“Supermom, I’ve Always Wanted to Meet You…”

I finally met my Orthopedic Surgeon, Dr. Kabins, who will now be referred to as Dr. K. It has been a long road, several cancellations on his part and hesitation on mine, but I am glad I went and am on a new path with my back.

I was hesitant to schedule with Dr. K. He has pleaded guilty to a federal indictment involving this lawyer and other doctors in the area and they are dubbed "The Medical Mafia". Yikes, I know. Dr. K is involved in one case that I really don't know too much about nor care to summarize the details of what I've read. It seemed from the paper that they are after the one lawyer. But, who really knows? All I know is that I wanted some answers on my back and if I didn't like him I didn't have to keep him. The fitness director at my gym loves him (but said he was odd) and has been going to him for several years and there are a few gals that I work out with that know him/know of him and they all say good things. So, like I said I planned to go and if I didn't like him I'd make a change.

Well, what can I say other than Dr. K and I hit it off?!? When I fill out forms that ask for my occupation, I always write something like Supermom or something like that just to see if anyone looks at it. Dr. K's paperwork was no exception. He walks in the exam room, introduces himself and starts looking through my file. Right off the bat he says, "Well, you're supermom. You know, I have always wanted to meet you and so does my wife!" Need I say more?

He gave me the run down on my back – 2 bad discs and the amount of the degeneration is uncommon for someone as young as me. (I like how he kept calling me young throughout my appt!! Ha!) I am not in need of surgery now, maybe in 10 or 20 years is his guess. I like that. He's going to send me to a good physical therapist off base. I like that. He changed my pain med to something else. Haven't tried it yet, but if I don't like it I can try something else. He does not want me on narcotics and I like that. I am going to do a nerve damage test to see where I am that. Fine with me. And then I am going to try some steroid type shot to see if that helps me any. I am open to that. He said I was going to really like the pain management doctor and the pain management was REALLY going to like me! Ha! In his little tape recorder he reminded himself to personally call the pain doctor to tell him about supermom.

Then we talked a lot about lifestyle changes and exercises that the physical therapist will recommend. He just kept stressing that if I feel pain or more pain in my back after doing something, even if the therapist said to do it, I should stop. Then all the things around the house like mowing the lawn, lifting heavy things, picking up the baby, all kinds of things I have to start readjusting. That will be the hard part. I think that my gardening days are limited and I am disappointed about that b/c I love to garden. That is kind of a bitter pill to swallow at my age, but hopefully I can find ways to do parts of things I enjoy without being in pain. For example, still prune and make a mess but not have to clean up the mess. Show Adam where I want things planted and then supervise! Maybe this isn't so bad after all! Seriously, that will be hard b/c I am so independent and like doing things.

The appt ended on a positive note – I have my youth working for me, I don't smoke (he said most of patients are smokers and how smokers almost always have bad backs), am healthy and in shape/not overweight (I beg to differ, but as he pointed out that all the people in the waiting room are very overweight and smell like smoke; I could see his point). I walked out feeling like it couldn't have gone much better and there really wasn't anything else I wanted to hear from him. Plus I can now legitimately tell Adam what to do b/c the Dr said ;)

Bah Humbug!

I have to admit, I haven't been quite in the 'spirit of Christmas' this year. Adam and I were so focused on this being the first (and hopefully) Xmas away the kids, that we failed to realize it was our first Xmas away from each other too. Bummer. It was harder than I thought. I really felt like I went through the motions more than anything as far as decorating and doing all the things I like to do to get ready for the holidays. I just didn't get a lot of joy like I normally do. Plus, I had to lug all the crap out and put it all away. That's Adam's job. I just do the fun decorating!!! My whole back issue didn't help either, but that's my next blog entry.

One day Russell told me 'we need some Xmas spirit around here!" He then told me our outside lights didn't look that good. I had to agree. My outside lights were pathetic. Inside the house was great, a little less than last year, but I think less is more sometimes. Then he told me he'd like to have some lighted penguin because that is his fave Xmas decoration. So, off I went one day to find a penguin, a few more lights, found a few other things and we were in business.

Rachel on the other hand has been having a hard time with the deployment. Very moody, easily upset, whinier than she has ever been, it is a little sad. One day after school she was crying b/c she just wanted dad home for Xmas. How can that not tear at your heart, poor thing. So, I don't think that helps me either.

As it turned out, we had a pretty good Xmas. DPA (Dad, Pam, Adelle) came on the 20^th and left on the 28^th. They really helped bring in some Xmas cheer and Aim got a much needed break. Can I just say that Pam is seriously the most patient person on the planet?!? Wow. She was a lifesaver this week. I can't even begin to list everything she did, but she was amazing. She took the baby monitor as promised and didn't give it back until they left. I think she wanted to take it with her when they left. I really appreciated everything she did.

Adelle was a real sweetheart. She dutifully stayed home and helped and I got to go out and do Aim things – finish shopping, go to the gym, go to the Orthopedic surgeon, get my hair done (I met my gay guy's gay guy, he is so cute, but that's a whole other story!). Adelle is 14 and staying home at your sister's house to help with the kids is not high on any 14 yr old's to do list. But, she did it without complaint. We did go to the movies twice. We saw New Moon and Sherlock Holmes. I enjoyed them both. New Moon was fun b/c that one actor has a hot bod and Adelle and I had fun making comments and adding to Bella's lines that referred to his hot bod. Holmes was a fun one. There wasn't a hot werewolf, but we lived. We did so some shopping together too and that is always fun. I have to record for the official record… I bought Adelle a shirt that she loved, but I bought the wrong size – her chest has grown and her shirt size has gone up. We had to exchange for another shirt that wasn't as cute. I felt good that I could pick out something that she actually really liked! Ha!! I also got her some make up brushes and new makeup bag that were apparently perfect. I was on a roll with the teenager this year! Just had to get that on the record ; )

My Dad helped with the kids too, but also did all the stupid things I don't like to do – lock the doors at night, take out the trash, pick up milk; he even took my car and got it detailed.

Santa was good to all at my house and I was apparently especially good this year! DPA spoiled me rotten with all their help, gifts and they took the kids out to shop for me. Russ bought me some latest version of Battleship b/c I told him HE couldn't have, but I guess in his mind that meant that I could have it! (He has like 3 Battleships already) He told DPA that I was going to 'freak out with happiness' when I opened that gift. I laughed of course and made a comment like "You are as good at buying gifts as your Dad!" If anyone knows my clipper story, you understand. If you don't, email me and I'll tell you. Rachel bought me a robe b/c I needed a soft one like hers. The one she picked out is turquoise, which I have been wearing a lot of turquoise lately. What made this robe so funny is that it is like Cookie Monster turquoise/blue and it is fuzzy, soft and kind of looks like Cookie Monster's fur. So, we call it my Cookie Monster robe and I have to sing "C is for Cookie" and say "Mommy want cookie, ararararararararrarr" when I wear it. Rowan got me a massage gift card and I can't wait to use that! Ha! Who knew that kid had such great taste??? I really got a kick out seeing what the kids picked out.

So, now they are gone and my next round of visitors comes on Weds. Adam's mom, stepdad and brother, Morgan, come for New Year's. I will miss Adam at New Year's too. He always gives me such a great kiss at midnight if we stay up that late….

Rowan Tidbits

 

Okay, time to report on all the fun little things Rowan is doing now. Let's see, I guess he is 22 months old, actually today he is 22months. There ya go! I really stop counting months after 18. Anyway! He has really started some of the big 'twos' things. I think that I am really in for it with him….

He is a climber. He can climb anything, he tries to climb everything and has had a few decent spills in the process. He made it out of his crib once and when we went in his room to check on him, (we heard the thud), he was just lying there on his tummy looking up with this look on his face like what the Hell did I just do? We lowered his mattress and now he can't climb out. He will move things around to use as a step to get things he wants. This can be the laundry baskets, toy baskets, chairs, boxes, an ottoman (he moved that across the house to get one of Russell's toys). A couple of days before Thanksgiving he fell off a chair and hit his eyelid on a shelf. So, he had a little cut and black eye for Thanksgiving.

He has mastered saying the word No. He can say just like you'd expect a bratty 2 yr old to say. It is a little scary that he already has picked that up. On the flip side, maybe he'll stop it earlier than the other kids did??? I can hope right? Sometimes he'll say "No, mom" just like a little guy. That one is pretty cute.

His talking is really coming along. He is talking in some full sentences already. "Mom, I want my bink" "Mom, I want to get out. Out!" In the car sometimes he'll just say over and over "mommy" like he's calling to me. It is so cute. Oh, Russ and Rach are in to knock knock jokes right now. Rowan tries to get in on it too. All of sudden he'll start up with "knock knock" and wait for you to answer. That's as far as he gets. But Rachel will sometimes answer with a silly "No one's home go away!" kind of thing and Rowan will just crack up. Then they start all over again. While we are shopping, he'll point out things he sees and names them or tries to name them. He tries to count.

He is singing now too. He would sing Beyonce's "All the Single Ladies" the oh oh part. Now he is trying to sing Twinkle Little Star, The ABCs, Itsy Bitsy Spider, it is really sweet. He'll just start it up on his own too. You just wonder what is going through their minds.

He tries to train the dog. He will get a treat and tell the dog to sit, stay, stay, stay and good boy! Then gives him his treat. Or if Jagger is getting in his face, he'll tell him to get down!

He gets his jammies after bath time. He always gets two pieces, they aren't always a top and a bottom, but he is so pleased with himself.

Rowan really thinks he is entitled to everything everyone else has. This makes ice cream and pizza difficult, as he is lactose intolerant. If he feels like he is being denied his fair share, (which isn't always his 'fair' share), he will let you know. Have I said he can get REALLY loud??

Hitting – not a proud moment, but he has started this phase. We are working on it. Time out is still a challenge, actually getting him to stay in it.

He can jump up with two feet off the ground. He gallops around the house and the yard.

When we go to the gym, you walk in the big doors and there is a huge entry area and music is playing. He always goes in through the doors, stops on the mat, looks up at all the stuff and then gets his groove going to the music playing. The people working at the front desk love to watch him come in. He used to not like going to the gym, but now that he is old enough to play on the big kid side, he is a happy camper. When he was on the baby side, he would stand against the wall and give the girls the stink eye. Now, on the big kid side, he gets right into it.

He likes to play phone. He'll pick up anything that looks like a phone and say "Helwo" and then nod his head and say Yea a lot. But if yo get him on the actual phone, he clams up and wants to press buttons on the receiver.

His understanding of directions is really incredible. He can almost do simple 2 step directions. He is so proud of himself.

And, I'll end with that….

