New Years Eve

Yes, it's New Years Eve and I'm blogging. Obviously, Eric and I have no lives outside the home.

Anywhoo. We haven't done much in the past few days. Eric has worked half days this week. Nathan and I have hung out around the house. It's been hard to pry the kid away from the computer, actually. Yesterday we forced him out to play catch. He liked it so much that he actually volunteered to go out today for more catch. (Now, if I can just keep this up for the next 2 months while Eric's gone...)

The only drawback has been the workmen. We have a large crew of workman who are digging up and replacing some electrical lines behind our houses. Unfortunately, apparently the workmen do not have accurate maps. Yesterday, they managed to hit an underground transformer. We were without power for two hours. Today, they hit the cable line - and since we have cable phone, Internet and cable, we all twiddled our thumbs outside, looking at eat other. The worst part, however, is when they hit the sewer line...

Apparently we have 2 sewer lines. All 3 bathrooms are on 1 line, and the kitchen, plus hvac systems are on the 2nd line. I noticed water on the floor in the utility closet in the downstairs hallway, which houses the hot water tank and the havc system. We called in a work order. Guy came out, said it wasn't the hot water tank like we thought, and said the drain was clogged. He blew air through it, said it was cleaned out, and went on his merry way.

Three hours later, we noticed water all over the floor in the hallway. Apparently the blockage was connected to the kitchen sink, so when Eric was starting to cook, the line backed up. Had to call in another work order. Different guy came out. Poor guy spent about 2 hours with us. Had another worker come out as well. Our theory is that the workmen in the backyard did something to the sewer line. After the repair guys snaked and blew air, and sucked air in the line, it still wasn't working. Eric made some suggestion to block off both drains in the sinks while the guys blew air in the system. Low and behold, it seemed to work. Eric is now taking credit for fixing the whole problem. Wonderful. He'll be ready for his journeyman's license before you know it. I've suggested that we go back to Tybee Island for the rest of the week until the workmen are done in the back yard. We'll come back after they've screwed everything up and repaired it all.

So it's 9:49 on New Year's Eve. Eric is already taking a nap. I'm sure he'll be up in about 2 hours. Nathan is alternating between the computer and the Sponge bob Squarepants Movie. He just ate some mint chocolate chip ice cream with sprinkles while I blogged. Man, we are such jet-setters, aren't we?

Happy New Year!!!

And sun!

Much better weather today!. Little fog in the morning, then it burned off, then more fog came in, and now it's sunny again.

Watching the sunrise on the ocean was about everything we had hoped for. We've wondered the beach twice today. Nathan insists on getting in the water. Water temp is around 53 degrees. I managed to stay in up to my ankles, but that was as far as I wanted to go. Eric refused.

Visited the Tybee Island Science Museum. Did you know that shark teeth are the official fossils of Georgia?

Eric spends a lot of time looking through binoculars, watching the cargo ships out on the ocean as they head into the port of Savannah.

BTW, the all you can eat buffet at the hotel was not worth the price. But, if I wanted fried calamari, I could have had all I wanted to my heart's content. We went back to the Crab Shack for lunch. Eric passed on the sample platter that he had last time (see picture back in October). The gators in the pin weren't moving much, I guess trying to conserve body heat.

Nathan is in his idea of vacation heaven, jumping on the beds, riding the elevator, and playing PS2 nonstop if we'd let him. The room is the vacation, not the location.

Foggggg

We've had fog all day today. Cool, misty - seems like something out of Wuthering Heights. It's been cooler than we anticipated. Left Ft. Stewart around noon. Traveled to the river front in Savannah, where Nathan's class had taken a field trip. We were definitely not the only ones who had that thought. It was VERY crowded. We got to go on a yacht that is actually owned by a commune called the Twelve Tribes. Pic is of Nathan and Eric standing on the deck. After wandering for awhile, we went onto Tybee Island. Room wasn't ready yet, so we wandered by car around the island. Too cold for Nathan to walk much. Eric actually agreed to go into a souvenir shop !!!!! but we didn't stay long enough for Nathan to pick anything out. I promised him that we'd walk over tomorrow so he could get something. Went to the Tybee Island Lighthouse and Museum. A lighthouse had been on that site since 1732. No elevator. I almost gave up about halfway up. Second pic is the view from the top of the lighthouse. Now we're in the hotel. Wouldn't want to call this 4-star by any stretch of the imagination, but we got what we wanted - ocean side view on the top floor. The video is the view from our balcony. No audio. It should be in the upper 70s and sunny tomorrow, so we'll definitely be enjoying the beach tomorrow. Tonight we'll see if the all-you-can-eat seafood bar in the hotel is worthwhile. :)

Christmas Morning

Merry Christmas to all you good people out there! I hope that everyone gets what they wanted on their wish list, and that you are with people that you love.

I woke up about 6:00, Nathan got up at 6:15, and we nagged Eric up soon thereafter. We counted. Nathan had 17(!!!!) wrapped presents under the tree. Eric and I had two. Plus a box from the in-laws. Strangest child I think I've ever seen. He unwrapped everything, then wouldn't actually open and play with anything until all the wrapping paper was picked up.

I figure that he has enough stuff to play with that we wouldn't see him for the rest of the day. However, his two Lego projects are so big that occasionally he's got to call for help.

All that planning and wrapping, over in 20 minutes. Eric and I just drank coffee and watched him go. Put a fake yule log on the TV screen, ate left over cookies from the batch we made for Santa yesterday. Eric is working on ribs for dinner tonight. Nothing says Christmas like ribs!

Winter finally came

Having our first real blast of cold air. Think it's only going to get to the mid-40s today. Back up in the 70s by Wednesday, which is good. We're going to spend the weekend at Tybee Island. Will be too cold to get in the ocean, but we're looking forward to getting out there and exploring.

Not really much to report. Nathan had a sleep over on Friday. The boys got up the next morning at 5:30 a.m. Yes, you read that right, 5:30! They had slept in the living room, and Eric had fallen asleep down there in the easy chair. Eric decided that he needed to wake me up at 5:55 to tell me the boys had woken up at 5:30. Thanks, honey. Actually, Nathan has woken up at 6:30 or earlier for the past 3 days. Can't get him up this early on a school day - noooo. We moved Nathan's mattress into the living for the sleep over, and still haven't moved it upstairs yet. Nathan's enjoying the 'trampoline'.

Eric's working half-days for the next 2 weeks. He gets to be the acting first sgt. We'll spend some time trying to knock out some of Nathan's wolf badge requirements. Since Eric's going to be at school in January and February, the two of them better get started on Nathan's pinewood derby car and raingutter regatta boat. I'm crafty, but I don't do wood putty and sanding.

80 degrees?

So, I'm seeing on the tv lots of snow and freezing conditions - snow in Las Vegas and Dallas. My friend in Chicago must be miserable with all the snow she's getting. Here? A week straight of near 80 degrees. I'm wearing a tank top today.

Finally got all the presents wrapped and mailed off yesterday. UPS told me they couldn't' guarantee deliver by Christmas Day via Standard shipping. Went the extra mile for the stuff for Eric's family. Figured if it didn't get there by Christmas, half the party would be on the road the next day by 4:00 a.m. and then their stuff would have to be mailed again. My folks on the other hand, not going anywhere. Sorry, guys, I hope it gets to you on time, but it might not :( For the folks on Eric's side - most of those presents were Eric's idea, and you can pretty much just mix and match.

