A Good Surprise

I had a comment on yesterday’s post that I kept thinking of all day. You can scroll down and read it here. It was from someone that happened by my blog by chance, not someone that has a military connection and linked to me from another mil-spouse site like most of my visitors.
Most of the time it seems like the majority of the people we meet, just don’t “get it”. Butterfly Wife had a great post recently on this topic.
Yesterday, my new visitor basically said “Thanks”.
And that says it all.

The distant thunder...

I laid in bed last night (4:30 am), and listened to the thunder. Yes…thunder. Something I miss about the Midwest. I don’t think it rained, there was no evidence of it in the morning.
As I laid there, my mind wandered.
I thought of:

Roxie, my baby dog, and how well her diet is going. Thanks to Butterfly Wife's suggestionto replace ½ of her food with vegetables. Even Hubby commented that she had a ribcage in the latest pictures we sent.

School is almost here! Uniforms are bought, washed, and ready to go. A few uniforms from last year are waiting on the sewing machine for repair. I didn’t think I would make it through the summer. In my mind, I’m breaking-up this deployment into manageable parts. Summer is now over…and then the school year…and then he should be home!

I’m so glad that crayons are non-toxic. E3 is obsessed with them. His sisters LOVE to color and seem to always let one Crayola roll onto the floor. I told Hubby that he should be proud of his son. He is very mechanically-inclined. He laughs at any baby-proofing that I attempt.

We sent 2 flat-rate boxes to Hubby yesterday. One was filled with cookies. His one weakness. He can eat 2 dozen in one sitting, but yet never gains a pound. Maybe if I ate 2 dozen instead of just one, it would work for me too.

Made it to the gym yesterday. I hadn’t been there for a few weeks. First, the kids were sick (read=can’t go to gym daycare)…then I was sick…then the kids were sick again…then I was lazy. It felt really good to go, and I was there 45 minutes and the daycare staff didn’t page me! Is this a new trend? Usually I’m 30 minutes into my workout and E3 is screaming for me. Now he plays nicely, although he keeps the staff busy. Everything imaginable is put up because he stacks things so he can climb. Pretty soon he’ll be fashioning his own parachute and jumping off of the roof…just like his Daddy.

"Me"' time

Today
1 hour by myself
No kids in tow
No diaper bag
Music on my radio station and turned up loud
The longest amount of time that I have been responsible for only myself for at least 6 months
I enjoyed every minute
I even fell asleep a moment...
Until the dentist’s drill woke me

The days are long, but the years are short.

My days fluctuate between one of two scenarios:

1. I want to curl up into a fetal position in the middle of the kitchen floor until this deployment is over. I want to say “I’m done, I don’t want to do this anymore!” like I did in the middle of labor with my 2nd child (by the way, that didn’t work, I still continued and delivered the baby 5 minutes later).

2. I say to myself “Wow! I can do this! Look how long it’s been…I never thought I’d make it this far”

This weekend I had a couple days from scenario #1. Thankfully, due to a lot of prayer and a few adorable children, today was closer to scenario #2.

Is it in the water?

I just realized that when my Hubby returns for good, that we need to move away from Los Angeles.
Not just because of the appalling schools, or the high taxes and cost of living.
Because…
my kids are making sushi and penne with Play-Doh!

A Baby Walks!

E3 walked yesterday! Across the living room, unassisted.
He’s taken a few steps before, but usually he just gets down and crawls when he wants to go somewhere. I have never seen a baby crawl so fast! That’s why he’s waiting until a good 14 months before walking.

The best part is that I was on the phone with Hubby when the monumental steps occurred. Hubby heard everyone’s excitement as it happened. I said to him “You didn’t miss it! You were able to experience E3’s first steps”
Through the phone I received “the look”. The “you really are blonde” look that Hubby has when I say or do something silly. It’s always accompanied by a sly smile.
Hubby was sad that he couldn’t see it live. I can’t imagine how horribly he must miss us. No matter how much the kids drive me crazy around here sometimes, at least we have each other.
Hubby did admit that he was glad that he heard everyone’s excitement live when E3 walked. Then I gave him “the look”.

Sooooo tired...

I am very tired today, just going through the motions now. I have hit the wall.
Is it time for the kids to go to bed yet?

I'm posting my favorite late-night guy, Craig Ferguson. I love him!
Here's one reason I love his show.

A Dragon on the Roof

There’s a monster on my roof right now. OK, maybe not a monster, but something big! Maybe not BIG exactly, but bigger than a bird or a mouse.

