The fun slows down

There hasn't been much going on here lately. Not sure if that's a good or bad thing! The weather has been terrible with HIGH levels of ozone and bad humidity, so we have been hanging out inside. We try to get out to the park in the evening, but even at 8:00pm it's in the high 80's and when you walk outside it feels like you just took a shower. I know I can't complain too much since Texas is much hotter, but the humidty zaps any strength you have left!

I found out the name of the motorcyclist. Eddie Lee. Please say a prayer for his family. I know it's an odd request, but I'm having trouble getting the accident out of my mind. Not something I like to "picture" when I am trying to sleep. I have a whole new respect for our Soldiers, police officers, firepeople and EMT's. Seeing the things they see have got to have an impact on them. I know to a degree you have to seperate yourself from the situation, but when you happen upon it by chance and you are not prepared, it's a mind-numbing sight. I am so thankful it wasn't a child because I think that would have been harder to handle. To those of you who face this on a daily basis, you are strong individuals and I praise you for your work.

Ups and Downs

See my first major home improvement??? This used to be a rock wall, that wasn't very sturdy, and the kids (and myself) used to scale it to shortcut to the car. I decided that someone was going to trip and fall, probably myself, so I wanted to make it safer. Brodie calls them "Up and Downs." I still have some areas I need to "tweak" but I think it's pretty good for 2 hours of work with 3 kids helping. Now if only the rest of the house could be improved that easily!

On a different note, I witnessed a terrible motorcycle accident this morning, only two cars in front of me. The guy had been swerving in and out of traffic, going up a 25% incline on a mountain road. When I came around a curve, I saw the truck that had been 2 cars in front of me crashed into the guard rail. He was just getting out, so I was glad to see he was ok, but then I saw the motorcycle about 20 feet in front of him lying on the road and a shoe in the middle of the lane I was in. I won't say anymore, but please say a prayer for the family of the motorcyclist. This is the second fatal accident I have been witness to and it makes me take a step back and appreciate life. It can be over in such a short moment. He was carefree on his motorcycle one moment and not 5 seconds later, it was over. I think that was why I came home and did something with the kids. I want to enjoy every moment of the time I have. I know I'm careful when I am away from home, but I can't always be sure about the person next to me.

Take time today to do something you think you don't have time for. Smell a flower, enjoy the sunset, watch a bird floating on the breeze. Truly enjoy it.

My Peter Pan Moment: Despite the negative events today, I had a BALL digging in the dirt, getting completely messy and laughing the whole time. More laundry, sweeping and baths, but what a better way to end a terrible day!

Cake anyone?

I got ready to give the boys a piece of cake after lunch and I saw this! Stuart Little, it isn't! Isn't that a lovely site to see??? It was actually covered with plastic wrap, but when I saw the edge had been lifted I just figured it was due to impatient little kids...hence the finger mark in the upper right corner! It's actually kinda cute, but NOT IN MY HOUSE! If I saw this online somewhere, I'd think "how cute" and would try to create little mouse feet to make a "mouse cake." But after it was in MY house, YUCK is all I have to say! We do have Chipmunks running all over the outside, so maybe one found his way in, ate cake and left. I think I can deal with a cute Chip or Dale instead of a mouse!

My Peter Pan Moment: I wanted to find the little mouse with chocolate on his wiskers! Or little chocolate mouse prints! Hey.... this is hard to be a kid about!!! :-)

Tuesday again

I wanted to add pictures today, but not much really happened worth blogging about. The picture above shows one of the few time the kids get to play video games. Randy and Riley are actually playing, but Brodie thinks she's doing the best!!! Thank goodness for "extra" controlers!

Kind of a lazy day of summer. Boys played at the park, ate lunch, watched TV. I haven't been feeling too well today. I think the heat/humidity and no A/C is getting to me. I know it's only in the high 80's but with no sleep and being tired all day anyway, the heat/humidity is really zapping what strength I have. We have been fighting with Brodie to go to sleep on her own again. 6 weeks in the hotel really spoiled her! Lately, she's been giving in around 12-2am, and then is back up again at 6-7am, so I'm beat. Trying to get a handle on it before the baby comes, but I don't see why it matters since I'll be awake with the new baby! :-)

Peter Pan Moment: Pretty much stayed in my PJ's all day. I know it's not much, but it sure was comfy!!!!

Connecticut or Bust

Today we did something that would be unheard of in Killeen. We drove to another state for dinner! Jason wanted Hooters (hence the "bust" in the title) for Father's Day and the closest one was in Connecticut....so into the car we went and drove to CT! I never thought I would ever drive to another state just to eat! We had planned on going to Toys R Us to buy Randy a new bike, but we were greeted by a HUGE downpour/thunderstorm as we left the restaurant. Needless to say, we didn't make it to the store...yet. Brodie learned she likes thunderstorms, though. Everytime it would thunder, she would say, "Oh cool." (That's her new saying...that and "coming!")