But the incredible lightness of being after getting that mailed off was wonderful. Found myself singing "O Come, Let Us Adore Him" in Walmart afterwards. For some reason about 4 latin words were stuck in my head, so I'd hum or ta-ta most of it, then sing the same words over and over. Silly me, but my outlook was much more mellow than I should have expected it to be at wallyworld.

Nathan is having his buddy spend the night. Kid's parents are going to an office party in Savannah, so they asked if we could watch him. Kid showed up an hour ago, and I haven't seen either of them since. I should enjoy it while I can. Nathan started Christmas vacation this afternoon, for 2 and a half weeks. I won't get any time to myself for the next 20 days....

Nathan's got to go to the dentist tomorrow to have sealants put on some of his teeth. I guess I'll have to talk to the dentist about what the orthodontist said and plan for extractions and braces next month. sigh.

Nathan has adapted fairly well to the glasses. Every once in a while he will say he doesn't want to wear them to school, but he doesn't really fuss that much. I'm sure braces will be an entirely different story. I told Eric today that while I couldn't love Nathan any more, every time I look at him with his glasses, I just feel a little more gooey-er inside. He just seems more my kid - there's more a tangible visible connection between him and me - with them on.

Eric has become a Blago fan. Says he's been railroaded just like OJ....

He also tells me that he wants to become the Ft. Sill historical tour guide when he retires. I bought him a book about the history of Ft. Sill about a month before we left. We've spent many an evening discussing plains indians, Custer, and Sitting Bear Creek - which was right down the road from our old house. Doesn't that sound exciting?

Venite adoramus

Eric had his Christmas concert last night. They played in the main post chapel, and unfortunately the lighting wasn't very good (at least for my worn out camera). So no photos from me, but I did find a few online links.

http://www.coastalcourier.com/news/article/10623/ and

http://www.wsav.com/midatlantic/sav/news.apx.-content-articles-SAV-2008-12-18-0039.html

There aren't any close ups of Eric, but you can see him on both sites.

This was my first time to watch this band perform. He didn't play on the first song, which was the Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer. There weren't any programs, so it was kinda hard to tell what the piece was. (It started out as something a/a Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor). But once the tune was recognizable and it started going through all its transformations, the crowd was loving it. His commander was quite a character. Eric had told me that he doesn't conduct beats, but rather cues the percussion. And it was true. Once he gave a downbeat, he spent most of the piece cuing players as they had an important part to play. But as he did, he'd turn around to glance at the audience and make a big deal of pointing out the players or section. It kinda was a cross between a very chipper flight attendant or one of those traffic cops with the over exaggerated hand gestures.

After that piece, most of the band left the stage. A woodwind trio played a tune. Then, the brass quintet came on to play 2 songs. The announcer made a joke that with this small of an ensemble, they could get all their equipment on one Blackhawk... After that the Dixie Land Jazz ensemble played 2 tunes. Now the audience was starting to get into the swing of things (so to speak).

Then, Eric's group came up. Besides Eric on bass, there was a guitar player (who likes to refer to himself as an OIF season ticket holder), a trumpet, a trombone, a trap set, a keyboardist and 2 male vocalists. This group rocked the house! Think of a James Brown tune, complete with the gyrations and drama from the vocalists. They sang "The Christmas Song," "Jingle Bell Rock" and "Ride, Sally, Ride." I know, you're thinking, "Ride, Sally, Ride?" But it worked. They changed some of the words to Ride Santa Ride. The pic from wsav.com has little old while ladies sitting in the audiences waving their hands from side to side, following the singers.

The last song from the rock group was O Holy Night, sung by a pregnant soldier on loan from another unit. Think Whitney Houston without the personality quirks. She could sing! A couple of people in the audience stood up about halfway through and started swaying like they were in church. She got a standing O from the entire audience after that.

The gospel choir from the post sang a couple of tunes. After that the whole group got up to play for the audience sing-along of Christmas carols. Then they played Christmas Eve/Sarajevo, and had a soldier playing the cello part at the beginning.

The final piece was Sleigh Bells. Eric got to play the bells. Nathan sat through the concert without too much whining and no toys for entertainment!

Now, somewhere I have a picture of my father-in-law in the exact same stance....


Anywoo. Nathan's pic is from his school Christmas program on Monday. Monday when it was 80 degrees in Georgia!!! My mother sends me pictures of snow in Dallas, and we're having a heat wave. But I digress.

Nathan's teacher had sent home a notice saying that the kids were to dress in their party best, and specifically mentioned dress slacks, button down shirt, and a tie. A tie? Are you kidding me? Eric doesn't wear a tie, I'm certainly not making Nathan wear one. Turns out he's outgrown his 2 pairs of nice pants, so I went to buy him a new pair on Sunday, plus a nice shirt. Didn't take the kid with me. And didn't make him try them on when I got home. Instead, waited until Monday morning to force him to wear them. Big mistake. Nathan has some quirk in his system that won't allow him to wear clothing that's too big. He had an absolute meltdown with me making him wear long pants that were too big. I gave in because he was almost too hysterical to be functional at school.

But he made it to school on time and all was right with the world. Eric and I both went to his program. I took along the old video recorder we've got and took about 5 minutes of video before the battery died. I've been trying to figure out how to get it onto the computer (not a digital camcorder). Not having much luck. Which is a shame, because the Nathan's Eric tendencies are really evident - on the back row, last one in line, faking interest in what the announcer is saying, swaying to while everyone else is swaying fro. He was really enjoying himself when they were actually singing. Rudolph had hand motions and he got to play a triangle for Jingle Bells. Still have to record him singing the dreidel song in the shower. At the top of his lungs. 20 times through.

Tuesday night was the cub scout banquet. Nathan's only been to 2 meetings, and these boys are all in a different grade, so he doesn't know any of them. But he seemed to enjoy himself. Again, in the group picture, hiding in the back. At one point in the shindig, the pack master had the two new scouts and their families come up to the front to be welcomed. Nathan and I stood up there. And where was Eric? Wandering the hallways, reading the plaques and posters. He spent more of the evening outside the room than in. Now, to be fair, it was crowded and noisy and stuffy, but still. I felt like I had married my father-in-law.

Eric's got the post Christmas concert tonight. I suppose I shouldn't be too hard on him. He's got to play a big band arrangement of Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer that plays the tune in 5 or 6 styles - swing, jazz, rock, etc. Serves the scrooge right. Tee-hee!

Poor guy had to sit through a 2-1/2 hour training meeting yesterday with the E7s and up. now, I think Eric is a terrific soldier and NCO. He's got the temperament to deal with people and the stresses of the job. He's actually pretty good on stuff like organization and procedures (even though I can't get him to pick up his dirty socks). But no way, no how does he have the temperament to sit through a 2-1/2 hour staff meeting unless he were required to. And with a deployment on the horizon, these meetings are just going to be longer and more often.

He did make me laugh on Friday. As he left for work, he said that it would probably be a pretty full day with rehearsals, a couple of troop arrivals and some training task with one of his subordinates. Twenty minutes he walks back in the door. Everything had been cancelled or pushed back except for the training task. He calls the soldier and says, "The only thing standing between me and a three day weekend is you." Then basically tells the kid to call him as soon as he's ready for Eric to meet him. I'm thinking, 'dang that's pulling your rank', but I didn't say anything to him. When he got back from meeting with the guy I asked him how it went. "well, the guy kept apologizing to me for messing up my three day." gee, you think? I told him my impression of the phone call. And he said, "Oops! I didn't mean it that way. That's pretty harsh." He's still getting used to the awesome unbridled power of the E7.