Bring It

Well, Adam has been gone almost a month and let me review some of the fun I've had. The dog, (we got a dog in August), got into a 5lb chocolate bar that was a donation for Russell's school, the wind blew the storage container in the backyard completely apart, we had to decide whether or not to move to South Korea summer of 2010, the shower in the master bathroom had a slow leak that finally showed itself in the downstairs guest closet, and Rachel was jumping on the bed and had to have her front tooth pulled out by the dentist.
I'll start with the dog and end with Korea. We got a Morkie in August, he's a year old, Jagger, and he's as cute as can be. He's a little undisciplined as he came from a home that spoiled him. Well, he got into the chocolate and my wallet. He ate some money. I hardly ever have cash, but apparently he likes to eat $12 and chocolate. I was worried about him getting sick from the chocolate and then after the money thing, I thought, damn, if you are going to get sick and die, just die already, I don't need the stress of worrying. That sounds terrible and I didn't really want him to die, I was just fed UP. He didn't die and he's still just as naughty and cute as ever!
The wind blew apart a Rubbermaid storage container that houses our lawnmower and other backyard tools. I had to put that back together and hurt my back in the process. That was not a fun Saturday afternoon.
About 2 weeks ago, I walked into the guest closet to get out my wrapping paper. That closet is my total junk/storage closet. I opened the door and thought "Hmm, it is kinda humid and musty in here, that's weird." Then I felt something drip onto my head. That's not good. So, long, make that very long, story short; slow drip from the master shower finally shows up downstairs and involves a week of repair, restore and replace. I will say my landlord was awesome, came over the next day and dealt with the company fixing it and made sure that the kids and I were treated well by the crews coming in and out. I appreciated that.
Rachel. I went to a PTSO meeting to help plan out a fundraiser that I think is going to be a flop, but I am being supportive and helping. We were at a gal's house, where her kids rule the roost. Her boys convinced my daughter to jump on the bed, a "no-no" that never happens at my house. She bumped her head on the back of one of the boy's heads and knocked her front tooth loose and the one next to it loose. Mama calls the dentist and the dentist says get over here asap. It results in the dentist pulling the tooth out. It wasn't pleasant, Rachel screamed, we had to hold her down, even though she was numbed up and the whole thing. The result is that she still has a tiny piece of root still left up there. It could either absorb into the gum or become infected. The other loose tooth was not broken at the root like the front tooth, so it will either tighten back up or become loose and it will have to come out too. So, YOU KNOW since Adam is gone that a: the root piece will become infected and b: the other tooth will not tighten up. She will probably not have that front tooth grow in for at least year or two. The thing that makes me the most mad about the whole thing is that once we got over to the house and I saw how the kids just ruled the house, I had a bad feeling. I should have been more proactive with my own children. But the gal whose home we are at is so together, she really is smart, organized, helpful, etc. I just assumed it would be fine. I was more worried about Rowan than anything else. Never ignore the mom vibe. And, Christine, you are absolutely right, at least it wasn't a head injury. I cringe to think how bad that could have been.
South Korea. This could be a whole other blog entry. .
South Korea is considered a remote tour, which is a good assignment, but not easy to get when you have a family that needs to move with you. Adam got a 'command sponsored 2 yr remote' which means the AF will pay for us all to move to South Korea and ultimately means we would get the on base housing and the kids would have a secure spot at the school on base AND the services that Russell requires would be provided. (Would you believe that people move their families without it being paid for or guaranteed that their children could attend school??? I can't) The job offer came right before Adam left for Germany.  As we hunted details about South Korea, the school, the job, the lifestyle, we decided to go for it. So, yes, we are moving to South Korea in July/August 2010. I think I'll write more on the move and my feelings about it later. I am a 'glass is half full' kinda gal, so we'll make the best of it.
So, here I am at one month into this deployment and I think it has been a full month, relatively speaking. I have survived a tooth pulling, a plumbing leak, sleep deprivation (my only major complaint), dog poisoning, researched and decided upon a global move. What else can this deployment have on me? My answer is BRING IT.

 

Day One

Okay, so Adam is officially in Stuttgart, Germany. I posted his time zone in my gadgets on the blogger site. It seems he is 8 hours ahead of PST. I am missing him today - the little things the kids did, the report on his family after he left, you know all those things you talk about! The pillow talk.

He officially left Friday night if you are in the PST. Nothing is ever simple here, Friday, was the date of Russell's school's Fall Festival. This is the PTSO's biggest fundraiser of the year. And I am on the board and it is the ONE day I am fully committed to. Which just figures, since these things can never be simple!!! One thing that made life much easier was Adam's mom, stepdad and 1/2 bro, Morgan came for the weekend. They left Sunday morning.

Let me say that my new friends on the Board of the PTSIO have been incredibly supportive. Women I don't really know all that well being generous with their offers of babysitting, thoughts and prayers, and helpfulness. All this time I have dedicated thus far to PTSO has earned me some points!! Ha! Seriously, most of these gals, whom I didn't know until August, have been so good to me; it warms my heart and makes Vegas more fun.

At Fall Festival, I intro'ed the Co-Pres of the PTSO to Adam and she was so sweet. She just basically told him how honored she was to meet him and thanked him for his service and then told him she was keeping her eye on me and told him to email her via the school website if he felt like I needed a break b/c she knows our kids and is happy to babysit anytime. Her husband told Adam the same thing separately. How nice is that? I am really flattered. When I first met her, Faith, I really misjudged her. It just goes to show you can't judge a book by the cover - that is a good lesson for me.

So, Fall Festival... I sort of put myself in charge of the Silent Auction and Raffle. I won't go into details, but I have experience with silent auctions when I lived in OK and worked with Big Brothers Big Sisters. Those were BIG auctions, like $60k auctions. I feel like when we are in a duty station and I can help community, it is my duty to help in areas in which I can help. So, I took over the the auction and raffe and we made over $3k, which is great when you think we had a total of 58 items. That's like $55 per item. In this economy, that's decent. I worked my tail off on it and told people to help or get lost if they were going to try to tell me what to do!!! Ha! I do feel like it is my responsibilty to pass on knowledge to groups before we move on to a new duty station and when I leave, I hope that I left making them better. And I think that I will make Russell's school's PTSO a better fundraising organization than before I was on the Board.

Okay, so Day One without Adam. His fam left about 10:30am. After they left we had a good day. I made Russ a list of all of the things he needed to do today and then at the end of the list wrote his reward for his accomplishments. He got it all done with pride. Note to self, make Russell a list every Sunday!! We actually have had a good day today. The kids were helpful, Rachel wanted to go to bed early, Row went right to bed, so far, so good. I am sure it won't be this good every weekend!!

I do want to note that Morgan, Adam's bipolar 16 yr old brother, was so much better this weekend than I have experienced in a long time. He helped with the kids, he took out he trash when I asked him to, he played with the kids too; all of which are improvements and I am sure added to the ease of the transition of Adam leaving.

Sooooooooooooooooo.... Day one of Adam being deployed has been a good one. Day two may not be so great, but Day One was good.

Oh, don't worry, I won't report every day!!!

Weekend with Daniel

I really need to blog about San Diego, but this is a quickie about Daniel. Daniel is Rachel's class pet and he is stuffed animal lion. You get him for a weekend, take pictures, make a scrapbook page about your weekend and off he goes to the next student. Well, Daniel got lucky last weekend b/c we had ALL kinds of activities planned.

First up, I took Rachel and Daniel to Disney Live. We are sitting in our 2^nd row seats and hear this little voice say "There's Daniel and Rachel". We were sitting directly in front of one of Rachel's classmates, Christopher. Well, that deserved a photo right there – what are the odds of that? The show was fine, not as good as Sesame Street shows or as good as Disney shows in the parks, but Rachel and Daniel enjoyed it and that is what matters, right? I have to say the Buzz Lightyear and Woody were a little creepy looking.

Daniel's Saturday consisted of Russell's soccer game; he was a great cheerleader with Rachel. Then Rachel's class was performing at the Sat. evening church service. She goes to Lamb of God Lutheran School, which is of course attached to Lamb of God Lutheran Church. She had to wear a chapel uniform, (OMG, what is a chapel uniform? Luckily a jumper and peter pan blouse that we already have!) and we had to attend the church service. So, I left the boys (Adam and Rowan were under the weather) at home and took Rachel to church. We sat with Rachel's friend, Talulah and her dad, Lino. (Great family, lots of fun and they are from New Jersey.) Rach and Lulah were so cute in church, whispering, coloring, giggling; it was so much fun to sit next to them. Amidst the giggling and shooshing, I am trying to be a good visitor and pay attention. And what does the good Reverend start to talk about? Marriage. Uh oh, I am thinking…. Oh My God, I mean Gosh, here it is, I am at church and he is going to start talking about the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman. Fantastic. I think most of you know, I support gay marriage because to me it is plainly and simply discrimination. Don't get me wrong, I think churches have every right to not support it in their private institution, but the government should not discriminate. Like I said, plain and simple.

Okay, back to church. What can I do? I can't walk out b/c Rachel and Daniel still have to sing and I would totally walk out otherwise with the whole anti gay marriage sermon. How would it look in Daniel's scrapbook: Rachel's mom stormed out of church b/c she won't listen to anti gay marriage talk! Ha! Lucky for me, I was wrong!!! It was children he focused on and how they are little sponges and we should always bring them to church. Phew! So, then he invites up the uniform clad sponges and they sing. Everyone is taking pictures, the whole congregation is happy and the little sponges are adorable!!!

Sunday was football day, so Daniel got to witness us teaching Rowan how to signal and say touchdown. Not too much there. Then we made his scrapbook page, (Rachel put a paper cutter in her mouth, but no blood. Really, isn't she too old for that?), turned him in on Monday and Daniel will go on to the next house!

Back to School

So, a few of you have asked about school and how the kids are doing. Okay, okay, I get the point. Let me start by saying, I feel good about Russell and Rachel this year.

We'll start with Rachel… I enrolled her at a private Lutheran school, I blogged about it before. I am thrilled that I enrolled her there. She loves it and I think her teacher is good. She's firm, but nice. I really feel like at this point of Pre-K it is time to start getting a little more serious about classroom procedures and curriculum and Rachel's teacher is right there with my expectations. Some moms I have talked to have been a little put off with the routine and firmness, but I appreciate it. It's not like the teacher is a hard ass; I think she seriously takes her responsibility to have these kids ready for Kindergarten and quite frankly, that's what I am paying her to do, you know? Russ went to Pre-K at a public school in FL because he was an ESE student, but he got moved up to the ESE Kindergarten class b/c of numbers and in some ways got to do Kindergarten twice, which was huge for him. He was reading and doing a lot of things his Kindergarten peers weren't doing and he was in Pre-K. So, I feel really strongly about Rachel being in a good Pre-K program. Plus, she's getting all the fun extras. They are making a huge scrapbook of the year, (I sneaked a peek), lots of field trips, and going to have the full on graduation. She deserves that. I can't even complain about how much the tuition is, although I marvel at the fact that it costs more than our first or second car payment that Adam and I have ever shared!! At least it isn't more than the mortgage!!! Seriously, it is worth every penny and I have even made a couple of friends out of the deal.

Also, she has to wear a uniform, which isn't high on my list, but I can I say Rachel just ROCKS her lil' jumper and pleated skirts!! Ha! Russ had a strict dress code in FL and I do miss it. I try hard to find things for Russ that are cool and he'll wear. Poor kid has enough going against him, I won't have him dressing too cheap or dorky!! I know, that sounds horribly superficial, but at least I am honest to say it. I miss the strict dress code though.

