Happy Anniversary to Us!

March 20th was our sixth wedding anniversary. I say it like that, because this one wasn't exactly "celebrated" in the usual sense, what with Brian on a ship and so much distance between us. But, we each had what I'd call exceptional days.

Brian's was special because the ship was celebrating her first 45 days--the period after which each person is allowed to drink 2 beers in a roped off area on the flight deck (the "beer garden"). Only this celebration actually took place on the 65th day, so, it was long overdue. As luck would have it, Brian was overseeing an emergency surgery, so he joined the "steel beach party" a tad late. But even then, he managed to score a couple of Yuenglings, while everyone else in his department seemed to be relegated to Bud Light or Coors Light. So, all in all, not a bad day--as far as days go on a ship. I like to think he drank (at least one of those beers) to our great marriage.

But even though I know he didn't, he did call, and even sent a very cute and delicious cookie bouquet for me and the girls to celebrate (eat) together. It said "To my honey" on one flower and "Happy anniversary" on the heart in the middle. Very sweet.

And my mom happened to be here helping me for a week, so we girls had a great day outside at the zoo with a picnic lunch. And then we all went out for dinner at A.W. Shucks along with my neighbors for some great seafood. So, all in all, a fairly good day--as far as days go without Brian around.

The fact that our wedding anniversary is always on the first day of spring has never brought me as much comfort as it did this year. The memories of our warm, sunny wedding day flooding my mind, the sunshine warming our days this March, the flowers coloring our world around us, two girls budding into beautiful people before my eyes...and maybe it's these things that are improving my mood. Or more likely, it's also that we are one season closer to summer, or Brian's return, when we can get back to sharing our normal way of life.

A Care Package from Daddy

We were walking out the door to go over to my friend Beth's house (another family missing their Daddy on the USS Nassau), when we spotted a box addressed to Sydney and Miranda. We grabbed it and immediately made a U-turn back inside. Nothing is more important than hearing from Daddy!

Sydney made sure to point out, "Mommy, your name is not on there, just Miranda and me." So, she insisted on opening it herself, with her purple scissors (with a tiny bit of help for safety's sake).

Tucked inside right on top, was this initial note from Daddy:

Of course, I later teased Brian about his "brutally honest gift tag"...was it really necessary to tell the recipients of the gifts, let alone a 4-yr old and 2-yr old, they were free? To which he replied, laughing, "Yeah, I guess everything is free to them!" Not exactly my point, but definitely true!

But, I digress...both girls were seriously excited to get mail from Daddy! Sydney took charge of opening their letters, while Miranda tried to figure out what these small, round camouflage things were.

Miranda lost interest as quickly as they popped open into one-man tents! But Sydney hopped right into hers, zipped it up, laid down and asked for her sleeping bag!

Then, since there are two of course, I popped open the second one right away--which came with a bonus gift of Deet bug repellent cream! But wouldn't you know, Miranda wouldn't get in hers. Not to mention, one is plenty big enough for both girls anyway, and eventually after Sydney's urgings, she inched her way in next to Sydney, all the while guarding the zipper to make sure it stayed open.

So...now I just have to figure out how to fold the second one back up. It looks the first one has become a permanent fixture in our house for the next five months. Thanks, Daddy!

Cruising to Nassau

While Brian's on his Nassau cruise, I somewhat ironically cruised to Nassau. Kathleen said, "Let's go on a cruise to the Bahamas; I need to go somewhere warm, we need to have a reunion, AND we'll call it a deployment distraction for you." To which I said, "Sounds good to me," of course, without realizing until it was booked that the one port we'd be stopping in was NASSAU, of all places. So, the cruise with girlfriends to take my mind off of the deployment forced me to realize it is not physically possible to take my mind off the deployment. Isn't it ironic? But it was indeed something to look forward to, and Kathleen, Darlene, Kim and I had a great time catching up and relaxing together, even if it wasn't all that warm!

We all made it to the ship as planned by Friday afternoon--two out of four of us later than planned (not me, seen relaxing with a "Bahama Mama" in photo above), with melodrama that rivals any Lifetime movie. But one "Loving Cup" shot later (compliments of Darlene), we were well on our way to sharing a relaxing time together. So, it's no surprise that we drank a bit.




