A Week "Off"

If you live in middle Tennessee you know how much rain we have gotten lately. i think I have added around 8 inches on this place in the past ten days. Crazy I know. Today is the first time I have seen sunshine since last Saturday. Very thankful for it. So because of all this rain I think prospective buys on the house stayed home. But it was actually nice not to clean for 2 hours for people to see the place for 15 minutes.

Things have been actually somewhat boring around here....if that's possible for my life ;). The boys are nutty as ever...still wrestling like dogs.

Did I say wrestle? Well evidently Garretto can get just as dirty as the dogs....man good thing it was a bath night!!

And my head is still spinning realizing that my tiny sweet baby will be a year old this week. CRAZY!!!! I remember this time last year how tired, miserable, and huge I felt. And I just wanted her out. Then the drama after her birth happened and it seems like time has spun out of control since. I miss that sweet lil newborn. But I tell, ya, she is so stinkin cute these days it's hard to want the newborn back. She is taking more and more table food. Probably could really do it all day but some of it is laziness on my part (for example a jar of baby food thrown in the diaper bag is so easy for breakfast at church). She is pulling up on furniture and letting go briefly as to say, "Look Mama, no hands!" And she is taking a sippy cup. I didn't think it would be so difficult to throw away the baby bottle but it is. I figure it'll be ok for them to stay on that shelf til the packers come in a couple of months :) I just love her to pieces.

Bug chowing on some pizza crusts. cracked me up that she was little enough to prop her feet up like that. Stinker!
Sippy cup for the first time...although she's not really happy on whole milk yet. Still prefers Mama cow.
Her hair on the sides is getting much longer and I asked myself one day...hmm wonder if I could make pigtails (or dog ears as my Dad calls them). I thought they were STINKIN cute!

I've also started making preparations for Joe to come home. We have scheduled a party..woohoo! I've gotten some shirts for the kids to wear to the airport (love doing that!) And making appointments to make myself look pretty :). Hopefully I can fill these last few weeks so they will fly.

Born and Bred Country Girl

Bug's personality is coming out so much these days. She still loves her Mama but she is venturing away from me more and more. I catch her dancing and clapping and playing with all sorts of things. But the one thing she has gotten most excited about is a John Deere ride on toy the boys have had since Joe was one I think. She bounces and claps to a little tune it plays. It is sooooo cute. Was able to get a little clip of it. Hope you enjoy :)

Chaos and escaping donkey

The past couple of weeks have been wild around here. I've been busy spackling, painting, trimming bushes...you name it in order to get the house ready for sale. My best friend's husband came over and worked for several hours on odd jobs as well. I just hope I can keep up with it all. And you KNOW as soon as you fix something something else breaks. It wasn't even 12 hours after Justin (BFF's hubby) left that my toilet broke. Amazingly I was able to fix it myself!!!! I was very proud :). Then the TV in the boys room went out...I am definitely not an electrician so I had to replace that. Then I had to do fence work so I hopped on my mower...remember the dreaded machine that I would've shot if we had owned a gun...ah yes that one. Well a TIRE came off....yes a TIRE. So now the stinking thing is sitting in the middle of my property. Once again Dad is going to come over and rescue me and fix it....if it's not burnt to a heap before then ;).

So I bet you are asking why the escaping donkey in the title. Well the fence work I mentioned above has more info to it. A couple of nights ago about 9:00pm I was chatting with my Dad on the phone. The dogs started barking. I've had the windows open lately because we have had awesome weather for August so as my heart rate quickens I go close the windows. Then the horse is crying out, and I say to Dad "Boy I hope the donkey isn't loose." I open the garage door to take a peek...HELLO Arthur. Sigh remember it's 9:15. I tell Dad I gotta go and attempt to herd Arthur back into the paddock. Not working...he ends up in the street and I am running with a flashlight praying my quiet country road doesn't suddenly experience rush hour. I realize I can't do this myself when he runs into a neighbors yard. I thought hmmm a Major in the Army lives there...probably won't be too happy seeing large bodies walking around his property one hold a flashlight...and yea he probably has a gun. So I run back to my house and call a neighbor. They come out in pjs and flashlights and together after another 30 minutes we get Arthur back where he belongs. I thank my neighbors and all is well, right? No I wake up the next morning and Arthur is grazing around our swing set. I get him in the barn myself...woohoo. I come back to the house..look out the window he is out again!!!!! Get him back and I lock him in the barn. Needless to say I found a huge hole in the fence and I had the pasture bush hogged today so the electric fence is turned ON. Just been craziness.

In all of this Joe is back at school full throttle, Katie is now crawling...and Garrett is keeping me on my toes for sure! The house will be on the market Sept 1st...I just hope I can keep it together and my animals on my property til then ;)

OK since Joe always likes a pic here is Little Joe ready for the 1st grade!

Buy me some peanuts and cracker jacks!!

Joe's tball team had the opportunity to attend a Nashville Sounds game and be what were called "baseball buddies". They attended the game, got a voucher for a hot dog and drink, and got to be on the field during the national anthem. It was sooooooooo stinking cute. I am so glad that I took up on this opportunity and hopefully created an awesome memory for Joe. I left the lil kids home with a sitter and Joe and I trekked down to Nashville. The atmosphere was so family friendly I was really surprised with inflatables out for the kids to play on, a SMOKE FREE section for families, a firework show at the end of the game, and all of the kids attending the game could run the bases when it was over. It was really cool. So on the night that 10,000 plus people were there there was my little man, on the pitchers mound with the big boy ball players in his cute lil uniform, hat off, and hand over his heart. I couldn't have been prouder :) My lil man on the mound,

Running the bases after the game.

