Day 234

Happy new year!

Is what I should be saying in a few hours

And then giving my hubby a big kiss

Instead my hubby is on the other side of the world

And I'll probably be sleeping when the clock strikes midnight

At least I hope to

Since my 10 month old still likes to get up two times a night

My 3 year old has been waking up crying

And we're up for the day by 6

New years eve used to be getting all dressed up

Eating good food

And drinking lots if drinks

Surrounded by friends

I miss those days

I miss my husband

I miss being able to sleep all night

One day I'll be the fun crazy person on new years again Except I'll be the "old" people at the bar instead if the young ones Sad but true But I think I'll be a damn fun old person

Day 233

Today was the first day we've had enough snow to play in

And since we almost in to january in Minnesota

That is pretty crazy

We did some snow shoveling

Snow sledding

Snow foot print making

And then more shoveling

I'm expecting good sleepers tonight

But not holding my breath cause you just never know with these kiddos

It was a fun snow filled day

And from how much my 3 year old enjoyed it

I'm thinking I'll be doing much more sledding this year

Day 232

Today I believe we are all "back to normal "

Spent the afternoon swimming with friends

Had a few meltdowns today

But that's not really anything new

It was nice to get out and do something again

And it was nice to come home and take a long nap after....

Day 231

Today we cried because...

Pajamas came off

Clothes went on

Going upstairs

Staying downstairs

Eating breakfast

Not eating breakfast

Grandpa sitting by him

Grandpa talking to him

Grandpa sitting in the wrong chair

Baby sister touching him

Baby sister touching a toy

Not having the right food

Going downstairs

Tv turning off

Taking a shower

Not taking a bath

Not being able to play with toys

Taking a nap

Waking up from a nap

Going to bed

Having a blanket

Drinking water

I might have missed some

But you get the drift

Let's just hope he's still feeling a bit sick

Day 230

Today I have been married 6 years

6 years ago today I married my love

I have now spent 3 anniversaries with my husband

And 3 away from him

I miss him today

I miss him everyday

Instead of celebrating with my husband like I should

I missed him more

Was frustrated because of lack of sleep

And held a bucket as my 3 year old puked

6 years

2 kids

And 2 deployments later

And a whole lot of drama in between

I'm still glad I married the man I did

Day 229

I have officially had my worst night with 2 kids

Literally slept maybe an hour or two last night

Non-consecutive

In 15-30 minute increments

Needless to say I sure felt wonderful this morning

And with my red,dry, puffy eyes I'm sure I looked wonderful too

Between my usual non sleeping baby

I also had a 3 year old with 104 degree fever

The combination is not one I recommend

It started around 11pm with the baby crying (for no apparent reason)

Getting her back to sleep just as my son woke up crying with a high fever

Laid her back down and had 2 children bawling

And only one mommy

Luckily I was able to enlist grandma

And realized how thankful I am to be staying here for situations like these

My son woke at least once an hour all night

And in between that I dealt with the baby up and crying

I feel like I spent an entire night back and forth between them

Which I did

Overtired and annoyed to the point where I got angry at my little puppy snoring, uninterrupted and peaceful on my bed

Lucky dog

My day began at 5 am when I got my son up and put him in the hot shower to help him feel better

I did manage to sneak in two naps with sicky today

One with Grandma's help to take care of the baby

But between a dresser fall and being up checking for head injuries

Christmas eve late night

And the most horrible night in history last night

I'm running on fumes...

Day 228

Merry Christmas!

Kinda

I've actually had merrier ones

Considering I started my day by being puked on

I'd say there are better ways to start the day

My 3 year old spent the day laying on a makeshift bed on the floor

Alternating between watching movies and sleeping

It's safe to say his first 2 christmas 's were better then this one

So it didn't feel like much of a celebration today

Family left

Little boy got sick

Huge mess left behind by the celebration yesterday

Time to put the holidays behind us I think

And a sick little boy to bed

Day 227

Christmas eve

Wonderful family

Beautiful church service

Mostly behaving kids

Remembering why we are here

Giving thanks to the Lord

Incredible dinner

Gifts galore

Wonderful day

Day 226

Tonight might have been one of the scariest nights of my life

As I watched my 3 year old get crushed under a dresser

And in my process to save him

I literally threw my 9 month old across the room

As of now we are all ok

If you don't count the 10 years of my life I just lost

I believe I experienced life flashing before my eyes

I have no memory except watching what seemed to be slow motion

Of a dresser crushing my son

When he crawled out on his own

And I breathed again

I looked down to see my 9 month old on the ground

With no memory of throwing her there

And instantly felt horrible and sick again for possibly hurting her

Thank God is all I can think right now

Thank God thank God thank God

My kids are ok

And that is all that matters I am also slightly bummed about the destroyed tv The tv....is definetly a goner

Day 225

Oh how I hate Walmart at christmas time

Went there today

Of course with 2 kids

To return a gift

And pick up a sympathy card

I left with one bag

Over an hour later

How does it take that long to run in and out of a store?

The millions of people and their carts blocking my way didn't help

Either did the long check out lines

Or the two kids who were on the verge of lunch and nap time

Have I mentioned I HATE holidays at Walmart??

Cause I do

Day 224

A day of swimming

And naps for everyone

And a lovely gingerbread house

A good exhausting day

Minimal tantrums today

Fairly easy bedtime for the baby

A wide awake 3 year old

But at least he's quiet

Somewhat quiet

I'll take what I can get

Last day of school until after the new year is tomorrow

And I hope I survive my week of cancelled activities

I can only hope the new year comes fast

A year of my husband returning

Going back home

And my family becoming whole again

Day 223

Had an awesome kid free night tonight

Good food

Good wine

A handful of my best friends

An awesome break

A refreshed mama

Day 222

I am now realizing what holiday breaks are for parents

Dreaded time

When school and activities are cancelled

And you are forced into spending countless hours

Making attempts to entertain children


This week no ECFE activities

Which is half our week

Next week no school either

I am officially an adult as I cannot wait for the holidays to be over

So all normal activities start again

When did this happen?

Day 221

Today I had two blissful hours kid free


To put the icing on the cake I spent part of it shopping for myself

On someone elses dime

Doesn't get much better

Unless they had handed me wine in the store to sip while I shopped

Of course the rest of the shopping was errands

But amazing how wonderful a Walmart trip can be without dragging two kids along

Practically enjoyable

Walmart kidless is my eviquilent of a spa trip now days

Sadly I'm not really kidding

It was nice

I'm refreshed

And ready to tackle kids again

Day 220

Had a military shopping spree today

Went to the armory for some christmas fun

Literally had tables and table of toys

Gave my son a huge bag and told him to go at it

So much for teaching him the real meaning of christmas

That pretty much went down the drain today

But it was nice

And he loved it

And we have a whole bunch more stuff

That I'm sure grandpa and grandma were just thrilled to see

Since we don't have enough extra crap around their house already

Hope they just keep remembering how much they will miss

The noise

And clutter

And dirt

When we are gone again!

Day 219

Today was semi successful

One major tantrum

And a very behaved little boy the rest of the day

What a pleasant change

Makes me feel so much better too

Tomorrow we are stopping by the armory for christmas gifts

And I am looking toward to conversation with fellow wives

Who get it

And might have some advice for me

As far as 3 year olds go

One day at a time

I'm feeling blessed with my one tantrum day

Day 218

Another holiday type of day

Attempted santa visit #3

Or was it#4

I can't remember anymore

Either way there was crying again

Still dealing with deployment tantrums

I get so frustrated with him

Then as he tells his grandparents about his holiday games

He makes the comment "my daddy wasn't there"

And my heart breaks for him

No clue how to help a 3 year old through deployment

Which is a horrible feeling as a mother

Day 217

I believe I am dealing with a little toddler "missing daddy syndrome"

Couple that with the jealously of baby sister

And we got some fun times rolling in over here

His tantrums

and crying

and hitting

and kicking

and yelling

and disobeying

have quadrupuled since dad left again

His fake baby cry is about to drive me insane

If i see him throw himself on the floor one more time for no real reason

I just might lose it

And that hard part is that I know a lot has to do with dad being gone

And I have ZERO clue how to fix that

I'm caught between feeling bad for him and just being annoyed

Part of me wants to baby him becuase I feel bad

Then I realize it is something he has to deal with

And he can't go through life throwing tantrums because life throws something at him he dislikes

Rock and a hard place

Wish I knew how to make it better

I half say that for myself

cause him being better would make mommy MUCH better

But mostly it hurts my heart to see my little 3 year old hurt too

Day 216

Oh what a day

A day of crying

And lack of napping

And fighting

And more crying

Let's just say that the brother/sister love is not strong today

More like a jealously and hate

Maybe hate is a strong word

Strong dislike of each other today

Unfortuntaly I am only one person

And the one person everyone wants

At the same time

Every time

Every minute

wow

Am i going to love bedtime tonight

If I hear any more crying or whining today

I'm not sure what I will do

I'd say lose my mind

But it would probably look more like sitting in a corner and crying

If you can't tell my deployment funk has not lifted yet....