I am really pleased with Russell's teacher this year, Mrs. Justice. I don't think I could have asked for better. I think I blogged about writing the principal to just place him in a good class and she did. Mrs. J taught 4^th grade last year, I wouldn't have even known to request her, so I feel lucky to have gotten him with such a great teacher. He thinks that Mrs. J is a little bit nicer than his 2^nd grade teacher, but "it's close". I find it easy to communicate with her and we are meeting next week to get a head start on Russ's IEP accommodations AND his SLP wants in on the meeting too, so I am thrilled about the proactive effort. Mrs. J has already sent home an extra reading textbook that we can keep all year to work on at home; as Russ does has some challenges with reading comprehension testing.

Russ has made a few new friends right off the bat. He doesn't seem to have any issues with anyone in class. I think he had a few 'mean girls' in 2^nd grade, so his 3^rd grade class seems better. He's more comfortable at school, which is good. He does still play at recess alone sometimes, but not always. His new friends like to play kickball and he doesn't, so he either watches or plays on the playground. I am keeping an eye out on that, but not too worried. He still loves the librarian, a buxom blonde that dresses a teensy bit inappropriately, but she is awesome. Russ told me he wished he could go to the library with Mrs. Yates every day. I do think it is b/c they both share a love of books, but the fact that she is easy on the eyes doesn't hurt either!!!!!!

I think I'll report on myself since I am on the PTSO Board this year. Wow, I am busy, but I don't mind. I have such a strong commitment to volunteering, especially since I have the luxury to stay home with my kids. I sometimes wonder about those moms who stay home, have all their kids in school and don't do anything. I do really feel the need to contribute to my community and am privileged to do so. I think I have contributed to the fundraising end of things in the PTSO where it was needed, silent auctions, where I have a lot of professional experience. I have met some great gals and new friends, so that is rewarding too. I have also had the great experience of getting to know the principal and office manager better. Both are extremely smart, driven women. I certainly have learned from them both already. The principal, Mrs. Douglass, is an amazing woman, hands down. I could blog about her alone. It is truly a privilege to know her.

Let's see, other than that…. Rachel is taking a couple of extras – "Cheer for Tots" and gymnastics – she loves both. Row and I are taking gymnastics while Rachel is in gym too. That is more work for me and my back, so not sure how long we'll do that. Russ is doing Scouts and soccer. Soccer surprised me, as last season's coach was such a douche. But, we have a new coach who is much closer to our philosophy of having fun and winning is secondary. Scouts will be interesting. Russ is interested and the social aspects are good for him. Russ is down to private speech once per week, which is a HUGE relief. That extra free night does my soul good. Once soccer is over, we'll revisit tennis.

So, all in all the back to school month has been good to us. I don't think that I mentioned that Adam is deploying at the end of October. He is going to Germany for 4 months. It was the deployment we both teased about… "Wouldn't it be cool if you get some weird deployment to Europe or in the States for less than 6 months…." And strangely enough we got it. Someone is looking out up there, thank you.

OH!! No back to school blog entry would be complete without NFL. I am playing fantasy ball this year. Just one team this year, which is unusual. But my team is in my league, I am THE Comish and we've been playing with most of these guys since 2004. I enjoy it and LOVE NFL ball. I am stating for the record, I probably won't win this year, but am hoping to make the playoffs. Wish me luck!

Big Martha Passes the Torch

I have so much I want to say about Don Garland, but putting it into words will really require an emotional session, that I just haven't wanted to face. I guess you could say I am not quite ready for that, but I know I will be in the future. I haven't even really found the 'oomph' to sit and write 'sympathy' cards for Linda, Dawn & TJ. I'd say I am more ready to write those and perhaps that will give me the energy to write my blog about Don.

Anyway, what I thought I'd write about is the passing of the "Martha Torch". Anyone who knows my mom, knows what a Martha fan she is. And you can't help but be drawn into it. There are many of us that call each other Martha when we do something especially fantastic in the homemaking, entertaining realm of our lives. It is a loving term, but it is also a bit of a joke too. My mom can make fun of Martha with the best of them, but she has this element of seriousness, detail orientation, and perfection, (much like Martha), that really makes my mom more Martha than anyone.

For Don's funeral reception, my mom and I were asked to be in charge. And of course, we were honored to do so. I was able to get to Napa on the Wednesday prior to the funeral, which was on a Friday. Before that my mom and I had been planning via email and phone, so I was ready to get business taken care of. From Wednesday until Friday night, it was nonstop. I guess this is the point where I should I say that Adam decided to stay in Las Vegas with the children. R&R had both started school that week, each with terrific starts, Adam had taken off work, but was working from home too. It was a hard decision to make. No, it was a gut wrenching decision to make. Adam and I both loved Don and wanted to honor his life and memory, but had to make the heart wrenching decision that it was ultimately better for our kids to stay home. In retrospect, I still think it was the best decision. I was able to really concentrate on the Garlands and the day and just be there for any little or need. If my kids were there, I wouldn't have been as capable.

Okay, so back to Martha… pretty much Wednesday and Thursday were all about prepping for Friday. Not only were we in charge of the reception, we were also hosting the 'after party' at my mom's house. We thought it would be nice to host family and friends that lingered or were from out of town at my mom's house for late lunch/early dinner and just relax after an emotional morning. I won't go into all the little details that happen prepping for such an event, but it was clear that Martha is getting older and not so good with her details. (I won't go into the details besides age on why I think Martha is losing her memory!!) Anyway, it came down to Thursday night, Martha wanted a family meeting. Andy arrived from Portland and she wanted to go over the plan for the next day. I am rattling off details when she finally looked at me and said, "Aimee, you are in charge". Big Martha passed the torch and I TOOK it!

It is kind of a poignant moment for me. Some of you know my mom and how she LOVES to be in charge, so for her to say it really meant a lot to me. I also know it was probably a little hard for her to say it too. Of course, in true Aimee fashion, I took and ran with it. All those years of my mom bossing me around - payback! Just kidding. Hmm… maybe not….

I have to say that Don's funeral, reception and 'after party' all went as smoothly as any of those things can go. I really felt like I was anticipating needs, taking care of little details that came up, tying loose ends, and anything else that would help family and friends be able to grieve and be comfortable.

What I learned is that it is hard work being Big Martha. Not only is the task itself exhausting, but you have to put your emotions on hold so everyone else doesn't have to. My mom had talked about that: when you are in charge of events like that, you don't get to grieve, celebrate, whatever the occasion is. (Now we know the REAL reason why she put me in charge…) While I believed her, it didn't really hit me until I was on the plane flying home on Saturday, the day after. It just took everything I had not to lose it on the plane and on the shuttle back to my car. It was such a relief to get in my car and bawl.

Gosh, I have sat here for 5+ minutes trying to write something else and just can't….. got to get back on 'mom' time – Russ will be home soon, have HW, think about dinner, sigh.

I do really miss him.

Don Garland

This is Don Garland's Obituary. I didn't write it and have much more to add from my personal relationship with him. But, he is on my mind and my life pretty much revolves around getting to Napa and helping Linda, Dawn and Tonja, so I wanted to copy this into my blog.

Donald Ray "Don" Garland passed away August 21, 2009 with the love of his family embracing him. He fought bravely against non Hodgkins Lymphoma, losing his battle with very sudden complications.
Don was born in Akron, Ohio to Lewis and Irene Garland on January 13, 1944, the youngest of two children. His sister Deanna (Stan) Ginther of Florida survives him. He grew up in Ohio, moving to New York in his late years of high school. He enlisted in the Air Force as soon as he met the age requirements, proud to serve his country for eight years. During his military tour he was stationed at air bases in Japan, as well as in the US. His first military career position was Aircraft Mechanic (C-130, C-135), then Missile Mechanic (GAM 'Hound Dog'), and Television Equipment Technician (closed circuit security TV used at/in missile silos). Upon his honorable discharge January 1969, he was employed at Singer General Precision Link Group at NASA. He worked on the CCTV lunar surface mock up that trained the astronauts for subsequent lunar landings. How proud he was to be part of the Space Program when the LEM landed and man first walked on the moon.
Don felt at home in the communications field. Returning to California, he worked for Delta Communications as a radio technician in Concord and So. Lake Tahoe, and as manager/technician in the Emeryville shop. He was a partner in Atcomm Inc, Vallejo at its inception. He owned and operated Napa Valley Communications for thirty years. His most recent employment was with the IT Department with the City of Napa. He loved his job, the people he came in contact with, and throughout his illness desperately wanted to return to work.
His wife of 44 years, Linda, and two daughters, Dawn (Evin) McKinney of Auburn, and Tonja (Mark) Mehelis of Napa, along with his precious granddaughters, Ena McKinney, Wyntress Mehelis, and Elizabeth Mehelis survive him. His teasing, smiles, sense of humor, big bear hugs, and love of family will be missed by many.
Throughout his life Don has been an amazing man. He was able to survive a traumatic brain injury in November 1996 resulting from a fall from a two story roof during a communications antenna installation, and to return to a line of work his doctors and therapists predicted he never would. Once diagnosed with cancer, he faced his chemo and radiation treatments with humor and dedication. When healthy, Don enjoyed woodworking projects, always creating something in his shop. He has helped both daughters with home renovations, and could always think of a creative way to fix things. Family camping trips brought much joy to Don, as well as nights spent under the stars with his telescope, always anxious to share his love of astronomy with others.
The family respectfully requests in lieu of flowers, donations be sent to the Lymphoma Research Foundation (www.lymphoma.org) or the charity of your choice.
The funeral service will be held Friday, August 28, at 10:00AM, in the chapel of Tulocay Funeral Home. Following burial at Tulocay, a reception will follow in the Tulocay Reception Room. 411 Coombsville Rd., Napa, CA 94558-3957

The 3rd of July

I have so many moments that I want to share about our trip to CA this summer, but today I am going to write about July 3^rd. We spent the day with the Mehelis family. That's Mark, Tonja (of the Garland family fame) and their two daughters, Wyntress, 4, and Elizabeth, 4+ mos at the time. I think I mentioned before that we were taking a trip to Sonoma to venture to Train Town!!! And it would be Rowan and Eliza-boo's (that's Wyntress's name for the baby. My nickname for her is Boo) first trip to Train Town. As it turned out, it was Mark's first time too – a triple whammy! We had such a good time. Tonja and I have been friends since I was like 2 ½, so to be able to share some family time together with our children is really special. Train Town is just one of those places that is an institution in the Valley. Families flood it and it has changed quite a bit since Russ's first trip some 5 or 6 years ago. We rode the train of course. Boo cried; she wasn't a huge fan ; ) Rachel and Wyntress rode together and were just as cute as can be, pointing things out along the way to each other and giggling. We rode the carousel and the little planes that go up and down like Dumbo. Russ flew Wynnie on the planes and he was thrilled b/c she likes to go up high unlike Rachel who is afraid of heights. Rachel sat out with g'ma and ate popcorn instead of the plane ride!

