Hooah!

They may look different and each is wonderfully unique

But they have THIS IN COMMON!
Lots of moving---
Moving
Moving
Moving far from home
Moving two cars, three kids and one dog----all riding with HER of
Course

Moving sofas to basements because they won't go in THIS house

Moving curtains that won't fit

Moving jobs and certifications and professional development hours

Moving away from friends, moving toward new friends

Moving her most important luggage; her trunkful of memories

Often waiting-
Waiting, waiting, waiting for housing; waiting for orders; waiting
For deployment; waiting for reunion; waiting for phones calls;
Waiting for the new curtains to arrive; waiting for him to come home
For dinner----AGAIN!

They call her 'military dependent', but she knows better
She can balance a checkbook
Handle the yard work
Fix a noisy toilet.
She is intimately familiar with drywall, anchors, and toggle bolts.
She can file the taxes, sell a house, buy a car, or set up a move, --
--all with ONE Power of Attorney

She welcome s neighbors that don't welcome her.
Reinvents her career with every PCS; locates a house in the desert,
The arctic, or the deep south and learns to call them all 'home'
She MAKES them all home.
She is fiercely IN-dependent

Military Wives are somewhat hasty
They leap into decorating, leadership, volunteering, career
Alternatives, churches and friendships
They don't have 15 years to get to know people.
Their roots are
Short but flexible.
They plant annuals for themselves and
Perennials for those who come after them.

Military Wives quickly learn to value each other.



They connect over coffee, rely on the spouse-network and accept offers of friendship
And favors and record addresses in pencil.
Military Wives have a common bond.
The Military Wife has a husband unlike other husbands his commitment
Is unique He doesn't have a job, he has a 'mission' he can't just
Decide to quit he's on-call for his country 24/7 but for you, he's
The most
Unreliable guy in town!
His language is foreign

TDY

PCS

OPR

ACC

BDU

And so, a Military Wife is a translator for her family and his.
She is the long-distance link to keep them informed the glue that
Holds them together.

Military Wife has her moments----

She wants to wring his neck, dye his uniform pink, an d refuse to
Move to Siberia.
But she pulls herself together.
Give her a few days,a few drinks, a travel brochure, a long hot bath, a pledge to The flag, and a wedding picture.


And she goes.
She packs.
She moves.

She follows.
Why?
What for?
How come?
You may think it is because she has lost her mind.
But actually it is because she has lost her heart.
It was stolen from her by a man
Who puts duty first
Who longs to deploy
Who salutes the flag

And whose boots in the doorway remind her That as long as he is her
Military husband,
She will remain his Military wife!!!!

Pictures!

Busy, busy and BUSY!

Wow! We've been busy! There has been so much to do, and to add Christmas shopping on top of it - - Jonathon feels like he didn't even get any days off.

We had his squadron Christmas party already. It was pretty fun to get out of the house for a while AND have a babysitter. I was SO nervous, but the babysitter handled everything just fine (although I hear Jackson threw up on her face. Not sure how this happened, but - I'm sorry!) and he was asleep when I got back. That's a good ending! I got to meet a lot of the people Jonathon works with that I hadn't met yet. We went with another couple - BJ and Ashley. They also took a day trip to New York with us. FUN!

New York isn't that far away - only a few hours - so we planned to go see the big Christmas tree in Rockefeller Plaza. We stopped halfway to drop one of the Steve's kids at Ashley's mom's house. (They live down the road from Jon and Kate Plus 8!) After that, we all got in one car and drove up. For being semi unplanned - it turned out really well. We took a boat tour. We got to see where the Twin Towers were, the Empire State Building, Statue of Liberty among other things. I LOVED IT. I always said I'd move there and be a writer or in public relations. Now being married and having a young child, that's out of the question - but I absolutely loved walking the streets of Manhattan.

BJ drove - thank goodness because it was stressful!!! Thanks to Ashley for letting him drive her car up there. It was a madhouse! We ended up in China Town - not sure how - but that was cool to see, too. We ate some amazing pizza there and I think we walked enough to burn off a weeks worth of dinners! Jackson couldn't have been better! I honestly think I have the best child in the world. He didn't cry or fuss. He just wanted to look around. He stayed bundled up in his stroller for the first half of the day, but surprisingly that night it wasn't cold. Jonathon and I were actually warm in our coats. So, anyone who is worried about Jackson not having a coat on by the big tree - believe me, he was completely covered all day, but by night time there were so many people that he was totally fine to take a picture without all the layers. We were quick.

Now we're just recovering from our busy schedules. Jackson is now officially old enough for cereal and the middle of Janurary we can *try* food if we want to - I'm still undecided. There are reasons for and against - and we still have time to see if he wants it or not.

I'll end with some pictures of NY.
This is where Titanic was supposed to dock.