And we ate a ton (but here Kim just poses, we were too full to eat one bite from this midnight buffet!)

















We shopped (and window shopped) a little.



We relaxed on a beautiful beach (Atlantis, Paradise Island), after lathering on the sunblock, of course. After all, two of us arrived with our tans in tact!









While the other two accidentally seared in the sun!








One of us took her chances at blackjack and doubled her money, winning herself an all-onboard-expense-paid trip...while another doubled her onboard expenses by opting for a guaranteed win: a fabulous "aroma stone therapy" massage!



I'll stop there, before I feel too guilty. Because no doubt, my Nassau cruise was way more fun than Brian's. And was over way quicker.

Phewww...Ballet is Off to a Good Start

In case you hadn't heard, Sydney was all but kicked out of gymnastics about a year ago. Well, I exaggerate. But to make a long story short, her attention span/interest level was lacking compared to her peers and what was supposed to be fun for her had turned into a lesson in futility and anxiety for me. And I didn't exactly care for the dynamics of the class and teacher, for that matter.

(The long story is this, if you're interested: Parents were asked to wait downstairs in the more structured class we were trying, so when Sydney had a tantrum the first day--about not getting to sit on the purple dot, which doesn't surprise me--the teacher sent for me. But when I arrived, Sydney was on the sidelines too upset and too young to communicate fully and I had no idea how to handle it because the teacher was carrying on with the class. So I didn't know exactly what had happened from the teacher until later that night by email. The bottom line is this: if you're not willing/able to redirect a 3-year old during a gymnastics class, you'd better let the parent stay in the room so they can observe what happened.)

So, I took her out of the gymnastics class and went straight to Brian's office to have her diagnosed with ADHD. And while he told me it's too early to tell, he did give me a handout on ADHD, which fit her to a T. So, ever since, I've been a little worried. But I take comfort in the fact that my mom always said I had the "attention span of a gnat" when I was a toddler/preschooler, so I figure there's hope for her! (If you consider me "normal," that is...)

Anyway, Sydney was a natural at ballet today, which was a delight and a bit of a relief. She's petite, she's girly and loves pink, she only wants to wear dresses, and she loves to twirl around on her pointed toes to classical music! If only the biggest girl in the class hadn't accidentally elbowed her in the ear right before the cool down, she might've made it all the way to the end of the first class! Regardless, we'll be back for more. But not tomorrow, as she'd hoped.

Brian's Virtual/Remote 35th Birthday Party!

Ever since we mailed Brian's birthday care package off to him about three weeks ago, Sydney and Miranda have been very concerned that Daddy is not home for his birthday--and more importantly, that he is not getting a birthday cake. So, instead of making a real one to eat in his absence (most of which I would end up eating), I decided we would have a pretend virtual birthday party for Daddy! The girls were more than okay with this because I never discussed with them the option of a real cake just for them without Daddy...

Here's the 2-dimensional cake and a message Sydney drew for Daddy. (I only drew the ovals to get the cake started and helped her spell as she made all the letters herself.) She was quick to fold it and hopped up out of her chair, ready to squirrel it away in an envelope, but I quickly rescued it and told her we needed to send it to Daddy on the computer.















Then after Miranda's nap, we pulled out all our props to really get the party started. First, as of Sydney's 4th bday, no family birthday celebration would be complete without our family "Happy Birthday" banner. Next, of course we had to have our Daddy dolls attend the party, since they are the birthday guests of honor (one is even wearing a Hello Kitty party hat). Finally, we couldn't have the birthday party without the cake, so Sydney and Miranda whipped up this delicious (multicolor peg board) cake, which Sydney's been pretending is cake with candles since she was Miranda's age.















Next they sang Happy Birthday to Daddy--well, Miranda got stage fright as usual. That was the only part that was my idea, the rest they improvised! But my favorite part was when Sydney stated how old she thinks Brian is, very matter-of-factly, yet very incorrectly... (Brian, I promise I didn't tell her what to say...watch it on FB for a good laugh, I couldn't get it to upload here)!

Happy Birthday, Brian! We miss and love you, we hope you have a memorable birthday, and we hope that that nice, good cook scrounges up some real cake for you on your birthday! But if not, hope you take comfort in ours!

Rude Awakenings

I promised blog rants, and now I will deliver.

