Viewpoints

So it is a slow day....nothing exciting to report, just a bunch of sick, cranky Connaroes...I had an e-mail exchange with a friend recently and thought I would share. She thinks I "have it all together." I think she is hilarious and asked her the reasons I have it all together. She provided 5 answers. I have listed them below....

I am sorry, but my own opinions of her comments will remain between she and I. Thanks for reading.

(Author will remain anonymous - all comments are in italics)

1. You have two children and are raising them all day by yourself and always seem so happy and proud about everything they do. I see some mothers here that don't appreciate anything their children do and can't take five minutes to talk to them about things because they are too busy gabbing on their cell phones. I think any mother who devotes herself to her children first has it all together, though I am sure you would appreciate some alone time. And you don't act resentful to them in any way and you do all the fun things with them: like holding Meredith while she naps.

2. You always are so good with your money and don't have to worry about it like the rest of us morons because you don't splurge on yourself and you are very thrifty and find great deals. That takes a lot of patience and women who have patience to be so good with money have it all together.

3. You keep a great home. It is always decorated for the seasons and I bet it always smells good :) How does a mother of two children under the age of two keep a house so clean? I live with another adult and our place is always trashed. So, a well kept house, to me, means a put together woman.

4. You are a super wife. With Rich being away you have only become more super. Most people would fail and become miserable wives, you just rose up to the challenge and have become a super woman.

5. Plus you are always really hot. How does a woman with two children look so good, dress so cute, and remain so skinny? :)

Those are just a few of the reasons why I think you have it so together. You really are great by the way.

Blessings

Although Thanksgiving is observed for a reason which we tend to forget, it is important that we remember our blessings daily. Since I didn't have the opportunity to discuss things for which I am thankful this Thanksgiving, I will write it here.

I am thankful that I did not have car trouble on my travels. I had my tire looked at before my trip, thankfully, because it did have a leak as I suspected. On the drive to Roanoke, I saw many cars with spare tires. I have no clue how to change a tire. One car even had TWO. Wow, that's dangerous. I really hope that she arrived to where she was traveling.

I am thankful that I have many people who care about me and my babies. There are many who spend their days wishing for that. I am also thankful that I have those to care for in return.

I am thankful that my children are thriving and healthy and happy - most of the time!

I am thankful for having a roof over my head, and the opportunity to keep us warm and dry and safe.

I know of all those things for which I am grateful. Yet, my true Thanksgiving will not begin until my husband and my childrens' father returns to us alive and well next year.

Thanksgiving

As we have said goodbye to another holiday, it is only fair that I reminise about those of past years....I thought I would share.

The first Thanksgiving that Richard and I spent together was in 2003. Not admitting that we were serious, but agreeing to spend the holiday with one another made our families think differently. We ate lunch with Richard's family, then drove across the state about 3.5 hours and ate dinner with my family. I guess that is committment there. We were blind to it at the time.

The second Thanksgiving was in 2004, our first as a married couple in our own home. We invited over single guys that Richard knew - I think there were 8 of us total. That year, we caught our oven on fire. Richard insisted that we add more marshmallows and pecans to our sweet potatoes after I insisted that we had enough already. He didn't listen and added more. The sweet potatoes were not happy about the additional toppings and spilled, catching a fire. Luckily, the guys brought over a game system and were no where near the kitchen. It eventually extinguished itself - such a shame had I ruined everything in the oven!

The third Thanksgiving of 2005, we ate alone with no massive events taking place.

The fourth Thanksgiving of 2006, our oven blew up. Well, not literally. We had cooked the turkey, and I put the fixings in, and I saw a large spark in the oven. It had blown a fuse. We invited ourselves over to the Bean's and finished our Thanksgiving cooking there, and ate with them. We went shopping for an oven on Black Friday.

The fifth Thanksgiving of 2007, Lucas was with us. It was a quiet day, with much success.

This is the first Thanksgiving that I haven't prepared a meal on Thanksgiving.

Richard is not here to share in the yummyness, and we live in the same state as our families.

My family (Lucas, Meredith and I) went to hang out with the in-laws, with a spread of turkey, potatoes, mac and cheese, green beans, cornbread, apple pie and pumpkin pie. Meredith tried turkey and cornbread for the first time.

