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

Day 71

Had a busy day

I'm so tired and should be sleeping since both of my kids are sleeping

But instead I'm watching DVR shows and eating candy

We mangaged to get in some library storytime

A little park playing

And some boating and playing on the beach

This also meant no nap

But it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be come bedtime

So well worth it

And since its the first day we wouldn't suffer heatstroke by just walking outside we had to take advantage of it

It was also the memorable day of the first time my daughter rolled over

And we were literally standing there cheering her on so saw every moment

Her daddy however...didn't

Day 70

Not much today

Ran some errands with 2 kids in tow

Avoided the heat and humidity outside

Did some skyping with the hubby

And that was pretty much as exciting as it gets for our day

Day 69

Sometimes there are just certain things that just set you off

All I did was look at a picture on facebook of my friend who was on her boat with her family

And I just suddenly felt so sad

Up until then I was fine

I finally talked with the hubby again

Had a good day

But for some reason that photo just made me miss him so much

I miss hanging out with my family in the evenings

Having dinner together

Going places together

Just being a family

It's crazy how one little thing

That really has nothing to do with me

And just put me into this down mood

And make me suddenly feel so alone

Day 68

Another hot humid day

A "feels like" 115 degrees kind of day

I'm not really a feels like over a hundred degrees kind of person

So miserable

I get on edge

The kids seem off

Just nothing good about that much heat and humidity

Still haven't talked to the hubby

Been a few days

I miss him tons

If he was home we would be getting ready to leave for a family camping trip in the sand dunes

Instead I'm sitting around hoping he finally gets his internet working

And picking up flat rate shipping boxes from the post office

Day 68

That means only about 300 left to go....

Day 67

Someone or something has overtaken my children

There is something in the air

Or the food

Or something

My 3 year old has been screaming

Not listening

Disobeying

Testing limits

Laughing in my face when he's punished

Really he is a good kid

But man is he pushing my limits

My 4 month old has been crying

Whining

Fussing

Spitting up

Pooping

I'm exhausted

And just really hoping they both stay asleep

Day 66

Another hot humid day

I started the day running a 5k for the water carnival in town

I asked myself several times while getting ready to leave

Why in the world I agreed to do it

I was awake and both my kids were asleep

That is just wrong

Then I walked outside at 7:30am and it already felt like 100 degrees

That is also wrong

But I was glad I did it

Brought back memories of my old cross country days

and I felt the competiveness coming back

We ended the day with a 1 year old's birthday party

It was a long hot day

I haven't talked to my husband in two days now

He was traveling to another part of the base and wasn't sure of the internet connection

I miss him

Day 65

Long exhausting day at the street fair

It was ridicously hot and humid

The greatest find at the street fair was the cooling tent

My child was drenched from head to toe

But he felt much better

Even the baby didn't flinch going under the misting

Which is rare so I know she was hot as can be

But it was a fun, exhausting day

And when I was home

Showered

Had 2 kids asleep

And was in my bed

I was glad I went

Day 64

Spent the day inside playing in a pool

So glad my son now enjoys the water and can have fun

A year ago he wouldn't even walk into the pool

Now I can't get him to leave

Spent my time watching him

And making sure my daughter wasn't overheated in the humid warm pool area

She would cry everytime a body part touched the water

so there wasn't much for cooling her down

My puppy hasn't eaten for 3 days

Since my parent's dog was put to sleep

I don't know if I feel worse about the fact that she is missing her friend

Or that I don't have the time to pay attention to her like I used to

It's so overwhelming at times how many things there are to do

How many things there are that I am procrastinating doing

How much better I'd feel if I just crossed them off the list

But lists of things to do are so long when its just one person doing it

To long to even thing about it

So I won't for now

I'll do it tomorrow

Day 63

hmmmm....

Not much to say about today

Went for a long walk

Played at a park

Looked at the pile of laundry that needs to be done

Took a trip to walmart with only one child

Did a little skyping with the hubby

Made some plans for tomorrow

I know

I'm thinking the same thing

It's so exciting you probably need to sit down to let it all sink in

Let's all take a moment

...................

I feel better too

Can't wait for tomorrow!

Day 62

Today the dog that has been part of my life for the last 14 1/2 years passed away

I still remember when we got her and how it was my responsibilty to take her out at night and take care of her

It doesn't seem like that long ago

She was old, blind, deaf and a bit senile

She would fall down the stairs and trip over nothing

And howl if she was left home alone

Sometimes she would stand in a corner and stare into space like she forgot how to walk or forgot where she was

She really was ready to go

It's so hard to know that she was just here this morning and now she is buried in the backyard

We read the book "Dog Heaven" tonight at bedtime

Some for my son to help him understand

Some for me to make me remember that she is finally able to run

and chase squirrls and birds again

Losing anyone, even a pet is hard

It was hard as I explained it to my 3 year old

Mostly because I kept having these horrible, horrible thoughts

That I just hope I never have to explain heaven and God to my child

In reference to his daddy

I hate that the thought even came into my head

But I couldn't stop the thoughts

Now I will just pray and pray and pray that day will never ever come

Day 61

So its begun

The giving up of control

The waiting for contact at any moment

It's hard to wait around for a phone call

When I am constantly trying to entertain 2 children

And keep the involved in activites

Last deployment it was just me

Dropping everything in a second for a phone call was easy

Not as easy this time

Like when I promise my 3 year old that he can go watch the frog and turtle races at 1pm

And then I get a message from my husband that he'll be on the computer to skpe at 1pm

what is the right decision?

