Mama On The Move

Kerry called this morning to give us the amazing news that he will be home for Christmas!! God is blessing my socks off!

Our Thanksgiving started off with a bang.....literally. We met some friends at a nearby stadium to spend some time running and walking around the track. I only walk, but the teens like to run. They usually run a mile, then they go "free run" because regular running isn't dangerous enough. Free running involves leaping over fences and running up walls. I tried to find some videos on you tube to link to, but most of the ones on there involve people doing back flips and other extreme moves that Ben doesn't do (yet). On Thursday, Ben and Nate were leaping over two chain link fences. One was four feet high the other was six feet high. They were practicing going over one fence and then the other without pausing. Ben cleared it the first time he tried, but the second time, he didn't quite get his feet up high enough. His shoes tangled in the top of the fence and he landed smack on his face in the dirt from four feet in the air. He was dizzy and slightly nauseated when he...

I'm car shopping. I HATE car shopping. This is Kerry's area. He usually does the research. He usually does the dickering. I stink at dickering. A car salesman can tell me why I need this car right now , why I can't leave the lot without signing the papers today , and why he just can't reduce the price of the car one bit and I will say, "Oh....okay then." They train on people like me. My southern girl politeness won't let me be rude or possibly hurt their feelings (yes I know how ridiculous that sounds) by walking away after all the time and effort they have put into showing me their available vehicles. Knowing they will do this to me, I have so far only surfed on line for cars and have not set foot on an actual car lot for fear they will get me in their clutches. I did, however, go ahead and get an auto loan approval. I wanted to make sure I had the financing taken care of before I ever get to the lot. I figure it might make me sound like I know what I...

If you have never Elfed Yourself, now is the time! It is very simple to upload pictures of yourself onto this website and make a hilarious video clip that will superbly entertain your kids (and you too, really). Here is the "Singing" version of Elf Yourself. You can also see us Shake Our Groove Thing ! Or see us bust some cool moves in the Hip Hop version !

Put your curser over the picture for the play button to pop up.

Remember this video ? It's the one where Kerry came home for R&R and the dogs went berserk when they saw him for the first time in seven months. Well, I was browsing The Bonnie Hunt Show website this past week and there was a spot in there to submit a funny video. So I submitted the video of Kerry and the dogs. Lo and behold they called me this morning to ask if they could use the video on the show! I almost didn't answer the phone because the caller ID showed it was a call from "The Culver Stud". I thought at best it was short for "Study" which would probably be a long drawn out poll or at worst, that obscene phone calls have gotten franchised. Then someone started to leave a message and he identified himself as being from The Bonnie Hunt Show. I snatched up the phone and got the exciting news that they want to play the clip on the show! (It was from Culver Studio , by the way.) He's supposed to email me when they know for sure it will be on. He sa...

Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale........ We went to Gilligan's Island this week! Actually, it's really called Coconut Island and Gilligan's Island was not filmed there. Well, the opening scene of the show was filmed there. You know the part where they show an aerial view of the SS Minnow beached in the lagoon? THAT is Coconut Island off the coast of Oahu. The rest of the show was filmed in a studio in Hollywood. But I was thrilled, thrilled I tell you, to be visiting the uncharted desert isle where the Minnow was beached. I watched Gilligan's Island every single day after school for years. If there were a Trivial Pursuit game which only asked questions about that show, I would kick butt. Today, the island is the home of the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology which is part of the University of Hawaii. We set up a field trip for our homeschool group to take a tour. A three hour tour. Heh heh. We set out on this little boat which ferried us over t...

The world has evolved to a scary place. Normal, every-day clothing is now being designed to protect people from terrorist attacks. Consider the brassiere - now it not only lifts and separates, it can save the lives of two people should a gas attack occur. Whip it off and convert it into two useful gas masks! (Full story here .) "It only takes 25 seconds for any woman to use," she joked. "Five seconds to convert and wear her own mask, and 20 seconds to wonder who the lucky man is to wear the second mask." Talk about uplifting research.

See those little heads bobbing up and down way out there? One of those little heads belongs to my son. My firstborn, my baby boy, who is far too young to be that far out in the ocean, or diving that deep under the water. But this was his official first scuba dive after a week of class (which is not nearly long enough). Two nights in a classroom, two dives in a swimming pool, and they take you out in the ocean two days in a row for four consecutive dives - as if you know anything about what you are doing. Well, Ben must have known what he was doing because he is now officially certified as a scuba diver! I was terrified he might die out there. He was unconcerned that it was a possibility. Silly mom, teenagers are immortal.

I am. I think I have handled this deployment beautifully. I've kept things running, unpacked our entire house (except for those last three boxes that I just can't make myself care about), learned my way around the island, homeschooled the kids, and handled every crises that has come up, including having the car break down twice in the space of a month back in February. I have been relentlessly upbeat, I have not complained, I have accepted the situation and continued on with my life because, honestly, what choice do I have? I could whine and cry, but it wouldn't change the fact that my husband is deployed for a year and I have three kids who need two parents and I am both right now. But I'm tired. I'm tired of being the only one who can drive. I'm tired of planning meals and shopping for groceries and teaching three different grade levels. I'm tired of sweeping and laundry and dishes and dog hair. I'm tired of being exhausted all day and unable to...

Kerry called on Tuesday to give me some exciting news - he wasn't supposed to come home until January, but he was being sent home with the second wave of soldiers returning and would be here for Christmas! They had been telling him for weeks that he would be leaving in early December, but he didn't want to tell me and the kids and get us all happy and excited in case the date got changed again. He had lunch with one of his colonels on Tuesday and verified all information: "You're sure I'm going home in time for Christmas?" "Absolutely. Your name is on the manifest, I've been telling you that for weeks!" "So it's definite? I can tell my wife?" "I'm surprised you haven't told her already!" So he told me. The next day the other colonel called him into his office, "You're not going home in December, we're keeping you back until January" (give or take a few expletives). Thank you, Lord, that I did not...

Halloween can be a sticky topic among Christians. I usually keep very quiet about my stance on Halloween celebrations. I've found it can lead to an all out attack by those who are convinced they are right and that they need to tell me the truth . So here it is: I take my kids trick or treating. I do. I always have. Every year of their lives. And not once did we stop and worship satan along the way. (Please do not email me to tell me the history of Halloween or the true meaning of All Hallows Eve. I've heard it all. We still trick or treat.) Anyway, I was actually surprised (and a little disappointed) this year when my kids said they wanted to attend the trunk or treat at our church instead of trick or treating in our neighborhood. We have a lot of homeschoolers at our church and many of them do the same history program. Currently they are all studying the Amazon. So they decided to have a themed alternative party at the church on Halloween with a South American theme. We aren...