The End Of The Year...

So this will be my last blog of the year :-) It has been a long crazy year, but when I stop to think about it I wonder where the time has gone! We have been in Las Vegas for almost a year now (we finally arrived on January 8th I think). With 2 moves (3 if you count the move from Abilene to Austin for about 3 weeks), a TDY, a 4th deployment, a new puppy, the celebrating of a 1st birthday and a 4th birthday, and FINALLY closing on a house :-) There are a lot more things that happened throughout the year as well, but those are just some of the highlights. This is the farthest I have ever lived away from Florida. The farthest I have been away from family, and I am happy that I am surviving. I have a second family in my friends that I have made thru our air force connections. Being in the military really does provide you with "another family" as we do support and count on each other just like a family does.

I am always amazed at how quickly my kids are growing up. It feels like Abby just joined our family not too long ago. How is she going to be 2 in February and how is Thomas supposed to be starting Kindergarten next year? My husband proposed to me 5 years ago on Christmas. 2011 will mark our 5 year anniversary. Our lives has changed so much since we said "I Do". With the addition of Kids and Dogs ( our 4 legged kids or fur babies) we have grown our family from just the two of us. Sometime in the future we hope to grow it a little more but there are a few goals to reach first.
Where were you a year ago on new year's eve? I remember I was in Las Vegas doing house hunting with my dad. We had seen a few more houses that day and then I put an offer on a house that evening. Boy was it stressful. Dad and I rushed back to our hotel in order to park the car and have a quick run to make it to our show in time. For people that don't know, the las vegas strip closes at about 6 pm new years eve and remains closed until about 2am i think. People pack the streets to watch the fireworks from a large group of hotels and just have a good time. Well dad and I had to RUN in order to make it to the blue man group show (which was amazing!) Unfortunately by that time I had a killer migraine too. But we made the best of it I guess. After the show we grabbed a bite from the buffet and then went back to our room. Dad and I passed right out. I woke up right at midnight with the fireworks going off. We were staying at the mirage and treasure island was one of the hotels setting fireworks off from their roof. Because they are right next to each other, I had a pretty good show. Maybe next year i'll be down on the street snuggled in my husbands arms as we ring in 2012.

So here's to all the good and bad that has happened this year. To the ones we've lost and the ones that have been welcomed into the world. To the joining of 2 people in marriage or the divorce of 2 people for what ever reason. To life never stopping and always learning to adapt.

To all my family and friends who read this....

Happy New Year! Stay safe and may you always be surrounded by love in this new year.

Are The Holidays Over Yet?

So these last 10 days have been crazy. On the 14th I ended up cutting my left thumb open on a coffee cup that had been soaking in the sink. It decided it didn't want a handle any longer. So at about 4:30 Tuesday evening Tonya drove me to the hospital and stayed with me while I was there. I was hoping they could just glue my thumb back together since it wasn't that deep, unfortunately no such luck :-( The worst part was definitely when they had to clean my thumb and numb it. Tonya told me I changed several colors. I still remember how bad it hurt when I cut my right thumb open in 8th grade. So 4 stitches later we booked it out of there in enough time to pick my kids up at their school and make it back to my house where my sitter had been waiting. Tuesday was also the night of our Christmas Spouse Coffee (social). Tonya and I had both been looking forward to it for over a month and there was no way we were going to miss it. So as Tonya rushed home to change and head to the social I ran around my house getting ready and trying to get the kids settled. Thank heavens our sitter is amazing and totally understanding and helpful! I really love Kara!! So as I'm rushing out the door I can't find my phone. Thank heavens Tonya and I were talking about where it was while we were at the hospital and I have a pretty good memory when it comes to directions and addresses and numbers. So I finally end up making it to the social an hour late, but everyone totally understands. But I still made it in time for the fun! And thank heavens my phone was on the floor in Tonya's car just where I thought it was.
So I have been trying to do the best I can. I am taking the stitches out first thing Friday morning!!! It has been raining since Friday, and has been continuous since Sunday. So we have had some crazy flooding around here. I even kept the kids home today because it was raining sooo bad. It's supposed to clear up by tomorrow. I'm hoping so.
So update on the house: not much new. I finally got the ornaments on the tree and will be putting all the empty boxes into the garage tomorrow. The rest of the house has not budged. I will have a long list of things to do tomorrow and friday. I am having friends over on Saturday for Christmas dinner and this house is no way near ready to have company over.
Well I think i'm gonna cut this post short. It's just been one of those days. I'm sure you all can relate to what i mean.
I hope this finds everyone well.

Until next time my friends...

Just Trying To Survive...

So it has been almost 2 months since my last post. Sorry!! The hubbs left on 1 November and it hasen't really been the same around here. The one constant is that the kids are still in school. I have been busy working on getting the house unpacked and readjusting to being a "single" parent again. And this time it has not been easy. Because both of the kids are old enough now to realize that daddy is gone for an extended period of time, they have both voiced their dislike of the separation. The last time Richard was gone Abby was almost 4 months old and Thomas was just turning 3. Thomas understood as much as he could that daddy was gone but didn't really act out. Abby of course didn't really have a clue. This time it has been especially hard for both of them. Thomas is constantly having little breakdowns where he cries and expresses how much he misses his daddy. Abby says one full sentence. And that is " I want my daddy!". I hear it all the time. She is either throwing temper tantrums and crying or cranky or she only wants me to hold her and cuddle with her. It's a 50/50 split and it's starting to ware on me. This also makes it hard to get anything done when the kids are home. We are able to skype with daddy and play some online games with him which helps, but of course it is no replacement.
I've been busy getting the house unpacked since I'm not working any more right now. My flu shot gig is up for the season, and I haven't been able to find other work yet. The garage was the first thing to get done. It is all organized and things are finally stored away in the cabinets in the garage. Once we get rid of the grill and the broken patio table we'll be able to park the cars in the garage again!! YEA! The front room has been unpacked as well. I still need to pick up another bookshelf to finish unpacking most of the books we have. The area rug is down in the front room, and I plan on adding some seating and a coffee table or something in there. That is a project for my mom and I to do when my parents come out next month, hopefully. I was able to get the Christmas tree up. I already got the lights on it, now it's just time to get the ornaments on. The next project on my list is to get the guest room/office finally organized and put together. Hopefully I will have that done this next week and then it will be on to finishing up the master bedroom. One thing that has been holding me back has been my legs. I have had awful pain in my shins since September. First I was told it was tendinitis. Now it turns out to be plantar fasciitis. I'll be seeing sports medicine on thursday at base to see if i'll ever be able to run and work out without pain again. It is just so frustrating beyond words.
I have been in a very bad "funk" since the end of November. I am just not in the holiday spirit this year. In all honesty I wish I could just go to sleep and wake up at some point in January. But I'm gonna pull it together and be as "merry" as I can for my kids. We started a tradition this year of having a little "guest" in our house until Christmas eve. His name is Zander the Elf :-) If you have little kids, I would definitely recommend Elf On The Shelf. It really is great.
Pictures of kiddos will come later. I think I need to get to bed. In my next post I'll also put a link to my 365 project that I have been doing. But I have to update it first.
I hope this finds everyone well.

Until Next Time My Friends...