Murphy's Law

I had such high hopes for a nice relaxing evening with the kids.  Picture this the kids and I watching a movie and eating pizza.  Sounds nice, right?

Well here is how the afternoon went...Josiah was getting in the car from school when one of the teachers informed me that, "He might have small rock in his ear.  Have a great weekend." (Then she closed the door.)  Wait what did she say?

Yep, you read that right! Josiah apparently was playing with a small rock, he was pretending it was a "phone" and putting it up to his ear.  Well at some point he put it in his ear.  Then FREAKED!  One of the teachers tried to help him get it out but they weren't certain it was out.

So I did what any other mother would do and tried to call the dr for an appointment.  Of course it was 3:30 on Friday afternoon so there were NO appointments available, there suggestion was go to the ER.  Those words are a nightmare for a tired mother.  Thankfully one (ok actually many) of our friends here are doctors.  Thank you Lord!!!

So I called and Brandon was able to see Josiah.  After lots of looking Brandon determined that the rock was not in his ear.  However there was one in there at some point.  Brandon cleaned Josiah's ear with some saline and triple checked.

Moral of the story...do not put rocks in your ear!

Right before our eyes!

We are having such fun with our garden.  I just took the kids out there today and we had fun finding all the produce.

We now have 3 tomatoes growing!  A bunch of strawberries, the squash and cucumbers are taking over the house!  If you don't believe me look for yourself.

Our strawberries

A peek at our tomatoes

Come and check on us again!

What did you say?

This past weekend was a little rough on mommy!  I have been sick in one way or another since Joe left.  No fun!  Just when I started feeling better and my ear-whatever was cleared up, I started having side effects from the medicine.  Go figure you get something to help one thing and it creates another.  I digress...

Today was one of those days when you REALLY don't want to get out of bed.  You know the one I'm talking about.  But when there is only one you have to :(

So I did and of course today is the day where you made that early appointment for an oil change.  Bummer can't cancel that.  So I drug myself up and got everyone ready and out the door.

After a very long and tiresome day I went to get Mak from MDO.  She loves school and is alway talkative when we leave.  Today she kept saying something very softly and I couldn't understand.  I kept asking her to "tell me again" and then it finally hit me...

"I'm Daddy's girl! I'm Daddy's girl!"

I'm not sure where she heard this but she can sing it as often as she wants.

Mommy or Daddy

Every night I have asked the kids this question...Who would you like to read to you, Mommy or Daddy?

Every night they choose Daddy!  Hands down he is the better choice and here is how.  Hallmark sells these recordable books so before Joe left he made a book for each of the kids.

I LOVE how the kids light up when they get to hear Joe's voice.  Here see for yourself...

This melts my heart every night!  She can't get close enough to her Daddy.

Josiah is trying to figure out how everytime he turns the page, Daddy is reading the correct page.  I think he'll have if figured out soon.

Check out Makayla in action she spotted me too soon...

  

Garden Peek!

My cucumbers are OUT OF CONTROL!!!

The cucumbers are at the top of the picture and the bottom are my squash.  I can't believe how big these are getting!

My peppers are doing well, all four have started to bloom.

I'm getting a little excited about my watermelon, he is really starting to grow.

My strawberries are doing well still.  They are all starting to bloom and I think we will have some shortly after Mother's Day.



I'm a little surprised but our new peach tree is also producing.  They might not taste very good this year but we'll just have to wait and see.

Last but not least...

Can you see it???

That's right, I have my first tomato!!!!

Can you tell I'm a little excited?  I can't even eat the dang thing but I am so excited to see it grow!

Oops!

I left one very cool thing out last night!  The kids have these to sleep on every night.

The USO was here a few weeks ago and had a kids readiness day.  They offered LOTS of great tools for both parents and kids to use during a deployment.  Josiah got a special "with you all the way" kit, it was full of interactive things to help him pass the time.

These pillow cases were offered there too.  It was quite a surprise to both Joe and the kids.  I emailed pictures and when we arrived there were 3 pillow cases waiting so they could all snuggle up together.

I really can't tell you how much the USO does for military and their families.  Just the week before Joe left we were blessed enough to attend a USO concert at the base.  Not only was free but it was CRAIG MORGAN!!!

We had a wonderful time!  Most people don't know but our first date was to a concert, we love them.  Concerts were hard to come by the last few years so I am really glad we got to enjoy one.

THANK YOU USO!!!

FOR THE CONCERT AND FOR A RELAXING PLACE FOR MY HERO WHEN HE TRAVELS!

For those of you unfamiliar with Craig Morgan here is one of my favorite songs.

Counting

Many have asked and I'm sure many have wondered, how are we keeping track of our days?  In the mornings after breakfast the kids get to take one of these

  There are 400 M&Ms in the jar and its really neat to see the kids choose their color for the day.  Its a "sweet" reminder of Daddy for them to start their day.  It just so happens that Daddy loves M&Ms and so do his little kiddos! 

Secondly, I have a very sweet friend, Brittny, who is another military wife and she made these for the kids. She didn't make just one, she made two because she knows just how important it is to the kids.  On a sad note her family will be moving this summer while their daddy is deployed.  But we are thankful they are only going a few hours away.  And the kids and I are going for a visit!

Every night before bed we take one ring off our chain until daddy is home.

Tonight after Josiah and I said our prayers, he looked at me and said, "those look like smiles."  I love how God helped him turn something that could have been overwhelming into smiles.  I am so thankful!