three friends that had babies this past week--2 boys and 1 girl! My SIL is due any day now with my new little niece. Babies everywhere! Just glad they aren't coming into our family. We are complete!

Piano

When I was younger I used to beg for piano lessons. My mom figured it was something that was short lived and just moved our piano into my room. I ended up cutting out letters and labeling each key and teachng myself to play some simple songs. My mom relented and enrolled me in piano lessons taught by an older lady at our church. I took for about 5 or 6 years till I was too busy with swimming, sailing and being a teenager. When we moved to Texas I got my piano back and found someone to be my piano teacher again and enrolled Em too. We both took for a year and a half till she moved away after her husband retired from the army.

I play periodically but this past weekend I found some music that I had been missing at my mom's house and I am back at it. Junior loves to sit in the playpen while I play each day and every once in a while he gets fussy if I spend too long on a song. It's been fun going back to play some of the songs that I did when I was much younger and the girls think I play beautifully--always nice to hear!

Maybe by the time DH gets back I can brush up on a few songs and impress him. When we moved into this house they moved my piano in first and I played a couple of scales to make sure it survived the move and the movers had me play for them till I ran out of songs that I had memorized. I used to think that if we ever got to move I would leave the piano behind, but I think we will just pack it along with us and let it continue to travel the world (it originally was bought while we lived in Australia).

Random Thoughts

Abs has pink eye.

I did Boot Camp at the gym today and it was hard and I am very uncoordinated.

I did pilates yesterday and I am sore today and was just as uncoordinated at that as well.

Em managed to lose her homework this morning...which hadn't been done. She got it done while I parked in the parking lot.

Junior has not slept well in days....lots of days....I am exhausted.

Got a text message from DH and all is well, he was watching the sand in the desert pulling guard. Looking forward to coming home.

I need to go to the commissary but I dread the thought of going on a payday weekend.

It's a three day weekend and I have absolutely nothing to do. Hopefully the pools will be open or something so that we can get out of the house.

I came home from the gym and the housing guy told me I needed to mow my grass. Guess I will strap Junior to my back and go.

I have had a headache for the last 4 or 5 days.

They are changing the dates of max leave and it isn't block leave yet, but I couldn't wait to buy tickets to Hawaii till the last minute, so they either have to let us go or we are out of luck. Figures.

Abs has gotten in trouble for talking every single day this week. I love her. Yesterday she also got in trouble for playing rock. paper, scissors. At least she hasn't had an "H" day. That stands for "Hullabaloo--causing a great disturbance". I just hope she doesn't have one of those all year!

I miss my friends...and my husband, but that is a given.

Some People

There is a for sale list here in Killeen and some of the things people want or are looking for just never cease to amaze me. Here's a posting from today:

I need a baby sitter for a 3 yr old from 7 am - 4:30 pm. every day of
the week. diapers and wipes provided. and some one to pick up a 6 yr
old from school. the clarks one in com 2. At 3:15 and keep him till
4:30. I am only able to pay $200 a month. Please Let me KNow.

So for 9.5 hours a day, five days a week and then 1.5 hours a day 5 days a week for the older child you want to pay $200 a month? Can't imagine that anyone that does daycare and provides rates like those is going to be very reliable. Not to mention why not go through the daycare on post or through a FCC provider or something. How do you know what you are getting? Random advertising on a for sale list is how you are going to find someone to leave your precious children with?

It's beyond me. At least this person can spell better than a lot of then. I hate to read "I have the following items for selled".

Wordless Wednesday

 

Missing Daddy....

See more pictures here.

They Survived

Junior and I had a great day by ourselves just going to the gym, shopping and he took a long nap. I should have gotten one in too!

I picked the girls up and it was mass chaos. Finally found Abs and her teacher told me that she did "pretty well" and that she "had a problem with excessive talking". Maybe she gets that from my oldest sister? Luckily she survived and didn't end up with a trip to the office. She told me that her color was light blue, but I am not sure how many colors are on the spectrum. At her old school she could blow through the colors by 11 am, so I am hoping that she has improved some or that they have more colors.

