Dragonfly

Our Paris trip

2011-11-27T14:57:00.001-05:00

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"There I was... There. I. Was..."

2011-10-15T15:10:00.000-04:00

Stretch likes to tell the girls ridiculous, fantastical stories that have come to be known in our home as "There I Was" stories because that's how they all start: "There I was. There I was. There. I. Was..." Last summer, for some unknown reason, many of the stories featured go-go boots and a long white silk scarf. As a result, Devil Pup has been asking for go-go boots since last summer. (Yes. I blame her father.)

Recently, Devil Pup acquired a pair of red, low-calf zippered patent leather boots. She has worn them almost non-stop since getting them.

The girls are also encouraged to tell their own "There I Was" stories. Today, Stretch asked Devil Pup to tell one. It was quite short and a bit lacking in plot. But we thought it was hysterical. It went something like this:

There I was.

I was wearing red go-go boots.

And I was looking sassy.

The end.

Our last full day in Paris...

2011-10-12T07:18:00.002-04:00

The next morning found us at the same bakery as the previous morning getting breakfast to go before making our way to Invalides and the Musee d’Armee. Stretch was made very happy between the military history and the HUGE amount of artillery on display! We were awed by the intricate armor and weaponry. The attention to detail was incredible.

After getting our fill of military history, we made our way to the opposite end of the complex of Invalides to the Eglise du Dome, where Napolean’s tomb is located. Big Sis wondered why such a small statured person had such a large tomb.

Across the street, we found Musee Rodin where the girls posed with The Thinker and we wandered the gardens enjoying more of the scupture’s works. I had intended for us to follow this with Musee du Moyen Age so we could see the tombstone of Nicholas Flamel and the 6 Lady and Unicorn tapestries. However, the general consensus was that we should move on to the river cruise with Bateaux Parisiens, an hour-long boat tour that began at the foot of the Eiffel Tower , passed under a number of bridges including Pont Alexandre III and Pont Neuf, floating past the Ile de Cite before returning.

It had been a rainy, gloomy day until that point, so after disembarking from the boat, we thought we’d check the line at Tour Eiffel since we were so close. Once there, Stretch, Big Sis and Devil Pup decided to take the stairs up the Tower. I decided to stay behind and people watch. They ended up climbing all the way to the 2^nd stage! Clearly, they all enjoyed it as they returned to the ground happy and excited.

By then, we were all getting hungry and decided to try to find a family friendly chain restaurant just off the Avenue du Champs Elysees called hippopotamus. The first location was no longer there but we accidentally found another location. It was wonderful! And the kids’ meals came with enormous ice cream desserts.

After dinner, we strolled up the Champs Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe. After taking note of the arches, plaques on the ground and the eternal flame at the grave of the unknown soldier (from the First World War), we climbed circular stairs to enjoy the view from the terrace on top. The lights of the streets radiating from the Arc de Triomphe were pretty but the piece de resistance had to be the Tour Eiffel lit up at night. Just when we thought we were enjoying a spectacular view, the Tower’s lighting changed and it began to sparkle!

What a perfect last night in the City of Light!

The Louvre, Notre Dame, Musee D'Orsay, and Musee Grevin ... Oh, my!

2011-10-12T04:58:00.000-04:00

The next day, we wanted to get to the Louvre just before opening. We didn't quite make it, but were still early enough that the crowd in front of the Mona Lisa wasn't too bad. Our strategy for this stop was to hit the highlights. After all, there is just no way to see all of it in one day, especially with kids in tow. Big Sis was able to see her Greek Antiquities and Devil Pup saw her Egyptian Antiquities, or at least some of them.

After an hour or so, the girls were done with the museum. It was time for a snack and our next stop. We caught the Cars Rouge (a double decker hop-on, hop-off bus tour that is included in the Paris Pass) and went to the Cathedrale du Notre Dame on Ile de Cite. The line to get into the cathedral was ridiculous. And the main reason we were there was to go up the towers so we got in line for Tours du Notre Dame. It was a long line. And it was cold. We ate lunch in that line. Stretch found a vendor across the street and brought us hot dogs in baguettes with cheese.
Eventually, we made it inside and started climbing the first tower. Gargoyles and chimera on a gray day – perfect! We also found ourselves inside the wooden bell tower after passing through a small door that the girls said looked like a Hobbit door.

Then it was back on the Cars Rouge to make our way to Musee d’Orsay. Although renovations were underway and areas were closed, we were still able to see a number of works including those of Paul Gauguin and Vincent Van Gogh, a favorite of Devil Pup’s.
After that we reboarded the Cars Rouge. We passed La Place du Concorde and the Egyptian Obelisk. Then we passed the Opera and disembarked to make our way to Musee Grevin, a wax museum. The girls had a great time posing with wax figures such as Jackie Chan, Naomi Campbell, Elvis Presley, Spiderman and Frankenstein’s Monster.

After dinner at an Irish pub nearby, it was back to our hotel. We all slept well that night!

Bonjour, Paris!

2011-10-11T16:36:00.001-04:00

For this trip, I purchased BahnCards when I bought our train tickets. They paid for themselves in the first trip! It was less expensive to buy the cards and get the 25% discount on the tickets than to simply buy the tickets without the discount. I wish I'd known to do this for our earlier Berlin trip!

After a 4-hour ride on the TGV, we arrived at Paris' Gare L'Est in the early afternoon. We bought day passes for the Metro and made our way to our hotel, Hotel Residence Foch. After dropping our bags in our room, we set out to find lunch and the Hard Rock Cafe to pick up our 2-day Paris Passes. Lunch was bought at a street-side stand on the Avenue la Grande Armee which was lined on one side with white tents occupied by antique and art vendors. We ate while walking toward the Arc de Triomphe.

After taking a few pictures, we descended into the Metro and made our way to the Hard Rock (Metro line 9, exit at Grands Boulevards). The hardest part of picking up the passes was getting thru the crowd of tourists in the store. Nearby were covered alleys with interesting little shops. One had a pink beret that had Devil Pup written all over it. Since she'd been asking for one, she got the first souvenir of the trip.

After a bit of wandering in a drizzle, we wandered and saw the Eiffel Tower, L'Ecole Militaire and went back toward the hotel, looking for a place to eat dinner. We ended up in a brasserie where we enjoyed our first dinner in the City of Lights. When our meals arrived, Devil Pup, exclaimed, "Bon Appetit!" After finishing hers, Devil Pup leaned back in her chair, rubbed her tummy and announced, "That was quite a meal... A good meal, I tell you." She'd had a hamburger (no bun) and rice.

Berlin After Action: Exploring Part 2

2011-10-11T14:19:00.000-04:00

Berlin After Action: Exploring Part 1

2011-08-17T03:26:00.001-04:00

North and South Korea

Belgium

When we checked into the pension, the owner had mentioned something about bears and that it was fun for the kids to keep an eye out for them. I wasn't really paying attention, but then we started walking around and found them. Wow! The kids loved them! It was fun to see how each was decorated to represent a different country. Big Sis wanted to find Greece and Devil Pup had to find Egypt. For more info on the Buddy Bears, click here.

We saw a number of street performers, but Big Sis was quite taken with this troupe of breakdancers (I was more taken with their advanced age -- one looked older than me and I'm sure that's way too old to be breakdancing or doing tricks on skateboards -- brittle bones and all that, y'know). Of course, I found the way they ended the show to be the best part: ABBA's "Money, Money, Money" blaring as they held out caps for their audience to place money.

After our first night's dinner of sushi (YUM! and the girls liked it, too), we wandered around a bit and ended up going down a sidestreet we later decided wasn't quite in the right direction. However, if we hadn't gone down that street, we might never have seen this. And what is it? Well, it seems to be a restaurant suspended by a crane: Dinner in the Sky! Neither of the girls thought this was a good idea.
DP: "What if you fall?"
me: "There are probably seatbelts."
BS: "What if the crane breaks?"
me: "Hopefully, that wouldn't happen."

Our first night in Berlin, we really didn't have time to do any of the tourist sites so we spent the evening wandering the main thoroughfare near our hotel-pension. It was fun and relaxing, despite getting rained on at the end. Oh, well, that was a good excuse to get back to our room and get everyone showered up and ready to really see Berlin the next day!

Berlin After Action: Train and Pension

2011-08-15T11:13:00.002-04:00

Stretch had a 3-day weekend, so we decided to test out the rail system and go to Berlin. The weekend before I booked our rail tickets via the Deutches Bahn webite. I played around with it a bit to see how much tickets would cost using different configurations, i.e. with or without the various BahnCards which provide discounts of 25-50%. In the end, we decided to forego the BahnCard for this trip, using it as a test trip instead. For 2 adults and 2 children in a 2nd Class compartment with reserved seating, I paid 457 euro (including the extra 5 euro for the reserved seating). I may have been able to find better deals if I'd planned a bit further in advance, but didn't think it was too bad for last minute. It was certainly far cheaper than flying and much more comfortable than driving!

I also booked us on the ICE train (fast train) that had no connections and would get us to Berlin in roughly 6 hours. The first picture shows a 2nd class car and the second picture is the area with compartments and WC (toilets) where we were seated. Each compartment had 6 seats, small table and places to hang jackets and a place to put luggage overhead. We could control the lighting and temperature inside the compartments as well. Once we got to Berlin (the Hauptbahnhof there is HUGE!), it was a matter of finding a bite to eat and then finding the local public transportation to take us out to Charlottenburg (the neighborhood where our accommodations were located). We took a U-Bahn (making only 1 connection) to Adenauerplatz and then walked a few blocks to the Hotel-Pension Bregenz.

When we checked in, one of the owners immediately gave us a map with suggestions of things to do with the kids. She marked routes for us and showed us the bus and U-Bahn routes.

Then, she showed us to our room. It was spacious, clean and had an ensuite bathroom. While the shower was a bit tight sizewise, it perfectly suited our needs. Everyone had their own bed and none of us felt cramped.

The breakfast the next day was also lovely. Each table in the breakfast room was set with blue and white china. The buffet was more than ample, offering cereals, yogurts, breads, meats, cheeses, fruit, and coffee cakes. Tea, coffee, milk, orange juice and water were also available. I was finally able to get fresh brotchen and liverwurst with fresh coffee for breakfast ... so good! If we get a chance to go back to Berlin (there was so much we didn't get to see or do!), I'd definitely stay here again!

Also, we could buy the tickets for public transportation at the hotel. A family pass for the day was 15 euro.

Home Sweet Home?

2011-08-08T09:57:00.001-04:00

Don't get excited. We're STILL living in a hotel. But last week, I was able to get a peek into the apartment we will eventually be moving into. The furniture is loaner furniture but here are a few pics:

Living room from the front door

Living room, looking at front door, dining room and kitchen

From living room, looking into dining room and hallway to bedrooms

The kitchen is smaller than last years but bigger than the hotel!


Love the shelving in the laundry room!


Master closet! This might make up for last year's closets!


The kitchen overlooks a playground and more apartments

Schloss Ludwigsburg

2011-07-31T15:45:00.000-04:00

We wanted to go and do something on Saturday but it couldn't be too far a drive. And it had to be something the kids would be interested in as well. So we chose Schloss Ludwigsburg. It should have been about a 30 minute drive but I managed to mess up the GPS directions and then parking was, um, interesting until we found a parking garage about a block from the palace.

Once there, we realized there was a small fest of some sort taking place that day. Which worked out fine for us as it meant there were people in period costume, performances on a stage in the courtyard and, most importantly, food and beverages available!

