Help.

Today was a good day! Benjamin went to preschool with specific instructions NOT to roar at any of his classmates. (On Monday, the teachers told me he had been roaring and it was frightening some of the other children. ugh). So, my dragon did great and did not roar in class (although he did admit that he roared on the playground while they were playing Prince and Princess. He was the dragon, of course). When Miss Jenny brought him out to the car she said he had a great day and that he did NOT roar! Mission accomplished. phew.

Samuel and I made a trip to Target and Office Max while Benjamin was at preschool. We were in dire need of dogfood and a few other odds and ends. Samuel was a lil fussy during the shopping but refused to nap even though I lugged the stroller and shopping cart together through Target. He fell asleep as soon as we got back in the car.

Benjamin did NOT nap today (which is why he is in bed before 8 p.m.!)

I had a 14 year old girl come over this afternoon who will soon become my helper. She will be coming one afternoon a week to start. Please pray that this will all work out for us. I met her and her mom today and they both seemed great. She has a year of babysitting experience and a few other families she babysits for regularly. She won't quite be a babysitter to start off with. I will be here while she is here (with the exception of maybe walking the dogs around the neighborhood). She will be here to play with the boys, go for walks with us to the playground and with the dogs, go to dinner and shopping with us from time to time and eventually go to the pool with us too! Eventually, I hope it works out that we're all comfortable enough that I can run out and run some errands (alone) from time to time too.

Benjamin was so excited to meet his "new friend", as we called her, that he couldn't nap. He laid in bed for at least an hour. At one point I checked on him and he said "Is my new friend here yet?" I told him I would wake him up before she arrived but that didn't even work. He was just too anxious apparently! About every 10 minutes I kept hearing "Can I come downstairs now, Mommy?" (When she comes on Monday I will NOT let him know that she's coming before naptime. It will be a total surprise). Our home was unusually quiet when she and her mother arrived today. Benjamin was playing with Playdough and Samuel was taking an unusually late nap (because he didn't nap good earlier). So, they didn't get to meet Samuel and see how chaotic and loud it really can get but I'm sure she will not be too surprised since she does babysit for other families (right? hmmm).

Anyways, I'm on cloud nine about this right now. I feel like there is a lil light at the end of the tunnel. Not that life has been dark or gloomy. I just have had a lot of lil things I'd like to do and never seem to have the time. So, now I will make a list and be ready to get a few things done on Monday when help arrives!

Dad's Night

Tonight was a night I have been dreading for some time now. It was my first (and hopefully only) Dad's Night for Benjamin's preschool. Back in August, when I had gone to the preschool orientation I remember my eyes tearing up when they discussed Dad's Night in January and showed photos of the kids interacting with their dads.

Well, Ms. Katie came over tonight to watch Samuel around 6:30 p.m. and Benjamin, Flatdaddy and I were off to school!

It went great! I'm so glad we went. The teachers (Ms. Tracie and Ms. Jenny, pictured above) and other dads were all great. It was nice to meet some of the dads too. And a few of them really made an effort to interact with Benjamin as well. Giving him hi-5s and asking him questions. It was nice for him to get that kind of interaction. And a few of them asked about Don, how he's doing, how we're doing, etc. The outpouring of support is really nice.

Anyways, I was quite honored to wear a special custom tie that was handmade by Benjamin. We made a rain stick which they had been working on painting and preparing for us to work on. We all brought hammers and put nails in these long tubes then filled them with rice and popcorn kernels. Benjamin really got into it and had a great time hammering (Daddy-O would be so proud!). I snapped photos and had the camcorder too so Daddy will be getting lots of stuff from the night.

They also said the Pledge of Allegiance, sang a song about Dads, and the teachers read aloud some things that the kids said about their dads, then we had a snack and juice.

Here is Benjamin's information that he gave about his Dad:

My Dad

My Dads name is Daddy.

His job is to work with the Army.

He has brown eyes and brown hair.

Hi is 26, 7 years old. (not a typo, he gave 2 answers).

My Dads favorite thing to do is to wrestle me.

His favorite food is chicken nuggets and french fries.

I love my Dad because I love him so much.

The teachers didn't divulge whose Dad they were describing as they were reading so it was rather entertaining. Three year olds can really come up with some interesting facts about their Daddies! Benjamin did pretty good overall. (Some Dad's had green hair, favorite this was to shop, etc). I don't think Don is a huge fan of chicken nuggets though. Maybe Benjamin knows something I don't.

