i will miss this house

No we aren't moving.

But when Matt and I talk about home improvements and budgets and styles, one of us always brings up the point that this is not going to be our forever house. We won't still be living here when our children leave for college or get married. We won't be grandparents in this house. We might not even be girl scout leaders in this house. Our original plan was 10-15 years then we'd move on.

When I look around though, I will miss what we've experienced here. I remember decorating the house: peeling wallpaper, painting, and larger renovations. I remember when we found out we were pregnant (twice!), and when we brought Natalie home. We learned how to be parents here.

When Natalie's older, and we look back at pictures of her childhood, I hope she remembers our first home. Playing in the pool and sprinkler and laughing in her baby swing. The slide she wanted so badly. The deck she "helped" to build. The bathtub she drew all over and played in with her sibling/s. That we couldn't keep her from climbing onto the bay window seat. And so many other everyday memories we haven't made yet.

Maybe the pregnancy hormones are making me overly sentimental. But I can't help it. I will miss this house.

Journaling versus blogging

I have always been a fan of journaling. More so now that I have a child (and another on the way). I started Natalie’s journal when I was just 5 weeks pregnant. And now, at 14 weeks pregnant the second time, I have started a new journal for the new baby.

With a full time job, a precocious and adorable toddler, a home that demands renovation, and a husband that insists we have food in the house at all times, the question becomes… are two journals enough, or should I continue attempting to blog?

920 -- Things I'm loving these days

1. The rain. It is nature's car wash. Plus it smells good.
2. The PSI monitor on my car. I'll leave you to your inferences.
3. These to do list note pads from prettybitter.com. I appreciate their honesty. (PS My birthday is coming up!)
4. Moms Like Me. After searching high and low for a full time working mom online support group, I finally stumbled on this (all local!) site. They have already helped me through one low point.
5. My darling daughter. Despite sickness, exhaustion, and general icky feelings, she manages to be amazing every day. We should all be so lucky.
6. My new fabric softener scent. Hey, it's all about the little things, right?
7. My husband. He works really hard, and never (hardly ever) complains. I have a lot to learn from him.
8. Custom return address stamps like these. Because labels are so last decade. Did I mention my birthday is coming up?
9. Bath time. Natalie's bath routine is the time we are guaranteed every day. We pick out her clothes, get some tub time in, and she talks up a storm. Afterwords, I feed her and sing to her. Sometimes she sings along.
10. Friends who call more than a month ahead of my birthday to ask what my plans are and if I want to get together to celebrate. They don't need no stinkin Facebook reminder! Thanks friend :)

Anything you're loving these days?

793.2 -- Raining and Pouring

Matt and I have a lot of organizing to do! Both his family and mine threw baby showers for the little bundle, and our house is overflowing. Luckily, all of our furniture has also come in, so there is no shortage of drawers, shelves, and baskets for storage. Thanks to the generosity of family and friends (and family friends!) we are set for diapers, receiving blankets, onesies, bibs, wipes, diaper cream, travel gear, and bedding. The few items left to buy will be a joy... I have been waiting for the pending shopping spree for weeks!

The first event held in Baby M's honor was in Lima in August. I felt like the shower was so early, but I wanted my mom to be there, so there was no getting around the early scheduling. I hardly felt pregnant at that point! Guests were split between family -- near and extended -- and family friends -- some of whom I haven't seen since our wedding! The games were fun, the gifts were much appreciated, and the food was amazing. The most fun of it was being surrounded by a wonderful, loving, supportive group.

Baby M's second party was in Ross this past Sunday. I've wanted a book shower since I found out we were pregnant, and my sister-in-law was kind enough to think of it! Baby M got about 20 books -- some of which we never would have known about. There were also a couple of new moms at this shower, which meant I got a lot of great tips on things like toys, books, travel accessories, and clothes. Another fun part was the number of preggers ladies -- 25% of those in attendance! (I'm told at least two of them were taking notes on things to register for for their own showers!)

Thanks to all who attended or sent well wishes for our family! I'm grateful that Baby M will be born into such a large, loving family.

355.00973 -- Congratulations Matt!

Saturday, we celebrated the official end to Matt's Army career. It was an emotional day in many ways. Sad because we both closed a huge chapter in our lives, full of friends and experiences we'll never forget. But mostly it was a happy occasion. Especially because we will soon be a family, we are looking forward to less time away from home and more stability.

Matt gave a great speech. He teared up a little talking about his experiences over the past 6 years, and I don't think I was the only one in the audience who did the same just listening.

