Summertime Blues

Life sure has thrown us for a few loops lately but I guess we were due.

Last week Samuel came down with horrific cold symptoms and by Thursday evening I was calling our super neighbor, Katie and asking if she'd join me as we ventured out to the Urgent Care nearby. Katie was able to keep Benjamin entertained with a Thomas the Train table they had set up in the lobby while I got Samuel checked out. He was absolutely miserable. He had a fever of 101.9 and it was obvious that it was more than just his teeth that was bothering him. He was drooling like crazy. Just pools of drool every time he opened up his mouth. He was crankier than I'd ever seen him and refused to eat anything. They ended up finding redness on his throat and did a strep test. I was glad I had taken him and we left with a prescription for an antibiotic. Slowly and a couple of sleepless nights later, Samuel was himself again.

On top of that our air conditioner went out. Luckily I was able to find someone that came out to our house almost immediately. Temperatures were in the mid to high 90s and reaching the high 80s in our house. ugh. Not fun with a sick baby that was clinging to me. On Friday our air was fixed. Phew. I really don't know how people do it without the luxury of air conditioning. I guess we're pretty spoiled.

Friday evening Benjamin had a program for Vacation Bible School (which he and his best buddy, Jack had attended all week at our church). Since the antibiotics had been running through Samuel for 24 hours at that point and he seemed to be feeling much better, I decided we'd make it. Benjamin was so cute. He just lit up when he marched into the church with the other 3 and 4 year olds and saw me there. There had been 22 kids in his age group the majority of the week; however, only about 10 showed up for the evening program. They sang the "B-I-B-L-E" song. Samuel did very well and probably stayed on my lap better than he ever would have if he would have been feeling 100 percent.

Saturday came and Benjamin started with the fever and not feeling well. By Sunday he was miserable, feverish and not eating.

Today I was supposed to work but after another couple of sleepless nights I opted to make a doctor's appointment for him instead. By the time we made it to the doctors for his 1:30 p.m. appointment he was doing much better. And he preceded to ask for some Cheeze-It crackers and a Capri-Sun. However, he does still have some nasty spots in his mouth and in his throat. Apparently, it is "Hand-Foot-Mouth Disease" season... so, 'tis the season. ugh. I pray we never have to encounter this season at our home again.

The worst seems to be over and I look forward to a well rested night in my bed... alone... without little feet pressed up against my back... arms flailing in my face at odd hours... etc.

I took a short video clip of the boys this afternoon after our trip to the doctors. It is so obvious that they're both feeling so much better! Ahhhhh. A big sigh of relief. Finally back to normal around here.

Our Lil Monkey

Hmmm....

I always had a fondness for that curious lil monkey.

Major Crocodile and Captain Froggie Bear

The adventures continue...

I took this video last week also but I had trouble uploading it at the time. Benjamin loves this video clip and has watched it over and over again.

Benjamin is obviously showing off his theatrical side!

Turtle Dance

Benjamin loves to dance and often breaks out into his famous "Turtle Dance" when we're in the car. Last week I just happen to capture a lil bit of the Turtle Dance in action while we were sitting at a lengthy stoplight. (My blinker is louder than the music that was playing but that didn't stop him from dancin'!)

Me: "What is it? What's that called?"

Benj: "Turtle Dance."

Me: "Let me see the turtle... Good turtle dancing... What's your turtle's name?"

Benj: "uh...Blue."

Me: "Blue, of course."

Fun in the Sun

We've had a couple of busy days and the weekend is not over yet!

Friday the boys and I met my friend and co-worker, Kelli, and her three boys at a nearby park. We spent about an hour there and it wore Samuel out (and probably her three as well!). The boys had a ball and we discovered there is a Starbucks right near the park so we grabbed some smoothies as we left which made it easy for me to convince the boys to leave! Nothing beats a Strawberries and Creme from Starbucks after a good hour of hard playing!

Today brought about three major outings: a trip to Harris Teeter grocery store, the Vacation Bible School Kick Off Carnival and a trip to our pool with our super neighbor, Ms. Katie. The boys went to bed so easily tonight after all that!

At the VBS Carnival today Samuel had as much fun as Benjamin playing games. He loves putting and throwing things in and out of places so he really enjoyed all the bean bag toss games. And they had balloons too so he was happy as could be.

