Memorial Day

It's always hard to be without my army family on days like this. I miss the wives, taking care of the kids while the boys remembered the fallen. The girls did too, but it was different for them. We weren't there. We didn't walk beside men that wouldn't come home. We stayed behind, to grieve the loss of such men. I watched my neighbors enjoying a cookout in our court yesterday and it made me angry. Do they know? Do they even care? It's not fair that I singled them out, but did they take a minute to be grateful? I watched a woman become a widow and bury her whole world. I visited cemetery after cemetery in Europe. I sent a husband off to war three times, each time knowing there was a chance he wouldn't come back. My sacrifice pales in comparison to theirs. But I'm thankful every day to the "greatest generation" that died for my freedoms. The men that survived prisoner camps and torture to win a war against tyranny. I'm thankful for men like my husband that fought against terrorism. And to those who still carry the deep wounds of war that will never heal. 

A Trip Down South

When we found out Megan and Jake were having a party, we jumped at the chance to head to Georgia to see our old Army family. We packed up the kids and Onyx (Oscar spent a relaxing weekend at home) and headed to 85 South. I was terrified of the trip, as Lila is not known for enjoying long car rides, and Hayden is a talker. I was pleasantly surprised when Lila slept for almost the entire trip, and Hayden of course, talked nonstop.

Meike was excited to finally meet Lila! And we finally had a baby for those pink socks ;-)

And *I* got to meet baby Blake! He is so sweet and adorable, and is a little mini-James. I adore this little guy!

And then there was this sweet girl, a nearly exact replica of her sister, and at the same age as I last saw her sister! She was a sweet baby and opted to sleep for much of the party.

Blake is soooo lucky we didn't get the picture of him trying to put his hand up Lila's dress!

Yeah nothing has changed since we left in 2010.

The kids had a blast helping Uncle Jake with the fire pit! Hayden said it was "too hot on my face" but he still had fun helping and sitting around the fire.

Jay obviously stands out as the "one who doesn't have to shave", and Gabe is nearly as tall as I am. Give it another year and he'll tower over me for sure!

Lila got a little bigger from the last time she saw her uncle Jake in May!

The next day we headed on post to see the Pollards, the Bakers and the Millers. I forgot what it was like to live on post, but then again I never lived on post in the states so it's definitely different.

Lila and Jade are about three weeks apart, and Jade was born on my birthday!

After we hung out a bit, we headed out to get something to eat. Our group of four families now numbers 17, with one on the way (Sam, not me!) and I laughed because normally when I go out to eat with 16 other people, there's a week of planning and an Evite involved! But on this lovely Sunday, it was just lunch with my family.

After lunch we headed back to 85, but northbound this time. We made pretty good time, and the kids were awesome on the way back. It was good to be home, but I missed my Army family so much. There are a lot of things I don't miss about the Army (field training, deployments, dirty boots) but I really do miss the people. Luckily, they're just a phone call, email or 8-hour car ride away!

Life update

Well we've been tossing a lot around lately and have finally figured out we'll be staying in Germany a little longer! Jay came down on DA (Dept of the Army) recruiting orders, that he was not excited about. I can't blame him, the only thing harder than recruiting boys to the Army is girls to a women's college! So he luckily got out of those, which is pretty impossible. We then had a choice to make, mainly for Jay. We're a family, we make decisions together; but when it comes down to it, he's the one that has to get up at 5, work in the cold and deploy for 12 months at a time. In the end, staying here is best for his career, and if it means we don't have to move for another two years then I'm okay with that too! We're here until next February, but the unit may be in another deployment then, we'll just have to see.

This means you all have plenty of time to come visit us! It also means I've extended my list of places to see, and most importantly, Hayden's nursery is about to exist in full force! Since we're staying, we're painting and decorating his room this weekend. We got his crib on Sunday, and I cannot wait for the weekend to get to work! I promise to put up pics as soon as Jay stops throwing paint at me for taking pictures instead of painting (which I'm sure will happen).

Hayden and I will still be home in April for my five-year reunion at Salem, so you'll all get to meet him. Get ready, he's a heartbreaker!