Short lived....

We are all saying goodbye again to Daddy-O for a few more weeks...  *sigh* 

On a brighter note...  the sun is actually shining these days...despite a little rain.

Thats about all I can muster up tonight.

He's home!

After nearly 6 weeks away he came home...and we just couldn't get enough of him...

Under the Sea...

Definition:  8 year old birthday party: 
Thinking its a good idea to bring lots of children into your house and load them up with sugar while attempting to entertain them with endless games...

Ok...so maybe thats a better definition of exhausted. 

We had Maddie's 8th birthday party yesterday with some of her girlfriends from school.  So, while we had one no-show we ended up with 5 little girls that are FULL of energy and had a fabulous party day.

We started off the morning with my two best girls getting ready for the party...

I had spent the night before getting all the decorations up and blowing up balloons and setting up the tables.  We had streamers and under the sea decor and pin the fish in the shark's mouth...

I had also made Maddie's cake the day before.  She wanted a sandcastle cake.  Aiya!  I think I did a pretty good job, if I do say so myself.  Its just a plain white cake and I used crushed graham cracker for the sand.

When John first saw the photo of it his comment was, "Oh, look...the waves got to it a little."  ha ha ha  you think you are so funny. 

Maddie was sosososososososososososososososso excited.  She waited in anticipation near the door for the first friend to show up.  It wasn't long before we had a whole pile of girls in the house and it was time to get started with games!

We played chubby bunny with strawberry marshmallows. 

Is anyone surprised that Maddie won this game with the biggest mouth?  She fit three whole marshmallows in her mouth and was still able to muster a chubby bunny.  She chose the beautiful dolphin statue that I got at a German 1 euro store.  I forgot to remove the price tag and when she saw it she was AMAZED that it was such a precious piece that cost sooo much.  I suppose if you check out the exchange rate she's not all that far off.  ha ha ha

We played jungle knot...They got bored with that really fast...

So we moved on to the balloon race with your noses...

Our poor small living room had never seen so much action in one day.   Even Bella got in on the action, but all the little girls demanded that she couldn't win because she didn't play right.  Poor bella...doesn't she look like she's miserable for not playing right?

We finished the games off with TWISTER....

And we all know how twister ends up...

The main activity of the day was decorating t-shirts.  They each got their very own high-label brand PBX basics (standard PX clothing...ha ha ha) white t-shirt and went to town decorating.  Our "right hand" assistant Miss Jennie was a wonderful helper and sat in the middle to ensure that nobody decorated the carpet or themselves with the markers.

The girls looked absolutely adorable in their shirts.  We had to have a photo.  I'll print one up for each of them and have Maddie deliver them at school next week...

Everyone is ready to EAT at this point...so we put the pizza in the oven and had Maddie open her presents.  She loved what she received...the funniest gift was a $20 bill from one of her friends...I think soldier dad didn't have time to get a gift so a $20 bill it was.  She also got a make your own doll kit, art supplies, new earrings and a necklace, lipgloss, and the Princess and the Frog DVD.

We sang Happy Birthday to Maddie - most of the girls told her she looked like a monkey and smelled like on too.  I used to think that version was sooooo dang funny.  I'm glad its still funny to 7/8 year olds.  Maddie blew out her candles and we cut the cake...

  Bella went into sugar shock.

So we sent everyone outside to play while we waited for parents to show up and cart their sugar infused children home...

It was a great day...afterward mama and Bella took a 3 hour nap and Maddie read.  Ahhhh...a great finish to a great day...

2 teeth in one week

What a smile!

The tooth fairy left quite the tower of coins at our house this week.  Two teeth in one week.  Now that is quite the cash haul...

Political stuff that makes me laugh...

I have an announcement.  I am not excited about Obama's new health plan.  I think it STINKS and yes...I actually started to read the 900 pages of it and probably got farther along than congress did before it all started swirling in my head.

That being said...I recently received some politically charged emails that made me laugh and I had to just share...because really, when it comes down to it....you have to laugh or we'd all be unibombers. 

Maxine's view of the healthcare plan...

Now, let me get this straight......we're trying to pass a health care plan written by a committee whose chairman says he doesn't understand it, passed by a Congress that hasn't read it but exempts themselves from it, to be signed by a president that also is exempt from it and hasn't read it and who smokes, with funding administered by a treasury chief who didn't pay his taxes, all to be overseen by a surgeon general who is obese, and financed by a country that's broke.

Whats the problem?

And then I got a second one with a series of photos from a rally in Chicago with some very clever sign makers...

Ok...I don't care what political party you support or how much you love or don't love the president and our ELECTED officials...(I had to capitalize that because we complain and yet keep sending back the SAME PEOPLE)  but those signs were dang funny.