I have attached a few photos of the babies playing!

Safety First!

I wish we had a playroom like this!

Christmas Elf strikes again

Last night, my neighbor so graciously pulled my giant Christmas tree out of the attic.

I wanted to begin putting up my decorations before Thanksgiving, so I wouldn't have to worry with it -- after all, I knew it would take me a while. So today, Meredith and I began assembling the tree.
I was still putting this thing together at 4:00 this afternoon.
Ridiculous.
I really think it is one of the hardest things I have done by myself. Okay, I take that back. And I won't list off the things that were harder...

Anywho, I am excited because Rich said I can keep it up until he comes home for his vacation in Febuary!!

I beg every year to keep it up longer than Christmas time and he always wins that fight. So this year, he finally said yes! So please look forward to the photos of seasonal decor that I will add!

Recession

Today, I got in touch with one of my favorite college friends. Whenever I needed to chat, she was always was the one who saw things as the glass full....not half full, but full. She is nutz.

So, as we were chatting, she shared information about her concern for the economy. And well, frankly, I am not sure I share her concern. I mean, I have had no trouble spending money these past few months. There is no recession experienced in the Connaroe house.

So she reassured me that I am contributing to the growth of the economy and applauded me. Assuring me that my dignity is what keeps us being great friends.

So, I am just letting you know that I am upholding my role as an American citizen. I committ to contribute to the economy everyday.

Thank you.

Smoking...

No! It is just a green bean!

Mere in the Leaves

She ever so patiently waited for me to give Dixie Dog a haircut.

Not a table

Lucas was being silly, as you can see!

Blowing Bubbles

I tried to capture her doing it on video, but by the time the camera switched over, she had stopped. I am sorry honey! I am used to seeing her do this, so I forget that you have never heard her!

Elves

Tis the season for Christmas shopping, which leads to Christmas wrapping!

Meredith is already a good helper! I hope Santa doesn't steal her to be one of his elves.

Thursday's Thoughts

A few tidbits of information for you....

It is not a good idea to let a child, who has already been buckled in the carseat, hold and play with your carkeys while child #2 gets buckeled. I realized this before I was locked out of the car....

It is not a good idea to let a child play with the remote control to the television.

If your child is used to licking cake batter off the beaters, he will assume everything that you mix with them will be delicious and sweet. Mashed potatoes are not delicious and sweet.

If you hear the obligitory, "If you need any help/If you need to talk, call me" do not bother asking for help. People do not really mean it. No one wants to answer the phone to hear you upset. No one really wants to help you do things that are necessary tasks. I am not sure why people waste their time being fake.

Great friends are few and far between. You will know one when you have one. For that, I am grateful. (ie - when people are willing to travel across the country to see you, it makes you rethink the friends who live in the same state and can't bother...)

TV Time is more fun with someone you care about.

That's all for now...

Flurries

We have received the first snow of the season! Okay, so it is just a dusting, but it is still kind of cool!

Leaves and Vaccines

My husband was so very thrilled to see the number of trees in our yard of our new home. I doubt he would be thrilled to see the number of leaves produced from those tall trees.

Leaves are freaking everywhere.

I truly don't understand why everyone is obsessively blowing them out of their yard. They haven't even finished falling...In nature, there are not little elves blowing the leaves out of the forest. The leaves are left to return to the earth - thus, increasing the circle of life. This is the approach that I believe in. Isn't that better for the environment than the gasoline fumes emmitted from the constant leaf blowing?

My neighbor - the one who officially hates me, with the mean dog and the crocks - she is one of those obsessive leaf blowers. In fact, she blew her freaking leaves into MY yard. As if I don't have enough to do already. Along the property line, there are huge piles of leaves.

At first, I thought "Oh, it probably just collected those which already lived on my property!" Then I realized how naive I was. And how the leaves were in a huge pile covering up the gutter. How she blew them out of her driveway drain pipe into my yard.

So....although I didn't really want to, I approached her. And I did it in the way that first came to mind = "What in the hell were you thinking?"

Okay, I wasn't that blunt...instead I asked what she planned to do about all the leaves she blew into my yard.

I am really sorry I do not have an interesting end to this story. She just said she would take care of it. Wow! It was that easy....I was hoping for something rude to be said. I was actually looking forward to it. But I think she is one of those women who put up this big front, but dont' do well when confronted. So sorry for the disappointing end...