I left the Dad's Night feeling pretty good. The teachers were so complimentary on Benjamin and praising me as a parent too. It is so nice to have that kind of support. Some times it is nice to get a lil pat on the back from people you see often but sometimes don't have the time to visit with. Ms. Jenny commented on how smart Benjamin is and that he really gets it. He's doing great with his letters!

We had a good day overall today and Samuel and I were able to get a few things done while Benjamin was at school this morning. I finally got a good photo of him showing off his new teeth unfortunately he has food all over his face. About the only time the kid is sitting still is when he is strapped into his high chair, carseat or going to bed.

My Romantic Weekend!

Another week done and we're about 45 percent done with Don's tour in Iraq. He is keeping a spreadsheet and e-mailed it to me this week. As of Thursday he still had approximately 768 meals left before he heads back this way! Of course everything in the military is tentative so we won't start a true countdown to his return until we're a couple weeks out. I will be happy when we're at least 50% done with this deployment but, of course, I will be absolutely thrilled when it's 100% over. Right now it's hard to imagine that we're not even half way there yet. ugh. I know, it's the way you look at it. Is the glass half full or half empty. Stay positive. Just keep, keeping on and before we know it Don will be walking through that door day after day again and again. ahhh. I can only imagine what regular life will be like again.

The boys and I had a good weekend. And we just wrapped it up over at our good friends, Dave and Nelly's house. It was Reed's 1st Birthday! He's so stinking cute and had a blast making a mess of his cake. It's hard to believe he just turned 1. Nelly and I shared some of our first pregnancies together with Benjamin and Brooke (who will soon turn 3). But Reed and Samuel are just a few weeks apart. In fact, I think we will always remember the day we told each other we were expecting. We were so happy to be sharing our news with them and then Nelly announced she too was pregnant. We were all thrilled! It has been amazing watching our kids grow together and become such good friends at such young ages.

We headed over there today around 4:30 p.m. and made it home just in time for bed. ahhh. Samuel fell asleep on the way home so he was a cinch and Benjamin was wore out too (even after his 3+ hour nap today!).

Don called today. It was sooooo good to hear from him. He had perfect timing. The phone rang shortly after we got in from church and were settling in for lunch. I let Benjamin answer the phone and they had a nice chat. I think it's just as exciting for me to hear Benjamin talk to Daddy-O as it is for Benjamin (and Daddy!). The other day I was talking to our neighbor, Katie on the phone (yes, we talk on the phone occasionally even though our back decks are literally 4 inches apart from each other). Anyways, Benjamin asked if he could talk to Daddy and I explained that it wasn't Daddy on the phone that I was talking to Ms. Katie. I explained to him that Daddy calls us and that I don't know Daddy's number. (At this point in time, Benjamin is getting his numbers and letters confused still). So he says in a somewhat frustrated voice, "Mommy, yes you do know his number. His number is D." ha. "No, Honey, that's his letter NOT his number. Mommy doesn't know his phone number."

Well, Don totally surprised me yesterday. The boys and I didn't leave the house the majority of the day and in the late afternoon the doorbell rang. hmm. "Who could that be?" I thought as I wrestled to get the dogs calmed down so I could get to the door. It was a man holding flowers (the only thing that could make this story better is if that man would have been Don himself. No such luck). So, I opened the door and he said "I have flowers for a Mrs. Chapman." hmm. "That's me!" They were nothing glamorous. But I did notice that they were alstremaria which was my Grandma's favorite flowers. (I'm posting a photo of the bouquet which also included some pine cones and some sprigs of some sort. For those of you not familiar with alstremaria, it is in the lily family but much smaller than a lily and they come in a wide range of colors).

I took my Grandma shopping once a week for a few years from the time my Grandpa was ill with cancer until I married Don and moved to Tennessee. One thing my Grandma taught me in life (not through words but through her actions) was that it was okay to buy flowers for yourself. My Grandma always had fresh flowers on her table. As a child I remember their rose garden out in their back yard. It was a beautiful row of roses. It was their pride and joy (that and their vegetable garden, which, as a child didn't compare in excitement to the beautiful roses). So, I remember my Grandpa walking out back with me to share his rose garden every time we were getting ready to leave their house in the summer. We visited them frequently, as they did us. We lived about 45 minutes away from each other. Anyways (my mind just keeps going off on tangents so bare with me here), Grandpa would always let me pick what rose(s) I wanted to take home with me. I fondly remember yellow roses being Grandpa's favorites. And they quickly became my favorites as well (which was what our wedding bouquets were made of over 8 years ago).

