Busch Gardens Christmas 2010

On Thursday the 23rd, we went to Busch Gardens. They open at 3 PM for Christmas Towne, and it was COLD! By the time we got there, the sun was setting (it must have been just before 5), and it was freezing cold. We all got dressed up for pictures, and Emma was supposed to get her picture taken with Santa, but when we saw the line for it we decided against it. I just do not know why some people wait in these long lines just to put their child on a stranger's lap who makes them cry! It seems like an unnecessarily traumatic experience.
The park closed at 10, but we left around 8:30 because of the cold. The roller coasters were closed because of the cold, and all the lights except for the Christmas lights were turned off. I had the great idea to wear flip flops because a) I do not have a pair of boots which would have made the outfit perfect b) I was not going to wear my old, dirty sneakers with a nice outfit just to be warm. My mother would probably chastise me for this. I have a history of replacing comfort for the sake of the "look." Perhaps I was rebelling against her ultra-useful approach to fashion. "I don't like embellishments, I just want it to keep me warm!" sounds like something she would say.
All in all, it was a good trip. We enjoyed the shops, the hot chocolate, and each other's company. If we go back, though, it will definitely not be in the dead of winter, and preferably in the daytime!

I'M PREGNANT!!!!

I am sooo excited! Just got back from the hospital where I had my first ultrasound... I am 9 weeks pregnant! The due date is somewhere between July 11-15... Which is good! This means that we'll have a summer baby which will be nice. It's far enough away from Emma's birthday to make them both special, plus I'll have to make cupcakes for the last day of school because they'll have a summer birthday. :) And, can you say pool party?!!!!
I am so happy right now. Everything that was bad just a week ago has subsided. It's funny how God does that to you. It sounds cliche, but the night is always darkest before the dawn, and that is what I feel like. Andy is on hold right now waiting to see a doctor in town (civilian) to examine his pain. It was kind of a miracle because the doctor he had in A school mysteriously got reassigned to his sub. Therefore, he remembered Andy and his situation. He basically said, "Ok, you've been complaining about pain for the past 2 years... I don't think you're faking!" He immediately took the actions necessary to get him off the submarine and fixed.
Another of the reasons I was really bummed was because I really was not looking forward to going through a pregnancy and the birth without him. If he would have stayed on his sub, he would have left in January and not have been back until August. That means he wouldn't have been back until about a month after the birth. I just didn't want to go through that without him! I mean, I probably could, but given the choice? Uh-uh.
Emma is so cute and growing every day. Her recent thing to do is say, "Hi!" and "Hey!" to everyone she meets. We'll be in the store and she'll just start waving and greeting people. It's so cute! She also says it in the house all the time. It's how she gets our attention. We are gearing up for sleep training... Pray for us!

Pictures of thanksgiving and since are soon to come. I am updating this on my laptop so have to move to my Mac to upload those. Love you all and hope to see you soon!

Down Days :(

So.... Andy got put into a duty section last Tuesday. This means that he has to spend the night on the boat every three nights, which means he doesn't come home at all on those days. Nick left to go underway on Wednesday as well, so this is our second 36-38 hours all alone. The first time was my hospital appointment (which turned out to not be an appointment anyway, it was just a brief on pregnancy and giving birth with Tricare...), but today we really had nothing to do. It kind of sucks because Andy and I got in a fight last night, too. Even though we made up and I know things are going to be OK, it's bad enough being alone and not seeing someone for this long. Plus, I can't find my phone. It was hurtful when my family didn't call me at all on my birthday... or did they? I finally talked to them late my birthday night and my mom was saying how she was trying to get through to me all day... so why didn't my phone go off? Or at least tell me that I had missed calls? I still haven't been able to set up a voicemail, which is also bad because I won't be able to get my test results, or figure out at what time I set that stupid appointment for the 15th... I just feel so alone.