I will let you know how long it takes her to take care of it.

Besides that, my babies received flu shots today. The nurse said they win the prize for quietest patients of the day! Neither one of them barely cried. They are so tough!

Changes...

My life has changed significantly these past few weeks. My children have grown up to be individuals.

Meredith is a quiet and curious little girl, who is exploring the world. But only if I am around. She has to be attached to me at every moment it seems.

Lucas - he has become more independent than ever. We fight constantly. He wants to do things in his own time...like he wants to eat when he is ready, not because I tell him to do so. And the result is screaming - screaming because I give him what he wants, but he doesn't want it because I was the one who did it for him. He is actually driving me nuts. I told my mother that I was going to drop him off and I will take him back when he is done with this phase. My patience level is non-existant with him.

My stress level is high.

Besides that, my love tank is empty. I am really tired of people saying, "Oh! Rich will be home before you know it! It's not that much longer!" Well, I will know it when he comes home, because I slowly mark the days off the calendar. And it is that much longer....Your optimism isn't helping me...

I am very aware that this deployment is nothing like the separation we had during Ranger School. That time period was something I never wish to revisit. Perhaps I was forced to endure that in preparation for this deployment, yet however the plan is laid out, I am grateful everyday that our months of separation are nothing like his time becoming Ranger Rich. I don't have to go a month without hearing his voice, to then only hear it for fifteen minutes. I am grateful for our strong communication and my ability to bring him as close to home as possible. However, that does not mean our time apart is any less difficult.....any less lonely.

Clean up!

Lucas decided to put himself in the ottoman when we were picking up toys!

Up We Go!

Typically, getting upstairs for bedtime rituals is a chore. I try to make it a race, and walk Meredith up the stairs...telling Lucas that she is going to beat him to the top, to hurry up. Well, on this particular night, Meredith crawled to the stairs all her own! I couldn't decide what photos to post, so you get to see them all!

Splish, Splash

Bitten by the Bug

When I was taught to always have particular things on hand around the house, my mom wasn't joking. Wait until you are sick and your kids are sick -- and you will see how serious it is.

You would think we would have learned from our illness extravaganza when I was pregnant with Meredith. Then Rich realized, we needed to always keep soup and jello on hand -- unfortunately, I still have the soup he chose - Steak and Potato and Italian Meatball. You see how yummy that sounds after you have been throwing up for hours.

Luckily, I replinished the jello after we made it for a dessert. But I didn't bother bringing home soup or crackers.

So for those reading this, take note - GO TO THE STORE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!

You will need the following items on hand for emergencies:
ginger ale
gatorade
pedialyte (but only if you are formula feeding a baby or have a toddler - breast is best :))
saltine crackers (please do not think that one box is enough. they run buy one get one sales for a reason)
chicken soup (not the chunky, healthy kind....the mostly broth and no chicken kind that isn't good for you)
jello (lime is definately not recommended, but that is what Rich had picked out)
popcicles (they also make pedialyte ones, if you so desire)
bananas
bread (for toast)
applesause
tissues
detergent (you will be washing a lot of clothes)
disinfectant (Lysol Spray and Wipes are a time saver)

Should you have any questions, please let me know. There is nothing like having a sick baby pulling on your leg when you are having issues in the bathroom, and a sick toddler standing beside you saying "EWWW!" I am willing to share advice.

Update

For those who care, I have posted all the videos I have of my babies on you tube. You will now be up to date with their progress.

I am going to join my babies in naptime. We are recovering from illness.

Have a great day!

Baby

I drove to visit the newest member of the family on Saturday. It is sooo nice to live in REAL mountain terrain again, where the elevation is greater than that of a hill.

Brianna Kaileigh was born on November 8 at 6:45 am, weighing in at 7 lbs and 2/10 oz and 19 inches long. The whole family is doing great!

Toddler...

Good Morning.
I have recieved less than 4 hours of sleep, as I went to bed at 12:30 am and Lucas threw up an unidentifyable mess at 4:00 am. Not to mention the time when I was up with Meredith in all that. The days of functioning on little sleep are becoming greater all the time....

