a new adventure begins

I'm happy to say we made it to Michigan safe and sound! Emmett and I arrived at the local airport in Texas before dawn, which I was less than thrilled about, but we were lucky enough to watch the sunrise from over 20,000 feet up in the sky, which was a new and exhilarating experience for me. It was a long day- three flights and two layovers followed by over an hour drive. The perfect recipe for a toddler meltdown, right? Well, luckily, despite it all, Emmett was a picture of perfection! I could hardly believe it.

Aaron and Elliot braved the 14,000 mile drive a couple days after Emmett and I landed in Michigan. It was Elliot's first long car drive, so I was nervous that Aaron would be facing some potential accidents and tantrums, but surprisingly, Elliot did just as well as Emmett! No accidents and no tears. I'm telling you, my boys must have been super excited to finally play with all of their grandparents in the snow, or something.

Speaking of snow, Elliot had been talking about all the things he wanted to do in the snow for months and months before moving. Neither he or his brother had EVER set foot in snow before! Building a snowman, having a snowball fight, and sledding were at the top of his list. Well, he has now gotten to do ALL of those things, and it was just as fun as he'd imagined. He asks to go outside pretty much every day, which is easier said than done. I had no idea how LONG it takes to get two toddlers fully suited up and ready to play in the snow! And then it takes just as long to peel all the wet layers off afterwards!

Emmett, on the other hand, is a little less excited about the snow. He clomped around a little bit in the few fresh inches in the driveway (the snow in the yard would go over his head!), threw some snowballs, did some shoveling... but sledding? No no no! You would've thought we were trying to torture him. He still enjoys himself outside- but he's ready to go back inside long before Elliot is. He's definitely my summer baby. I hope he has more fun next winter when he's a little bigger.

So far we are LOVING it up here- especially our house. I'll blog more about that later. One other thing that is making our move that much more enjoyable? We're finally allowed to have pets again!! Meet Noah & Scout, our two new bunnies. I'll be blogging more about them later, too.

That's all for now! If you're up north/east, stay warm! And if you're in Texas/down south... enjoy that warmth and sunshine! ;)

It's finally, really, happening!

"Nothing really ever happens, you know?" -Kipper the Dog

I don't know if any of you are familiar with the show "Kipper the Dog", but it is one of my boys' favorite shows currently. I guess it's glaringly obvious that I spend my life immersed in a toddler world lately, since that was the very first quote I could think of to start off this overdue blog post. I've received more than just one or two emails and facebook messages lately, wondering how I've been and why I haven't been blogging anymore. Well, that quote above, by non other than the animated dog Kipper himself, pretty much explains it all. Up until very recently, we were living our lives in a state of perpetual waiting. We had been enjoying our last months in Texas as best we could, but it's hard to live knowing that you have a looming cross-country move, one that you cannot plan for because so much is out of your hands.

I'm happy to say that the wait is finally OVER! Aaron received his much deserved disability ratings and then finally, finally his orders! The day we've been waiting for all of this time is growing near- we will soon be parting ways with the US Army, closing that chapter of our lives, and starting a new, exciting adventure 1500 miles across the country in northern Michigan.

Let me tell you, after literally months of being unable to plan, the minute we received word, I went to work. I had already been scouring the internet for houses to rent, but honestly, there just isn't much available up there. It's a small, snowy town with no real long-term rental draw. The few places that ARE available to rent are either apartments, scungy, small mobile homes or duplexes, or ridiculously overpriced gargantuan  houses. We are working with a limited budget, but I was determined to find us a house- a house that allows pets (the last 1 1/2 years in a pet-free apartment have left me sort of miserable), and preferably one with a yard for the boys.  The odds were really against me on this one. But guess what? I did it! My writing abilities paid off and I was selected over seventeen other applicants as first in line to what is now our future home.