Christmas carols and road rage

This was one of the most frustrating days EVER!!! I decided to take Nathan into Savannah to go to the Boy Scout store. We needed to get a Wolf book, plus the patches for his new pack here. According to its website, the store is open on Saturdays 10-2. Now, I could have gone earlier in the week, but I thought the traffic wouldn't be as bad on the weekend. SILLY ME! Got stuck in an 8 mile traffic back up. I know how to get to Abercorn street in Savannah, and that's it. I was trying to make it to the store before it closed, and I was afraid that if I got off Abercorn, I'd just be lost in Savannah (which has happened before). Thought for sure that there must have been an accident or construction work. But NO!!! The back up was due to people getting to the mall...

Now, please believe me. If I am planning to going shopping in the month of December, then I am prepared. I already know that there will be lines, no parking, and lots of waiting. I embrace the suck, and I can tolerate the hordes of people. Today, however, I wasn't anticipating mall traffic and nearly went ballistic. I said several words that I don't want Nathan to repeat (several times), and glared at a lot of people who cut me off and nearly sideswiped me. I barely managed to avoid flipping the bird at least twice. Now, in the back of my mind, I knew that the road rage was out of proportion to the aggravation. And that it was the height of irony to be so irate as I was listening to my favorite Christmas CDs in the car.

We did mange to make it to the Scout store about 30 minutes before it closed. My blood pressure did not subside, however. Apparently, according to the side on the door, the store isn't actually open on Saturdays after all. I was so upset I was about ready to cry. I'm sure by the time I GO BACK on Monday, I will have my angst under control, and I won't totally flip out on the store staff for their erroneous website. Maybe.

Nathan and I did go onto the bookstore to pick up a present. While we were there, he found a dragon model painting set, which you see here. Unfortunately, we did not get back in time to go to the battalion Christmas party at the YMCA.

The other picture is from his boy scout meeting this week (before he got his glasses). The den is providing a table decoration for the banquet on Tuesday, so they were making a gingerbread house.

Mom and Dad, and Aimie, we got your deliveries today. I did get all of Nathan's presents wrapped on Monday. Made me think how not green Christmas is. All that paper. Gift bags are the ultimate in green gifting, but if you're trying to keep the kid from peeking, you gotta wrap. And could kid action figures be any harder to wrap? The packaging should all be required to be squares or rectangles. And those people who go all out with their light displays? Please, don't even get me started! I saw one person whose electric bill goes up $1000 a month for the holidays! WHAT? Are you kidding me!>@>#?

I'm probably really out of sorts because my laptop battery finally died. I've had to order a new one online, and it will take a week or so. I knew that Eric would be taking the laptop with him to ANOC, but I wasn't expecting it to just die on me, without me being able to take stuff off of it first. Good thing I'm not really doing genealogy right now. All my stuff is on there. It's just not the same blogging on the other computer, and having to share it again with Eric. The minute one of us gets up, the other one slides into the chair. Which isn't fair, because Eric has another computer upstairs in the radio room.

You just can't deny genetics

it was bound to happen sometime

Nathan's orb

Nathan decided we needs orbs for the tree, so the two of us went to get some. He really liked the 2 colored orbs, so those were his pic. When I told him I wanted to take a picture of him in front of the tree, he insisted that one of his orbs had to be in the picture as well.

Christmas activities have begun. Eric and the band had to play a concert at a VA hospital/nursing home on Tuesday. The 3 hour bus ride was an eye-opener for him. Apparently, the leadership takes the opportunity to have a training meeting while they're on the bus, so everyone of a lower rank sits towards the back while the upper NCOs sit in the front. (I didn't realize there was a seating hierarchy in the band. Who knew?) And of course, those not involved in the meeting were smarting off in the back. Eric, being the kind of guy he is, is thinking to himself, "but, but, but - I wanna be in the back, too."

The post tree lighting ceremony was on Thursday. I dragged Nathan to see it while Eric and the band played pre-music. It was a great night out, mild temps, lots of people. Bad lighting, so none of my pics of the band turned out. Afterwards, they had set up the Stewart Club for kids activities. Crowd control, however, left a lot to be desired. Rather than letting everyone come in at once, they had staff at the door regulating how many could come in at one time. Luckily, we were in one of the first waves. You can see Nathan decorating a Christmas stocking. The crush of people was getting to Eric by that time, so he went outside for a little while. But the bouncers at the door wouldn't let him back in - they wanted him to the back of the line. He called me and just said he'd meet us outside. By the time we left the building, there were still about 300 people waiting to get in. (My holiday spirit wouldn't have been up to waiting outside that long. I would have bailed after about 10 minutes...)

Eric and the band marched in the Hinesville parade on Friday and the Richmond Hill parade on Saturday. It was just cold enough that neither Nathan nor I were interested in going. Sorry, hubby!

Nathan managed to get 2 skinned knees and a skinned elbow yesterday, running up and down the sidewalk. Took 5 band aids to cover it all. He's walking around today like an old man with arthritis. He doesn't want us to take pictures of his wounds. He threw up Friday night big time, which is pretty unusual for him. No repeat occurrences, so I'm going to chalk it up to something he ate.

Big 12 Champs, baby!

It's beginning to look a lot....

Got the tree up, the decorations out and most of the Christmas cards mailed. (There are advantages to not working at the moment) Of course, the disadvantages come at the gift-buying side of the equation. Nathan shared with us what he wrote in his letter to Santa at school. Kid has expensive tastes. He thinks it's a guarantee if he tells Santa. I told him that Santa makes the toys, but Mommy and Daddy still have to give him the money to make them. I have no idea what to get Eric. Usually I've got a pretty good idea, but I got nothing this year. I'm not buying a carburetor or engine for Rufus, which are the only things I can think of that he'd want.

I'll have to take a pic of Nathan with the tree when he gets home from school today. He's so proud of his decorating skills. We put up the ornaments that we had - which come to think of it, were mostly hand-me-downs from my mother. Nathan said we needed orbs - meaning the colored balls. So we had to go buy some before the tree was perfect.

He and Eric finally went to a Cub Scout meeting last night. Now we need to get him involved in some sort of sports program. Guess looking into that will be my task for the day. Something that will work with his tight hamstrings....

Native American Heritage Day

Just want to point out that today is Native American Heritage Day. It's not a recurring event. No, no, no. Just for this year. (As Eric would say, "just another example of the white man keeping us down).

Now, neither of us check off the Native American box when we fill out paperwork. We both have more European, WASPy heritage than anything. I don't get anything from my tribe, and all we get from Eric's is the car tags. But still, I want to point out that my 5/64 Cherokee-Choctaw degree is more than Eric's 9/128 Potawatomi. That makes Nathan 19/256. Yes, it took me awhile to figure out the fractions.

So, in honor of our heritage, here are some pics from both sides of the family.

Thanksgiving

Hope everyone out there (all 4 of you who read this) had a great Thanksgiving. We enjoyed ourselves. Certainly wasn't the chaos of a big family gathering. We all contributed to dinner. Nathan made the mashed potatoes and gravy. He decided to write down the ingredients so we wouldn't forget the recipe. I made the cheesy broccoli and rice casserole. Thanks, Aunt Kaye, for the recipe. I have never in my life cooked with cheese whiz before, but it came out pretty good. And Eric made the turkey. It was the most fantabulous turkey EVER! So tender! So moist! So flavorful! Now, Eric usually downplays his efforts in the kitchen (it's okay, it's mediocre, meh). But this time, he was actually impressed with his own cooking. Enough so that we might have to buy another turkey for next weekend. (We only bought a 6 pound turkey, so he's already polished off the leftovers this morning.)