You see, it’s late, E3 decided that he wanted a midnight snack (did I ever mention that I type one-handed while nursing the baby?)
Something is walking on my roof, and making quite a racket! This is just the sort of thing Hubby is good at. I’m not going out there to shine a flashlight on the pest. It’s dark! and my lazy dogs are all asleep.
It’s probably just an opossum family. They creep me out.

My knight-in-shining-armor needs to return.

Sucky to-do-list

On my to do list today:

#1-buy two sympathy cards

One for a Great-Grandpa that lived a wonderful, adventurous life.

The second, for a tiny, day-old baby. No wonder, no adventure, but lots of love.

What can I say to those that are grieving so?

A Positive Side-Effect

A friend told me something interesting this weekend. She said “_____ being gone has really helped a lot of people he doesn’t realize”. She went on to say that since Hubby’s been gone, she has a greater appreciation for what she has and that she’s not the only one with this new-found appreciation.
All of my friends are civilians, and I’m the only woman they know that has to deal with a husband’s deployment.
When her husband returns home from work each afternoon, she has a great relief when she can have a few-minute break from the kids. Every day she remembers that I’m in the middle of a year-long hiatus from that sense of relief.
When her hubby snuggled up against her at night recently, her immediate response was “get away, it’s too hot”. Then she thought of me, and how I would love to have my hubby snuggling with me right at that moment.
Her husband was no longer going to be taken for granted she said. (I didn’t think he was, but I guess any marriage can improve)
I never thought of this deployment affecting others in this way, but I’m glad that it has.

Riddle me this

Can someone explain to me how it is possible that I can receive a phone call from Iraq today, but my next-door neighbor cannot call me because my number is “invalid’? Once again, Time Warner at it’s best.

Memory Lane

Jan, over at Standing By had a post today in which she referenced a few '80's songs. Being another child of the '80s, I was wandering around Youtube and ran across this song. I remember 10th row floor seats at the St. Paul Civic Center...dancing on the chair to this song...falling off the chair...........

We're sorry, the number you have dialed...

I am usually polite on the phone with customer service. I was a technical service rep at one time, I know how hard it is to deal with irate people on the phone when you had nothing to do with their problem. Well, today I lost it. I was one of those crazy people that used profanity while the lady on the line said “I’m sorry for you inconvenience” UUGGHH!

Lets just start at the beginning… The local phone/internet/cable company is going through a merger. Customer service sucks. I have no idea how a company as large as Time Warner can survive with such horrible customer service.
I have spent numerous hours on hold with them resolving issues with my cable, my internet, and now my phone. Time Warner needed to come out and switch my phone to their system. This is the 3rd scheduled appointment. The first was cancelled and rescheduled by them. The second was cancelled and rescheduled when I needed to upgrade to HD channels for my TV. (It seems as if they can only have one service call in their system at a time, so the phone appointment needed to be cancelled in order to do the HD, then rescheduled, STUPID system!)
The appointment was scheduled for between 8am and noon today. By the time I woke up this morning, fed the kids, etc., it was 7:55, so I didn’t shower in case the tech arrived. I could have used a shower. I was working until 2am and needed it to wake myself up.
At 11:30, TW called and said they were running late and would be here in an hour. At 2:30, I called them. After 30 minutes on hold, I was told they would be there soon. The tech arrived at 3:30. He was nice and professional enough. It wasn’t his fault he had terrible B.O. He’s been crawling under houses and dealing with people that hate his employer all day in 100+ degree heat.
He wasn’t able to complete his job here, something with the modem and the stupid people on the technical line. I needed to call back in the am to reschedule.
The phone was working when he was here…he was on it for 2 hours with technical service! Five minutes after he left, I picked up the phone…nothing. Tried my fax…nothing. Used my cell to call the numbers “we’re sorry, blah, blah, blah!”
So I phoned Time Warner.
I probably would not have been so upset if I had reached someone right away. Over ½ hour on hold and 3 transfers later I reach this nice lady. I have an appointment for tomorrow afternoon. I’m NOT happy about it! Isn’t there an emergency system they can use for after-hours service for someone with 3 kids waiting to hear from their husband that happens to be in a war zone! I can handle not hearing from him for a while when it’s on his end, that’s understandable. But because it’s the phone here at home, GEESH!

It would be better if my cell phone worked better in my house, it works, but barely and if you don't move, or turn your head, or breathe. So if Hubby does happen to call my cell, it won’t be much of a conversation between the static on my cell and the delay on his sat phone.
OK, enough of a rant. TW Bastards have taken enough of my time, I’m going upstairs to work, well at least no one can fax me anything else to do since I don’t have a freakin’ phone!