Day 215

My child has lost his mind

Or better yet

i will probably lose my mind soon dealing with him

He is upset with his dad gone

He is jealous of his sister

he is slightly sick

He is waiting for Christmas

He is inside all of the time since it is cold out

And he is three

Combine that and you just get a bundle of fun

(insert sarcasam)

Maybe my funk stems with him

Hard to say

But I truely think my mind will be gone

If I have to deal with much more whining and crying

For no real reason

And I'm not exagerating on that either

He was literally on the ground screaming and crying today

Because there were not enough cookies in the box of Nilla wafers

They were not gone, just not full

Really???

Add that to my newly mobile 9 month old

Who is covered in bruises from her new mobility skills

And the fact that I have to save her life countless times a day

I guess maybe my tired funk could be steming from something right before my eyes

I have a headache just writing about it

Day 214

Still feeling my deployment

holidays

not sleeping at night

funk

Just can't snap out of it right now

And I hate that

Probably the weather too

Were not out in the blue, sunny, warm days right now

We are running from builiding to car

bundled up from the cold

And not a pretty winter cold

Because there is NO snow

But a dull, dreary, gray cold

Sigh...

running out of ideas to get back to feeling like me again

Damn deployment

Day 213

Tonight I made some kid free plans

Nothing big

Just a drink or two out with some friends

I even made the plans for after bedtime

Thinking I'd put them to bed

Head out after

And they'd never be the wiser

My kids could sense my plans

My 3 year old was ip and at em

Assuring me before I left that when he had a problem he would go talk to grandma and papa

Mu 9 month old

Who has been passing out by 8:30 every night

Was wide awake


Then as I tried to get ready with her she face planted on the bathroom tile floor

Then I had to make sure I wasn't dealing with a serious head injury

Finally leaving

Came back to a baby up until 11:15

A 3 year old crying restlessly in his sleep

Which caused me to be up every hour checking on him

And also checking on the baby with a large bump on her head

A 4 am wake up

And ready for church my 8am

Guess they are punishing me for my free night

Man am I tired


And made me stop to insure I didn't have a major head injury on

Day 212

One if those days continues

Had a good day

Had some playtime

That involved me getting some adult time too

Which makes it so much better

But still feeling a bit off

And so tired

Maybe the holidays are putting me into a deployment funk

Maybe when everyone else is sad about the holiday season being. Iver

I'll be glad its done and gone

And were closer to homecoming day

Just call me grinch this year....

Day 211

Preschool and library today

Nothing to exciting

Nothing to boring

No major meltdowns

Feeling tired

And slightly down in the dumps

Wishing I was at my own home

And in my own space

Just wishing life was back to normal

Just one of those days

Day 210

Today we had doctors appointment

And flu shots

Or one flu shot

2 flu mists

Thank goodness I avoided the shot

I was getting a little worried

Everything went good

Until I took the games away from the 3 year old

And once again dragged him out crying

Oh well

Its kinda the norm lately

Wasn't the best trip

But it certainly wasn't the worst

And we're all healthy so I can't complain

Day 209

Well back to the normal day today

Kids, kids and more kids

All kid stuff all day

I'm ready for bedtime

And a little relaxing me time

And sleep

We'll see how easily these kids give that to me

Sometimes its a lot of work for a little time

Day 208

Had some MUCH needed mommy time tonight

As in just mommy no kids

Ahhhhh

So nice

It was just under 2 hours

And I wished it could have been longer

But something was better then nothing

I feel revived

Ready to take on two again

And I came home with a pair of designer jeans

And I only feel a little bit guilty about spending money on myself

Day 206

Today was our church Christmas program

Not thinking about the 3 year olds involved

They had their only practice for and hour and a half

Right before the actual program

My son's exact words after the program started we're

"I'm done with this...can I go play now? "

Needless to say he spent most of the program

Crying quietly

As he laid sprawled across the floor

Upside was that we were by a side aisle

So it wasn't as noticeable

Day two of holiday fun=failure

Day if holiday fun #2=failure

Day 206

Holiday day kind of day today

We dressed up

Went on a snowless sleigh ride

Saw santa

Took pictures

Ate candy canes

Made christmas ornaments

Painted Christmas picture frames

We did everything holiday

Are completed exhausted

And even more excited for Christmas

Day 205

What a day

What a nightmare of a day

Everyone told me when the baby started crawling I'd have issues with the oldest

Everyone is right

I swear he was slightly possessed at times today

I've been kicked

Hit

Yelled at

Screamed at

Watched tantrum after tantrum

His baby sister has also fallen victim today

Here's to hoping its just a BAD day

I mean let's REALLY hope its just a bad day

Or I am in trouble

And in slight danger of losing my mind

Day 204

Today is December 1

And the first official day of having a crawler!

I was hoping she'd do it while daddy was home

But she was a few days late

But she's on the move

Doing good

And my life is about to get crazier

With two kids on the move

Day 203

Nothing exciting today

We went swimming ...just us

Our normal playmates were sick

It wasn't as much fun without my adult time included

Thought about going to the store

Thought about making cookies for the hubby

Thought about getting christmas presents

And ultimately did none of that

I guess there is always tomorrow

Day 202

Normal day again

Preschool

And library

And naps

Our day was normal

Our skpe call tonight had a different twist

Of hubby coming home a little early!

I miss him so much right now

It would be so nice to see his face sooner then planned

But as he reminded me

Not to get my hopes up

I reminded him

Until I saw his face in person

I never counted on anything involving the military

That lesson was learned long ago

Day 201

Today we got back on schedule

And it was an ok day

Got up and went to open gym

Had a Walmart shopping trip

Went to a holiday parade

It was busy

And fun

And felt fairly normal

I didn't feel as tired

Or as sad

Been one week since he left

And it usually takes a week or so to feel back on track

So we're right on schedule

Hopefully we'll just keep up with our schedule

And get busy

And the days will fly by again

Day 200

200 days behind us

Survived 200 days

More days behind us then ahead of us

Who would ever guess 200 could be that great

Its a big number

And there is still a big number ahead of us

But we survived 200

So we can survive more

200 days

Day 199

Another day not feeling quite right

Still feeling off

Still feeling tired

Kids at least are seeming to be getting back on schedule

Next week we'll start our routine again

Thanksgiving break will be over

And normal activities will be back

And hopefully I'll get back in the swing of things again too

First time in a while I've just wanted the holidays done

And spring to come

So my soldier can be home

More than halfway done

Day 198

Today has been one of those days again

So tired

Not really sure why

Kids are off

I am off

Hubby is gone

That's pretty much the story

I know it will pass

But just kind of feels like a fog right now

Just a sad, missing my family type fog

Just keep reminding myself this will get better....