So, back to the alstremaria I received from Don. I brought it in and placed it right on the kitchen table. Benjamin was a lil curious. "Where did the flowers come from?" "Daddy sent them to us, Benjamin. He loves us and wants us to know it." I smiled and thought it was probably coincidence that the flowers happened to be alstremaria. Although, I thought it kind of an odd choice on the florists part. I e-mailed Don last night and thanked him for the beautiful flowers and wonderful note too. It tickled me that he did that for me. So, then today he called and he mentioned the flowers again and asked what kind they were (probably half checking to make sure the florist didn't screw up and half checking to make sure I noticed). He said he picked alstremaria because they were my Grandma's favorite. How the heck he would ever remember something like that is beyond me. I often pick up bouquets with alstremaria when I'm grocery shopping so maybe I mentioned it then. hmm. Don't know. I was just touched that he really put that kinda thought into it. If you have been keeping up with my blog lately you know that I recently mentioned my Grandma and her passing. And that is what lead him to sending me them. And the note that said it is truly the little things and he knows how much I love the little things in life.

There it is. The lil bit of romance that filled my weekend. Even from worlds away, that Don Chapman can remind me of why I fell for him! He can be a charmer. And as Benjamin told Brooke tonight while we sat eating dinner "You are a princess, Brooke", I just have to think it may be a sign that the charming qualities Don has will definitely live on in our boys.

Photos from Don

In my last blog entry I mentioned that Don went to a USO sponsored concert featuring Third Day this past weekend. Today he e-mailed me a few photos from the event.

In these photos, Don and some of the guys are waiting for the concert to start, a photo of the Third Day concert and also a photo of Don with CSM Jeffers.

Don also sent this photo. The photo was taken on a packed C-130 airplane flying from Ali Asalem, Kuwait to Baghdad International Airport Iraq after spending 18 days with me and the boys on R&R.

Don also sent this photo today. He said a guy pulled a Pi Kapp flag out of his bag to get a photo, and he saw it. "I told him I was a Pi Kapp too, so he passed it down the length of the aircraft so I could get a photo too. "

"I want to be a BIG Cow."

With the combo of the cold weather hitting us hard this weekend as well as the boys coming down with yet another cold we didn't do too much of anything this weekend.

Friday evening after the boys went to bed I took a good look at our dog, Campbell. His eye has been tearing for a couple of weeks now and he just hasn't seemed like himself. So, I tried to picture myself with both boys taking Campbell into the vet and it was NOT a pretty picture. So, I called our friendly and helpful neighbor, Katie. She didn't have plans for Saturday so she was more than willing to come hang out with Samuel while Benjamin and I took Campbell to the vet. I called first thing Saturday morning and they had one appointment open. Phew. Well, in addition to Campbell having some sort of conjunctivitis he also has a cracked tooth. Poor guy. And, as some of you know, I am NOT an "eye person." As in, I cannot even listen to people talk about putting their contacts in, the laser surgery, or even the thought of contacts for myself is nauseating. Anyways, here I am with eye drops for Campbell. 4 times a day for 3 days! I'm doing pretty good at holding him down and actually getting them into his eye. Needless to say, I'm quite proud of myself on that accomplishment. And Campbell's eye already looks much better. He will get his teeth cleaned and taken care of at the beginning of February (dental hygiene month and a 20% discount for cleanings at our vet...I was planning on taking him regardless).

I'm posting a photo of Samuel playing tug with Campbell. The dogs received this new toy for Christmas and I'm not sure who enjoys it more: the dogs or Samuel. Samuel loves to carry it around all over the house, as do the dogs. And they all enjoy a good game of tug with it.

The trip to the vet was eventful in a lot of ways. For Benjamin anyways. It was his first trip (that he can recollect) to the vet. He was bursting with questions. The vet was great with him too! When he put drops in Campbell's eye and looked at it with a black light (yuck!) the doctor showed Benjamin how the black light made his socks glow. He thought that was pretty neat. He also gave him a coloring book. I on the other hand, was a lil overwhelmed when I got home and thought about all the questions I could/should have been asking in regards to Campbell (not in response to Benjamin).

That was pretty much the highlight of our day on Saturday and besides going to church on Sunday we did not leave the house this weekend. It was a good weekend for Benjamin and I to do puzzles, bake cupcakes and watch Disney movies. I thought we might venture out today to run some errands but Samuel was up coughing during the night and I thought we best stay in and all catch up on some rest (and stay out of the cold!)