4 hours of cooking, then 2 hours of clean up and sanitizing for 10 minutes of eating. But the impressive part is that we all actually ate at the same time at the same table. Can't remember the last time that happened.

We'll probably drag in the tree later today.

Shout out to my parents on their wedding anniversary today and to my aunt and uncle on theirs yesterday. Love ya!

Nerd years come early

Braces and glasses. Poor guy. This will be the year that sucks for Nathan.

The move to Hinesville
New school
New friends
braces
glasses
Eric going to school for 2 months and possibly deployed.

May have to get a puppy to offset all the emotional upheaval.

So we went to the orthodontist on Monday. He's recommending a 2 phased-approach. Braces on the 8 adult teeth he's already got, plus a couple of extractions. That's for the first 12-18 months. Then a retainer for 1-1/2 to 2 years (good luck with keeping track of that!). Then perhaps another round of braces on the adult teeth that come later. Hopefully round 1 will be enough.

Eye exam came today. His obscenely long eyelashes (courtesy of the Cryer male genetics) made for a difficult exam. Luckily, the professionals only tested him as 20-40 in each eye - unlike the 20-70 that the pediatrics clinic did. But we're going ahead to get the glasses. Should be ready in 7-10 business days.

So, between the braces payment plans and the glasses - to all our loved ones that we exchange presents with at Christmas - be prepared for 3rd ID t-shirts and coffee mugs. 'Cuz that's all our budget will allow for ;)

Teeth, Nose, Eyes, Hamstrings

This has been a week of doctor visits for Nathan. It started with a much-delayed dental visit last Friday. I have been a bad mom. I haven't been good about taking Nathan to the dentist. I've never had a cavity, so I didn't really think about Nathan getting one. Reality check when he had to have his eyes, ears and teeth checked before we could enroll him in Georgia schools. Dentist on post noticed 2 cavities. Oh the guilt! It's my fault. I feel so bad. (Of course, Eric could have just as easily taken care of this, but still!)

So anyway, I take Nathan to the dentist on Friday. He can't believe the kid's already got 8 adult teeth. But, Nathan's got an underbite - which we already knew - and he's apparently got an adult molar trying to grow in funny. So in about 15 minutes, I'm going to take him to the orthodontist for a consult. Now, if you are in the military, and in fairly good health, then your healthcare costs are practically nil. HOWEVER, braces are a whole 'nother story. Hopefully the guy will just want to keep an eye on his growth. As Nathan has grown, the underbite is not as bad as it was when he was little. His original dentist didn't worry about it. Said that you don't want to do anything too soon, while he's still growing.

Anyway, then I took Nathan to have a sports physical. Not sure what sport to get him into at this point, but we need to have this done in any case. Well, the doctor says that he's going through a growth spurt, so we need to work with him to stretch out his hamstrings twice a day. Nathan had an eye-opening experience getting his hernia checked.

Then they checked his eyes. He tested 20-70 in each eye. Now, when his eyes were tested a month earlier, they passed him. Same clinic, same eye chart. So, either the nurse last time was incompetant, or his eyes took a dramatic turn for the worse in a month. Hmmm. He's got an eye appointment on Wednesday. Sigh. Eric is now blaming me for this. I had glasses when I was 8, and he didn't get glasses until he was 12. So obviously, it's through my genes that he's eyes have failed so young. Ha-ha. He's SOOO funny.

And finally, Nathan's got a spot on his nose. I asked the doctor about it. "Looks like ringworm. May not be. If it is, it's so early, it could be anything." !!!! So now we're dabbing goop on his nose twice a day.

After we stretch out his hamstrings.

Eric's idea of heaven

It's 60 degrees on a Sunday evening. Eric is grilling NY strips on the backporch. We beat Tech last night 65-21, and are now #3 in the BCS. He slides open the back door to tell me (very excitedly) that he's heard both the Bee-Gee's Saturday Night Fever, and Abba's Waterloo on the radio while he's out there.

Can it get any better than this?

Sooner Magic

We've been busy...

So Tuesday Nathan and I went to Savannah as part of his class's field trip. COLDEST MORNING OF THE YEAR! We spent 4 hours wandering outside, looking at historical markers and statues. I don't really think the kids cared about a plaque detailing the founding of Freemasonry in Georgia, but by gorsh, the teacher was bound and determined to read every single word. Of course, between the road traffic and her making them stand in a long line, I'm sure that none of the kids in the back had a hope of hearing her. Those of you with access to our flickr account can see the other pics that I took on the trip.

I'm not crazy about Nathan's teacher, but I did get some enjoyment out of watching her trying to get 22 extremely excited 1st graders ready for a field trip. She started out talking about the rules - stay with your buddy, stay on the sidewalk, don't talk to strangers. Then it was on. Almost every kid in the room started waving their hands wildly. As she called on them, they all started their 'stranger danger' spiels. "If someone offers you candy, run away." "If someone grabs you, you need to kick and scream or they'll kill you." At least 4 kids mentioned the getting killed possibility. She finally put a stop to all of that. "Okay, no more stories, does anybody have an actual question?" I'm telling the truth - the next kid to raise his hand asked, "How did the civil war start?" Rather than simply saying, "good question, but not something we're talking about today. We can talk about that at another time," she actually tried to answer! Long rambling 5 minute answer. !!!! Sheesh...

The mystery photo is Nathan's hands-on project for his Paiute report. It's a wickiup, kinda like a teepee. Eric and I were hoping that I could just go get a mortar and pestle, which he could use. But nooo, he wanted to build something. However, like a typical little boy, he wouldn't make the effort to collect the supplies until the day before. Then he comes home and announces the wickiup should be on a posterboard, and it should have a background, and there should be trees and a blue sky. Yeah, for all that, we should have started a lot sooner. Makes me remember the time in 5th grade when I came home and told Dad that I needed a science project by the next day... Anyway, Eric and I worked on the construction, while Nathan tackled the painting and overall aesthetics. He just walked in the door and said the teacher gave him an A+. (She better have!)

The last is my first quilt made in the new house.

we got a bleeder!

So Nathan's bestest friend in Georgia came to play today. Eric is convinced that he has the best angry face on a kid that he's ever seen. Judge for yourself.

Next time when your mother tells you to stop rough-housing, do what she tells you! Eric had his tushy kicked by a couple of 7 year olds. (Imagine that - Eric rough-housing WITH the boys!) Shaving will be a challenge tomorrow...

Now THAT'S a parade!

The digital version is better at http://www.stewart.army.mil/. This pic is in the Nov. 13th edition, section A, page 8.

Eric is playing the bass drum on the left. He's marching directly in front of the tuba player. You can see his eyes and hat, and his right arm out as he's about to hit the drum. He's in a direct line with the second 'm' in the the word Communities in the title of the picture.

Kinda of like playing Where's Waldo.

Savannah Veterans Parade

Eric had to leave so early to get to this parade, that Nathan and I didn't go. But I did find some coverage. If you go to this tv channel, http://www.wtoc.com/global/story.asp?s=9331001, and click on the little red video icon, you might see Eric playing the bass drum - as long as you don't blink. He's at 36 second mark. He's not on the screen for the entire second.

Eric said it was a pretty nice parade. Little long at 3 miles, but the weather was perfect for it. Said the CG (commanding general) and the CSM (command sgt. major) led off the parade, followed by the honor guard, the band, then soldiers from the 5 brigades. I asked if they had any tanks in the parade (after all this is a tank division). "No, those are all in Iraq." You mean they didn't leave any behind, just for parades and ceremonies? Even the older models? "Sugar, I don't think the city planners in Savannah really want a 72-ton track vehicle, rolling through their historic downtown." Well, that makes sense.

