Outta the mouths of mamas....

With my husband on deployment, I've been emailing him SEVERAL times a day to fill him in on all the bits and pieces that happen in a day. I don't want him to miss a single thing. Based on the emails I am getting from him, I can tell that this time away is especially tough. Maybe because there is one more cutie to miss, or maybe just because we've done this so much and when he gets home we have a really long deployment approaching. I'm not sure. But I do know that he loves hearing about our wacky kiddos and the the things they do. And since I love to share, it works out well!!

Here goes......

'Hey, can someone bring me toilet paper? What? Why don't we have anymore? Why did you use ALL THE DARN toilet paper? Ugh!!! Well, can you bring me some napkins, then??? It better be the best craft EVER!!!'

'DO NOT sprinkle salt and pepper on his head. No, no way. You can call him potato all you want, but you don't need to make him into one!!

'No, actually, that is NOT the reason the doctor's take ultrasound pictures of babies. No, it's not. Because they know the baby is a human being and not a dog or a cat. It's just assumed.'

'Why is their a tube of toothpaste in your brother's carseat? I would have waited 5 more minutes for you to brush.....'

'Tyler, I TOTALLY heard that. Asking your little brother to go get the Oreos and bring them to you is NOT COOL!'

'What is that on Jack's leg? Why is one of my nursing pads on his leg? No, we are not out of band-aids, but even if we were, that would not be what we use.'

'Sure, Kait, we can throw a message in a bottle into the ocean and hope that Daddy gets it. That's a neat idea. We can do that tomm--what Tyler? Well, I guess that is kind of polluting? Yeah, I know we shouldn't hurt the ocean. We'll just stick to email Kaiti. I know.....blame your brother ;)'

'Nope, don't wish I was a monkey. No, not a pelican either. Thanks for asking.'

'Honey, I love you a bunch, but please stop asking me which dinosaur I'd pick to be my roommate. Because, I choose none. I don't love them like you do.'

'So, you're saying 'DaDa did it?' No, I think Jack did it. DaDa has been gone for two weeks, and I don't think DaDa would have peed on the kitchen floor.'

'Wait, Tyler, what did you just say??? Why did you invite your teacher over for dinner? Oh, honey, that's nice that you want to hear about the trip she took to the Bahamas, but you can't just invite random people over for dinner. Right. She's not random. But still.  Maybe you can  just ask her about her vacation at recess or something. Well, I hope she likes Pizza Rolls....'
---in preschool, this kid invited all the other kids over to our house and gave them directions....seriously. I had a mom call me and say "Are we supposed to come over tomorrow or the next day. I was told to go down the road, and make some turns and when I see a wal-greens I am getting close.". Man, this boy.......


And the kicker that was said about 15 minutes ago and just about made me tinkle a little.......


'KAITLIN ASHLEIGH, WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY? Why are you telling Tyler I have a milky ass? No, I did not just tell you I have a good milky ass. I said, it's a good thing I can multi-task. Multi Task! Two very different things honey. And we don't say ass.'


--------------------


and a couple pictures because I'm good like that.

Spelling Bee

And the word is......INCONSIDERATE. I-N-C-O-N-S-I-D-E-R-A-T-E. Thoughtlessly causing hurt to or inconvenience to others.

"When I tell people how long Jeremiah will be deployed this time, and they respond with 'Oh, that's not that bad', I find that incredibly INCONSIDERATE.'

INCONSIDERATE.

-------------------

Yep, I am definitely venting. But it's my blog, and I'll vent if I want to, vent if I want to.....

Seriously, I am considering this an FYI post and a holla to all my other military spouse friends, because I bet if you asked, they'd agree-- this is the last thing they want to hear someone say when asked how long their spouse will be gone.

And in the past week, I have heard the 'Oh, that's not that long,' or 'That's not too bad' line from SEVERAL friends.

To date, I have just smiled and nodded my head.

But........

...if I shared what was going on in my mind, it-would-go-a-little-somethin-like-this!