Joe was catcher for the team so thinks he needs to wear his hat backwards most of the time :)

Counting days

I remember more than a year ago I was terrified at the thought of 15-18 months of deployment. And it was just 3 months ago that I was worried about having three kids at home with a full summer ahead of me and no hubby. And look here we are near the end of both. Guess what kids...it the most wonderful time of the year!!!! School starts tomorrow!!!! Ok so maybe I am a little too excited. I cannot believe Joe will be in the 1st grade. How does this stuff happen? I guess the same way as I am starting to notice lines around my eyes when I smile and how when I say "Boys!" to fuss at Joe and Garrett it sounds an awful lot like my mother.

So these past few days we have just been hanging out, doing some school shopping this weekend (tax free wooohoo!), and spending time with friends. We have tons of birthday parties coming up and I am starting work on the move. I can now say that word, yes the four letter one that starts with an m, without crying so I am pleased with myself :). I am actually getting a little excited about a new place for a bit, doing some new things, but all within driving distance of home. :):):):)

Speaking of home...Joe has less than 80 days left of this tour. Can you see the elephants dancing around me?!?!!?!!?!!?!? I am so excited I can't even describe it, and the thought of him being home for so long is so very comforting to me. This tour has been our longest but I have to say it has been our strongest one yet. Joe and I have never been closer in our relationship and I am so proud of both of us for that. I think it has also helped being around friends and family that have done so much for my family. I hope we can repay them somehow someday.

Well Joe fussed at me for not having photos on the last update so I will stick some random ones here. :) Love you babe.

This is Katie and her future BFF Madison (my BFF's little girl). Isn't she cute?! Yesterday Katie dialed BFF's number and her phone was sitting on Madison. No hours on the phone yet girls! (Sad thing here is you notice Bug is not much bigger than 2 month old Maddie :( )

Goofy Garretto enjoying some ice cream on a hot day :)All of my chicks in a tub. I just love tub pictures :) My hubby did something very sweet. He ordered personalized M&Ms for me in my favorite colors might I add :). They said Think. Dream. Pray. Forever. This is a shortened version of a saying we say for goodbyes...mostly during deployments. Sigh..I love him :).

Lock me down with the GOLD!!

So that's the best hint I could come up with..lol. We are going to Ft. Knox, KY in December. Joe will be an SGI for a Calvary unit...a pretty high profile position for someone with just one command so I am very proud of him. They even moved the report date back for him to give him more time. The kind of bad news is is that this unit may be moving to Ft Benning..not a bad place by any means just means a possible move 10-12 months after we get there...so yuck. Plus I like the fact that Knox is fairly close to here (2.5 hours) and we can visit easily. If we move to Benning that's about 6 hours... not so easy.
We have trully been blessed with this home. We love it. I knew it as soon as we pulled in the drive way. We built a barn here, brought two kids home here, and had Big Joe home for the longest ever (18 months). So these facts, combined with the current housing market, and the longing to come back to TN one day we were more willing to rent than sell. And guess what?? Some great friends of ours have been house shopping for some time and have offered to rent our home!! So this means I don't have to bang that "for sale" sign in the ground just yet, although I 'm sure I will need a box of tissues on moving day. But I know this place will be in good hands.
Other updates....Joe loved gymnastics camp and boy having a calm relaxed child at home in the afternoons after 5 hours of tumbling was sooooo nice. Bug now has two teeth!!! From zero to two in less than five days :). Garretto is still cute as ever...I just love to hear him talk these days. Two yr old voices are stinking cute.....kinda makes up for the tantrums and wild banchee squealing they do ;).
Well that's about it from here. We are less than 90 days til Joe gets home and I CAN'T WAIT!!!

More randomness..yes, the limbo continues.

So I am trying to fill my mind with business. Can ya tell? LOL

So for an update on Big Joe and next duty station. Still nothing. I have only learned that we may have to move much sooner than I had originally planned, or at least Joe will report earlier and the kids and I will follow come January. The more people I talk to about Irwin the more nervous I get. But I know God is in control and I will keep praying for His will...but just remind Him how concerned I am.

I cannot believe the summer is almost over!! Joe has a week of gymnastics camp starting tomorrow (wooohooo). Then I have 4 days with him, and that's it! He is back to school! Something really cute Joe said today on the way to church.

Joe- "Mama, they don't have submarines in the military."

Me- "Yes, babe, they do in the Navy and Marines."

Joe- "Oh, I didn't know that. (long pause) Well, they don't have a kayak cuz there is no where to mount the gun."

I nearly had to pull over I burst in to laughter.

Random cuteness of all three.
Garrett is doing well. Talking more every day. Still working on the potty training, but not perfect yet.
My lil heart breaker...I can't stop thinking about the lil girls knockin on my door for him.

Katie is the same. She did get her very first tooth this week. And I pierced her ears...something I never thought I would do so young. But never say never...you know! I did get two of her tests back with negative results. I should hear more this week. I think this will be a pretty long road though. Patience, Liz, patience.

Look Mama, My big brothers gave these to me. I think I like em!! Can you see my purty new earrings? :)

For being such a tomboy myself...I LOVE dressing her up. So much fun!

And just a random P90X update. Phase II was difficult for me. Had to redo a week. Didn't feel well at other times, and the late nights were really catching up. But I have lost 5.5 inches total from my waist. The scale has still not moved but I can see all sorts of muscle definition I haven't seen in a long long time....like teenage years. So woohoo!! I'm hoping Joe being at camp next week will let me workout during nap time again since the 10pm thing is TOUGH. And I can hit phase three harder than ever when school starts!!