Day 197

Happy Thanksgiving

Daughter's first thanksgiving

Son's third

Hubby missed both of them

Just not the same

I enjoyed seeing my family

I enjoyed eating turkey

I enjoyed the fact that it was a first for my baby

But I missed my husband even more

Day 196

Today my patience has been tested to the limit

I don't know if I've ever wanted a day to be done more

Between the hubby just leaving again

Thanksgiving tomorrow without him

Little sleep due to a crying child

A little boy testing EVERY limit he can

And no one around to help

I felt like breaking down

Several times today

Thank God this day is ending

Although I'm sure there will be a baby crying in a bit

Because that's what kind of day this is

Day 195

First official day without the hubby again

It was a hard day

I am lucky to have awesome friends around me though

Who arranged a playmate so the day flew by

And I got some adult time

I hate asking for help from people

But it sure is nice to have friends around who I don't have to ask

They just know

And those are good friends

Day 194

He is gone again

We are missing him again

We are back to being alone

What a horrible day today is

I'm exhausted

Mentally

Physically

Emotionally

Just tired

And sad

And annoyed

And lonely

And sad

What a horrible day

I hope people never forget the sacrifices we make

So we can have freedom

And that the day to remember soldiers and their families

Is not the holidays

Or veterans day

Or the day if the big coming home party

But everyday in between those days

The everyday

Because that day is the hard day

Day 193

Day 15 R&R visit

Today is the last day

Tomorrow he leaves again

Tomorrow we go back to missing him

And praying for him

And just missing him a whole lot

Today went way to fast

And is ending way to quickly

And I don't know how to get it to slow down

Day 192

Day 14 R&R visit

Today we sniffed up and attended a wedding

I was so proud to be with my family

My two boys looking so handsome in matching shirts

And my beautiful baby girl

I enjoyed our day so much

And will have a wonderful memory when hubby is hone again

What a wonderful day

Day 191

Day 13 R&R visit

Today was a lot of taking it easy

And running errands

And just being together

Then we had some adult time alone tonight

Having dinner

Having some drinks

It was nice to get time alone

And not just be parents for a a while

Day 190

Day 12 R&R visit

Had a wonderful family day

Daddy visited preschool today to talk about being a soldier

My son was so proud of his dad

And so was I

It was also nice to have him be able to be part of something

Since he misses everything else

It was a wonderful day

Day 189

Day 11 R&R visit

Packing

Unpacking

Driving

That was our day

The realization that the visit is coming to an end is hitting

And not in a good way

Day 188

Day 10 R&R visit
Spent our day cleaning up our yard from the large tree my hubby cut down

I believe I will be sore tomorrow

It was an exhausting day

That could have been much more successful without two kids along

But our main goal was successful

And we worked together as a family

And that made it a good day

Day 187

R&R visit day 9

Waterpark fun

Is made less fun by hotel room with 2 kids

And a husband

And a queen size bed

And a 3 year old falling off the bed

A baby that wont stay asleep

And ends up in the bed with me

In the queen size bed when I'm used to a king size

And the ridiculously loud heater

And the group of 13 year olds running and shouting outside the room

Long after I wish I was asleep

Not sure I remember when I slept worse

Tomorrow will be a long day

Day 186

Water park today

Hotel tonight

Followed by more watermark tomorrow

We are all exhausted

The boys are asleep

The girls are up

Only because someone slept through dinner

And is now wide awake because I let her

But I did enjoy my dinner

A fun exhausting day

Day 185

Day 7 R&R visit

Had a normal day today

It felt normal

Hubby spent time using the chainsaw on the dead trees in the yard

I did some cleaning and laundry

Did some errands in town

Going to bed when laundry is done

A normal day

And it was nice

Day 184

Day 6 R&R visit

Today is 11-11-11

It is also veterans day

And I also got to spend it with my soldier instead of missing him

We did some shopping

Had a free meal

And were exhausted by the end of the day

Enough that I gave my 3 year old popcorn for dinner

He enjoyed it

And I'm ready for bed

Day 183

R&R visit day 5

Sometimes while my husband is away

And I'm missing him more than anything

I forget how hard it can be when he comes home again

And now with kids how hard it is to let him in

And for me to step back

And basically just learn to be a family again

And at the same time not wanting to learn to be a whole again

Because he will soon be gone again

Its so hard for him to be gone

And it's so hard for him to be home

And I hate dealing with all of it

Day 182

Back to OUR home tonight

Missed being in our own place

With our entire family here

Minus our dogs

Now the kids are in bed

My husband is asleep

And I have a full glass of wine

And a hot bath running

Heaven on earth

Day 181

Another long day

It was fun for our 3 year old

To be able to share some of his life with his daddy

And fun for daddy too.

Tomorrow we head to our home

To check on everything

And spend a few days in our own stomping ground

Should be good

Day 180

Day 2 R&R

Typical try to pack as many things as possible into one day kind of day

Felt like we were going going going all day long

And really we were

Starting at 4am with the baby's wake up time

Until midnight when she finally went to sleep for the night

We were a little off schedule today

If that wasn't already obvious

I'm tired

And happy

And really tired

Day 179

R&R day 1

A lot if sleeping today

Not for me

For husband that traveled for 4545 hours straight

It was officially day one if the visit

And it was wonderful

Day 178

He's home!!!!!!!!!

Day 177

Less then 24 hours

And I will be with my husband

This time tomorrow

I will be next to him

Seems unreal

Seems like its not actually going to happen

I'm am so excited and happy

And just ready to have my family be whole again

Even for a short while

so ready to see his face

Day 176

It all started with a chip

seems innocent enough

Wrong

Picture this

3 year old drops a child

Dog eats it

Not even a whole chip mind you

A PIECE of a chip

Start meltdown

Over a CHIP

I'm talking about a potato chip

Crying, screaming, crying, crying

Threats from mommy

Stop crying, this is ridiculous, just eat another chip"

"It's NOT diculous!"

"Just take another one, its not that big of deal"

"It IS big deal"

Crying, screaming, crying screaming

Bring him down to his room and tell him he can come back when he's done crying

Comes back up

Crying continues

Tell him to stop

And he hits me

Off to timeout

hysterical crying and screaming continue in timeout

Followed by peeing his pants he is crying so hard

UN-BE-LEV-ABLE

THe day continued much the same

Thank the Lord for bedtime

He's not asleep yet but lets all pray its not that far away

Like I said

We just need to forget this day and move on to the next

and perhaps have a stiff drink

Day 175

4 days and counting

Getting ready

sort of

I would like to be getting ready

But I still have no clue where or when he will be home

He is very non chalant about "he'll know in a couple days"

As he assured me he will be home in a "few days"

Oh, ok...I feel better now

I guess he's forgetting I'm towing a 3 year old and 8 month around with me

And planning ahead is sort of my thing

I guess that is the military for you though

I do prefer to not be running around last minute though

But either way its a "few" more days

And our family will be together

Day 174

Getting ready for a hubby visit

Got most of the monthly bills paid

Got a wedding gift ordered

Did some laundry loads

Clipped the dogs nails

Made an attempt at cleaning and organizing

Made it to my dentist appointment

Getting my 3 year old in tomorrow

2 weeks are coming

And I'm spending the entire time

Doing nothing but spending time with my husband

So ready and excited!

Day 173

Happy halloween

From a skunk and a ladybug

We hit the jackpot on candy

And hardly went anywhere

Good for mommy as well as the kids

Enjoyed neighborhood trick or treating with just my 3 year old

And this is the first year he really understood it and participated

Which was fun to watch

Still just counting down days now

And getting ready for a wonderful 2 weeks

That will go way to fast

But will be wonderful all the same

Day 172

Busy day of church and Sunday school

I love how much my son loves church

He seriously loves it

And hates to leave

What a wonderful problem to have

Hopefully next week we will be heading to an airport instead of church

And picking up the love of our lives

Day 171

Can not wait for my husband to be home

8 more days until I see his face

I'm trying not to remember the fact that it is for such a short time

I'm so burned out on kids

And not being in my own home

And deployment in general

I just want him home

Day 170

Tired

So tired

Physically

Mentally

Every possible way

Of every possible thing

Day 169

Busy busy day

From 5:45am this morning

Until late into tonight

That was my baby's wake up time today by the way

We were up and at them

Hung out together

Had some coffee

Got the 3 year old ready for his preschool costume party

Went to preschool

Went to the gym

Got a bridal shower gift

Picked up 3 year old from school

Went home for lunch

Attempted to put everyone down for nap

Failed miserably

left for haircut and color

(Just me!!!)

Felt super guilty for spending so much money on my hair

Even though I can't remember the last time I had my hair done

Or spent money on myself

Mom's guilt...what do you do?