There is perhaps nothing more irritating than being awakened by my own children. And I consider myself a morning person. I wouldn't mind waking up by 6:15 am, if it was on my terms. But the way in which I am awakened is truly rude and I have to put a stop to it. If only I knew how...

Brian knows the drill, it happens when he's here, too. And even then they won't desist until I give in, get up, and answer their beck and call. Though, when Brian's not next to me, insert Mitch lately hogging more than his side of the bed. Miranda's the first greeter to arrive by 6:15 am. She squeezes into bed on my side, and at least quietly, plays listlessly with the sheets as she wakes (us) up.

Sydney storms out of her room and stumbles down the hall not more than 10 minutes later. And when she finds there's no room for her, she begins whining/screaming, which continually escalates when you tell her she's being cranky and rude and to go downstairs or back to bed. I'd even left out Cheerios on the table and cups of milk in the fridge for them, to no avail.

Who wants to stay in bed after that? So, usually I get up and regreet my life of servitude. But today, I jumped up, told them both to get in my bed (they did), and escaped to run downstairs to put the TV on. They followed whining/screaming of course, and then I wrapped them both on the couch in a blanket "nest" (separately, of course), put their milk on the table, and went back upstairs to try to regroup and watch a little news from my bed.

Problem solved? No. In just 10 minutes, Miranda had spilled her Cheerios all over the couch and had climbed into Sydney's nest. So, Sydney screamed at her and when that didn't work to get her out of the nest, ran upstairs screaming to me. Gooooood Morning to me.

Oh, it gets worse. They're now eating their second breakfast. (Yes, I realize I've created these monsters.) They each have a waffle, Miranda's on her second. When I ask Sydney if she wants more while she's looking right at me (with a glazed over look), she turns back to the TV and ignores me. I HATE THAT!!! So, I ask her two more times, raising my voice to the point of screaming when she finally turns to look at me. So, I send her to time out and tell her she may not have another waffle, she can finish the Cheerios that she didn't eat. Of course then she starts crying/whining that she wants a waffle. But I know from too many past experiences that if I make her one, she will not eat it, it's just a game to see if I give it to her. So, no way. Not today--even as mentally exhausted as I am this morning.

So, what's worse than being rudely awakened by your children? Being blatantly ignored by them. With a lot of fighting and whining in between, we've gone from one extreme to the other this morning! And there are few things as disrespectful and demoralizing and I'm sick of it--I was even before this particularly awful Saturday morning.

What have they been doing even as I write this? Fighting, whining, demanding intervention...

So there you have it, I'm having a bad day and it's only 9am, and I don't know how I'm going to get through it...or the remaining 6 months for that matter. Don't worry, I won't do anything crazy. But I may not come back from my cruise in two weeks. :)

Any other suggestions in the meantime?

Taking This Show on the Road

The girls and I (and Mitch) took this show (a circus, really) on the road to spend four days at Nana and Grandpa's over the long weekend. It was an added bonus that we had company on Valentine's Day to detract from the everyday-plus-holiday void we feel because one member of our family (my Valentine, in particular) is long gone on deployment.


It worked, we had much more fun than had we been alone at home. It even started snowing shortly after we arrived and we woke up to two inches on the ground Saturday morning. But it quickly melted, so it didn't keep me from heading out to do some cruise-related shopping--alone! And the girls were happy decorating Valentine's cookies and doing a special art project with Nana.


When the structured activities were done, the girls pitched a tent in the living room. And while snacking on bananas, they regressed to their babyhood--Miranda in the high chair and Sydney in the doll crib, both of which were mine when I was their age. Who needs dolls? But if we did, fortunately we brought our own, because still, no one will touch the vintage Cabbage Patch doll. (Twenty-five years or so later, I don't know why I'm just now seeing how they could be considered creepy.)













Just when we thought we'd received enough love on Valentine's Day, we came home to a few more tokens of love that had arrived in the mail...a dozen red roses from Brian, a care package of Valentine spa treatments from Aunt Laura, and lollipop bouquets from Aunt Cindy and Uncle Bruce!

And that silly balloon, in case you were anxiously awaiting a status update, was still flying high and showing no signs of surrendering, even though it's lost a little puffiness. I should be so lucky during this deployment...