Our first stop was the Kinderreich, or Children's Realm. For 2 hours, children (of all ages!) could dress up and get a taste of what life in the palace might have been like. It all began in the ulitmate dress-up ~~closet~~ room: Lots of clothes for boys and girls, wigs, hats, jewelry. Big Sis chose not to dress up (being too old and cool for that sort of thing now she'll be starting middle school) but Devil Pup had a grand time of it. She loved sitting on the throne, looking regal. She learned to curtsy and had to approach the "king" (one of the dads was recruited for the role), curtsy and make a request. Then we were shown a miniature theatre where the kids were shown how to change the scenery, change the lighting (including making lightning), use a wind machine (to make the sound of wind), and make thunder. Then they got to get up on stage and put the skills to use. After that, we were taken into a dining room, set with real china. There the kids were taught about royal dining etiquette. Since Devil Pup had seated herself at the end of the table, she was the "queen." She quite enjoyed making everyone else pick up their glasses to "drink" everytime she did! Then it was time to return the dress up clothes.

Afterward, the families were given a tour of the king's and queen's chambers of the palace. Due to the fact that all of this took a little over 3 hours, we made a huge tactical error in not feeding everyone before-hand. As soon as the tour was over, we made a bee-line for the food stalls! There we found bratwurst in brochen and Big Sis found heaven in meat on a stick. While we ate, we watched a sword fight between some Musketeers and villains followed by various little girls performing on the stage. By the time we were done eating and ready to explore the gardens, there was a pirate act performing.

Then it was time to explore the Marchengarten, or Fairy Tale Garden. The Frog Prince, Hansel and Gretel, the Magic Mirror from Snow White, Ali Baba, and more were to be found here. And of course, as you can see by this picture, one had only to shout, "Rapunzel, Rapunzel,... Let down your hair!" and down came the tresses from this tower that overlooked a baroque garden.

We spent almost 7 hours at the palace and in its garden and I'm sure we didn't come close to seeing it all. Even though I know we'll be living here for the foreseeable future, I can't help feeling that there's so much to see and do and so little time!

Tourism: The Eagle's Nest

2011-07-17T17:26:00.001-04:00

Today's adventure took us to Kehlstein, otherwise known as the Eagle's Nest. We boarded the USO bus a little before 5 a.m. -- yes, that was a wee bit painful!

We had a large group so we split into 2 smaller groups with one going up to the Eagle's Nest first while the other group toured the Dokumentation center. After lunch, we switched places.

We were lucky enough to be in the first group to ascend the mountain via bus to the tunnel that led to the elevator that took us to the Eagle's Nest perched on top of the mountain. The skies were pretty clear and the views were amazing! I was particularly grateful for this since the forecast had called for a 70% chance of rain! I'm not sure how much of the history the girls absorbed but Stretch and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

It was clear enough that we could see Salzburg, Austria, in the distance.

Later, we toured the Dokumentation center with audio guides in English. While familiar with World War II and the atrocities committed by the Nazis, it was still a horrifying and sobering reminder of what occurred. The tour also included exploration of a bunker system under the center. Frankly, the place gave me the heebie-jeebies.

Our adventure continued after we left the area. Clouds began to move in and it finally began to rain as our bus made it's way homeward. And we got to experience our first stau, or German traffic jam. I was particularly grateful that neither of us were driving and we could sleep through it! As a result, our return was later than planned but it was still a great trip.

1st Week in Country... Come On, Weekend!

2011-07-15T15:15:00.001-04:00

It's Friday! And what a full week it's been! Since arriving on Sunday we've managed to check off the following items from our to-do list:

Check in with Housing
Procure Housing
Entered our IDs into the local system so that we can enter US installations here
Unlocked Stretch's phone and have a local number with prepaid minutes
Start the check-in process (Stretch), which has included a lot of classes for Stretch
Register kids with Child and Youth Services (CYS)
Sign kids up for School Age Services (SAS) for 2 days next week so I can attend Stuttgart Newcomers Orientation (SNO)
Enroll kids in school (this involved going to 2 schools at 2 installations), including the eldest at middle school for the first time. This mama is still having a issues with that one!
Stretch passed his drivers' test (I'll take mine next week)
We have our vehicle! Albeit with temporary registration but that will be rectified next week.
Attended a local festival downtown Monday night with our sponsors
Spent an afternoon moving rooms (while Stretch was in class, of course) because our first had sprung a leak, while simultaneously doing laundry. Of course the laundry rooms were not on the same floors as either our first or second rooms. But while my gremlins have struck again, I got the last laugh. They moved us to larger accommodations allowing the girls to sleep in a bed instead of a sofa-bed and also giving us 2 bathrooms (hey, this is important for a family of 4!)


Water on the floor of our room from the leaking A/C unit

Ventured out to a local Italian restaurant (it's German serving Italian fare and was the only one we'd heard of within walking distance of our hotel!) where we practiced our non-existent German and enjoyed a lovely meal that was NOT fast food!

(at right) Big Sis peruses the phrasebook while Devil Pup decides whether to try Dad's sparkling water or Mom's spezi first. She tried both and decided the spezi was tastier. Mom agrees! It tasted just as good as I remembered from my childhood time in Germany (when my dad was stationed in Bavaria).

I'm tired... bring on the weekend! And our tour of the Eagles Nest on Sunday!

Dragonfly has landed in Deutchland!

2011-07-14T16:30:00.000-04:00

We arrived Sunday morning and have tried to hit the ground running. Well, as much as possible while still jet-lagged!

Our first stop Monday morning was the housing office, where we updated our status and were given the possibility of an apartment on Patch Barracks, our first choice! We were given keys to look at a similar apartment in the same building but the one we were offered is still occupied and will be until the end of the month, so we'll be in the hotel for at least a month. Stretch started his check-in process and we got all 3 ID card holders entered into the system here.

In the afternoon, we took the bus to Patch to check out the new neighborhood. The kids fell in love with the apartment (we kept reminding them that it was NOT the one we'd be in!), the neighborhood and the post. And we kind of liked it, too! Afterward, we wandered the post a bit before meeting our sponsor who took us to downtown Stuttgart for the Fish Fest. While fun, it made for a late night (well, late for those dragging with jet lag!).

That was just our first day and a half in country! We are already signed up to take our first USO tour this weekend and hope to have at least one licensed driver and our car by next week.

My record with housing difficulties continues to hold (and I'm not even in housing yet!). We had a leak in our room due to issues with the A/C unit and its drip pan. Stretch is finally a believer in my gremlins! I'm not complaining, though, as it led to us being moved to a larger room!

Photo Book

2011-05-11T14:32:00.001-04:00

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Xmas Card 2010

2010-11-27T13:17:00.002-05:00

I'm running late this year. I finally ordered our Christmas cards today. By this time, I usually like to have all our cards ready to mail, stamped and addressed! What can I say? It's been a busy year!

Cool Peppermint Dots Christmas 5x7 folded card

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Boys and their toys...

2010-11-12T17:47:00.002-05:00

Stretch bought this for himself today:

He and Devil Pup have already broken it out of the package and started playing with it. My mother-in-law would be so proud. When I was pregnant with Big Sis, I remember her suggesting that if we had a boy, perhaps we could not allow him to play with guns. Yeah. While living on a Marine Base. That would work.

Well, we didn't have a boy. We had two girls. And they love to play with toy weapons: swords, nerf guns, whatever. To be fair, she only mentioned keeping the toy guns away from a little boy.

The Marine and both Devil Pups fend off zombies.

Thank you to all our Veterans, past and present!

2010-11-11T15:26:00.000-05:00

Happy 235th Birthday, Marines!

2010-11-09T22:26:00.000-05:00

Team Marine has raised more than twice what we set out to raise! But let's keep it going because our Wounded Warriors are growing in numbers and the need is great. Click on the button in the upper right hand of this screen to donate to Valour-IT.

"Journey Home: A Marine Tale"

2010-10-31T20:57:00.000-04:00

This is a story written by our newly minted 10 yr old (Big Sis) at school. I haven't corrected her misspellings or grammar but I have highlighted a phrase she wrote.

I saw the ship that had taken me here, Iraq, 1 year ago. It would now take me home. To my family and home. It had been a long year. I was ready to go to my abode.

I stepped on the ship uncertain it would survive the trudge west. But hopefull to return to my kin. I was given a room key for my cabin, below deck. My number was 303 . The blue paint forming the numbers were nearly completly chipped off. I instantly pictured the room dank and sad, with spiders and cobwebs. I got half right. It wasn't gloomy, but it was cobweb filled.

For the first couple of days it was splendid, but then a storm hit. I felt like I needed to abandon all hope, of seeing family and living. The boat rocked uncontrollably. Passengers were throwing up and screaming. Two waves so high you'd think their water mountains, hurled them selves on deck. One wave had caused a hole and the Captain was plunging lifeboats into the angry sea. (which wasn't bright if ya ask me.) I threw myself into the murdurous sea, trying to escape the yelling and the rocking of the boat. That was a big mistake, 'cause I fell unconcious.

Next thing I know I'm bobbing along in a calm sea... above water. I'm a top 3 planks of wood from a ship, perhaps the one I was on. I look around my compass is broken and I'm wandering in the ocean. What could be worse? Oh, great. I see a fin, it's proboally a shark. To my surprise it's a dolphin. I take the rope around it's tail, and I glide after it. Dolphins are popular in FL where I live. There just might be hope, again.

Finally, I saw the shore. My luck must have been with the dolphin, because this was the beach that was 2 mi. away, from my house. Unfortanantly, it's a long walk, and would be tough without shoes. My luck ran out.

The hot sand was burning my feet as I walked toward the wooden ramp. I braced myself for the tiny, pointy, rocks in the parking lot. The pain was standable, though it stung. My feet were red, cut, and bleeding. But, I continued walking. When your a Marine, you learn to stand the pain and think about what's important. In this case reaching home, I continued walking.

Yes, I see my house! I wanted to run, but my feet were too sore. I was laughing and celebrating. As I knocked on the door and embraced my family. For the first time in a year.

****
The need is great. Dig deep and support the Marine Team for Valour IT by clicking on the button on the upper right of this screen. And tell your friends and family to do so, as well!

Devil Pups rock!

2010-10-30T14:59:00.001-04:00

First off, we live on an Army post. In an apartment building made up of mostly Army folk.

The other day, I brought our USMC flag in because of the wind and the fact that it looked like the bracket was about to come out of the wall. This morning, Devil Pup decided to take it downstairs for a one-girl parade. She later talked our neighbors' little girl to join her with their USMC flag (we are the only 2 Marine families in the building). She tried to get our other neighbor's daughter to join her but was told, "I can't: We're an Army family!"

So there she was (and she's back out there again as I type), marching around with a Marine flag that's bigger than her. And probably freezing her little patootie off, too.

If a 6 year old has that much Marine Corps spirit, how can you refuse to donate to the Marine team in our efforts to support Valour IT? Click on the button in the upper right part of the screen to donate and support our Wounded Warriors!

Nice to know we're still needed...

2010-10-28T07:51:00.001-04:00

Last night, we found our 10 yr old sprawled out in our bed. Usually, it is her younger sister who tries to invade us in the middle of the night. We're lucky if Big Sis asks to cuddle at bedtime, so it was something of a surprise to find her in our room. And it was clear that she intended to stay the night since she'd brought her alarm clock with her.

Big Sis used to regularly join me at night in 2003 (she was just 2 yrs old at the time), during Stretch's first war-time deployment. But in recent years, she's been quite the independent type and she's never been a particularly touchy-feely child.

Last night, I know she was feeling vulnerable for a few different reasons. So when we found her in our bed, we left her there despite the crowded conditions (she's almost as tall as me now!). It was nice to know that she still needed us.

And she'll always be my baby.

"Don't talk about it!"

2010-08-23T11:11:00.001-04:00

The Devil Pup lost her first tooth 2 nights ago. It had been loose all summer and her permanent tooth was already coming in behind it. Every time I tried to wiggle it, she would clap her hands over her ears and scream, "Don't talk about it!" It all came to a head 2 nights ago when she brushed her teeth. The tooth was SOO ready to come out that she started bleeding when she brushed it. Which completely freaked her out.