People who aren't in the military really don't understand the sacrifice not only made by the service member, but also their families. They get to enjoy their husbands coming home every day at a reasonable time. They can plan vacations whenever they want and go to international locations because their family members are not owned by the government. They get to choose, to a greater extent, where they live and not every every aspect of their life dictated by someone who considers the needs of the individual second to the needs of the Navy. What does the Navy "need" exactly?

To make things worse, his boat will be leaving soon to go on a little trip for 2-4 days. I don't know if I can last that long alone. At the very least, I wish I could find my phone. It would be nice to talk to another adult who cares.

Yeah, people really don't know. This is usually my favorite time of year but I think that the fact that it is Christmas time is making me feel more ostracized than ever. We are in a new place, on the opposite side of the country from my family and friends, and I just don't know what to do with myself. I just work on school and try to keep Emma happy. If I have extra time, I usually work out or work on the house.

On a more positive note, we received a late birthday present in the mail for Emma from her Great Grammy. It's a beautiful Christmas quilt! I have never seen anything so beautiful and it really ties together the room nicely. Very festive.
Andy bought me a very special Christmas present. I have been talking about going to Natural Elements Spa for the longest time... and he bought me a really nice package! It's a 90 min. Swedish massage and a shampoo, cut, blow dry from them. It's exactly what I needed! Now, if I could just find my phone I could set up the appointment...

Ode to My Husband

Dear Andy,

Thank you for all the things you do just giving us a foundation to rest upon. I know that you are in lots of pain all the time, and I think the thing that hurts me most is that there is nothing I can do about it. I hate the Navy and what they have done and are still continuing to do to you, but they have also given us a great opportunity. Thank you for seeing that opportunity and pushing through even when the going gets tough. I'm going to school right now with the intention of helping out once the kids are old enough to go to school. Emma, Nick, and I love you very much. You are the rock on which we stand. You are so funny and lovable. I love hearing your jokes and just cuddling with you to watch a movie. Thank you for talking with me even when you're tired, and pushing yourself to go out when I've been at home all day just to make me happy. I'm sure there are other things you would rather be doing, like relaxing, but I really appreciate our time together.
You are always on time, you hardly ever complain, and you still manage to keep everyone on the boat laughing and in a good mood. How do you do it when you're feeling so crummy? Even though we don't have a lot of time to spend together, you still took me out for dinner just us on my birthday. It was so nice to not have to worry about Emma the whole time (even though I don't mind at other times) and to just focus on you and enjoying the evening. As soon as you get out of the Navy, we are going to fix whatever is wrong with your hernias and make sure it gets done right. Nobody should have to live with the amount of pain you experience, no one. You deserve to live life to the fullest. You deserve to enjoy yourself. I hope that you can play football at UT when you get out, and I look forward to remodeling a house with you. I hope that we can communicate our ideas and wants and know when to compromise and when something is truly important.
Thank you for being a wonderful father. For filling in for me when you're home so that I can take a shower or cook or get something else done. You do so much already. From Charleston to Virginia and everyone in between I have loved you and continue to love. You mean so much to me. Thank you for staying strong.

<3
Your Wife

Update

We got our Christmas tree a couple of days ago and are putting the finishing touches on it, pictures to come! Andy will be gone for a few days in December, not looking forward to that. :( Looking forward to spending Christmas with his family, still no word on if my family will be able to make it. (?)
Good news! On Wednesday I go in to see if I really am pregnant (pregnancy test cam up positive) and how far along I am. It will be hard to go through this without Andy and I am really not looking forward to it. Hopefully the Navy will let him come home for the birth, but I'm not planning on it.
Listening to Amy Grant Christmas right now. There are few CDs that I really look forward to on Christmas, and this is one of them. It takes me back home to California and reminds me of Christmases past, we played her Home for Christmas album almost every year...
Emma is doing well. She loves walking, so much so that she will not even ride in the cart at Wal Mart any more but insists on walking by herself. It usually ends up with Andy and Nick doing the shopping and me guarding my little 13 mo. old as she traipses down aisles and narrowly misses running into people.

