Deployment, Day 1

This morning was good. I dropped Elle off at the Red Cross Babysitting course then came home and cuddled with the boys for a few. Baby got up and joined the cuddle. I made my hubby and kids a yummy breakfast, got some dished cleaned, played a board game, and got all the easter stuff put away and my table cleared before we had to dress and take Ben in.
We got to spend some time with Ben before they got on the bus to go to the plane(?). We got lunch, baby napped, I watched some DWTS online, Jake played the Wii, we picked Elle back up, then I had to get ready for a PTA mtg. Elle was babysitting her siblings and the children of another hubby just deployed today neighbor, who is having a bang up day as well.

It all went downhill from there.

As if PTA wasn't bad enough, my newly Red Cross certified babysitter calls 10 minutes into the meeting to ask how you get gum out of hair. Who's hair, I ask, praying it is not my friend's little girl. It is. Jake was apparently spitting his gum into the air and catching it (???) and missed and it landed in Emma's hair instead???!!! I start laughing and crying as I add to Kara's day by telling her gum somehow got into Emma's hair. She laughs and cries as well.

We get home and Elle has gotten all of the gum out of Emma's hair, whew, but the baby was playing in my toilet while she was doing it. Um, gross. The cat has vommited in two separate spots. And it looks like they have both been stepped in. Clean that, scrub carpet, feed children, bathe children, grab a diaper and pj's, find that the naked baby has pooped in one room then pee'd in the next as she is running from you, grrrr. Dress baby, clean floors, clean hands, settle little bodies into bed.

Sigh...scrounge for leftovers for dinner, do more dishes, realize just how much my house has suffered from my injured back, cringe with horror as I realize that Kara was in my house and saw how bad it is.

Let the deployment fun and games begin. Oh Lord...

3:56am - the sound of vomit woke me up. Forgot that my back was hurt and tried to jump out of bed, back spasm followed. And no, they didn't make it to the toilet...

Surprise?

So who here is surprised that the plane got diverted due to the snow?

Not me.

I knew yesterday when they predicted 9 inches.

But I tried to remain positive, prayerful.

I asked God to bring them home safely, no matter the day.

In light of today's two plane crashes around the world, I will continue that prayer while trying to ward off an anxiety attack.

I will choose to be grateful that Ben is currently on American soil instead of bitter that he is on American soil and still not home.

I miss him, a lot.

I am really starting to strongly dislike the snow.

Still praying...

I was tagged...

...and I wouldn't normally, but for Holly's friend Melanie, who wants to see someone who's fourth picture isn't of adorable kids, here you go.


This was the fourth picture taken on our brand new, 2.3 megapixel digital camera, 5 1/2 years ago. It was fourth of July weekend and we had driven to Normandy, France (we were stationed in England at the time). Le Mont St Michel is a big rock that houses a monestary and tiny village. When the tide rolls in, the road and parking lot are covered over and it becomes an island. It was beautiful. I know my picture doesn't do it justice so click on the link and have a gander at some professional shots.

And I am sorry Melanie, but I had to include this shot.

Jake, 2 1/2 and Elle, 6 1/2

This pictue was my favorite from this trip. I can't believe how little they were! It was taken in the Monestary, in the inner courtyard, and it brought back such vivid memories. That summer was the beginning of our countdown to PCS'ing from England. We had one year left and, even though we had done a lot of traveling, we felt a panic, like we hadn't done anything. This was the first of many amazing things we saw that year. By far and away, the beaches of Normandy was our favorite trip in that four years. And finding Le Mont was a bonus, we found it by chance during our wanderings, looking for the WWII cemetaries that dot the countryside.

I am so ready to go back overseas.

More Beks from the end of August

Almost. Still rocking or going back.
Sleeping during the sermon. The best part is that it's in Daddy's arms.

August 27-tooth #2
A girl and her Daddy,

Getting raspberries
Kisses for Daddy
"I got my Daddy!"