Samuel is proving to be quite the athlete even at the pool. I watch him like a hawk and don't take my eyes off of him in the kiddie pool. The water is shallow but he can still easily lose his balance and be face first in the water in an instant. He is getting steadier on his feet in there though with each visit we make. Today he only lost his balance once and amazed Katie and I that he pulled his face back up and out of the water faster than I could even get to him. It was really something to see. He doesn't even flinch when he does go under water and just comes back up smiling and ready for more action. (Benjamin is the opposite but is getting better with every visit to the pool). So, today I put Samuel under water in the big pool and pushed him in a swimming manner towards Katie. He did great. He was under water for a second or two and came up again smiling in her arms. I had taken Benjamin to swimming lessons when he was about 6 months old and we had done that with Benjamin many times when he was a baby but this was Samuel's first attempt at swimming and he did great! I hope to keep practicing this with him and maybe eventually he'll swim like a fish or at least not be afraid of the water.

Benjamin is loving the water. He wears a swimming vest in the big pool and loves to jump off the side into my arms. He is getting braver and more comfortable about the water and hasn't cried when he's gone under water the past few visits. (When he jumps in he's bound to go under the water a time or two. I just need to get him to keep that mouth closed!). He has also had great fun playing with neighborhood kids at the pool as well. He has really learned how to get around with that swim vest giving him just the buoyancy and confidence he needs to do so. It has made our trips to the pool so much easier. Instead of having one child attached to my hip, I only have one, although Samuel enjoys time in his pool floaty too so he's not super attached to me either.

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

They had a blast playing together in the kiddie pool today so I took a bunch of pictures. The lifeguard actually blew his whistle at one point and said "No more splashing in the kiddie pool." hmm. Never heard that warning before. Mine were the only two in the kiddie pool at the time and I was loving that they weren't minding getting the water in their eyes and they were playing so well together. Maybe they were just getting too rowdy for his liking! Katie and I joked about us being removed from the pool area because my kids were splashing. But they did calm down a bit and eventually we returned to the big pool again.

Gotta love summertime!

This Journey...

We hit a huge milestone today! It's been one year since Don left Virginia and began his journey... first at Fort Lewis, Washington (state), then Kuwait and eventually Iraq.

I remember saying our farewells as if it were just yesterday. Over the past year I have been a mixture of things... strong and so proud of my husband and also impatient and wondering how I was ever going to make it one more day with out him here. Somehow, miraculously as it seems at times, days turned into weeks and weeks into months... and now a year! Phew. We are on the downward slump. A little less than 4 months to go and Daddy-O will be here again!

Now it is almost hard to imagine how I'm going to give up some of that independence but I know some of it will be easy. I long to be able to run to the grocery store, get my hair cut without much planning, make more than one stop anywhere without worrying if the boys will be able to handle it, etc. It will be nice to reclaim so many little bits of freedom! But as time has proven... freedom is not free.

I have learned so much over the past year. Even though there have been bad days overall it hasn't been horrible and I know our marriage, our respect and support for each other has multiplied immensely. I do not think we will ever take each other for granted. I pray that we won't.

I can't even imagine how single parents do it. That is a huge reality check for me. At least I know this is temporary. There is a light at the end of this tunnel. And this once long tunnel is coming to an end!

I know Don will have lots of stories to tell, as will I, for years to come. And I'm happy that I've had this blog to keep up with. Just last week I went back and read some of my early posts and it's amazing how far we've come. How much the boys have grown and learned. How many things we've done.

One of the most common things I hear from people is "I don't know how you do it." A simple comment but one I've heard frequently over the past 12 months. Well, hmm... let me think... what's the alternative? Actually, my usual response is one that my mom has ingrained in my mind for years "One day at a time." Frankly, looking at the whole picture can be overwhelming.

I am so thankful for all the support we've had as a family. It has meant so much to me to have all the prayers, e-mails, calls, letters, visits, etc. from friends and family far away and close by as well. There are so many people in our everyday lives that have made this bearable, doable, possible. Most of all, I find strength in the Lord but he also blessed me with all of you who read this blog (as well as some that don't) that help our family find the strength we need to get through obstacles both big and small. So, thank you all for enduring this journey with us.

