Changes.

So I know you were all anxiously awaiting my Friday Finds on Etsy post, but once again, life got in the way. I had one of those crazy weeks. Let me sum it all up for you.

Tuesday: Took Jonah to the doc because he hurt his finger over the weekend (on the other hand this time). And, you guessed it, he broke it. That makes 2 broken fingers in three months. Poor active kid. There was a few tense hours while we waited for the doc to call us back that afternoon because the xrays showed that the fracture was right along his growth plate. He wanted to have the head radiologist take a look to see if the plate was affected. If it was we would've had to go to the Orthopedic clinic on base and see what the course of action would be. Thankfully, the questionable area in the growth plate was from normal shifting for his age, and the fracture did not extend.

Thursday: I got a phone call from the hubby (he's still at school down in Georgia) and he informed me that the new assignments were doled out. We are being sent to Tinker AFB in Oklahoma City. It is NOT the assignment we were expecting or hoping for. Quite the opposite, actually. We were figuring we'd head back overseas and we were really pulling for that...the hubby wanted Germany or Alaska (somewhere cold & snowy) and I was praying for Hawaii, Japan, Guam or another equally wonderful beach locale. We were both disappointed. So my Thursday evening was pretty much a wash at that point. I didn't even cook dinner...just piled the kids in the car and headed to Chik-fil-a.

Friday: Just before I was about to head out to do my routine payday errands running, I recieved a text from the hubby saying that we had to be in Oklahoma no later than mid-January. Knowing the date was so final for me. I mentally calculated how LITTLE time I have left here in South Carolina...a place that I DO. NOT. WANT. TO. LEAVE. I fielded calls/texts all day from friends saying they didn't want us to leave. Trust me, I don't want to go either. But what can you do? Then I tried to be positive and proactive and deal. But that night when the hubby got home for the weekend, I had a meltdown and cried like a baby.

Saturday & Sunday: The hubby & I spent quite a bit of time figuring out the logistics. The BAH rates are not close to what we're making here, and from the rental rates we saw of the size homes we would need it's going to be impossible for us NOT to live on base. Luckily we have friends stationed at Tinker (although they will be PCSing themselves just a month after we arrive) and she has been so helpful already with sending me phone numbers and giving me info. We also decided that we will be moving our family in December, while the boys are on break from school. It will make their transition so much easier. And while it's the last thing I want to do...spend Christmas on the road or in a hotel...I have to think of what's best and easiest for my sweet babies.

So my friends, my life is in a state of upheaval. Add all this stress to the normal October-through-December chaos (birthdays, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas), my continuing Etsy orders (thank the Lord!), the hubby still at FLETC until December 1st, and trying to figure out how my live-in sister will get back to Florida and you have a borderline basket case. So I apologize now for any big delays in posting like I had this week. It's just crazy right now.

No thanks.

Sophia has gone from my sweet little princess, to this.

A scary, temper tantrum throwing monster.

HELLLLLLOOOOOOO terrible two's. We have NOT missed you. Please go away.

Emotional Tug-of-war

While I was out running my errands today, I noticed that the stores are starting to stock their Christmas items. Normally, this is my favorite time of year. I love to decorate my house for the holidays, and I actually enjoy Christmas shopping. But this year it's different. Money is tight, and I won't be able to decorate how I want to. We are in a new house this Christmas and we finally have a big front yard to do up, and nothing to do it up with. Sure, we have our Christmas lights from last year, and with any luck they'll all still work this year, but for once we have a lawn and I won't be able to make it festive. I have a feeling our yard will be reminiscent of Charlie Brown's sad little Christmas tree.

As for Christmas gifts, we'll be getting pretty creative this year. I already plan on making most of the gifts that we will be giving (really not a problem for me...I'd like to consider myself a military wife version of Martha Stewart), and the rest will be inexpensive, but meaningful.

I know that we are not the only family having to cut back on Christmas this year. Maybe we should all just revisit the Christmases of the past and bask in the fact that we have our loved ones near, and make it a great holiday despite the current economic situation.

Waiting...

The last couple of days have been more stressful than ever in our house! Here I am, 5 days left until hubby gets home, and I'm facing a possible hurricane hitting the city where we live. So much for Charleston never getting hurricanes.

We're day by day on whether or not we evacuate. I read the base's evacuation handbook, and it clearly states that we are NOT AUTHORIZED to board up or tape our windows in base housing. So to me that reads that they will evacuate us, since they will not let us take the proper precautions. But I can't leave until it's announced because if we go before an official evacuation, we will not be reimbursed for our travel expenses. So I'm stuck between a rock & a hard place. I don't want to stay here and weather the storm with my kids by myself, but I don't have the money it would cost us to evacuate.

I am NOT a patient person, so this 'hurry up and wait' attitude of the military is getting old. One would think after 7 years of military life that I'd be used to it, but I'm not. Especially not when it deals with the safety of my family. They will not authorize Bobby to test out early from 7-level school, becuase they are not going to willingly let him go into a hurricane. So their solution is for me and the kids to go to him in a safe area.

As of right now, the boys still have school tomorrow, and the base commander is supposed to make his decision regarding evacuation by 6am. So who knows...this time tomorrow I could be sitting in the house helping Noah with his homework, or I could be almost to our final destination of Maxwell AFB, Alabama, where the hubby is at his school. Your guess is as good as mine!

I Sure Didn't Miss This.

Growing up in Florida, you get used to hurricanes. But as soon as you leave and don't live there for a few (or 7) years, you forget pretty quickly what it's like to be on tropical storm/hurricane watch.