Really? Not that bad? Compared to what? Him being gone for 15 years? Your right, it is not as bad as that. But it still sucks for me. I have a newborn. A cuddly girl whose daddy should be here to rock her to sleep. An almost 2-year-old, whose birthday my husband will miss during this 'not so bad' deployment. And my daughter, who is not participating in ballet or dance this fall because it is too much for mommy, tell her it's not that bad. Or my son, who won't be going on the Cub Scout campout with his Daddy, the one that all the other little boys are sure to talk about......tell him it's not that bad. Or my husband, who has missed hearing his baby girl make laughing noises for the first time. Has missed seeing her REALLY smile, like smile so big it looks painful for her lips, kind of smile. And my Jack, who is at that age where he doesn't get the concept of time but wants his daddy so bad he still cries for him and it's been over 2 weeks. And me, the mama. Who keeps taking pictures like crazy because I don't want my husband to feel like he missed the big and the little things. Who has gone two days without showering because her little boy gets into EVERYTHING that my only shot at hygiene rolls in at about 11pm, and I am just to beat by then to do it. The mama who sees her kids missing their daddy, but at the same time see them become all too accustomed to good-byes and in a way, are used to life without him here,  that it breaks my heart into pieces. Me, the wife. The wife who loves her husband's face, her husband's voice, who calls his cell phone over and over just to hear his voice for a minute. The wife that sleeps in a sweatshirt doused in his cologne, that misses him so bad she wonders if she'll make it to the end-- tell me AGAIN that it's not that bad.

......I don't say those things, but I wish I could. So I am saying them here.  Sometimes silence and a smile are a thousand times better for a friend than the words you think sound fine.

--And before I get any emails or comments, let me say- I am incredibly proud of my husband and I know that he chose this line of work. I am grateful for the many things that the military provides. However, a sense of pride, paycheck, access to healthcare, and job security does not lessen the sting of constant deployments and continuous good-byes. I am not taking away from the Navy, and I know he chose this.

I am simply pointing out that it feels thoughtless when others tell me that the division of my family is 'not that bad'. It sucks. 2 weeks, 2 months, 6 months, 1 year. It sucks. And since most every woman who has said this to me has a husband that comes home every night, I think it's fair to say, they have no idea........

So, really, friends, I'd rather you just smile.

my charming girl

E is for Evie........

...but E is also for......

Etsy! She's an Etsy baby, thats for sure. And she's sporting looks from this shop and this one!!

my shoe and a roll of toilet paper. 'nuff said.

I'm spent. This week has been such a struggle. Dealing with some intense family issues, preparing to say goodbye to my husband, a minor fender bender, getting sick, 3 sick kids, and a baby girl who couldn't poop, but puked every 5 minutes really wiped me out . So this is just me. Plain and simple, getting stuff out of my head.

I am pretty sure that Miss Everleigh  would win the title to Little Miss Spit Up 2010, if there were such a thing. Her diaper bag always has no less than 3 back-up outfits. And I have finally wised up and started throwing in a back-up shirt for myself. I would venture to say that she spits up at least half and sometimes closer to three-quarters of what she takes in. She started doing this really frightening thing that seemed like she was choking or possibly having a seizure. They have put her on Zantac to help (they think she just has really bad Reflux), but it has not really changed things much. She also has a fussy period-- around dinner time, of course-- which has made life super interesting. Since I share with you my many foibles and flops, I'm thinking I'm allowed just one 'woo hoo me!', right? Last night, with an incredibly fussy baby wrapped next to me in the moby, I swept, vacuumed, mopped, cleaned the kitchen, and got dinner ready in under an hour. Don't worry-- when I cooked the pasta and was near the stove, Evie was in the swing. I was very pleased that I managed to juggle 3 hungry, rambunctious children, one fussy baby, and cooking and cleaning by myself. Gold star for me!!

Oh yeah, did I mention my husband deployed on Wednesday? No matter how many times we do this, it NEVER gets easier.

--Making a mental note here to kiss my husband (like I mean it!) more. If you have a child, you know that the first few months after having a baby, you tend to focus on-- well-- the baby. And with 3 other kids, there was not much time left for Jeremiah and I. Then we all got sick and that killed my plan to go out with him, just he and I. So I am vowing now-- I WILL find someone to take care of my kids and WILL make the time to go out with just my husband when he gets home. Because as soon as I woke up and I realized he was gone, I got so sad that I did not give him a movie kiss!--

The drinks by Izze......oh. My. DELICIOUSNESS. My favorites-- the Sparkling Clementine, Pomegranate, and Blackberry. So DARN GOOD! I'm going to have to make a trip back to Fresh Market to get some more. You just gotta try 'em!! (I was disappointed in the Peach one.)

