Thursday, September 27, 2012

Day 12: Good, Busy Day

Jeff finally made it to his final destination. This makes me happy for more than one reason. It means he probably going to stay put for a while (thus being safer for a while). He has a bed to sleep in and a space (even if it's small) to call his own. Lastly, it means he will be on some sort of schedule, which reduces my stress immensely. It means I don't worry as much because I know what he's doing and when we will talk (approximately). That alone makes a military wife's shoulders feel a bit lighter. On top of all that, right now it looks like his schedule is allowing for him to be awake when I'm awake, and asleep when I'm asleep. *happy dance*. Thank you, Army for the small break, it means a lot.

 

Today we had lunch with my friend Ashley at our favorite Chinese restaurant. The boys were so happy to see her. Even though it was like a three ring circus, as it always is when we go out to eat, they were fairly well behaved today. It was good to catch up with a friend that I've known since elementary school as well. Ashley turns twenty-two tomorrow, so happy early birthday to her (: we love you and hope its wonderful.

 

We stopped at the store on the way home to do something I have been planning for a while. I took Jack and let him pick out stuff for his "Letters to Daddy" bag. I decided a few months ago I wanted Jack to have special supplies that only get used when he's writing/drawing for daddy. That way, upon daddy's return when I ask him if he wants to color a picture for daddy... he won't flip out and think Jeff is leaving again. So today we bought all this:

Toddler friendly crayons, a notebook Jack picked out (daddy will be proud it has a corvette on the front), bright blue envelopes (again I let Jack pick), a little calendar for Jack to mark off days in, and a stamp pad and train stamp so daddy will always know who they are from when he sees the envelope with the train (or 500 trains, Jack is excited about stamping). We also got a little pouch to keep it all in, which Jack will get to decorate with fabric markers and I will write Letters to Daddy on. He is super excited to "write his first letter" tomorrow. I can't wait to see what he comes up with. I'm sure it will be nothing that I will understand, and Jeff will have no problem reading it. They are silly like that (:

We came back to Nan's house to repeat Jack's favorite part of the day.

 
They are just so darn cute. Right after this Avery said "Katie, let's get a picture with all three of us" ... Jack has been calling me "Katie" at least 50% of the time ever since. I tried to explain the your mama is Avery's sister and that's why she blah blah blah. It got me no where. So I banged my head on the ground... just took a photo like they wanted.
 
After Jonah woke up from his nap we went in town for dinner. Man. Oh. Man. I sure married into a good family. My husband's Nanny is the best chicken-fryer that I know. God help me, I think I gained 5 pounds tonight. On top of that, Nanny is pretty much amazing at everything, especially being a great-grandma.
 
My boys are very lucky (:
Granddad was there too and was happy to see Jonah and his "#2" (Granddad is Jackie James, the orignial). Jeff's parents also came and all his little siblings. It felt really good to be surrounded by people that love Jeff as much as I do. Jonah played with his grandma Laura for a good bid of the evening. his favorite game was "How many grapes can grandma hold in her cheeks at once" haha
 
The boys were out by the time we got back to my mom's house, Jonah went straight to bed and Jack got to stay up a bit longer to play with Avery. Their playtime ended with Avery reading him two books. He loved it. He sat quietly (more so than when I or daddy read to him) and listened to her every word. And even at 8 years old, she was so animated. I love listening to them. Most people look at Avery and notice how small she is. I look at her and I cannot believe how big she is. She was my pseudo first child. I was 14 when she was born and I remember missing her while I was at school. She weighed barely 5 lbs when she came into this world, spent 2 weeks in the NICU fighting to stay healthy, and then spent the next 8 years defying every judgment that told her "you are too small." Today I looked at her and finally realized she is not a baby anymore. I know this all sounds silly because I'm not her mother, just her big sister. Today, I saw a smart, gorgeous, funny, loving, sweet little girl. Coming home is hard, as I've mentioned before, especially without Jeff. But Avery, that sweet girl, always makes me feel like I've moved mountains to get here. She usually jumps on me when I walk through the door. She missed me. "She remembers how much I love her and she missed me"... That's what goes through my mind when she hugs me. In times like these, 12 days after my husband went to war, a hug like that from a little sister like her can heal my heart.
 
<3
 

5 comments:

  1. Sounds like you had a great day! :)

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  2. What a wonderful blog and we all feel the same about Avery. She is a special, loving and thoughtful girl. So happy for your time with Jeff's people.

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  3. You are such a wonderful writer Kate, I love reading your posts, you can feel every word.

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  4. Something very authentic about the way you write. Keep it up. You inspire me.

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  5. Hahaha I love how Jack thinks he can call you Katie now... good luck getting him to understand THAT one ;)... I also love your hair color!

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