MIA - But I'm BACK!

I know I have been MIA for a little while, but it's been a little hectic around here. I finally finished summer classes! YEAH! AND I passed Spanish. While that may not be a big deal to many of you, for me, it was HUGE! See, Spanish and I have this love hate relationship. I would LOVE to learn the language, but, I HATE conjugations. Or at least my memory does. I can read a paragraph and sound like I know what I am saying, I can translate a good bit, but if I have to write it out, boy am I in trouble. Needless to say, I am FINISHED with languages. All that is left are Methods classes, and student teaching in the spring. Boy am I excited! WOOHOO!

In other news...Both of my darlings had birthdays in July. Tori turned 9 on the 23rd and Cale turned 10 on the 17th. Tomorrow we are celebrating with a party at the pool. Needless to say, I am up late, finishing up baking the cupcakes. I will turn in shortly so I can get up to frost them in the morning. YIKES! It's gonna be a long day tomorrow. But, so worth it. We haven't had a birthday party for the kids in 3 years. We've gone out to dinner, celebrated at home, but no friends over. Moving with the military makes that a little difficult. Especially when their birthdays are in the summer and you don't know very many people. This year, we are expecting between 18 friends and their families. Another YIKES! And also why we are having it at the pool. I don't have to worry about all the kids running in and out of the house. I'll post pictures tomorrow!

Oh, swimming has been AWESOME! I'll post about that tomorrow too! I have some great pictures and a little bragging to do on my kiddos!

Have a great Saturday!

WWWAT

I have decided to participate in this weeks Wordless Wednesday. This is my first attempt, and I am a little later than I planned because I am in school all day. So here goes. This weeks theme is Summer days/July. Check out the other entries here Rachel . July is a very busy month for us, check it out!

July is one of our favorite months. Being that my husband is in the military, we tend to be very patriotic. The fourth of July is one of our favorite holidays! No pictures of fireworks this year, but I did get the flag, where else, but at the pool.

Another favorite thing is the flowers in full bloom. Notice the red, white, and blue pansies? The smell is wonderful as you walk up our front steps.

July is known for its scorching days, last Saturday was one of those as we visited the NC state capital! A great water fountain to we the whistle.

Another favorite thing to do is water fights! It's pretty funny to watch my husband run from my little girl!

A huge part of our summer and July in particular is swimming. Both of my children are on the swim team as well as my good friends children. We practice 3 -4 times a week and have meets twice a week in July!

And you can't go to the pool without the essential supplies......

Don't forget, we celebrate 5 birthdays in the month of July! This is the cake I made for my friend! She's really 40, but you would never know it.

Both my children have birthdays in July as well. We celebrated Cale's tonight. Tori's is in 7 days, my friends daughters birthday in 11 days. Plus another close friend we celebrate with in July too! Whew! I am broke in July! And you thought Christmas was bad!



I hope your July is as fun as ours! Have a great summer!

Travel and Adventure ... Compliments of the USMC

Yesterday I went to a Key Volunteer meeting in Raleigh. The Marine Corps has a Family Readiness Program called the Key Volunteer Network. This program helps support the families of Marines. When we are in the fleet it serves as a tool for communication and support when the Marine is deployed. On Recruiting Duty it serves more like a planning committee. We don't have to maintain regular contact since the Marine is home. Yesterday we met to talk about the upcoming Marine Corp Ball. On a good day it is a 2 1/2 hour drive from my house to Raleigh. It took a litle while longer, 3 1/2 to be exact. But, lunch was tasty and I was determined to make a good day of it. It was a productive meeting, we decided on gifts and talked about next years Family Day. Did I mention I had to take the kids with me since hubby had to work? I wanted to make sure that the kids got to have some fun after sitting through the meeting and being on the road all day. So this is some of what we saw:

The State Capital

U.S. Presidents born in North Carolina

Statue of George Washington What seemed to leave the biggest impression was a statue in memorial of Vietnam Veterans. The look on my children's faces as we looked at the statue spoke volumes. We talked about the details on the statue. My son pointed out the veins in one of the soldiers arms. We talked about the equipment they were carrying and the expressions on their faces. I ended up taking several pictures. Look at the expression on their faces. I think this is the closest to how they imagine what their father went through.