Lucas is driving me crazy. He is whinning and crying....he wants me to hold items he doesn't want (blankie, cup) and gets super pissed if he sees me not holding them anymore.

I swear I cannot deal with a sick and whiny child every weekend and then some after sending him to school. I do not need to be tested....I do not need any more. I have already taken on more than I can handle. Having him be terrible every night makes things a lot more difficult as it is...

Coat

The day that Lucas' new winter coat arrived in the mail, the weatherman forecasted 75 degree temperatures. I really hate this weather! I am soooo happy with it though. It will keep my baby toasty warm. Well, if the weather decides to turn cold again!

Friday

I am freezing.

I am about to become an aunt. Well, I already have a neice, but she existed before my relationship with Richard did, soooo things are a little different this time around! And get this! My sister-in-law's water literally broke. I swear, I thought that only happened in movies.

I went online to check my e-mail before bed, and saw that Oprah had her doctor on her show. Did you know that if you have at least 200 orgasms a year then you reduce your physiologic age by six years. Wow, so this deployment just added 6 years onto my life (This means I will be 32 when Richard comes home). I feel so sorry for my friends who have delt with multiple deployments already. Such terrible things to deal with to live in the land of the free... Besides that, how does it work out for men....I am not sure they are capable of achieving such an ambitious goal. I guess this is why women live longer...well sometimes.

Today, I thought I would try something new - sleeping is a big issue in my house. So I purchased a CD player for Meredith's room. My friend Lindsay said music helps her daughter sleep. So I put on lullaby music - aka classical music. Lucas ran into the room with the biggest grin and said gibberish and pointed to the CD player. He starts jamming out to this music, shaking his butt and doing circles. I am not even sure this music is worth dancing to, but he found a way.
I was so angry at him because he'd been so whinny and crying and screaming since we got home - but that moment washed it all away. That kid is nuts. However, I was able to put him right to bed without a fight. So even if the dancing just wore him out, the music still worked!

Shoes!

So, if you didn't already know, my son is obsessed with shoes. I have a friend who questions whether or not he will be gay - ha - so I won't tell you he also enjoys lip gloss and pretends to brush make up on, as well. And there was this one time we went into a store, and he put on oversized sunglasses and a huge purse and ran around the store. Rich tried to take the purse away and he screamed bloody murder! That was a good day.

Anyways, so Lucas put on a pair of my boots (with my assistance) Note how they are longer than his legs....

He thought it was incredibly fun though! He was incapable of walking in them and kept falling down.

Jumper!

Meredith LOVES to bounce and jump, which is so important for strengthening her legs so she can walk before Daddy comes home! Such a happy girl!

And all that jumping wore her out! Shhhh!

Score!

I like to think that I am economical. I try to make smart choices, even if it means buying 5 boxes of cereal because it is on sale for $1.25. But the conversion rail for Lucas' crib was a lot more than a buck twenty-five. So I have been monitoring beds for Lucas for some time now. Sale prices, used beds....wanting to find the best deal. And I didn't want to settle for something I did not really want.

So I finally found a bed! Listed the same day I happened to look! Brand new and never slept in....the same color as Lucas' crib. A $100+ wooden bed, that I walked away with for less than the conversion rails and less than half the selling price of the bed!

I won't tell you it took me nearly two and a half hours to put it together by myself, but it is as sturdy as can be, and looks fabulous. Lucas is in love. I hope he sleeps okay tonight!




I didn't want to forget to include a peacefully sleeping Mere....
Don't worry, she didn't stay like this for long.

Lucas' New Do

His hair was touching his shoulders, I had to do it. It probably needs a little work, but I am not a professional. And this is his FIRST haircut!

Halloween!

I was excited. My neighbor told me Halloween was "crazy" when I asked her how it was. I guess I didn't consider how she has three children who are off to get free candy, so she has to help them with costumes and stuff. I thought crazy meant we would have lots of children come by....

So we waited for the costume adorned kids to arrive.....

And we had a few groups come by!

Here are Sarah and Katie...I don't know what Katie is, a punk rocker or something...Sarah is a bumble bee.

Lucas totally didn't understand what was going on. He only knew that he really wanted candy!

Unfortunately, the lack of trick or treaters left me with a ton of candy. Fabulous! I guess I am the one who ended up with a treat.