That could have gone better...

We started out with high hopes of a fun camping trip with Grandpa. We were headed to Pacific Beach to play in the sand and fly kites and eat camping food until we were sick of it. Good plan. Not so good in reality.

When we got to Pacific Beach, it was windy. Not just breezy, but windy. We took the kids down to the beach to play and Meg decided this was not where she wanted to be. It took her a couple of trips down there before she would even walk around on the sand.

Adam had fun though, chasing the seagulls and writing in the sand.

We decided to be brave and try and set the tent up, just as it started raining a little. As it turns out, you can't set up a 5 man tent in 40 mph winds and not expect some damage. The first cracking sound made me jump, the second made me look. Both main tent polls had cracked. By this time the rain was serious and the wind had picked up. I go to the office and low and behold, there was one room left for the night in the motel portion of the "resort". Sold. We spent our first night camping in a hotel room watching Baby Signing Times trying to keep the baby from screaming. We also ate dinner at the hotel restaurant. Not exactly the plan.

The second day we figure we can pull it together. Grandpa's one of the smartest guys I know and he can fix anything, so he pulled out the duct tape and got the tent poles back together again. We headed north and ended up in a remote campground called North Forks on Quinalt Lake.

We got out of the truck and looked around a while and that's when the feast began. Not the feast I had planned, but the feast for the mosquitoes. I thought they were going to carry the baby away. Could I find the bug spray anywhere? Nope, must have forgotten that. The good thing about the fact that it it started raining again just as we were trying to set the tent up, is that the mosquitoes went away. We managed to get it set up, get the truck unloaded and tried to light a fire. Grandpa again relied on his ingenuity and used diesel fuel to get lots of white smoke, but no fire. (Don't try that at home, kids.) I tried the Coleman stove and couldn't even keep that going long enough to heat up lunch. We had lukewarm lunch and everyone started to get a little cranky.

After spending just 4 hours and everyone getting soaked to the bone, we decided to pack up and head for home. Meg was so sad and so wet, I decided to stow her away in the truck while we broke camp. She found the open bag of cereal and happily munched away while we continued to get soaked and re-pack the truck.
On the ride home both kids were exhausted, so were the grown ups for that matter. I looked in the backseat and saw both kids in dreamland. I hope they were dreaming of a fun camp out in the sun with no mosquitoes and no rain.

A political conversation with a 7 year old

My darling, bright and talented son is almost 8. Sometimes I think he can't hear me at all, but then he comes up with questions that stun me and show me he really is listening to everything. (He must be choosing to ignore the sound of his mother's voice when she asks him to pick something up or get in the car. Go figure.)

So this was the conversation in the car yesterday after listening to a news brief on NPR.
Bug: Why did Russia invade Georgia?
Me: Georgia used to be a part of Russia and they were upset that Georgia wanted Russia out of the decision making for them. And they said Georgia had attacked some Russian military peace keeping forces. You can't really be sure of that though, sometimes the truth doesn't come out for a long time.
Bug: Are the US and Georgia allies?
Me: I am not sure, but I don't think we can officially be an ally to Georgia until they join NATO, which they were trying to do and Russia also didn't like.

Side conversation about NATO... Help!

Bug: Why would the US send troops to Georgia?
Me: the US has doesn't like it when a smaller country is attacked. I guess our leaders think it's their job to protect people, depending on their interests, and what they can do out of the deal.
Bug: So who were the bad guys in Iraq? Why are we over there?
Me: (taking a deep breath) Remember when the US was attacked by those terrorists and all of those people were killed? The US discovered that the bad guys were trained in Iraq and Afghanistan and that they were hurting other people over there, so they decided to try and stop them.
Bug: So we aren't fighting with Iraq, just the bad guys who live there and hurt people?
Me: right, kind of. There's more to it I think.
Bug: So that's why they are calling it The War on Terror.
Me: yep.
Bug: Mom, you missed your turn.
Me: Yes I did. I guess I got distracted. Thanks, my GPS kid.

I long for the days when I can just answer simply "This is a good conversation to have with Dad."

Breaking Dawn, and keeping it all together

I bet those of you who are Stephanie Meyer fans have read it or plan to very soon. I borrowed it from a friend at church and read it the same day, to the neglect of my family and my sleep. I liked it a lot, there was a lot less whining this time around and felt a little more grown up. Great read, even though it does have an actual fairy tale ending.