No more crazy unibomber people.  Get your aggression out by making a funny sign. 

Just call him CHIEF!

John was promoted!  Whoooooohooooo! 

Other than the obvious benefit of more moolah Bella and I actually got to attend the promotion ceremony held at the training grounds. 

Yesterday morning I had us all packed up and ready to go.  We stopped by clothing sales to pick up a couple of pairs of boot socks and the new rank and then headed out the gate...

Oh wait...whats that grunting I hear?  Quick detour back home for a diaper change and NOW we're off! 

We had about an hour to drive and the road were pretty clear...for the first 15 miles and then Karen, our friendly GPS voice lady, directed me onto these back country roads that had big patches of 2 foot snowdrifts, winds and curves and sure enough...20 minutes out from the training grounds Bella barfs all over her jacket, dress, tights and shoes. 

AIYA!

Its about 10 degrees outside so I'm trying to clean her up as best I can without freezing her to death and she's crying and crying...so I finally make her a bottle and tuck her under my heavy coat and she immediately went to sleep...for the last 20 minutes.

I stopped at the PX to use their bathroom and to buy Bella a new shirt...(that will teach me to not pack a full array of extra clothes for her!)  She looked adorable...

When she saw John is was a little sad...she didn't recognize him because he was wearing his goggles...she immediately tried to take them off...but really - do you blame her?  It only took a few minutes for her to regroup and then she went into Daddy's arms and wrapped her little arms around his neck and gave him a big hug. It was wonderful to see.

The promotion ceremony was really nice.  John was pinned by one of his mentors from Ft. Huachuca who is at the same training he is at and will be deploying with their group.  The Colonel made some nice comments and everybody gave handshakes and congratulations.

At the end, someone said, "Hey Chief....you need to kiss someone...so its either the Colonel or your wife!"  And that let us have a great smooch at the end.

One of the soldiers was taking photos so she will send them to me when she gets a chance...low priority for their training exercise...and when I get them I'll post them.  But until then -

Congratulations CHIEF!  I am sooooo proud of you!

We thought spring was on the way...

While Maddie has been at school, Bella and I have been taking advantage of this fabulous weather.  Sunshine and warm enough for just a hoodie...not too much mud on the ground and no wind.  It was springtime and we were sooooo happy about it!

And so we planned a morning trip to the Hollohe Wildlife Park.  I thought it would be fun because Bella is at the age where feeding goats and seeing live animals would be exciting for her.

Wouldn't you know it...

Yup - it started snowing.  Now granted it was a nice light fluffy snow, but it was sooooo cold we had to cut our trip short to only 1.5 hours...  We did see a couple of fun animals and Bella still had fun running around...

NOT lovin' the (step)Mom gig...

So, Madeline is in detention for lunch/recess hours this week because she and two other little boys collaborated on a note that was very inappropriate and mean and they gave it to a little girl in their class. 

This is the same little girl Maddie and I had a big talk about on Saturday because her mom had told me she was having a hard time with kids being mean to her.  Maddie had assured me that she would be her "best friend" this week to help her feel better.

**where is that grumpy snarly icon when I need it?**

So, after a visit to the principal's office and detention for this whole week she's ALSO in hot water here at home...she's grounded until Monday.  Unfortunately this is the week we had a million great activities planned.  So now not only is SHE grumpy, but I'm grumpy.  But, learning this lesson is more important than the activities we had planned so I will suffer through the week...and pray for lots of sunshine so at the very least Bella and I can spend time outside in the yard playing while miss trouble is doing extra chores!

Lovin' the (step)MOM gig...

Oh yeah...you don't hear me say that often, but today was a stellar day.  Sunshine, rollerskates, a pink soccer ball and so much fun with my girls.

You know...funny enough I also got an email from a friend that happened to meet Cruella...apparently Cruella is singing my praises these days...

I guess that can't be helped...you can't very well continue to condemn a woman as abusive and neglectful when you want her to take care of you child for you so you can do...well, whatever it is you do now that she's not around.

But enough about her...lets go back to ME.  We had a great day, me and the girls.  I'm lovin' bein a mom these days.

Double secret poke your eyes out spy stuff...

Do not (I REPEAT) Do not tell anyone what I'm about to tell you or I'll have to find you and tickle you to death.

Just kidding.  HELLO....have you noticed the whole world can read this blog?

Today, our DSPYEOSS (double secret poke your eyes out spy stuff) is going to focus on OpSec...which is a big fancy word...ok...its actually a short acronym word.  BUT, the important part is that its commonly used by the Army (and other armed forces groups) to mean Operational Security.  Its time that I address this here in my blog.  Remember, I'm not locked down here...as in...ANYONE can read what I have to say and so as an Army wife I am bound to follow some basic OpSec rules.

