New Faces and Places

I am getting more and more settled here. We put all our boxes by the road today with our recycle stuff and THEY ARE GONE. Yay...I was a little sick of looking at boxes.

Today was super windy (our recycle can kept blowing over) and jets flew above the house nonstop (but I think we are all used to that by now). I went on lots of walks with the boys. We explored some new streets and stumbled upon some nice houses that belong to the colonels. No joke, the beach came up in their huge backyards and oak trees lined the streets. It was quite pretty - now I know where to take my walks!

It was a good day for the boys. We ran some errands, Maddox tried some new foods (blueberry bagel, mango, kiwi, almonds- yum!), and we spent at least two hours at the park this afternoon making new friends. Sadly, the people we met are ALL moving this summer, but ah...such is military life, I suppose. You make new friends, discover new places, and just when you begin to get that settled feeling, change knocks on your door again. I hope we get to stay in Florida for a while though because I am really starting to love this place.

 

Adjustments

There is something lonesome about a new house. I guess it is kinda like a new shoe - it just doesn't feel right until it's broken in.

Jude's second tooth has popped up (thank God, maybe he will sleep now) and he's been much happier today. I took the boys for a walk around our new neighborhood this afternoon and then to the park. At 5 p.m. the national anthem came on over the loudspeakers and I kept talking. I noticed everyone else got quiet. Well, apparently, the proper thing to do is to stand quietly while it plays. If you are driving you are supposed to stop. I had no idea and it was a very awkward moment! People are not kidding when they say a military base is like a separate community...it really is.

Rules aside, I love living here and I am having a lot of fun "nesting" in my house when I get the time (which is usually late at night). I am even using my gas stove now with no fear (just respect, of course haha!).

I miss my parents, though, and wish we could have visited more. All we did was work! Maddox woke up one morning after they had left and said, "I hear Nana!" It was sad because he thought she was in the kitchen. Poor guy. He has been acting out a little with all the changes but he still keeps me laughing. Like...tonight I walked into the living room and our tv was covered in orange scribbles. I could barely see Barney (but oh boy could I hear him) through the orange.

"Maddox, what did you do?" I said. (I was not freaking out because our crayons wipe right off, but I wanted to hear what he had to say.)

He was calm. "Barney did it."

It reminded me of the story of me as a toddler...when I colored my walls and told my mom nope, I didn't do it.

Ah...never a dull moment over here, folks.

This is how I get my workout on! We tried some relaxation stretches before this and Maddox thought they were fun at first, but then he got bored and whacked me with the wrapping paper roll. So...back to weightlifting ;)

My sweet sweet baby! He is all giggles at the park.

We Survived the Move

So we have officially moved.

No more little blue house on Georgetown Lane.

It's hello Chinquapin (Cheen-ka-pin).

I am still so tired from the ordeal that I'm going to leave it at that. We got a 22 ft truck, packed it from floor to ceiling, and STILL had to take the rest of our stuff in nine carloads. It was ridiculous.

This post is just to say, "Yes, I'm still alive, but barely."

Ha.

I will write more later, but here it is in a nutshell:

My parents came (after being broke down), worked nonstop, and are now back in SC. There was packing, moving, hauling, unpacking, inspections, papers, everything getting lost, kids being crazy, deadlines, little sleep, lots of coffee and donuts...you get the picture.

I love the new place and community, but I'll feel even better when these boxes are out of my living room.

Hmm.

As Dylan said,

"For the times they are a-changin'."

Moving On

(Andrew and I did yardwork while our supervisors looked on)

I am going to keep this short. I have inhaled so much Clorox today there is no telling what I might say. So...let me just say this.

*Maddox's bobo is still around, but healing nicely...and we can now wet it! I couldn't wash his hair for 4 days but at least his hair isn't oily and you couldn't tell.
*Maddox has a bad head cold and an even worse cough. He's on antibiotics and watches a lot of Barney on the couch these days.
*My house is running very low on toilet paper. We never had toilet paper. Somehow...someway...Maddox the Toilet Paper Thief always finds a way to get it and then it disappears. I find it in little shreds all around the house. He tells me (looking at me with those big sweet eyes), "Just a little bit, Mommy!"

*Andrew and I have been working our butts off to get our house spotless for the dreaded landlord inspection. It looks better than it ever has - hah!

*My house is in boxes, for the most part.

*Jude has been rolling over like a little crazy man. Every time I put him down in his crib for a nap, he rolls over and giggles, then tries to eat his feet, then ends up wide awake.

