Meet Ryan..... if you dare

I decided to do a little spotlight on my youngest son, Ryan. Today at church he said the opening prayer for Sharing Time, and he sounded so sweet and angelic, he fooled so many people. I take that back, he is a very sweet boy, but he is also stubborn and very mischievious. He has the biggest sense of humor, and laughs hysterically at all his own jokes. He hates getting his picture taken, and considers it his personal mission in life to sabotage all posed photographs, (see above photo). He loves to cuddle, and has a tendecy to fall asleep at the table in the middle of a meal. Ryan has been nothing but exciting all 3 years of his life, and I cannot wait to see what kind of person he is going to become! His Dad and I love him so much, he brings more joy to our life than we could ever exspress in words. I love you you little stinker!!

Super Hot Army Man!!!! ( and I'm lucky enough to have him!!)

We are 8 days and counting from the BIG homecoming!! JF left on June 11th of last year, so that puts us at just under a year for this deployment. 11 months and 17 days. we have been so lucky to see JF a few times during the past year, once in August for a few days and then when he came home in January for two weeks leave. I was also able to see him when we went to Germany last month. It has been so long since we have had "normal life" though, I can't remember what it's like to just have him home, and not be watching the clock, knowing soon we will have to say goodbye.. again. The boys always talk about what they are gonna do with Daddy when he comes home. Ryan- "When Daddy comes home I want to sit on the couch and eat Cheetos with him!" The boys have changed alot since JF last saw them, it is going to be awesome to watch him get to know them again when he gets home. It might be a little tough too. This deployment has been tough, but we really have benefited from it way more than I realized we could. JF has had amazing experieces, not to mention the HUGE boost this will be to his aviation career. As a family it has brought us so much closer, and made me so grateful for the amazing man that I am married to. He is a real live hero, and, my best friend.

Summer Time!! ( for a weekend any way...)

This past weekend in Boise we hit 95 degrees!!! The boys and I decided to dig through the garage and dust of the water toys!! We had to double coat the sunscreen, since we were blindingly white after the long winter, then we were ready!! The boys had a blast on the slipin' slide, and we even bought some new squirt guns to play with. I was impressed that almost all the inflatables weren't full of holes. We still got a little sunburned, but it was well worth it. It's now in the 50's here, so we had to put the slipin' slide BACK in the garage, but hopefully we will be able to break it out again soon!!!!

Just days away!!!

So close, and yet so far! This has been the longest month of my life!! OK, that is a slight exaggeration. The boys and I are getting so excited to have Daddy home we can barely stand it!! The three of us talk all the time about what we are going to do when we are actually a complete family again. It has been fun being the, "Three Amigos" but we are ready to be whole again. The boys made a paper chain countdown, and every morning since the first of May they have been tearing one chain link off until Daddy comes home. They are so cute, it is usually the very first thing out of their mouth when they wake up in the morning! I don't blame them, I am just as excited to throw another "link" away!

Cuckoo!!

While JF and I were in Germany we bought this beautiful clock. It cost way more than I would ever spend on a souvenir, but thanks to my wonderful grandparents, who gave me "a little travel money", we decided to get it. JF and I picked it out, and the lady in the store told us it would take 4-6 weeks to ship it to our house. Lucky for me it got here in only 3 weeks! When it showed up today I was a little emotional , because this clock represents the wonderful time we had in Germany. We were so lucky to be able to go on that trip, and it somewhat makes up for the government taking JF for the last year. Somewhat. I'm actually glad that we had it shipped instead of bringing it home with us, because it was like saving a little bit of Germany for later!

This made me smile.......

Between Mother's Day coming up and just finishing the book I am A Mother by Jane Clayson Johnson,( which is a pretty good book if your feeling unappreciated as a Mom.)I have been thinking alot about my Mom. This Summer it will be 6 years since she passed away. I miss her, but I am so grateful for all of the things she taught me, and the traces of her I see in my Sisters and my Brother. It's funny how my little sister, who spent the least amount of time with my Mom reminds me the most of her. There are many times when I wish she could see my boys, even though I know she really does. I would love to see how she would interact with them though, I know they would have her wrapped around their tiny fingers. She loved little boys, because she was kind of a tomboy herself. She would much rather go play in the barn with the horses than play dress up. I guess in away they know her through me, because as my sibling resemble her, I must too. As quoted from Jane Clayson's book, .... "It is from her(our Mother) that we learn to be a woman... Our cells divided and grew to the beat of her heart. Our skin, hair,heart, lungs and bones were nourished by her blood, blood that was awash with the neurochemicals formed in response to her thoughts, beliefs, and emotions...." For some reason this makes me feel a little closer to her even though she is gone.......

Lyrics to "Home" By Chris Daughtry

I have always really liked this song, but just the other day I was listening to it while I was doing something on the computer and suddenly I really started to listen to the words. I started to choke up, cause it suddenly took on a whole new meaning. I can't wait to hear JF say he is coming "Home"! I found the lyrics online, and I wanted everybody to be able to read them and realize that this song was written for JF!!!!!!
Artist: Chris Daughtry Song: Home
I'm staring out into the night,
Trying to hide the pain.
I'm going to the place where love
And feeling good don't ever cost a thing.
And the pain you feel's a different kind of pain.

I'm going home,
Back to the place where I belong,
And where your love has always been enough for me.
I'm running from.
No, I think you got me all wrong.
I don't regret this life I chose for me.
But these places and these faces are getting old
So I'm going home.
Well I'm going home.

The miles are getting longer, it seems,
The closer I get to you.
I've not always been the best man or friend for you.
But your love, remains true.
And I don't know why.
You always seem to give me another try.

So I'm going home,
Back to the place where I belong,

And where your love has always been enough for me.
I'm running from.
No, I think you got me all wrong.
I don't regret this life I chose for me.
But these places and these faces are getting old.

Be careful what you wish for,
'Cause you just might get it all.
You just might get it all,
And then some you don't want.
Be careful what you wish for,
'Cause you just might get it all.
You just might get it all, yeah.

Oh, well I'm going home,
Back to the place where I belong,
And where your love has always been enough for me.
I'm not running from.
No, I think you got me all wrong.
I don't regret this life I chose for me.
But these places and these faces are getting old.
I said these places and these faces are getting old.
So I'm going home.
I'm going home.

JF's new buddies

So my husband has been hanging out with a different crowd during this deployment. First he met the First Lady Laura Bush, after his unit took part in her security for a trip to Kuwait City. JF said she was " a spit fire". A few months later he met Jessica Simpson and other musicians who came to Camp Buehring for a MySpace concert. JF wasn't quite as impressed with her. He said she only posed for pictures, and didn't really talk to anybody. After hanging out with famous people all the time I hope he doesn't mind coming home to boring old me!!!

Camel Spider

JF sent Us a picture of this creepy spider with the following caption, "He was about 7 inches long and 3 inches wide. Just a little bit smaller than my hand. He was sitting out in the sun on a sand bag. I have to be honest I didn't really care for him that much when he started hissing at us. Crazy but he was pretty cool to see. Enjoy!" Yuck! I am surprised that anything survives in the desert of Kuwait, however this guy looks pretty tough! Any one in the military serving in the middle east hears horror stories about man eating camel spiders. While I'm not sure this guy is big enough to eat a person, his momma might be able to!!