I have to add a little something about Mark. Mark is just a great family man. He's right there, helping his girls, (Tonja included), and my kids too. At one point he had Rowan up on his shoulders and even chased him around while I was snatching pictures of Rachel and Wynnie on the carousel. He just does it without being asked, which is more than I can say for a lot of dads that I have encountered. I was really impressed with how aware he is of his family and my kids too. I also really appreciated his willingness to help. For a gal vacationing without her husband, I really was grateful to have the extra caring eye and a fun dad that likes to play.

After Train Town we headed to the Sonoma Square for a picnic. What was amazing is that as crazy and crowded as the square was, we were able to find parking and meet up in a reasonable amount of time. I think the convenience of cell phones definitely is responsible for that! If we hadn't been able to call, we would have never found each other. We had a nice picnic next to a playground in the shade. Your ideal picnic situation. The kids played well, we got a chance to visit, and the food was so tasty. Tonja and Mark bought some great olives – Meyer Lemon and garlic were my fave. Delicious. Can you guess what was next? Nap time! Ha! And Rowan took an extra long nap.

Later that night we met up with the Mehelis family for fireworks at Silverado Country Club in Napa. This is an event open to the public; you go and park on the street and then you sit out on the golf course to watch the fireworks. I had called and they said the fireworks started at like 8:30pm. It was super crowded. Parking was a mess and I kinda thought we wouldn't find Tonja and Mark, but they were just driving up the street when we were walking on to the golf course, so Tonja dropped Mark and Wynnie and went to find parking and bring Boo. Of course, the fireworks didn't start until after 9:30pm and it got COLD! My mom had bought Wynnie and Rachel 4^th of July necklaces that have little battery powered light up stars. So, after we were done running around and chasing balls, (to keep us entertained), Rachel and Wynnie shared a blanket, were hiding underneath it and looking at their necklaces light up. They were just giggling and talking; it was so sweet.

Finally the fireworks started and we had been waiting for so long, that we all got a little silly with our comments. "OOOh, that's my favorite" "Oh, that was my medium favorite" "That was my super favorite, wait, no, this one is really my super favorite" Russ really got the joke and joined right in. Mark made some joke like "I don't get why it's red, white and blue". I told him to go back to Mexico. So, then we had to point out all the green and red ones to our 'Mexican' friend, who isn't Hispanic in any way. Then, there was a blast of lots of fireworks together…. The finale? Nope. They kept going. Then, another burst of excitement. The finale? Nope. Again, another huge burst one right after the other. Surely this was it? Nope. Finally, the obvious end, even more fireworks shooting off, the grand finale! We cheered. Everyone was packing up and then a few stray fireworks here and there, like they found a couple that they forgot so, they shot them off too. Umm, okay, the end. Oh, Boo liked the fireworks until she was done – ready for bed. Another first shared – Rowan, Rachel and Boo seeing their first overhead fireworks show. Russ thought it was his first time, but he had seen them in OK, but didn't remember seeing them.

Rachel and Wynnie were really into the fireworks. They were commenting on what they thought the fireworks looked like – a butterfly, a fairy, a crown, a flower, etc. They were just in their own little world oohing and aahing at each one. I had the best seat in the house – next to them. I loved listening to them all night long and seeing the reflection of the fireworks in their wide eyes. They shared their blanket and sat so close together to keep each other warm. That was the real highlight for me. Just two sweet peas in a pod. It really filled my heart.

My mom and I really enjoyed all our time with the Mehelises. We were talking about how easy it is to be with them. There isn't any drama, tension or awkwardness, just fun. Mark and Tonja parent similarly to our parenting, which I think is what made it so easy for our families to mesh. Wyntress is such a sweetie; a really nice girl. Boo is a cutie too and her whole face lights up when Tonja sings this one Laurie about the moon to her. Rowan was pretty enthralled with TJ when she sang it too. Boo's face gets this look of 100% admiration and adoration of her mommy when hearing that song. I have never seen anything like it. The whole day was a real treat and it was a highlight of our trip to CA. I am really looking forward to when the Mehelis fam comes to Vegas with Mark for his conference in November.

Through the Desert and Over the Hills….

Kind of a fun little poem to remember my Grandma's 90^th Birthday Party.

Through the desert and over the hills, to Grandma's 90^th Birthday Party we go.

The Garmin knows the way, to get us there on the very last day,

In a rented minivan that Findlay Honda generously paid for, just so you know.

At the party there were four generations and all ten cousins!

I don't think that's happened before.

It was a really hot day, but that didn't get in the way,

Of all the great food, wine and visiting galore.

There were so many photos and memories to share, can you believe none of the uncles have any hair!?!

It was such fun to catch up with family I haven't seen in years.

All the fond memories brought some to tears.

Grandma doesn't look a day over eighty, she is still such a carefree, fun loving lady.

Rowan and Rachel both started crying, which signaled 'el fin',

Not missing a beat, my brother tried (unsuccessfully) to bribe Russell to join in.

It was definitely time to leave; an easy call.

And the pictures taken will prove it all!!!

Grandma enjoyed her day, it was plain to see,

And she deserved it, on that we can all agree.

 

 

Plan C

I am starting to feel like my trip to CA and summer plans are going to exhaust the alphabet. Craziness in Las Vegas, but not in the typical Vegas fashion. Last week, Adam was getting ready for his trip to TX for the 2 weeks of training and taking care of deployment stuff, (more on THAT later). I had hoped to get over to the Honda dealer and get the oil changed while he was still here, to spare taking the kids and chasing Rowan around the dealership. That didn't happen, so I took it in on Tuesday of this week with Adelle & kids in tow. I thought at least Adelle and I could take turns chasing Rowan, which we did. I noticed something was leaking from the car recently, but thought it was water from the A/C. WRONG! It was the transmission fluid and apparently a lot of it. Ummm, we are supposed to leave the following day to go to CA. The mechanic said he didn't even feel comfortable if I drove the car back to my house. Uh oh. They kept the car, (all still under warranty), to repair or possibly replace it. I left with a rental car that Hertz promised to be a minivan, but ended up being a Camry, which barely fits the 3 kids in the back. I was getting ready to refuse the rental car and just have the shuttle take us home, but the kids were hungry, grumpy, and tired, as we had already been there for nearly 3 hours and would have to wait for the shuttle to return; you see how this is going. I took the free crappy Hertz rental and went home.

Fortunately, (sort of any way), Adam is out of town, so his car is available to us. We can squish more comfortably in the 4Runner than a Camry. Then I had to transfer all the car seats, again, parked the rental in the driveway and will use it to take myself back to Honda to pick up the van. So, the crappy rental will prove itself useful in the end, but it didn't seem that way when I got it. And I was livid to even have wasted my time on the damn thing. Honda was very embarrassed, but what can they do? They just pay for the rental and I certainly appreciated the gesture.

Back to the van. They ordered some parts for it, hoping to get lucky and fix the seals, as nothing looked wrong with the actual transmission. With any luck, it would be fixed today, (Wednesday), and we would be back in business to drive to CA in the van on Thursday. Do you hear those screeching brakes again? Oh yeah, that's right, Aimee & the gang no go to CA on Thursday. The transmission is still leaking like new breastfeeding boobies, (my description, not Honda's!!), with all the seals replaced. That means the van is getting a new transmission. This apparently is ordered and hopefully will be shipped overnight so the mechanic can put it in first thing Thursday and hopefully be ready with no leaking to drive on Friday to CA to be there for the party on Saturday.

Now I have to think, what if the transmission doesn't get there overnight? Do I leave on Saturday? At that point, Adam will be home in five days, do I even go at all? As Jess pointed out yesterday while I was complaining/venting, are all signs pointing to not going to CA? I am not sure.

In the meantime, I have no food in the house; we've been eating out or picking up milk and bread here and there. Adelle is here and only packed a few outfits b/c she didn't need much more. I know, she can do laundry, fortunately we are not out of detergent! And tomorrow our house in FL will be inspected b/c the old tenants are out, so at least I'll be here and can speak to the agent if she calls with bad news. What I am really hoping is that all the bad news stays here in Vegas and that the FL house will be in great, move in ready condition for our new tenants. Holy cow, if something is wrong there I might just need a new transmission, (well maybe liver), myself. I am not sure how much more bad news I can take! Maybe Plan C should be a beach in Hawaii and a great spa???? Now that is a plan I could get on board with!

Summer – Plan B

It was bound to happen….. So often I make my plans b/c I never know what Adam's schedule will be like and most of the time it always works out. Here I am making all my summer plans this year, everyone involved in my plans are making their plans and then our summer plans came to a giant halt. Deployment. It wasn't a shock, we knew Adam was high up on the list, meaning he's due to go. It kept looking like the Fall was when he'd go; missing the holidays and the kids' birthdays. Then this email was sent saying someone from some group had to go and a day later that someone was Adam. I don't understand how the numbers work or how they divide up deployments between the different organizations within the AF. Adam saw the email on Tuesday and Wednesday he was the guy. Can you hear the screeching brakes?

Here is how his deployment breaks down: (1) 6/21 he goes to San Antonio for some training and returns on 7/2 (2) Then he's home until 7/20ish and then (3) leaves for Ft Dix in New Jersey for a month of training and from there he leaves to go to Afghanistan for 6 months, well 179 days, but who's counting? So, really he'll be gone for 7 months. Ugh. Of course, we had planned to be RVing with DPA during the time he'll be home before he leaves. RVing is off the calendar. The new plan is to go to CA on 6/24 with Adelle & the kids. Go to my g'ma's 90^th birthday party, since Adam will be in TX there is no need to be here. We'll get to see Christine and Brielle in Yuba City for a sleepover. (Christine is already counting down the days until Yuba City – I think she is the 1^st person in history to EVER countdown going to Yuba City) When C & B leave, the kids and I will head to Napa to wear out my mom, see as many Garlands & other friends as possible, go to Train Town and then head back to Yuba City in 7/4. Adam will fly up to Sac on 7/4 to help me drive back with the kids. Then he's home for a couple of weeks and he's off.

Adam will be deploying with the Army. He'll be an EWO, Electronics Warfare Officer, in a battalion at some army base in Afghanistan. Nope, don't know which one!! He's still not exactly sure what he'll be doing. We know he'll be maintaining equipment used to look for IEDs, training people how to use it and will probably go out with the army guys looking for IEDs, but that's about all we know. No clue about internet, phone access, even what his living arrangements will be. We think he'll have some internet access and we're getting him a cheapie laptop to take b/c I guess with all the sand & dirt, it isn't worth to get a good one. We are hoping to use Skype to chat via the internet with web cams. Not sure how that all works, but we'll figure it out. I think Adam hopes to have some opportunity to write in his blog about his experience.

Man, this sucks. The 7 months really sucks. Having to be in Las Vegas for most of the summer (alone with 3 kids) rather than part of the summer sucks too! And I can just say this sucks!?! Ha! It will all turn out fine and once school gets going, the time will fly. It's just that part from 7/20ish until 8/24. I flirt with the idea of going back to CA for a couple of weeks. But, then I have to drive and I don't think I can do it alone yet. Once Rowan is a little older. Russ and Rach are great with him, but once Rowan gets really upset, Russell is upset b/c he can't help and it stresses him out.

