Monday, October 27, 2008

Luuuv

My boys are speaking often about love (always spoken as luuuv) lately. I'm not quite sure what spurred this on, but it has come up a few times the last couple of weeks. Josiah has had a little girl in his PE class try to kiss him a couple of times (much to his chagrin). She's his friend, he told us, but she's too interested in...you guessed it...luuuv. Girl luuv, as he calls it, is loviness. Holding hands, kissing, acting gushy. Girl luuuv. He told Kit last night he would never like girl luuv (after Kit stole a kiss from me in the kitchen). Kit laughingly corrected him that he would like it in a few years' time. Josiah exclaimed-NEVER! and told us if any girls wanting girl luuv got near him he would run away. Haahaa! Yes, son...keep on running until after your mission.

Gavin asked me the other day when I fell in love (spoken as yuuuv) with him. I told him I never had to fall in love with him, I just always loved him. He told me he falls in yuuv with me when I give him hugs, but it isn't girl yuuv, just yuuv. Silly boys.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Truly Happy

I was thinking today, as I was running very mundane errands, and came to the conclusion I'm truly happy. It has been quite a while since I have felt this way. Things in my life haven't changed, my beasties are still goobery at times, money is still tight-as it probably always will be and I still need to loose the baby weight. But, life IS good. I know, you can laugh at my mushy-gushy mind wandering (Kit does, good thing I'm here to keep him entertained ;P ). You can blame it on my recent hair trim, maybe less weight to hold this air-head down, but I feel giggly and good. Even sunshiny. I have so many blessings withing my little sphere and they make me happy!

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Seek and you will find (Kit's title, I'm leaning away so I won't be struck!!)

Our newest family hobby and possibly the next Marzipan Incident (drum roll, please) geocaching. Do you know what that is? I hadn't heard of it much, maybe a mention here or there until Kit (collector of new hobbies) began to be interested. It is essentially a treasure hunt. We are given a coordinate (latitude and longitude) and with our GPS we go to that location. Once there, the search is on and we try to find the "cache" or treasure. It is usually a box with a log book of geocachers who have located it and sometimes filled with objects. You are allowed to take an object if you leave one of greater or equal value.

Our first geocache experience was across the bay in Daphne. We received the coordinates for a small, obscure grave site located behind a car dealership. This cemetery dates back to the 1700's. There are not a lot of grave markers due to the fact they were originally made out of wood and have since rotted away. Someone created cement crosses with what little information they had from the previous wood ones, sometimes only a first name or last name. Josiah was saddened and intrigued at a cross of a little girl only 3 years old who had died in the early 1800s. Josiah was pleased to take a tiny green plastic monkey from our first cache and left a valued seashell. Kit found this cache quite quickly and even quicker, we became hooked.

Kit was on duty and had to work all weekend, so he was given Monday off. With Josiah out of school for a teacher prep day, it was a perfect day to try our hand at more geocaching. The boys were SO excited. To them, it is the ultimate-the opportunity to sneak around, look under, in and around bushes, etc. and to find the elusive hidden treasure. The boys collected their "gear" (note we are SUPPOSED to be secretive about this), I packed snacks and water bottles and we were off. We proved our ineptitude on the first two attempts, but the boys were not discouraged in the least.

On our third location, Josiah hit the jackpot. This cache was also located in an old cemetery, located downtown Mobile. It is a large one with an entire section for the confederate soldiers lost during the battle defending Mobile in the Civil War. Again, my boys were interested in the history of what we were viewing. The unknown soldiers bothered Jos. It made him sad no one knew who they were to "write" their name on their stone. I overheard him telling Gavin that he knew Heavenly Father and Jesus knew who they were and that they would be resurrected soon. I had to chuckle when he added "you know, with the dinosaurs". After we looked around a bit, we headed off to another cache site.

This last one was a progressive series of coordinates to find the final cache. I really enjoyed it. It is on a local nature walk and the cacher was creative with the locations of the serial coordinates. We got exercise, wore our children out and spent wonderful family time together. My boys thought they hit the veritable pot o' gold with this cache. Along with the log book, there was treasure galore. It was a tough choice between a bell, bouncy balls, a wiggly plastic skeleton, a toy car, beads, etc. Josiah and Gavin each left a treasure behind, a toy penguin and a toy lizard and claimed their choice loot. I had to veto Josiah's first choice-a bone...not a plastic bone, but a real bone bleached white with dried out marrow. I didn't want our hands on something, or someone's bone...uggh! Of course my child wants something like that-"but mom, it is probably a dinosaur bone!"

