the forsythia are about to bloom!

I'm so excited that spring has almost sprung up here in RI. Lord knows there are so many things I don't like about the NE, but I have yet to see a more beautiful springtime anywhere. (Maybe the looong, cold winter was worth it, naah) :) All of the bulbs are beginning to come up, crocus, daffodils, narcissus, hibiscus and so many more that I can't even name. Yes, I miss my TX azaleas, crepe myrtles, bluebonnets and wild flowers, but the tulips and other bulbed plants around are are exquisite! I'll try to take some pictures to capture it, but I think you'd just have to see it for your own eyes. There's a field up here where they keep dividing and replanting daffodil bulbs and it turns into a photo op for most families once they're all in bloom. We haven't done it yet, but this is our last chance while we live here and the boys are such a young, cute age so I'm going to try. Hopefully they'll all be in bloom before we leave in 3 weeks and what a send off we'll have as all of the flowers will seem to wish us well with they're beautiful, colorful blooms!

a few snow pictures

Well, yesterday, the snow came a lot sooner and faster than predicted. It was already sleeting by the afternoon when we tried to go sledding. That resulted in some unhappy kids b/c it was so cold and the sleet was blowing into our faces AND somehow, we lost their gloves. :) It all added up to a very dramatic tantrum. We
recovered and made caramel popcorn together and watched a little "Cars". Then the boys went down early while Mommy crashed from being sick (again) and Daddy went snow boarding on the golf course hill and had a blast! :)

This morning we woke up to a beautiful winter wonderland, with streets plowed and safe for driving (which I am not confident or very good at in the snow) and the sun shining. It was beautiful.

I thought these pics were fun. Apparently, dump trucks are for dirt AND snow! Charley had fun trying to shovel the walkway and Ben enjoyed watching. :)

It's snowing!!

It's coming down pretty hard right now and I have to leave in a few minute to pick up Charley from pre-school. I'm hoping they release Will early from work so he doesn't have to drive home during the worst of it this afternoon. It is accumulating already and looking very white and very beautiful. I guess it's easier to appreciate since we don't get a lot of snow up here, but just enough to enjoy. If I had to live in this all the time, maybe I would feel differently, maybe not. I love snow!

waiting for the flakes

It's about to snow ... a LOT! I'm so excited, we're supposed to get anywhere from 5-10 inches! This will be our first big snow and will probably stick since the ground is frozen. We've had previous sprinkles, but nothing you could sled on ... which is what Will and Charley have been dying to go do on the golf course nearby. Anyway, we'll see what happens when it starts in a few hours and goes through the night. Hopefully I'll have some fun "snowtime" pics to post tomorrow! Yay!!

sweet dancing Ben

Ben is growing up sooo fast! Charley was his age when we first moved here and now I can't believe Ben is already 19 mo. old!! He's such a cutie with his little blond hair and big smiley cheeks! He's always grinning about something. I just had to write b/c I want to remember later that he loves to dance. Anytime he hears even a couple of bars of music, he starts bobbing his head and, if he can, moving his legs. It's so cute. I guess he's going to be the music lover in the family. It's just so much fun to watch and he is usually able to get the whole family started too. Once Ben starts, then Charley follows and pretty soon, we're all dancing around and being goofy.

We especially enjoyed one of these moments this past Saturday when we went to get our Christmas tree from Escobar's Highland farm, here on the island. We brought it home, turned on some Christmas music, heated up the cider, and the dancing and celebrating began. We got all the Christmas boxes down and had such a fun time together. I know it might seem a little early, but this is the first Christmas we won't be traveling in years, which means, I get to decorate! :) We plan on having a low-key family day, simple, easy, fun. (that's the plan) :) We'll miss all of our extended family, but if you've been reading, we've traveled quite enough in the past few years, and with very small children. Anyway, since I know we're going to be here, I just couldn't wait to get everything out and decorate for Christmas so I can enjoy it this year.

In other news, we enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving Day with my Mom and brother, Grant, who flew from Houston, TX to be with us. My Mom was here for a week and my brother, who had to finish finals, was here for three days. Will and Grant went to NY on Thanksgiving day because Grant had never been in this area before and wanted to see it. They had a blast, and then we celebrated Thanksgiving on Friday. My Mom and I stayed home with the kids on Thanksgiving day and since it was such a beautiful day, we had a blast doing a ton of pruning and yard work. The kids played outside and it was so much fun! We also did crafts with the kids (finishing a handprint apron for the grandma's) :) and while my Mom (Nonny to the kids) was here, we also got to have a fun shopping trip to Providence place and did some sewing together. We had such a great time and it was so great to see both of them.

