Blogging from Jax

The drive down wasn't too bad and we made it in around 7 hours.... the kids were really good and were excited to be on a road trip... having another adventure. We stopped for lunch in Perry, GA at BK and the kids were able to play on the playground to get some energy out. Those playgrounds are the best things for long trips. We finally made it around 4:30 pm and my first impression of Orange Park was that it feels like any other area of FL that I've been too. It just has that FL feel. And, there's LOTS of traffic around here.

Angele had plans for us to go see "Twilight" and she insisted that I was going to love it. I had no real thoughts about the movie other than I just wasn't really interested in the whole vampire thing. But, I knew the author of the books was LDS, and that it had become very popular. So, I was willing to see what all the hype was about. Angele had her sister and her friend lined up to babysit for us. After dinner at O'Charley's (where kids eat free:) we went back to the house, the girls were fantastic... they gave the little ones baths, played with them, and then we put them to bed. So, it was nice to go to the movies not worrying about the kids missing me. We went to the 9:45 show and being the old woman that I am, I was already tired because it was my bedtime. But, I got a diet coke to keep me awake and I have to say that I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the movie. We got home around 12:30... quite the late night for me.

Yesterday we just ran around a little. We went to see Lynell (Angele's mom) at work to show her the kids, then to the base for lunch..... by that time I needed a nap but didn't get one. Later that day, Angele had to babysit for a friend and it turns out that her little boy was in Noah's 1st grade class in ME, so they had a good time.

It's day 3 and we've been trying to decide what to do today.... either we go to the beach and let the kids play, or a park that's near some water... and maybe a picnic. We'll see how it goes... I'd like to go shopping, just us girls... that would be great. Or, a nap, I can always use a nap.

I noticed that our countdown to T coming home is at 169 days- woo hoo!!! We're in the 160's. We miss you Travis. Flat Daddy has been sitting in the passengers seat of the van and he gets lots of looks. Also, he has startled Angele more than once.

More to come.....

Some of my thoughts on the upcoming holidays...

Awhile back I was thinking about how I could come up with a "green" type of Christmas card this year since going green is very much on my mind these days. But, I was reading about how most cards just end up in a landfill anyway. It seems kind of wasteful and a little silly to send a "going green" card because the "green" thing to do is not to send them at all. So, I am going to send e- Christmas cards this year. Most people have computers anyway so I can still send our loved ones well wishes and cute pictures and "go green" too.

The economy is really bad right now and a lot of people are struggling. I've heard that food kitchens are seeing people in record numbers and that food banks are low on food. I was talking to my sister Carol about a way that we could make a difference this year and show the kids that we are really blessed and have way more than we need. So, we are going to take the money that we would buy presents for each other (aunts, uncles, cousins) and buy food or whatever is needed and donate it to a shelter or food bank. And we are also going to get the kids involved in purchasing the items and taking it there. I think this is something that they will remember and hopefully make them feel good about doing service for those less fortunate..... I'm really excited about this!

I was thinking today while I was driving and saw some Christmas trees for sale that even though Travis won't be here, I want to make the holidays as normal as I can, especially for Noah. So, as tradition, we'll put up a tree and decorate the house.... at least hang some lights... I know Noah will love that. All of our Christmas stuff is in storage.... hmmmm, I'll have to work on that one... But, it won't be the same without Travis this year, so I just hope the holidays pass quickly.

Things I did today....

• I had a chiropractors appointment... it almost feels like I'm at the spa when I'm there because it's so relaxing and peaceful there. Today, I was on the therapy table for 30 minutes and there is soft music playing, so I always doze off... I had muscle stimulation (electric pulses) on my shoulders with a warm heated wrap. While that was going on she brought me a nice cup of herbal tea... Then I had an adjustment, and last but not least, she puts this very powerful vibrating massager on my neck, shoulders, and back... it feels so good. This is the best chiropractic care I've ever received and if you need a chiropractor, I highly recommend Dr. Rennie Alampi in Woodstock... she's fantastic!
  
• I had a Thanksgiving lunch at Lily's preschool.... It was nice and I was able to meet the parents of Lily's friends. Miss Deanna asked me where flat daddy was and I felt so bad that I was in a hurry and left him at home... Sorry Travis, I promise I'll remember to take you to Noah's Thanksgiving party tomorrow.


• I took the kids to the library... all 3 of them. But, it wasn't so bad because Noah and Lily have a little routine when we go there and I had Katy in the stroller. Noah has his own library card now and takes that very seriously. He's so cute.


