New Blog Location

Okay, another change.   Hopefully this will be it for a LONG time.  In the next few days, I’m officially moving my blog over to this location.  I’m working on moving over all my posts and getting the site formatted.  I’ll post here when the move is official.  You probably won’t see any new posts at this location….while the other site isn’t formatted yet, I don’t want to have to do more than one move of my posts, so I’ll probably just switch to that site for posting.

I’ve waited so long to hear it…

MA!  I finally have a name!  Oh, what a sweet sound.  I love it!!!  Even more, I love *being* MA!

Web Host?

My current web hosting company (bravenet.com) has been good but my service runs out at the end of the month and I want to move someplace else.  Anyone have suggestions of a good web hosting company?  Its mainly for our personal website (so must have lots of space for pics) but it’d be nice if I could easily upload the Word Press software and host my blog on it.

Update, Part 2

So my Beth Moore study is going really well.  I have *loved* learning so much about Daniel and the others. But now we’re into the second half of the study.  Its all about eschatology.  Escha-what?  That was my response.  And I should have taken that as my first clue as to how I’d do with this half.  I feel like a total nimwhit.  I really, really, REALLY want to understand this half.  But I can’t wrap my brain around it.  And the further I get behind in it, the harder it is to want to sit down and do it.  I generally consider myself to have a fairly decent brain in my head but this study makes me feel so dumb.  I just can’t get my head around it.  *sigh*

I did manage to get Trillian installed today.  Its on the other computer (the one stuck in Germany).   I couldn’t remember the name of the program, so I had to do some digging. I haven’t turned on any of my IMs in so long, it’ll be nice to be able to chat with people. (hint, hint! LOL)
E’s hearing test went fine.  She tests totally within normal for speech & language development.  Part of me hoped it would be as simple as fluid in the middle ear since that is a fairly easy fix.  We weren’t expecting it though.  I’ll get in touch with our EI coordinator tomorrow to get moving on the language preschool.

I’m slowly returning to the land of the living.  I have been S-I-C-K for the past 10 days.  I’m not sure what was actually wrong.  I was just plain ‘ol sick.

Had two teeth pulled yesterday.  One was a back tooth.  It had broken off a while back.  They were going to try to cap over it but there wasn’t enough tooth left to salvage, so they pulled it.  While they were doing it, they pulled the wisdom tooth next to it.  It had come through fully several years back and needed pulled anyway. Much to my surprise, I’m not in any pain today.

E has her hearing test today.  We’ve already started the EI process.  As soon as we get confirmation that her hearing is fine, we can proceed with finalizing her services.  There is a language preschool in Tacoma that looks pretty good.  I think we’re going to go with that and see how she develops.  I’m eager to get it going.

DH just walked in, unexpectedly!  So I’m off for now.

One year ago!

At almost exactly this time one year ago, this is what I was looking at!!  Elizabeth & I were playing in the window at the airport, waiting for Jim to arrive home for R&R, when I looked up and saw that his plane had suddenly arrived!  What a feeling!!!

A few minutes later, the plane started to unload.  He was in the LAST row of the plane!!  It seemed like forever until he get off.  As they came off, several passengers told me he was in the back…it must have been obvious who I was waiting for!! LOL

FINALLY, he got off the plane and we headed downstairs to get his bag.  What a sight!  I remember the feeling of just NOT being able to take my eyes off of him.  Neither could Elizabeth.  I was so nervous she would be shy to him but she took to him right away, letting him hold her by the time we got downstairs.

Full album of pictures from his arrival home and R&R part 1 and part 2.

Indiana Recap

Some hiighlights of the trip:

Shlaw & Boo Shlaw (not quite how she pronounces it but close) and E, of course, hit it off.  It took her a bit to warm up to Shlaw (my mom) this time.  Usually she is warmed up by the time we leave the airport.  Still, they made up quickly!  Oh, how Elizabeth loved playing with her!!  Boo (my step-dad)…I was interested to see how she would react to him this time.  With each trip, she interacts more and would get closer to him but wouldn’t actually touch him.  (He’s never been around little ones much, so its taken him awhile to learn how to interact.)  She interacted with him a LOT more this time, would go around the house looking for him, etc.  It was very cute.

Friend  E & my niece were SO darn cute together!  When we were all at my mom’s there was a bit of territorial-ness going on.  Both are used to being the only one at mom’s and they are both used to having her all to themselves.  Still, they did pretty well.  E learned the sign ‘friend’ when we were home & started using it in reference to my niece.  *so sweet*  Now, whenever she sees someone who is Asian, she also signs it.  Very cute but it makes me want to pack up and move back to IN!!

On the road again My family REALLY needs to live closer together!  As much as I want to see everyone, it just gets too much for E to be in her carseat so much.

The Fair…or not We were going to take the girls to the county fair but with temperatures near triple digits & high humidity, we decided that it would be too miserable for the girls. So we went to Chuck E. Cheese instead. The girls had a great time. It was crazy-busy (even for CEC) but not too bad overall. They have a toddler area which was nice to corral the girls.
‘Round and around and around she goes  E’s highlight of visitng Jim’s parents was getting to drive the boat!  She LOVES steering wheels.  When we took her out the first time, I knew she’d want to drive and I prepped myself for a struggle.  His dad, to my surprise, asked her if she wanted to steer.  Her face LIT up.  She loved doing circles the most.  NOT good for his mom who can get motion sick. LOL

Signing Time  If you’re looking for a good video to help teach littles ones sign language, I HIGHLY recommend these!!  I had a portable DVD player so E could watch these.  She learned a half-dozen or so signs just in the short times she’d watch it in the car.  GREAT videos!  And not terribly annoying to listen to.  LOL

I haven’t had a good rant for awhile

So here’s one.
I was driving off post the other day. Near the entrance ramp to the interstate, I noticed a protestor. I assumed it was someone protesting about the Lt. Watada story (it was). And then I noticed the rest of his posterboard. “Wives, don’t let your husbands go to an illegal war.” My blood started to boil (the tears came later as I recounted it to Jim). I fully support the right to protest. And I make little effort to hide how I feel about this war. But that line went TOO far. Our base is beginning another long deployment for a brigade (their second tour). As wives, we don’t have control over whether they obey orders or not.

But my beef is more about the timing of the message, not the message itself. Those early days after Jim left are a blur. Hour after hour I tried to get through them. Praying that I didn’t just send my husband to die. Praying that my daughter would get to spend another day with her father. Praying that I’d be able to find the time to keep food in my stomach. Praying I’d be able to find the time to wash my clothes so I didn’t have to go to the comissary to purchase said food in dirty clothes. LOL Praying the TV wouldn’t cancel my favorite shows so I could converse with the characters for adult conversation. HA. Praying that whatever came my way, I’d get through it. I went through every emotion. And if I had seen a protestor telling me not to let my husband go to an illegal war, it would not have been a pretty sight!! As a dear fried of mine would say, I would have had to “get country” on the protestor!! LOL

Agree with the war or not, I don’t care. Its everyone’s right to feel however they do about it. And if you don’t want to show respect to the soldiers going off to war, well, that is also your choice. But, please, remember that there are tender, scared, lonely hearts putting on the brave faces as they wave goodbye to their soldier.