Benjamin had me in both tears and laughter this weekend. At one point he just said out of the blue "We saw Grandma and Pappa with the boats (apparently, my mom has pretty memorable toy boats in her tub) and Grandma and Papa Chapman. But we forgot to go to Great Grandma's house." As most of you know, my Grandma Duda passed on this past spring. I hadn't really talked to him about it over Christmas or do I remember telling him much about her passing last spring. Of course, I missed visiting with her this Christmas and it was difficult for me from time to time to think of her not being with us. But with all the craziness of Christmas I really tried to not let myself go there. On Thursday, I sent a friend an e-mail that mentioned my Grandma and it was just so ironic to me that Benjamin should bring her up now. He has such a big heart. And memory too. The last time he saw Great Grandma was last Christmas. She truly enjoyed her great grand kids. Watching them grow, hearing about them and visiting with them. I missed her this Christmas and tears came to my eyes as I told Benjamin that we won't see her again until we're in heaven. A concept I don't think his mind has yet grasped.

On a lighter note, tonight we were talking about what he could be when he grows up. And he said he wants to be a "big cow". Funny, I know. Especially out of context. If you have been keeping up with my blog for awhile you may recall that Benjamin and I were cows for Halloween. He often asks about Halloween (and yes, we are still counting down the days til next Christmas Eve). He says he wants to be a cow again for Halloween. "A big cow". Well, the other day I had explained that he would have to be a grown up to be a "big cow." So, tonight when I asked him what he'd like to be when he grows up his answer was pretty straight, "a big cow". After some discussion, he decided he'd like to be a race car driver. But he doesn't want to wear the helmet or suit. I told him he can't be a race car driver with out a helmet or suit. So, he tells me that Hunter's dad drives his race car without a helmet and suit. "Honey, Hunter's Daddy drives a sports car NOT a race car." So, the conclusion we came to is that he will work and save money to have a nice BLUE sports car (everything is blue in his world. It is his favorite color as he will not hesitate to tell anyone). And for Halloween when he is a grown up he will be "a big cow", of course.

Don called on Sunday. His cold is getting better although he definitely still sounded like he had a cold. The boys both went down for naps so I was able to talk to him for a bit. I always feel bad when Don misses out on talking to the boys and they miss hearing from him but I have to admit that sometimes it is nice to give him my undivided attention. Although, with e-mail sometimes it seems as if we don't have a whole lot to say or I just think of the things I wanted to say after we hang up the phone. Those 15 minutes or so once a week just don't cut it!

Don went to a USO sponsored concert Saturday night with the band Third Day. It sounded like he enjoyed that.

Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!

Yesterday we finally had a pretty good snow fall here. It is not often that we get a decent snow fall here in Northern Virginia (well, not compared to Illinois anyways!)

It was a beautiful snow fall that started mid morning and lasted into the evening. All in all we ended up with around 5 inches. I managed to snap a few photos while I was on my lunch break.

As you can imagine, the roads got a lil sloppy and, eventually, everyone was leaving work early so I left around 3:30 p.m. It was a nice break. I went to pick up the boys but Benjamin was still napping. He and Jack did have the opportunity to play out in the snow as it fell. And they built a snowman too.

Well, we'll see what the weekend brings. No big plans this weekend which is nice for a change. The snow is already starting to melt. But it may snow again tomorrow and Sunday it is supposed to be in the teens. Yikees!

As for Don, he e-mailed on Wednesday reporting that he was suffering from a wicked head cold. He was going to leave work early that day and get some rest. He hasn't said if he's feeling better but I imagine that, since he hasn't been whining about it, he must be on the mend.

I think the boys are coming down with a head cold as well! ugh. Benjamin has been coughing and sneezing and his nose has been running non stop. Samuel woke up with a messy nose this morning too. Hopefully, this cold won't linger too long.

Who Let the Dogs Out?

Today was a pretty uneventful day in a lot of ways but a good day overall.

Benjamin started our day at about 5:55 a.m. ugh. Any minute before 6 a.m. is too early for me. But he was already en route downstairs so I made my way down to the couch downstairs and snuggled up until Samuel woke up around 7 a.m.

Benjamin had preschool today and Samuel napped the entire time. It was a nice break! I felt like I was able to get a few things done around the house.

I finally managed to get the remaining Christmas lights down that were outside. So, now all the Christmas stuff is safely tucked away for another 11 months.

The boys both took a good nap this afternoon too so it was bonus time that I managed to even have more "me time!" ahhh. Time well spent doing laundry and sorting out mail, bills, junk mail, etc. Fun. I really don't know how people with kids work full time. Never mind the thought of being a single parent working full time. The mere thought just exhausts me. I definitely have a new level of respect for those parents.

After nap time we enjoyed some play time. Samuel really is a funny character these days. He loves his brother so much and is so excited whenever he pays any sort of attention to him. He follows him around everywhere he goes and into everything. Benjamin adores Samuel too but he's not so fond of the fact that Samuel is interested in all of his big brother's toys!

I'm including a photo that I took of Benjamin letting the dogs out the back door. Samuel is right there with his big brother helping him out.

One of Benjamin's latest words is "frustrating." As in "Mommy, you're frustrating me." or "This toy is frustrating me." It's so cute to hear him put the words together. You can really tell he is thinking hard to put the word into context and he does a pretty good job with it. Hmm. I wonder where he has picked up that word anyway? I would like to think that he picked it up from a show on t.v. but that is probably not the case. Hopefully, overall, after this deployment the boys will not be too messed up by my lack of patience and somewhat elevated stress level. Time will tell.

Benjamin's Christmas Photos

Benjamin received a new Fisher-Price digital camera from Uncle Tim and Caris and cousins Evan and Ian for Christmas. I'd have to say it's a big hit. He LOVES it!

I'm just now getting around to downloading the photos so I put them in a slide show for all to see. I think he's a pretty good photographer for a 3 year old!

NOTE: All photos taken by Benjamin except the ones of him, of course!

Words about our Weekend

Our weekend just flew by! It's hard to believe it's Sunday night already.

Saturday our neighbor, Katie, joined us as the boys and I ventured out to the mall. It was nice to finally get out. It seems like it's been awhile since we've gone anywhere or done anything since the boys were sick. We returned home from the mall just in time for naps. Both boys napped while I showered and got ready for my work holiday party. (The party wasn't until 6 p.m. but I thought I better take advantage of nap time to shower and get ready with as lil interruption as possible).

The boys went over to Natalie and Dennis' house who graciously offered to watch them and keep them overnight! It was a nice treat for me. The boys are so used to going over there since that is where they go while I work and Natalie knows them just about as well as I do. Benjamin was so excited to be having a sleep over.

I had a nice time at the holiday party. Although I have to admit that the quiet drive to the party was a bit odd. No kids in the car and no date. I had several co-workers who were going alone for one reason or another and they had decided on a "singles table" ahead of time so no worries on feeling outta place at all. The food was awesome and it was nice to catch up with some co-workers too. I was inundated with inquires about how Don is doing. It is nice to have the support and concern of my co-workers but at some point I thought the idea of holding a press conference before hand regarding Don's status could have ended a lot of repetition of my conversations. However, it was definitely a conversation starter.

I left the party around 11 p.m. It was close to home so I was home by 11:15 p.m. I thought I would let the dogs out then head straight for bed. But as soon as I opened the door to the house I smelled an incredibly overwhelming icky funk. ugh. It is pretty rare that one of our dogs gets really sick. But as I approached Loudoun's crate I realized she was the culprit and had been sick for some time. Poor girl. I felt horrible for her and was also dreading the amount of cleanup time this operation was going to take. All in all, it wasn't too bad really. I was in bed by 11:45 p.m.

This morning I first woke up at 6 a.m. Somehow the clock in my body is just set so that I open my eyes and look at the clock at that time regardless of any lil people waking me. ugh. I finally pryed myself outta bed around 7 a.m. and discovered that while I was cleaning up Loudoun's mess downstairs last night she was upstairs getting sick. I hadn't realized this. So, the cleanup continued. Then I walked the dogs which was nice. I know they miss those daily morning walks. By the time I arrived to pick up the boys it was about 8:30 a.m. Samuel was just waking up. But Benjamin woke up first at their house around 7 a.m. Natalie mentioned that they were surprised how much energy he wakes up with. Ahh. Did I forget to mention that? Sorry. I guess I'm just used to his early morning happy energy. Some days it is endearing other days it is overpowering.

Just this week Benjamin had snuggled up in bed with me around 6 a.m. one day and declared "Mommy, I love you so much." (That's when it's endearing).

The rest of our day today was not so eventful. We finally made our way back to church after a long hiatus of traveling and the boys being sick. It was nice to see our church family again.

Don called this afternoon, right as Benjamin was going down for his nap. They got to talk for a lil bit and Benjamin told Daddy how he had been sick. Benjamin also asked Daddy if he has his gun. I don't know if I mentioned to Don that Benjamin had asked me about Daddy carrying a gun recently but he did. I thought it was rather out of the blue. But it's amazing what kids think about. I just reassured him that Daddy carries a gun to keep him safe. This is a recent fascination. He hadn't brought it up again since his original inquiry over a week ago so I was a bit surprised when he started to asked Don about it again today. Oh well. Boys will be boys. He is also fascinated with dragons and monsters lately too.

Don sounded good. He reported that he's down to only about 9 1/2 months now until he leaves Iraq.

Of course, I missed having Don by my side at my work's holiday party last night. He usually enjoys himself as much as I do. I have been with that company over 5 years now and we've gotten to know some really neat people. Some co-workers got a package together over the holidays and shipped it off to him. I think he was overwhelmed with all the cards, letters and packages he received and truly enjoyed getting all the mail too. I have the next package to him in the works but I have not been really good about sending him things lately. I've got to get on the ball again now that everyone here is feeling better. No more excuses!

Samuel is 11 months old today! It is hard to believe that he will be a year old next month already! Time is going by so fast. He surely is not a lil baby anymore. I miss that already! He is just go, go, go now and a true joy in so many ways.

Clownin Around

Christmas is over. Of course, Benjamin is already asking how many days until Christmas. Right now the math is somewhat easy but sooner or later I don't think my answer is going to come so readily.

I just finished the ongoing project of taking the Christmas tree down. (Which was not a fun chore considering the ornament hanging is usually my main part of that task). Since Don was home in November the tree went up on Thanksgiving day. I didn't pay any attention as to how he assembled it but I wish I had. Hopefully, it is only 3 pieces because that's how it's packed away! It was another gorgeous day here and I managed to get the majority of the outside Christmas lights down while the boys were sleeping. Only a few strands remain on our back deck. I will get to them soon.

Overall, our day was pretty good. Samuel and I ran to Target and Wegmans (a local grocery store) while Benjamin went to preschool this morning. After preschool we stayed at the school playground for Benjamin, Jack and a couple other boys from Benjamin's class to play. It was so nice out and great to let the boys just run.

This evening we rediscovered the hat/dress up bin. We all enjoyed being silly. Benjamin was very thoughtful and noticed that we had one extra bandanna for when Daddy comes home. And an extra party hat too (You are in luck, Daddy-O! But sorry, only one clown nose, so you will have to compete for that one).

It was a pretty good day and I feel like I actually got a few things accomplished. I just feel like I have a heck of a lot more to do to still clean up from Christmas and our trip. Having a houseful of sickies really threw me for a loop. It is nice to be getting back into the groove of life again.

Hopefully you can tell by the photos I'm posting, Samuel is feeling much better. Finally, everyone is on the mend. Samuel's nap wasn't as long as I had hoped but he was good and pretty much staying out of trouble while I took the Christmas lights off the tree. I was just thankful they both slept long enough for me to get done what I did.

Time for me to finish up some laundry before I get ready to head back to work tomorrow. (Apparently, I was a lil behind on Benjamin's laundry after constantly doing Samuel's for the past week. Tonight when he put his dirty clothes in his hamper he said "Who took my clothes out." He had noticed it was full too. And really noticed the difference when it was actually empty.)

Roll On

This morning my alarm went off at 6 a.m. ugh. After about three weeks of not having to answer to an alarm it was hard to move a muscle. But I managed to pry myself outta bed.

Benjamin woke up shortly after that as did Samuel. By 7:30 a.m. we were off to see Ms. Natalie, Jack and Nicholas and Benjamin was excited. I stocked the boys bag full of extra clothes for Samuel and he didn't end up going through any of it. His tummy is getting somewhat better and he's eating a lil more now. At least one top tooth has popped through and it looks like one to three more will arrive soon.

On my way to work I heard a song that Don and I have often listed to as we make road trips (usually to and from Illinois). The song is "Roll On (Eighteen Wheeler)" by Alabama. It was just the pick me up I needed to start my new year back at work. So I turned it up and belted out the tunes...

"Roll On Roll on highway, roll on along

Roll on daddy till you get back home

Roll on family, roll on crew

Roll on momma like I asked you to do..."

"...As three sad faces gather 'round momma

They ask her when daddy's comin' home

Daddy drives an eighteen-wheeler

And they sure miss him when he's gone (yeah they do)

Ah, but he calls them every night and he tells them that he loves them

He taught them this song to sing

Roll on highway, roll on along

Roll on daddy till you get back home

Roll on family, roll on crew

Roll on momma like I asked you to do

And roll on eighteen-wheeler, roll on (roll on)..."

So, he's not quite a truck driver but here we are rolling on...and on...and on...

The best part of celebrating this new year is that this is our year! The year Daddy-O will be heading back our way. We can hardly wait. 9 1/2 months to go (I'm sure Don has the exact tally or as close to an estimate of arrival stateside as he can have).

Don called yesterday to talk to the boys (since he had missed talking to them the day before). Benjamin enjoyed talking to him and Samuel loves to hear his voice too. It was right after naptime so it was perfect timing. Both boys were awake.

Well, my day back at work was none too exciting. But it was a gorgeous day here in the mid-60s. Unseasonably warm, sunny, beautiful and a little windy. I enjoyed taking the dogs for a nice walk at lunch and they soaked up the attention and exercise as well.

After picking up the boys Benjamin voted on picking up McDonald's for dinner. We actually rarely eat fast food but it sounded good. So, we stopped and then headed for home. When I was about half way through my crispy chicken sandwich I turned the bun over and discovered that it was spotted in a not so appetizing shade of green. ugh. gag. ick. So, I called the McDonald's and spoke to the manager. He didn't seem too alarmed. He said "sorry" and that I could come back for another sandwich. Like that's what sounded good to me at this point (never mind the thought of dragging two kids back out for another sandwich). He said just to mention his name next time I was in and they'd replace the sandwich. "Thanks, Frank, we will not be eating McDonald's for some time after this."

After Samuel managed to stay in the same clothes all day for Natalie without incident he blew the side out of diaper for me. Now that's what I call love. Thanks, lil buddy. It was bath time anyhow so in the tub went both boys. They really enjoy bath time and I enjoy the time that I can keep track of them both in one place for that amount of time. Before I knew it we were reading books, saying prayers and giving kisses goodnight. Our night went by incredibly fast. Now I remember why I work. It was a day I definitely needed (minus the moldy bun from McDonald's).

Roll on...

Baby O Arrived and Our Not So Exciting Adventures

Yesterday was a very exciting day. (Not for us directly but I'll ramble about that in the rest of the blog entry). It was a great day for my dear friend Michelle and her family! They welcomed Eli Patrick into their family. He was born at 2:50 p.m. (and I waited all day for that phone call!) He weighed 9lbs 13 oz. and was 22 inches long (a whopper even by Michelle's boys' standards!). He's a beautiful boy and we're so happy for them. Congratulations Michelle, Eric and big brothers!

As hinted above, it was another uneventful day of housebound sickies. Samuel is still not up to par and I was feeling under the weather this morning too. I haven't even left the house to pick up the newspaper out front!

Benjamin is back to his normal energetic self which is great but exhausting in some ways! He took about a four hour nap today (after waking at 5:45 a.m.) so that was nice. Samuel and I had a lot of fun playing while his big brother napped. Unfortunately, I feel like Samuel sometimes misses out on so much of the one on one time that Benjamin and I / Don had at that age. Such is life of the second child (never mind the deployed Daddy!).

We did venture out to Target yesterday morning. It was nice to get out of the house and get a couple things done. We ran into our friend, Nelly and her daughter, Brooke there and Benjamin thought that was pretty neat. The only major mishap while we were there was that Samuel tossed a bottle out of the cart which poured about 4 ounces of milk in an aisle. ("The Chapmans are here. Clean up on Aisle C36!"). I let an employee know and they cleaned it up before too much damage was done.

I finally purchased a space heater for our lower level! I'm so excited. This is where our computer is located and I end up going to bed feeling like a Popsicle after making most blog entries. Not tonight! When I plugged the baby in it said it was 59 whopping degrees. (Yes, Popsicle weather, indeed!). So, it's set for 70 degrees and I'm already feeling toasty at 61! Sweet. (Note: No worries, I plan to turn it off and unplug it every time I'm done using it).

Yesterday afternoon after the boys and I all took naps. I decided we needed to get out of the house and take a walk. The dogs hadn't been for a walk since we got back from Illinois. And Campbell had been driving me nuts. Poor guy got all this exercise while we were gone and then we come back here and nothing. So, I called Ms. Katie and she agreed to walk with us. Then she said she was going to pick up McDonald's for dinner did we want anything. So, we placed our orders and invited her to stay for dinner when she returned. We had a nice visit with her. I'm sure she has her fill of kids by the time she leaves our crazy house! But it's nice to have some adult interaction on my end!