In the meantime, I have started getting together my single parent plans/mode; make lemonade out of this lemon of a summer!!! I think I get a free membership to the YMCA while Adam is gone. That will be cool. The kids love the pool there – we just finished swim lessons. I think their gym is all right. I am really thinking about joining the new Gold's Gym that just opened up instead. The grand opening specials are just too good to pass up. So, that will help. Then I can use nap time for some 'me' time instead of working out at home. I did get a cleaning lady and I love her! She's coming every other week to clean bathrooms, the kitchen and mop all the tile floors (we have a lot of them!). If I could afford to have her come more and stay longer I would and maybe while he's gone I will! Ha! But, that helps knowing I don't have to do it 'all'. I did find a teenage babysitter in our neighborhood. I used her once; she's smart, capable, military 'brat' and the kids liked her. So, that is a relief. We'll cut back on some activities so we are home more than one night during the week. It's all coming along, now that the shock is over, as it always does.

Wait, did I mention that this sucks?

Vincent 100

At Fall Festival back in October, Russ & Rach won 2 goldfish. These two 20 cent goldfish cost about $40 for an aquarium, food, pump filters, and don't forget the all important sunken pirate ship and plastic pink plants. Russ named his fish Vincent A b/c in his class he had a Vincent B and a Vincent D. Rachel named hers Colin Girl. They had some funk growing on them and promptly died two weeks later. Off we went to Walmart to get 2 more fish that cost 40 cents and an algae sucker fish. The big joke was that we would have a Vincent C, Vincent E, all the way to Vincent Z and then start on Vincent 1, 2 ,3 maybe even 100. Well, Russ caught on to the joke and cut to the chase and named goldfish #2 Vincent 100. Rachel named her fish Colin Lady and they named the sucker fish Skipper.

So last week Vincent 100 had some weird gash on his side, blood, the whole bit. We talked about it; maybe we'd get a Vincent 101? Then the gash healed, but he had some funk on him. Adam cleaned out the aquarium in hopes of saving poor Vincent 100. Then we noticed that V100 was missing his top fin. How did that happen??? He wasn't swimming well, how could he, he had no top fin. We thought he was a goner. Yet a day later he perked up and the funk was gone. A day or two later we noticed that he is growing a new top fin. Yah, so I have no clue what Adam put in the water, but V100 is making a comeback and I can't believe it. We are really getting our 20 cents worth out of that fish.

a-MAY-zing

My second favorite time of year is Mother's Day thru the end of May, my birthday. How selfish is THAT?? Ha! Thanksgiving to New Year's is my favorite time of year, incase you were wondering.. But the last part of May was really good to me this year and I just have to share some highlights.

This year, Mother's day was a bit off with the tummy flu and all that. We celebrated again the following weekend – Adam got me a spa day – 1 hour facial and a 1 hour massage – so relaxing! We also tried out a new restaurant (new to us) called Agave. The food was pretty good, (pumpkin seed crusted salmon for me and Adam had a braised short rib with some fancy mushroom rice); however the real standouts were the margaritas. They were outstanding. The kids were really good, it was great family night out.

I have been to the library a few times this month. I am thinking that a lot of people in Las Vegas read Debi's blog, b/c the books she reviews and likes are hard to get! I have had to put requests in for those. In the meantime I read a few books, non that I would read again. I did read "The Other Queen" by Philippa Gregory. I have read a few of her other books and enjoyed them, but this book I really struggled to finish and finished it b/c I had invested so much time in it. I am just starting "The Family Tree"b/c Christine recommended it and next on my stack is "Snowflower and the Secret Fan" which was suggested to me by two different people. By the time I finish those, I hope some of my 'Debi books' will be waiting for me to check out!!

Memorial Day Weekend was terrific, but I already wrote about that.

Which leads us to the 36^th birthday. I mean, 29^th birthday! Just kidding, I have no qualms about my age, especially since I still get carded!!! I slept in, Adam made waffles, I worked out, spent some fun time playing the Wii with the kids, and then went and had a deluxe mani & pedi and enjoyed every second! I have really been wanting a new camera, so Adam, who gets nervous about buying me gifts, asked if I'd mind picking out my camera so I could get what I wanted. Heck no, I don't mind, I appreciated that he asked. So, I ordered my new camera (got a fancy one b/c I added my birthday girl money from my mom) and it should be here soon. We went to Lotus of Siam (Thai Food) for dinner. So delicious, again. I have to mention the great service too. The regular table service is very good, they have no problems making Rachel just a plate of lettuce (I bring her salad dressing since they don't serve Ranch dressing), and this time a server noticed that Rowan threw his bink on the floor and he brought us a cup of hot water to wash it off. We just really appreciate little things like the cup of hot water, it is very thoughtful. The night ended with a homemade coconut cake that I LOVE.

Adam also insisted that we try out a cleaning service a couple times per month to help me keep up with the house. Who is this guy? Oh, just the greatest husband, ever! : ) Ha!

So, I guess it isn't any wonder why I heart the last half of May.

Aleeka

For a while now, Rachel has been talking about a little girl named Aleeka. I thought, well here it is, Rachel has an imaginary friend. We had no clue where she even got the name from and quite frankly, I am not even sure how to spell it! We have picked out flowers for a pot and Rachel says they are "Aleeka flowers" because Aleeka likes purple flowers. She even has told us that Aleeka lives in Las Vegas, in the city, meaning down by the strip. She and I drove down to the strip to pick up my friend form college, Trina, (visiting from Iowa while her hubby was involved in a dart tourney and we spent the day with Trina, yay!) Rachel was sure we were going to pick up Aleeka too and was DEVESTATED that we didn't. She was genuinely sad, crocodile tears, the whole package. I have to admit I was a little flabbergasted. I didn't know she was so into Aleeka.

Rachel also has an imaginary pink house where she lives with her "babe" (we assume she means husband) and her boy children and girl children and a girl baby. One day she told me she has a red bench outside of her pink house that she sits on and watches her boy & girl children play. She'll explain how they play and what they do, complete with silly sound effects. Then one day she and her babe took the boy&girl children and the girl baby on a picnic with Aleeka. Another time her babe was using a hammer and he hit his thumb. He said "Ow, Ow, OUCH!" (Rachel imitating it perfectly) and then she said she had to put a band aid on her babe's thumb. She has drawn a picture of herself, her babe, the boy & girl children and some barbells b/c her babe likes to work out. (Babe is beginning to sound a lot like Adam!!!) She has told us plenty of other stories, that I wish I would have written down. Rachel has quite an active imagination.

Well, about a week ago I finally figured out who the heck Aleeka is and how she came into our lives. Rachel and Rowan like to watch "Your Baby Can Read" dvds (usually in the van while we are carting Russ to speech or whatever) and guess who is the videos? The one, the only……. Aleeka!!! We had stopped watching the dvds for a while (I don't think that Rowan will be reading any time soon, but I figure it can't hurt them to watch them and learn some sight words. This could be another post. Adam is big on them and I bought them to appease him more than anything. Enough about that!) Back to Aleeka. So, Rachel talked a lot about Aleeka when we had stopped the dvds, but now that she is watching them again more regularly, she doesn't talk about her anymore.

 

A Memorable Memorial Day Weekend

We had a great long weekend! It really started on Thursday night, as Adam had Friday off too. Just a fun family night, it was hard to think that Russell actually had school on Friday!!

Nevertheless, Friday was Field Day at school and they had been practicing for weeks. Since Adam was home, I could go and stay at FD, help, watch, whatever. I was so impressed with the whole set up. Any FD I have been a part of is the traditional relay, tug o war, jumps, etc. This FD was mostly water play events – tossing water with cups at your opponent, this inflatable rocket that launches up 100 ft in the air, slip n slides, those giant inflatable waterslides you can purchase, some team building games, and even included a break stop to rotate thru which had popsicles for all the kids. What was impressive is that the whole school participated at the same time, which is no easy feat as the school has 1150 students. They rotated thru stations, 4 classes per station, each had their own numbered line to stand on, every station we went to our line was #4 so the kids were told what station to go to and they immediately ran to it and got on line #4, great music was being played on the loudspeakers and everyone was just having some 'good clean fun'. I was really impressed. I was the towel mom, I pushed around the cart of class towels, which sounds lame, but is helpful. I got a chance to catch up with Mrs. Cayer and chat with some other moms too. Mrs. Cayer did tell me who Russell will have next year for 3^rd grade, how pleased she was with that choice and has even pointed Russell out to Mrs. Justice. After chatting with some parents, they all pretty much said how they wished their sons/daughters could have Mrs. Justice too. So, I am hopeful for 3^rd grade!

After FD, it was off to the commissary with Rachel while Adam cleaned and waited for his mom & stepdad to come for the weekend. Rachel is always fun in the commissary. This time she kept asking Do we need this? How about this? Are we done yet? I think we should get _______ and then the reason why. The reasons varied from b/c dad's knee hurts (it didn't), or 'Rachel is soooo hungwee', or b/c Rowan pooped and we need more diapers. It sounds a little annoying, but she just gets so animated and is really into it, so it makes it fun/entertaining for me. We won't mention that it is a little distracting b/c I forget things on the list – doh!

Returning from the commissary, Jamie and Les had arrived and were staying until Monday. They went to Egypt last month, brought their pictures and Egyptian goodies, Jamie baked some awesome desserts for our bbq on Saturday and they babysat on Sunday so Adam and I could go out!!!

Saturday Jamie and took a long walk thru the 4 sections of neighborhood, it was great. Even better, Jamie made lemon meringue pie for dessert!! It really is one of my all time favorites, I haven't had it in years and homemade is the best! I am the only one here that likes it, so I never make it and I don't usually care for the store bought. A super treat! We bbqed that night, Adam's friend from work, Rachel, and her 4 yr old son came over. Rachel's husband is deployed and so I think she appreciated the invite to get out of the house on the long weekend. It was a nice evening. Our Rachel changed her clothes 4 times while they were here and one point she was running around naked, which kind of threw our guests for a loop, but 'big' Rachel told me she was relieved to see that another 4 yr old did the same goofy things with no rhyme or reason her 4 yr old does! Later that night we enjoyed the photos of Egypt while we all wore our Egyptian goodies. Russ got a bookmark with a hieroglyphic alphabet, so he was translating for us during the pictures. Pretty cute. Russ now wants to go to Cairo, look at all the cool stuff and find the bad guys from Indiana Jones.

Rowan impressed Grandpa Les. Row had some crackers in a little bowl and he ate them all. He took the bowl to Adam in the living room, then went to the pantry, opened the door, found his cracker box and took them back to Adam. Also, Rowan really has improved his receptive language. He knows what you are asking him. You can ask him to go outside, upstairs, downstairs, look for someone, the whole kit and caboodle; he gets it. He knows where we keep the bubble stuff outside, he goes straight for it and finds a wand and tries to blow thru it after you ask him if he wants to play bubbles. Grandpa got a real kick out of all of that.