There's this theory I have. I think there was chemical in the air this past year that caused uteruses to contract. And for those of us that were pregnant, it meant our babies got squeezed a little tighter. Ridiculous, you say?? Well, I know SEVERAL babies all born in the past year that have strawberry marks on the foreheads- including Evie. I knew she was head down and in place for quite some time, but I am not kidding, I have seen so many other newborns with the same mark, it's made me wonder what's up. I've never had a baby with a strawberry mark before, she's my first. And I think it's the cutest strawberry mark in the world!!

A short short that had me in stitches: I am picking the kids up from school yesterday, and my little man gets in the car with a serious look on his face. He says, "Mom, guess who put one of your shoes and a roll of toilet paper IN MY BACKPACK????" I immediately start laughing-- like from my belly, laughing. He continued "They fell out of my backpack and one of my friends found them on the floor and said 'whose are these', and I said 'Wait! I think that's my mom's SHOE.'" By now I am totally cracking up and can barely hear him. Can you imagine.....being in 1st grade and having your mom's shoe and roll of toilet paper spill out of your backpack. Just the randomness of finding one of your mom's shoes on your classroom floor, with the rest of the class AND the teacher, staring at you and the shoe, and the TP. Gosh, I just love my Jack. I wonder if he just grabbed the first 2 things he found and put them in Tyler's backpack, or if he put thought into it........Tyler interrupted my laughter and said 'Mom, it wasn't funny. It was really embarrassing. Here's your shoe-- next time please don't leave it out."  With that he handed me my sparkly flip flop as I pulled out of the parking lot. And I'm still laughing.

And now for some pictures........

flash

no flash

the kids at stingray bay

Jeremiah and the kids made me cupcakes!

Here's a little video of our baby girl. I apologize for the creepy voice- I have a cold and am on my last vocal cord.

That's all folks.......we're hanging in 'til next time!!

Name that Photo. Wait- I'm Good!!!

I have seen quite a few blogs that often feature a 'Name That Photo' post. I think those posts are cute little ways to invite the reader in and let the writer see the image in a way they might never have thought of.

I've never featured one of those posts. And it appears that I won't have to. All I have to do is send the picture to my sister and she'll come up with a cute little title!

I emailed this photo of Evie out to my family & a couple close friends, with the email subject being 'Reflux Sux'. My sister emailed me back with a much more fitting caption.

"Wait a second.........I'm #4 ?!?!?!?!?!?!

Love it!!

My sticks!

I changed the stick figure family at the bottom of my blog to include our sweet baby girl!! I don't have one of these things on my car, but I think it's just adorable on my blog. I think if you click on the My Family link, you'll be taken to the site to make one of your own!





My Family from WiddlyTinks.com

Blame- it's the right thing to do!

This week was a tough one. It kind of felt like September walked up to me in a brightly lit grocery store filled with easy listening music and happy-go-lucky shoppers , tapped me on the shoulder, made sure it was me, and then punched my square in the nose. And smiled when I went down.  That's pretty much how it felt. I don't think September likes me.

Let me just tell you- it was a doozie. And I feel like the best way to address this is to hand out the blame. Didn't you know, that is the healthiest thing to do? Blame those who are responsible for your upset. Trust me- once you start pointing the finger, you won't need to walk around counting slowly, taking deep cleansing breaths to avoid a mental break.

.....one, two, three, four five.......

So I blame......

- The high-ups in the Navy who really want the world to think the US Military are just friendly young boys standing by to help. While I believe that is the truth, it is pointless to try and convince the rest of the world of our 'good intentions.' So the 'joint warrior' mission my husband is preparing to deploy on- complete hogwash, in my book. Can't he just pick up trash at home or something? Or recycle? Or help a stranded motorist-- because he just did that at Publix the other day. Doesn't that count, darn it?

-- E-harmony. If you know me, you know why.

---The folks at M & M candy factory. Why on earth did you put a dang pretzel inside your candy? Didn't you know I would eat the heck out of 'em and defeat all the weight I had lost after giving birth to Evie. I was on a roll, but now- thanks to you- I have a roll-- lots of 'em, actually.