Oh, the wailing, the screaming, the hysterical caterwauling! She covered her ears and screamed and cried. After her bath, we continued to try to calm her down and convince her to let us remove the tooth. Finally, she grudgingly allowed me to try. My first and second attempts to get the floss around her tooth were both unsuccessful except the second time, it came close enough that she had to spit her tooth out.

I've never seen anyone transform so completely, so quickly. Instantly, she was talking about how cute her tooth was. She was so proud and happy and showing everyone her tooth.

Oy! Hopefully, the next tooth will be easier...

Worst housing karma. EVER.

2010-08-12T17:16:00.002-04:00

Seriously, people, I have to have the worst housing karma. In Monterey, our house was literally condemned. It was going to be torn down after we moved out to build new housing. But before that could happen, we lived in it. And had a major leak in our master bedroom. Over our bed. Through a light fixture.

Then there was the house in North Carolina. I refer you to our lovely indoor waterfall and the rockin' party ~~for~~ of maintenance men I had in my house. This house was reroofed not just once but twice while I lived in it. And I only lived there for 16 months.

Now, while we are really enjoying our new duty station, my housing karma has struck again. Just yesterday, we discovered a problem with our air conditioning. It really is a problem with the heat and humidity we've been experiencing. Two maintenance guys came by and determined that our compressor was kaput, they'd have to order a new one, and would get back to us about it. In the interim, they installed 4 window units. Then, today, we had a pretty heavy rainstorm. Afterwards, Stretch discovered that we had a pretty bad leak in our master bedroom (hmm, this sounds familiar somehow). He put a bucket under it and called housing. Every time I go in there, it looks worse! Now it is going across the ceiling toward a corner, sprouting new leaks AND in the corner, the wall and corner are completely wet. Someone has come by and they're "working on it." But they can't do anything to the roof until tomorrow. And then they have to wait for everything to dry out before they can repair our ceiling.

On the bright side, I hadn't gotten around to hanging anything on the walls in that room yet. And this time, the maintenance guy tried to exorcise the devil from our apartment. Yes, I'm serious. I couldn't make stuff up like that.

*sigh*
Yay, me!

Between homes...again

2010-06-26T15:41:00.000-04:00

See this big moving truck?

Yeah, we filled up about half of it. Which might not sound too bad for some of you out there. But once upon a time, Stretch and I only needed a half-day pack-out and another half-day to load the truck. Those days are long gone!

For the past 2 moves, we've needed 2 days to pack us out (that's the pros doing the packing, not us!) and another day for them to load the truck like a giant game of Tetris. I was informed by Stretch that "we're packing too much, Troop!"

Our girls have been on vacation during this process. (Does that make us their PCS fairies?). We took our girls to Stretch's parents in another state before the packers arrived. There were no little hands digging into boxes as they were being packed and pulling things out. Plus, they get to have lots of fun with one of their cousins and their grand-parents. From the sounds of it, they are having a great time, with every day being a field trip day! As you can see, Devil Pup approves!

Perspective

2010-06-03T15:43:00.003-04:00

I found this over at The Lemon Stand. In part, she wrote:

"Revolutionary War Dead ............ 25,000

War of 1812 Dead .................... 20,000

Indian Wars Dead ...................... 1,500

Mexican-American War Dead ........ 13,283

Civil War Dead ....................... 625,000

Spanish-American War Dead .......... 2,446

Philipine-American War Dead ........ 4,196

WWI Dead ............................ 116,516

WWII Dead ........................... 405,399

Korean War Dead ..................... 53,686

Vietnam War Dead ................... 58,209

Beirut deployment Dead ................. 266

Gulf War Dead ............................ 382

Iraq War Dead .......................... 4,404

Afghanistan War Dead ................. 1,087

------------------------------------------

1,331,374

According to the Department of Defense there are approximately 3 million Military Service Members both Active Duty and Reserve serving today. According to the Census Bureau web site there are approximately 310 million people living in the United States. Which, if you calculate the percentages, approximately 1% of the population protects the rest of us on a daily basis."

Remember

2010-05-30T22:11:00.002-04:00

Don't mess with me...

2010-05-27T16:17:00.000-04:00

I had a lovely chat with the girls' assistant principal this morning. (It would have been with the principal but she's out until next week.) I explained to her how rude and condescending their registrar had been with me yesterday about obtaining records for my kids to hand-carry to their next school (4th for the soon-to-be 5th grader and 2nd for the one going into 1st grade). I went on to tell her that the registrar had initially informed me that they didn't give out copies of records. Then she backtracked and said that if they did, they'd have to charge for them. I told her I'd be happy to pay for the copies. Then she said that it was too "time-consuming," she'd be gone for 2 weeks after school let out, and that it would be mid-July before she could get to it.

Um. No.

I checked the policy and they are required to provide me with copies of anything in my kids' records that I ask for within 30 days of my request. Oh, and I don't really care how inconvenient it might be for her to do her job.

Dude, this is getting old really fast

2010-05-13T15:30:00.000-04:00

See that lovely, large box of books on top of my washing machine? It's not being staged or stored for a moment or anything like that. It's being utilized. You see, my 12 year-old washing machine decided that it just wouldn't drain without a little, um, encouragement. The lid has to be "popped" down and then a heavy weight put on top to get the thing to do it's job through all the cycles. We found our tool box too light for the job. My sister and her handy-man husband found it hilarious that our wee box of books was heavier than the toolbox. At any rate, short of me sitting on the thing to get the laundry done, I have to finesse it, a la Fonzie, then shove the box into just the right spot.

My husband's not even gone right now, Gremlins!

Can you smell the stress?!

2010-05-13T11:48:00.000-04:00

It's that time again. In 3 weeks, the kids will be out of school. In 6 weeks, all of our "stuff" will be either in a truck or in the back of our vehicles. And I still don't know, specifically, where we're moving. Oh, I know the general area. But I don't have an address.

I have a potential address. The housing office has assigned a house to us and I should count us lucky for that. But my luck is holding pretty steady with housing. It will be the 3rd condemned house I've been invited to use as my residence. (By condemned, I mean that these places are/were scheduled to be either completely razed to the ground or to be gutted for renovations.)

So I'm just not completely sure we will take them up on the offer. While there would be so many positives to living on base, I'm not sure we can take the living conditions. The place is TINY. I've lived in some pretty small places, so I don't say this lightly. The next tiniest place we've lived would be the doll house/apartment we lived in while in Korea. I only lasted 2 months in that place before abandoning my husband. This newest offering is less than half the space we have now, maybe closer to a third.

So now I'm frantically trying to consider all options while simultaneously trying to work up lists of all the items we'll need to put into storage if we take this place. I'm also trying to figure out how to dump at least half of my kids ~~junk~~ stuff without them noticing too much. Added to all this, my husband is insisting on having a yard sale, despite his scheduled trips between now and the truck pulling out of our driveway. I hate yard sales.

Gotta love PCS season!

Surprise!

2010-05-08T14:29:00.001-04:00

Yesterday afternoon, the girls came downstairs with a surprise. Big Sis had styled and dressed Devil Pup for a performance. They can be so goofy and cute sometimes. I try to remember this when they are being royal stinkers!

Speaking of being stinkers, Stretch and I had quite a surprise last night when we went upstairs to go to bed. We found that both girls had commandeered our bed! They had also placed sticky notes above their heads on our headboard. The one above Big Sis read:
"Dear Mom,
Since you are smaller than daddy try please to sleep with us. We had a tingly feeling --
[Big Sis]
(over)
PS. My head needs to be ellivated
Please allow me 2 pillows"

The one above Devil Pup read:
"Dad, you can sleep in our bed remove my fluffy pillow tho
-- [Big Sis] and [Devil Pup]"

Stretch was a little put out (not really, well, maybe a little) that they'd kicked him out of his own bed and tried to put him in one of their twin beds. I couldn't stop laughing and almost woke them up. Stretch ended up making up the guest bed and that's where we spent the night.

oh, yeah, she IS tall...

2010-05-07T13:28:00.000-04:00

Every so often, I get a reminder of just how tall members of my family are.

This week, Devil Pup turned 6, one of the last to do so in her Kindergarten class, I might add. She had her well-child check-up where we learned she was over 90th percentile for height. That really wasn't news as that's about where she's always been, except for that brief time as a baby when she was off the charts.

No, the reminder came when I took her to school. We waited in the office as her teacher sent 2 of her classmates to escort her back to the classroom. Now, I know the little boy that was sent is probably the smallest kid in the class, just a cute little peanut. But I swear she must have sent the 2 tiniest kids in class.

As Devil Pup joined her friends, I noticed that she towered over them, by almost a full head!

Then after dinner last night, both she and her sister started foraging through the kitchen cabinets and refrigerator as if they were starving. I repeat, this was after they'd eaten dinner. Immediately after. I'm just glad they aren't boys. I don't think we'd be able to afford that.

The Devil Pup is 6 today!

2010-05-03T13:39:00.003-04:00

It's so hard to believe that it's been 6 years since our "baby" Devil Pup came into the world at a whopping 8 lbs. 14 oz. and with a head full of hair. That was a big surprise. But it wouldn't be the first time we noticed how different she was from her sister.

As a baby, she was so easy-going and laid-back, even when her sister got her all "dressed up" with stacking rings:

Now, we can't get her to stop talking or moving, unless she is drawing or coloring. And even then, she's usually talking. But some things don't change. Our Devil Pup, for all her impishness, is a sweetheart who always wants to make others feel better. She is still the go-to kid for cuddles. And she still loves a good adventure.

I can't wait to see what she'll conquer next!

DP today after school. I wish I could say she was meditating, but she was just being goofy. It was the first non-blurry shot I got of her.

Conversations with the Devil Pup

2010-04-20T16:47:00.004-04:00

I have the funniest conversations with Devil Pup while we are alone in the car. Awhile back, we had the following exchange:

me: I love you, DP!
*silence*
me: I said I love you!
DP: I heard you.
me: Well, what do you usually say when someone tells you that they love you?
after a pause, DP: Thank you.

And then, today, after a failed attempt at getting a milkshake (the first place we went to was out of chocolate):

me: DP, talk to me so I know you're awake! (Usually, she's Chatty Cathy and this is not an issue and I didn't want her falling asleep.)
DP: My throat is sore!
me: Why is your throat sore?
DP: Because I didn't have any milkshakes!

PCS? What PCS?

2010-04-16T19:47:00.003-04:00

This summer will be my 10th move and 7th PCS in 12 years of marriage. So, you would think that I would have this whole moving business down to a science, or at least an art. Not so much. For one thing, my middle name might as well be Procrastination. And for another, life just manages to keep getting in the way.

3 weeks ago, my husband's parents came for a visit. Then the girls had Spring Break. Then my mother flew in for a visit. Just a week ago, I spent all day (literally) on a field trip with my 4th grader. We arrived at the school at 0530 and didn't get home until around midnight. The field trip involved a 4-hour bus ride...each way! Which wouldn't have been so bad. except the next day I drove 3 hours to see my sister and her family who were in the state to visit the Mouse for the first time. It was another 3-hour drive to get back home on Sunday night, after a full day with the cousins.

Yesterday, I suddenly realized that April was already half gone. I only have 2 more months to get ready for this move.

April is half gone! Oh, snap! I have a birthday party to plan and only have a couple of weeks to
do it! My youngest will be 6 the first week in May and has been talking about her party for months.

My only saving grace is that, somehow, everything always manages to get done. Maybe I'm just one of those people who needs a looming deadline to get myself in gear. This past week, I finally managed to take some pictures and start listing items online for sale. Even though I purge with every move, this move finds us with large items to unload. Furniture that is no longer needed, large toys that my kids have outgrown, and more all need to be purged before the movers arrive. And then there's all the organizing that needs to be done and the items we need to separate out that we'll pack ourselves or move ourselves. There are services and utilities that will need to be cancelled or shut off. Medical and dental records to be collected. School records to be copied. And a thousand and one other things to be done.

I think I need a nap....

*This is cross-posted on SpouseBuzz.

In which Stretch dislikes my choice in pens...

2010-04-13T22:11:00.004-04:00

Stretch asked for a pen as he was getting ready to write a note to a pal. I handed him one and he started to write. Suddenly, he stopped and looked at the pen.

Stretch: "I'm not using a purple pen to write M!!!"
me: "What's wrong with purple?"
Stretch: "It's not that kind of Marine Corps yet."

And then we watched an episode of "The Pacific."

Tired

2010-04-13T18:36:00.003-04:00

It's been a busy few days. Friday was an all-day field trip with my oldest daughter's 4th grade class (actually, ALL the 4th grade classes). We boarded 3 charter buses a little after 5:30 a.m. and hit the road by 6 a.m. We arrived at the historic city we were touring about 4 hours later! Then it was a long day of touring and walking, including climbing a lighthouse, before re-boarding the buses for the long ride home. We arrived home around midnight.

Thank goodness my mom was here visiting and could get my youngest to and from school and watch her for me!

Saturday morning found us packing quickly to get back on the road to meet my sister and her family 3 hours away. They had come down to visit the Mouse and we were going to get to visit for just the one night.

The next morning, Sunday, we made a last minute decision to enter the park with my sister's family for half a day before driving home. Mom had 3 tickets that would expire that day so only one child's ticket needed to be purchased. It was a nice time with the cousins, but it was warm and tiring, too! By the time, I finally pulled the plug, got my group out of the park and back to my car, it was around 5 p.m.! I still had to get gas and feed the troops before heading home. We managed to get home around 8 p.m. despite the torrential rains of the last hour of the drive.

Monday, the girls went back to school and Mom and I headed to our scheduled massages. How's that for good planning? As wonderful as the massage was(and it really was!), by the end of mine, my masseuse suggested that I soak in a hot bath with Epsom salts later that night as I was still "really tight." *sigh*

Oh, the things kids say...

2010-04-05T17:32:00.003-04:00

After getting off the phone with my sister (who has 5 kids), I was explaining to Big Sis that they would be wearing the same color t-shirts as a family each day they were at Disney. I also said something about that being just another reason for us to only have 2 kids (somewhat easier to keep track of them). Big Sis informed me that she wanted 8 kids, but she wanted to adopt them. When I asked why, she said she didn't want something the size of a baby coming out her butt. I informed her that you don't "poop" babies. Instead, they come out of your "she-she." Big Sis was horrified by this: "But that's a really small hole!"

Then, this nugget from L'il Sis (aka Devil Pup) when she was throwing a tantrum, not wanting to do her homework: "Grown-ups have an easy life because they get to do whatever they want and children have a hard life!" Oh, really? Maybe I'm not making her life hard enough?

Monday, Monday

2010-03-22T18:41:00.003-04:00

Good grief! Today when above and beyond as Mondays go:

Drove to the dealership to sit for an hour so the new back to my driver's seat could be installed (see previous post). At least it was covered by the warranty.
Have my first mammogram done. I'd been having some discomfort so the PA I saw last Friday wanted one done just as a precaution and because I'm of an age to get a baseline one done anyway. Yay. The most awkward moment had to be when the technician told me to remove the robe. Um. I can't just keep it on with the front open? Apparently not. The first two views (horizontal) she took weren't too bad although she wasn't kidding when she said, "Beginning compression." But I was not prepared for the vertical views that she then took. To her credit, she did warn me that they'd be more uncomfortable because muscle would also be, um, compressed.
The 5 year old came home with a note saying that she'd received speech screening and needed further speech evaluation due to: "numerous articulation errors and poor speech intelligibility, very verbal." That last bit was followed by a smiley face. Never mind that my husband and I had raised these very issues with her teachers last fall during a parent-teacher conference. Oh, and yes, I know just how verbal she is since I often ask my husband to check if my ears are bleeding.
The 9 year old continued to complain about her breathing (she'd been doing so all weekend). This prompted a call to the pediatricians' office. They got us in later this afternoon.
We arrived 10 minutes early for the appointment because I'm well-trained by the military health care system. However, we weren't taken back to the exam room until almost 30 minutes after our appointment time where we waited another 30 minutes or more. The nurse practitioner we saw didn't hear anything untoward in her lungs but wanted a chest x-ray to be sure. He also prescribed an anti-reflux medication to try for the next couple of weeks to see if that's the problem. We're to go back in 2 weeks.
The girls, especially the 5 year old have been bouncing off the walls and driving me insane for the past 1-1/2 hours spent at the pediatricians'.
Leave the doctors' office. Look up the radiology place on my super-phone and call them to see about getting the chest x-ray. We can walk in anytime before 5:45 Monday thru Friday. It is already 5:15. Deciding we'll never make it and will have to wait until tomorrow, we stop at the pharmacy on the way home.
Drop off the prescription for the anti-reflux stuff only to find he didn't put an amount on the scrip. Argh! And the office we JUST left is already closed. Somehow, while we waited, the pharmacist managed to get a message to the pediatricians' office and someone actually called back. Still, it took almost an hour to get the medication. Oh, and the girls continue to be squirrelly.
Stretch won't be home until late tonight as he will be performing CACO duties again. It will be the first time he's had to this for someone deployed to Afghanistan. My heart goes out to his wife and parents who will be notified later tonight. Which really makes the rest of my day pale in comparison.

You know, I'm done with Monday. Let's move on to Tuesday.

Devil Pup Diaries

2010-03-20T21:42:00.006-04:00

After dinner one night last week, we went for a walk around our neighborhood. L'il Sis insisted on taking her school backpack with her despite our warnings that she'd have to carry it the whole way. It still had her school folder, her math workbook and her lunchbox in it! And she ran almost half of the time while we walked about 1-1/2 miles.

Then a day later, as the girls and I were returning from an errand, I hear her say "uh-oh," from the backseat. Moments later, her sister dimed her out with, "You broke Mom's chair!" That's right: My 5 year-old broke the back of my driver's seat. The entire piece has to be replaced. That's what I learned the first time I went and sat at the dealership. I'll be going again this week for the actual work to be done. Because I have nothing else to do with a move looming over my head in 3 months.

I may need to change her moniker on here from L'il Sis to DP (Devil Pup).

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-14T18:46:00.003-05:00

We had a great Valentine's weekend with good friends in for a visit. But in some respects, it might have been a rough Valentine's for Stretch.

On Friday, Big Sis (9) came home from school with a little pink gorilla with "I Love You" on its tummy from the boy who keeps trying to hold her hand.

Then today, a little boy from L'il Sis' (5) class who lives in our neighborhood came by with a hand-made card with a flower taped to the front that read, "Will you be my Valentine?"

It's not easy being the father of girls.

Oh, the modesty!

2010-02-08T22:56:00.002-05:00

Tonight's conversation with the 9 year old, regarding the boy who keeps trying to hold her hand:

Me: So, why does Jimmy like you? Because you're smart?
Big Sis: No.
Me: Or funny?
Big Sis: No. It's pretty much my looks.

Who did I tick off?!

2010-01-27T19:03:00.002-05:00

Was it St. Barbara? Or maybe Molly Pitcher? I'm wondering this as I'm mentally preparing myself for a move this summer (and no, I don't know WHERE we're going yet, just that we ARE going). I've heard that there are military families that get to stay in one place for 3 years. I've even heard of so-called "homesteaders" who get to stay in one place for years on end. But I think that might just be an urban legend. My family certainly doesn't fit into either of those categories.

Since moving shortly after my husband's first deployment to Iraq in the summer of 2003, this is the breakdown of how long we've lived at any given place:

18 months, 23 months, 17 months (with my husband deployed for 12), and soon 2 years.

Granted, I tend to think it's time to move after 3 or 4 years in any one place. But I haven't had the chance to develop those itchy feet in 7 years. Also, I'm a bit handicapped as military spouses go: I'm an introvert. Shocking, I know. It takes me a good 12 to 18 months to really feel comfortable in a place, make friends (not just acquaintances), find doctors, dentists, and hairdressers.

Just last week, I finally found a great hairdresser whose prices are more than reasonable. Then it hit me. We're moving in 6 months.

*sigh*

This is cross-posted on SpouseBuzz.

*Update: The PTBs (Powers That Be) are toying with me. We just found out where we're going. From all accounts, it will be a great duty station. The kicker? It will only be for a year.

Gus: Comm Check

2010-01-15T23:59:00.002-05:00

Hey, Gus, Stretch is wondering if you're still out there.

Good thing L'il Sis is a toughie...

2010-01-15T23:52:00.003-05:00

It's never a good thing to get a call from the school nurse. Especially as you're headed out the door to pick up the kids. Earlier this week, I had just such a call. Apparently, our 5 yr old had had an inauspicious meeting with a playground slide. Result: an abraded chin, bruised gums and loose front teeth. None of her teeth had been loose when I sent her to school that morning.

I picked her and her sister up from school and drove immediately to their dentist's office. She was x-rayed and examined and should be fine. In fact, her teeth already seem to have tightened up and no longer seem to be in danger of falling out of her head. But the whole time, I kept thinking 2 things: (1) this was very reminiscent of my sister with whom she shares more than a passing resemblance; and (2) these types of things always seem to happen to her and not her older sister. *sigh*

Negative Nellie

2010-01-13T22:18:00.001-05:00

I started doing the Couch to 5K (C25K) program last fall. I stuck with it pretty faithfully. For awhile. Then life and the holidays got the better of me. In mid-November, we went to DisneyWorld for a week. The following week was Thanksgiving, with my sister and her family visiting us. Then there was Toys for Tots. Then the kids were off for their winter break and Stretch had two 96's (4-day weekends). All of this threw my routine completely out the window.

But the kids have now gone back to school and there are no more excuses. Stretch and I have a done a workout DVD in the evening a few times now. And I've tried to get back into running, this time outside (I'd always run on a treadmill in the fall due to the heat where we are). The runs did not go well. I walked at least half the time and wasn't going as far.

Today, I decided I needed to go back to the C25K program. I thought I'd go back to Week 4 but couldn't find it on my iPod. So I went with Day 1 of Week 5: 5 minutes of warm-up walking, 5 minutes of running, 3 minutes of brisk walking, 5 minutes running, 3 minutes walking, 5 minutes running, and 5 minutes of cool-down walking. It kicked my behind! And that was only the first 5 minute run!

By the time I was on the last 5 minutes of running, Negative Nellie wasn't just whispering in my ear, she was shouting. Maybe I'm just not cut out to be a runner. Maybe those extra pounds around my middle aren't really that bad. Maybe I'm not a runner. Maybe I just don't want to lose the weight/ get in shape badly enough. What made me think I would ever be a runner?!

But I did it. I didn't cheat. I ran when I was supposed to and didn't stop to walk until I was meant to. And maybe I'm not a "runner." Yet. But Negative Nellie needs to go away and Motivated Molly needs to come back!

*This is cross-posted at SpouseBuzz.

Gee...Thanks?

2010-01-05T19:10:00.002-05:00

It finally got chilly here. Not cold, but chilly. I was wearing an old college sweatshirt the other day with the name of the state of the state school I attended. Big Sis asked about it and I said it was where I went to school. High school or college, she asked. I explained that while I attended both in that state, the shirt actually referred to the college I attended. Big Sis studied it for a moment, then said, with surprise, "And you still fit in it?"

I know that to a 9 year old, I'm getting dumber by the day. After that remark, I really don't want to know what I look like to her.

Reading milestone

2009-12-30T19:31:00.002-05:00

It took 2 nights, but L'il Sis finished reading Green Eggs and Ham tonight! Woot! She is the child that I can never get to practice her sight words, etc. Unlike her sister, she's usually not happy to sit still to have a book read to her and has had little interest in learning to read.

So. This was huge! I'm so proud of her!

Abigail Adams

2009-12-29T23:39:00.000-05:00

We were watching Part 3 of the John Adams miniseries. That man was gone a LOT. During the part where John leaves with their oldest son to go to Europe during the Revolutionary War (leaving Abigail home on the farm with the rest of their brood), I commented that she was a strong woman. Stretch chimed in with, "and grumpy, apparently." To which I could only reply, "She had every right to be grumpy!"

Merry Christmas from Afghanistan

2009-12-27T23:03:00.002-05:00

Thanks to SemperFi Wife for sharing this:

She's a genius! Um, maybe...

2009-12-11T20:49:00.002-05:00

I walked into our 5 year old's room to find her "writing" D-O-G on Stretch's back. He deciphered the word and then exclained, "I think she just spelled Devil Dog!"

I had to start laughing. He'd obviously forgotten that the back of his t-shirt had the words "Devil Dog Run" on it.

Time for Toys for Tots!

2009-12-04T16:46:00.002-05:00

It's that time of year! For the first time, I'm able to help out at our local Toys for Tots warehouse where toys are sorted and distributed. One of the Marines noted today that this year the warehouse is emptier than he's ever seen it. While the need continues to grow and surpass previous years, the donations are down. So, please, if you are able, consider donating a new unwrapped toy to Toys for Tots.

To learn more, you can read last year's post. Meanwhile, my favorite Marine commercial:

After the Ball

2009-11-12T19:42:00.003-05:00

Wouldn't you know it? I forgot to take pictures before the Ball so we took some after we got home. Of course, part of the problem was that we were running late and we were supposed to meet 2 other couples to carpool!

In case you're wondering: I'm not on a box or wearing stilts. Stretch is squatting... Feel the burn!

Thank you!

2009-11-12T08:40:00.002-05:00

First, thank you to all our veterans. I didn't post yesterday because I was spending the day with my Marine and our girls.

And second, a big thank you to everyone who donated to Project Valour-IT. We raised $102,946!

Happy Birthday, Marines!

2009-11-10T06:00:00.000-05:00

Today, our Marine Corps celebrates 234 years since their birth in Tun Tavern. On Saturday, I was privileged to attend a Birthday Ball with my Marine. It is impossible for me to attend a Birthday Ceremony without being affected by the sense of history and fraternity that is a palpable presence.

Our men and women in all the services continue to give their all. You can honor their service and their sacrifices. Please give generously! They already have.

Click on the Valour-IT thermometer on the upper right sidebar to donate. Thank you!

Semper Fi!

Marines of the Day

2009-11-03T12:48:00.004-05:00

Today's Marines of the Day are Aaron and Diana Mankin. You can read more of their story at Villainous Company. The following is an interview with Corporal Mankin:

Please consider donating and spreading the word to others who may not know about Project Valour-IT. These brave men and women have sacrificed so much, it seems the least we can do.

Update: An inspiring story of a group of female Marines.

Call for reinforcements

2009-11-02T16:26:00.001-05:00

If you haven't yet done so, please consider a small donation to the Valour IT Marine team. We've managed to assemble a team of over 65 bloggers but it's tough for us to compete with the larger services.

Until yesterday we had a $2000 lead over the Army and a $7-8000 lead over Air Force and Navy. But our position is being overrun. We need reinforcements!

The devices that Valour-IT funds have a profound and visible effect on users/recipients and ALL money donated for Valour-IT goes to purchase and shipping of laptops, Wiis, and GPS devices (that means ZERO OVERHEAD). Valour IT provides powerful tools that help severely wounded vets (not just those with hand problems) speed up recovery and treatment, maintain a support system, and regain a sense of independence.

Valour IT facts:

*in 4+ years Valour IT has provided 4,100 laptops, over 30 Wii systems to VA hospitals, and nearly 100 handheld GPS devices
*Total online funds collected to date: nearly 3/4 of a million dollars
*Every dollar raised goes directly to wounded vets military medical centers and VA facilities nationwide, such as:

Balboa Naval Hospital
Brooke Army Medical Center
Madigan Regional Medical Center
National Naval Medical Center (Bethesda)
Naval Hospital, Camp Pendleton
Robert E. Bush Naval Hospital (29 Palms)
Walter Reed Army Medical Center

Here's what your donation can provide:

Voice activated laptops:

1. Help wounded vets connect with still-deployed fellow service members (relieve anxiety about how their friends are doing, allow them to maintain a support system)
2. Allow vets to stay in touch with loved ones who can’t be at their bedside
3. Run therapeutic computer programs that help restore brain/vision function,
4. Can be used to research treatments, keep track of treatment regimen.
5. Retrain for post-military employment
6. Voice control makes using a computer one of the first things they can do on their own

Wii uses:

1. Physical therapists in VA hospitals and major medical centers are using Wii fit systems with their patients
2. Motivation: Wii Sports games key into natural competitive nature
3. Track progress in a fun way

GPS:

1. For those with very severe PTSD or TBI (memory problems, high anxiety, etc), having a GPS increases independence and restores a sense of competence. Short-term memory problems can make it hard to navigate of new locations. A GPS can mean the difference between success and failure.

Please help. These men and women have already given so much. The price of a nice six pack of beer or an inexpensive dinner seems the least we can to in return for their sacrifices.

Let's get the word out!

2009-11-02T12:03:00.007-05:00

Although we have a small lead, it's no time for complacency! We need more bloggers to join the team. We need more folks getting the word out to get more people to donate to Valour-IT.

It's time to get motivated!

And, of course, it's November now. Toys for Tots will be in full swing soon. So I'll repost my favorite Marine commercial:

How can you say no to donating to Santa's team? Click on the fundraising thermometer on the top right to donate!

Trick or Treat

2009-11-01T17:10:00.000-05:00

Inner dialogue

2009-10-28T22:41:00.005-04:00

I'm on week 8 of the 9 week Couch to 5K Program. Today I was supposed to run for 28 minutes. Yeah. I was supposed to that on Monday, too, and it didn't go well. Not at all.
So this was today's inner dialogue while on the treadmill:

You can do this! You CAN!
Oh, my God! How much longer?! I can't do that !
Don't think about it! You can do this!
(about 10 minutes into the run) I really don't think I can make it. This hurts! Need to stop...
Don't stop! You can do this!
Maybe I'm just not meant to run that long!
Don't give up! Keep going!
Hmm.... maybe if I can just make it to 25 minutes. I've done that before. Yeah, I'll just run 25 minutes.
(I wasn't too sure I was going to make even the revised goal, until I put on a certain song a couple of minutes before the new goal) Okay, just make it to the end of this song. You can do that! Feeling better. You can do this!
(The song ended at the 26 minute mark) Yes! Hey, only 2 more minutes to 28. You can do 2 minutes! It's only 2 minutes. C'mon! You can do this!
(Check the time) Oh, thank God! Only a minute and a half! You've got this! You're almost there.
(As the 28 minutes ended) Yes! It's over!

The embarrassing thing is I may have muttered some of this out loud.

Later, I had a conversation with a good friend who told me about a similar dialogue she had with herself on her local track. When she told her husband about it, he seemed stunned and asked, "Do you really have these conversations with yourself?"

To which I can only answer, "Um, yeah. Gotta problem with that?"

It's all in good fun (and for a good cause!)

2009-10-28T13:20:00.007-04:00

Check out today's Marine of the Day, Lance Cpl. James Crosby over at Jules Crettenden: Forward Movement. Cassy Fiano has some great demotivators up as well as some USMC trivia questions, for those of you who think you know the Corps. And Cassie has a post up about the Miracle Marine, Sgt. Merlin German.

Also, there's a offer on the table to match the first 10 donations of $100. Go here for details. What a great way to double your donation!

I can't take credit for this one, but had to pass it on:

We're neck and neck with the Army, so spread the word, donate the money you would have spent on a latte or lunch instead! Donate by clicking on the thermometer on the top right of this page.

My quote for today:

The bended knee is not a tradition of our Corps.

~General Alexander A. Vandergrift, USMC
to the Senate Naval Affairs Committee, 5 May 1946

The Marines have landed

2009-10-27T09:43:00.005-04:00

My quote for today:

"I come in peace, I didn't bring artillery. But I am pleading with you with tears in my eyes: If you fuck with me, I'll kill you all."

~Marine General James Mattis, to Iraqi tribal leaders

Don't forget to spread the word and donate to Project Valour-IT (you can click on the fundraising thermometer at the top of the sidebar to the right).

Update: Today's Marine of the Day is Captain Kyle VanDeGiesen. Read his story here.

Off to a good start...

2009-10-26T13:13:00.004-04:00

Let's keep it going! How's this for some motivation to keep that thermometer moving in the right direction?

Support our Wounded Warriors by supporting Project Valour-IT!

And we're off!

2009-10-26T09:03:00.004-04:00

The 5th annual Project Valour-IT fundraiser has begun! Starting today and going until November 11 (Veterans Day!), the inter-service rivalry will be raising money and awareness.

"Project Valour IT is simply this: grateful Americans, providing voice-activated laptops and other helpful tech gear to severely wounded troops." You can read more over at Villainous Company (VC), our fearless leader of the Marine Team.

Today's featured Marine of the Day is Matt, a corporal who has deployed to Iraq twice. Read his interview over at Cassy Fiano.

My quote for today:

"Freedom is not free, but the U.S. Marine Corps will pay most of your share."

~Ned Dolan

As Cassie wrote over at VC :
"Please open your hearts and your wallets. Dig deep. These are some extraordinary young men and women - they've given their all in service of this great nation and this is a great chance to show them that all the talk of supporting the troops isn't just lip service. Someone still cares and more importantly, respects and honors their service. Please dig deep. You cannot know the value of the comfort your support can bring to those who have already given so much on our behalf."

If you wish to donate, simply click on the fundraising widget on the upper right sidebar or the link below:

You can pay by credit card or electronic check. You can also mail a check (with MARINES in all caps on it!) to this address:

Soldiers Angels Project Valour-IT
MARINE CORPS TEAM
1792 E. Washington Blvd
Pasadena, CA 91104

OORAH!

Project Valour IT

2009-10-25T19:37:00.000-04:00

It's almost time for the annual inter-service competition to raise funds for Project Valour IT, a Soldiers' Angels program. Project Valour IT provides voice activated software and laptops for wounded Marines, soldiers and sailors. Every cent raised goes directly to aid wounded warriors, so it's a great way to support the troops and know your gift is well spent.

Typically, these young men and women have lost the use of one or more limbs, their hands, or their sight. Valour IT allows them to keep in touch with buddies in the field, with family, and with friends during the long and grueling convalescence period. It helps them escape the confines of their hospital rooms mentally, if not physically. This is an enormous morale booster. Valour IT also provides Wii's, which have proven very useful during physical therapy and help wounded warriors regain flexibility and strength while having a bit of fun.

Historically, the Marine team have been the underdogs in this friendly inter service competition. In 2006, the Marine team not only outraised the far larger Army and Navy teams, but total fundraising receipts were the highest in the history of Valour IT. The Marines would really like to give the Army and Navy a run for their money this year, but to do that we need to assemble a strong team.

Would you be willing to join the Marine team? If so, click over to Villainous Company to join our Marine team!

OORAH!

Best quote heard today...

2009-10-24T00:08:00.002-04:00

My 9 year old said:
"I'd rather get a horse than go through puberty."