Well, back to chores and stuff while Ben naps. Charley has pre-school today to it's an errand day. :) All part of the fun!

Blessings!

my favorite reason for winter ...

EGGNOG!!! :) I love eggnog and when I went to the store the other day to get milk, I was happily surprised to find that eggnog was now on the shelves!! (somehow, I forget this every year and am surprised again every year, but what a nice thing) :) Anyway, don't get me wrong, the leaves and chilly weather are nice, even the pumpkins everywhere and the thought of snow, but for me, too much cold weather is not a good thing. I have extra dry skin to begin with and the cold doesn't help. We've already started running humidifiers in the boy's room every night.

Charley has already had his first mini-cold, which consisted of temperature for a day and a runny nose for three days. Not too bad, I'd say! Now Ben has the runny nose, but not temp, and I was fighting off something a couple of days ago, but I think it's just allergies. Anyway, my cuticles have been cracking since September (when there was just a hint of dryness in the air, or I should say, when the humidity was back down to a pleasant level for most people). But not me, I love warm humid air. I feel like my skin drinks it in. And I'll miss feeling the sun on my skin when I wore tank tops and shorts out during the summer. Oh well, hopefully we'll get some good snow this year. Will says it's going to be our last "true" winter for awhile since we won't live this far North next year. (unless we get stationed in Japan!) :) Somehow the snow distracts me from how cold it really is. Some people have said that it insulates the earth and so it actually IS warmer outside. Who knows, just give me eggnog and let me crawl under my electric blanket at night and I'll be fine. :)

Yes, we've already put the electric blanket on the bed. The lows are getting into the 40's at night and the house is in the mid 60's. We have our heater set at 62 but have a heater in the boy's room at night. That way we're just heating two rooms at night instead of the whole house. Of course it's freezing in the morning, but oil is expensive so what are you going to do? :) Anyway, now the boys have a humidifier AND a heater running at night .. probably at opposite purposes, but it works well enough to keep them warm and moist through the long winter. Hopefully it will stave off colds too. Especially once we get the flu mist and Ben gets the second dose of the flu shot. Which I must add, he took very well the first time! All I heard out of him was a little "eah" and that was it. Of course, his brother and I were distracting him with stickers and songs. He never even knew it was coming! I was so proud of him non-the-less.

Oh yeah, and I have real stitches for Halloween, not that we go all out around here for Halloween, we really don't do anything at all except let the boys get dressed up for social hour and candy collecting in our very friendly neighborhood. :) I just think it's funny that some people put on make-up to look like they have stitches and I really have some. I had a bump removed from my leg and I have about an inch and a quarter worth of internal stitches. It's healing nicely now though. The bump wasn't cancerous or anything, just an abnormality that looked odd and I kept nicking when I shaved ouch! It was itchy occasionally too, just a pain. So since the Navy was paying, I went ahead and had it removed. It was considered purely "cosmetic" surgery, which sounded funny to me, but since it wasn't necessary, that's the category it was placed in. I'm actually amazed it's healing so well since the boys have been crawling and walking and bouncing on it almost everyday since I came home. I've tried to protect it and that worked for the first few days, but after that all bets were off. :) I've had it bandaged too so I'm sure that's helped.

Oh yeah, I drove our friends back to MD last weekend (a week ago). It was a looong weekend. I drove 7 hours down with her and the girls and the dog, spent the night in Havre de Grace, then turned around and came back the next day. ugh! :) We had such a fun time talking though. Anyway, since then I've been catching up with chores and enjoying the alone time with Will; hence the lack of blogging.

Anyway, more to blog later. Gotta do more chores while Charley is away at pre-school. :) ta ta!

Amazing Annapolis Weekend

 

This past weekend I got to fly down and visit Will for a wonderful weekend getaway in Annapolis. We'd been planning it for weeks and it finally arrived. Will's mom was gracious enough to extend her stay with me so she could watch the boys and we just took her back to the airport today, so sad, but it was time and I know she missed her hubby. :) Let me just quickly say that I appreciate my in-laws visiting so much and surviving this time while Will is away would have been soo hard without them. Thank you!! :)

Ok, back to the wonderful weekend. It has been years since we got to get away, just the two of us. In fact, the last time was probably, when Charley was a year old when we stayed one night in a nearby hotel. This was my first time really away from Ben, which was so hard, and our first trip away and alone since the kids have been born. Anyway, that's why we wanted it to me memorable and planned it so much. :) The main goal though, was simply to relax, and enjoy our time together at this stage in our lives.

