Being a military wife

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I’m singing in the rain…

July 17, 2010 in Being a military wife, Celiac, Paige by Petra | 3 comments

Dates, gluten-free menus, TV shows, and new teeth…

Last night, Andrew and I went on a ‘real’ date that didn’t include grocery shopping, but an actual restaurant with cloth napkins and everything – plus a bad experience at Maggie Moo’s and browsing Barnes & Noble. We had a blast! I’m so glad he’s home from the field!!! I hate it when he’s away. Of course, once he gets through with school, he’ll be deployed 1/2 the time, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.

We ate at the Bonefish Grill. We’ve known for a while that they have a gluten-free menu and were wanting to try it, but alas – we have six children and a military income, so eating at places like the Bonefish Grill isn’t usually on the menu (no pun intended). Anyway – our entrees were only so-so, we’d both order something different next time, but the side dishes and our saucy shrimp appetizer were completely fabulous!!!! I was so stoked to be able to order off the menu and not have to say “leave this off” and “please only steam everything” and “can you cook mine in a separate place”… I enjoyed rich, tasty sauces and did not get ill! Fabulous. Oh, and I enjoyed the first adult beverage that I’ve had in two years (since before I got pregnant with Paige). It was yummy.

Our 'saucy shrimp' appetizer - I didn't eat any chunks of feta or kalamata olives, but the shrimp was absolutely delicious!

 I’ve been watching ’24′ lately. We figured out how much we were spending on the redbox and it averaged to about 10 bucks a month. Well, netflix is 8.99 a month. So we decided netflix was the better option – we can watch all the instant stuff on our TV using the Wii, plus we can have one disc at a time out. So far, we’re thinking it was the right choice. Anyway, ’24′ is on the instant play list, and everyone goes on and on about it, so I thought I’d give it a try. Here’s my review so far (about 20 episodes into the 1st season)…

The acting? Not so wonderful. I mean, there are a few people on the show who can act, but some of the main characters are really bad actors, such as Jack’s wife (whose name eludes me at the moment). The story of the senator who is running for president annoys me. His wife is a complete jerk (for lack of a better, appropriate word). And everything involving them is way over-dramatized. There are many contrived and “yeah, like that would actually happen” moments throughout. But… the story kind of sucks you in, and I want to know what happens. It’s a neat concept and an interesting storyline. I’m thinking season 2 will be better, so I’m sticking with it for now. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Paige’s 3rd molar finally poked through, and the 4th is pushing hard against the gums. She’s sleeping better, after my new methods which were implemented this past week while Andrew was gone. I’ll go more into that later once I’m sure it’s working. For now, though, here’s an iphone photo of her I took this morning (excuse my unmade bed). I got this tank top at Target for $1.50 the other day – I love their clearances!!! And, as you can see, she’s still enjoying her new shoes (which are almost too small – not going to get many uses out of them before I need to get the next size – oh well).

Cutie patootie!

Aaaaaaaaaaaa…

May 22, 2009 in Being a military wife, Brittany, Fibromyalgia, Jarvis, Paige by Petra | 4 comments

Could my to-do list BE any longer?!

Countdown:

  • 25 days – last day of school
  • 25 & 26 days – the packers will be here
  • 27 days – the movers will load up the truck
  • 29 days – the kids & I officially hit the road

Meanwhile, aside from single parenting six kids, doing all the last-month-of-school stuff with four kids, and various doctor appointments, I am trying to get this house ready for my walk-thru with the landlord (should I replace the broken doors or have him take it out of the deposit?  should I try to get by with cleaning the carpets myself?  what about those chunks of drywall missing in Darby’s room?, etc, etc, etc,).  Andrew and I are working on getting a house in NC.  We got pre-approved for a loan today, and I’ve been talking to a realtor… so the wheels are in motion there.  I’m SO glad the kids have a four-day weekend (they are out of school Monday and Tuesday), so we can get some things done around here – it’s hard during school because taking care of Paige and Jacob is a full time job in and of itself, add normal chores to that (which I can’t even keep up with), and ‘move stuff’ plus anything extra gets put on the back burner.  So I’m glad to have helpers for four days.  Yay.