Em did a great job and had a lot of fun. She's just excited that they have two recesses and that they only had learn each other's names today. I'm sure homework will kick in soon enough and she will be tired of school. I used to love homework. I was a nerd back then.....I only wish I had kept that outlook.

After we got the girls we had to go look for the hard to find black and white Mead composition notebook. We finally managed to track it down after we had a car full of cold things from Walmart, at another location, with 100 degree temperatures. I don't know if the ice cream will ever be the same.

Only 4 more days till my birthday!

First Day of School

A few years ago my mom and I were at Sam's and we noticed they had a ton of those plastic bodies that the swimsuits come on. Of course we needed them for something and they have sat in my closet ever since. The girls found them and dressed them with their school uniforms so that they would be ready to go in the morning. At least they are being used now!

Abs and Junior getting ready to leave for school.

Abs, Junior and Em.

Abs--1st grade and Em--4th grade

When I woke the girls up this morning Abs started chanting "First day of school! First Day of school!" Junior was up really early this morning and the girls flew out of bed to get dressed and were ready to go well before it was time. They can eat breakfast at school so they opted for that and Junior and I stayed with them. We had practiced Ab's lunch ID number and when she got up there she got confused and couldn't remember it and didn't believe Em, who tried to help.

They ate breakfast and then I dropped them off at their classrooms. They were both so excited and couldn't wait. Can't wait to hear how they both did!

On a side note, I sent DH a pic of the kids on the cell phone so that he can see them ready to go to school. He has never made it to the first day of school for either one. He'll be gone next year too.

Retreat

After we left school yesterday we sat down on a bench right outside of the double doors so I could look over some papers that Ab's teacher had given me. While we were sitting there people were streaming out of the building and then it turned 5 o'clock--hopefully everyone knows what that means! The loud speakers went off and Retreat started to play. Immediately the girls and I jumped up and turned towards where the flag is. I was thinking about Chris and I glanced around and noticed every single person outside of those double doors had stopped and was standing there quietly. There were probably about 75-100 people and not one child was complaining, screaming or talking. There were no babies crying. There was nothing but respect.

This flag, which we honor and under which we serve, is the emblem of our unity,
our power, our thought and purpose as a nation. It has no other character than
that which we give it from generation to generation. The choices are ours. It
floats in majestic silence above the hosts that execute those choices, whether
in peace or in war. And yet, though silent, it speaks to us — speaks to us of
the past, or the men and women who went before us, and of the records they wrote
upon it.

President Woodrow Wilson

Meet the Teacher

Anyone who knows me knows that I wrestled with pulling Em from private school last year and putting her in public. It worked out well and so this year I pulled Abs from Montessori and put her in public school. Let's hope for the best on that one!

We met their teachers tonight and they were wonderful. I think both of them are going to do well and hopefully learn a lot this year. I talked to Ab's teacher and she said that she had some ideas and was willing to work with me, so hopefully that will be a productive year for her.

The books in Em's room sure looked thick, but they are planning on writing a book this year (right up Em's alley). I signed the girls up for lunches and put money in their account and breakfast starts at 7:20 monday morning. That's a good thing since I can't manage to find them anything to eat every other morning so now they can pick and choose there.

I'm excited about the girls starting school on Monday. I'm excited about getting Junior enrolled in hourly care and scheduling a massage in the next couple of weeks and maybe DH and I can meet for lunch one day with no kids. I wonder what we would talk about since he won't eat with his fingers, use his arm for a napkin, chew with his mouth open, eat too much bread and not eat his meal or drink too much soda......

Wordless Wednesday

This is DH holding Junior right after he was born. He looks small but he was 10 lbs 1 oz. My husband was home on R&R from Iraq and Junior was born two days after he arrived. DH returned to Iraq when Junior was 13 days old until he was just over 5 months old.


Wordless Wednesday

BPA in bottles

If anyone watches the news these days you know about how they are saying not to use bottles that contain BPA because of the risks involved. My sister sent me an article about it today and so I took the time to read it and of course the bottles that I have used for the last two kiddos and still use on Junior are the ones to avoid. Great.