I took tons of other pictures. I also learned that the best ones are not posed. My kids are terrible at posing for the camera. The moments I caught, like those in the above pictures, were the best. There were some funny ones too. I caught Tori sticking her head in a cannon. And another of her taking a drink of water. I also took some good shots of the surrounding scenery. There are several churches surrounding the Capital and I got a few shots of the steeples through the trees and they turned out pretty good. I have lived in NC for 13 years now and had never visited the state capital in Raleigh. It was neat. It also reminds me to take advantage of the opportunities around us.

One of the advantages of being a military family is travel. OK, so our family has been in NC for 13 years, but we get to see different places when we move every 3 or 4 years. Raleigh is one of those places. When we lived closer to Camp Lejuene we got to see the Outer Banks and several of the lighthouses. This is one of the ways I try to make the best of new duty stations. Sometimes being a military wife is difficult. We have to look for the positives when we move. Sometimes it's making new friends, decorating new houses, finding a new hairdresser (UGGHH!), or just figuring out where the keep our favorite things in the local grocery store. Military wives face a unique set of challenges. I applaud all the Mil Spouses I know. Each duty station, deployment, TDY, school, and move presents a new set of challenges. I don't always meet those challenges with grace, but I make the best of it wherever we go. I challenge you to do the same. Bloom where you are planted. It's one of those Mil Spouse motos. I live by it, do you?

oh...Soon, we will be getting new orders. Remind me of this when that happens would you?

A Winning Battle!

Today was a good day! We had a swim meet and had so much fun! The reason I am so excited is that Cale actually swam tonight. He has been avoiding it because he has tubes in his ears and hates to put his ears and face in the water. We have had several meets now and he has been feeling a little left out. I encouraged him to going to practice this morning and got him to sign up for tonight's meet (2 events).

He still won't put his face in the water, but even with his face above water he managed to win his heat and take 4th place overall. Go Cale! I am not going to tell him what he could have done better. I am proud of him for overcoming his fear. I am proud of him for getting back in the pool. The best part was when we got home tonight and I asked if he was glad he swam. He admitted he had fun. Then I asked why he waited so long. He said he didn't know, but that he was glad he swam.

It was worth the wait. You cannot force a child to do something they think they cannot do. I waited patiently for him to see what he was missing. I think I might have won this battle.

Got to love this face! She had a great night. Four 1st places and loving every minute of it!

Tomorrow I have to drive to Raleigh for a Key Wives meeting. I guess I better get to bed. I am satisfied. My son overcame a fear. My daughter is on top of the world. My children had a good day. My husband, well, we're working on that, poor guy had a meeting and missed the meet, but he was waiting for me when I got home.

There are times when it feels you cannot reach your child, spouse, or maybe a close friend. Don't give up on them. All of us have inner battles that we struggle with. It takes some longer than others to get past fears, doubts, and pain. Don't give up on them. It was so rewarding to see Cale's smiling face tonight. He knew he had dealt with his fear, he had beat it. And I knew, with time and patience, he could do it. I didn't push, he figured it out himself. Isn't that what growing up is all about?

Tough Mommy Decisions and Bursitis?

Today was a sad day. It is also the beginning of a new era in our house. Tori has been involved in gymnastics for just over a year now. She has done really well. She started at a beginner level last April 2007 and made team this last May 2008. She has been complaining of elbow pain lately, so I decided to get it checked out. The results are in and my darling has Bursitis. She has injured her elbow to the point of having to take a break. She will miss her first full season of gymnastics competition. I am sad. She worked so hard to make the team.

She has potential to do well, but I had to make the mom decision today. I had to decide what was best for her growing body. It was a difficult decision because she loves gymnastics. But here we are, out for the season. I am fortunate however that she is an active girl and loves many sports. She also swims and has decided to swim in place of gymnastics. I am proud of her. She understood the reasons for taking a break, and is looking forward to a new sport with open arms. Maybe next year she will go back to gymnastics, maybe not, it has been a good experience. She learned the value of hard work and made lots of friends. Mommy is proud of you Tori, let's have some fun together in the pool, OK?