Veteran's Day

"For Freedom"

Somewhere a trumpet sounds in the night
A soldier is standing there
It’s calling him out to the stars and the stripes
It’s calling him God knows where

He kisses the ones he loves goodbye
and leaves in the dead of night
For freedom he’ll heed the call
Leave all he knows
And for freedom he’ll stand and fight

And somewhere a man and wife
can’t believe they’re waving their girl goodbye
For gone are the days of pigtails and curls and candlelight lullabies

If they had their way she’d stay young forever
and never be far from home
But freedom has drawn her heart to danger’s shore
And for freedom they’ll let her go

And somewhere a thunderous crash in the night
It echoes all through the hills
Though many escape it’s wrath and it’s rage
A soldier lies wounded still

Remembering the land he loves, he cries
I’ve loved you with all my might
For freedom said I’m her son whatever comes
And for freedom I’ll say goodbye

And somewhere beneath the stars and the sky
Our flag is still standing there
She bled and she brought one land under God
Her colors still lead us there

She’s carried the lives of those before us
She’s buried the bold and brave
For freedom she holds our hopes and and hands up high
And for freedom she’ll ever wave

Written by Matt Moran
Produced by Shaun Shankel
©2005 Meadowgreen Music

Anyone who has volunteered to serve in our armed forces since 2003, and those who have re-enlisted, have gone in with eyes wide open, knowing that they probably would be sent to war. AND THEY STILL SERVED! May God continue to protect our service people, and provide healing to the minds and bodies of our veterans.

That's a big drum!

The incredibly handsome soldier carrying the bass drum would be my hubby. If you want a clearer, digital image, go to

http://www.stewart.army.mil/

Click on the November 6 issue of the Frontline newspaper, and it's on the bottom of page 3.

Our first play date!

I just want to point out that Nathan is 12 months older than his friend, even though they are in the same class at school. So it theoretically shouldn't be a shock that Nathan's so much taller - but still.

Two weeks ago, I wrote our names and contact info on 2 scraps of paper. Nathan said he had 2 friends at school, but didn't know their last names or how to get ahold of them. So I gave him the slips of paper and told him to give them to his friends, hoping that one set of parents would actually get it and call us to set up a play date. It made me a little nervous - in today's era of identity theft, I was letting my 7 year old hand out info to complete strangers? Would I come home to a burgled house? Nathan assured me that he handed both slips out, and both of the little boys would be at our house first thing Saturday morning... Never heard from them all weekend. Now 2 weeks later this morning, I get a phone call from a little voice asking if Nathan was home. So we did the laser tag and then the kid came over to our house for about 4 hours of playing. Video games. They spent 90% of the time playing video games. Oh well. Still a red letter day.

So, lets see. I haven't blogged since Monday. What has happened this week. Oh yeah - the election. I am so proud of our country for finally getting to the point where we can elect an African American. I think it's wonderful for older americans who lived before and during the civil rights era, who never thought they'd live to see this day. I also think it's wonderful that parents can tell their children
that they, too, can reach to the highest office. I want our country to succeed and prosper, and I think we should pray for the health, wisdom and leadership of the president, no matter who it is. And I do think it's kinda cool to have a prez closer to my age. Given his educational experiences, he's probably still paying students loans like I am, and he's got small children like I do.

That being said, I did not vote for him, he was not my choice. (Heck, McCain wasn't my choice either). I don't agree with a lot of his policies. I don't think he can deliver everything he's promised, even with dem majorities in congress. But maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised. I actually think it's good for the country to switch back and forth between the 2 parties. The GOP seriously needs to re-tool before the next election. Enough with the politics. I try not to go there on this blog. I know that a lot of my friends and family don't think the same way I do.

But I stayed up so late on Tuesday, I was not firing on all cylinders for a job fair on Wednesday. I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off. I needed to print our resumes, but I had no resume paper, nor a working printer. What to do? Ran to walmart for the paper, spent much too long there, ran an errand for Eric that was practically in the next county, went to the UPS store so I could print my resume off the thumb drive. HOWEVER, they were in the middle of remodeling their store, so no printing there. Raced to the PX and bought a printer. Sped home, set it up and started printing while I got dressed for the job fair. Realized that the black pants I wanted to wear had been in our storage until for 3 weeks and hadn't been washed. Dirt splattered on the cuffs, Harvey hair (which shows up really well on black pants). Dress shoes needed to be polished. Did the best I could, then raced over to the job fair in the drizzle. I did talk to the two employment agencies on post, but I didn't actually apply with any of the companies there. CVS, Home Depot, Target, Bank of America. My goal is to get a job on post. The experience did just prove to me how un-prepared I was, and that I needed to get the quiet time set aside to get a game plan going.

Anyway, I didn't spend long there because I had to run by Eric's work and still get home in time to meet Nathan when he got off from school. It took me about 30 minutes after I got home to realize that the clock in my car, my watch, and my cell phone were all an hour ahead... I hate daylight savings time.

Thursday I had to drive into Savannah. We had stayed there 2 nights while in transit, and the army will reimburse a set amount for those nights, but we didn't have paid receipts. I had called the hotel 3 times about faxing a receipt to the bandhall. Between one thing or another, I ended up driving up there to collect it in person. The real problem was the fact that I had reserved the first night through the Savannah Tourism board web site. Not only did it cost $15 more than paying the hotel directly, the customer service department for reservations through the website is outsourced. So I ended up calling India 3 times, trying to explain my situation. They finally emailed me something, not sure the army will take it, but it's the best I can do.

Nathan came home that day saying that he would have a science project on native americans - what they wear, what they eat, etc. I'm thinking, cool!. I have got all the materials the kid could need - Cherokee, Choctaw, Potawatomi - if I don't have it, I know where to get it. The kid comes home on Friday with the actual instructions - the Paiute tribe. The WHO? Some obscure tribe on the west coast. We are so not going to be able to find anything in the local library. Even wikipedia has skimpy material. Good thing it's not due until next Friday.

As of Friday, I feel pretty settled. The house is as good as it's gonna get. Eric still needs to hang some curtain rods, and we need a new bed, but I think I'm pretty much done stressing over layout and furnishings. We'll be putting up a Christmas tree in about 3 weeks anyway, so that'll screw everything up. The big thing for me was being about to go through all the papers stacked on my sewing table. I had saved every single receipt since we left Lawton back in September. What would we need for reimbursement from the army? My check register was full and I didn't have any others. Little slips of paper everywhere. I was checking our balance online regularly, but still. Once I got everything logged in and sorted and updated, I cannot tell you the weight that lifted off my shoulders. For me, the transition is officially over. Now I can concentrate on life here with a clean conscience.

Eric's having his own adjustments at work. Since he's now an upper NCO, he's higher on the ladder than he's ever been before. That means more responsibility, which he hands just fine. It's the personnel issues that he's unused to dealing with. There's a line from Saving Private Ryan; "Bitches go up, they don't go down." Well, now, they're coming up to him. He's not used to being the go-to-guy for some of these issues. Several of his soldiers have cried on him. We're considering changing his last name to my maiden name. Maybe people see his name tag and just think its okay to cry on his shoulder. Tee-hee.

Seriously though. I think Eric is going to be a good fit here. He's one of the few people in the unit with a combat badge, and all the young newbies look at him differently. He's already thinking of ways to get his ensemble out there more, both on post and around the community. It's kinda ironic, considering what a chip on his shoulder he had when he was 20, but I guess that's the benefit of life and experience on him, seasoning him.