Me and my love

His beautiful blue eyes. He looks exactly like Jonathon, but got the Dusdal blues!

Doctor visit and Christmas plans!

I have to tell you about Black Friday. So my friend Mindy and I set out to do some shopping. We didn't leave at 3am, but we were out by 6am. We hit the store that I was getting Jonathon's gift at first. It wasn't crazy at all! Apparently everyone came and left in one hour! Anyway, we went back to get his gift, and the guy INSISTS they sold out an hour ago. So Mindy and I sulk and walk away and discuss going to the same store in different locations to find this thing. Well, an employee infront of us turns around, asks what we had been looking for...when I tell him, he says, "no, we aren't keeping those in that spot because they were popular. Go to the counter and ask for one." I told him the guy insisted they were gone an hour ago, and this new guy insisted they weren't. We walk back there, wait in this long line and then we were asked (before our turn) what we needed. We could hear others inquiring about this product, so we were worried. After all of this, a lady behind the counter says, "Oh, we have one left!" Are you kidding me?! She hands it to me, I pay, and all is well. I couldn't believe that guy was wrong! I'm so happy that my complaining got me somewhere and another employee heard it. Thank you, mystery angel!

On Tuesday, (December 1st), Jackson had his 8 week check-up - three weeks late. We had been calling forever to get an appointment. Finally, Jonathon was already at the hospital so he just walked down there and worked his magic. Jonathon kept telling Jackson he'll do fine, it's his mom that will cry. I didn't for the record.

They said he's absolutely perfect and his development is amazing. He is a little ahead, but we knew that all along. :) He is 14lbs 6 oz and 24 inches long. (50th and 75th percentiles) He got three shots and an oral medicine - he barely cried, and it was only because he was so annoyed that the tech had to hold his legs down. I only know that because he made the exact same face and sound when they were measuring him. Daddy picked him up, and he acted like nothing happened. Then...our baby turned into a narcoleptic. He fell asleep whenever, wherever. He slept for 3 days this way, only waking up to eat and get a fresh diaper. He never did get a fever though, which I greatly appreciated. The knot on his leg is gone, and everything is normal. We survived it!

Jackson has had his days/nights mixed up, but I think that's because Jonathon works nights. He'll get back on track. Either way, he sleeps a good chunk of either one and I've never been happier.

We also went to see Santa. The mall Santa's around here aren't amazing, but we were at Bass Pro Shops, and believe it or not - they had a whole winter wonderland. We decided to let him see Santa there, and if we didn't like the picture we'd take him somewhere else. He didn't cry, but he wasn't smiling either. They made us stand too far away to attempt a smiling picture - but he didn't seem to care that some crazy man was holding him. While we were there, we fed Jackson in a camouflage recliner. Tacky! But, I'll admit there was this solid brown one that was probably the most comfortable thing I've ever sat in. That store even has a massive fish tank with huge fish in it. Don't tell Jonathon, but I think that store is pretty cool.

Jonathon is going for a job in the armory. It means better hours (3pm-11pm, rather than 4pm - 4-6am) and more awake time with us. He has his interview Monday, so we're hopeful. His friends aren't happy though - they are getting their wives to tell me I should talk him out of it. It's ok guys - we'll still see you! He may have to agree to stay in Maryland for another 2 years to take the job - which is ok with me.

Christmas is coming up and I'm so excited. This is my first Christmas away from the family, and I was really worried about it. However, I'm not anymore. We put up our tree, (although it only has the lights on it right now..) and we did some buying already - but we still have a ways to go. Some friends of ours are also staying here this year so we decided to do Christmas dinner with them to make it more of a crowd. Jonathon and I are still trying to find a Bumbo for Jackson that isn't a nasty sea foam color. Other than that I think our buying for him is done! Next year will be so much fun buying all of those obnoxious toys. I am excited, and I know Jon is, to pick that stuff out. But for now, we love him being a baby. He's already getting too big!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!!! Since it's such a great holiday, I wanted to tell others, and remind myself of the things I'm thankful for. Here are a few:

My family is healthy. It's easy to forget sometimes how important something is when you've been blessed with it, and haven't known anything different.

Although Jonathon is working, at least he's not deployed. I don't have to worry everyday, and we're 1000% less stressed since he's home and safe.

We have a home, food on the table, new vehicles, friends, kitties, and the money to afford having some fun. I realize that not everyone does, and I'm very grateful we have these things.

Our wonderful families. Although we're far away, you're all in our hearts, prayers and thoughts each day.

Lastly, but most importantly - our beautiful baby boy, Jackson. He is wanted more than he could ever know. Our surprise baby has changed our lives forever in an amazing way and I look forward to spending time with him everyday. He is healthy, and happy and I can't ask for anything more. He is the center of our lives and definitely connected Jonathon and I more than we could have expected. He is truly a blessing and we love him more than anything.

We hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and very blessed holidays.

Christmas tree

Here are our pictures of the progress of our tree - more to come since it's not decorated yet (it's pre lit, so that's where there's lights..)

This is the tree - about 8 feet - and the tubs of ornaments.
This is the same picture - but with a random catEmpty spot where it will goStraight out of the box - not shaped at all.Little pine needles everywhere
This is what we have so far!

Wrapping up November

I can't believe it's just about over! November seemed to have came and went faster than any month this year. It started out slow, and then just picked right up!

My mom came out for a week in the middle of the month. We went to eat our FAVORITE food, Mexican food, at On the Boarder several times and got pizza several times, too - which is funny because she normally eats very healthy. But I enjoyed my week of junk for sure! We also went to Kirkland's to pick out her gift (since she doesn't have a Kirkland's in Colorado). She got a beautiful wooden plaque that spelled out "family" for her wall going up the stairs to hang alongside pictures. My dad even liked it!

Meanwhile, Jonathon was with his friends in Michigan hunting. They didn't shoot anything, but they did have a funny bear story - although any other ending wouldn't have been so funny. Even though they weren't lucky, they had a good time. minus Jonathon's cold.

Jackson is just growing and growing! He is a tall boy. Just about every item of clothing he had is too small now. I already have a huge pile of clothes to pack. We bought him all new stuff. He can't wear very many of those pajamas with the feet in them because his feet are just too big. He smiles all the time and his laugh is too adorable. He is all about his blanket...there are times when he's just upset and nothing is making him happy - but if you pull out his big blanket and wrap him up in it (no, other blankets don't work..) he's a happy camper. He's particular, but that's ok with me. As long as it works, right? I made that blanket forever ago, and I'm glad he loves it so much. We've been buying the ready-made formula, and he seems to like that a lot better. However, it stains really bad if he spits up. (Notice the picture of that gross bib..) Besides all of the cutesy bibs, we own about 20-30 huge white ones, and he goes through a few a day.

Jackson is also on his last pack of size 1 diapers. Jonathon and I both have decided he needs a 2. I thought this was unusual but the moms on my baby board online are saying their kids are moving into size 2's as well. Glad he's on target. He's supposed to start cereal the end of next month. Lots of moms swear by giving it to them early to help them sleep. I tried this once, and didn't notice any difference in his nap, so I stopped. We'll wait until it's actually time. I'd like him to stay a little baby for just a bit longer. :)

On to some other great news - Jackson is sleeping in his own bed and through the night. The last couple days he's been sleeping all day and up all night - but his normal schedule is he only wakes up once during the night and that's usually around 4-5 am. I'll take it!

Jonathon put up our Christmas tree. He works Thanksgiving, so we put it up early, but it isn't decorated yet. We'll do that this weekend when he has more days off. Mindy and I are going shopping on "Black Friday". It will be my first year going. My sister, Jennifer, was all about this the last few years - I slept in. But this year, we're hitting the stores. Jonathon and I already got Jackson's first Christmas ornament. We got it at Things Remembered and had it engraved with his name and date of birth. I love it! We also got him lots of "Veggie Tales" DVD's, clothes and some other things. Let me explain the DVD's - - Yes, I know how young he is. But, he is facinated with the lights and movement on the tv. We figure that he should be watching something educational and not the regular tv. But no, I don't condone sitting children in front of the tv all day. (Side note: Jon and I have decided to veto Winnie the Pooh and Barney)

On our big shopping trip, we also got our Christmas cards. Each year, I look for beautiful cards to send out and I normally buy them at Hallmark. This year, I was worried since I didn't buy any last year for this coming Christmas - but Jonathon was amazingly sweet and got me the cards I wanted. He'll be rewarded for being so great this Christmas - but I can't tell you what I'm buying him yet, becuase he may read this. It should be good though! (If the Black Friday shoppers don't buy them all first!)

I'm also attaching some random pictures that I just found. We hope you all have been well - we miss you all dearly and we look forward to getting all of your cards for Christmas!

My crew - Matt and Emilie

Justin and Mel getting married!!

Wedding

Mel and I at the another Mel's wedding

He is very excited to be Kohls

He loved his hood up - he thought it was pretty funny - I wish I could have caught his smile

My baby boy - Nov 25, 2009

Please notice that pre-made formula is so much darker when spit up and so much worse than powder

I just saw this on Jonathon's camera and thought I'd share it - Iraq 2008

The Mackinac Brige

The Mackinac Bridge - Jonathon saw it in Michigan. I've been there several times, and we hope to bring Jackson to our family's place in Charlevoix, MI, this coming summer to play in the Great Lakes.

Jonathon and his friend in Michigan while hunting.