*Jude's first tooth has popped through! Every mommy knows this is a big deal ;)

The best news by far, though, is that Nana and Papa are coming tomorrow! I am super super super excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And that's the end. Now bed time for this tired mama.

My sick little Gee2 (that's what he calls himself, fyi)

Jude, rockin' his big gut

PS - Andrew and I sat outside tonight and talked about our favorite memories in this house. I will miss this house for a lot of things, but not for those stupid little barking dogs next door.

Maddox Meets the ER

Maddox got his first big bobo. And it will most likely be his first scar (good bye modeling career, ha!). While I changed Jude's diaper, he did something (probably was jumping on the bouncer seat) and fell into the corner of his desk. It was a nasty cut right smack in the middle of his eyebrow. After his first ER visit and having the cut glued together (the doctor said it was to the bone...*heart attack*), he returned home with big smiles and a handful of toys for being so brave. He had one very big concern, though, and it was all he talked about: his hospital bracelet.

"Take it off, Mommy!"

He was so tired (the accident happened right at his nap time) that Andrew said he tried to go to sleep on the doctor's table right after the doctor scrubbed the cut.  Somehow he held on until 7 pm. I pushed he and Jude around in their new double stroller (around the coffee table AT LEAST 30 minutes) and then they both passed out.

It was a draining day, to say the least!

pre-ER

post-ER

Fun with his new toys

They had a blast riding side by side in their new stroller

I am always telling Maddox to "be careful" but I never know if he is paying any attention to me or not. The other day when I was going to the store, he told me, "Be careful, Mommy!" It melted my heart. I hope he is a little more careful next time he thinks about doing some daredevil move.

A Lazy Day? I Wish

I kinda want to be slack and make today (Wednesday) a lazy day...where I keep my sweats on and don't leave the house. All week we have been going, going, going and it would be nice to just stay home today. But, that isn't really practical. We need to find Maddox a bed, go to the bank, go to the grocery store, and you guessed it - pack.

I wonder how Maddox is going to like the new house (we shall see in just one week!!).

He has been through a lot of changes in his little life, with Andrew leaving, living with grandparents and now living in Florida. But he has done great, I think! He has so many friends now and he has a blast with them. I love watching 2-yr-olds play together - they mimic each other, eye each other with caution, giggle over silly things and then of course there is the occasional WHACK on the head between them. Too funny.

Lastnight, Maddox and I were on the couch having a little chat and he spotted a "bobo" on my finger. He looked at it closely and then told me exactly what I needed to do.
"Mommy, put medicine on that."
I laughed. And then I did just that - I got the Neosporin and fixed up my bobo. There is always something to laugh about when you have a little kid around!

He fell asleep like this after a fun playdate with his newest buddy, Jack.

V Day

Last Valentine's Day, Andrew was in Texas at tech school. He sent me a card that came a couple days late. The mailman left a note with it that I owed him such-and-such amount of cents for the extra postage. Hmmm. I told Andrew he needed to step up the romance game. This year he tried better. "What do you want for Valentine's?" he asked.

"A pair of olive green Tom's." I didn't have to think long about that one.

"Ok," he said, "Go ahead and order them."

End of story.

He had to work Valentine's day, so there was no fancy dinner for us (that isn't very possible with 2 little boys, anyway).

My good friend Erika came over (her hubby is deployed) and we ate Longhorn Steakhouse take-out on the floor in the living room, amidst boxes and our kids. We watched a great love story (The Little Mermaid, of course) and topped off the evening with wine and brownies. It was a pretty good V Day, if you ask me!

The boys had a good V Day, too. Maddox got Sour Patch Kids (his favorite) and a giant Willy Wonka chocolate bar. Then Andrew let him play with the water hose a whole 45 minutes. That meant wet shoes, clothes, hair, lots of mud...and lots and lots of giggles. Our mailbox was filled with cards and one included lollipops. It was a day that started off a little grumpy, but ended up full of love, as all our days do (I hope).

And now it's back to business. A week of playdates, meeting with friends, a little shopping and of course...PACKING. But let's pretend that last word doesn't exist. I think I'll procrastinate just a tad longer.

Ava loves Maddox. It's true - he is quite entertaining!

A lollipop in the mail will get you lots of smiles (and sticky floors!).

Jude didn't get left out. He made sure of that.

Hope everyone had a love-filled V Day!