The boys have decided they need to make money to buy outside toys this summer. Now, when I say "make" I literally mean "make." They got out green paper and made dollars, white paper with silver crayon made the "change." Then they were ready to go to the PX. When I told them that the PX wouldn't take the money they so painstakeingly made, Randy's idea was to use the playmoney he uses to do money problems in school. If only life were that easy!!! Riley's idea... "just go to the money machine and get more out, Mommy." Funny, but at that exact moment I heard my parents saying, "Money doesn't grow on trees, Tracy," and shivered. I thought about saying this and passing on the "parental wisdom," but knowing Randy, he would have said, "Mommy, actually, money is made from paper and paper is made from wood which is what trees are made of, so that statement would in fact be true." I didn't want to be humiliated by a 7 year old, so I just offered both of them a lollipop.

All in all, it was a pretty good day. Just think of what tomorrow will bring!

My Peter Pan moment today: I walked through the rain to the car and enjoyed the "forbidden pleasure". So I got wet, I didn't melt!!!

Swings, Sandcastles, Monsters and Fairies

We went to the park tonight as usual, but tonight I digressed. I forgot how much I enjoy swinging. There is just something about that feeling of flying. And for just a brief moment, that feeling of weightlessness (I'll take any loss in weight I can get!!!! I did notice something different, though. They are making swings smaller these days. I don't remember my hips hurting that much before when I was done. Strange that they would make them smaller...

Brodie and I also attempted to make a sand castle, too. Well, I attempted to make one. Brodie found the joy of destruction and became the monster set out to destroy the castle! I love how we as adults can step back away from our duties and enjoy the things we are forced to give up when we "grow up." To see the excietment in the eyes of your child when you help them build something in the sand and even the pure joy of watching them knock it down. The laugh that comes from that is true and something we rarely do as adults. Why can't we find the joy of sliding down the slide, feeling the air in our hair on the swings, laugh like this is THE most fun we have had all day. Even enjoy the sting of the monkey bars on our hands and the accomplishment of making it all the way across! All too often we find ourselves looking at the "work" of play. More laundry, bathtubs to clean, sand in the house... I like to think of it as bringing the fun home!

My goal... to be a kid more. To laugh more. To enjoy what I'm doing and not look at how much more work it will make. To see things through the eyes of my kids. Yes, I know I will still have to be the parent, but it's easier to clean up a mess when you can think about how much fun you had making it!

Peter Pan had it right when he sang,

"If growing up means it would be, beneath my dignity to climb a tree, I won't grow up. Never grow up. Never grow up, Not I. (Not me)"

I believe in Fairies, do you?

Boy-1, Girl-0

Had my first baby dream last night...we had a boy. The worst part was that at the hospital here, I was discharged 4 hours after my C-Section. YIKES!!!!! I know it's a military hospital and all, but STILL!!! I woke up scared more than excited about possibly having a boy!

Stay tuned to more "Baby Dreams" soon to come, I'm sure!

Cadets and Pregnancy fun

Last night we had 4 of Jason's cadets over for dinner again. They are such a good group of guys to have over. They seem to feel "at home" here, so that's good. If I can provide them a place to escape the West Point stress, a good home cooked meal and some entertainment, then I feel like I've done something to help the future of our Army. Randy and Riley love the cadets...always saying "Hey Cadet (they haven't learned their names yet) want to come see my room?" It's cute. What's cuter is the cadets interacting with the boys. They are very patient with Randy and Riley, which is awesome! Brodie, on the other hand, is VERY shy with them! The first time they came over for dinner, she didn't leave Daddy's lap and actually fell asleep in his arms. This time she at least got down and played and would even say "Hi" and wave to the guys. We're getting there! I'm looking forward to getting to know the cadets more as the school year starts. They have even taken to calling me "Momma Hale." Several years ago, I would have been bothered by someone calling me Momma, but seeing as how I'm 13+ years older than them, I take it as a compliment! Our youth is not completely doomed!

As for my pregnancy, I had my orientation appointment today. Pretty boring, but that's good. I'm only 7 weeks 3 days, so not much they can do at this point. I got the "tour" of the OB floor. There are only 2 doctors and 1 nurse, so it's a very small "family." I'm looking forward to a more personal pregnancy and delivery this time, than being just one of many like at Ft. Hood. My next appointment is July 7th, and that's the day I will get a first look at the little one, hopefully!!! If nothing else, we will get to hear the heartbeat. The good thing is, they only do surgery on Mondays, so I can already narrow my due date down! Depending if they do the C-Section a week or 2 weeks early, the baby will be born either Jan 7th, or Jan 14th! It seems like forever away, but I know it will go faster than I want!