Now whats the likelihood that there is a terrorist following the mundane life of little ol' me?  Probably very small, but I'm not going to take the chance that something I say could harm a soldier in any way. 

So...with that being said...OpSec rules for me are as follows...

I will never post any information about the following:

**Identification of units being deployed
**Troop movements (this includes locations of  units moving from one destination to another)
**Unit departure/arrival dates/return dates
**Deployment destinations (including any stops during air travel)
**Military activities including pre-deployment meetings, training and formations
**Pre-deployment orders
**Length of or extensions of deployments
**Information on proposed port calls
**Information about future deployments

Phew...so, that pretty much rules out me talking about the next 10 years of our lives until we're no longer in the Army. 

Just teasing...I wouldn't subject you all to the horror of my posts being all about ME...unless you all need some sleeping pills and then I can oblige with a boring story or two of life on Post... 

All joking aside...I will provide some information about whats going on...photos to share, stories too, but please know that if you want details you're going to have to call me or email me or smoke signal me.

That being said. 

We love our soldier.

And we wish you were here with us all the time.
 

 
And we'll leave a light on until you come home.

Happy anniversary to us!

FOUR GLORIOUS FOUR
(Sing to Food Glorious Food from the musical Oliver)

Is it worth the waiting for?
If we live 'til eighty-four
All we'll ever get is old!

Four, glorious four!
What wouldn't we give for
That extra few years more --

That's all that we live for.
why should we be fated to
Do nothing but brood

On four,

Magical four,

Wonderful four,

Marvellous four,

Fabulous four,

Beautiful four,

Glorious four!

Fashion Rewind...

Do you remember when this was in style? 

Ok...me neither, but maybe at least one or two big bows in your hair...

And a few banana clips never hurt anyone...

Thanks to Miss Madeline I am seriously back in the 80's these days. 

Now...dare I leave the house looking like this?

A lament...

Mostly I'm just rambling here because I need to ramble for a minute....and ultimately what I hope for is that in the ramble will come clarification and possibly a resolution and even (dare I hope) some peace of mind...

This is a lament about safe havens...places that you go to feel loved and cherished...places where you have friends that understand you and support you and help you through the roughest of times...I have a million great friends out there...you know who you are...I know who you are, but friends are a little different than the safe havens that I'm talking about...don't you have someplace or someone you can go to that you know won't judge you for actually saying the things that you aren't supposed to say, but that you just can't help but feel?

I had that kind of a place.  I've loved that place dearly for so long....it was my lifeline for many months...it was my comfort and I feel as though I have made some "best friends" that laugh with me and cry with me...

And then...all of a sudden you are back in junior high and someone passes you a note that says "somebody in our group doesn't like you."

Fast forward to what I think is supposed to happen in adult life.  Ok...you don't like me...can I ask why?  What did I do?  I'm sorry if I offended you.  I apologize for speaking too brazenly or not taking good enough care of your feelings or not being aware that my flippancy was hurting you.  Apology accepted?  Wonderful.  Lets hug, sing kumbaya and move forward...

Rewind to reality...Well, crap.  Who is it?  Oh, you can't tell me?  They want it to be a secret?  If they want it to be a secret then why are they telling everyone else?  Oh, they just put up a big "I don't like her" sign but nobody knows who it was?  Well, great...how am I supposed to fix something that I don't know is wrong for someone who won't say who they are?

And now, all of a sudden you start to suspect...what if it was her or that person?  We don't always agree, but I thought we were friends.  Well, I wonder if one of my "friends is not really my "FRIEND"...

And now that safe haven is no longer a place you want to go anymore...and its no longer a place you want to share your feelings anymore because now you know that someone in your group doesn't really want to be your friend...they aren't taking care of your feelings...in fact they don't want to be your friend so much that they anonymously announce that you are no longer a good friend to them...

And then you feel anger instead of sadness.  COWARD.

And so...do I need more drama in my life?  I do not seek it out...I refuse to accept it.  I HATE dealing with it...and now my safe haven is just...well, its drama.

And so...do I look for a new place or try and repair the old?  I know still that I have wonderful friends there, but there is just a feeling of division that now I no longer trust.  I can still visit.  I can still laugh and have fun and relish the good times and lament with them over the bad...but ultimately it is no longer a place where I will feel safe.

I've been pondering how to rebuild a new home where I can spend much needed ME time.  I think it will need to be kept close to my heart for awhile...I've been wanting to write and perhaps now is the time to start.  To finally put it all on paper and learn to rely on myself a little more to get past the hard days...