I still can't believe our luck. I really can't. Our future home is a newly built, 1500 square foot, 2 bedroom 2 bathroom home nestled on 3.5 acres and then surrounded by an additional 100 acres of a tree farm. It has a 4 car garage. Everything inside is clean and new. The living room boasts a lovely wood burning stove which will save us tons of money over heating with propane over the long Michigan winters, it has the big bright kitchen I've always wanted, more windows and natural light than you could ever dream of, and really? It's perfect. It's just perfect. I've dubbed it "our little house in the woods" and I absolutely cannot wait to move in. We've already signed and mailed the lease and deposit, and we move in February 14th! How's that for a move-in date? Our Realtor joked that it would be our best Valentine's Day yet- and I couldn't agree more. FINALLY we will have a home with SPACE, in the country, with room for my boys to roam and play, and no annoying neighbors or apartment managers. I'm thrilled. Even more thrilled that I managed to pull it all off and secure this home while across the country (with some help from my father and father-in-law who met the owner and Realtor this past Monday to check out the property for us.)

So... that's it! We will be back in Northern Michigan, after spending five years away, in just three weeks! I can hardly believe it. That's where I will leave you for today. I have more- so much more- to blog about. But I'll save it all for many more posts to come.

To everyone who has continued to check my blog- thanks for sticking around. I'm sorry to have left you waiting for so long.

our plans have changed again... but at least my kids are still cute

I have decided I am a unpredictable blogger. I blame part of this on the fact that our plans are always changing. I tend to get an idea, get super excited, and run with it. Then the army (or in this case, the VA) throws us a curveball or two and our plans have to change, and I get discouraged and simply stop blogging for awhile.

It's happened again. Our plans changed. Instead of moving to Costa Rica this winter/spring... we will instead be moving to... wait for it... northern Michigan. Womp womp womp. Why? Well, the VA is now teaming up with the good ol' Army and making things really difficult for us. Trying to plan anything, let alone a move overseas, is nearly impossible right now. Deadlines keep getting pushed back, news keeps changing, and nothing about our financial future is set in stone. All of this was making me really uneasy. As a result, the sensible side of me pushed the dreamer to the side and developed a whole new grand plan.

You see, my little boys are lucky enough to have three sets of grandparents all in one town. The same small, safe town where Aaron and I met and fell in love. Said town also happens to have a community college with a welding degree that my husband is quite interested in. And Aaron has access to a pretty amazing GI Bill, which is probably the only real thing he will have to show for the past six years he spent in the army, other than a few tattoos and a metal plate in his head. Are you seeing where I'm going with this, yet?

We're going to move back to Aaron's hometown, where Aaron will go to college. As for me? Well, I'll mostly be doing the same thing that I've been doing all along- working on my photography and raising my two rambunctious little boys, except that we will also be starting to homeschool (pre-k), we will be able to spend a lot more time with family, and I might enroll in a college class or two myself- because I really miss it! Oh, and let's not forget the fact that half the year we'll be buried under snow. I'm not looking forward to that part. Hopefully during the winter I'll be able to keep myself busy indoors (because in case you didn't know, I am not a winter-loving girl) and of course I'll be continuing to plan our future move out of the country. Because you can bet your bottom dollar that although we will be spending 1-3 years back in Michigan, my husband and I are both bent on moving out of the country soon after Aaron gets his degree. 

So that's the plan! I can't promise a timeframe or anything like that, because let's face it- we're still waiting. Sitting ducks. In case you're wondering what we've been up to, well- it's been hot. Here we are in the second week of September and it is still in the 100's every day. But the heat doesn't bother my boys one bit, so we've been spending lots of time outside. And inside doing crafts, too. More blog posts about later ;)

I'll leave you to ponder about our ever-changing life with a few recent pictures of the boys. See? I told you they were still cute ;) At least that will never change. I hope. 

 

not the ocean, but it'll have to do... for now

Aaron finally sat down with his case manager last week, and got more things accomplished for his medical retirement. It looks like we won't be able to leave Texas until probably the end of September or beginning of October. At first, I was really disappointed to hear this, but at the same time, it gives us more time to save and prepare, so I guess I can't complain too much. Apparently Costa Rica is practically underwater for nearly all of October, anyways, so it could be a blessing in disguise. During much of the rainy season, it is sunny in the morning but rainy in the afternoons- that I can handle (I think). Nearly constant rain for a month straight? Not so much.