Followed by the 5 year old asking:
"Can we go and visit Poo-berty someday?"

honest mommy moment

2009-10-22T19:32:00.003-04:00

How ridiculously sad is it that I'm SOOOO happy that my butt-wiping days are just about over? Seriously, I have been wiping other people's backsides on a regular basis since 2000. L'il Sis has FINALLY started to wipe her own and just about has the process figured out. YES!!!

The really sad part is that it is 2009 and I'm just getting to this point. I only have 2 kids, people!

Suck it up, buttercup!

2009-10-09T12:04:00.003-04:00

... is not a phrase the girls are familiar with... yet. But I think L'il Sis already understands the gist.

Yesterday, the girls were rough-housing and somehow ended up in my room. Big Sis banged her knee against my bed's footboard. There was much wailing and moaning. We checked and her knee was fine aside from a red spot, but that could have been from her rubbing it as well. At any rate, Big Sis was on the bed, holding her knee and crying, "It hurts! It hurts!"

L'il Sis, being the sweet little sister that she is, kept bringing things to Big Sis to help her feel better. First, it was a paper cup with a sip of water. This was followed by a bandage (no blood so not really needed) and then her sleep mask so that Big Sis wouldn't have to look at her boo-boo (again, it was just a little red spot).

Eventually, L'il Sis brought in a little pink egg-timer that their dentist had given them and said, "When the sand runs out, you have to stop crying."

Big Sis responded with, "But that's only 2 minutes!"

If L'il Sis had known the phrase, I'm sure she would have used it: Suck it up, buttercup!

9 years ago...

2009-10-06T19:34:00.015-04:00

She came into the world weighing just over 8 lbs. 7 oz. and measuring 20-1/4 inches long.
Today, she's almost 4'6". That's roughly 33.5 inches of growth in 9 years. It sounds like a lot, but it creeps up on you. On day, she's a bundle of babyhood entirely dependent on you for everything. Then one day, you wake up to find a little girl who wakes herself up for school and makes her own breakfast. She's not entirely sure that you know anything about anything but has to stay on your good side to keep collecting her meager allowance. I'm telling you those 9 years went by in a flash!

Big Sis turned 9 today.

I took cupcakes to her school for her to share at lunch. She'll have a party this weekend. But today was just for family. She asked me to make veal piccata for dinner and I helped her bake brownies for dessert. After dinner, she opened her family presents. While her sister was less than thrilled with the book she received, Big Sis was excited about the Little House book she got.

I was reminded of my sister and myself as Big Sis went about opening her presents. While L'il Sis urged her to just tear them open, Big Sis very carefully and slowly unwrapped each gift.
(One Christmas, my younger sister grabbed my gift and opened it for me because I was being too slow in her opinion!)

Enjoying Big Sis's brownies for dessert...

Marines

2009-10-05T15:25:00.000-04:00

What does this button do?

2009-10-04T20:43:00.003-04:00

Big Sis knows how to push our buttons. Tonight, it was Stretch's turn.

One of Big Sis' jobs is to pour milk for herself and her sister for dinner each night. She is notorious for trying to skimp on her glass. As she was pouring, she asked, "Mom, what's sex?" Okay. We're sitting down to dinner and the 5 year old is sitting right there, so I said, "Whether you're a boy or a girl."

Then, she filled her cup with more milk than her sister's tonight. She pointed it out as she sat down to dinner and asked if anyone was wondering why she had so much milk, looking at her dad with a twinkle in her eye. Then she informed us that it was so "these" will grow and pointed at her chest. I thought Stretch was going to have a stroke.

She went on to ask what a tamp0n is. And then casually mentioned wanting puberty to happen. Stretch got a headache and I started to worry his head might explode from the sudden rise in blood pressure.

Naturally, Stretch's over the top reactions resulted in a lot of laughter. L'il Sis didn't really know why she was laughing, but thought it was all hugely funny anyway.

Quietly, I told Big Sis that I would answer any questions she had after dinner but that we weren't going to talk about it over dinner (and in front of her dad and 5 year old sister, to boot). Since I had already covered a lot of what she was asking about with her, I had a hunch she just wanted to punch Stretch's buttons.

Of course, after dinner, she had more important things to do and was no longer interested.

Field trip day

2009-10-02T15:32:00.005-04:00

Today marked the first field trips of the year for both Big and L'il Sis. Only one seemed to have any educational value. The kindergartners went to a movie theater to see "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs."

Big Sis has been excited about her field trip for weeks so I'll let her tell you about her field trip:

a day at little red school house

big sis got her aqua blue Sunday school dress on and grabbed her green 19th century bonnet.
she hurried to get a basket, so i could pack bread with margarine and a clear jar filled with fresh water. then i dropped her of at school. at 9:30 her class got on the bus. big sis said they drove for at least thirty minutes. when big sis's class reached their destination they had to walk most of the way, some of the distance was done by bus. then her class went to the back of the little red school house or the one room school house because it is only one room.

the teacher met them at the back talking about how the children got to school. once they stepped inside the teacher became a 1800's teacher and very strict she said. we learned the rules. then we learned how to rise and sit down again properly and how to address her, like "no, ma'am," "yes, ma'am" or if it was a man, "no, sir" or "yes, sir." You always had to say, "ma'am" or "sir" before you started a sentence.

then we had our lessons. first was penmanship. we had to draw circles, then o's and a's. then while we were doing penmanship, we were supposed to be writing, "good posture makes good thinkers" but my row was called up to do a private lesson in reading where we got to read. she called us by our character names not our real names. big sis was "maggie bradley." the people were real who actually went to the school house. big sis shared a desk with another girl because there were not enough desks, but that happened in the 1800's as well. we went outside and played "get the bacon." it was a knotted piece of cloth, not real bacon. we were split into 2 teams and the "bacon" was put in the middle. we each had a number and we would run in and try to grab it without being tagged on the way back to our team. after that, we had lunch. when the bell rang once again, we lined up once again in back of the schoolhouse. we went in and put our baskets of food down in the corner. then we sat down the way we were taught to sit back down. we learned more lessons but our main lesson right then was reading. if we had a partner, then we shared the one book we were given. before we did that, we gave our pieces of slates that we did our penmanship on to the teacher. some of us didn't finish reading the story and then we could ask questions but we had to stand and say "ma'am" before we asked the question. then she taught us more and pretended we were back in 2009 but still called us by our character names.

she didn't do a roll call and she didn't do a check of our palms and knuckles and our necks for any diseases. then we were dismissed and we walked back to the bus.

the best thing about this field trip was the whole thing.

the worst thing was the heat since there was no air conditioning in the 1800's.

spotted on a bumper sticker:

2009-09-30T16:56:00.002-04:00

CONTRARY to BELIEF
no one owes you anything

napping and chatting

2009-09-27T09:54:00.007-04:00

Kindergarten is apparently quite exhausting. For the first week, L'il Sis was coming out of that school looking like she'd been run over by a bus. I'm sure she'll work up some endurance over the year, but for now school just about does her in. She doesn't normally take naps (mainly because she won't sleep at night if we let her). But Thursday was a half-day for some reason so when L'il Sis put herself down for a nap about an hour after we got home, I just let it lie.

While her sister was sleeping, Big Sis went into tween mode. She spent almost all afternoon on the phone. Most of the time, she and a friend from school were calling each other. If this was a preview of life to come...*shudder*
.... I actually had to threaten to make her pay the phone bill to get her off the phone.
(no, this is not her room...she took over my room for all the chatting)

Motivating

2009-09-21T18:57:00.001-04:00

Be sure to listen with the sound on.

Still on the bandwagon, er, treadmill...

2009-09-16T16:18:00.004-04:00

I've never been athletic or even particularly active. Running is a totally foreign concept to me (as in "If no one is chasing me, why would I be running?!"). So, just the fact that I've taken up the Couch to 5K program is a huge step for me. I've been running on a treadmill because the one day I ran outside I wanted to die. It wasn't just the heat and humidity. I have no clue how to pace myself apparently. So the treadmill it is.

Now, factor in the fact that I'm not only married to a Marine, but one who is naturally quite lean without much effort on his part. I finished Day 1 of Week 4 on Monday. It involved running for 3 minutes, walking for 90 seconds, running for 5 minutes, walking for 2-1/2 minutes, and then doing it all again. The thought of running for 5 solid minutes terrified me. So when it came time to run for 5 minutes, I set the pace slightly slower than I did for the 3 minute run (very slightly). I wanted to be sure that I actually ran for the entire 5 minutes and didn't give up and slow to a walk prematurely.

I made it through the work out and told Stretch about it later. He told me not to slow it down too much, I needed to keep pushing. Sometimes, I hate being married to a Marine.

Today was Day 2 of Week 4. I kept the same pace for all the runs. It was at a roughly 13-minute mile pace. Which I know is probably super slow. Heck, I used to be able to WALK a 15-minute mile without a problem. (Okay, so that was over a decade ago, but whatevs.)

My point is that despite the slowness, it was HUGE for me. I kept it up. I didn't stop despite really, REALLY wanting to during the last 5 minute run. I can't help wondering where are the endorphins I keep hearing about? They're probably a myth.

Now if I could just see some pounds and inches disappear...

...heavy-hearted......

2009-09-11T15:26:00.004-04:00

It took me until almost noon to remember today's date. But I had my reasons. That day 8 years ago was tragic and changed so many of our lives. But today my heart was heavy from more recent events.

Yesterday, a Marine Reservist died during a routine training exercise. Stretch not only saw the event, but then was one of two Marines to notify the young man's parents. As much as we as spouses dread that knock on the door, I can only imagine the heaviness in a Marine's heart as he stands on the other side of that door.

So, in addition to remembering the tragic events of 8 years ago, I'm asking that you keep the Marines of this unit, as well as the family of this young man, in your thoughts and prayers.

Patriot Day giveaway

2009-09-11T15:24:00.002-04:00

Head over to the Mrs. and see the blue star she's giving away in honor of Patriot Day.

Just another reason I'm NOT a Marine (just married to one):

2009-08-29T14:12:00.000-04:00

I don't like sweating. As in the wet and dripping type of sweat. Nope. I don't enjoy it. In fact, it grosses me out. Now, I already knew this about myself. But I confirmed it this morning.

I started the Couch to 5K program this week in an effort to get in better shape. I want to use some of that extra time I have now that both kids are in school to get more exercise. The first 2 days I followed the program inside on a treadmill in our neighborhood clubhouse. (And yes, I worked up a sweat, just not like today!) When I found it wasn't open yet this morning, I decided to go ahead and do the workout outside despite the heat and mugginess.

I knew it would suck. About half or three-quarters of the way through the 30 minute walk/run workout, I wanted to die. By the time I got back home and stretched, the sweat was pouring off me. Ick. Stretch laughed at me when I asked if you could be allergic to your own sweat. (My chest started itching at some point and when scratched, I found it was covered in a sheen of sweat. Ick. Ick. Ick.)

I also asked Stretch if he could just go ahead and shoot me to put me out of my misery. For some wretched reason, the man refused and kept grinning at me (and probably inwardly laughing).

1st day of school

2009-08-19T09:35:00.004-04:00

This week brought the first days of school for the girls. Big Sis started 4th grade on Tuesday. She's now too cool to be seen with her parents and we were not allowed to escort her in to the school, never mind her classroom. Her first day seemed to go really well and I'm hoping she'll have a great year.

Kindergarten has a staggered start here, so L'il Sis will only be going today and Friday this week. Because the first week of school always includes crazy traffic around the school, we decided to walk this morning (it's about 3/4 mile). It started to sprinkle a little by the time we reached the school. We got L'il Sis settled in her classroom and took a picture before leaving her for her first day at "real school." She was so excited she was singing while sitting on the stairs putting her shoes on at home. By the time we got to the classroom, she was a little nervous, but Stretch waved to her as he left the classroom and she smiled and told the little girl next to her, "My dad always makes me laugh." So I think she'll be fine.