All in a Day's Work

Today was a typical weekday for us. I was up at 6 a.m., Benjamin up at 6:45 a.m., and I had to wake Samuel up around 7:15 a.m. from a deep sleep. Poor lil guy probably would have slept in until 8 a.m.

Tonight the boys took baths after dinner and I snapped a bunch of pictures and some video clips during this time frame. They love their baths and their bath towels too. I recently started calling Samuel "Captain Froggie Bear" when I put him in his towel and he seems to really love it! He usually runs around in his towel just giggling. And Benjamin's alter ego is now "Major Crocodile" which he just eats up. The two of them are really learning to play well together. Of course, they have their moments but they are both rough and tumble boys. Samuel loves to tackle Benjamin and luckily Benjamin just takes it and laughs as he's pinned beneath 33 pounds of super baby.

Now it is almost 9 p.m. and collectively, I cannot even begin to count how many times the boys have been up and out of bed since 8 p.m. Which usually indicates they had good naps while at the sitters today. I swear Benjamin lays in bed and thinks of every little tale he can concoct to exit his bedroom. So far, this evening, he has gone potty, had a drink, wanted just one more book (nuh uh), wanted different music to fall asleep to, "Mom, there's a dog in my room.", etc. Benjamin is usually so exhausted that he doesn't move a wink after he's in bed or else I get this. Hopefully, this is just a painful phase. I'm pretty sure once he gives up that nap his bedtime will be smoother. I'm just not quite ready for him to give up that nap yet and I don't think he is either.

Samuel on the other hand is still teething, although obviously feeling much better, he still has not been ready to go to bed at 8 p.m. the past few nights. He'd rather wrestle around in his brother's bed while I try to read bedtime books (and I do mean "wrestle" as in a contact sport with his big brother in the ring with him). With Samuel I can tell if he's going to go to sleep or just carry on and cry. So, as soon as I put him to bed it's an immediate indication of what's going to happen. He's never been one to cry himself to sleep. But when he's tired he just collapses into bed and I don't hear another peep. So, tonight he got back up for a large sippy cup of milk and a short round of hoops before retreating again to bed (this time successfully).

Tomorrow we will get up and do it again but this time knowing it is the end of my work week! Ah, the joys of a part-time work schedule. And come next Tuesday I'll be eager to start the routine all over again.

Just Another Monday...

Today was a good day spent at home. It had been awhile since we spent an entire day at home so we were due for one. Samuel took some good long naps and Benjamin took a good nap as well. By dinnertime I had to wake them both up!

They enjoyed playing with their toys and just being the fun busy boys that they are. I had put away all the Thomas the Train stuff for a few months and we just set it back up this weekend. So, they were thrilled. Samuel had been too young for it in the past and just frustrated Benjamin (and I) because he would just take the tracks apart constantly and throw them around the room. He still does that a bit but not to the extent that he had been. And Benjamin is getting better at figuring out how the tracks got back together. Needless to say, Benjamin has spent hours over the past few days rediscovering the Thomas the Train set.

My helper was due to come today but cancelled last minute because she wasn't feeling good. I was a little bummed and Benjamin was completely bummed. He continued to ask throughout the day when she was coming even after I told him she wasn't feeling well. I usually don't tell him she's coming because he gets so excited and I guess his bubble got burst today. But he was fine and kept busy anyways.

It rained this afternoon but had stopped by dinnertime so after dinner I called our super neighbor, Katie and asked if she'd be willing to go for a walk with the boys, dogs and I. She was in so we were off. The dogs hadn't been for a walk since Thursday and were ecstatic to be set free out of their yard! Benjamin put on his puddle jumpers and was anxious to jump in any puddles that came his way. It was a good way to get out and exert a little energy after an otherwise rather low energy day.

The evening flew by and after baths they both ended up in bed a bit later than usual but it is summertime and that tends to happen more. It's hard to put them to bed at 8 p.m. when it's still daylight out.

Last night when Benjamin was saying his bedtime prayers I asked him if there was anything special he would like to pray for and he said, "I want to pray that my teachers go to school tomorrow so I can go." It was so sweet. He really misses school and that part of his routine. We have been staying so busy that sometimes it's hard to notice how much he misses it. We talk about how he will be going to the same school next year but will have different teachers and a different classroom, etc. Hopefully, this summer will go by fast and he'll be thrilled to be back in school before we know it.

