Humphrey

When you have a soldier deployed, you start looking for unique and fun gifts that can fit into a flat-rate box that will help your soldiers time pass just a little bit quicker and hopefully with a few more laughs.  My parents found the perfect gift for Brian at a white-elephant Christmas party they attended.  Dad got his hands on the prize and knew that it needed to find its way to a camp thousands of miles away. 

Here was Brian's Facebook post the day he received his care package from Mom & Dad "Got a new dog. he don't jump like Mia, but he has some bad habits."

If you know my husband, you can hear his contagious laugh the first time he turned Humphrey on!  He tells me Humphrey is a hit in his barracks.  He hangs on the bed post and soldiers are constantly pushing the button as they walk by to watch him in action.  We've even been interrupted during our skype dates with a random Humphrey episode.

I'm glad it brings a smile to all their faces!!

SKYPE: This ain't your Grandma's deployment!!

After Christmas, we took advantage of some special promotions and ordered Brian a laptop so that we could Skype with him.  I sent the laptop off to Kuwait last week.  Once I took it to the post office, we all started getting so anxious for him to receive it.  We were so close to being able to see him and talk to him, I couldn't stand it!!

Well, today was THE day!  I had stayed up way too late last night waiting for a phone call from Brian because he has Saturday off, so we've made it out little "date" to talk Friday night on my side/Saturday morning on his side. . . . .he stood me up!!  He slept in (some things never change even in a different land).  So, I woke up this morning and quickly got on facebook and found a message that told me to go get dressed and call him . . . . . . . . .  .SKYPE HIM!!!

Brogan helped me call Daddy.  He was so excited to see and hear Daddy on the computer.  He hollered, "Hi Daddy!  I missed you!!"  Ainsley heard Daddy's voice and quickly came running to check it out too.  Oh, what a joy to watch!!  The kids just picked up with telling him stories like he had just been gone a few days for shut-down @ WPE. 

Brogan was so excited to talk.  He was talking and animating his stories.  It was so nice for Brian to be able to see Brogan while they were talking so he could understand everything Brogan was saying.  It's sometimes difficult to understand what Brogan's trying to show you when you're on the phone with him.  Brogan told Daddy that he needed to find his airplane so he could come back home.  When Brian said that wouldn't work, Brogan told him that Mommy would start Daddy's car so Daddy could drive back home.  I wish it were that simple!  Brogan didn't want Ainsley or I to talk to Daddy, so we would have to send him on little "missions" to go get things so we could talk.  Ainsley told Daddy about her report card and all that she's been learning in school this week.  She showed Daddy some of her Christmas presents.  And then Brogan and I went to another room for a little bit so they could just talk like they would do at bedtime.  I think Ainsley and Daddy, both, really needed that!

Then, it was mommy's turn!!  Brian wanted to see the house, so I took him on a home tour - LOL.  I've been working on cleaning out the basement and garage, so he wanted to check out what I've done.  I even took him outside to show him how much snow we have left.  It was so nice to be able to talk to him face-to-face; even if it was on a computer screen.  Brian looked really good and that helped ease alot of my worries about how he's doing.  It just felt so comfortable being able to talk to him and see him and his smile and best of all  - to hear him LAUGH!!  Oh, how I miss that smile and laugh.  It's the laugh that helps me find him in a crowded room and the smile that makes it all better for me.

I started the skype call with a fully charged laptop.  Neither one of us were paying any attention to the time until my computer went dead on me.  I then looked at our conversation duration and it had been 2 HOURS, but it had only seemed like minutes.  We got reconnected and talked for another 30 minutes.  All 4 of us had so much to talk about.  The best part about being face-to-face was that we couldn't multi-task during our conversations.  We had to be fully engaged in each other's conversation.  It was amazing!! 

I'm already having withdrawls and getting excited for our next skype visit from a foreign land.  Now, every time I touch the computer, Brogan runs over to see if Daddy's on.  I don't know how we made it last deployment without skype.  We only did video conferencing about 5 times because Brian didn't have wireless internet and would have to go down to the internet cafe to even get on the internet.  We would sometimes go a week or more before hearing from him and then, it was usually just an email and not a phone call or video.  I'm so glad that technology has progressed!

Well, I best head off to bed.  I need to have a productive day tomorrow.

Flu: A Yucky Epidemic in the Wolf's Den

This fall, we made our annual trip to the county health department to get our flu vaccines.  Both children opted for the nose spray this time.  Whether it was the nose spray to blame or our stressed out life this year, I'm not sure, BUT the kids have each had the flu 3 times since October and I have had it twice!! 