Now we're back in an east coast state, pretty close to the ocean, and just in the last week I've been on the edge of my seat over 3 storms. First was Fay, and even though Charleston wasn't directly hit, we still had a good week's worth of rain from it. The base where Bobby is TDY also got the outer bands, and had more damage than we did. Now they're getting ready for the monstrosity that is hurricane Gustov. That one's making me a bit nervous. And then we have tropical storm Hanna, who's supposed to hit the east coast by the end of the week. And who knows how much bigger Hanna will get. There's alot of open water before it gets to land.

Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to be in Charleston, and I really love it here. But I sure didn't miss this.

Two Week Wait

For those of you who have ever tried to conceive a baby, know all about the two week wait. No, I am not trying to get pregnant, nor am I thinking I am. This is a different two week wait.

This is the wait until my hubby gets back home from his training. In just two weeks he will be done in Alabama and on the road back home. I've made it through a month of being a single mom. Two weeks should be a piece of cake. But I'm bracing myself for what will inevitably happen to make these final two weeks seem like two months.

27 days down, 14 more to go.

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

We have been getting rain for Tropical Storm Fay, for about 3 days now. And we're not even in it's path! We're forecasted to get Fay-related rain clear through the end of the week, too.

My hubby is down in Alabama for some training with the military, and I got texts from him last night saying "The storm's here!" and "Well, now the power went out." I talked to him on the phone for a bit last night, and he was standing outside because he didn't get good reception inside, and I could hear the wind whipping around (he said that it was going about 45-50 mph) and the rain slapping the side of the building. And it definitely wasn't a comforting thing when he interrupted me to say "Oh! There go a couple branches from that tree!" Just what a wife wants to hear when she's on the phone with her hubby.

I talked to him again today and the power had come back on sometime during the night. He said that there was alot of damage around the base and the surrounding areas outside the gates. Then later on he texted me saying the storm was back and just as bad as last night. He was holed up in his room most of the afternoon because the wind and rain were so fierce. He has assured me that they can cancel up to 4 days of class without it affecting their end date, so as long as they don't have to cancel the entire week, he will still be coming home in a couple of weeks as originally scheduled. I think that is my biggest fear aside from him getting hurt...that he may not be home when he should be.

Thankfully we have still been able to have cell phone contact. It's kind of ironic, really, because he said that the last couple of days have been the best connection he's had when we're on our cell phones. Go figure, eh?

Anyway, please keep my hubby, and all those affected by T.S. Fay in your prayers. Pray for the safety of those still involved and those who are waiting for it to come. And pray that those who have already been hit by the storm can rebuild quickly and aren't displaced for too long.

I could, but I won't.

Today I could complain about the non-stop rain and the ever-extended tornado watch, or the fact that there's a leak in my dining room ceiling that the housing office doesn't feel the need to do anything about other than tell me to "put a bucket under it". Or how about the thought that there's still 18 more days until my hubby gets home.

But I won't.

Instead, I'll share a picture of my daughter. She makes me smile, and I can definitely benefit from that right about now.

One of Those Days

Ever have one of those days where, at the end of the day you look back and say, "Why did I even get out of bed?" Yeah, me too. And today was one of them.

It started off with me hitting the snooze one too many times, and having to rush around to get Noah to school on time. On the way home it started to rain, and continued all day long. Later I headed to Walmart with a very small list, and was unable to find it all, so I have to go to another one tomorrow. The afternoon consisted of more rain, over-tired children, and two boys who failed to tell me who's house they were going to go play at, so I walked around the neighborhood knocking on doors (yes, in the rain) until I found the right house. Fast forward to after dinner, when my 'innocent' 14 month old pushed my Circle Of Friends candleholder from Mexico off the table and, because it is made from teracotta, it all but shattered.

It doesn't end there.

I put the boys to bed, and lay Sophia down. She's quiet for a few minutes but then realizes mommy's not coming back, so she starts screaming. I go to calm her down, and realize that someone (my guess is Jonah) locked her bedroom door, and I can't get in. I call the hubby in a panic asking him how to unlock the door from the outside. He, of course, is not home, and won't be for another 3 weeks (damn 7 level school). His response to my dilemma: laughter. By this time I'm near tears, and tell him to quit laughing because I'm not in the mood. I just want to know how to get into her room! He explains and I get it unlocked, and then he's off the phone as quick as he was on, because he wants to go shoot pool with the guys. *sigh* Must be nice to be able to hang up the phone and not have to deal with life.

Yes, there were a few bright spots in the day, the most notable one being when I told the boys to go brush their teeth for bed. Jonah shouted out "I already did! Wanna smell??" and proceeded to blow into my face so that I smell the toothpaste. Oh, what I wouldn't give to be a carefree 4 year old again!

You always remember your first time...

This is my first official blog post! Hooray for me!

I feel like I'm finally settling in here in Charleston. It's been 6 months, but I feel almost 100% at home here. Of course there are things that I still have to get used to (like the ridiculous humidity!), but that will come in time, I am sure.

My life is pretty stressful right now, but that's pretty normal when you're a military wife, and a stay at home mom to three rambunctious children. My beloved husband has three weeks left of his six week training, and it definitely has NOT been an easy road this time for me. I'm just trying to successfully balance all of the hats I wear as a mom, wife, sister, friend, and, sometimes, single parent. But like my mom always says, "This too shall pass." And in the words of my dearly departed grandpa, I must "keep courage". So that's what I'm trying to do.