Anyways, the highlight of my day is that Don called today. It was so good to talk to him. Unfortunately, the boys had just gone down for their naps so they didn't get to speak to him (which totally breaks my heart). I really can't bear to tell Benjamin he missed Daddy-O's call so I do tell him that Daddy loves him and misses him, sends him big hugs, etc. I just tend to leave out the part that I spoke to him today while he was sleeping (he might never nap again if he thought he was going to miss Daddy's phone call!).

Don sounds pretty good. He's been working a lot and completing some correspondence course work he needs to finish up as well. But it sounds like he's taken the time to enjoy some DVDs and celebrate the holidays with coworkers. He's pondering what car he/we will buy when he returns and also trying to make decisions regarding his next assignment. All exciting yet somewhat major decisions happening in our lives in the not so far off future.

Don made a new years resolution to send more postcards to Benjamin and I'm sure Benjamin will be excited as they start to arrive (any day now).

Well, it's a toasty 62 degrees already. I could type all night. ha. I think I'm really going to enjoy this space heater!

Happy New Year

Well, it has been a very busy new year for us so far. Unfortunately, we have barely left the house. And most of the busy work has entailed cleaning up and caring for two sick lil boys. ugh. I have been doing laundry non-stop since the day we got back from Illinois and not because I came home with a ton of dirty laundry either.

Samuel has a cold but his runny nose seems to be easing up a bit lately. But on top of that he came down with a stomach bug on Tuesday, I think (all my days are running together). He has been a lil miserable but mostly just exhausted and sleeping a ton. He's been sleeping 13 hour nights then waking up for an hour or two and going back down for a morning nap.

On New Year's Eve, our sick baby, Benjamin and I all stayed in. The boys were in bed at 8 p.m. and I decided it was a good a time as any to assemble Benjamin's new tool bench. That took a good hour and then I decided to relax a bit. About 11:30 p.m. I headed up stairs to bed to cozy up and spend the new year with none other than Dick Clark. But Samuel had other plans for me. He started stirring and so we snuggled up together until he settled back down. Apparently, he didn't want to miss out on Dick Clark's festivities either.

Benjamin started back at pre-school on Wednesday and was happy to be going back. It was pretty cold here that day and I dreaded taking Samuel out anywhere with his cold and flu but off to school we went. After that we didn't go anywhere else for the day. We ate lunch and the boys went down for their nap. But before long (just as I was snuggling up for a much needed nap for myself) Benjamin woke up miserable and covered in his lunch. ugh. The joy of parenting! Poor guy. I cleaned him up as well as his bed and started another vicious laundry cycle! ugh.

We snuggled up in our bed for a good part of the afternoon yesterday. And Benjamin was sick all day until about 11:30 p.m.

Our great neighbor, Katie saved the day once again! She ran to the grocery store to pick up some things for us (including Popsicles for the boys) and then to Panara to grab me a soup bowl. God was really watching over us when he gave us Katie as a neighbor. She has been an angel to us in so many ways.

Today was supposed to be my first day back to work but after Benjamin came down with the stomach bug yesterday I called in. We actually all slept in until around 8 a.m. today (even though we were all up throughout the night). Phew. We needed that.

Benjamin slept in bed with me last night so I could keep my eye on him. And he kept telling me throughout the night that he was thirsty. I felt so bad for him but I knew if he drank something it would just upset his stomach more. At one point I told him that he could have something to drink when it was daylight. So, he was quiet momentarily then piped up and said "Mommy, turn the light on." I was like "No, why?" and he said "So, I can have a drink. I'm thirsty." Apparently, he thought the term "daylight" included turning the lights on. He also tricked me once by saying he had to go potty and insisted on using his bathroom. I couldn't figure out why he insisted on using his bathroom until he tried to sneak a drink of water from his cup at his bathroom sink while washing his hands.

In the morning Benjamin drank a bit and kept it down. Then when I had him take a bite of toast it all came back up. ugh. Besides that incident, he seems to be on the mend today. Although besides some fluids the only thing he's eaten is a Popsicle and some goldfish snacks. Samuel had his first taste of a Popsicle and took a keen liking to them (of course!).

Samuel's appetite is lacking too. He's barely taking a bottle compared to his normal intake. I'm sure he won't turn petite over night but this bug may take some weight off of our "chunker munker".

Well, I think I still have a pillow and some bedding in the dryer. So I better go get some rest.

Happy New Year!