Random thoughts...

I'm still new to blogging and trying to get into the habit of posting at least once a week. Final exams threw me off, but I'm back! I got my report card for the first summer mini-term: An A in History and a B+ in Economics, phew, I was worried about economics! I have started mini-term two, Spanish and Exceptionalities. I am excited about Exceptionalities, not so much about the Spanish, but I will get through it. I have to if I want to graduate next May!

Tori is still doing really well in swimming. She has been working on improving her strokes and looks better every day. Cale still won't swim for the team, but we have finally got him in the water and he is putting his face in! Yeah! I'm still hoping to get him to compete before the season is over, time will tell!

Our Fourth of July was uneventful, but good. We grilled with friends and had our own fireworks show. Of course, I forgot to take pictures, kinda bummed about that. We had a relaxing day, spent time together as a family, which is rare on recruiting duty, and generally had a good day. Saturday we went to see Aaron's parents and had another relaxing with them. Since my history class last semester, I have gotten interested in genealogy. I knew quite a bit about my family history, but not so much about his. Well, today I got to go through some old albums and look at the family tree. Very interesting. I am excited about digging a little deeper into their history and learning about where Aaron's family comes from, as it stands now, they have Viking roots! Wow huh? They even have a couple of Scottish Kings in their lineage. I am more excited than ever about digging into the past.

I think learning about your past and genealogy helps people to understand where we come from and why we are the way we are. I am German, with Slavic on my dads, moms side. This helps to explain my temperament and preferences. I am still trying to figure out Aaron's history, but I got a good start today. When I put this all together, it will be a great History for my children and hopefully they will treasure knowing where they come from.

So Proud!

This time of year we switch gears and add swimming to our activities. Today was the inter-squad meet. The first swim meet of the season for T. C has decided that he does not want to swim until his tubes are removed. Today may have changed his mind slightly, but we will see next week when practice starts again.

This is T's game face. She is very competitive!

Thinking about the race.

Diving in! She won! Good job T!

She did great today. Her swimming has improved so much. She won first in Freestyle and Breast Stroke and second in Back Stroke and Butterfly. She is going to have a great season!

Cale is a great swimmer. I hope he starts swimming next week. He will have lots of fun. He is having one of those weird years. He is 9 going on 10. He is changing in ways that I do not understand. His attitude is different, he talks to me different, he SMELLS different! I miss my sweet little boy. I guess those sweet years are coming to a close and we are entering new territory, that of the DOUBLE DIGITS!

"One of those Days!"

Have you ever had one of those days when you are not sure you can handle anything else going wrong? Normally I can laugh off these things that go wrong. Friday was not one of those days. While I was talking to T’s gymnastics coach, C walked up nonchalantly and said T just locked the keys in the car. All I could say was, “Are you serious?” It wouldn’t be so bad, normally I could call my husband and he would bail me out. Not this week. Darling Husband is away in PA at a required school for his job. I am here in NC. I have no extra keys to the car, he has the spare, the neighbor might have a spare house key, but that doesn’t do me any good with transportation. Needless to say, all this went through my head in about 30 seconds flat and I slid to the floor and just sat there. I didn’t cry, I just shook my head in frustration and decided we were going to sleep on the sidewalk tonight. This was the end of an already spectacular week of temper tantrums, 9 year old attitude, and me recovering from bronchitis. Let’s just say, while I didn’t yell or cry, it wasn’t my most graceful of moments. I just sat there dumbfounded on the floor of the gym lobby. A few friends gathered around, brainstorming how to help me out of this mess. Can we slide a window down? Are you sure it’s locked? Can we call the police and have them unlock it? I was speechless, and that does not happen often! I texted hubby to see if he really did have the spare keys, he did. Then he called to see what was up, and tried his best to be supportive. I hung up with him and the coach shows up with a coat hanger. At this point, I am worried. But the fact that he got the door open, I had left the widow cracked because of the heat, in less than 10 minutes worries me more. He must be an old pro at this! So we got home, unscathed. Weeks like this one leave me feeling exhausted.