Don e-mailed today that he received his 5th anthrax shot and has been dragging a bit since. I remember how painful the one he received before he deployed seemed to be. Hopefully, he'll be back to himself by tomorrow.

Happy Father's Day

The phone rang around 7:30 a.m. this morning and I could tell it was Daddy-O! The boys and I were eating breakfast and Benjamin and I were talking about what he could tell Daddy today when he called.

Benjamin answered the phone, "Happy Father's Day!" He was, as usual, excited to hear from Daddy. They talked for awhile and Benjamin asked him if he got his card "The one with the blue stripe because I know blue is your favorite color, Daddy." Daddy hadn't received it yet but now he knows what to look for! I had asked Benjamin to draw a picture on the envelop of the card he was mailing Daddy and that's just what he drew, a blue stripe.

Unfortunately, Father's Day just kind of crept up on me this year. There is stuff in route to Don. But Don was so good about Mother's Day and sending cards and a present early... I slipped up. Oops. Well, in due time he will be receiving the photo I took last week of the boys (top photo above) framed as well as a couple other goodies.

I did sent him an e-mail last night though so he had it this morning when he got to his computer. I admire him so much as a father to our boys and I feel so blessed that he is the man God gave me to be their Daddy. I long for the day he can once again share in their laughter and smiles and I can only imagine how they will glow with delight in having their Daddy home to wrestle around with them.

I tried to capture a picture of Benjamin and Samuel together today after church. Easier said than done these days! I got a couple of photos of them being silly together then a couple of cute ones of them individually.


Happy Father's Day, Daddy-O! You are a wonderful Daddy, husband, and best friend. You are our hero! We love you!

Smiling Samuel

I have been posting a lot of videos of Samuel lately but I just find him rather entertaining these days. He is such a character and totally Mr. Personality... always thinking of new ways to entertain himself and anyone who is willing to watch!

He just has not been himself lately though. Fussy and more clingy than usual. I kept thinking he must be teething but every time I checked his mouth I just didn't see anything new. Well, this morning when I was dropping him off at Natalie's house I checked again. Finally! I found a tooth that popped through! Up until this point he has had 6 teeth (4 top, 2 bottom). Not sure if this happened over night or if I had just missed it in past peeks but it's definitely a new addition. Oddly enough it is not right next to any of his other teeth. He has skipped a tooth on the bottom and then there is one right in the middle. Hopefully the missing teeth are soon to follow. The way his teeth are looking at this point, I'm thinking we better start saving for braces already!

Anyways, tonight at dinner he refused to eat solid food so I gave him some baby food and eventually let him dig in with his own spoon. He loves to do this but got carried away and food ended up all over him. I thought it was cute. Messy but still cute so I snapped a couple photos. Then I cleaned him up with a clean cloth and set the cloth down. He picked it up and was entertained by it for a good long while which is when I snapped additional photos and video. I did NOT place this on his head, he did this all on his own! These are the kind of photos he's going to hate when he's older but are so cute right now!

I hope these photos and video clips make you smile as much as they make me smile. That's our Samuel... out to make everyone smile!

Climbing Hoop Star

Here are two videos I took of Samuel on Friday and Saturday. The first one is him demonstrating his basketball layup (with two balls in his hands).

And the second video of him climbing into a child's chair. Once he figured this out Saturday morning that was all he wanted to do. Seriously, the only toy this child needs is a ball and a hoop otherwise he's all about entertaining himself.

Unfortunately, my camera's memory card was full both times so the clips cut off kind of abruptly. Oh well.

Summer Is Finally Here!

We have had another busy but fun weekend. I have changed my work schedule so now I work Tuesdays through Thursdays and have 4 day weekends. Which has its perks but usually by the time Tuesday rolls around I'm really ready to head back to work! My job is definitely my outlet these days and, for the most part, I enjoy it.

This Saturday Benjamin had a birthday party to go to for a classmate. So, I had our babysitter come and stay with Samuel while I spent time with Benjamin at the birthday party. It was Samuel's nap time and it's definitely easier taking one child to parties than chasing after the lil guy the entire time.