Came home

Got 3 year old in costume again

Went to ECFE costume party

Came home for dinner

Bath

Bedtime

No one is asleep yet

But man am I tired

Day 168

Nothing major today

Which is probably classified as a success

Had another swim day

Which equaled both my kids passed out for nap within minutes

Nothing bad to say about that

I have yet to hear screaming for bed time

So knock on wood

Maybe all it took was weeks and weeks

We'll see

The night is young

Getting ready to start our halloween festivities tomorrow

And excited about seeing my cute kids dressed up and enjoying them

And finally were counting the days to seeing our soldier

Less then 2 weeks and I'm getting excited

Now I'm going to go wait for my phonecall

Then call it a night

Day 167

Busy, Busy day

After preschool drop off was errand running

For 2 1/2 hours

With a 20 pound baby in tow

I thought my arm was going to fall off by the time I was done

I might have the most ripped right arm ever

Just don't look at my left

Success tonight as I am currently listening to more of a fussing crying

rather then a full out hysterical crying

I take what I can get

spending my days explaining to people how my husband will not come home early from deployment

despite the crap they are saying on tv about how the war is over and the troops will be home for the holidays

They just forget to talk about the other place they are sending all the troops instead of Iraq

I hope and pray he doesn't finish early in Iraq

Because the thought of heading to afghanistan is way worse

Nothing more irritating the people updating facebook statuses

With something they know nothing about

But thats life I guess

And I'll keep my mouth shut

And wait for my husband to come home

Day 166

Beginning of another week

I am currently listening to my 7 month old cry

again

Every night the same thing

Wish someone would tell me how to make her go to sleep and stay asleep

All I know for sure is my son was an awesome sleeper at this age

8pm rolled around and my night was all mine

He was fast asleep in bed until 7am

If her bedtime crying and stubborness is any indication of whats to come

I'm in for trouble

I don't even want to think of the teenage years

I'd write about something else

But something about a screaming child in your ear

Leaves very little room for you to think of anything else

sigh....

Day 165

Today is one of those days

I'm tired

I'm fairly certain I'm getting sick

My patience is non existent

My children are driving me insane

And I really miss my husband

I miss our house

I miss our lazy Sundays spent as a family

I'm tired of deployments

Did I mention I feel like I'm getting sick?

That never works well with 2 kids around

Like I said

One or those days

Day 164

Birthday parties for toddlers

In theory it seems like a good idea

In reality...not so much

Lots of little kids

Lots of running around

Lots of "mine, mine, mine"

Lots of screaming

Lots of sugar

Lots of way past nap time behaviors

And a building that feels about 100 degrees

Equals the reality

Fun party

Pretty glad when it was done

Is what

Day 163

Sometimes the best laid plans go horribly wrong with children involved

Keeping with my schedule I planned an outing of fun

And mostly to get energy out of my 3 year old before nap time

Everything went smoothly

Until naptime

I had to very non nappers today

Both a little sick

Both a little snotty

Both a lot tired

And yet both refusing to sleep

I'll never understand kids

I give anything for a nap daily

I even had my 3 year old come into my room and TELL me

"I'm just about to go to sleep"

hmmmm....why do I not believe you

bedtime now and I currently have two non sleepers

They are both in their bed

HOwever they are both not using it for its intended purpose

I'll never understand it

Day 162

After a night of crying

And an early morning wake up up 4:45am

I had two sound asleep kids when I started my day with a run and a shower

As tired as I was I knew I would feel better after a run

And you can never beat a shower without small children in the bathroom

Between library and story time and running errands

I thought my arm was about to fall off from carrying an extra 20 pounds around

And we were all tired and hungry and ready for nap

Until we got home and actually got ready for nap

Then both of my kids were wide awake

Figures

Day 161

Spent all day bragging about my sleeping all night long baby

Now its 11pm tonight

I just listened to this same baby bawl for an hour straight

And I am currently eating my words

That's all I have to say about that

Day 160

I think my 3 year old enjoys testing every bit of patience I have

Somedays I really wonder

My favorite example

Tonight he told me "I'm the slowest person EVER"

good to know

Then we dealt with our soldier

Who was trying to tell me that we had a bad internet connection because I moved the computer to the next room to talk

All I'm trying to do was avoid waking up the baby

And not have to tell my 3 year old to whisper during his entire conversation with his dad

Which is obviously not understood while in a war zone

Not that I blame him for not getting it

But it would be appreciated if he believed me when I told him

Moving to another room to talk means

Baby stays asleep

3 year old gets to talk without getting yelled at

Mommy doesn't lose her mind

Trying to keep it quiet to keep baby asleep

Failing then getting upset with the 3 year old

And being up for the next 3 hours with the kids baby

Oh well

Its the end of the day

Im irritated but thankful for them all

Day 159

My favorite phrases...

"I'm not touching the dog, I'm just walking over here"

"I'm not touching it ...I'm just checking something"

"I'm not doing anything"

3 year olds are hilarious

I swear as much as he frustrates me

He also entertains me

You just can't beat the innocence of a child

And you can't make up for his dad missing it

And no matter how you repeat it to him later on

It's never the same

Or even close to as cute when it actually happened

Day 158

Busy day of church and Sunday school

I bribed my child to leave church today

By promising him some playtime at the indoor playground

To bad it was about 50 degrees inside

And I then had to bribe him to leave there

Because I couldn't handle being in the cold building anymore

Who'd think I would need layers at the indoor playground

The precise reason we went there was because it was cold outside

Who runs an air conditioner when its 40 degrees outside?

Took hours to warm up

Next time I'll head there prepared for the indoor weather

Coat, hat, mittens

Whatever it takes I guess

Day 157

Well I did it again

I went back to the pumpkin patch

By myself

With 2 kids

It was just so nice out

And it was the last weekend it was open

And I really needed to get the 3 year old out to burn some energy

And it really wasn't that bad

So much easier when were just there to play

And I don't have to haul 2 pumpkins

Along with 2 kids

So I say successful trip

Successful day

Day 156

Had another fire station field trip again

The fire station is a stressful place for me

Trying to keep track of a 3 year old

While lugging around a 20 pound baby is not my idea of fun

However the crowded mcdonalds playroom

Full of germs and kids was not my idea of fun either

But I guess that's what we do for our kids

My 3 year old had a wonderful morning

And at the end if the day that is really all that matters

Even if mommy is exhausted and in dire need of a drink

Preferably with an alcohol content

Day 155

Just your average experiencing a deployment type day

Went to school

Had our normal day

Heard some random comments from m 3 year old about his daddy

Leaving me wondering again

What he understands and what h doesn't

And just how much his daddy being gone for a year will effect him

Had a daddy save today with the book he sent him

Stopped mid tantrum when I told him he had a package from daddy

I hate that he has to miss his daddy every day

And that his daddy has to miss him

Day 154

So tired today

Took forever for the morning fog to lift

I'm not even sure it completely left today

Finding energy for kids was hard today

Can't wait for everyone to be asleep

So I can crash myself

Just one of those days I wished I could have slept in

Or taken a nap

Or gone to bed early

I got none of the above

But things are winding down

And I'm going to try to force myself to not stay up late

Cause really I'm half to blame with my late bedtimes lately

But its way easier to blame the kids....

Day 153

I miss my husband

Nothing different happened today

Just your every day kind of day

Went to preschool

Took a nap

Played at the park

But I just really wanted to come home and see my husband waiting for me

Just one of those normal

But not so normal days

And I really miss my husband

Day 152

Another busy day

So happy for bedtime andme time

Today was also day 2 of major poop clean up

That's right

Be jealous

Each kid has had a turn now

At creating a disgusting uncomfortable mess

For my cleaning pleasure

Let's hope we stop at one each

Cause I'm certainly not enjoying it to much

I'm sure tomorrow it will be the dog

Seems about right....

Day 151

Lazy Sunday today

Not complaining though

Got up early for church and sunday school

Considered getting up and running after I was woken up for an early morning feeding

Fell back asleep as I considered it

Literally had to drag my 3 year old out of church

Never thought I'd have to convince my 3 year old to LEAVE church

Had a total of zero conversation with the hubby

Was trying to get my 3 year old to not wake up the baby during his conversation with daddy

He proceeded to sing some songs to daddy

In not a quiet voice

The conversation ended quickly

But still woke her up

Perfect

Day 150

So...

A pumpkin patch

2 kids

1 adult

2 pumpkins

1 running 3 year old

1 crying baby

I definitely underestimated the ease of the pumpkin patch trip

Last year it was me, hubby, and 2 year old

This year we took away one husband

And added one more child

I don't know what I was thinking

I still don't know what our pumpkins even look like

I grabbed the first two I saw and hightailed it out of there

It probably would have actually been just a fun outing

If we hadn't had to come home with pumpkins

But who goes to a pumpkin patch and doesn't come home with pumpkins?

The last part of the outing which involved walking 1/2 mile to where the pumpkins were

With a stroller in dirt

A crying baby

A tired 3 year old

And then adding 2 big pumpkins to the walk back

Is really what did me in

But we did it

We have two pumpkins ready to carve

And I'm proud of myself for surviving

And making sure my kids don't miss out on anymore then they already are

Day 149

Have I ever mentioned how I hate sleeping in the same room as my 3 year old?