• I fed, bathed, read to, and put the kids to bed..... and I'm so tired. I'm looking forward to going to bed soon.

These are pictures from the Thanksgiving lunch at Lily's preschool

November this and that...

I talked to Travis today around lunch time and that was nice. He was getting ready to leave work and head back to his "can" to go to bed. We talk whenever we can with the 8 hour time difference, sometimes he calls me around 10:30PM as I'm going to bed and he's going to work the next day. That's always a nice way to end my day. We were both talking about how we're so bored with this deployment and ready for it to be over.... the mundane day to day stuff can be so tiring. So, I've decided to take the kids and get out of town for a few days and go to Jacksonville for Thanksgiving. The kids have the whole week off and it's perfect timing, so we're gonna go and have some fun and see my girlfriend Angele and her 2 boys. Her husband happens to be deployed too.... Plus, Mom will have a little vacation and have the house to herself again... ahhh peace and quiet!!

Noah has been doing great in school and I've noticed how organized he is. He has his agenda and writes everything down. He does his homework without being told and does his spelling words and vocabulary homework early for the week. He has a book report due that is due tomorrow, but wanted to start doing it 10 days ago, and has already turned it in early. And, he pointed out to me today that he has been on green for 2 weeks and 2 days straight. Last week I received a letter from his teacher stating that said he was referred to be tested for the advanced education program/gifted program. I'm so proud of him and his abilities and his desire to do well in school.

Lily is doing a fabulous job potty training! We are at 3 days with no accidents and she only wears a pull-up for naps and at night. I seriously started potty training her on October 16th, and am impressed with how far she has come in only a month's time. Today she had gymnastics and she wore her new leotard for the first time. She was very excited about it and ran in and showed Miss Linda and prissed around some...it was so obvious that she wanted her to notice her new leotard. Miss Linda told her several times how much she liked it. I've noticed that she seems pretty tired after her class and she took a 2.5 hour nap today which is pretty unusual for her and it was a treat for me.

Katy is a super fast crawler, and she is almost walking. She cruises around furniture and tries to pull up next to anything she can. She has been a little adventurous and taken a step without holding something but she is still unsure of herself. I think she'll be walking by her 1st birthday.
She starts to do this little rocking thing when we sing this certain song to her... Nana started it awhile back.... she said this is a song from WWII or some thing like that- it goes.... "K-K-K-Katy beautiful Katy, you're the one the only one that I adore, when the m-moon comes over the mountain, I'll be waiting at the k-k-k-kitchen door." Sometimes all of us are singing it really loudly and she is loving all the attention.

The last few nights the kids have all been sleeping in my bed in a pile, so I've been sleeping in their room on the bottom bunk bed. Actually, it's been very restful sleep for me, so we might just keep this up for awhile.

Sunday the kids looked so cute for church and of course I wanted to take a picture of them... but no one ever wants to cooperate when they look nice! This was the best I could do.

Little darlings

I didn't post much last week, so I thought I would just add a few pictures for Daddy to enjoy.

Three sicks kids!

Update: After 3 days of administering medicine and all the fun that goes with it, even still I am so thankful that we have health insurance and can get the medicine our children need when they are sick.

Not much going on this week except dealing with sick kids. Noah has had on going allergies, and complains of headaches quite often, so I thought we would go in and just get him some allergy medicine. Turns out that he has allergies, a severe sinus infection, and bronchitis! Poor Noah has been dealing with this cough for awhile and I just attributed it to allergies and post nasal drip. Well, now he has a bunch of medicine and is on the road to recovery.

Lily and Katy have had runny noses and coughs and Katy has been tugging at one of her ears. Turns out they both have ear infections.... so they have medicine too... and they all got flu shots.

I got a good nights sleep last night.. I slept in Noah's bed with Katy and Noah and Lily slept in my bed. We'll see how that goes tonight and maybe we'll do it again... I really enjoyed 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep.

Free entertainment...

The kids were playing school in the backyard with the neighbors and it was so cute! Actually, it started out as a preschool because Lily and Katy were out there, and then it turned into a real school when 2 more friends came over to play. There was a lunch lady, and teachers, and I was even deemed the principal if anyone got in trouble and needed to be punished. I love it when kids play like this and use there imaginations.

The other day Noah and Lily were playing in the backyard with the neighbors and were moving things all around on the patio and I couldn't figure out what they were doing. So, I finally had to ask and Noah said they were playing the boxcar children. I love it! Noah and I had been reading that at night before bed and I couldn't figure out if he actually liked it. I guess he did.