Jason has been extremely sweet the past few days. I think he's excited about the new little one, he just doesn't want to show it! He has actually brought me breakfast in bed for the last 2 mornings. I could get used to this!!! He's doomed, though, because now I know he can do it! Now I just need to convince him he CAN do the dishes! :-)

That's all on the New York homefront for now. They boys are full into their summer vactaion mode....ready to go at 6am! Now if I can only get Brodie to go to sleep before midnight, I might actually have the energy to entertain the kids this summer!!!

Happy Summer to everyone!

No more pencils, no more books...

School is finally out for the boys. Today was the first day of summer break and I'm already ready to send them back to school! Wonder if they offer summer school for Brodie's age?
I'm kidding (no I'm not). It's really not that bad (it's worse.) I love these kids (really I do.)
I'm on the lookout for something fun to do with the kids this summer. I figure we are in a new area, new things to do and see and I'm going to try to make the most of it! Especially before I get too big to move off the couch! The boys have been begging me to go fishing, so I need to find out the rules and regulations of New York and take the boogers fishing.
The weather here is a lot like Texas. Yesterday it was in the 50's and today it's 88. Gotta love the weather change! At least it's not raining today.
I'd better run while the kids are occupied and look up the fishing rules....while it's in my mind!
Thanks for listening to me ramble.

...and baby makes 6!

Yep, that's right! We are expecting again! It came as a surprise to us, but now that the shock has set in, we are more than excited! I think Jason and I always wanted one more, but we had decided that our family was good with the 3 kids we had. Guess God had other plans! He managed to give us one more blessing despite all the precautions we were taking.
I'm only about 6 weeks and the baby is due 25 Jan 2008. We still have lots of time to plan and prepare for this one, our last. I'm determined to enjoy EVERY bit of this pregnancy since it WILL be our last. So far I have been blessed with no problems and I pray it continues. My health is much better now, so I'm not worried about other complications that have arised in my previous pregnancies.
I'm trying to take everything day by day, but I'm already getting excited! My heart hurts at Brodie growing up too soon, though. She is still my "baby" in so many ways, I don't want to lose that with her. She already has several babies that she carries around, usually upside down by their legs, but it's still cute. She puts them in her stroller and pushes them around the house. The cutest thing is when she tells me "shhh baby seeping" and then dumps them on the ground out of the stroller so she can sit in it. Her favorite things right now are her babies, her purse and her cell phone... she's such a girl!
She will be 2 years and 3 months when the new baby comes, so at least she will be in her "big girl stage." Randy was that age when Riley was born and I like the closeness they have with each other. We hope it's another girl, for Brodie's sake, so she will have a close companion like her brothers...plus it makes it easier for rooming situations!
Anyway... the news is out, the test is positive and we are thrilled! We'll be posting name ideas on here to see what y'all think, so be sure to check back. Maybe with y'alls help, you can convince Jason "Lucky" is not a good name for a girl!

Two in two days!

Can you believe it, I've posted 2 posts in as many days! I'm being productive!!! (that means I will probably have to clean up whatever mess the kids are making while I'm not watching them like hawks!)

I wanted to try out my new photo posting skills, so there isn't much of a blog on this one. I know it's an old picture, but I had to try it with something!

Let me know how it works!

Ok...I'm slacking, I know

I haven't been as vigilant as I would like to be with this journal, I know. I am trying. I know it's no excuse, but it seems like something always comes up and pulls me away from the computer. Most days I have time to check my email, but not respond to anyone. I'm sorry.
We are finally unpacked, the boxes are gone, as are all my excuses! The boys are still in school for 4 more days, so maybe I can use that as an excuse for not posting! I know, it's lame.
Randy has his Cub Scout Crossover Campout this weekend. He is now a Wolf Scout! He did such a good job! Riley came with us and spent the night in the woods. We had a cool scavenger hunt on Constitution Island on the Hudson River. I had NO idea how much history was on a small island! We learned quite a bit of history about Benedict Arnold and found a buried treasure along the way! Luckily, we managed to keep the rain at bay till our camping trip was over! Brodie did an awesome job staying at home with Daddy. I knew she could do it and I knew HE could do it too! It was a needed break for Mommy, even though the hills we climbed were tough and 8 7-year olds kept me more busy than one 20 month old! I have signed up to be the Wolf Den Leader for next year. I got a taste of what I'm getting myself into, and I am excited! We have an awesome group of boys and the parents that were at the campout were more than willing to help out, so hopefully that will continue. I am Co-Leading with the current Den Leader, so at least someone has a hand on what's going on! It's going to be a busy year!!!
Better enjoy the calm summer while I can!
Again, forgive me for being so long in posts... I AM getting back into the swing of things. With the boys out of school I am hoping to be able to steal 5 minutes during the day, lock myself in the computer room and update this blog! Maybe I'll even figure out how to upload pictures on here, too!!!
Thanks for being so patient!!!