So I dig through my bag full of bottles to see if I can find the glass bottles that I have and some nipples. I wash everything again and prepare a bottle for Junior right before we head out the door to the gym. On the nipples that fit these small bottles are little air vent holes or something like that--I'm sure there is a technical term.

It took Junior all of about 5 sips before he realized he could blow into the nipple and milk would squirt out the hole. He looked like a whale! It was incredibly funny and so typical of this little guy. Of course there was a huge mess with milk everywhere as the girls and I were sitting there watching him do this and not really sure what was going on.

Tonight I found a nipple with no hole on the side. I'm sticking with those.

Waste of Money

When we were stationed at Fort Lewis, our Honda Accord finally died and we needed a new car quickly. We didn't spent the years I spent researching the Toyota and we had heard good things about Saturn, so we bought a Saturn LW 300. It has been nothing but a headache. While the car had less than 10K miles on it the tires started splitting. Then one thing after another went out. It was supposed to not need major servicing till after 100K but they changed that to 60K. Of course our warranty was out at 60K and the repairs found were in the thousands. I called Saturn and they picked up half of the tab because I was furious. Since then it is still causing problems and we are just holding it together till it dies. DH drives it back and forth to work and occasionally I run it to the gym or something. This hunk of junk now has over 116K miles on it--I NEVER thought it would make it this far. I took it in today to get my oil changed (which I used to do every 3K miles religiously until I hit 60K and had all those repairs). I also needed a state inspection so I had them do that as well. Of course the service guy comes in with a list of things that I need to have repaired.

The radiator leaks and that would be almost $1K. I told him it had been leaking for almost 20K miles and I wasn't going to fix it because I could just keep on adding water to it. Then he said the air conditioner fan was broken and when you idle it would not blow cold air only when you were moving and that was almost $1K. I told him I wouldn't slow down long enough to idle at all and that I spent over $2K repairing the entire ac system about 2 years ago or so. I'm not making anymore major investments in this car. If I didn't need a state inspection and an oil change (that's the other clincher you have to take it to the Saturn dealer for an oil change because they have a star shaped wrench to remove the oil filter and none of the other places have it) I wouldn't have taken it in at all. It makes me sick to think of all the money we have invested in this car, but DH and I consider it an expensive lesson. Oh well, it will be interesting to see how long it lasts.

One More Week

The summer has flown by eve3n though it has been two weeks longer than last year. I think Em is excited and Abs opinion on going to a regular school is mixed sometimes. I think she will do fine though. I hope.

Abs has been performing her play every day since Thursday. They are doing Aladdin Jr. and it is really cute. I'm glad that she managed to stay out of trouble for these three weeks so she could participate in the production.

Em has been with my mom since her friend was there visiting her Grandma next door. Em has been sewing and designed a purse and is working on a quilt. She makes clothing too, but not anything yet that I will let her wear outside of the house as too much skin is showing!

Junior plugs along and goes with the flow. He has been staying with my MIL and playing with the puppies while I take Abbie to her performances and volunteer backstage.

The puppies are getting huge! It looks like there father was a black lab and the mom is part lab part mutt. I think the puppies will be bigger than their mother. I am sure they will once they are old enough to partake in the leg of lamb dinners with the other two dogs. I wonder if she will start cooking multiple legs just to keep everyone happy?? Crazy I tell you.

I've been missing the cycling classes at the gym due to Ab's schedule at the theatre so I have taken up running again. I love to run, but my knees do not. Once the girls are back in school I am going to have to go back to the doctor and figure out what we can do to make life easier for my knees.

DH is out in the box so I haven't heard anything for the past two days. He absolutely loves to go to the field when they are out there training and not just sitting around. I'm sure he is roasting, poor guy. He'll be home before we know it.....remind me of that next week when all the children are home and we have no concrete plans. I sure hope Hurricane Dean doesn't show up and keep us in the house because of the rain!

Better Picture

He's not as good looking as my Soldier, but he looks good here!