I flew out on Friday and Will surprised me with gifts waiting for me to open at the hotel. I knew he had gone shopping for me, but he really outdid himself. He had jewelry, lingerie, outfits all wrapped in matching paper. He got all my measurements in advance and everything fit like a charm. I didn't have to keep it all, and I didn't, and he was so generous to not be offended if I wasn't automatically thrilled with something. It was fun, none the less and he said he really enjoyed getting to dress me in fun things that I don't usually get for myself. When I first arrived at the BWI airport and saw Will, it still took me an hour or so to realize I was on vacation and really relax, but I'd say by the time we got to the hotel, the kids and stress were temporarily forgotten!

Friday night we got to eat at one of my favorite places in the Annapolis area, Cantler's. I loooove crab and they sell lots of it there. They bring it to you on a tray covered in Old Bay and your table cloth is a thick brown piece of paper. Anyway, we had fun digging for all the meat until we couldn't eat any more. I think the two of us made it through 8 of them!

Saturday was so relaxing. We slept in, then went to have breakfast at the Pennsylvania Dutch Amish Farmer's Market. It was so cool!! The whole place is filled with fresh things: everything from meat and produce to pastries and pies. Their cinnamon rolls are amazing! :)

Next, we did a little shopping and then headed over to the tattoo shop to see if they had a Navy Crew symbol on file that a bunch of Will's crew friends have gotten. I was even going to get one too, for fun, a little dragonfly on my hip, but alas, they didn't have the "N" symbol and so we didn't get tattooed. :) (hmmm what must everyone be thinking about this??) :)

Anyway, after that, we went back to the hotel room for a soak in the hot tub and ordered a movie ("Meet the Robinsons" which was a lot deeper and darker than I expected, but fun) and then took a nap.

Then we headed out to meet friends at a tailgate party before the big Navy v. Ball State game. We had such a blast at the game and it was so fun to catch up with friends and just relax and watch a football game, especially an Academy home game! It was so fun to watch the plebes to push ups every time Navy scored. Unfortunately, Navy lost in overtime, but we still had a blast!!

Then we went out for a quick dinner and dessert with some friends and headed back to the hotel to crash for the night.

As if it could get anymore special, Will's ultimate surprise was to have a photographer take pictures of us at different places around the Naval Academy yard! He wore his black SDB uniform and I had gotten a dress earlier Saturday for the occasion. I thought red would be a good color to compliment his uniform and stand out against all the white marble and green grass at the Academy. He had actually bought dresses and shoes for me and wanted his mom to sneak a dress in my bag b/c he wasn't quite sure what I should wear, but the dresses he picked didn't fit and the dress I ended up packing (his mom gave it away b/c she couldn't find it):) didn't really work b/c it was white. She didn't tell me what it was for though so it was still a surprise when I got there.

Anyway, the pics turned out beautiful. We got a preview even though the photographer is still editing them. I'll post the link when we get it though and there's a link to her studio on the right, her name is Linda Etherington and I listed her as "great Annapolis photographer". :) She really got into taking our pictures and it was so amazing to watch her create art right before our eyes. We love the Academy and wanted to remember this time in our lives as a special one. It will also be a nice way to remember this special weekend (not to mention the fact that I'll actually have a nice record that I've finally gotten back down to my preferred size after having Ben). We've moved about 6 times, had two kids, done a deployment and been married 6 years. I know some people have done more, but it's been quite a lot for us. We're at a slower time now that the boys are at easier ages and Will is in school. Next year when we move again, in May, things will pick up once Will is on a ship and so we wanted to take advantage of this "down" time.

Thanks Debbie for watching the kids so we could have this wonderful weekend. We feel so blessed that we could do this together. Thank you Will for planning such an amazing time for us together and for all the thought and time that went into it. We all miss you and can't wait for you to be home for good in three weeks! :) I love you!!

