Chinface

A couple of months ago, I did a chinface with the boys. Do you know what I'm talking about? Here's a pic... mine wasn't nearly as cute. I'm always looking for new and creative ways to boss them around ;-)




The boys thought it was quite funny and thought they would try it for themselves.... this is what I found. Oh, have you ever seen a more precious face? Killin' me Bradley.

Starting Chapter 2

Today marks our first official day out of the Air Force, and yet my husband will be gone for 2 months. We haven't had to do the separation thing since we left Mountain Home in 2009. Oh, we've been trained and conditioned for temporary times such as this... it's just been a while.

I have so many mixed emotions on leaving the Air Force. It's been a great run filled with more memories than I can list. We learned things the hard way, found blessings in "disaster" assignments, and relied on each other. I truly consider my military friends = family. We loved on each other's babies as if they were our own, and knew someone was in the same boat. They were a call away at any time of the night. In fact, if the world could treat each other the way military families do, it could bring world peace. It was never saying goodbye, it was see you later at the next base. It forced you to dive in and get involved in each new assignment. You were no longer "new" to a town if you've been there 6 months. You better know the ropes because the next set of newbies were right behind you and they needed the same help you were given. There wasn't time to get to know each other, you were best friends right away, and you grew to love them even more.

Tricare has been a lifesaver for us and the boys. Never paid a cent for medical care, deliveries, always had my choice of Doctors, and could go in for a sniffle. No co-pays, $3 prescriptions, specialists, testing, therapy, and second opinions. There's a great safety net knowing you can always take care of your kids health without financial strain.

Keith got to fulfill a dream of being a fighter pilot. He was GREAT at it. He's a determined man always acting on his drive to live life to it's fullest. Thank you Keith for your service, thank you for the wild ride. I would do it all over again with you. Now, with shaky legs we venture out into civilian life. Nobody telling us where to go, but weighing decisions on our own. I'm so excited for your new adventure with Federal Express. Don't worry about us, we'll be here truckin' on with our budget and Ramen noodles! Waiting for you to embrace a new kind of life.

Brad read a book tonight. Not just the pamphlets he brings home from school - a BOOK! The kid who refused to do his popcorn words 3 weeks ago. I'm floored. Excited. Elated!! For if I had a million days and time enough for all the praise, I couldn't tell you all the ways, I LOVE YOU!! Yea Brad!!

Mer

This is my first baby. He's been by my side for a long long time. There through the very good and the very bad. He's my loyal companion and I love him so. He's my hound dog and high maintenance farm dog all rolled into one. Now he's starting to get older and showing his age. I don't know how much longer I have with my buddy, but when I see him like this, my heart hopes he lives forever.

867-5309

Oh Bradley, my little ladies man. He scored his first girl's phone number today. He brought me this tiny little piece of paper with 5 year old handwriting of just numbers. It was Charolette's phone number. Today was her birthday and Brad said we have to go over to her house tonight. The boy was adamant! So, I gave it a call. Sure enough, it was Charolette's mom. And today was actually her birthday. We were kinda invited to her party on Saturday at 3:00. She said she would bring an invitation tomorrow. I apologized and didn't want to invite ourselves, but Brad was sure he was coming to their house tonight.

After I told him about the party, he said he wants to buy her a ring as her gift. I can't decide if I should be afraid of the smoothness or think its still sweet......... Until I heard this:

Chase lynn: brad, did you play with anyone else while I was gone? Like Emily?
Brad : no.
Chase lynn: oh, cause you said you would if I was gone too long


WHAT! New rule, all of Brad's communication will be done through ME!

Day 11 (Sorry Erin)

Today Keith has been gone 11 days (you gotta start somewhere). I will be the first to admit we miss him dearly. But the Air Force has prepared me for times such as these.

So far I've:

* sent a fax. This is a big deal because I am secretly afraid of fax machines. I mean, really, how does a paper WITH pictures go through the phone line? I don't get it, and find it to be the creepiest techie invention yet. Don't rebuke my argument with the tiny hand-held computers (smart phones). Those are just magic.

*scanned a couple of documents and saved them according to Keith's instructions. A feat within it's self

*filed our web taxes for both businesses

*returned phone calls and scheduled estimates I will be doing myself. I'm kicking ass at the CEO stuff.

*mailed off crashpad leases

*shipped off Keith's broken camera (thank heaven for insurance!)

*cleaned out the pool skimmers, and filled

*watered my flowers

*checked the mail. I ehat checking the mail. In fact, I didn't even know what mailbox number we were before Keith left. Not my job. And those bills can sit there! Oh, speaking of... I should go pay those. The next place we move will HAVE to have a mailbox at the end of the driveway. End of discussion.

*Kept up with a clean house, fed my children, grocery shopped, and basically held the house together (which as every woman knows requires too much paper and ink to list)

*oh, and answered questions such as "Who was the first man in the world?" "Well then, who was the third man?" "Why did God come back as a baby?" "Does that mean we're all related?" "Where are my shoes?" "Can I play my itouch?" and "Is the tooth fairy real because Morgan says mommies sneak in your room and put money down while they steal your tooth?"

Overall, I feel like I've got a real handle on things. Basically:

Starting A New Trend

Did you know my children can rip holes in jeans in less than 10 minutes after purchase. I would say it's a real gift they possess. Always the left knee? What is up with that?

There's a dress code at school that states there can not be any holes in denim. So this is my handy dandy patchwork. I'm torn between homemaker gone wild or expensive designer distressed. You know - the $200 jeans that look like they've been worn for 10 years.

In an effort to save money and NOT spend another $15 on kids jeans, I'm hoping to convince my boys how COOL they will look with the Dad's-white-tshirt- patch job. Or maybe my problem is the fact I refuse to spend more than $15 on their jeans. NaaaaH!

I'm Spreading The Word

Starts with an L

I picked the boys up from school yesterday and told them I had a surprise. We were going somewhere and I gave them clues:

Me: It starts with an L
Cole: Loony Tune Land
Me: It has thousands and thousands of these things in them
Cole: ??
Me: Dewy Decimal Point System
Cole: I don't even know what that is.
Me: Card Catalog
Cole: Are we going to Best Buy?
Me: Second letter is I
Cole: Loony Tune Land

I wanted to hit my head on a wall.... what in the world are they learning in school? And I really should have taught them this sooner. We went to the City Library and they each got library cards. I showed them how to use the computer catalog and told them how it use to be all these cards in a little box. They looked at me like I was crazy. We found the numbers and how to find the aisle it was in.... and we picked out...... How To Eat Friend Worms.

Crazy enough, the kid's name is Billy - the same name of the boy in Where the Red Fern grows. So far we are 50 pages in and they find it "alarious" Makes me happy!!

Boys Updated

Cole recently stopped saying "redult" instead of "adult". I don't know who taught him the difference, but I'm a little upset by it. He's not allowed to grow up so clearing his vocabulary from cute baby sayings is forbidden.

However, on the flip side.... yesterday he was telling me a story about something that happened at school and he said it was "alarious" (as in hilarious) Be still my heart!! I need a few more years of hearing "alarious" ;-) Don't ruin it for me!

I'm still absolutely shocked every time I pick up Brad from school. I can't wait to take a look in his folder. I'm also noticing a difference in how Mrs. Dylla is treating him. She's hugging him and commenting on how sweet he is. I'm sure it's difficult for a teacher, but knowing that she's seeing the kid inside that I know he is, delights me to no end. She's always cared for him and looked out for him, but now I feel like she's really LOVING him. Brad is writing EVERYTHING! I call it his "tag", but he's writing "I love Cole, Mom, Dad, God, Jesus" on each and every paper he brings home. I find this a far cry from the boy two weeks ago saying I hate everybody, everybody hates me, and I want a new family. He even told me the other day "I don't like the days we don't go to school!" HOLY COW!

The child who Keith and I thought would never grow out of whining, has stopped. He's not throwing fits, he's understanding directions and following them. He's telling me about problems with words and not screaming and crying. I'm bummed Keith isn't here to see the differences. I think he will be FLOORED when he gets back next weekend!

Day 3

Today is day #3 for Brad. It was the first day I've been able to spend the day with him to see his reactions. AMAZING! He never cried or became frustrated. He was able to follow my directions - more than 2 things at a time! We had a conversation that I could feel he understood. Again, I can tell when it's wearing off. Very irritable and cranky. Crying and anger. I'm sure he's not use to his little body feeling fine and then all scattered again. We're still going to try a few more days to see if he starts to understand how it's helping him and how it's ok when it wears off.

I guess I never wanted to medicate because my though process was "how can you tell if he's really ADD/ADHD when he's just four or five?" Let him be four or five and we will cross this bridge when we really have school work. Even though we have had him certified tested to prove it, I didn't REALLY believe it because he wasn't the kid running and jumping, or climbing the walls. His thoughts were so rampet, so jumbled, he has so many ideas and things he wants to express, but he couldn't. Lord, please let this give him the self esteem he needs. I don't think I could ever breathe again if he decided to hurt himself.

Today is also kinda Day 1. Keith left for Memphis. He's off to find his fortune as my Grandmother would say. FedEx training starts on Monday. He will be back in 2 weeks before he starts up again for 3 months. We can brave the next couple of weeks before our lives get really busy soon......

Next post: I eat stress for breakfast!

Where The Red Fern Grows

I have always read to the boys. Short bedtime stories, reptile facts, animal magazines, the directions on their wii Lego games - but this was the first time we've sat down as a family and conquered our first novel. Time to get caught up with my children and their "classics". I vowed I would read them with my kids and this was book number one.

I was actually surprised they sat and listened for 45 minutes at a time. I loved all our time together and their genuine interest in the book. There were several times Cole would say "Oh, do you think it was the same as back in that other chapter?" He wanted to know the meaning of the words, where this had taken place, and all about everything! I was shocked to hear him say "No, mom - do you think it was the same mountain lion that almost got them when he first got his dogs?" - before the reference in the book was even mention. I'm shocked at the comprehension!

As we neared the end of the book, I had to read ahead. I had been warned it was "super sad", so my only guess would be the dogs died. Well, I can't say there were any tears because it was obvious. I'm a heart of stone.

Last night we tackled the last two chapters with Cole and Brad. They hung onto my every word. When we reached the saddest point - no tears from my boys! Not a drop! I will admit when I read it the second time, I teared up when the mention of the mother and father hurting so deeply for Billy. At the sight of this my boys were LAUGHING! At ME! They laughed through the end of the book. Cole said he wanted to be sad, but just couldn't. That was the end of that! I guess they are more of a "cat person". They're as cold as ice! What's next on our reading agenda? I can't wait to pick out a new one!

How Much Longer?

Will they be able to sit in the same chair to play? Please don't say "not long", I know it's obvious, but my heart can't bare the thought.

My Little B

I thought we had worked through most issues. The fits are back. It pains me to watch him scream and cry - not knowing why he feels the way he does. He doesn't remember half of what he says or what the issue was that started it.

The worst part is his low self confidence. He doesn't believe anyone loves him. Everyone is out to get him, and you can't even comfort him. Now, he wants to start hurting himself. At FIVE. Only 5 years old and he says things that break my heart into a thousand pieces. I will protect him to the end, risk life and limbs to keep him from every predator out there. Mama Bear on attack. How do I stop him from hurting himself?

After almost a year of "waiting it out" or being on the fence, we are going with the Dr's recommendation.

The first day was horrible. Today is the second day, and so far so good. He was the first one in the class to complete his work and you should see how much he did!! This is just what he did today!! Usually he doesn't even complete a page of work.




Benjamin Bunny like to blow blue brow(n) black bubbles


This kind of math worksheet was NEVER competed.. He finished the front AND back







It says, I love Cole, Mom, Cad, God, Jesus. my bear's name is Paos. My bear lives in the cave. My bear eats fish.

I'M FLIPPING OUT!! I'm so proud of him. It's a night and day difference. Brad honey, I hope you feel better about yourself. You are smart, You are kind, and You are important! I know you are destined for great things baby. I can't wait for you to show the world all the reasons I love you so - Forever your biggest fan!

Ego training.... Check

I really should write more often. My boys are growing and changing so fast. They are a blink away from being grown ups. I don't like it at all.

For whatever crazy reasons, I never read several of the "classic" books as a child. I know a few were even required readings. How I skipped them, I'll never know. One of my Christmas gifts was the book Where The Red Fern Grows. It's one of Keith's favorite all time books and he's wanted to read it to the boys for a while now. For the past week, we've all sat around together and read a couple of chapters a day. The boys are really into it. In fact, everytime I finish a chapter I say "the end" and close the book. It's always followed by pleas to keep reading.

Tonight I read the part where Billy is at the championship coon hunt and he's walking around the camp looking at all the other dogs. He overhears somebody say "isn't that the boy with those hounds?" and his head fills with so much pride it could burst.

Enter Cole. He stops me and says "kinda like me..... When I won that soccer trophy?". Ooh, yes. I stopped reading and told him he was so excited just like Billy. Then Cole asks..."what did I win that for again?". He was fishing for me to tell him all the good things the coach did when he got the trophy. As if he didn't remember. Because he's cute and only 8, I went off on Coles talents.

Umm, honey? Can we return to the book now?