Laser Tag!

Yes, that's right - Nathan and I BOTH played laser tag today for the first time in our lives. I know the pics are blurry, but you get the idea. One of Nathan's classmates called and asked him to go play. Nathan scored a 4500, I scored a 4175. I think the only one I did better than was a 3 year old girl.

Pics online

Okay, if you have access to our flickr.com account, you can find some photos of the living room, kitchen and sewing room in the new place. Not much point yet in taking photos of the bedrooms or Eric's radio room. We can't quite agree on everything on the walls in the living room, but as Eric says, we'll be there for the next 15 years, so we'll have plenty of time to sort it all out(!) Actually, once he goes to ANOC for 2 months, then get deployed later, I'll get to be in charge of the place and can add the mirrored disco ball I've always wanted, and he won't be able to do a thing about it.

If you don't have access to our flickr account, and you want to see the pics, just call or email and I'll invite you.

I'll blog more tomorrow.

yeah for Monday!

I've always known that I'm a loner by nature. But it's definitely become more pronounced since we've moved out here. Eric has the car most days, and I'm spending most of my time getting stuff put away and organized. So when I do get out, my tolerance for traffic and crowds has seriously diminished. Walmart on a Sunday just about did me in. I'll be honest with you - I enjoyed getting my husband and son out of the house today ;).

Lessee - Halloween. Nathan's class was having a party that day, so he dressed up as Batman. We didn't see any other kids wearing costumes as they walked to school, so we were a little nervous that Nathan would be the odd man out. But he assured us that everyone in his class were suitably attired.

We live on a cul-de-sac, with about 20 homes on it. There is another street that branches off it, and together they look like a wishbone (turkey, not football). We're only the 5th house down from the entrance, and I don't have much reason to go further down the street. I knew that the house across the street from us was decorated, as well as the one next door, but I had NO idea how much the entire street had gotten into the spirit of Halloween. I walked with Nathan around the neighborhood. Its was like a tailgate party - even if people hadn't decorated their houses, they were sitting out in their driveways in lawn chairs with their buckets o' candy. It really was a lot of fun. I think the biggest crowd we had at one time was 75 or so. Once we got back to the house, we popped the back of the Mazda open, turned on the dome light, and Nathan and I sat out there to pass out candy. Eric alternated between calling people the phone and yelling 'boo' at unsuspecting kiddies. I didn't get any pictures of Nathan in his costume. He striped out of that puppy ASAP when we got home.

Saturday was typical football day. Eric had a departure ceremony for the Texas national guard unit that had been training here. Got home in plenty of time to watch the game. Now, if we can just bet Tech!

Sunday we watched a marathon of "Living with Ed", a "green" show with actor Ed Begley. Very inspirational. Then we decided to burn some fossil fuel by driving around post. I wanted to go find another island or a swamp. You know, get out there and explore Georgia. Didn't make it that far off post. Did find one of the recreational ponds on the post. Signs clearly say fishing allowed, no swimming, watch the alligators, don't feed them. !!!!!! We didn't find any gators, but we did see lots of potential habits.

I've rearranged the living room again this morning. I think I could actually be comfortable hanging things on the wall now. Although, considering I hung the curtains in our bedroom last night crooked, perhaps I should wait until Eric gets home for his input. Nahhh.

Sniffle, sniffle

I think standing outside for over an hour yesterday in 50 degree weather did me in. I decided to vote early. I figured if I waited until Tuesday, that would be the day that Eric would need the car all day, and I wouldn't be able to get off post to vote. So I went to the county election office with 40 of my closest friends who also decided to do their patriotic duty. Unfortunately, there were only 20 seats inside the office, so the rest of us were outside.

I get there, I go inside to sign in on a yellow tablet and fill out a one sheet affidavit. Then outside to wait. Five minutes later they call my name. Cool, I think to myself, I'm on the fast track. Must be the only one in the crowd who requested a republican ballet, so they're getting to me first. Nope, I filled out my paperwork as Melissa Cryer, not Melissa D. Cryer. They called me in to put a D in 4 places. Sigh.... Anyway, an hour later, I finally got to vote. Only 5 machines in the back, which is why the wait was so long. I've never voted touch-screen before.

But this morning I'm not feeling so good. Actually, this whole week I've been feeling run down. I guess all the stress has caught up with me.

Monday was good. I had bought 2 bookshelves for my 'sewing' room - aka the dining room. I got them assembled and most of MY books on the shelves. I was pretty proud of myself. Then I went out into the storage room to look through some other boxes. When I opened a box marked "Christmas", I found it was totally filed with more of my sewing stuff. Sheesh. I had no idea that I had so many quilting books! In the old place, I had stuff stored in 2 different places. Here it's all in one room, and IT'S OVER TAKING THE WORLD!!! Eric has the same reaction with all his military gear and his radios, so I don't feel so bad.

But the downside of messing with the bookshelves and the books is that my back finally gave out. Spent most of Tuesday on the couch with a heating pad. Did take Nathan to Wallyworld that afternoon to look for a halloween costume. He still says that he's not wearing it for trick or treating, but his class does have a party on Friday that he wants to wear it to.

He picked out Batman. Black body suit with a fake enhanced chest. It was supposed to come with a belt, a cape and a mask. Unfortunately, since we basically waited until the last moment, none of the remaining costumes actually had any of the accoutrement's. Luckily, he has a cape that he got at Six Flags this summer. I also let him buy some batman gloves. He thinks those are the best part. So we get home, and he immediately stripes down to try on his new costume. Not the body suit, mind you, but the gloves. So imagine him in scooby doo under-roos and black gloves that almost reach his elbows, striking a heroic pose. He kept asking us if we thought he looked cool. Another challenge as parents is to not fall out of your chair laughing at your child and hurt his feelings.

Dancing

One of the joys of any parent's life is to record his or her child's antics for future embarrassment. (Must have some redeeming value to the Alvin and the Chipmunk soundtrack.

NAF sale

Okay, so we went to our first NAF sale yesterday. NAF covers the stuff on post that are paid for by entrance fees - bowling alley, guest logging, library, golf courses - rather than the stuff that Congress pays for. Occasionally NAF will sell off furniture and equipment as they remodel. The ad in the paper said it started at 8:00. We got there probably about 10 after 8. ALL SOLD!!! Tons of armoires, end tables, tvs, headboards, desks and dressers. 90% of which was all sold in under 10 minutes. I had to ask one of the employees how that was possible, cuz I was thinking that the staff had gone through the night before and marked everything they wanted for themselves. She said that buyers were lined up well before 8. Apparently either the employees give you slips of paper when you come in, or you come to the sale with your own 'sold to john doe' and a roll of tape. Once you get in, you dash to what you want, slap your sold sticker on it with tape, then go to the cash register to pay for it. Cherrywood armoires were going for $35!!! We could have used a couple of those for pantry use. She assured me that they're having another sale in another month or so. I guess next time we'll send Eric (the morning person) bright and early.

So after that, we dragged Nathan to a couple of yard sales. Neither he nor I were all that into it. The yard sale gene apparently passed me by. Luckily the OU game was an early one, so we had a good excuse to go home. Eric wouldn't have minded standing in the drizzling rain looking for a $100 radio marked down to $10, but OU football trumps a yard sale crawl.

I did manage to go through all our boxes of books. I think I can finally make myself get rid of the Time Life Books Atlas of the World from 1980. I probably don't need to keep the Who's Who's of High School seniors tome that I've been lugging around for 20 years. Bookshelves. I really need bookshelves.