Today’s experience was the culmination of a particularly grueling week. C’s attitude has been particularly sour since daddy has been away. T is mostly OK, just tired and achy adjusting to her new gym schedule. I said some things I shouldn’t have in a later conversation with my husband, and I regret it. Problem is you can’t take back what you said. It will probably stick with him for a while, it was hurtful. I’ll ask for forgiveness, and he will forgive, he usually does, he tries to understand how difficult it can be for me going to school full time, handling the kids and the house. He's a really great guy. I', thankful he loves me through these times.

Can I have a do over?

KIERRY AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY

All that worrying and a sleepless night for nothing. OK so it was more than nothing, but the day went well overall. I ended up getting up at 5AM. I had a total of 2 hours of sleep. I have a good friend that has been a great support for me through these kinds of days. Last semester she wrote me an essay. I'd like to share it with you. You may recognize the theme from a popular achildrens book. When I have my own classroom, I will have this framed and a copy of the book available for students that have days like these!

KIERRY AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY

Last night after I went to sleep, Cale went into the kitchen and grabbed some oreos, this morning when I went in to wake him up, he had oreo drool running down his cheek with a pool of oreo drool on his pillow. On my way to wake up Tori, I tripped over her Heely’s. Both children decided they didn’t want to wear the clothes we had picked out for them last night. I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.
At breakfast Tori wasn’t paying attention and Max snuck up behind her and ate her whole egg sandwich in one gulp. Cale kept playing and was running out of time to eat breakfast. I could already tell as I was fixing Tori breakfast #2, the kids would be late for school again…which means I will be late also.
When we were half way to school, we realized the children forgot to take their medicine. So, we turned around to go back home, which made us even later. As we pulled up in the carpool line, we realized that the doors had been locked and I had to take the kids to the office, where of course the office staff gave me their dirty looks because they are the type of people who always have a perfect morning. As I sped off to Lenoir Rhyne, I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.
As I arrived at school, all the parking places in front were taken. I had to park at least 5 miles from my class. To top it all off, the second I turned off the engine, it began to rain. We are not talking a little rain either. The sky opened up and it started to pour with lightening hitting the ground all around me. Oh, wait guess where my books are? They are in the trunk. I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.
I was twenty minutes late to class. I was soaked because even though I had an umbrella, it rained sideways and I don’t think a single inch of me was dry. Then, the teacher gave me the timed quiz, that the rest of the class started 15 minutes ago. He just gave me that look because he always has a perfect morning. Do you think they have schools that start at 12 noon?
At lunch today, I had to study for the test in my next class instead of eating lunch. I don’t know if you are keeping track, but it is 12 o’clock and I still haven’t eaten breakfast.
It was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. That’s what it was because after the test I had to drive all the way to Granite Falls, pick up my children 30 minutes early from school (I won’t mention the looks from the office staff) and go to the dentist. I hate the dentist and the sound of their stupid drill. It sends chills right up my spine and makes me want to run away. Next week, I am going to Australia.
As I walked into the waiting room, after paying the dentist to torture me for an hour, there were Tori and Cale, fighting in the midst of strewn around magazines and toys. Apparently, Cale had torn Tori’s magazine. He did that because Tori wouldn’t stop talking to him while he was playing Game boy. As I looked at the chaos, I knew I was having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. I told both the children on the way home, but neither of them answered as they pouted in the back seat.
So, we rushed home and grabbed our gymnastics gear and rushed to gymnastics. We were 15 minutes late to gymnastics, and both kids had to run extra laps because they were late. By the way, it is now 4:45 and I still haven’t had breakfast and I have a ton of homework to do. So, I grabbed a bag of chips and a diet soda out of the vending machine and sat down to do homework. One time when I looked up, I realized Tori was crying. After practice when I asked the coach about it, he gave me a hard time. It was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.
After practice, we went out to dinner. The restaurant we always go to, started giving smaller portions of fries, but still charged the same amount. I hate that. I wanted more fries. Remember, all I’ve eaten all day was a bag of chips and a diet soda.
We finally got home at 9:00. I sent Tori in to take a shower and she got water all over the floor, so when I went in to get her out, I slipped and fell. That really made me mad. So, I yelled at Tori and then she started crying. I sent Cale to take a shower and he spent 30 minutes on the toilet playing his Game boy. When I went in to check on him, he was bone dry. So, by the time he got out of the shower it was 10:00. I sent him to bed. That’s when the bed time ritual of seeing how many times they can get out of bed before I blow my gasket started. At 11:00, I blew my gasket and by 11:08, both kids were passed out cold. I think I will blow my gasket a lot earlier tomorrow if it means they will be asleep in 8 minutes.
I finally started my homework at 11:09 and I didn’t finish it until 2:00 am. When I got to bed, Charlie and Max were asleep on my pillow. Aaron was snoring like a freight train. The only thing that made me happy was…this terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day had finally come to an end.
Tomorrow has definitely got to be a better day.