We started the week with a WONDERFUL snow day for all 3 of us, but the week has went downhill from there!!  Yesterday morning, wee hours of the morning I might add, Brogan woke up vomitting.  Poor little guy - and he had  to do it in my bed.  I put him in the tub and the bedding in the wash.  We moved out to the couch with our trusty ice cream bucket and spent the rest of the night dealing with "it."  By morning, Ainsley woke up with a tummy ache and other flu symptoms, so we all stayed home from school and Nana's.  By noon, both kids seem to feeling much better and even ate a light lunch, followed later by a light supper.  I was sure I was going to work Wednesday.

WRONG!!  I sent the kids to bed early last night, only for BOTH of them to wake up before 10 complaining of tummy aches and 1 throwing up!  Wouldn't be going to work for the third day this week!  We were up again throughout the night.  Mommy checking on each little one to make sure they were still laying on their towel, didn't have a fever, and no tummy aches in sight. 

We are all going stir crazy in the house today.  Both kids want to go to Nana & Papa's house, but that ain't gonna happen!!  We're across town and Dad will probably still catch the flu from us, which isn't good.  The kids take turns hollering at one another for either being in the same room as each other or because one of them looked at the other one!  Neither one is vomitting (AMEN to that) but they are both extremely tired and irritable and this Mommy is getting tired and irritable of their irratability and grouchiness!!

So, here's hoping PRAYING that all 3 of us get to leave this house in the morning to go back to our normal daily lives.  I've got a 7:30 a.m. meeting and I'm actually wanting to go to it!!  Crazy - I know!!  Ainsley's ready to get back to second grade and Brogan's ready to turn Nana's house upside down. 

So, if anyone would like to take our little "bug" for a visit, please stop by and pick him up.  His bags are packed and he's got his travel orders ready!!

Ainsley's Top 5

Today, I asked Ainsley to give me her top 5 things that she misses about Daddy.  Here's her list:

1. Going on bike rides!
2. Talking to him every single day
3. Going hunting
4. Having Daddy tuck me in at night
5. Watching movies with Daddy


Ainsley was quick to tell me #1 and I knew that would be #1 before I even asked.  Ainsley learned to ride her bike without training wheels this year.  Each night, Brian would put Brogan in the bike trailer and Ainsley and him would ride all over town.  They had a little route that they would travel.  It was their time together each night. 

When Brian came home in November, Ainsley really wanted to go on one last bike ride of the year, but it was just too cold.  I can't wait for their nightly routine to get back in swing.  I hope it is a routine that lasts throughout Ainsley's lifetime.  I'm sure their conversations will go from talking about squabbles on the playground, to her first crush, to her college and career choice, to asking her Daddy "what do you think of the boy I brought home?  I think he might be the one".

I love the bond that these two have!!  It is only fitting that we named her after her Daddy, Ainsley Brianne!

Tour of Duty - Bible Study

My bible study exclusively for military wives started online today.  The book was just released and this is the first bible study for the book.  I'm really excited to start this journey and find other wives to offer insight and share our challenges.  A quote from today that I hope to be able to live and learn from,
"Loneliness is a common, human emotion.  Staying close to Jesus and connecting with others within our community are two certain antidotes in dealing with loneliness."

Restart!

I've been in a slump during Christmas vacation. I wasn't much in the Christmas spirit all month and let's just say alot of "breathing exercises", prayers, hugs, and encouraging words from Mom and Dad helped me get through it. I have tried to blog many, many times since my last post on Christmas Eve, but I just haven't been able to finish and then end up deleting everything I typed.  I wanted to start the new year off with a positive post, BUT I hate to say it, that's just not going to happen.  I know, nobody told me I had to marry him, BUT I didn't marry him for the army, I married Brian because I loved him and still do. . . . and I will stand up for him and his army/deployment decision against anyone, anytime. We are in week 16 of deployment and only beginning week 5 of sand and I'M SO SICK AND TIRED OF THIS DEPLOYMENT I COULD SPIT!! 
It's seems crazy to say that I feel so lonely when I am surrounded by many people that have been very supportive of my family, the decisions we've made and the road we're traveling, but I'm all alone.   My closest friend that knows what I'm going through because she's been on the road with me both times it's happened is 5 hours away.  My friends and family here, just can't understand the magnitude this loneliness has on me right now.  I'm tired of being alone at everything. . . . parenting, household chores, bedtime routine, discipline with the kids, paying bills, doctors appointments, staying home with sick kids,  or watching a great movie.  I'm tired of crawling into my cold, lonely bed at night with no one to snuggle with to keep me warm. I'm tired of the house being SILENT when the kids fall asleep.  I'm tired of having to be behind the wheel everytime we go somewhere.  I'm tired of making every decision.  I'm tired of being responsible for everything that means anything to our family.

I know, I know, it's only the 5th week in the sand, which means I have approximately 47 more sand weeks before this all ends.  So, enough with my 3 minute pity-party. . . I promise the next post will be a little more on the positive side. 

Happy New Year to All!!