I'm excited for this new family hobby. I hope it will continue to be something we can do together, even when my boys are big, stinky boys. Maybe it will up my cool factor in their book.

If you're interested, check this out


Our secretive little boys in their "gear"

Josiah with his cache find

Typical pictures of my "special" family
(aren't we photogenic)

Monument to the Confederate Dead

Cute boys!
(Note the candy corn stuck to Gunner's collarbone, not just Mommy survives on candy corn alone)

Josiah protecting his "do" from random drops of rain
(again, aren't we photogenic)

The search

The tired, but treasured end (I know, cheesy pun)

Free Handbag?

Who doesn't love a new bag? Since receiving my fav Kate Spade bag from my sis-in-law, Sydnee, and finding a Prada bag at my thrift store (seriously, for less than $5), I'm hooked! I have fallen in love with new bags! Join the club and register to win a free one...or maybe not, so I'll be the lucky winner!

http://www.handbagplanet.com

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Birthday...#3

Gavin Reed turned 3 years old yesterday. I was waxing nostalgic with Kit and I thought I would share with you.

Kit, Jos and I were stationed in Port Huron, Michigan when we decided to have baby number 2. We prayed about it and felt it was the right time and low and behold...fertile Myrtle performed (Kit was only home 3 days in the month of January and we still managed)! Things went well and I had a fairly easy pregnancy. Kit received his orders to A-school (a training school for 8 weeks) and needed to report to Yorktown, Virginia October 15th. I was due October 18th, so we decided to move me home to my parents in Oklahoma in September and possibly ask my new doctor in Stillwater if he would be willing to induce me so Kit could be there for the delivery. After a frenzy of getting the house packed up and cleaned (sans Kit) so we could leave, Kit took us home. After a short visit, Kit returned to his cutter now in dry-dock in Wisconsin. My doctor agreed to induce me one week early since I was already slightly dilated and 75% effaced at my 36 week appointment. Hooray! We booked Kit's flight for the 9th and the induction was to be early on the 10th. Well, as plans have a way of going awry, a cold front moved in the night of October 5th. I woke up to sharp cramps 5:30 am. I waited it out, thinking I couldn't really be in labor, but went to tell my mom when they were 7 min apart at 7:30. I went back upstairs to shower and get ready for the day. At 9 they were 5 min apart and I called the doctor. He told me to come on in to the hospital. So, in between contractions my mom, Steph and I got Jos ready to go, packed my bags and headed out. I was still in denial, but agreed to call Kit and let him know I was heading to the hospital. I'll never forget his stunned question, "Can't you stop it? Maybe wait for me?" Haaahaa! Yeah, I'll just cross my legs until you can fly in! Silly man. When I got to the hospital, I was still afraid they would send me home and when the nurse warned me just that, I thought for sure I was being silly. Nope (thankfully!) I was already at 5.5 cm and effaced. I asked politely for the epidural and was told the anesthesiologist was in surgery, but he would come up as soon as he could. Okay, I could wait it out. My nurse was fabulous, helping me into other positions to labor and things were great until I needed to push...what, without my drugs! Yep, without my consent (just like now) Gavin decided to do whatever he wanted. Out he came! The cutest little Troll-baby ever! He had a reddish-blond fuzz and the most disgruntled expression. Everything was said and done by 12:30 in the afternoon. I was so thankful for the way Kit's captain put him on the first flight home to me. It was wonderful he was able to get there late that night.

Gavin has been our fabulous super-hero from the start. He was walking at 9 months and didn't stop there. Leaping off of tables, couches, beds, fences...you name it, Gav has climbed and soared off of it. He has the greatest imagination ever. He IS everything from a baby rhino to Batman. We love our little man and are so glad Heavenly Father sent warrior #2 into our family.

Birthday Dinner at the Boiling Pot

Gavin (looking funny, sorry) with his big ol' plate of crawfish tails (when asked what he wanted for birthday dinner he said "crawfish" don't we have a little southerner!)

Spiderman Cake (his choice, of course)

Aunt Ashlee's fab gift

Surrounded by all his loot