My heart has been so full since Ben came home. Especially once I saw that there was no stranger anxiety from Bekah. She has been loving having her Daddy home. Almost as much as the big kids. They were thrilled to have the fun parent back (I say that lovingly, I'm okay being the mean one). The only downside is that when baby is cranky and he has her, if she sees me, she cries. It's slightly funny and Ben is trying not to take it personally, but I know it makes him a little sad. It's getting better, or maybe worse, now that she can crawl after me.

"Sunny days..."

"Can you tell me how to get, how to get to Sesame Street?"

Ben also came home just in time for Sesame Street - LIVE!. SS and the USO partnered to do a cool tour of military instalations with a special show about dealing with separations (as in deployments for the non military readers, not marital). It was at our base theatre, it was free with VIP seating for deployed families, and Ben was super excited about it. Elmo, Rosita, Zoe, Cookie Monster (my fav), and Grover came and put on a cool show.

The show was shorter than their normal thing but it was fun. They sang, danced, and talked about missing their mom or dad and ways to deal with it - on a kid level. Upon entrance, ach child received a cool spinny Elmo thing, even the big kids. The babies loved them, the boys even thought they were cool, and the big girls, well, they were mortified that we were making them go. They were praying no one they knew would see them. They were all trying to hide from my camera, it was hilarious.

The boys with their free sno-cones and toys
Showing off Elmo
Watching the show. Note the girls hiding.
Bekah likes the rubbery end of her Elmo

Big smiles
Pretty colors, now can I put it back in my mouth?
"Whoa"
Not too sure about the singing furry things. Her Daddy will protect her.

(For the military readers, there are still dates left for this tour, click the link above)

Daddy!!!

After a looong summer and a trip to the ER in the 11th hour, Daddy finally came home. I would love to post fantastic shots of him walking towards us, of the kids running to him, of the big smiles and hugs, etc... but I didn't get any shots like that. They brought the buses to the other side of the building from where we were and the guys kinda snuck up behind us. Gotta love the communication from the sq. I was trying to figure out what was going on and find my kids who had found their friends while I was wheeling my stroller back into the building, and oh, did I mention, that I had a cast on my foot? I had ditched my crutches by this point. But at least, this time, I was waiting there when he came through. And my military sisters know, it was just awesome to have him back.

Beks 'waiting' for Daddy
Beks spent the next day doing a lot of this while the big kids were at school.

No problems hanging with Daddy after this deployment. My back was glad for a break.

Home

Ben came home on Tuesday from his deployment ... three days after I fell and sprained my ankle and am on crutches, of course. But we are all thrilled to have him home. We missed him. Thanks to those of you near and far who prayed for us all. And to those special angels who brought us meals, mowed the lawn, took my children off my hands, weeded my yard, drove me to the ER, and just made this deployment a little easier, thank you. I am truly blessed to call you friends.

The definition of insanity?

Is 3 moms and 10 kids going to a restaraunt on a Friday night. And by restaraunt I mean a sit down place with a waitress not McDonalds. After the activity center we all went to Cracker Barrel, they did not look happy to see us. The one hostess said we were quite brave. But it went really well. Our waitress was wonderful with all of us and the kids did really well. The older couple behind Sarah kept cooing at the babies and playing with them. The only ear piercing scream while we were there came from another table. Then another couple complemented me as I was following Jake to the bathroom. The gentelman told me he was very impressed with all of us, with the kids, and how well we handled all of them. I thanked him and explained that all the daddies were AF and deployed and we get a lot of practice at this. The same gentelman said similar to Stacey as we were leaving. I laugh because Stacey and I generally practice the 'it takes a village' concept of raising children. We both interact/deal with/discipline eachother's children depending on whose closer or available. We get asked a lot which kids belong to who. Even the waitress couldn't put them all together by the end of the meal as she helped Jake and Elle order then I cut Jake and Connor's pancakes. This is generally true wherever we go and we have a good time together. I love that our kids almost never have conflict with eachother, especially the girls, and even if they have spent the last three days together they are asking if they can play again today. Good times, good friends. Can we all never leave this base?