The actual Change of Command was really quick. Matt's replacement is standing opposite him, with the Troop's First Sergeant on the left and the Lieutenant Colonel on the right.

Matt receiving his Army Commendation Medal.
This is the first and only time I have been able to pin Matt. His promotions have all taken place overseas, either in Korea or Afghanistan, and the awards he got following his deployment to Afghanistan were awarded in a group by senior officers.
Please ignore the fact that I look so huge as to be (as Karen put it about her own pregnant self) "houselike."

Of course Matt got some great "parting gifts" in appreciation of his time spent as Troop Commander. The first frame contains the Squadron colors. The second picture is the Troop's Guidon, accompanied by Matt's name tape and rank on the lower left and a troop photo taken that day on the lower right.

The Troop photo. About two-thirds of the troop are deployed right now. Matt is in the Cavalry branch of the Army, and the horses and stetson hats (and spurs, though you can't see those) are part of the Cavalry tradition. Cool right?

Seven of Matt's closest friends came for the day, as well as his parents and myself. (His fan club was easily the largest!) During the open house that followed the ceremony, friends and family got to climb into and around the humvees and check out the mounted guns and long range site equipment.

917.5 -- Myrtle Beach recap (finally!)

Matt and I returned over a week ago from our week of sun, sand, and surf in Myrtle Beach. Everything was wonderful, and the weather cooperated nicely. We spent one day in Charleston, getting our history fix at Ft. Sumter and several WW2-era navy vessels. The rest of the time we spent in our room, around the pool or on the beach. In fact, except for our Charleston day, we spent over 4 hours on the beach every day!

The view from our hotel room was great! We spent lots of time on our balcony reading or just relaxing.

This is a picture of Ft. Sumter from the ferry. It was really cool, but we didn't feel like we had enough time. Since you come and go by ferry, there is a limited amount of time for wandering.

Where the Ft. Sumter ferry docks there are also some historic naval vessels that you can go aboard and explore. We saw the carrier and the submarine. Matt's grandfather was on a carrier just like this in WWII, which made it all the more interesting to see what naval life was like at that time.

On the way home, we stopped in nearby Wilmington, NC to visit with Karen and Clay -- two friends from our Fort Drum days. And of course, at the end of the exhausting car trip, we enjoyed seeing Cincinnati from one of our favorite views.

016.394 -- Birthday Festivities

Saturday, to celebrate both our birthdays, Matt and I spent the afternoon at a Cincinnati Reds game. It was a scorcher of a day, so we avoided our seats in full sun and settled in some shady upper deck seats. The game was pretty awful, but the food was good, and the tickets were cheap. To make it even more fun, it was free fleece blanket day!

When the day was over, we crashed back at our house to enjoy good food, great company, a warm campfire, and a breezy starry night. What a great day!

694.6 -- Necessity and invention

Our back yard is a good spot for entertaining small groups. And this spring/summer, our birthday/bbq/misc celebration/mini-reunion parties will be made more festive by the really unique tiki torch holders my handy husband devised last year! I was so impressed and overjoyed at what he came up with that I wanted to post a picture here. (Last summer got away from me, so they've been waiting a whole year!)


These got rave reviews at last year's parties, and are perfect (I would think) for raised decking like a balcony where tiki torches would otherwise be impossible (or really dangerous). Cool huh?!

394.2622 -- April Foolishness

I'm not big into college sports. Let's be honest. I'm not really into sports much at all. So until I met my friend Karen, I wasn't even aware of a school called Clemson. Karen's crazy about her alma mater, though, so I now know the logo, the mascot... I think I've even heard the fight song!

Now that I know of Clemson, of course, it pops up everywhere. I notice sports scores, news headlines, and while going through old newspapers for work, I found this clipping from the local Hamilton, Ohio newspaper. (Click to view a larger image. It's readable I promise!)

Of course I forgot to write down the year, but this snippet ran on April 4. Judging from the Clemson Wiki, it may have actually happened in March of 1982. Evidently, they never found out who did it!

155.925 -- Friends

While Matt and I were at Ft. Drum, I made some of the best friends I could imagine having. Earlier this month, they converged on Fairfield for our first reunion in almost 2 years. Of course we have been keeping up to date on each other, but no amount of blog postings or emails could replace actually being together.

Jackie, Erin, Briana, Karen, and me
Jackie and Karen posted more pics on their blogs. Check them out!