It just doesn't work

He's easily distacted by pretty much anything and everything

Needs to be in a dark silent room

Completely by himself

Not to mention it really puts a damper on my alone dvr time

So I sit here as silent as possible

Listening to a 3 year old talk to himself non stop

Praying he doesn't wake the baby

And waiting for the sweet wonderful thing called sleep

Day 148

It's official I actually started on my to do list today

Feels good

I feel as though I might continue it tomorrow

Exactly a month until I get to see my hubby

Going to bed with an open window for fresh air

Sheets and bedding clean and smelling wonderful

2 sleeping kids

Lifes not to bad tonight

Day 147

Spent a few hours at the car dealership today

How fun is that with 2 kids in tow?

How annoying is it to wait for a few hours

Only to be told they can't find anything wrong with it

But we survived

We shopped at some stores afterwards and survived

Were all in bed

Both kids are out cold

And I'm exhausted

Day 146

Sigh...

Just how I feel today

I have such a to do list

And there is nothing on the list that I want to do

But I need to do it all

I hate how I put things off

Even though I know as soon as I get it done I'll feel so much better

I was also trying to put off bringing our car in for the next month

So the hubby could be with me

However the loud noises I heard today tell me that's impossible

And the thought of being at a car dealership for an unknown amount if time

With 2 children really does not sound appealing

Sigh...

Day 145

Got a few hours kid free tonight

And fully enjoyed every minute of it

Nothing crazy

As crazy as taking a community education class can be

But I had a great night with great friends

Made an awesome new necklace

And feel refreshed as a mom now that I've been away from them for a bit

Now I'm exhausted and feeling good

And ready to bring on the kid schedules again tomorrow

Day 144

I love watching my son grow up

Today he sang in church with his sunday school class

He also wore a superhero cape to church

Luckily he's not completely grown up yet

It was so fun to watch him

He wasn't nervous at all

Completely comfortable in front of a large group

I'm so proud he's my son

Of course there was the black mark on the day

Just like everything else this year

That his dad was not here to see it

Always that black mark in every occasion

Day 143

How many more days???

That's how I feel tonight

Played at the park with another family tonight

No one would know it but watching my son crave the attention of his friend's dad broke my heart

I hate that his dad is not here to play with him

Slide and swing with him

To be here to help me

And go out for dinner as a family after some park playing

Sometimes you don't realize how big the little things are

Until your standing there alone

Missing the person who should be standing next to you

Day 142

Just your average day

Nothing stands out

Nothing big happened

Our everyday continued along

This day passed like other days

We're on to october which means one more month until I see my hubby

Day 141

Busy day

Preschool,playdate,lunchdate

Dragging a child out of the mall kicking and screaming to go home for a late nap

Just your average day

Had a screaming infant tonight for about an hour

With no obvious reason for the cause

It was especially nice she chose to do it during skype time

I heard very little of what or anything my husband might have said tonight

Except a tentative date of coming home for 2 weeks

Which is really the most important part anyway

I am happily anticipating in about another months time

Seeing my husbands face for real

What a wonderful thing

Day 140

I believe today was the last 80 degree day of the year

We took full advantage by spending the day at the lake

I even did the dreaded "skipping of the nap"

Which ended up ok when 8:15pm rolled around and I had two fast asleep kids

So summer ends...fall begins

One season down...three more to go

Day 139

Had our first major biting tonight

As in 3 year old biting 7 month old

Not just a little bite

A BITE BITE

Not sure what suddenly possessed him

One second they were playing and laughing

The next she was basking and he was staring at me with a look

A look of "I'm pretending I'm innocent but we all know I'm not"

But I have to say I didn't really mind early bedtime

Or no books or cartoons tonight

And the story of bringing her to the doctor to get a band aid

And the doctor telling him "no, no" was pretty cute

Sigh...what does anyone really do with 3 year olds?

Day 138

Today was one of those days when I missed everything

I missed my husband

I missed my house

I missed being a family

I missed having help with taking care of kids

I missed our dog

I just missed everything

Day 136

Busy day with Curious George and the man in the yellow hat

Had a great day doing kid activities

We all decided not to nap today

My vote was by default

As in no other choice

Best part was kids in bed early

And a skype conversation with my hubby

Uninterrupted by screaming

Or fussing

Or bed jumping

Or anything involving children

A rare but wonderful thing

Day 135

A beautiful fall day

We enjoyed an apple orchard

And a pumpkin patch

A hayride

Everything about fall

We did

Tomorrow is another busy kid activity day

Should be a good day

Day 134

Another day

Preschool

Tantrums

Crying

Pooping

Spitting up

One kid crying as another kid slept

Then visa versa

Just another day

Day 133

Wow

Can you say drama?

Not my family

My husbands family

But he's thousands of miles away

So guess who won the lucky crown of dealing with it?

Ding ding ding ...that's right...me

I've never felt so lucky and honored

Again...insert sarcasm here

Day 132

Let me tell you about skyping

It's a wonderful thing

Makes such a difference to be able to see the person

Feels more like you are closer then you are

You can see facial expressions and hand gestures

Its wonderful

Unless...

You have a fussing baby on your lap

That keeps pulling your hair and spitting up on you

And a 3 year old who won't stop jumping on the bed

And kicking you

And pushing buttons on the computer

And grabbing the camera away

Therefore leaving your conversation at

Nothing

I practically begged my husband to say goodnight and hang up tonight

Because trying to talk was way to stressful

Day 131

Late start on our day today

Since me and the 6 month old were up until 1am

Not by my choice I might add

I was trying to be annoyed

But she looked so damn cute peeking at me through the crib

I couldn't manage it

Luckily we also slept in

enjoyed a fairly nice fall day

Survived the evening having not had a nap today

Barely talked to my husband

Between the fussy baby in my arms

And the overtired 3 year old jumping on the bed

It just wasn't worth it

Pretty much begged him to say good night so I could put everyone to bed

And not lose my mind

Day130

What a busy day

Another day starting at 5am

But my baby also slept through the night until 5am so I'm not complaining to much

Got to 8am church on my own with both kids in tow

Went to sunday school

Ran through the pouring rain with a 3 year old

Carrying a 20lb child in a car seat and a big diaper bag

And my 3 year old does not run nearly fast enough

I really wished for a husband who would do some front door pick up

But sucked it up and got wet

Or I guess just did it because what other choice did I have?

Figured leaving my kids alone inside while I ran out to get the car

Might reflect badly on my parenting abilities

We napped today

Were all finally asleep tonight

And I'm headed that way in anticipation of my 5am wake up

Good thing my alarm clock is so damn cute

Day 129

Sometimes I don't know why I do things to myself

Like going shopping all day with two kids in tow

I had to have known what I was getting myself into

Still did it though

In retrospect it really went pretty well

As well as shopping with a 6 month old and 3 year old can

The hardest part is really getting home again

And dealing with bath and bedtime with two overtired children

But we all survived

Did almost everything we set out to do

And are all almost down for the count!

Day 128

Lots of playing today

Did some ECFE activities

Had our first day of outside in fall weather

In other words it was cold

Got back late for some late naps

But I'm not picky...I'll take any kind of naps

Everyones asleep for now

Which means its a good night too!

Day 127

Things I really loved about today...

Getting up at 5am with my child

Having child #2 up at 6am

Stopping my workout 6 different times because I put the wrong episode of Dora the Explorer on that many times

Enforcing nap time to an overtired 3 year old

Changing poop covered clothes 4 different times

Waiting in lines with tons of little children at a united way event

Dragging my 3 year old kicking and screaming away from said event

Enforcing bedtime to an over tired 3 year old

And a non tired 6 month old

I think that about covers it

Insert sarcasam here

Day 126

Just an ordinary day

Spent some time at the indoor playground since it was cold out

Fall is here

We did nothing big and exciting today

NOt that every other day is huge and exciting

But today was just one more day done

One more day closer

Day 125

I wonder when kids get out of the "terribles"

Starts with the terrible twos

Moves on to the terrible threes

I don't anticipate fours being much better

Seems like they would only get smarter and sneakier the older they get

My favorite thing about my 6 month old is that she doesn't talk

It's so peaceful and quiet

Sure there is a little crying here and there

But compared to some of the things my three year old says and does

Bring on the crying

Day 124

Oh crying and fit throwing

How I could do without you

Must be a full moon or something

But my 3 year old is crying

or whining

or screaming

at all times

Today he was bawling when his daddy called on the phone

Put him on the phone to try to calm him down

He did by promising him ice cream

Pretty easy promise thousands of miles away

to bad mommy is the one home having to carry out the promise

sigh...