Sunday we took Jamie out for a hike at Red Rock before the heat set in. We took a nice hike for about an hour. Rowan was pretty adorable – he knows his backpack that he rides in and is so excited to get in it. While riding along he just really takes it all in and not a peep out of him. No complaints, fussing, etc. Jamie enjoyed Red Rock. We took an easy trail that loops around to these shaded rocks the kids can climb. While we were walking back, Rachel said "I want to go to the shops. I don't like hiking!" And there you have it, my little shopping buddy proclaiming her allegiance to shopping!!! Ha! She does love to play outside and she would sit right there at Red Rock and play all day, but apparently the walking for an hour is not her cup of tea.

Sunday night Adam and I went to dinner and ended up catching a movie!! We went to dinner at a place called Marche Baccus, a French Bistro with a great patio on a manmade lake in a community called Desert Shores. The food was good, the wine was excellent, the setting was really nice too. The service was slow – we were there for over 2 hours. Someone had brought their children that were running all over the patio, thankfully not our section of the patio, but if they had we would have had a good talkin' with the manager. We felt bad for the other patrons, they all look irritated, we think some complained, anyway, not our problem! After dinner we made our way to Aliante station, the casino right near our house that also has the movie theater. We decided to watch Star Trek. We enjoyed it. And, unlike like our other date night, we were out past midnight, thank you very much!!

Monday we just were lazy. I have hurt back, another story, and it was really bothering me, so we just laid low. Jamie & Les headed home. We had a great visit with them. Not sure why, but whenever the Pricers come all together (both boys) or, I hate to say this, with Morgan, there always seems to be some kind of drama. If Blake comes there usually isn't too much drama,(Blake, I won't mention the past drama..), just Blake being a teenager who knows the world and the rest of us are clueless (were we ever like that? I am sure we were!! He'll learn), but Blake is really great with the kids, Rachel bosses him around like a pro and he just does what she tells him. It is so stinkin cute and funny. Anyway, my real point is when Jamie and Les can come without the boys, we really get a chance to visit with them and enjoy them. It doesn't happen very often, so we enjoy it. Sorry, Blake & Morgan!

Monday night…. We were watching Star Wars and when it was over, Rowan turned to look at me, held up his forefinger and thumb like a gun and made a shooting sound. I couldn't believe it. He did it again. I am frantically calling to Adam to come downstairs to witness this. As he does, Rowan turns to him with his fingers and makes the sound. Adam pretends to fall down and Rowan doesn't get it! He looks at him, like what's the deal?? Adam gets up and Rowan is pretending to shoot all over the place. Of course this seems like a great thing to capture on video, however the batteries were dead. He kept on for another minute or so and then it was over. He was done and hasn't done it since. It was so funny and amazing at the same time. How did he figure that out? The other 2 weren't doing it. Amazing what goes on their minds. He wasn't really watching the movie, just playing in the living room. And let me add that we aren't all for the pretend violence and all that. It was just so crazy to see him figure that out. It made us think about Russ and his 'pow powing' days. He did similar stuff like Rowan just did, not getting the whole concept of shooting, just pointing and making sounds. Russ was 4 when he really started getting the whole concept of shooting. He called it pow pow. He would ask my dad "Grandpa, I pow pow this?" asking about a rock or person or whatever. Dad would give the go ahead on the inanimate objects. This topic could make for another entry, so many things to think about and compare. But, I'll just leave it at that, as it is time to get Russ to school , Rach to gymnastics and get myself ready too!!!

Kadie

We got Kadie when we first were engaged, living in Vallejo in our great little apartment and Adam worked nights and I was teaching during the day. She was really my first pet. She was such a sweet kitten and very possessive of me. We got Riley a few months later and those were our 'kids' until, well, you know. I used to give her bottled water to drink, she was a spoiled little thing for quite some time!! Ha! She could hold her own against anything or anyone. One day when we lived in FL the first time around (00-01) she got out of the house and went after our neighbors dog and won. She was good with the kids, but kept her distance. She was beautiful – a tuxedo cat and she kept herself very clean and soft. She had attitude for days and we loved her.

So, last October Kadie became ill, had similar symptoms as Riley did when he died. After doing some testing with the vet, but again in a spot where we could go overboard with all the tests and costs and still not have a definitive answer. She wasn't eating and a feeding tube was discussed, but the quality of life was also an issue too. We tried some meds to see if we might get lucky, but her liver levels were already so over the top and gone, it seemed inevitable that we would lose her too. And we did. We had her cremated and the pet cemetery gave us this really sweet poem in a matte with some of her fur and her paw print. There is a place for her picture. I wasn't expecting to get that at all, but it really was comforting. I wish we would have had received that with Riley's ashes too.

After Kadie passed a way, my stepmom sent me this email about Swiffer wet jets and that they can be poisonous to animals and children. From what I can deduct, there isn't anything concrete, but a lot of personal accounts of people whose pets died and they all had liver issues and symptoms like our 2 cats. It is really strange. You have to really wonder about that. I did use a wet jet for a long time in OK and FL and they say cats walk on the chemicals and then lick it off their paws when they groom. We thought Riley had a tumor on his liver, but he never had an ultrasound. Kadie had an informal ultrasound (not by a specialist, just the vet. We didn't have that option with Riley) and there wasn't a tumor in Kadie. The circumstances of the accounts I read are just so similar with our story, we just really wonder if that is what happened to our Kadie & Riley. We still have Harry and so far he hasn't been ill, but I know I used the wet jet more before we got Harry than after.

Whatever the case, I miss Kadie and Riley. I still 'see' Kadie on top of the recliner, one of her favorite spots; it is hard to not actually see her there. She would sit there and kind of nuzzle into my hair while I fed the baby or relaxed. I miss that.

A Walkin’, Talkin’, Toddlin’ Man

Time to indulge in a little motherly bragging! Rowan is at such a cute age and is just so stinkin' cut, I can hardly stand it!!!! Ha! So, be prepared readers, this is all about our little Row Row and how fantastic we think he is.

Rowan is just the epitome of a toddler right now. He teeters and totters as he walks around. He is becoming more independent – won't even hold my finger while he's walking unless he really feels like he needs some help! And I just want to hold fingers while walking side by side, instead of holding hands!!!! He's into everything, doing everything, opinionated about everything and now is my chance to get all these little things recorded J

• He is still a shameless flirt. He looks up at people with his chin on his shoulder, pretending to be shy, batting his eyes and smiling. Sometimes, he'll give a little wave. Once at Starbucks, he was in his stroller facing me and a woman behind me. He was flirting with her the whole time. I had no clue until Jess had pointed out what a flirt he was. The lady was loving the attention and giving it right back to him. He makes friends at the kids' schools while we are waiting for them to be released. He has quite the fan club at Rachel's school with a few of the moms. He just stares at them until they make over him, tickle him, etc. They love it too. At Russell's school, he's always making a new friend, the latest of which is a grandpa that loves to watch Row play in the dirt with Rachel. Rowan will look over his shoulder to make sure he's still watching.
  
• Rowan is a great at mimicking. He loves to applaud when everyone else is or when he hears clapping. He always rubs his hands together when he sees me hand sanitizing (which has been a lot lately!!). He likes to help clean and takes a wipe to clean the high chair, the floor, the window, whatever anyone happens to be wiping clean at the time. He really tries to copy the kids when they do something that strikes his fancy.
  
• He was watching the kids gargle and I was making a big deal out of them gargling, not the great skill, the great use of gargling to delay whatever they need to do next. Yea, so Rowan now gargles and is so pleased with himself!
  
• He HATES having his face cleaned.
  
• Right now he is shaking his head no at requests, questions, etc. And when he is on a roll, he shakes no at funny questions like: Do you want a cookie? Is Dad ugly? Is mom your favorite?
  
• He won't say the word no. Like last night he wanted bananas and we tried to give him something else. He just shook his head no and said "Dat un" and pointed at the bananas.
  
• He does this finger taste test when unsure about what he is eating. He just puts in his finger tip and puts it in his mouth for the taste test. If it agrees with him, he digs in. Or he shakes his head no and proceeds to dump it on the floor. We are working on the latter.
  
• Of the 3 kids, he is the one that really likes to take stuff out and put it back in. He can spend an hour or more walking around the house taking things out and putting them back in. Now, this could be the laundry, kitchen towels, toys, bathroom drawer items, books, chalk from the art easel; literally anything. And when he puts it back, it doesn't mean that he puts it away, it means he puts it back someplace else or scatters it everywhere. He likes to put stuff back in the garbage can (his sippy cup), the toilet (toys & bink), and into various drawers and baskets. He takes stuff out of the garbage too – food, papers, whatever strikes his fancy. Now, when he puts in things of importance (his sippy cup) in the garbage and tries to get it back, but can't, he has a humongous fit.
  
• We'll touch on the fits… they are starting, so I am sure the 2s will be something else with him. He is really opinionated when it means something to him and persistent. For the most part he is happy to be out and about and doesn't have the public fits (yet), but at home he can get pretty pissy.
  
• He does what I call the gimme hands. When he wants something or you, he puts up his arms and his hands open and shut over and over and over. It is pretty darn cute. Sometimes he talks with the gimme hands, but usually just gestures.
  
• He loves to climb the stairs. When he gets half way up (and sometimes sooner) he does his "Ta Da!" which means he says it and throws his arms up in the air. He's genuinely thrilled with himself. Sometimes he wants to play on the stairs, which we aren't fans of that. So, I take his bink and throw it up some stairs and he chases after it. Then I take it again and throw it up the other half of the stairs to get him moving.
  
• He really likes the Wall E movie and he loves to say "Eva" just like Wall E.
  
• He is a snuggler at bed time. He doesn't go down unless he gets some snug time in at night. Not important for naps, but at nighttime it is a necessity. He can just sit in my lap and lean back and fall asleep and the head on the shoulder kind of snugglin' works too. I really love those snuggles.
  
• He makes these sounds that are hard to describe, but it is such a baby sound. It is a slobbery Geeee and Geh. Almost like a gargle, but not quite. He makes the sound mostly when he is playing with Adam and is really into it. It is a very sweet and happy sound.
  
• He loves to play outside in the sand box and he loves when we play with bubbles. His reflexes aren't fast enough to pop the bubbles, but he tries and squeals with delight. He gets a big kick out of watching Rachel pop bubbles.
  
• He is fascinated with the computer, typing on the keyboard, pushing the power button, taking the paper out of the printer and pressing its buttons.
  
• Rowan plays phone with anything. It can be his play phones, our phones or the remote controls to the TVs or the fans. He puts it up to his ear (kind of) and walks around and talks. It sounds kind like hello and then all baby jargon after. It is so cute. He really thinks he is getting away with something when he is using a real phone.
  
• He can open doors!! We have those lever handles on our doors here, so he gets into every room. He gets such great pleasure of opening the doors to get to Russ & Rach either while they are sleeping or using the bathroom. Russ plays with him with the door, so that doesn't help Rachel when she wants her privacy!! He gets into the pantry and will get out anything he can reach. Then he gives it to you and wants you to open it. One of these days I will open the tuna pouch and let him taste it. Little boogar will probably love it.
  