In my defense about not tending my family... When my DH is at sea, like now, I don't get any down time. There is no support being a single mom. Laundry, feeding, care and clean up of kids and house are all you. As are playing games, doing math pages, reading tons of books and mowing the lawn. Then, of course, there's the other stuff. Like church obligations, friends, weddings, baby showers, and extended family.

So after being out every single weeknight last week and the kids not getting to bed until after 9:30 every night, I had a little nervous breakdown on Friday night. Feeling like a horrible mother and a defective housekeeper who can't hold the simplest of things together. I had a good conversation with the Lord and came to a shocking discovery. I don't have to do it all, and it doesn't have to be done all at once. I am not my mother-in-law, who really can do it all and bake a cake at the same time, I am who I am, doing the best I can. It's all I can do and I don't have to feel guilty about the rest. I backed out of and gave up some activities this week. I won't be volunteering for new stuff any time soon. I am going to concentrate on my family, my house and my sanity. I sure hope this plan works.

The Perfect cherry

The Perfect Cherry

First you have to find cherries. If you are in Aunt Sheri's orchard, you shouldn't have to look very far. It's always good to take some extra time running around on the 4 wheeler just to make sure you have a good tree though. It's kind of fun too.

Then you have to pick the cherries. If you aren't 16, and aren't family, you have to find someone to climb the ladder for you.



Next, you have to taste the cherries. Just to make absolutely sure they are the best around.



After that, you pit the cherries. They are easier to feed to your sister that way and you don't have to go around and pick up all of those pesky pits later.



The last step is to enjoy the fruits of your labors. Have someone count the extra cherry freckles you have and forget trying to the get the cherry juice off of your hands, it's going to be there a while. That's okay though, you have just enjoyed summer's sweetest treat ever. That's how to have the perfect cherry.

Silent Service

My husband works in the Silent Service.
That’s not just a way to
Describe what he does

Silence describes how we live.
As he readies to deploy,
Silently, my heart breaks.

As the sub drifts silently down the channel,
Silently and fervently I pray
Keep him safe, keep him safe.

The nights pass without him
I lie and listen each night for his breathing
Silently I cry for his touch again.

As the days march on
I try to be both mother and father
Silently I wonder if I am doing it right and if I am enough.

We gather together now and then
Other wives, as a kind of family
Silently and in so many ways, we support one another.

When the phone rings
I wonder is it him? is it about him?
Silently I seek strength to handle whatever may come.

When he’s coming home soon
I am thrilled and excited,
Silently I smile, but never say a word.

Honor, Duty and Commitment
Are written on his face and in his actions
Silently, I admire his integrity.

I live the life of a Navy wife
Whose husband works in the Silent Service
Silently I thank God for the blessings in my life.
And then, I say them aloud.

--Allicia Hubbs
August 12, 2005

Grandma's are magic

I love my Grandma's. I have lots of them and they have brought so much joy and learning and loving to my life. I am so excited that my kids have awesome grandparents too who think they are the best grand kids ever.

My Grandma Cozette came to visit this week. I hadn't seen her in since Feb. due to her busy travel schedule. Retirement is the busiest time of life I guess. She came to watch the kiddos for me while I was in Certified Ombudsman Training for the week becoming a trainer for the Ombudsman program here at NBK. Every morning I left before the kids were up and got home in the late afternoon. She had them fed and dressed and happy when I got home. Even the dishes were done. I can't tell you how that makes me happy. I think I really could get used to living in a multi-generational home. So here's our top 10 favorite things about Grandma being here this week:
1. Meg started eating again, but just for Grandma. Still wouldn't let mom feed her.
2. Adam got to have Tuna fish, which I refuse to make.
3. She helped me through the first hard nights of DH being gone.
4. Good books and good conversation, the type that doesn't involve a why.
5. The dishes getting done every day, sometime twice a day.
6. Cake decorating lessons. Wish she could have stayed longer.
7. Adam magically listened to her, but still gave me a hard time.
8. Meg got a new book, thanks to Grandma who then read it to her a dozen times and made her happy.
9. We ran errands in record time. It's amazing how much faster it goes if you can leave the kids in the car when you have a 2 minute return to make.
10. Memories of childhood and gossip about cousins. What a better way to keep the family together than through a grandma?

Family Photos

I have gotten a few comments about our new family photo and I am so pleased with them I thought I would do a post about them. My dear cousin Sarah from Portland took them for us. Her photography website is here. Her blog is here. As you can see, she is talented and creative. I appreciate her time and talents to take our photos. They turned out amazing. Thanks Sarah! And a special thanks to Lia for watching all of those kids while we tried to get some good shots. What great cousins and friends I have!

Here are some of the other shots we got that day.