Emotions

Having a deployed husband is hard, no question, for anyone, even those who have been doing this for a while. I like to think I handle these times okay, better than some, worse than others, but I manage. But one thing I pride myself on is that I DO NOT lose it in front of my husband (or my kids) when he is leaving. I put on the brave face and keep it all in until later when I can lock myself in the bathroom and turn the shower on so the kids don't hear. Please understand, this is not me telling ANYONE else how they should handle deployments, this is just me, how I handle them. I really feel in my heart that I need to keep it together for my husband and my kids. I know how guilty he feels when he leaves us even though he is doing his job and I don't want the last thing he sees to be me falling apart. I need him to go and concentrate on his job and his surroundings and not worry (any more than he already is) about me.

To that end, these last two deployments I haven't had my initial bathroom breakdown. Don't get me wrong, I miss him terribly, and I have cried, briefly, but I think I have just forced myself to hold in it extra because I just didn't have time to break down. Or maybe the energy? I had a new baby and a book fair to run and kids' sports and scouts. I was too busy and too tired for a breakdown.

But there have been two moments during this deployment when it all caught up to me. Once, a few weeks ago, while I was watching Army Wives. Now, I DVR everything we watch and I never watch commercials anymore but, this one night, I was nursing baby and couldn't reach the remote when this one commercial came on. A couple of soldiers were walking through an airport terminal with their mo' bags on their backs and people stood up and started clapping. I don't remember the tagline, something about pride or supporting our military, but I started sobing and could not stop. I couldn't even tell you what I was crying about. Thank God the kids were in bed.

The second time was at the activity center before our friends had arrived. While Jake ran off immediately to start climbing and Elle and I sat down on a bench to wait. Then our song came on, mine and Ben's. In Your Eyes by Peter Gabriel (for those who survived the 80's - the song on the boombox that John Cusack was holding up for Ione Sky in the movie Say Anything). We danced to it on our first 'date', homecoming dance our junior year, it was the theme song. And (shh, don't tell my mom) we had our first kiss to it. Oh my heart. I wanted to crawl in a hole and cry until he comes home. Luckily, Stacey and her kids showed up and Elle ran off to play. I pulled myself together and enjoyed the memory then had to explain the watery eyes.

So I am just going to say it here. I MISS MY HUSBAND! And I am sad without him. But I don't like to cry and I don't want to, especially not in public, so can we hold all sad commercials and tv shows and can no radio stations play any songs that remind me of how much I love him? That would be great, thanks.

July 25 Basement update

"WARNING! Men at work"

Ever wonder why they need a sign? Women work all the time only we don't have to warn anyone. (Borrowed)

We finally got the basement completely dry and this afternoon housing maintenance sent TWO crews to deal with it. First off, I pointed out the hole next to the house where dirt has just been washing right in and ask what they can do about it, then I took the other guy down to look at the cracks and mold. At first they kind of shined me on about the hole outside then, about 20 minutes later, I come out and they are pouring dry cement in it. The guy looked at me and said, "that hole was pretty deep". They also poured cement around the window well. The other guy cleaned/bleached the mold and sealed the window well again and some of the cracks in the wall. The amazing part is that they actually did something. We haven't had a significant amount of rain nor has the hose been left on again, so we shall see how this holds up.

Deplyment perks addition

My Sarah added to the list and reminded me of a HUGE perk that I completely overlooked.

10. Your weekly laundry goes down by half! It's not just uniforms, it's PT gear, and t shirts and socks and uniforms that smell like airplane, plus his regular clothes.

Ahhh, how could I ever overlook this perk?

Halfway there...

