Always Remember

There are men and women who have died to give us the freedoms we usually take for granted. They and the families they left behind deserve our prayers and gratitude every day...not JUST today. Thank a soldier.

"Look Mom!...

...I can see my nose!"

Big Boy's 4th B'day Party

After much deliberation, I decided to have Bucky's party at the house. I don't know why I worried about it so much because just like last year, it was wonderful. The weather was great and all but one of the people invited were able to make it. The kiddos were playing outside for most of the party. I think the only reason they came in was for the cake/ice cream and for Bucky to open his presents. He loved everything he received. Thanks to Lisa for video taping and to Julie for taking pictures so I could enjoy my little boy's day. And Big Thanks to everyone who came to celebrate this wonderful day with us!

Family Day #2

On May 18, Bucky's Lil Dragon class had another Family Day. I took my good camera this time because I wanted better pictures than the first time. This time he broke two boards and received a red stripe on his belt to go with his green stripe. Normally this would be ok. However, his Sensei had told me prior to the class that Bucky would be getting a patch as well. Bucky came to me after getting his stripe, very upset, and said "I want one of those." I told him not to worry about it. Being the mother that I am I asked the Sensei about it after most of the other parents had left. He informed me that he completely forgot to get the patch out of his case but that Bucky was supposed to get a patch. He did go get the correct one and gave it to Bucky. Talk about a proud little boy! Any guesses about which pass he got?? If you guessed "Top Puncher" you are correct. Imagine that!

Baby Boy Turns 4!

Why is it that sometimes time flies and sometimes you can hear the seconds ticking away? Either way at least you know it's moving forward. This time of year is when I realize how fast it really does seem to fly. After all, it was 4 years ago when our precious little boy joined us and he has taken us on a wonderful, crazy ride since then.

Even though his party was not until the weekend after his actual birthday, I wanted to do some things for him on his birthday so he knows how special he is and that day is his. He opened his sports gifts after waking up. After going to the gym (for me), the rest of the day was his. He chose chicken nuggets for lunch (I know, What a Shock!) and then wanted to go home and play with his basketball goal. When we got home, there was a package for him so he opened it. It was from gamma and grandaddy and contained tons of goodies. We went outside to play and then came in for quiet time. After quiet time, I surprised him with a trip to the Sky Sox game. After the guard searched my bag, he gave Bucky a ball. Perfect since it was his birthday! We had fun but it was much colder than we were prepared for so we only stayed for half the game. It was ok though because he enjoyed it. I got him a new red bat and a Sox the Fox souvenir...his choice. He told me later that he had a good birthday so all was well :).

Terrific Tots Program

WARNING: Lots of cuteness to follow!

Bucky had his TTP Program yesterday morning. The Theme was "Down On The Farm." They sang several songs and did several "dances" with the motions and sounds for the songs. It was absolutely adorable!! What surprised all of the parents was that every kid stayed on the stage and participated without getting upset and without being forced to be there. I have to admit, I teared up a little when I realized (yet again) how big our little boy is getting and how mature he looks now compared to the beginning of the school year. But I sucked it up, blinked real fast and went on about my business :). Bucky had a great time singing the songs and I could definitely pick out his voice - not because I'm his mom but b/c he was louder through parts of the songs :). Video to follow if I can figure out how to load it...

Happy Mother's Day 2011

Happy Mother's Day to all mothers out there!

For Mother's Day this year, sans hubbies, my military sister and I grilled out...hamburgers and hot dogs all around. While it is certainly not the most ideal form of celebration, you learn to adapt and overcome when you are an Army Wife. This is also the stage in the deployment when you realize just how many holidays there are in a year and how many you missed spending together. Back to the festivities - while the meat was cooking, the kiddos played in the sprinkler. All in all it was an enjoyable afternoon and cookout.

And this is my Mother's Day present from the hubs. It may not mean much to most people, but he knows I would never spend money on something nice for myself so he did it for me :). It's a Diane von Furstenberg 21" Expandable Rolling Suitcase...and it's GORGEOUS!! I am very impressed with my hubby's "style" choice on this one! In case you are able to read this - Love You Babe!! and Thanks!!

Just Thinking...

I think it's normal for a parent of a young child to start pondering everything their child has learned and has done over the past year as their next birthday rapidly approaches. So here I sit thinking about the joys that I get from taking care of our son. They range from him still saying "goo" rather than glue, "lellow" rather than yellow, and "sdune" rather than spoon to being so much more coordinated this year that he can actually kick the soccer ball down a field and into the goal. While there are still bad moments like being told "I don't like you mom" or even "I hate you" and just recently "I wish you were at work and daddy was here", the good definitely outweighs the bad...I must be doing something right! I think that means we should keep him :).

Brrrrr

So as I stood at Bucky's game yesterday and he played in his thickest coat, hat and gloves, all I could think was WTH?!?! It was the last day of April and it was about 30 degrees outside with a 20+ MPH wind. The game ended up being much shorter than planned because we only had the minimum amount of players and the other team's players on the field slowly dwindled until there were only 2 players left. When they ended the game, let's just say that none of the parents (or kids) put up a fuss. I don't have any pictures to show - Did I mention it was freezing?? I kept my hands in my pockets the entire time. There was a dad there that takes pictures at all the games. When he uploads them to the team site, I'll share some with you.