Don’t get me wrong – I’m not complaining, I’m just explaining that I’m BUSY!  :)

Other updates:

We are all feeling better from our cold/flu junk we passed around, so please pray that we continue to have good health.

Jarvis went to the doctor yesterday and had an x-ray.  We won’t know anything “official” until after the long weekend, but he is able to move around with no pain now, and the x-ray technician said he looks good, but the doctor will look at his x-rays on Wednesday and call if there are any abnormalities.  He is out of his sling with instructions to still be super careful until Wednesday, but he is able to lightly use his arm again.  His arm was sore last night from not using it for a month and then using it a little yesterday afternoon and evening.  Gotta build those muscles back up. :)

I have my postpartum appointment June 5th (first appointment that was available even though I scheduled it weeks ago).  I am still having some issues with getting around easily and without pain, so also please pray I heal completely.   Some of it is the fibromyalgia, so that’ll just take time from the pregnancy and delivery and getting my body into a new routine before some of the pain and stiffness subsides.  Right now, if I go up and down the stairs more than once (which I have to do often) or do too much walking around, I have a LOT of pain.  :-P  All part of the fun, though, I suppose.  Paige was definitely worth it. And I’m hoping to find out how my uterus is doing when I go in, since there was talk that I may need to have a hysterectomy after she was born since things aren’t where they are supposed to be anymore and since my cervix was trying to escape during delivery (gross? yes.).  Anyway – so I’ll keep you posted and I appreciate any prayers there.

Paige will have her two month appointment before we move, on June 8th.

Brittany will have her final orthodontist appointment before we move, on June 2nd.

Jarvis is going to camp for four days the first week of June, with his 5th grade class.

I doubt I’ll be blogging much until the move (and my goal then is to take you with me via daily stories and photos, like the last time we moved), but if you are on facebook, I will continue with the frequent status updates and occasional mobile photo uploads. I will try to get more photos uploaded on here when I can – as they are already edited.  Oh, and I’m planning on removing the blog password as soon as I get around to it.  There are pros and cons to having it and not having it, but I think I’m preferring NOT having it.

And now, I’m getting back to work!! :)

This and that…

November 16, 2005 in Being a military wife, Children by Petra

I’m just going to go ahead and say don’t count on me updating my blog every day for a while. I have been down for the count most of the week, and now have a cold on top of it. Fun! It’s alright though – I know things could be much worse. I’m just thankful that Jacob seems to be healthy and thriving in the womb, and I can’t wait until he comes out and I can meet him. :) I am 30 weeks pregnant as of yesterday. Ten weeks until my due date (not that I’ve ever gone to my due date).

Andy and the kids are at the lake for an FRG “party” (Family Readiness Group – and party is in quotation marks because the last one they had that I went to was not party-like at all – “party” insinuates “fun” LOL). It was required for Andy to be there, so he brought the kids. He has had a lot of time off this week and it has been really nice. He’ll be off a lot between now and when he leaves as well. Thor and Trish are coming tomorrow – Thor will be here a few days and Trish will stay with me until the baby comes (how awesome is she?!?!).

It is finally cold in Texas. Well, I use the term “cold” loosely. The kids have to wear sweatshirts now, and maybe a coat at night. I’m not sure whose idea it was to have the FRG party at the lake when it’s chilly outside, but I don’t volunteer for that so I don’t have any say. I’m not even there so I guess it doesn’t matter. :)

Andy bought “Madagascar” for the kids the other day. It was okay (we hadn’t seen it in the theater), but I expected it to be better. There were some funny parts, but there were some parts where I was bored out of my mind. Not that it was made for adults… :D The kids loved it and keep going around singing “I like to move it, move it” over and over again. Jarvis has some crazy dance he does that is hysterical. And Darby follows him around trying to copy it. They are quite the pair. They definitely keep me entertained!!! :D

Well, I’ve rambled on enough for today’s blog… I’ll try not to skip three days next time. ;)