So that nuttly week got us to the halfway point of this deplyment (roughly). Over the hump. And boy did it feel like it took forever to get over that hump, for both of us. Even though deployments are tough, there are some perks to it. No, I am not crazy. Yes, I would rather have my love here with me. But until he retires in 8 years, the military can still send him when and where they please so I, instead, will focus on something positive. Here it is

1. Tax free income. This is good because I am not giving birth to any more deductions.
2. Some credit card companies will give the military member a super low APR, thank you USAA.
3. Some cell phone providers will suspend the regular charges on the military member's phone. If the military member's phone is the primary line and the second line is free, this means you are only paying insurance and taxes (and for the text msgs your 17 year old sister insists on sending), thank you Sprint.
4. These money saving bonuses will pay off the 'necesseties' your husband had to have to survive this deployment.
5. Family support sends you an invitaion to the USO Sesame Street Live experience and you get VIP seating. (Ben should be home for this and HE is really excited. Elle has declared she hopes no one sees her).
6. The USPS will send you free packing materials to send your loved one care packages (1-800-CARE-4-KIT).
7. You get a free oil change.
8. You don't have to shave your legs unless you want to.
9. You get to build really great arm and back muscles mowing your jungle, I mean lawn.

So there it is. Things I focus on to keep my snaity when my husband gets orders. To my military sisters-feel free to add your own.

Thought of the day

Falling water is so soothing...

Just not when it is falling into your basement.

Sunday, July 06 Day of Rest?

I have grand visions of the restful day Sundays will be for us. Here is the reality...

After church we go buy a paper and I always intend on relaxing on the couch and reading through it. Yeah, that never happens. I usually skim it on Tuesday or so, pulling out the ads and coupons.

I had to mow my enormous yard so housing won't issue me another 'friendly' reminder of housing standards (snort, that' a whole other blog discussion right there) because my weeds are 1/4" too long. I enlist my kids to help with this chore-that is usually met with enthusiasm (like I enjoy it?). I had them pick up sticks and pull some weeds, then watch the baby. (Side note~super huge THANK YOU to my awesome neighbors Jake & Holly for filling my gas can for me. THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!)

I was halfway through the back yard (did I mention that it is enormous and slopes down? At least I am developing great arm muscles!) when I found a strange knob in the grass. I had no ides where it came from so I put it in my pocket and kept mowing. A short while later I realized that the top handle of the mower was coming off. The knob had come off one side. I searched the yard for the missing screw but never found it. Mowing on an incline is interesting when the handle is not sturdy.

Baby was crabby all day. This made her sister, who was watching her so I could mow, crabby too. The joys of teething.

Then dinner came. I made a new recipe, baked turkey sandwich, cut up a melon, and all seemed to enjoy it. Then one of my children, I won't say who, gagged on a piece of melon then retched into their cup. This child stood up, still retching, took two steps and puked orange melon all over my carpet. I couldn't get the baby set down fast enough, the dog got to it first. Disgusting.

During all this a headache had been forming that was rapidly turning into a migrane. Baby continued to fuss through bedtime (and beyond). I finally had to let her fuss in her crib a bit to get myself together. She finally went to sleep with a little more rocking and I put myself in bed two hours earlier than normal.

So much for a day of rest.

I'm not laughing yet

So, today I went to the commissarry, three kids in tow. While I was there, as if a trip to the comm, on or near payday, with your children who started fighting as soon as you got there, wasn't bad enough, I fell. Yes, I fell. I stepped in a huge puddle and down I went, on my knee. If I wasn't so stressed and on the verge of tears and, at that moment, cranky with my kids, I would have probably laughed. But it hurt and not one person came to see if I was okay (did I mention it was payday week-it was crowded). Then the poor store worker whom I hollored at to ask for help and a mop, pointed out the 'Caution, wet floor' sign to me and asked if I saw it. I pointed out that I did see it, right where it was, three feet from the puddle, on the other side of the bin of melons, where the floor is completely dry. GRRR. There was a lot more about this trip that made it one of the worst I've ever had but, in the spirit of focusing on my blessings, I am trying to let them all go. Let's just say that if gas wasn't $4 a gallon, I might have gone home and come back another day, minus my little blessings. On the bright side, at least it was me and not an older patron. The way I went down in a split would have been a broken hip for sure. I will look at my bruised and slightly swollen knee as a public service. But, I'm still not laughing yet.

Military Housing

Who else loves housing maintenance? Especially when they show up 2 hours early for your scheduled appointment and you are about to get in the shower, therefore are au natural, so you can leave for another appointment.