• He knows that there are other ways to open doors. For example the door at gymnastics – he knows you have to push the lever to open the door. He gets on his tippy toes and touches the lever, like he's going to do it himself. Then he will point to it and insist that I open it for him.
  
• This one is sweet – when he gives me a kiss, I say "ooooooooh, thank you" So now when he kisses me he immediately says "Oooooooooooooh" sometimes I get a thank you, but usually I have to thank him.
  
• He doesn't like to be told no and can get a little mad.
  
• He is also starting to get possessive of Adam & me. If Adam is playing with Russ or Rach, he has to be involved. Or if I am reading to either one, again, he has to get involved.
  
• Still working on some teeth. He has the 2 bottom teeth and one top tooth almost in and I think he is cutting (or getting ready to cut) 3 more on top and 2 more on the bottom.
  
• Words he is saying regularly and what they sound like:
  

  Hi Dad – Hi Da
  

  Thank You – Ank UUUUUUUUU (he says this one the 2^nd most!)
  

  This – Dis
  

  I Love You – uv U
  

  Mama – mmmmmmmmama
  

  Dada – dadadadadadda
  

  Russell – Ussel
  

  Rachel – Uchel
  

  That one – Dat Un (this is his most used phrase. It took us a while to figure out what he was saying!!!)
  

  Eva – Eva
  

  Wow- wow
  

  Whoa – Whoa
  

  Uh oh- Uh oh
  

  I am sure there are more, but I can't remember them right now, doh!
  

    

Summ-Summ-Summer Time

The weather man hit right on the nose this morning, weather wise, we have only had about 10 days of Spring. It is already in the upper 90s and it doesn't look like it is going to get cooler any time soon. This just adds fuel to my fire – getting' outta Vegas during the actual summer. Plans are starting to shape up. Unfortunately, Adam has to go to NM for a military exercise, so the plan just moves forward without him and hopefully, we'll catch him on the tail end of our trip.

So, here's the plan, even if you don't want to hear it ; ) My Dad's Mom is turning 90 this year and they (his siblings) are throwing a big party/luncheon at a winery in Plymouth, CA. I am not very close to this grandma, but all ten grandkids will be there and that is something that hasn't happened in years. It should be a lot of fun. The conflict for me is getting to Northern CA with the 3 kids minus Adam. I really want my car, so flying is not a good option. The 2^nd option is to have someone fly to me and drive with the kids and I. Adelle is stepping up to the plate and we will have an adventure together! I am looking forward to getting some alone time with her, she'd like to make a trip on her own and the kids adore her: we all win!

After spending a few days with the Vershaws, the kids and I will head to Napa and spend about a week with my mom. Martha already has the itinerary built, so it will be nonstop action! One of the fun and silly things we like to do is visit Train Town in Sonoma. The whole thing started with taking Russell and has continued with Rachel and carried over to Dawn's daughter, Ena, Shelly's son, Jackson, and Tonja's daughters too. So, of course, we have to take Rowan for his first trip and Tonja had a baby girl in February, Elizabeth, so the two newbies will get take their first Train Town trip together!! Tonja's kids and mine haven't been able to spend much time together, let alone experience any 'firsts' together, so even though it may be 'just' Train Town, it will be extra special! It is the little things that mean so much!!

After we wear out my mom in Napa, we'll go back up to Yuba City and the Vershaws and head off on the great NW Adventure. Meaning a big RV 'camping' trip. We'll head up through Oregon and top out in Seattle and make our way back. I think we'll be gone about 2- 2 ½ weeks. I am looking forward to it! My dad is a really good trip planner and quite frankly, I like to be a long for the ride. Grandma Rizzi (Dawn & TJ's grandma) once said "It's just so nice to be a passenger". I couldn't agree more. We'll get to see Andy a couple of times and Schelley in Seattle, which is a total bonus. One night we are staying at an RV park that is also a drive in movie theater – how fun will that be?!? We can put our chairs outside and watch a movie outside; the kids are going to love that.

At some point, Adam will fly up to Northern CA (and possibly Oregon) to catch up with up with us. We are hoping to leave the kids with the grandparents and get away for a weekend and then head back to Vegas.

August will hold some kind of trip too. I am hoping for san Diego area or maybe even Tahoe??? Adam will be deploying in the Fall, so we definitely want to get out and do something before he goes. All of the deployment stuff is up in the air and therefore, August is too. We'll figure it out – we always do!

20 Something Days and Counting.

Well, 2^nd grade is almost over. Where are we at? Russ doesn't like school. He is doing all right, not great, but not failing either. I feel bad for him. You never want your child to dislike school and 2^nd grade seems too young to not like school. Sigh. He has a great teacher and am hoping for another great teacher next year; I cringe to think where we'd be if we didn't have a good teacher. I wrote to the principal and asked her to place Russ in a good class since I don't know the teachers and I am afraid of what we'll get if the computer spits him out into any old class. So, I am hopeful she'll put him with someone that will continue to work with us to keep him successful.

His friend situation is still a concern. He has friends at school, but doesn't want to invite anyone over and he doesn't get invited over. He seems to eat and play at recess with the same group. I think at recess he will sometimes play with different kids or by himself. He's always been good at playing by himself without a care. He was like that when he was little. It is hard to tell what really goes on at recess, his memory for stuff like is bad and sometimes he's off in his own world that he just doesn't pay attention or process what is going on. It's frustrating.

I was at a PTSO meeting a couple of weeks ago (I am going to be on the Board next year. I have the easiest job – co-secretary) and we were meeting the principal and I told her who I was and that I had sent her a letter about Russ. Apparently she knows Russell, not in a bad way, which is saying something because there are over 1100 students at his school. Apparently she has sort of taken the librarian's twins and 'adopted' them as grandkids and the twins (girls) and Russ are in the same class and they all share the same birthday. Apparently the twins love Russell and spoke nonstop about him while they spent a weekend with the principal and her husband. She and her husband know all about Russell's likes and dislikes, his shark knowledge, etc. And this just furthers my point of frustration, Russ has no clue that the twins like him so much. Okay, maybe that is more of a girl vs boy thing. Who knows?

Russ is in 2 sports this season (soccer and tennis), not exactly great planning on my part. He doesn't like soccer this time. It is more the coaching style than it is soccer, I think. They are pretty serious soccer people and ride Russ pretty hard during practice b/c he is kind of a space case and his ADHD meds are wearing off, plus he's just not a coordinated guy. Never has been. So, while he needs the extra attention, our concern is that positive feedback and the negative feedback need to be equal. That is debatable. I think the other factor is that Russ doesn't do well when people are on his case a lot; he loses his confidence in what he's doing and then shuts down. We've talked to the coach, it does seem to be a little better on the coaches' part. We'll see. He doesn't hate soccer, but on Wednesday mornings he's already commenting on how he doesn't want to go. I never have to drag him out the door, if I did, then I think we'd let him quit. Oooh, that was painful just typing it. We are just taking it week by week.

After this season we are going to let Russ decide what he wants to do and keep it at one sport. I think he's voting for tennis. He's not great at tennis, but the coach has a totally different style. His feedback isn't negative, it is more constructive. Plus in tennis he has something to do with his hands. It seems like when he has something in his hands he's less likely to go off in his own world.

We are still in private speech. That is going well. We are up for a renewal, so we'll see if Tricare will give us more sessions. We've been lucky so far, so I am hoping for the best!

Anyway, as you can probably guess, Russ is counting down til summer break. Next up, summer plans! They are shaping up well and now I think I am kind of counting the days too!

Bumper Thumper

I am really using the list!!

 

When we moved here last July, we had the Minivan for just a few weeks. I had to take the kids on base to see the new pediatrician and get squared away with Russ's ADHD meds, etc. We were running a bit late and it was my first time to the hospital on base. I parked the van and immediately thought 'I shouldn't park here'. The parking lot spaces and aisles are narrow, there was a big truck across from us and I see every larger car has backed into their spot. I blow off my sense to repark and get the kids in the building –we were running late. Sure enough, when we returned my bumper had a dent and that truck was gone and you guessed it - no note. It just made me sad, you know. I think we had just made our first payment on it. All I could do was cry. (Ok, I was still nursing a 6 mos old and it was 100+ outside – hormonal and hot, not a good mix)

The Honda dealership in town doesn't do body work, but the guy gives me this card of a retired man who sets his own schedule and comes to you to fix those kinds of dents. My other option is to take it to a body shop and they'll replace the bumper. So, I called the dent guy in February. I know, I waited a while, but what I can say, I procrastinated. Well, the dent guy, Alex, is a retired master painter and former Sheriff as it turns out, AND he only takes cash, wink, wink, nod, nod. I got no problem with that. He comes and looks at the bumper, says he can do it for $200. $200, why the hell did I wait so long??? My deductible is like $500 and not having to deal with insurance is a bonus. Done.

Now, Alex makes his own schedule, so I had to rearrange around him, but for $200 I might have even let Russell miss school!!! Ha! He was going to do it at our house, but asked if he could take the bumper to his house and work the dent, paint it and use his heaters to get a good dry finish. I learned how to take off the bumper, (pretty simple), and that the van was missing half the anchors to hold the darn thing on. Never were put in, hmph, Honda. He brought back the bumper the next day; it looks so good, you can't even tell it was dented. It was $200 well spent and now all the moms that I see at gymnastics, ballet, etc. want his name and number b/c apparently everyone has some dent that needs to be fixed and everyone wants a good 'cash only' guy!!!

SSSSSSSSPPPRRRIIIIINNNNGGGGG BRRRRREEEEEEEAAAAAK!!!!!!!! (You know, in the “Spring Break, Woo Hoo” kind of voice)

Time to get typing on Spring Break. This is going to be difficult, as Rowan is trying to add his 2 cents by tapping on keys while I am!! He has a lot to say these days, but man, his typing skills are just not up to par!

Well, as it started out, I had no real plans for spring break. I wanted to do something, but travelling with the 3 kids alone is just not my idea of fun. Adam is so busy at work and that week was not looking good for him. So, when Pam & Dad suggested we meet in Anaheim for Disneyland, I was all for it! All I had to do was pack and drive the kids to CA, a feat I was sure the minivan and I could handle!! The plan was to drive to CA on Saturday, stop by my Aunt Kate's house, pick her up and go to see my Nana at her assisted living facility and then drop Kate off at home and head to the RV park where Dad, Pam & Adelle, (let's call them DPA from now on), were. The beauty of this is is that they are all within a 10 mile range. Then the kids and I would stay in the RV with DPA and then head home on Thursday, meaning 3 full days at Disney and 1 day to rest. A good plan!

Dun, dun, dun, duuuuunnnn. The week before Rowan gets this weird tummy bug, but seems to be getting over it. Okay, we're still good. Then Friday morning, as in the day before our departure, Russell is throwing up and Rowan starts up again too. Ok, Plan B? Umm, make Plan B!!! Plan B turned out to be wait and see what happens, if more throwing up, then hopefully leave Sunday, just one day late. Plan B in place, but luckily the turn around time was quick and we are still on for Saturday departure – phew! Mickey Mouse, here we come!!!