It's not fall in New England...

...but, this will do just fine! It's so beautiful around here right now with the brilliant and rich colors of fall. I love fall!!! Over the past few days, I've stopped to take pictures to try to capture what I'm seeing, but they don't compare to seeing it in person. And, today it's breezy and a little cool which is nice because I think fall is supposed to be cooler and this week Lily has been able to wear her bathing suit outside in the sandbox.

It's Saturday afternoon and Noah is at Tanner's this weekend. Katy is napping. Lily is wearing her fairy god mouse (princess) costume and in the other room bending Nana's ear. I went to the Bodyflow class at the gym this morning because I thought it would be good for me to stretch since I'm still so sore after the Bodypump class on Thursday. I feel energized, but I'm still stiff... I think this will take a few days and more ibuprofen!!

I missed Travis' call while I was laying Katy down for her nap... I was a little bummed. But, at least he left me a sweet voicemail. There's an 8 hour time difference, so he's probably getting ready to go to bed now. When I go to bed, he is getting up....

Barefoot Contessa just came on and she's making fettunta which is grilled bread, rubbed with garlic, and drizzled with olive oil.... then she's making a prosciutto and mozzarella topping for it. That sounds so good! I miss having Travis around in the kitchen because he enjoys making stuff like that. I'm definitely not the greatest cook, but I appreciate a good one and I enjoy good food.

I'm totally rambling...

Yes, we did!

As of 11:00PM EST, Barack Obama was elected the 44th President of the United States of America. The feelings I have are overwhelming and I'm crying tears of joy. The people have spoken and their voices have been heard.

"Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time.
We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek."
Barack Obama

Historic Election Night

We ordered pizza from Stevi B's so we wouldn't have to worry about doing much tonight. While we were waiting for the polls to close, Noah and I decided he would track the states Obama wins and I will track the states McCain wins. Not much happened before 8:00PM and Noah only got to count Vermont for Obama and I counted Kentucky for McCain. Well, he started getting sleepy and was out before the first big waves of projections came in. So, he missed his Mom and Nana dancing around the living room!! As of 9:00PM EST, the latest electoral vote count is:

Obama 174
McCain 49

Of course it's not over yet, but at this point it's looking very good for the Democrats!

More to come....


Well, it's almost 10:00PM and I'm getting tired. I know that I should be going to bed because the little ones get up so early. BTW, I got 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep last night. Thank you Miss Katy! Well, I'll give it another hour and see how it goes. As of 10:00 PM EST, the latest electoral vote count is:

Obama 207
McCain 89

Election Eve

I'm really excited about the election tomorrow. Over the last 2 months, I have become a real election coverage addict! I know it's because my Mom is a glued to CNN and MSNBC 95% of her waking hours, so we are always talking about it. Withdrawals are sure to come once the election is over, but we still have a couple of days left....

One of the reasons I haven't blogged about politics is because I know that I would get all wrapped up in it, stressed out about it, and I don't want to argue with anyone about it. I'm not a confrontational person, but I am passionate in my beliefs and I want Barack Obama to win, by a landslide. However, even if he wins by just a hair, I'll still be just as happy!

Obama inspires me and gives me hope that our country will be better than it is now, that everyone can have a better quality of life, that the US will once again be respected in the world... We need change and I believe that he is the better candidate for the job as President of the United States of America.

Until tomorrow...

Over the weekend

Noah and I practiced some football moves on Saturday. I would throw the ball up in the air and he would run up under it to catch it and then slide to the ground with it. Then he would jump right back up and we would do it again.... probably 40 times at least!



We actually did this about 3 days this week after school. He just loves it and I think he enjoys spending time with me too. But, he really misses his Dad and I know he would rather be throwing the ball around with him. I'll just have to do for now!

I got quite a surprise on Saturday when I received a package from my sweet friend Faith. She sent me a birthday party in a box!!! It was so cool: cake mix, frosting, candles, plates, balloons, a candle, bracelet & earrings, a pendant, socks, stationary, and LOTS of chocolate!!!! Faith, you are so thoughtful and I appreciate you thinking of me. Yes, 40 is cool!!!

I was trying to come up with a way that we could do a countdown until Travis gets home that would be fun for the kids. The idea that Noah liked the best was putting $1 each day in a jar until Dad gets home then we can do something really special together as a family. We started at the 200 day mark, so with 193 days left our jar has $7 in it. This is going to be fun!