Countdown to school!

Just a couple weeks until school starts! E1 will be in 2nd grade this year, unbelievable! E2 still has 1 year left until Kinder, but will start a Tues/Thur preschool in a couple weeks. I was on the fence regarding preschool, but she has been asking to go, so I found one that I liked and enrolled her. She's on the verge of reading now.
We made a trip to the Supercenter today with the school-supply list in hand. Our cart was filled to the brim. We stocked up on everything, not just school supplies.
My kids are unusual in stores. They listen well, are polite, and they don't ask for everything on the shelf...usually.
Today was NOT one of those days. Don't get me wrong, they weren't horrible, but there was a time that I thought of pretending that I was the "nanny" and not the mother to these 3 children with me. Luckily, by the time we reached the checkout (they were training a new associate at each checkstand!) the kiddos were back to normal. Well, except E3 was tired and had snot running out of his nose. He's cutting a couple new molars and has a little cold to boot. Not a surprise since he puts EVERYTHING in his mouth, he's bound to pick up a virus or two.

I made a great find today. I purchased a small bag of Doritos Hot wing/Blue cheese flavor chips. YUM! I just need a beer and they would be a complete meal.

Did you know?

Did you know that on our first date, my hubby and I ALMOST drove to Vegas to get married? We talked about it, even rode in a horse-drawn carriage that had a "Just Married" sign on the back. We just knew that we were with the one we wanted to spend our life, the one with which we wanted to grow old. We didn't drive to Vegas, mainly because our family would have freaked-out, and I mean FREAKED! I didn't want to cause my mother to have another stroke.
On our second date, he surprised me with a heart-shaped diamond engagement ring. We were engaged long enough for me to move from Minnesota to California (a job transfer opportunity appeared just at the right time) and plan a small wedding.
That was almost twelve years ago. Our anniversary is next month and we will be apart.
We don't usually even plan big celebrations for our anniversary, so I'm not going to miss that. I'm just missing my best friend right now. I miss snuggling up on the couch and watching something stupid on TV.
Usually I'm so focused on keeping everything together and helping the kids cope with missing Daddy, that I don't even let myself think about missing him. Today we missed him together.

Visitors

My sister is in town visiting for a few days. I have barely had a chance to read the blogs that I usually do. I don't want her to find out my super-secret blogger ID. It is so silly, but she's my big and only sister. I don't know what I have to worry about, other people that I know are aware that I blog.
My sister and I are very different. We do not even look like we are related. Personalities are just as different as our appearances. Even though we haven't always gotten along, she has always been there for me when I needed her. She is one of the strongest people I know, a little weird, but strong.
Her 17 yr old daughter is also here. She is almost an adult! I remember when she was the flower girl at my wedding, boy do I feel old.
They both say that they have no idea how I am doing this on my own (the 3 kid/dog/work/house/etc. thing). I really don't know myself some times.
I'll only have my visitors for a few more days...I'm sure time will fly right by...
Sometimes I really miss having family nearby, instead of half-way across the country.
After they leave, I'll need to revert to saying "soda" instead of "pop".

Asking for help

I find it difficult to ask for help. Always have. It was a hindrance in college. I never asked for help, even if I had an extremely difficult time grasping a certain concept. I’ve worked on my car and motorcycle and used only a book for a guide. Work around the house was almost always done by me and Hubby. This was a “fixer” when we bought it and we’ve done a lot.
Since Hubby’s been gone, I’ve learned to embrace the concept of asking for help. I realized that with the 3 kids, 3 dogs, and working in my “free” time that I would snap if I tried to do everything. I hired a gardener; he was already next-door every week anyhow. That was the biggest hurdle. I use to bale hay for goodness sake and now I can’t take care of a yard by myself?! It’s been a load off my mind.
Today, I had help from two friend’s husbands. Each completed a task that I could have done on my own, but now I don’t have to.
One husband took our RV in to have a smog check so I could renew license registration. The battery was dead and wasps had built a nest in the engine compartment. It was a little more of a project than he had anticipated, but he didn’t complain. I’m loaning an outdoor projector to them for their next camping trip. (we use it to project movies onto the outside of the RV)
Husband #2 routed the wires for my new TV through the wall so there is nothing distracting from my new pretty TV. I had him and his family over for dinner and swimming tonight.
I am so grateful to have friends like these that I can depend on. I feel very blessed.
As far as asking for help, I don’t think I’ll ever have a housekeeper. That’s a major step.