Waiting home for the phone call

Or going to the turtle race that my 3 year old hasn't stopped talking about since the night before?

I stayed home and skyped

And just completely lucked out that even though we missed the turtle and frog races we saw 3 of the turtles anyway and got to pet them

****pheww****

That's a big sigh of relief

I made the right decision in this case

And it was so good to see my husband and know that he was safe

But if we hadn't gotten to pet those turtles.....

Day 60

My husband is officially in Kwuait

He is there and safe and so the journey begins

It feels more real now that he is actually so far away

Now that he is in a different country

I can't send him a text message or leave a voicemail

I wait and wait and wait for a phone call

or an email

or a facebook message

He's been trying to skype me all night

It keeps calling me and then he will go offline

the first of many times where he will not be able to contact me because of bad internet or phone connections

This just plain sucks

I remember this feeling all to well from last time

It doesn't seem like it was that long ago

Even though that was six years ago

four years since he came home

****sigh*****

One day at a time

Day 59

Oh what a day

Children not wanting to nap

Mommy not getting a break

Not hearing from the hubby and not knowing where he is at right now

Sometimes it just one of those days where I wait and wait for bedtime

So that I can put on my pajamas

lay in my bed

And have a glass of wine

Then after a glass I come up with brilliant ideas as i work on information for the yellow ribbon community meeting I have

Like community support for baby sitting

So that I could run to the liquor store to get my said wine

Because usually i have two children with me making these liquor store trips slightly impossible

But if I had the community support and someone else watching them

I could load up on some wine

Brilliant

Simply brilliant

Day 58

Today was a hard today

I didn't tell anyone that it was hard

And I didn't act like it was hard

But there was no one around that understood it

He officially left the states today

He's been gone for 58 days already so its not like its new that he's gone

But being gone and in the states is one thing

Being gone and overseas is something different

My nightly prayer with my son always ends with

"Please keep my daddy safe"

It felt a little more urgent tonight

It's the beginning of the end

My husband would say one day closer to the end

One day at a time...sometimes on minute at a time

Day 57

Long day of fun in the sun

No naps

Fussy baby with a mild temperature from shots

I'm exhausted

From the looks of my day 57 pic my kids are exhausted

Bedtime can't come soon enough

I've just spent the last few minutes yelling at my son for repeatedly licking his sister

I think that means the day needs to be done

Day 56

Day of errands and dr. Appointment

Errands with one kid that is strapped in a car seat

Equals piece of cake

My 4 month old weighs almost 18 pounds

Not sure what percentile that is but I'm pretty sure its on the upper end of the scale

Also pretty sure a crying hungry baby being stuck 3 times by needles is not a good combination

Went to a family function with someone elses family and had a great time

And an even better supper

Got home to late for baths and normal bedtimes

And then stayed up even later to do some family skyping

A good day

Day 55

Not much going on today

Didn't do much as I was still recovering from being at the lake all day with the kids for the 4th

And my daughter decided to wake up every two hours last night

I guess going through a growth spurt

Not that she needs it as she is currently huge

No really, I hear it all the time

"How old is she? Really? She's big! "

Huge and perfect

She also decided not to nap today

Don't worry I'm pretty much super mom and never get tired or worn out

I did get to run today without pushing 50 pounds of kid at the same time thanks to my mom so that helped

Just hope my kids decide they are tired tonight too

Sleep would really be a welcome activity tonight

Day 54

Happy 4th of July

Our country's birthday

The day to remember our soldiers fighting for our country

Fighting for our freedom

Our freedom to live and think and believe and worship the way we want

The reason we are free

Remember our soldiers
Remember their families

Day 53

July 3rd

Its an annual holiday for a group of my friends

Mostly because we always had the 4th off and worked on the 5th so it obviously made more sense for us to go out and have some drinks on the 3rd

I had to take a break from my mommy break to be a mommy since my daughter still refuses a bottle

Somehow its not the same as the old days when I have to come home and nurse and can't have more then a drink or two because I will also be nursing at 3 am

Let's put it this way....I was for sure not that crazy girl in the middle of the dance floor busting some crazy drunk moves

And I was kinda glad not to be that girl

Is it sad I would have preferred to just sit at my girlfriends house with a glass of wine?

That I wondered what many of those girls would remember from the night the next day

And I spent much of the night wondering if we looked way older then everyone else?

So pathetic

I'm so getting old

Day 52

It's 11:30 pm

Both of my children are awake

Both of them are crying

I'm about to have a mommy break down

Here I was bragging a couple days ago about my two kids both passed out at 8:30pm

Spoke to soon apparently

Day 51

Its official

Leave is not until February

7 1/2 months until I get to see my husband again

My son will be a few months from being a 4 year old

My daughter will be having her 1st birthday

How horrible to leave a 3 year old and 4 month old

And come back to an almost 4 year old and 1 year old toddler

I am so sad for him

I am so sad for my kids

I am so sad for myself

It's official deployments suck