The drive to CA was GREAT. Could not have been any better. I've really figured this mom thing out. I packed a lunchbox for both Rachel & Russell, full of snacks, a couple of drinks and then they could eat what they wanted when they wanted and I didn't have to pull over to help. I sat Russ next to Row, who had diaper bag filled with yummies and toys that Russ could give him during the drive. As it turns out, Rowan wants what Russ has or what he thinks Russ has; like I said, I have totally figured this mom thing out! With Disney DVDs galore, we head out on the drive. Made it in just less than 4 ½ hours, hitting some traffic in Orange County. Just in time to pick up Kate, some lunch and go see Nana. This is a topic for another blog, but we had a nice visit, the kids behaved wonderfully and we left as nana was tired and so were we! We made it to DPA with plenty of time to walk the RV park, play at the cool playground and get out all our wiggles, have dinner and get ready for Disney Day 1!!! Let me add that the RV is HUGE. It has a bathroom with 2 sinks, a bedroom and then the kitchen/living room area has 3 beds and room for the pack n play, so while we might refer to it as 'camping', it really isn't camping.

Here we go, DAY 1…. Sunday, one week before Easter. I was expecting huge crowds and seemed like there were a lot of people, so we were expecting the worst. Remember how I said I got the mom thing down? I took Russell's lunchbox filled with snacks and attached it to the stroller. So, all day the kids could get a snack when they felt like it and I didn't spend a fortune on churros. I even took a plastic cup with a lid and could split drinks for the kids – a huge lifesaver b/c they think they drink a whole one, but they can't. Damn, when I am good, I am good! Okay, but back to Disney. We head to fantasyland first and go to Peter Pan, the line is 20 minutes and know that is the shortest it will be all day. We get in line and start looking around and notice that the rides in view have NO lines. I look at the family behind us in line and realize I KNOW them. The husband works with Adam at Nellis. How crazy is that??? That made the 20 minutes zip right by! So, after PP, we head to Snow White, Pinocchio, Toad's Wild Ride, Alice in Wonderland, Matterhorn, and Small World. All with either no wait or maybe 10 – 15 minutes. And in between, I am sending my dad to get fast passes for Buzz Lightyear and Autotopia, which he was awesome at doing and I think he got a kick out of my master planning!!! We finish all those rides and it is barely time for lunch. Rachel loved the Matterhorn – she said – that was too fast and too scary, let's do it again!!! Ha! Russ didn't like the Matterhorn, but really enjoyed Small World. He said something to the effect of – SW was so relaxing after Matterhorn and that's why he liked it. Next we hit Star Tours (the kids loved!), Buzz (another fave), Star Tours again and then time for lunch. Back to Buzz and Autotopia (boy has that changed in the last 10 years!!) and then over to Jungle Cruise, Pirates, Haunted Mansion, and Winnie the Pooh. Row even went on Pirates and didn't freak out. In fact he went on tons of rides and never freaked out. He would want to get up and get out when he thought the ride was over, but other than that he seemed to really like looking at everything and everyone. Day 1 turned out to be really great and we did way more than I had hoped for. The crowds dispersed well and we just took advantage of the short lines, it was great. The kids did well, but they were pooped by about 4pm and it was time to go. Rachel was so pooped that she fell asleep in the stroller. Kept nodding off and jerking herself awake. We have that sit n stand stroller, so her seat is a bench and there is nothing for her to lean against if she nods off. Poor thing. After cracking up at her for a few minutes, I did just carry her to the tram so she could snooze a bit. And at the tram, she woke up perky and ready!

On to DAY 2….. We decided to go to California Adventure (DCA) this day b/c we were unsure of the weather that was headed our way. I made dinner reservations for a Princess Dining Experience that evening, so we were in for a full day. Again, another good day, although a little warmer and humid due to the rain headed our way. I have never been to DCA, so I was looking forward to seeing why people like and dislike the park. We started with CA Soaring, a ride that makes you feel like you are hang gliding over CA. I wasn't sure how the kids would react b/c it lifts you in these seats and your legs dangle down. They LOVED it. Russ figured he could sit criss-cross-applesauce in the seat, Rachel followed suit and that made them more comfortable. At the end they had their feet out and pretending to dip their toes in the ocean. It was a fun one. Then onto Monsters, Inc (twice) – the kids were big fans. We watched the Muppet 3D movie; the kids cracked up, which made it fun for us big people! You felt like you were in the original Muppet Show Theater. That was cool. And those old guys were up in their seats making the usual funny cracks. Then Adelle, Rachel & I rode the Tower of Terror. I have to say that this is probably the best ride I have ever ridden. It was so fun. Rachel hated it, I tried to warn her beforehand, but she was determined to go and she was in tears afterwards. She learned to listen to mom a little bit better after that. Basically you are in a giant service elevator that goes up 13 stories so fast, you feel like you are going down. So while we were flying up, I thought we were going down and I was thinking, when did we go up??? Then you get to the top and these doors open and you realize you were going up. Then you make the big drop down in 3 drops. So it goes, drop, a little bounce, then a big drop, little bounce, and the last drop. Then you start the whole thing all over again. Back up you go!!! So fun and totally smooth. It was awesome. Awesome, awesome, oh, and did I say awesome????

Let's see… after Tower of Terror, Russ played on this Wilderness play structure with g'pa and the rest of us sat in the shade had some water and snacks. Then dad & I rode CA Screamin', the Disney roller coaster that you shoot off to like 50mph from 0, go upside and it has some pretty good drops. I think I would have liked that better if I hadn't just eaten a frozen banana! We waited in line for a Toy Story ride that is 3D and you shoot these goofy guns at like carnival games. That was a lot of fun! Everyone loved that and would have done it again, but the line was pretty long. I think we waited 30 minutes for it. The kids did good on that line, but weren't willing to wait again. Next up was Grizzly Run – a rapids ride – pretty standard. It was fun, wet. Rachel did this one and liked it. Then we had some time to spare before dinner. If we didn't have dinner reservations, we would have been done with DCA. So we headed over to a kid's area called Flik's Fair. Pretty simple rides, rode a couple and then went to dinner.

Oh boy, the Princess Dinner. First I could not believe the number of parents that hauled a princess dress around all day so their daughters could change into it before dinner. Crazy. Rachel had on a princess tshirt and had chocolate smeared all over it and her pants from a chocolate covered Mickey ice cream earlier. So, the deal with this is you go down and meet Ariel – she's the hostess princess and take pictures. Rachel did this and loved it. Then as you sit and eat, other princesses make their royal appearance (announcements, horn blowing, the whole deal) and they walk to every table to chat, take pictures, whatever. You get to pick from like 5 things for the meal, all were decent choices – tri tip, cioppino, pasta, chicken, etc. The kids had their choices too. At the table they have those 3 tier stands filled with finger foods, salad and fresh fruit ready for when you sit down. I liked that b/c we were hungry and it was waiting for us, no waiting for the food. After dinner they bring out these huge dessert platters for every table with assorted pastries, chocolates, etc. You get a lot of food, I think it is still overpriced, but what you are paying for is not waiting in line to see princesses at the park. Since I have just the one princess who may not be into princesses ever again, I thought it was a fair splurge for Rachel and fun to treat DCA since they pay for almost everything else. We saw Snow White, Cinderella (Rachel's fave), Jasmine, Mulan and one more, Belle, maybe? Anyway, Rachel liked talking to them, but didn't want to take pictures with them. Dad had his camera ready to snap a shot just in case!

Now let me give Russell's take on the whole thing. He was tired, we all were, and the children's menu had nothing he wanted. His choices were spaghetti & meatballs, tri tip with mashers, mac n cheese, grilled chicken breast tenders and maybe one other thing. He won't make a choice. I told him make a choice by blah blah time or I would choose for him. He doesn't choose, plenty of warning, I order him the tri tip b/c at home he likes it and mashers. Well, he says after he wants the chicken. Too damn bad, we already ordered, next time make your decision when you're expected to with everyone else. So, the meal was over for him in his mind, he was bordering on the turd side and after we left dinner, he was being rude to everyone and making comments about the worst meal of his life. Needless to say, Russell got a firm talkin' to. It is amazing how a boy who wants to get 'cool sharp prizes from Disneyland', (his words exactly), can change his attitude. But, he still got no dessert and we turned out the lights early for bed time. Typically Russ is so good, that if this is the bad/worst behavior, we can deal, but we still need to learn to not be rude to family/friends when things don't go our way.

DAY 3, a fresh start! So this was the question mark day for the weather. We decided to go back to Disneyland and take a chance. The weather was perfect, a little bit cool, but not too bad. This was the day with the biggest crowds, which was unexpected, but since we had done so much on Sunday, it didn't matter. Adelle & I rode Space Mtn while dad & Pam took the Rs to Toontown to play and see Mickey & Minnie. Space Mtn was fun, Adelle pointed out every cute guy she saw and I pointed out every guy that checked her out. Ha! Met up with the gang in Toontown and headed for Indiana Jones. Rachel was too small, but g'pa bought her an ice cream and she was good to go, well stay. Adelle & I took Russ and he loved it. I knew he would. Then he rode again with g'pa & g'ma – you gotta love fast passes!! Rachel made Adelle take her thru the Tarzan treehouse again while we waited for Russ, dad & Pam. We ended up having lunch at the Golden Horshoe, wasn't planned, but it turned out to be a fun thing. We saw a goofy play while we ate and relaxed. It involved a lot of audience participation and Russell just laughed the whole time. It felt good to sit and be entertained. I kept Row and the rest went to Tom Sawyer island, which is called Pirate's Lair now. The kids loved that and had sweaty foreheads!! Adelle, Rach & I rode Splash Mountain, which was Russell's fave at Disney World. He didn't want to ride this time, no big deal, but by the time we were off the ride, he had cotton candy!!! Ha! Rachel didn't like Splash and said when we were on an incline up, "I'll go wait with g'ma and g'pa!!!" Too late. She survived, wasn't traumatized, but I am not sure she'd do it again! Then we did Haunted Mansion and Star Tours again and called it a day.

We were all exhausted after a full 3 days. But it was a great time and very memorable! I really liked how the big people outnumbered the little people, that was a bonus. Doing stuff with DPA is always easy & fun. My dad is super anal about watching the kids and not losing them in crowds, which I appreciate. And he always had his camera ready so I didn't have take a lot of pictures, I can just get copies of his. I appreciated that too. There isn't too much drama, they are an easy group to be around. Just some teenaged drama with Adelle, but if she left her phone off and didn't text all day, that wouldn't be an issue. That could be a whole other topic!

Our last day, Wednesday, we went to the Santa Ana Zoo after it rained. Not a great zoo,( better than the Vegas Zoo), but a quiet park environment that was spacious, not crowded – a good little outing. The kids stayed at the RV in the afternoon and I went to see Nana one more time and I had a nice visit with her.

Thursday we headed back home. Missed all the traffic and made it door to door in just under 4 hours. Damn, you just can't ask for better than that! Besides all the fun family time, the trip reaffirmed to me that I need to get out of Vegas more than I am. It just felt good to get away from the flat brown city and I can't wait to get away again!