If you've made it this far in my ramble, I'm impressed...if you understood any of it I'm even more impressed.  I hope you have a safe haven...I hope it stays safe for you...

How do you teach....

a kid to think about other people?  My parents did it with service projects.  Whether we wanted to or not we learned how to behave politely.  We volunteered at church and at old folk's homes and for our neighbors and friends...  Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find anything like that around here that would work for us...

I know she's only seven, but by that age a child should be able to use proper manners - please, thank you, you're welcome and excuse me....not to mention the words I'm sorry.  Instead we get, "I want..."  "You make me..."  "move it..."  "I...I...I...I...I...."

And it seems no matter how hard I try and get her to understand how to be polite I feel like I'm talking to the "nothingness..."

Am I expecting too much from age 7?  I know its a learning process and I have to remember that its even MORE of a learning process for her because the past 8 months are the first time anyone has ever required polite speech and actions...

I'm feeling the like the wicked stepmom with how much she's in trouble these days.  I just wish we didn't always have to hit rock bottom for her to figure it out and move back up toward a peaceful existence...

**sigh**

Daredevil Bella

 The past few days have been a study of increasing more daredevil moves including climbing, standing and balancing on various precarious pieces of furniture or toys.  Tonight it is apparent that Bella's aspirations may be leaning toward a bareback horse rider.

 

Ya big loser!

Well, my sister started it...the momentum grew and now I'm a full fledged member of  The Biggest Loser Facebook Group.  Meaning...I've got to shed the pounds in order to fulfill my dream of smashing my siblings in a weight loss contest. 

It started on Feb. 1st...and ends during our family reunion which is the first week of August. 

I jumped in with both feet first...and immediately got started on SparkPeople again.  Its what led me down the weight loss pass before.  I'm actually feeling pretty motivated.  I've exercised every day so far...and granted its only been 5 days since we started, but those are 5 days I probably would not have otherwise done some form of scheduled exercise!  I'm giving myself thumbs up and kudos where I deserve them.  :)

My goal this week is to get on the exercise kick.  I've been doing OK with the eating, but there are definitely improvements I need to make in the caloric intake area.  Thats next weeks goal.  Baby steps, eh?  I can't stop being lazy AND stop eating chocolate all in the same week.  Sheesh...who am I?  Wonder Woman?

Actually - YES I AM...and that is a goal as part of my weight loss...  This halloween I am totally wearing a hot mama wonder woman costume.  I've never been able to pull it off, but I will this year. 

So, beware....this excitement I feel will continue to pervade my blog posts.  I wonder what I win when I beat my siblings...eternal glory?  Maybe I'll make all of them say, "All hail the hottie" ...more likely than not it will be some brow beating and a kick in the buns, but thats why I love them so much.

All of 14 months...

Whats going on with little girl now that she's all of 14 month's old? 

Ahhh...my sweet little girl just keeps growing bigger and taller and getting cuter and cuter.  She's picking up things so quickly and her little personality is getting stronger and stronger.

She is still a skinny little thing...but eats just about anything we put in front of  her.  Most recently she's tried shrimp...

And sushi...

Someone's got a Temper with a capital T.  The terrible twos fourteen months have started...If they start 10 months early does that mean they end ten months early?

She's fallen in love with her blankies now and carries them around with her.

They are almost always over her shoulder so we decided maybe she needed a cape?

And when there is one caped girl you can always find another...

I gave her a box the other day and its become the favored lounge spot...

She and big sissy Madmad love to dance.  Their favorite song is YMCA.

She says baba for bottle, bah-bah for bye bye, hawwwt for hot, pbttttt for elephant and her best "first word" was just the other day...she saw her dad come in the door and said, "Dadddeeeeeeeeee."  Now she's non-stop chatterbox.

She loves to read stories.  Her favorite books right now are pop up books or lift the flap books.

She can identify eyes, nose, mouth and bellybutton.  Be aware that if you ask her to say bellybutton you better be prepared to bare your midriff and show yours.  :)

She loves Sesame Street and we watch "1...2...3...Count with me" pretty much every day...she likes to sit in her box while its on...at least until number 12 "Honk around the Clock" comes on and then she's up and grooving.

She's fascinated by the dishwasher...and weirdly enough likes to lick it.  Ugh...yeah...so today dad caught her trying to lick the soap dish.  Blech.

Last, but not least she is a waterbaby.  This summer we'll be going to the pool and learning to swim. 

She's learned to go to sleep all on her own.  I'm so proud of her.  We put her in her crib and she lays down and then waits for us to give her a baba (bottle).  Then she snuggles up and goes right to sleep. 

With that in mind...we bid you all a good night.  Bah-Bah!