Lion's Den @ 4 - 6 o'clock PM

Sometimes I feel like my husband has to walk into a lion's den at the end of the day when he comes home from work. Either we've been so busy that day and the house is messy, or dinner isn't made or the kids have been falling apart . . . and I'm upset about all of it and things aren't peaceful at all. I feel so bad calling him or telling him this when he calls just before he leaves work because I want our house to be a place of peace and rest after a long day at the office. Of course, right now he's in school and has a four day work week and of those 4 days, 3 of them are half days of class although he stays all day to do reading "homework" and writing for the next days of class because he can do it in the calm and quiet there much easier than he can at home. Plus, when he comes home, he can spend time with us and not have to try to fit more work in, although it seems like there's always something else he is doing for work. That's not a complaint, just a fact. Just like, my "work" day never really ends and I don't really have an "end" to my "work week" because there are always things to clean, laundry to do, meals to be made and kids to nurture and care for, oh yeah and diapers to change. : )

Anyway, back to the subject, my goal is that even if the day has been crazy, that when Will walks in the door, things are at least calm, the house is picked up and dinner is close to being done. No, I'm not running to put on a dress and make-up like the list in Good Housekeeping from the 50's, although if I'm still in pajama pants and a sleep shirt by 5 PM I do try to get dressed by the time he walks in, but that usually isn't the case. I just hope it helps his "decompression" time after work so he's not bombarded at home. He's so patient though so I'm not sure if doing all of this really means that much because he deals with the days that are crazy so well, but mostly I think he just likes the heads up if he will be walking into the lion's den when he comes home, just so he knows what to expect. With a toddler and a baby, both boys :) I feel like I'm doing good to just have dinner made. I feel like I'm a pretty organized person too, so I wonder how other people do it without pulling too much hair out. It's so hard to make dinner and have both boys whining or crying or wanting attention because it's the end of the day. I just want to stop and spend time with them, but then I think they should deal with it (well, not the baby), but Charley for sure. Then again, they're more important than a complete meal on time, but Will is more important than them and the meal is for him . . . it goes on and on :)

I've heard other moms complain about those 4 and 5 o'clock hours and how difficult they can be. It's like the kids pick those times to meltdown, and then at 6 they're fine again. How does this work? Are they just waiting for dad to get home? Are they hungry? Are they worn out and just need the physical release of throwing a fit? :) or Do they just want my attention every minute. I wouldn't guess attention because Charley plays by himself so well . . . usually . . . lately he's been a bit clingy and whiny. This just started and I don't know if it's jealousy of time with Ben or what. I spend plenty of time with just him by ourselves during Ben's naptime. I think it's just the age. We'll see. Until then, things will be a little hectic for what hopefully will be only a little while. Although, even when I say they're hectic, I don't think they're as crazy as they could be. I think the fact that I'm tired from nursing Ben through the night just wears me out and makes me feel like things are more out of control than they really are. It makes me emotional. Lately, I feel like I'm wanting to cry about something nearly every day and no, I'm not pregnant. I probably just need to get more sleep. That seems to be a recurring theme of these blogs. :) Well, this has been a full one, so I'll sign off now. Night night or as Will says it with Charley for nighttime prayers, "Please give Charley beautiful dreams, Amen."

Fall is here!

Well, we may not have a/c up here, but we do have early fall! I know it's not officially fall, but it's been wonderful up here in RI lately . . . high's in the 70's lows in the 50's at night ahhhhh. I feel bad for all my TX friends of course, but I heard through the grapevine that it's been nicer down there lately . . . in the 80's with a breeze? :) We actually put our big heavy comforter back on the bed because it was getting so cool. Of course, we still have our windows open so we can enjoy the cool breeze, but it feels so nice! The cool breeze blowing through the house, while you're cuddled under a big comforter! We were made to hibernate, I just know it :)

Anyway, I've made a few preparations for fall and winter . . . last weekend we did a bunch of trimming and yard work and I planted some mums. I've also been looking all year for sales on winter clothes for the boys. It's cold here for so long that I don't want to stay inside all winter like I did last year when I was pregnant. And now I'll have 2 boys instead of just 1! All that energy is going to want to go outside whether it's 20 outside or not! I hope not though :) I've been resisting joining the YMCA up here because it's so expensive, but we may have to if that's the only way we can all get out in a warm place where they can play. We'll see. We still plan on going down to TX for Christmas hanging out there and in Colorado and several stops in between here and there so unless TX has a colder more brutal winter this year, we'll get a break from the RI weather when we're there.

I still can't wait for the first snow though! I think Charley will be old enough to really enjoy it this year. Ben will probably think we're on a different planet, if he only knew about planets. Speaking of planets . . . I was kinda sad when I heard that they voted and decided to knock Pluto off the list of regular planets and call it a dwarf planet. My nostalgia for that little guy is of astronomical proportions. :) (tee hee, no I'm not crazy, that one was for my father-in-law). Maybe by the time my kids learn about planets, it will be back on the main list, or maybe there will be a whole different system of categorization. Who knows.

Well, gotta go curl up in bed. If only there was a fireplace in our bedroom! :)