I'll let it go this time

He is overseas and everything

Glad we enjoyed another day outside

It slowly got colder and colder today

blah to cold weather and not being able to be outside

This could be a long winter

Day 123

Another nice day Tried to have some good outside time just in case there are no more Took a long evening walk to burn off some 3 year old energy Looked at friends family weekend pics and got jealous I couldn't be with my family Most importantly remember the anniversey if this day And how our world changed 10 years ago The lives that were taken That day And everyday since in the war overseas And that ultimately that is why my husband is away today A day of rememberance and sacrifice

day 122

Today was a better day 8 more weeks and my hubby will be home for 2 weeks Seems like forever and hardly anytime at all All at the same time Tonight I'm simply exhausted From my half marathon relay this morning From my two kids needing me all day From missing my husband From dealing with deployment Time to go to bed And just hope my daughter stays that way too

Day 121

Long, important conversations between spouses are not meant to be had over skype

It's so much harder,

Your not able to discuss things the way you'd like

You can't kiss and make up when you are done

You just sort of feel empty and unfinished

And knowing you won't have any contact again for a least 24 hours

makes it worse

I hate deployment

Day 120

busy day for my 3 year old

School in the morning

Concert and play at night

He literally ran for 2 1/2 hours straight

Between playing and dancing

He loved every second of it and was the last one out dancing

He was disgusting, filthy, sticky mess by the end of the day

That usually means its been a great day

I had "one of those days"

Just need to go to bed kind of days

So I think thats what I'll do

Day 119

Another busy day

Discovered the BEST park ever only 10 miles away

Had a picinic

went to a 6 month doctor appt

Survived 3 shots

Brought my 3 year old with because for some reason he was BEGGING to go to the doctor appointment

Part of me felt as though he just wanted to see his sister get shots

But I'm hoping it was for the stickers

Either way he was very well behaved

And I was very proud of him

2nd day of school tomorrow

Preschool concert in the evening

Should be another busy, activity filled day

Day 118

First day of preschool went off without a hitch

I was slightly jealous of all the other moms AND dads dropping kids off

But mostly I was just happy to have a one-kid break

I think mommy will enjoy preschool just as much!

Ran some errands afterwards

Had a good nap

Played in the park

And called it a night

Welcome school days and fall weather

Day 117

Today was technically the last day of summer

school starts tomorrow

Preschool in our case

I can't believe our first baby is already going to preschool

I wish his dad could be home to bring him there with me

I just hope everything goes smooth and he absoultely loves it

I hope his little miniture teenage attitude doesn't follow him there

And I really hope him locking me out of his room as he did tonight does not become an every night occurance

Day 116

What a day

It included

several timeouts

More threats for timeouts then I can count

Several toys taken away

Lots of tears

Lots of scolding

And ended with a 3 year old kicking a closet door

And breaking said door in the process

A wooden, folding, closet door

That couldn't just be put back into place but actually requires some tools and time

And that's all I have to say about that

Day 115

Sigh...

Just another day

Another day gone now

Another day closer to being a family again

I have a huge to-do list of companies to call

And I just keep putting it off

Wish I had some help

Wish I didn't have to deal with it anymore

Wish my husband was home

Day 114

I am SO tired of dealing with companies

Pretty much every company in general at this point

That apparently DO NOT understand deployment

I have had to call the phone company

The cable company

The internet

The phone again

The security company

The cell phone

Cable again

Phone again

Security again

Call about the wooden sign we had made

Cell phone

Security system

Phone company

Cable company

Truely has been one after the other

And then each one again

and again

SO TIRED OF IT!

Just do what you say you are going to do

Call me back when you say you are

And quit making me waste all of my time sitting on hold

Because then the cell phone company will apparently charge me for everyone of those minutes

arghhhh...

Day 113

Thought we would enjoy a once last day of summer today

Instead we swam inside

Half of the day was nice

Half the day had alarming clouds in the sky

Oh well

Labor day weekend is coming up

I'm NOT looking forward to it

These are the weekends I miss my husband the most

When everyone else has family weekends planned

And I feel the sting of a big part of my family being gone

Kinda just plain sucks

Just another day for us

But we'll survive

Just like every other day

Day 112

Sometimes you are have days where you are reminded of how many people really care

I recieved a card from our church today signed by many people

And a membership to the community center for me and my children

It is possibly the best present I have ever recieved

This will help me survive winter

Help my son survive winter

And help me survive my son this winter

We have a place to pass the time

To burn off energy

To burn off stress

I feel very loved and thankful tonight

Day 111

My heart is breaking for a woman that I barely know

She has had two pregnancies,

given birth to two beautiful children

And lost both of those children

Either hours after they entered this world or right before they entered this world

Why should one person have to go through all that pain

What sense does it make to have to go through that hardship

Why would something like that happen to a person a second time?

I just feel horrible for her

And SO SO thankful for my two beautiful children

They are healthy, they are with me

we may be going through a tough year with my husband being gone

But he will come home

We will be a family again in this world

I have my children with me every day

And that is the best gift someone could ask for

I would take the brattiest behavior

Worst behaving child in the world

(which I sometimes believe mine is)

as long as my child is with me and healthy

I have so many people that tell me my family is in their prayers

Tonight this family is in my prayers

Day 110

Had a normal, everyday day today

(sidenote: could that sentence have more "days" in it?)

Enjoyed some summer weather knowing it won't be here much longer

Had a picnic

Got filthy dirty at the playground

At least one of us did

And most importantly took a nice long nap when we got home

what a lovely day

Day 109

Started our day getting me and two kids ready in under 1 hour

Somewhat of a miracle

Went to church

Went to the park

Went to the store

The part wasn't really in the plan

however it was in my 3 year old's plan

Actually his plan was to play at THREE parks

Not sure why or where the plan came from

Luckily he settled for one

Took him on a walk this afternoon and made him walk

Because if I hadn't gotten him out of the house to wear off energy I was going to lose it

Heard a heartwarming story about a mom and a soldier at church today

Got goosebumps just hearing it

Had everyone praying for my family

And felt very blessed to have so much support for my family

Day 108

Not much today

Felt exhausted from having my 5 hours out

Then staying up late to have a late night conversation via skype with the hubby

The first time since we left where we had 45 minutes of uninteruppted conversation

No kids

No internet problems

It was a nice ending to my birthday

Enjoyed a fire and smores on a cool almost fall night

Was very glad I didn't live anywhere in the path of the current hurricane

Hope and pray that people are ok tonight

Day 107

5 wonderful hours

with no kids

with good friends

with good food

with wine

what a wonderful night it was

I haven't had 5 hours kid free in longer then i can remember

It felt so nice to just be an adult for a while

It was the perfect birthday present

The only thing missing was my husband

Day 106

Today was a much better day

Not perfect, but better

Did some skyping with the hubby while my 3 year old jumped on the bed the entire time

Not distracting at all

Tomorrow is my birthday

I am celebrating with with a couple friends

I want to celebrate with the hubby

It's hard to have days like this while he is gone

I'm glad I have friends who realize that

I already had one friend bail on the night saying she had good things going on her life and she needed to take a night to "celebrate with her husband"

I'm trying really hard to not take that personally but I do

I have a husband gone overseas who can not celebrate with me

she has a husband home every single night

And this is the one night they had to celebrate?