To be honest, I'm really loving Texas lately, so this summer, we will just make the best of it! I keep saying that I really need to start going through and downsizing some of our belongings- particularly the boys' things. People, these kids of mine have a LOT of stuff. They're a little spoiled. Oh well. We have time. I'll have to try to squeeze it in sometime between keeping my two little men happy in the mornings (aka preparing them 23 snacks, constantly refilling their water cups, trying to keep them from accidentally injuring eachother, and walking behind them trying to pick up the tornado of toys they leave behind them) and our time spent outside. Seriously, when it's 99 degrees and sunny outside, my boys simply DO NOT want to spend one minute inside. They are definitely my kids. When everyone else is holed up inside with their air conditioners, we're out there running around having a blast. And chugging bottles of water.

My poor husband has hand foot and mouth disease, which is going around like crazy around here. I guess it's a good thing that he didn't find out sooner, or else I probably wouldn't have been able to drag him out to the lake on Saturday ;) I'm hoping and praying that hand-foot-mouth was what Emmett and I were sick with last week and the week before, because otherwise we will likely catch it- and I definitely don't want it!!

A few pictures from our weekend-

It was our second time to this particular lake- which is called Stillhouse Hollow Park, and we enjoyed ourselves even more this time than last! Except Aaron of course, who pretty much laid pathetically in the water most of the time, other than one exploration into the bushes while wearing Emmett in the Boba so he could take a much-needed nap. Our only complaint from our last trip was the sloppy clay sand, but we picked a different spot on the beach this time and the clay was buried beneath regular sand- yay! It also helped that we finally found swim trunks to fit Elliot- size 12-18 months from Crazy 8. He's such a skinny mini!

Emmett could NOT get enough of splashing in this water.

It's definitely not the ocean, but it'll have to do for now. Oh, how I miss the ocean. What I wouldn't give to dive into the cold, salty sea right about now. I grew up going to the ocean often, but we haven't been to the coast since we moved to Texas! In fact, the last time I swam in the ocean, I was pregnant with Elliot. That was when Aaron was in Korea and before we knew for sure which birth defect he had, and I found a lot of peace and solace in the sea. You can read about that here, if you want. 

Hopefully, the next time I set foot in salty water, it will be on a beach in Costa Rica! I want my children to grow up knowing the wonder and healing powers of the ocean... just like I did. Especially if they are unlucky enough to inherit my acne-prone skin. Lake beaches can be fun, but they just don't compare to the real thing!

Busy, busy, busy

Aaron comes home in ONE WEEK!
I'm so excited I can hardly stand it. Luckily, I have a lot to do over the next seven days to keep my mind off of it, because otherwise, all I can think about is: Aaron's coming home, Aaron's coming home, Aaron's coming home!
This morning, the moving company sent over a consultant who meticulously inventoried all 4,000 pounds of the stuff we'll be moving to Texas. I found out that they will pack everything for us. EVERYTHING! In fact, she said not to bother packing anymore because they'll have to unpack and repack everything. So, that's one thing I can cross off my to-do list.
Then, this afternoon Elliot spent the afternoon at my in-law's house while I practiced parallel parking with my father-in-law. My driving test is on Monday and I'm a little nervous but feel much more confident driving now than I used to. Yes, you read that right- I have a driving test on Monday. Yes, I'm 22 and I don't have a driver's license. At first, I wasn't sure if I wanted to talk about it on my blog, but then I figured, well, what do I have to hide? I don't have a driver's license because I had a scary driving instructor when I was 16 and was deathly afraid of driving for years. I would even go so far as to call it a phobia. I was just TERRIFIED of driving. But I know that it is something I need to do, especially now that I have a child, so I'm sucking it up and FINALLY getting my license. And I actually don't really mind driving anymore... in fact {dare I say it?} I actually kind of enjoy it now.
This evening I had a preparation class for Elliot's baptism. It was really interesting and I am so happy that we decided to finally have him baptized. Faith has always been important to me. I hope to be a good christian role model as Elliot grows up and hope we can go to church together every Sunday like I always did growing up. I'm also thrilled that Elliot will be baptized in the same church where Aaron and I met! There will be four other babies being baptized on the same day as Elliot's baptism... so that could be interesting. Apparently, summer is the busy baptism season in the catholic church! I'm very much looking forward to that day. I hope to do a more in depth post about this soon.
And now, as a reward for listening to me ramble for so long, you deserve some cute pictures. So here is my favorite bath baby!