I did get all the pictures unwrapped. I need an interior decorator to give me 2 hours of his/her time. I can't seem to bite the bullet and hang things on the wall. I just need to have someone else tell me what things to hang and where. I have 2 cousins with design degrees. One of them should be able to come out here and help me out, right? I need someone to 'freestyle' my stuff.

Nathan is insisting that he won't dress up for Halloween or go trick or treating. And he's been this way for a couple of weeks. So we haven't gotten a costume. If the kid decides on Friday that he wants one, I'm gonna make him wear the winnie the pooh costume that my mother sewed decades ago.

Eric says he's going to walk to work tomorrow. As the crow flies, that would be 2 miles, about what he did at Sill. But straight line goes through a densely wooded area. Probably not how he wants to go for the first time when he's trying to get to work on time. So the safe way on the sidewalk is closer to 3 miles. Problem with that is that it goes past the water treatment plant. Pee-yoo! Stinky!

He's got his work cut out for him. For the past 4 years he's been with a band that's had continuity and a fairly regular job parameters. Here, on the other hand, lots of turn over and VERY young soldiers. I think after all his years in admin, that he will have a good impact on the band and will be a good mentor to the younger bandsmen. He was working with a soldier on Friday about jazz improv. You'll have to ask him what happened.

Not every post I make it going to have a black and white photo on it, but I'm enjoying this at the moment. Today would have been my grandparents 73rd wedding anniversary. I always liked thinking about how being in the military brings people from different ways of life together. My grandfather, an Indian kid born in land-locked Indian Territory, joins the navy and is stationed in Connecticut, where he meets my grandmother, the daughter of Polish immigrants. He brings her back to Oklahoma. Now, what kind of culture shock is that? If he hadn't joined the military, they probably would have married somebody from their own neighborhoods, and life would have been a lot different.

Rainy (day) in Georgia

Fall has finally hit us here in the sub-tropics. Highs have only been in the low to mid 70s. Yesterday it was overcast, and actually pretty nippy. I was fairly productive. Reassembled Nathan's desk and dealt with the washer exploding on me twice.

Eric brought home most of his real army equipment. Times sure have changed since the last time he was in a division. Heavier and more of it.

Today it rains. I did manage to get the trashcan and most of the recyclables to the curb. It's really nice that they have curbside recycling here. And they take a heckuva lot more stuff than Ft. Sill. The down side is that they only come once a week. And they come EARLY! I barely got it all to the curb. We were overflowing with bags.

Anyway. I'm in my favorite long-sleeve shirt of Eric's, flannel pants, and a fresh pot of coffee. My only goal until Nathan comes home is to short through our boxes of books. (Tough, isn't it?) We were just going to leave them in boxes until we bought some bookshelves, but now we can't find what we need. (I had them quasi-organized at the old place. At the the books were stacked into generic categories - my fiction, Eric's war books, music textbooks, etc. The packers obviously did not appreciate my system. Hmpt!)

Maybe I'll just sit on the couch and surf the web for true and bizarre stories. For instance, msnbc is reporting that stinky farts in mice might help regulate high blood pressure. foxnews is reporting that a college student in Taiwan died after participating in a competitive eating contest. See what you're missing while working at your job? HGTV is 2nd on my agenda.

The picture is my great-great-grandparents on my dad's side. They got married on Oct. 23, 1895 in Indiana. So yesterday would have been their 113th wedding anniversary. I believe this picture was taken on their 50th. Certainly hope she was friendlier than she appears in photos. No real reason to post it, just felt like highlighting some family tree stuff.

What day is it?

Now that I'm not punching a clock, I have a hard time keeping track of days. Today was the first day that both Eric and Nathan were out. Spent most of the day trying to make since of the junk that had just been thrown into the closets as we unpacked boxes.

So now that Nathan is walking to school, he and Eric both decided he was perfectly capable of walking to and from school without parental assistance. I'm more worried about him getting distracted along the way, and therefore being late, but so far he has done what he was supposed to. On Monday, Eric went to the school right before they got out. He stood off to the side and watched Nathan look for us and then start walking home. Nathan was so proud of himself when he got home. I almost went today to find him. He's never in the first wave that gets out of the school. But I managed to restrain myself. But one of the things I was looking forward to was walking him to and from school. But I guess he doesn't need me (sniff! sniff!)

He had his first bad behavior mark yesterday. He says that 3 other kids in the class were misbehaving, but they got him in trouble. So instead of a blue star on he calendar, he got a yellow one (not good!) Today he managed to redeem himself. He's already complaining about homework. I didn't figure we'd have these kind of struggles until he was older. He's still impressionable enough to threaten with loss of toys to coerce him into doing his work. He mentioned today that he has 2 best friends. I'm thinking, "great! we can arrange for a playdate this weekend! What are their names?" "I don't know." Hmmmmmm.

I had to go to a spouse workshop yesterday, to learn about different programs on post. It lasted 3 hours. Probably everything I needed to know could have been condensed into 45 minutes. I was tickled to learn that if Eric had a girlfriend and designated her as a payee on his life insurance, the army is legally bound to send me a letter. The army can't tell me who the other beneficiaries are, or how much they will get, but they do have to tell me. I haven't received a letter yet, so I'm guessing it's all good.

Still haven't received any real mail since Sept. 25. Good thing most of my bills are paid on-line.

We will be getting new local cell phone numbers. For family and friends, email me if you need the new numbers. I'll probably have my going by the end of the day tomorrow. Eric, on the other hand, is resisting. He's got so many numbers in his phone from army buddies around the country. I must make an apology to my mother-in-law. I think she would crater into a fetal position without her cell phone or a land line. I don't really talk that much on the phone. I just don't have to be that connected. I must apologize, however, because I never realized that Eric was just as bad as his mother! His phone usage is 3 times what mine is! So my apologies, Rebecca Alice - I must be the odd duck in the fam.

Vista bites! I just lost half my post!

Any-hoo. According to my inbox - this is myeloma awareness week. Spend a moment on wikipedia and educate yourselves.

You'll all be pleased to know that I did find the legs to the couch. They were in a box on the front carport marked "tools". Yeah, can't believe I didn't find that earlier. The rollers for the bed frame are still MIA.

Couch legs?

I'd say we're about 75% through emptying boxes. Have not, however, been able to find the 4-inch screw-on legs for the couch. Nor can we find 2 of the rollers for the bed frame on our bed. I cannot intuitively guess based on the packer's hieroglyphics which of the remaining boxes might contain them. So both the couch and our bed are sitting lower than usual. Might have to feng sui the whole house and go for that asian feel.

Anyway, the house is starting to take shape. It may be 20 years older than the house we just left, but for the most part, it's square footage is more balanced in the rooms. For all intents and purposes, it's the same layout. But the living room is wider, plus it has carpet. Eric actually thinks our mismatch furniture looks better. Wall to wall carpet does wonders. We have a laundry room on the first floor, not a laundry closet, nor is it part of the kitchen. Rather than a large closet/pantry on the first floor, it's actually a walk-in closet on the 2nd floor. I lost the double skin master bathroom with the walk in closet, but actually I have more closet space than I did in the other house. None of the bathrooms have windows, so they're pretty stark. Nathan's bathroom is now sporting a tropical fish shower curtain that he picked out himself (slight improvement over the Spiderman motif).