My reality tells me that I really shouldn't be offended

she has no obligation to celebrate with me

And a big part of it is probably because I am feeling bad that my own husband is not home

But it still stings a little

Day 105

Thank goodness this day is OVER

That's all I have to say about today

I have heard so much screaming

and crying

and disobeying

From the minute we woke up

Until the minute they both finally fell asleep

I'm to exhausted to even have a glass of wine

THAT is tired

I hate to wish days away

But boy am I glad today is DONE

Day 104

Another sick day

Another day of hoping for a nap

Another day of not being able to nap

I couldn't tell if I was more sick today or tired

Finally went to bed at 11pm after getting my daughter to sleep

She woke up again at 1am

Nose now stuffy, unable to breathe

(I knew it was coming)

Proceeded to stay up until 3am

Throwing up

And getting her nose sucked clean

Back to bed until 4am when my son woke up upset

Still not sure what he was upset about

Back to bed until 6am when my daughter was up again

Needless to say I am sick and tired

Literally

Day 103

Today I spent most of the time both my kids were napping on hold

I feel horrible with my cold

And all I wanted to do was lay in bed

Which I could have since I had two sleeping children

Instead I sat on hold with phone and televison companies

Who apparently are not smart enough to understand what it means to cancel a service due to a deployment

I had two letters today in the mail threatening to send past due amounts to collection agencies

I have never been so frustrated with a certain company who I have had problems with for the last 3 months

I am amazed at some people's inconsideration due to deployment

and of two deployments and how many contacts/conpanies i have had to talk with and cancel things with

this is the ONLY company that has ever given me issues

I was told different things with every person I talked to

I was told at one point that it was my fault there was a past due amount because the phone number they had for me was no longer in service and they had "tried" to get hold of me

Well no s#&* it is out of order....because I CANCELLED all the services when my husband left!

Besides, I am really not an idiot...like I really believe you were trying to call me to straigten things out

Hopefully this will all be straigtened out in a couple days

After I finally talked to a supervisor who seemed to have power in the company to actually help me out

But I won't confirm that until I actually see results

You just can't trust anyone these days....

Day 102

Oh sickness in my house

My 3 year old woke up with snot covering his face

Of course that means its been a day of fun (insert sarcasm)

He's to sick to want to eat

And when he doesn't eat...watch out

He unfortunatly takes after his daddy in that department

And if he is hungry...don't even attempt to talk to him

It's like jekel and hyde

Now I feel myself getting sicker by the moment

Which of course means that the baby will be sick soon

The highlight of my day?

I recieved the sweetest message from the hubby today

Letting me know how much he loves me,

What a wonderful mother I am

And how beautiful I am

Totally made my day

And made the snot and crabbiness disappear

Day 101

Attended a deployed spouses workshop today

It was interesting

Felt nice to be with others in the same boat as me

Got lots of free stuff for me and my kids

Plus a free lunch

Can't complain

Took my NBDB with me (non-bottle drinking baby)

Had lots of help entertaining her so was actually pretty easy having her

Got a break from my 3 year old

I'd say that is a successful day

Day 100

100 days

100 days done

100 days he's missed

The kids are 100 days older

At least 25% done with this deployment

Seems like so many days behind us

Seems like so many days ahead of us

So many things have changed in the first 100 days

How many things will change in the next 100?

So many things missed

By all of us

Day 99

Long day of activites

Visited family

Visted with friends

Played and Played and Played

My son has never been so dirty

I didn't even want to touch him until he was clean, thats dirty

However the dirtier you are the better day you had in my opinion

At least when you are three

I also have two exhausted kids so that makes a long day worthwhile

Now its time to lay down, and do nothing except watch mindless tv

Sounds good to me

Day 98

Beautiful day

Enjoyed hours at the park

Soaking up the last days of summer

I know they won't be here much longer

Did a mini "interview" with my 3 year old

My favorite answers

What makes you happy? "Giraffes coming in my house"

What makes you sad? "crocodiles coming in my house"

what do you want to me when you grow up? "daddy"

What is your favorite movie? "Daddy reading" (the dvds daddy sends us from Iraq of him reading a story)

What is your favorite book? "daddy's books"

Can't help but say....."ahhhhhhhh"

Day 97

Not much to write about tonight

We didn't do a lot today

Just some playing here and there

I'm just so tired tonight

And can't even think enough to write something

Think that's my sign that its time to shut it down

And go to bed

Day 96

Finally made it back to my parents

Only drove on one road that said "Road Closed"

Assured that my house is now secure again

Or should I say secure for the first time since apparently it hasn't been since the last time I was there

Did not see a wolf in my yard

Decided I could do no more yard work until my husband came home and sprayed for bugs

Had my patience tested to the limit again

Tried to control my reactions based on an article I read in Parents magazine today

Came home to my vehicle leaking a stream underneath it

Added to my to-do list for tomorrow

Was mostly just happy that it didn't break down on the way home

Now I am happily looking through my list of shows that recorded on my DVR while I was gone

And getting ready for an exciting night of catching up on them

A sleeping child in each room

A DVR full of shows

A warm, clean bed

Couldn't be a better night

Day 95

Just cleaned and organized today

Enjoyed being at my own house with no one else around

Had my patience tested to the limit by my 3 year old

Put him to bed at 8pm on the dot

Despite the fact that he would miss talking to his daddy tonight

I simply could not handle another hour and a half before he called

Felt somewhat bad about it

But mostly felt relieved that he was in bed

One down, one to go

Day 94

A day of cleaning

Inside and outside

Have to say I enjoyed inside more

Since that didn't involve deer flies swarming my head

Still not sure about this "country" living

Had a good visit with another military wife

Felt good to be able to talk deployment with someone who understands

Put some kids to bed and called it a night

Day 93

Long day of errands and cleaning

Also happy to report the biggest creature I saw were some spiders

Who have all been conveniently been sucked up the vaccuum hose

Makes me miss my husband a lot

Being here at our home without him

I miss our home and having my own place

But its way to lonely

I want to be home

But I want to be home with him

Day 92

Headed back to our house today

I was slightly nervous after the picture of the wolf in my yard my neighbor sent me

And my fear of mice roaming my unihabited home

I didn't see either

That was a huge sigh of relief you just heard

I don't do mice...and I sure don't do wolves

Now on to cleaning and organizing and the fun stuff like that

And hopefully no wild animals or tiny little furry creatures

Day 91

I'm saying it and believing it

And just really hoping I'm not jynxing myself by doing it

But I think I can officially say my 3 year old is potty trained!

It's just like a miracle

In a slightly less dramatic, life changing way

SO happy he is finally on the potty band wagon

So here's to hoping he doesn't fall of the wagon

Day 90

Enjoyed a beautiful day at the park

Trying to take advantage of these last days of nice weather

I know they won't be around much longer

Considered going back to our house this week

Although the picture our neighbor sent me the other day of a wolf standing in our driveway makes me a little nervous to go back

Who has wolves in their driveway?

Wish I remembered how to use the gun my hubby has

But truthfully while he was explaining how to use it I was slightly zoned out

Mostly thinking "When will I ever really use this gun?"

Especially when he was talking about using if for protection

But the gun is locked away, the ammo locked somewhere else

And i have to put it together

So really if there was an emergency I think I would hide and call 911

Like I would really even remember where all the pieces of the puzzle gun are

Whatever,made him feel better to tell me about it

Truthfully I just need to go up and take care of some things

I just don't want to drive there

And since there is no food there I need to tactfully invite myself to dinner at the neighbors

Sigh....

My to-do list is pretty long right now

I should probably stop looking at it everyday

And actually start doing it

Day 89

Oh what a long day

I almost made the up for 24 hours award

Thanks so much to my lovely daughter

I guess it seemed like a good idea to stay up screaming and crying until 2am

Forget the fact that she had me up since 5am also

She'll probably be one of those girls that is up screaming and partying until 2am too

Talk about a LONG day

22 hour day to be exact

Not sure what the problem was

Took care of every basic need

And slathered the teeth in orajel

I had a sneaking suspicion that she simply wanted to sleep next to me

And she was not going to win that battle with me last night

It's also 11pm the next night though and she seems to be wide awake

She might be winning after all

Day 88

Today I accomplished more before 9am then I have all week

Mostly thanks to my 5 month old who decided that the between the times of 5am to 6:30am would be an excellent time to be awake and play

By 6:30am I figured it was pointless to attempt to go back to sleep

Considering that my 3 year old would be up around 7am

So instead I gathered my energy and ran 4 miles on the treadmill

Then showered

Cleaned the bathroom

Did 3 loads of laundry

Dressed and fed my 3 year old

Made a strong cup of coffee to have with breakfest

Vacuumed the entire downstairs

Washed the sheets from the guest bedroom and re-made the bed

Washed the bathroom rugs

Put away all the piles of clean laundry that have been sitting around for a week or so

Took out the garbage

Not neccessarily in that order

Whewww....no wonder I was ready to drop by 9am

By 5 month old slept until 9:30am

Sure glad she got some good hours of sleep in (sarcastic tone)

Lack of sleep=ZERO patience

So had to take the kids to the park to run off energy before I lost my mind

Don't worry, I got about a 30 minute nap this afternoon (sarcasim insterted here)