After leaving the school, Stretch and I had to walk home. It quickly started pouring down rain. Of course. And I'd made the mistake of wearing a white t-shirt. Maybe the weather was reflecting how I felt a bit.

Go ahead, punk....

2009-08-16T19:18:00.007-04:00

Last week, the girls and I returned home a day after Stretch left on TAD (TDY for the Army folks and a business trip for any civilian readers out there). The 2nd night we were home, I heard the doorbell go and a pounding at the front door at TEN O'CLOCK at night. I ran downstairs and flicked the outside lights on and peered thru the peephole. There was NO way I was opening the door. My first thought was that it was someone checking to see if the house was empty so they could burglarize it. I called our neighborhood's security people and reported the incident.

Last night, Stretch and I were relaxing downstairs after the girls were in bed when it happened again. Like any good Marine, Stretch raced for the front door, flicked on the outdoor lights, and was out the door like a shot. In his bare feet. By the time, I got outside, he was half-way down our block. I heard him say, "Gotcha!" followed by "Freeze!" as I watched him running down the sidewalk. I went back inside, again called the security company, went back outside and locked the front door while I waited outside with both the house phone and my cell phone.

The security guard arrived first. I explained what had happened and when he asked where my husband was I answered, "He's still chasing them." At that point, he nervously asked what my husband would do if he caught them. Hmm. Good question. I wasn't too sure, so I went with, "Oh, he'll probably ask where they live and take them to talk to their parents." That sounded pretty innocuous, right? Eventually Stretch returned and we finished giving a statement for the report.

Later, Stretch told me that he'd stopped one teen walking down the street that he was pretty sure was involved. And had a little chat with him. After questioning him a bit, he let him know in no uncertain terms that there would be consequences if the act were repeated and that the kid should let his friends know. Now, Stretch is more than a little tall. He also just happened to be wearing a shirt with the EGA (Eagle, Globe and Anchor) and U.S. Marines embroidered on it.

I'm wondering if the kid made it home with clean underwear.

Mission Completion

2009-08-12T17:19:00.002-04:00

My mission for Summer 2009: Survive almost 3 months of boiling heat with both kids at home all day, every day; without selling either child on e&ay. Do so without going bankrupt.

My strategy: a little something I’ll call the reverse deployment. That’s when the family members leave and the service-member holds down the home-front (‘cause they still have a job to do, you know).

The kids and I loaded up the car and hit the road. Except for the 1^st week, when [*gasp*] Stretch actually took leave and joined us, we were on the road and Stretch was left behind to man the home-front. As it turns out, he didn’t enjoy being the one left at home. I can understand that. I don’t particularly enjoy it, either.

We actually reverse deployed twice. The first time was for 4 weeks. It started with a 3-day drive across 6 states to my mother’s home. The first night we stayed at a military installation: great suite and even better price. The 2^nd night we used Stretch’s hotel reward points for a free night. (Guess all those TAD trips had a good side to them after all.) Stretch helped drive half-way across the country and then flew home (or redeployed) on Father’s Day. (Hm-m, that might not have sent quite the right message.) The kids and I stayed another week while the girls took swim lessons. When it was time to go, I drove a day and a half across 3 states, spending the night at another military installation, before reaching my aunt’s home. After reconnecting with extended family for a few days, we hit the road again to join a fellow military spouse for the 4^th of July. We only had to cross into the next state this time and it took only half a day.

Despite not having laid eyes on each other in almost 5 years, we picked right up where we’d left off. Even the kids bonded quickly even though only one of the five had any memories of the others. Because her husband had taken Reserve orders and was gone for the summer, I talked her into making the 10- hour drive to follow me home so our kids could continue to entertain each other. The fact that we hadn’t seen each other in years had nothing to do with it.

We had about a week’s break before reverse deploying again. This time it was only for 2 weeks. I drove for 12 hours in one day to get to my sister’s house. By the way, I don’t recommend this on 4 hours of sleep. A few days later, I drove another 3-1/2 hours to take the girls to my in-laws, where they would stay for almost a week. We went a day early so the girls and I could attend my mother-in-law’s annual family reunion. It was the first time we’d attended. In 11 years of marriage, Stretch and I had never been able to attend due to distance. And the first time I attended (this year), I did so without him. Typical.

The kids and I made the drive back home earlier this week. This time, I made reservations at yet another military installation part-way back to avoid another 12 hour drive. For the first time, I was wishing my oldest (she’s 8) was old enough to drive.

The summer flew by while the kids and I spent time with family and friends. Now we are waiting to hear teacher assignments and I’ve finished buying school supplies. School will start next week. The summer is drawing to a close and the mission was accomplished.

Just don’t ask me to drive anywhere anytime soon. Oh, and if anyone has seen my sanity, could you send it back to me?

(This is cross-posted over at SpouseBuzz.)

minty fresh?

2009-08-01T15:23:00.002-04:00

After I'd nagged her into brushing her teeth this morning, L'il Sis poked her way through the task. I had to keep prodding her with, "Scrub, don't suck on your toothbrush" and such. When she was done, she sighed and said, "That's so refreshing!"

Sugar and spice

2009-07-31T15:31:00.004-04:00

Do you remember this nursery rhyme:

There was a little girl,
Who had a little curl,
Right in the middle of her forehead.
When she was good,
She was very very good,
But when she was bad she was horrid.

That about sums up Li'il Sis.

Just yesterday, as I gave her a bath in the morning, she sighed as I started scrubbing her and said, "This is the life!" She can be very sweet and often says the funniest things. As my sister describes her, she's a joyous child.

But she's got a mean streak, too. Last night, Big Sis came to me crying and holding her throat. Her face was red from crying and she complained that L'il Sis had kicked her in the neck. Nice.

Reverse deployment

2009-07-27T19:37:00.003-04:00

This summer, the kids and I have spent a lot of time away from home. In fact, we’re hitting the road again tomorrow morning. For the first time, Stretch has been the one left at home. And he doesn’t much like it. During one phone call, after he told me how much he missed us, he paused and said, “Somehow, I get the feeling that, strangely, you are unmoved.” (It’s a favorite line from a Pride & Prejudice adaptation that we often use on the kids.)

I DID miss him. Let’s get that straight first. But after a year-long deployment, a couple of weeks seems like a snap!

Then, I told him to think of it as a reverse deployment.

Oy!

2009-07-23T12:41:00.003-04:00

Somehow, when I told the 5 year old to get into the car quickly after our last errand today, she translated that to mean she should poke around in the grass and find the nastiest thing she could to touch. Maybe Bill Cosby was right and kids ARE brain-damaged.

To be filed under things you really don't want to hear while you're working in another part of the house: "Well, then, don't put things in my underwear!" (shouted by the 8 year old to the 5 year old).

Come again? I don't think I heard that quite right...

2009-07-18T19:31:00.003-04:00

My 8 year old only likes to wear a few of her clothes. The vast majority of what she owns languishes in her dresser unworn until it's time to pass them on to her younger sister. Being the cruel mom that I am, I sometimes will let the laundry go for awhile (or at least hers) in an effort to force her to wear some of the other items.

This morning, Stretch and I looked up from the couch to see her carrying her clothes hamper down the stairs. At first, I thought that was a hint that she wanted her laundry done. Instead, she said, "Well, since you haven't washed my clothes, I decided to do it myself."

What?! Did I hear that right?

I hopped right up and helped her get started in the laundry room. While I supervised and reached the things she couldn't quite get, she did her own laundry. She cleaned out the dryer vent when it was time to put the wet clothes into the dryer. She put the clothes into the dryer and later folded them herself.

And I thought finally getting them potty trained rocked my world.

A day at the beach...

2009-07-18T16:31:00.005-04:00

We took the kids to a beach today. It was so hot that the sand was burning our feet as we made our way across the sand to find a spot to lay out our beach blanket and the stuff we'd lugged from the car. But once we were in the water, it felt pretty good. L'il Sis was having a grand time collecting a bucket full of seashells. Stretch had his snorkel gear and showed Big Sis how to use it. The mask was a bit big for her so she held it to her face while she snorkeled. (I guess we'll be looking at getting her one of her own.) She had a blast following fish around.

At one point, as Stretch tells it, she was watching a school of fish and he was following her in case she got into trouble. Suddenly, without ever coming out of the water, she did a one-eighty and started stroking for shore as fast as she could. Stretch said he'd never seen her perform such great freestyle strokes. Apparently, the fish she'd been following turned and started coming toward her which she found odd because usually they swam away from her. But then she saw why. A large fish, 2-3 feet in length, with teeth she could see. Or as she put it, "It was this big (holding out her hands) and it had TEETH!" I thought it was a bit funny that she'd left Stretch behind but as he pointed out she probably had the mindset of "I don't have to outswim the fish, just YOU!" and when I asked if it was a case of every person for himself, she said, "That's right!"

The fish she saw might have been a barracuda. An adult snorkeler had said he spotted one earlier in the same area. At the time, I was more concerned with the stingray he'd also spotted and which I'd also seen, heading toward Stretch and Big Sis. I think it passed them by and they never saw it. When I saw it, I was thinking, "Please be a sea turtle" until I heard the snorkeler say it was a stingray.

I think I may have reached my quota of wildlife this week. Earlier in the week, I'd taken my friend and her kids to a National Wildlife Refuge where we saw a huge alligator. It's head alone was easily 2-1/2 to 3 feet long. Since it remained mostly submerged, we never saw exactly how long it was. Oh, and we were on a dock with our feet only about 4 or 5 feet above the gator.

The Girls Night Out that wasn't

2009-07-17T21:33:00.002-04:00

Following the kids' and my month-long trek across the southeastern corner of the U.S., I convinced our hostess at our last stop to follow us home. Her husband is gone for the summer and it kept our kids busy with each other. Plus, I selfishly wanted to spend more time with my friend whom I hadn't seen in almost 5 years.

On her last day here, Stretch called home in the morning and offered a Girls' Night Out (GNO) to us and promised to be home early enough to make it happen. I was ecstatic and looked forward to it all day. Since he would be clearly outnumbered by the 5 kids, I had dinner ready for them when he came home. Everything was set for us to get out of Dodge.

Because Stretch was parked behind me (and my vehicle was in the garage), we drove his vehicle. We drove away without a care in the world, trying to decide what we should do. We were positively giddy with the freedom of it all.

Then we made our first stop. It should have been a quick one. But when we returned to the car, it wouldn't start. Now this car is only 2-1/2 years old. We just replaced all 4 tires. And now it refused to start. We pulled out the owner's manual, trying to figure out what the problem was. We tried suggestions multiple times, in case we were doing something wrong. Nothing. Finally, we called Stretch. He and the kids were just finishing dinner. So he loaded them all up and drove to us. (We weren't far.)

After trying to jump the thing, we decided that I'd take the kids and my friend back to our house while Stretch continued to work on the car. Now, my friend and I hadn't eaten yet. So I started to heat up the remnants of dinner when we returned to the house. Before I'd gotten very far, Stretch called and wanted me to return with my car so we could try to jump his again.

Just before I pulled up, Stretch had dropped a tool in the engine. And it was stuck somewhere under the battery. That's about how the evening was going. After another jump attempt, Stretch decided to remove the battery and take it somewhere to test it. That's when he lost part of another tool. This time in the back of his car.

He took me back to the house, picked up more tools and returned to pry the battery out of his car. About an hour later, Stretch called again to say he was on his way to pick me up so we could retrieve his car. Apparently, the battery had to be replaced.

So Stretch got kudos for wanting to give us a GNO. But the gremlins got the last laugh (Hello! He's not even gone this time!)

Get out the tissues...