Drawbacks - there's almost no airflow upstairs. That's not gonna fly. The stairwell and upstairs doorways are kinda narrow (glad it wasn't me moving my dresser up the stairs). And the kitchen! It's what you would expect in a NYC efficient apartment. Tiny little galley style. I can touch the counters on both sides, and walk through it lengthwise in less than 6 steps. But small square footage is manageable. The real problem is the cabinets. The only cabinets wide enough to allow for dinner plates are the 2 cabinets above the sink. All the other cabinets are so narrow that I can't get plates, or mixing bowls, or pots and pans in them. Most of the cabinets are 8-10 inches wide. My dinner plates are 10-1/2 inches. And the cabinets are particle board from the 70s. The counter tops are the exact same as we had at Campbell and our first place at Sill. The army most have gotten a heckuva deal on these.

But those are just minor inconveniences. Location trumps tiny kitchen. We live on a cul-de-sac, and there are kids EVERYWHERE! If we could just pry Nathan the hermit out of the house, he'd probably have the time of his life meeting kids. I've noticed that after moms drop off their kids for school in the morning, a lot of them go for walks in the neighborhood, either by themselves or in groups. Hopefully I'll be able to plug into the neighborhood vibe now that we're actually here.

texas is beating mizzou 35-3 at the half. Blech.

Shout out to my mother-in-law. I had my first cup of coffee in our new place with one of my new red coffee cups. Thanks!

There was some anxiety this morning, trying to get the OU game and figure out the wireless network. A little extra money to Comcast, a 15 minute call to Belkin tech support, and we were good to go. Yeah Sooners!

Eric just rocked a brisket. Best one he's ever made. Good thing, too, since we have a LOT left! ;). He tried sea bass for the first time last night. I thought the flavor was good, but watch out for the bones.

Nathan and Eric will go look for gaters in the neighborhood tomorrow while I tackle the laundry. What fun...

Boxes of books everywhere! I did try to purge before we moved, but dang! Neither of us can through away books or music. We have a box of vinyl records, which we have not listen to EVER! In fact, they have some water damage. IMO, we could have thrown them out, but Eric couldn't do it. I'd get all my books in e-book pdf form, but you just can't take a bubble bath with your laptop. Wouldn't be prudent!

Don't think I can stay up until 11:30 to watch SNL tonight for Sarah Palin. I still haven't gotten used to the time change. I don't think I've seen the evening news yet, because I just can't stay up that late.

I'm still weirded out by spanish moss. Technically I don't think it's a parasite, but sheesh! It's everywhere.

How we felt the last week of motel livin'

I'll probably be served with a cease and disist order for using Bloom County pictures.

We're in the house, we're online, but I'm too tuckered out to blog more. Maybe tomorrow.

Ah! Sweet Solitude!

It's Tuesday morning and I finally have the 'house' to myself. Eric started inprocessing today and Nathan went back to school after the Columbus day holiday. We tried to make it easy in ourselves as this gypsy life continues to drag out. We rented the room next to ours for the 3-day and we rented a car for the rest of the week. But this has been no joke. I think the next time we look into getting a motel room with 2 cats I may have some PTSD issues. I should probably look into therapy for Roxy.

Let's see, what have we done since the last time I posted? Well, I don't think the OU game needs to be addressed. Eric keeps saying that it's no shame in loosing to the #5 team in the nation. My thinking is that that's okay for anyone ranked #6 or lower. If you're ranked #1-4? Not so much.

After that debacle, Nathan and I explored one of the on-post play areas for kids. Indoor playground the thousands of nerf balls and the cannons to blast them with. Nathan worked up quite a sweat in the 3 hours we stayed there, but afterwards called it boreing. Since when did he become a teenager?

Sunday rained all freakin' day. That put the kibosh on going to the beach like we had planned. I finally went stir crazy and went into Savannah to find a bookstore. Found Books a Million. Somewhere there's a Barnes & Noble and a Waldenbooks, but that seems to be it. Did find Michaels and Hancock Fabrics while I was out, so future shopping sprees should be fruitful. Did get the book I've been waiting for all week (post living is nice, but the PX isn't going to have that big of a selection). Also picked up a couple of quilting magazines. I'm itching to get my sewing stuff out and have fabric exploding all over the dining area in the new house, but I'll try to control myself until after the boxes are unpacked.

Monday was just more of the same - Nathan watching tv/playing ps2 in one room, Eric watching tv/surfing the web in the other. I usually buried my nose in a book. I did have to find a laundrymat in Richmond Hill. The only one I found was pretty darn rough. I didn't stay any longer than necessary, so those clothes that were still damp got festooned in both rooms to air dry. I did also have find a copier for Eric plus shower flip-flops.

So today was the start of 'normal'. Again Nathan complained about going to school. He started to come around once we got in the rental car. But once we got to the school, Mr. Sensitive came out again. Apparently the kids line up class outside. I didn't know which line was his, and he said he didn't recognize any of the kids. He's only 7 and he's only been with that group for 3 days, so I can believe it. I asked one of the monitors which class was his, then she came over and tried to get some of other kids in the line to be his buddy. That just embarrassed him more and started more tears. I felt so bad for him. My momma instinct was to find his teacher and explain that he was a little sensitive this morning. But I managed to refrain. I figured he's get over it soon enough, and I knew we'd probably have the same story tomorrow. Sigh...

I did get the whole cable/phone/internet taken care of this morning. Heaven forbid we not have tv or internet by Saturday at 3:30! After scheduling the service tech for anytime between 8-12 on Friday, I remembered that the movers are supposed to come on Friday, so it could be very hectic that day. Both Nathan and Eric will be off work/school. Them, plus the cats? Cozy!

2 weeks down, 1 to go

We left Lawton 2 weeks ago today. Since then we've lived in motels. Ugggg. Here I sit in our Days Inn Room, watching the dow jones futures tank, listening to one politician after another saying, I'm right, he's wrong, yet either not qualified to remake the economy into a vibrant, healthy, forward-looking one. (I've obviously spent too much time watching TV lately). Who needs Iceland anyway? I did register to vote in Georgia last week. I think I'm just going to vote anti-incumbent. Doesn't matter what side of the aisle - just throw the bums out and start over.

Any-hoo. Nathan started school on Wednesday. Eric and I both took him. We were a few minutes late because we hadn't anticipated both school traffic and PT traffic intersecting in our new neighborhood. Went to his new classroom. His teacher asked him if he was excited to join the class. He looked up at her and said, "Well, I am a little nervous, actually." She reassured him a little, then said to the class, "I need a buddy. Who wants to be a buddy?" Every little boy arm started waving wildly. AJ showed him where to hang his backpack and they all settled down for storytime. So we left and looked at each other and thought - what do we do now? We've been a trio for 10 days straight. It seemed strange not to have him with us.

But we managed to survive the empty nest syndrome. Eric took a nap and I applied for unemployment and found the local public library (TINY!). I went solo to pick up Nathan. He seemed happy with the school. He only complained about the succotash at lunch and no recess.

Now, getting the kid out of bed yesterday and today has been a challenge. School doesn't start until 8:00, but with the travel time and going through the gate, he's gotta hit the road shortly after 7:00. Unfortunately, the poor kid takes after his momma. Neither of us are morning people. I can make myself get up early, but that's because I'm an adult. Nathan, on the other hand, doesn't get the idea of consequences. We had a crying episode this morning with Nathan yelling that Eric is so bossy and it's just not fair. Poor little guy. This should be the last morning he has to get up quite this early. Next week we'll move to a hotel in Hinesville to be closer to the post.

We've got a long 3 day weekend. Not sure what we'll do. Of course, the game is on at 12:00 on Saturday. I may take Nathan to explore some of the parks on post after the game is over. Then on Sunday and/or Monday we may explore Savannah more or try to find more beach. Tybee Island is having a Piratefest this weekend. Arg!