After the party I had the sitter stay and we all headed up to the pool. It was hot with temps swelling and peaking at 100 both Saturday and Sunday. Which I hate to complain about too much knowing that our soldiers (including our Daddy-O) are out in temperatures well over 100 degrees on a daily basis. The boys both loved the pool and had a blast. Samuel is mostly glued to his pool balls the entire time we're there or watching the big kids play with the basketball hoop in the big pool. Benjamin has grown so much since last summer and can stay above water in the majority of the shallow end of the big pool. He loves to jump in over and over and over again. And it's fun to see him so excited and just loving life. After the pool I ordered pizza and bathed the kids then took the sitter home. It was a busy fun-filled day.

Today Samuel slept til almost 9 a.m. Phew! He must have been tuckered out because I put them both to bed at 7:30 p.m. last night. Gotta love summer and pool weather. Of course, Benjamin was up at 6 a.m. Don called around 8:30 a.m. Benjamin answered the phone. He had so much to tell Daddy. I was so surprised. Sometimes we talk about little things that we'll have to tell Daddy and how proud Daddy will be of him when hears this or that. And apparently, he was storing some of these things and just couldn't wait to share them with Daddy-O! So, he told him how he is now able to do his top buckle on his car seat, how he closes his own car door, how he found treasures in a sandbox at Emma's birthday party... a car, a blue car, his favorite color!, etc.

I think this book that I got from the library "My Daddy's in Iraq but I want him Back" really hit home with him. He loves it and he can totally identify with it. In the story the boy talks to his Daddy and the boy shows his Daddy his new toys over the phone but the Daddy can't see the new toys. And today Benjamin said to his Daddy, "Samuel got new toys." then he went on to tell him about them. It was cute and reminded me of the book. It really gets him asking questions about things which is great. It's incredible to see how their little minds work. And at the end of the story it says that the boys Daddy comes home and that the boy looks really close to make sure it's his very own Daddy. And every time I read that part Benjamin lights up like the fourth of July. It's great. I can only imagine how he's going to beam when Don is home again. Only four short months. Or about 120 days according to Don!

Don sounds good. He sent a photo this week of him at a modeling club that he and a friend went to. It was the first time he went and he made a model of a locomotive. He said he slept in today and ended up missing chapel. He must have needed the sleep.

Well, after church today we had a luncheon to celebrate the church's 20th anniversary. It was nice and they had a moon bounce that Benjamin thoroughly enjoyed but with the temps so hot it didn't take long before he was beat red and covered in sweat.

The rest of the day just flew by. We came home from church around 2 p.m. Took naps then were off to the pool again this time with our super neighbor, Katie. She adores the boys and is a huge help at the pool. For the most part she entertained Samuel while I caught Benjamin time and time again. He just loves that jumping! Today I relocated a swim vest that he wore last summer and it was awesome. He was able to stay afloat a lot better and I didn't find myself reaching out to him as much.

Overall, we had a great weekend and I'm so glad that we're finally able to get out and enjoy the weather (hot as it may be!).

Samuel and his Spoon

Samuel has learned a new trick!

He is now feeding himself from a spoon. He is doing pretty well with it. His hand-eye coordination has always amazed me so I guess it should be no surprise to me that he can get that spoon in his mouth so well (especially with his love for food!). He's a bit messy, of course, but with lots of practice he should be good at this in no time at all. I managed to capture these photos of Samuel on Monday, enjoying his yogurt, which he absolutely loves.

On another note, Don is doing well! We are down to about 4 months left before he returns and I feel a sense of relief that the end seems somewhat in sight. He e-mailed the other day that it was 119 degrees there. Hot. Darn hot.

If you are sending a package please keep that in mind and don't send anything that could melt or that doesn't take to heat well. And, if you haven't sent a card, letter or package but have been meaning to please do! Even though we have begun our countdown, I'm sure he would love to receive mail. We've been so busy lately that I'm sure his mail flow has slowed down a bit but I always try to have something in the mail for him (as soon as he receives something I try to drop him a postcard, letter or just pictures of the boys). And he's been great about sending the boys postcards. We have quite a nice collection of postcards from Daddy-O. All tucked into a photo album so we can see all the cool postcards of army vehicles, airplanes, etc. that he sends.