Quotes

What I have said today:

-“Don’t run over your brother!”
not as bad as it sounds, it was a toy car

-“dagnabbit! what dog ate the crayon?!”
said when I found a bright pink poo in the backyard. The washable Crayolas dissolve; the regular ones are speckled on the way out. This must have been a washable one.
Yes, I thought I was Yosemite Sam for a moment

-“maybe they don’t like you very much either”
a reply to M2’s statement that she hated raisins

-“who wants a cookie?”
put this one in the “duh” category

-“get down monkey-boy”
E3’s a climber

-“oh crap, I smell smoke”
I live in what the insurance company calls the “fire belt”, smoke smell outside worries me, especially when it’s breezy outside like today. No fire today, the smell dissipated.

all this before noon…
it’s Monday, what’s new?

FRG?

Finally...today I met someone from the FRG (Family Readiness Group). Hubby has been gone 5 months now and I met an FRG leader. Not the one from Hubby's company, but a different one from the same battalion. My Hubby's company is based pretty far away from here, plus they haven't met as of yet. This company is based within 20 miles of my home so I contacted the leader a few weeks ago to introduce myself. One newsletter came out a couple months ago, and in it she stated that anyone could contact her, regardless of the company they're affiliated with, so I did. We went to lunch. She seemed like a very nice woman and has a few plans in the works.
I'm not sure exactly what an FRG does, but I thought that it would be nice to meet someone nearby that had kids. I think the girls would like to meet other kids who's daddy's are deployed. There is picnic scheduled in a month for the entire battalion and we are planning on attending. I hope we meet some people that live nearby. The picnic is about a 2 hour drive from my home so I'm not sure how many families from my area will be attending. I don't mind driving, but it is a hindrance for some people.

The rest of the day went by quickly. The kids and I had a great swim after dinner. The pool was very warm. I had left the cover on for a few days and it was nice and toasty. I need to remove the cover tomorrow or it'll get too warm...then turn the color of pond scum. The chlorine level is impossible to maintain when it reaches too high of a temp. Happened to me once this summer already, and oh what a pain it is to get it back to crystal blue water. It sure is an ego crusher when a chemist can't maintain a pool!

Watched "Army Wives" on Lifetime tonight. I'm really getting into that show. I realize that it's basically just "Desperate Housewifes" on post and there are a lot of unrealistic things on the show, but I'm really enjoying it.

I began reading the book Portraits of theToughest Job in the Army, Voices and Faces of Modern Army Wives. My neighbor told me of a book her friend wrote, so I looked into it, ordered it from Amazon, and now I find myelf being interrupted every time I pick it up. Yes, I could read it right now, but as soon as I'm done typing, I'm back upstairs typing on my other computer so I get paid. Work is a little busy, I just needed a 10 minute break. I'm enjoying it so far, I'll write more when I am finished. One thing I don't agree with is the title. I think Hubby has it MUCH tougher. He misses me, the kids, home, good food, and people are trying to kill him.

Tomorrow's Monday...

He said "if"

When I spoke to my Hubby last, he said "if he gets to see the new TV", "if" he comes home, not when.
I said "when, not if". He agreed, I think it was just a slip on his part.
I have a feeling that he's had a lot of close calls lately, maybe that's his version of anticipatory grief..

My Dream Car

I’ve seen the same new car in my neighborhood a few times this week. Someone bought a beautiful new yellow Ferrari. (I don’t live in an especially affluent area, it’s rather eclectic, houses range from $300K to $2mil+, remember it’s LA, $320K is listed right now for a 1BR 600sqft fixer). Back in the day, I was a nut about cars. I was the only girl I knew with subscriptions to Road-n-Track and Motor Trend. My first car after college was an Eagle Talon AWD 5 speed turbo. It was a great little car for the money. I had lots of fun racing around the cloverleaf in that car. Eventually I drove a company car. Plain Jane, but free.
Now I have my Dream Car. We bought it shortly before my husband deployed so he wouldn’t have to worry about my car having issues while he was gone. It’s “platinum” color (dark charcoal grey), automatic and seats 7 comfortably. It has built-in DVD and I use the headphones in the back for emergencies. It’s a living room on wheels. I store cases of water, first-aid kits and tennis equipment in the floor storage bins. The seats flip up and down and 3 kid car seats are relatively easy to install.
It amazes me how much my definition of dream car has changed in the last 20 years. I’m sure it’ll change again in the next 20. I just need something that fits 3 kid car seats for a while. Maybe not a Ferrari, but I saw a beautiful Lotus a couple months ago…but I’d need to sell the house first and I don't know how comfortable in which the car would be to sleep.