Laura, thanks for understanding me and supporting me through days like this. I guess you really do listen when I call you and I am all stressed out. Thanks for being a great friend!

Racing Thoughts and A Sleepless Night

Racing thoughts is what it is called. I have not done much research on the subject, but the phenomenon occurs when random thoughts spin through your head, seemingly important thoughts, but as soon as you focus on one, another races in and crowds the other out. The process continues and leaves me in sheer frustration. Rather than lie in bed, tossing and turning, I decided to get it on paper this morning. 4 A.M., Yikes!

I am an adult diagnosed with ADHD. I believe that ADHD is real. Others disagree, but I live with it, every day, every minute of every day. I am a mom of two children diagnosed with ADHD. In the beginning I fought it, I refused testing, medication, or the belief that anything could be wrong with my children. My son was diagnosed first, then my daughter, and finally myself; after several counseling sessions supposedly for my children. I am learning to cope with it. Each day brings a new challenge.



But back to my thoughts...

It may be anxiety. I am starting summer classes tomorrow and while I am excited to be almost finished, I will graduate in May 2009, I am not looking forward to spending this summer in classes. It may be caffeine, but my last was at 4:00 P.M. I think it has to do with ADHD. I have allot going on in my life right now. My husband is an active duty Marine Recruiter, I have two very active children, I am trying to finish my degree in Elementary Education, I have a household to keep up, and all the duties of a mom. But, I can't seem to get a handle on all of those things at once. I do good for a while, but then it seems to go spinning out of control and I get behind in one of those areas. Right now that area is my house specifically the clutter. I would love to be organized, I just don't know where to start. In the morning, I will start again, first with the laundry, then the school papers my children bring home, then the little piles of stuff that get left on random flat surfaces throughout the house. I won't beat my self up, that is a regular occurrence. You see, with ADHD comes frustration. I feel like I cannot measure up. Sometimes I feel like a failure. I get so engrossed in one activity, I forget everything around me, including laundry, and I get behind. So this week I will start over again. I will make my lists, try to get back on a schedule, and not beat myself up for being behind because don't most of us moms feel that way anyway?

Tomorrow, well later this morning, I will make some coffee and start my week. I'll be tired, because I have been up all night with my thoughts, but it is a new day and maybe, I can pluck one of those thoughts out and lay it to rest.

What Else Can Happen?

I was going to get up at 6:00, get showered, get the kids off to school, then head to court. Yes, that's right, I was summoned for jury duty. Problem is, it starts the second week of summer school, and if I miss summer school, I don't graduate next year. Well, I hit snooze until 7:00. UUGGHH! Kids start school at 7:30, we can do this. I get the kids to school, oh no, T left her lunch box on the counter. I will deal with that later, after I find the court house. Back home, to get changed and look presentable before a judge. Out the door at 8:20. Remember I have to be there before 9:00. I get to the city where the courthouse is and proceed to drive in circles for about 10 minutes. Finally I find the Clerk of Court Office and ask to see someone. After waiting another 5 minutes, an assistant comes out, looks over my paper work, hands me a number and asks me to call this afternoon for the decision. What? I din't even get to explain why I need jury duty delayed! I left in tears, frustrated, angry, and worried that I will be sitting in a courtroom in two weeks instead of Economics. Hey, I didn't say I didn't want to go to jury duty, but I need to graduate!