2009-07-16T17:36:00.007-04:00

A friend emailed this to me:

"...this is a video that will touch your heart and remind you how very proud you should be to be an American. ... Notice all the people on both sides of the road for more than 10+ miles!

...Killed in action the week before, the body of Staff Sergeant First Class John C. Beale was returned to Falcon Field in Peachtree City , Georgia , just south of Atlanta , on June 11, 2009. The Police escorted the procession to the funeral home in McDonough , Georgia . A simple notice in local papers indicated the road route to be taken and the approximate time. This was filmed during the procession by a State Trooper.

Nowadays one can be led to believe that America no longer respects honor and no longer honors sacrifice outside the military. Be it known that there are many places in this land where people still recognize the courage and impact of total self-sacrifice. Georgia remains one of those graceful places. The link below is a short travelogue of that day's remarkable and painful journey. But only watch this if you wish to have some of your faith in people restored."

http://blip.tv/play/AYGJ5h6YgmE

(Sorry, I couldn't get the video to embed.)

Eleven years and counting

2009-07-11T08:03:00.003-04:00

Stretch is out in the field training with Marines. I'm finally at home, after a month on the road. My friend and her 3 kids arrived yesterday afternoon, so I'm listening to kids playing and waiting for breakfast to come out of the oven.

Just a typical Saturday morning. And Stretch's and my anniversary. Once again, we'll be spending it apart. But at least we're in the same state!

Eleven years and two kids later, it still feels like we've only just started this adventure. Happy anniversary, Stretch. As much time as we spend apart, I can't imagine my life without you in it. You are still the man of my dreams, the love of my life.

He's a Barine!

2009-07-08T16:41:00.004-04:00

My friend Jody keeps asking L'il Sis what her daddy does just so she can hear her proudly say, "He's a Ba-reen!"

Speaking of which, Big Sis is wearing her woodland camouflage t-shirt with hot pink letters that proclaim, "My daddy is a U.S. Marine." The man serving us lunch at the fast food counter this afternoon saw it and thanked her for her daddy's service. In true Big Sis fashion, she wasn't paying attention and didn't hear him. When I told her he'd thanked her for her dad's service, she looked confused and asked, "why?"

Independence Day

2009-07-05T15:42:00.003-04:00

For many, the 4th of July evokes images of cook-outs, parades, and fireworks: all to be enjoyed with family and the larger community. Some of my best 4th of July memories come from celebrations on military bases. There's just something about the William Tell overture accompanied by howitzers that just says "Happy Independence Day!" like nothing else.

This year, the 4th of July found Stretch and me in different states. Which is so much better than different continents. The kids and I are still on our extended summer migration and arrived at fellow milspouse and blogger Jody's home on the 3rd. That same day, Stretch was leaving our home to travel to Camp Lejeune so he could meet a group of Marines returning from Iraq on the 4th.

It didn't seem too odd to me to be apart for the 4th of July. (Yes, I still missed him.) He was doing something he felt he should do (and I agree that someone from the unit should be there to meet the Marines.) Jody and I took the kids to a small town parade and to see fireworks. It might be the first parade I'd ever gone to that didn't have a military presence. We all had fun and the kids especially enjoyed it because they gathered about 5 pounds of candy at the parade. Jody and I were just enjoying being able to hang out together because it has probably been almost 5 years since we last saw each other.

Part of the reason it didn't seem strange to be apart is the fact that we really haven't spent too many Foruths of July together. Last year, Stretch was working. The year before, he was in Iraq. We'd probably been married 3 or 4 years before we were able to spend this particular holiday with each other. The first time we actually had the day to spend together, we were a little lost as to what we should do. I guess it's inadvertently become our tradition to spend Independence day independently of each other.

This is one tradition we don't need to keep though.

Seriously?!

2009-06-28T16:40:00.003-04:00

L'il Sis: Because I was insisting on the girls standing when they were supposed to in church and expecting a certain minimum standard of behavior during the service, L'il Sis loudly proclaimed, "You're mean!" Why, yes, I am and I'm about to get meaner!

Big Sis: After Big Sis discovered the diving boards, she asked me, "Mom, do you weigh less than 250 lbs.?" What?! Uh, yes, by a considerable margin, thank you very little! (She was asking because the diving boards had posted weight limits.) When I asked her if she thought I weighed that much, she said yes, it was in my legs. Gee, thanks.

Stretch: Stretch is at home while the girls and I are half-way across the country, visiting relatives. He called me wanting to get directions to somewhere he'd been invited. I suggested he look at a map in one of our kitchen drawers. He'd already left the house and thought I might either know how to get there or would be able to get online to find out. (Um, no, I was in the car.) I'm currently 5 states and a timezone away. And I'm beginning to get the idea that maybe I make things a little too easy for him at home.

Pics from the Plains

2009-06-27T22:00:00.012-04:00

We're getting ready to depart for Part Two of our mega-road trip. We've been at my mom's for about 2 weeks. I thought I'd take advantage of the internet access to post some highlight pics.

While I spent a day catching up with 2 of my best friends, Stretch and the girls spent some quality time together before he flew home. They went bowling before visiting both the new Artillery Museum (L'il Sis and Stretch loved it, Big Sis not so much) and the Fort Sill Museum. The girls picked out the sunbonnets as their souvenir. They liked them so much, they wore them to church the next day. Yes, and wore them throughout the service.

After Stretch was gone, the girls continued to take swim lessons (that Grandma had arranged) in the mornings. One afternoon, we went bowling again with my college room-mate and her kids, who were kind enough to drive up after their own long day at nature camp to spend time with us.

The final 2 pictures show that Big Sis discovered not just the diving board this last week, but the BIG diving board. We took them swimming again
after the lessons were over and she spent the entire time going off these boards. I can't believe she wasn't either exhausted or had a permanent wedgie or both!

summer "deployment"

2009-06-22T22:47:00.002-04:00

On Father's Day, we redeployed Stretch back home. He had to go back to work so he flew back by himself. Frankly, I'm surprised he took a week off. But I was so happy he was able to help with the drive out here. Three days in the car was a long ride!

The girls and I remain "deployed" to my mother's house for the next week. Then we will slowly meander our way across the country back to our house, stopping to visit family and friends. Of course, when we arrive back home, Stretch will probably be out in the field for a week. *sigh*

On the road...

2009-06-12T21:27:00.002-04:00

We've lost our minds. We're driving for 3 days to go visit family. Oy!

Military weekend

2009-06-10T16:25:00.005-04:00

I spent last weekend wrangling the kids and spending more time than I care to think about sitting in a high school theater, forcing short hair into a bun and trying to put makeup on a 5 year old. In the end, she just wore blush. L'il Sis had her dance recital on Sunday afternoon so the dress rehearsal was Saturday. We managed to leave the rehearsal after only 3 hours, older girls had to stay much longer.

While I was having such wonderful fun, what do you suppose Stretch was doing? On at least one day, he was jumping out of a perfectly good plane. One of his landings was less than perfect and he was dragged across the landing zone. His uniform did its job and he came through relatively unscathed (small scratch on a finger). But the uniform is shredded. Now, part of me was appalled at the sight of that uniform because I much prefer to not have evidence of the dangers of Stretch's job in my face. It's much nicer to think of such things in the abstract -- not quite so "real" that way.

But I'm not gonna lie. Another part of me was thinking about how much it's going to cost to replace that uniform.

It must be Monday...

2009-06-01T19:36:00.003-04:00

... or Another Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day...

I thought I was starting the day out well. After taking Big Sis to school, L'il Sis and I returned home where I replaced a couple of dead plants with live ones in front of our house. Then, we headed out to the neighborhood clubhouse and it's workout room. I hadn't darkened it's doors in quite awhile so it was a momentous occasion for me. So far, so good. Right?

Not so fast. Things started heading south in the afternoon. Here are just the highlights: I discovered the transponder that gets my car in the gates of our neighborhood wasn't working. Hmm. Then I found out it was because our landlord had neglected to tell the HOA that we had renewed our lease. Deep breath.

While reviewing our travel plans for the next month, I discovered I'd signed the girls up for the wrong week of VBS. Hopefully, I can get this changed. Otherwise, my drive across country with the girls will be anything but leisurely (which was the original plan... slow and leisurely, dammit!).

Then, I took L'il Sis to her last dance class, which is already fraught with stress because the recital is next weekend and these little girls really don't know this dance. But today, L'il Sis managed to get her hand squashed in a door right before her class started. So she was crying. (Justifiably so.) One mom ran out to her car to get a cold bottle of water. We held that against her fingers for a bit. Her fingers looked to be fine but I'm sure they hurt like the dickens. Then the dance teacher came back with some ice. L'il Sis really needed to learn this dance, so I convinced her to go into the room to at least watch the other girls. She eventually joined the class but not until more than half-way thru the class. I still had to sit on the floor of the class, though, and couldn't go back to the lobby area with the other moms. Stretch came by, picked up Big Sis and went in search of dinner. Because at this point, obviously, my plan of dropping L'il Sis off at the studio, going back home to make dinner, and then having one of us pick her up was not only shot, it was dead in the water. [Oh, the fingers were just fine. At the end of the class, they turned off the regular lights and turned on the colored stage lights and L'il Sis perked right up.]

By this point, I was feeling more than a little frustrated. Then Stretch and Big Sis got home with dinner. Fast food. But, wait, was that a salad by my place? Not just a salad. It was my favorite Oriental Chicken Salad (not from the same place as they'd gotten their dinners). He even noticed that I'd started ordering it with grilled chicken. He'd made a special trip to get my salad because he felt bad for the day I'd had. Oh, and because he loves me. Yes, I'm lucky to have him.

Maybe I won't move to Australia after all. They have bad days there, too.

Ahh...you were gypsies, too?!

2009-05-30T09:33:00.005-04:00

Last night, Stretch and I attended a charity event we'd been invited to by friends from church. Among their other guests were a retired Army couple. While they were obviously older than us and their children were grown with children of their own, we found ourselves drawn back to this couple repeatedly throughout the night. Of everyone there, we had the most in common with them. As I talked to them of places they'd lived, we kept finding common ground...literally. As an Army brat and later an intern, I'd spent time in Germany where they lived while their children were young, including one town where we'd both lived. They spent a number of years at Fort Sill, a place Stretch and I are both familiar with. Between frequent moves, frustrations with different schools, and just the lifestyle in general, we found we had much in common. Maybe it was because we've been away from other military families for so long, but just being able to talk to someone who understood things without explanation was absolutely wonderful and probably the best part of the evening. It was like being able to speak in our native tongue again after struggling with the local language.

motherhood quote

2009-05-29T10:22:00.003-04:00

"For the first two years, you're up to your elbows in poo and puke. Then for the next 10 years, you feed them and educate them. Nurse them through every disease known to man and some known only to veterinary science. Then they shut themselves in their room and play cruel music at you and shout through the keyhole that you don't understand them and they hate you."

~Laura Thyme, "The Gooseberry Bush," Rosemary & Thyme (BBC mystery series)

I heard this last night and it really struck a chord. Yes, motherhood can be wonderful and rewarding and all of that warm and fuzzy stuff. But a rather large chunk of it makes you feel unappreciated. Those great moments when you feel your heart bursting with love and pride for your kids and everything is wonderful and you love being a mom, etc, etc, are very nice. They are also fleeting and sometimes don't happen as often as we'd like. But it's those moments that make all the mundane drudgery worth it. Because the truth (shh! it's not something we tell people who are considering making the leap into motherhood but haven't done it yet), well, the truth is there's a lot of thankless tasks involved in motherhood. It's probably the reason we never truly appreciate our own mothers until we've joined that group ourselves. And we can just forget our kids appreciating us until they've got kids of their own who don't appreciate them! And that is probably the origin of the mom curse (you know, the one where your mom hopes you have kids just like you).