Beautiful Dreamer

Emma is such a beautiful sleeper. One of my favorite blessings is to wake up and see her lying next to me. She really is gorgeous, and it takes my breath away! She sleeps in the most unlikely places, never in her crib. I think that she considers our bed her bed, which is a bad thing, but I will have to wean her before I try to sleep train her. She sleeps in her car seat, her high chair, our bed. It used to be that I could nurse her to sleep and then place her in her crib, but she's too smart for that now. She'll only be nursed to sleep if we're on our bed.
I also want to potty train her. I should have done it sooner, but Andy wouldn't let me. :( He said it was too soon and blah blah blah. Emma is smart! I've heard stories of 7 mo. olds being potty trained... so what if they can't talk? Anyway, just trying to figure out the best way to fit in all this training... She just learned how to walk, plus we just moved. Plus, Daddy's leaving in January and then we'll be traveling and visiting people from Feb - May... doesn't really leave much time for training, plus how will she be open to it with all this external change? I suppose all I can do is try. The main thing with the weaning is that she can't drink cows milk because she is allergic. I tried using goats milk yesterday but she hated it. Maybe almond milk?
Anyway, these are the days of our lives, lol. :)

Halloween

I know that most of you already saw these on Facebook, but I wanted to have a record of them here.

Happy November!

Fall Day

I had a stroke of creativity today and wanted to show you all how beautifully fall is presenting itself on the East Coast!

Emma's birthday/At the park/Feeding the ducks

Ok, I realize I have not posted in a while. It's taken a little while to move up and get situated. Andy goes back to work on Friday :(. I'm finally getting in the place where I can take pictures again and feel satisfied. Here's some of the goings on of late:

Emma's cake! Took wayy longer than I realized and didn't turn out as I expected... Oh well, at least she won't remember it and it's practice for next year! I wanted to put it up just to remember it. Around the cake, it says "Happy Bday Emma."

Birthday kiss!

Unwrapping presents

First pair of Levi's!

Pretty birthday girl in her tutu. Daddy got her a chair to sit on! That Tigger is from Grammy (my mom). We had been looking for a Tigger for*e*ver... Emma loves the Wonderful Thing About Tiggers song!

Reading!

She would not look at the camera... but these are still cute...

Yay! Feeding duckies!

There was only one duck, "Mrs. Duck," today.

She got really close! Emma kept dropping her snacks all over the place.

I hope you enjoyed those. The apartments where we leave now are really nice. As you can see, they have this man-made lake where ducks and geese like to come. Emma loves going to see them, so we go as much as we can. There's also a play place without swings (boo!) but we can still use the slides with my help. We're on the first floor, which is so much better than the second floor, especially with strollers. My mom was able to come up and visit for Emma's first birthday. We went to the Virginia Zoo which was cool. Tomorrow we're going to go to Williamsburg, it's only about an hour away. Other than that, what have you, o faithful readers, been up to? Sorry I haven't posted in so long!

Moving to Virginia!