Day 87

Did a whole lot of nothing today

At least it felt like it since we didn't leave the house

I did do some cleaning, laundry and have the dog a haircut

Also made a pretty awesome castle with big blocks

So I guess we did do SOMETHING today

My 3 year old had several tantrums

In the middle of one he started crying and saying "I miss my daddy"

Talk about breaking your heart

I felt terrible

And instead of continuing to tell him to stop crying or go to his room until he could

(if you knew the ridiculous thing he was crying about you would say the same thing)

I scooped him up, hugged him and said we would try to see if daddy was on the computer

Our luck would have it that he was

Hopefully this isn't a new ploy that he's figured out to get mommy to baby him and feel sorry for him instead of mad

Either way, it was hard to hear

And its harder for him

It's gotta be hard to try to understand all this craziness

Today we also heard of 31 US soldiers that lost thier lives in Afganistan

So hard to hear news like that

Our soldier is in Iraq but its just way to close to home for my comfort

So tonight we are praying for those families and the terrible journey they just began

Day 86

Oh what a day

Tried to take advantage of the beautiful day and prediction of rain tomorrow

And spent all day outside

Again, just took one for the having fun team and skipped nap

Totally regretting that decision at the current moment

We are all three waiting in my bed for daddy to call on skype

My 3 year old should have been in bed an hour ago and is currently driving me insane

He is also keeping my 5 month old alert and awake instead of falling asleep

And really my only choice is to sit and wait

Dumb timezones halfway across the world

And with that...dumb deployments

Day 85

Had a busy day

Enjoyed some library story time

Or "school" according to my son

Played at the park

Enjoyed some aunt and uncle time

Had a nice family dinner out

Good day even though we were slightly off all day from going to bed so late

Tonight we are going to bed at normal hours

I'm missing the big country music festival again this year

And only a small part of me thinks being out there with a big wine cooler in my hand

WOuld be better then in my nice cozy bed

Learned some new major family drama

Debated if I should talk with the hubby about it

Decided to let him in but still not sure that was the best decision

He can't really do anything over there

But seems like I should still let him in on our lives and his family

hmmmmm....tough call

Day 84

Spent some time with the hubby's family today

Enjoyed catching up with everyone

And learning the latest family drama

And WHOA is there draaaaaama

My 3 year old enjoyed the toy trains

Got home way to late

Got everyone to bed way to late

I'm exhausted and ready for bed

Day 83

Went down to a little crazy days in town today

Which equals crazy sales, crazy people and craziness in general

Tried out my new $8 baby bjorn

Besides the extra 20 pounds of weight I had to carry in 80 degree weather

It worked pretty good

And my 3 year old did excellent and staying with me

spent about 20 minutes shopping

And over an hour bouncing in the air bounce houses

Burnt a lot of energy

So a successful trip

Found out today my so called phone company cancelled my phone line 2 months ago

Not a huge deal unless you depend on that line to secure your house while your away as it works with the security system

SOOOOOO mad

Had some very nice not things to say to the company when I called

And am already dictating my mean nasty letter to the company

This is also the only company I have ever had an issue with ending a contract because of a deployment

Consenses of the day is that I will never go near this company again

And I will spread the word to all who will listen

Luckily already have a new company lined up to take over

I'm super woman dealing with deployment CRAP

And I will come out on top

Day 82

Rainy day, filled with thunder and lightening

Had a nice lunch with my mother and sister in law

My 3 year old enjoyed the lunch atmosphere

Who wouldn't enjoy chicken nuggets and playland?

My 5 month old cooperated

We all took a nap this afternoon that felt wonderful

I broke down and let my 5 month old sleep in my bed so I could nap

I do pretty good with the constant fight we have

About sleeping in her bed versus my bed

I usually win and persevere long enough that she finally passes out in her crib from exhaustion

But sometimes a nap is a nap and the fight is not worth it

Skyped with two kids awake and tired

Not so much fun but still good to see the handsome hubby's face

Day 81

Well, welcome to the land of potty training

Cleaned up my first soiled pair of underwear today

I knew he was sitting a little to quiet by the couch

When I went over there and he told me "No...leave me alone"

My suspicions were confirmed

"leave me alone" is code word for "I'm pooping in my pants"

It was a mess to say the least

And I didn't paticularly enjoy it

My other child has been using her nice new tooth to bite me

teething and pottytraining...that's my life

Day 80

Attended some turkey days today

Yep, Turkey Days. Sometimes small towns don't have a lot to work with

But if your three and your mom tells you your going to Turkey days the respones is

"YES...I am so excited!"

It was some small town stuff

But still fun

And I found and expensive baby bjorn for $8

Success

I also let my three year old eat a pretzel and chocolate shake for lunch

He originally wanted popcorn so I thought it was a small step up with the pretzel

At least that's what I tell myself

We left a little later then usual

My 3 year old bawled the whole way back to the car

My 5 month old bawled the whole way home in the car

It was fun for me

Really I blame myself

I knew we were hitting close to meltdown time and I didn't act quickly enough

Now me and my 3 year old are just sitting around waiting for some skype time

Which hopefully happens soon

This is my alone, by myself DVR time

And 'The Cat in the Hat' is not top on my list

Day 79

Exhausted

7 hours at the lake will do that to you

9 kids

4 adults

To many meltdowns to count

My favorite meltdown was the one where every kid decided to do it all at once

Nothing like it

It was our big, blinking light sign saying "time to go home!"

A hot shower, my bed and 2 children fast asleep has never felt better

Day 78

Ohhh hour and a half child free

How I enjoyed you today

Had lunch with my former co worker today

And it was such a nice adult time

Short and sweet but so needed

We had another child milestone today of a first tooth

Can't believe my baby is already getting teeth

She seems like she should still be my newborn

Instead she's almost 5 months old already

And my 3 year old broke out of his library storytime shyness

And spent storytime shouting out songs to sing

And running from the back of the room to the front during the actual story reading

We ended the day at home because I didn't have the energy to deal with both kids at the air by myself

Couldn't help thinking that if hubby was home we would have gone

The whole one to one ratio thing really helps

2 against 1 is a whole new game

A game not willing to be played tonight

Day 77

Hooray for the county fair!

Hooray for being there just as it was being set up

Hooray for avoiding big crowds and hot weather

Hooray for seeing lots of animals

And the biggest hooray of the day is....

Drumroll.....

Hooray for wearing underwear ALL day with NO accidents!!!!!!

Day 76

Spent the day running off energy at the park

And wondering why my baby wouldn't take a good nap

Ended with a family supper at Zorbaz

My 3 year old behaved

And my baby slept so it was enjoyable for me too

Enjoyed spending time with my brother and sister-in-law

Before they move down south several states

Drove together in my mom's new van

Continued to be jealous of the van

Day 75

Today is my husband's birthday

He's spending it working in 100 degree weather

We celebrated by getting him balloons

My son thought he would like a nice green balloon for his birthday

Somehow we left with a truck and flag balloon though

We also finally got to skype after not talking for several days

I got a message this morning saying that he would be able to skype anywhere between 10 and 2

Hmmmm...he must be taking lessons from the repair men that give you times like that and you literally just have to spend the entire day waiting around and hoping they might show up

But I waited because I am a wonderful loving wife like that

We finally got on and I told my son

"What special thing to you have to tell daddy today? "

We had obviously been practicing the big "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!"

His response was...

"I peed in my underwear!"

Close....so close

Day 74

Today we didn't do much

I didn't drink more than a glass of wine

But felt hungover just from going to bed late

I'm not an expert or anything but I'm pretty sure that means I'm getting old

And a little pathetic

Day 73

Had a wonderful day filled with family

Made a 2 hour drive to have lunch with my grandpa at the legion

Had the choice between a hamburger or a hamburger for lunch

Enjoyed all my aunts, uncles, and cousins

Enjoyed even more that my son recruited several of them to play with him

Ate a lot of good food

Drank some wine

Went to bed late

What a wonderful day

Day 72

Another day under our belt

A good day of picnics

Park playing

And beach swimming

We left the beach with my infant sleeping

And my 3 year old kicking and screaming

Both obvious signs that it was time to head home

Had a little family time

Fought with my 3 year old about using the potty

The fight ended with poop all over him and the bathroom

So....I think he won that one

And prepared for the big family reunion tomorrow

Should be an interesting and long day