----The 7-year-old kid in my son's class who passed on his germs. Yeah, you kid. I know you're reading my blog and coughing all over the stinkin' place. Thanks so much for sharing your sickness. Boy, if you've got a funky cough and your shirt sleeve is soaked with your snot, KEEP YO GERMY SELF AT HOME. YOU READ ME??

----- The folks with the pooch who live down the street from me and left me a little 'gift' in my grass. If the lady at the tax collector's office didn't completely trash my good mood, you, Miss Funky-Poop-Leaver-Outer, totally DID! I'm half tempted to collect my 2 littles ones dirty diapers and repay the favor by sprinkling them all over your lawn. I KNOW where you live. Oh yeah! I do! You get one free pass, lady. But next time....next time,  I better see a big ol' bag in your hand or a diaper strapped firmly to your dog's butt, OR ELSE. Don't think I won't do it. Situations like this are precisely why God invented night.

------My daughters bowels. Is there a reason you are not doing your thing? Do you really want to hold on to THAT?? For the love of all that is good and Holy, please, I implore you- RELEASE!!!! RELEASE!!! Just...let....it....gooooooooo! Please, Mrs. Bowels. Trust me, it really is for the best. Your friend up north, Mr. Ears, totally agrees. RELEASE!!!

six, seven, eight, nine, ten. Ahhh........back to my happy place. Blame- it does a body good.

Dinosaurs, Feminism, and Strokes

I'd like to share with you a little story. This is the story of how my husband had a stroke.

Okay, he didn't really have a stroke. It was more of a psychological stroke. Physically speaking, he's fine, so no need to send get well cards.

Kaiti comes into my room, where I had Jurassic Park on the TV. (I don't know, it must have been what came on after Golden Girls or something.......) She is watching intently, deep in thought and then turns to me. Here's how it went down.

K: Mom, why are there ladies around all of these dinosaurs?

S: What do you mean Kaiti? The girls are around the dinosaurs because they are studying them and are interested in dinosaurs, I guess.

K: Well, it isn't safe for them, and ladies should NOT be around dinosaurs.
---clearly, my little feminist she is NOT. she gets the traditional bone from her daddy--


S: Kaiti, women can do anything men can do. If men can be around dinosaurs, then so can women. Being a lady does not limit what we can or cannot do.

K: -very stern faced and annoyed with me, now- Mom, ladies have babies, and it is NOT right for them to put their babies around danger. You should know that.
---this is about where Jeremiah is beaming with pride---


M: You're right. If one of those ladies was pregnant, it would not be safe to be around dinosaurs. But otherwise, it would be fine.

---and here is where she branches off---
K: Mommy, when you have babies, does it hurt?

S: Umm, it hurts a bit, yes. But they give you medicine to help with that.

K: And having babies makes you get really sick. Remember? When the nurse was asking if you were still getting sick after Evie came out?

S: Kait, I only got sick because of the medicine they gave me. Having a baby does not make you sick. And as soon as they stopped giving me that medicine, I felt better. Plus, it wasn't that bad.

K: So when they cut your belly, did they use real grown up scissors or a sharp knife?

S: --in stunned silence, and annoyed that her question gave me no safe out-- I am not sure what they used- but it was a medical tool, unlike what we have around the house. And I want to make sure you know that they gave me medicine that made it so I did not feel any pain at all.

K: Right, I remember. But that medicine made you really sick. You 'frew up a lot in buckets.

S: --deep sighs here-- It did make me sick, but nothing that was really bad. Kaiti, why are you asking me all of these questions?

K: I want to have a baby when I grow up but I don't want it to hurt me bad.

S: Well, it does hurt a little bit, but more after than during, and it really is not that bad. If it was so bad, Mommy would not have had 4 babies. Aunt Kelley would not have had 3 babies. It just hurts for a little bit, but you are so excited to meet your new baby, that you barely even feel it. --okay, so I took a little poetic license here-- And Kaiti, this is not something you need to be thinking about for a LONG time.

K: Yeah, not til I am triple or something.

S: Not until you are much, much, much older.

K: I know. Not until I'm 12.
---enter Jeremiah's stroke---

a little talent!

Our baby girl

is showing off

her brand new

talent!!

SHE SMILES!!!

(and simultaneously melts my beatin' heart!)