For those of you who haven't heard (although I don't know many people reading this who haven't heard yet), we are moving to Virginia! Andy got his orders to the USS Newport News stationed in Norfolk, VA. We leave early Tuesday morning. The packers came Friday and we are just waiting around until Monday for them to load it up, and then we can leave!
I will be so glad to be out of here... A week ago I was going through a little emotion where I thought that I would miss this place, but those days are long gone now. I am very ready to be done and in a place with normal people again. A place with sidewalks and crosswalks would be good. Oh, and can we make it not so hot and humid?!! Thanks!
I will miss the friends that we have made. Valerie, our photographer from Richard Bell Photography. I was just looking at our wedding slideshow and was just so thankful that we had such a fun and exciting photographer. She's taken multiple trips to Germany to learn German and she just inspires me!
Our next door neighbors, Ben and Amanda Wade, have been an effervescent blessing. It was so fun to have fun people to hang out with right next door! It reminded me of being a kid again and just going down your neighborhood and knocking on the door to see if your friends could play. And Emma loves Amanda... We probably could have gotten away with her babysitting but I was always too afraid to ask!
Then there's all of Andy's friends from work and their families... Not to mention the friends I met while I was working. Most of them have moved on to other bases and we have already said our goodbyes, but you are always meeting people in this business. I like that, it keeps things fresh.
Even though we didn't get Hawaii like we were hoping, I am looking forward to making my home in Virginia. It seems like such an old-fashioned, colonial place to live! They have this thing for mermaids... Apparently there's a mermaid festival and parade? Fun times! Maybe these Virginians will have a lot to offer!

Inspiration: Pea Brush

I just finished watching Martha Stewart, as it is one of the many home and garden shows I like to watch, none of them on a very regular basis. I learned about pea brushes today, and upon doing a Google search to find out more I came across this poem by Robert Frost:

Robert Frost (1874-1963). Mountain Interval. 1920.

12. Pea Brush

I WALKED down alone Sunday after church

To the place where John has been cutting trees

To see for myself about the birch

He said I could have to bush my peas

The sun in the new-cut narrow gap 5

Was hot enough for the first of May,

And stifling hot with the odor of sap

From stumps still bleeding their life away.

The frogs that were peeping a thousand shrill 10

Wherever the ground was low and wet,

The minute they heard my step went still

To watch me and see what I came to get.

Birch boughs enough piled everywhere!- 15

All fresh and sound from the recent axe.

Time someone came with cart and pair

And got them off the wild flower's backs.

They might be good for garden things 20

To curl a little finger round,

The same as you seize cat's-cradle strings,

And lift themselves up off the ground.

Small good to anything growing wild, 25

They were crooking many a trillium

That had budded before the boughs were piled

And since it was coming up had to come.

Looks like Robert Frost had the right idea. I am so excited to have a house of our own because I have always wanted a vegetable garden. My aim is to have something beautifully cultivated that also aids the economics of the home. How rewarding and easy would it be to simply walk to your garden and pick the produce for an upcoming meal? Flowers are always nice as well, but for now I am in love with vegetables.

If you would like to learn more about pea brushing/how to do it yourself, visit these blogs for excellent tips and advice:

Urban Veggies Garden Blog

A Way to Garden

21 days until Andy is on leave!!!

House Hunting

We've begun to look for houses in the Norfolk/Virginia Beach area. This is really exciting for me as it will be our first place. It feels so grown up going house shopping, and I know that it will be a good investment. There are a lot of bases around this area, so when we leave we are planning on either renting it out or selling it. We definitely don't want to get stuck in Virginia when Andy's time is done there, but we also don't want to continue throwing money away on rent, and let me tell you! There are some nice properties.

Now, I'm a veteran of Property Virgins... I know all about the "wishlist," the inspector, closing costs and not setting your sights too high. I mean I'm your average text book know-it-all. I know that you need to put a larger down payment and opt to have higher payments that get payed off quickly instead of a low monthly payment. Some of this I know from growing up with my Dad, but all in all, I'm ready to flex my investing muscles! It is a great market in which to buy, and I've been kicking myself that we didn't take advantage of it sooner. This is so me, though, always bighting at the bit, wanting do things a little too young.

More updates later. Emma will celebrate her first birthday while Andy's on leave! Yay! He will have 30 days of leave starting the 17th of September. I had wanted to go and visit during that time, but what with trying to find a place to live (we might have to rent somewhere while we figure out buying a house), moving, etc. I want us to just be able to relax and enjoy each other's company. Andy's been through so much at prototype and I just want him to be able to relax before he goes on a potential deployment.

Well, that's it for now. Here's some pictures of Emma and I playing Baby Moses the other day: