OH! And I just realized I didn't say anything about our first Christmas together in 3 years in that last post! JD finally was home for Christmas and it was baby AD's first Christmas, and the first time KD (who is 3 years old) even understood what Christmas was!
Jason and I decided to go ahead and let KD believe in Santa. I was raised in a home where my Mother hated Santa, didn't like to hear the song, "Santa Clause is Coming to Town" or anything! So I never knew what it felt like to believe in Santa. Jason's parents did let him believe in Santa until he figured out he wasn't real, and he has some fond memories from those years he believed. We are also telling KD about the real reason for Christmas, Jesus' birth. And I am telling her that Santa is giving presents to everyone because it is Jesus' birthday, just as we all give gifts to each other for the same reason. We read her two books about Christmas, "Twas the Night Before Christmas" (the classic poem with illustrations) and another one about the birth of Jesus.
It was fun to take KD to see Santa at the mall and have her tell him what she wanted for Christmas and then get that gift for her to open Christmas day. In my house my Dad filled our stockings and pretended to be Santa, even though we knew there wasn't a real Santa. He kinda did it with a wink in his eye, telling us Santa filled our stockings and ate the cookies we left out... but we all knew it was our Dad that did that. (I don't know how he got away with doing that much, since my Mom hated the whole Santa thing so much.) I had fun getting different wrapping paper and a big gold bow to put on KD's gift, so it would look like it came from somewhere else, and then seeing her eyes pop out of her head as she opened the gift that "Santa" had brought her. You only get a few years of your life with such innocence and wonder, what does it hurt to allow your child to believe when they still have that childlike ability to actually believe in Santa? Once she figures it out I won't be trying to force the belief on her, its just something fun to do for a while. And I am sure I will keep "playing Santa" like my Dad did, even after she stops believing he is real. And I will be sure to keep the focus of Christmas on Jesus' birth, even if we do "play Santa."
The only downer was that the Santa we brought KD and AD to see was rather grumpy. He took off his glasses and was rubbing his eyes between kids coming to sit on his lap. And we even got there right after his lunch break! You would think he got to have his break and would be refreshed enough to at least smile for the camera. But he made no effort to smile as the kids sat on his lap. He just held them there like a big lump and had a frown on his face. But I don't think KD even noticed. She was just in awe that she got to see Santa in person. And it will be a funny story and picture to show the kids in the years to come. And at least the kids were both looking at the camera and looked happy... and cute.
JD and I didn't have gifts for each other, but I am joking with him that what he is about to do in the next week is our gift to each other. He is going to get "the snip"... as we call it. LOL We both have decided we are done having kids. We have one girl and one boy, and they are both healthy. And my pregnancies were difficult on me, as were the deliveries (I tore very badly with both). I tell people all the time, if I were to get pregnant again I would ask the Doctor to cut me open and take the kid out, there is no way I would push another kid through my lady parts and be tore all up again and have all that pain and recovery that follows... not to mention the pain that comes with having sex again. It sucks when you want to be with your husband physically and you have pain down there that makes it almost unbearable. It makes me very unenthusiastic when it comes to being intimate again. I know I need to do that, and the more we are intimate the better it gets... but its like doing my homework. And who wants to do homework?! I just want it to feel good, not like work. I know, "TMI!"... right? Sorry about that. So... very soon JD will be laid up with an ice pack on his privates. LOL
And with that I again wish you a Happy and Hopeful New Year! ;-) God bless you!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
A Hopeful New Year (2011)
The last blog, if you read it, is pretty bleak. The news, not so great. But as we turn a corner and enter the new year the situations have greatly changed on all fronts.
My brother with the stage 4 Melanoma cancer did get into that clinical trial in San Francisco and the pill he is taking has shrunk his tumors and seems to be keeping them at bay. The down side is the side effects of prickly feet and sores on his head, but the Doctors are trying to figure out a dosage that minimizes the side effects while keeping his tumors shrinking, or at least keep them from growing any larger. And the bright side to all this, of course, is that he is still alive! He is such a strong person, able to handle a lot of pain. I can't imagine going through all he has gone through, but I am happy he is still with us... whatever condition his body is in.
My sister-in-law and her husband have been chosen again by another pregnant lady to adopt her baby, which is a girl! Which is very good... since the last baby they prepared for (and lost, when the birth parents changed their minds) was a girl and the room is not suitable at all for a boy baby. This time the woman is divorced, her husband left her because she got pregnant, and she has no family or the means to raise a baby. Very sad story. I am now praying that this time the birth Mom doesn't change her mind and that my sister and brother in law get their baby that they have been waiting for and praying for all these years. I don't know if I could handle seeing another baby being torn from their arms. But I am hopeful that 2011 is going to be the year that turns all this sad stuff around.
My husband will be leaving for his last 5 week long rotation with his current employer (knock on wood... that it will be his last). More than likely he will be giving his notice this time when he goes back and then we will either live off his severance pay for a few months, until a new job comes along or until JD's Dad has his company started. JD's Dad has been looking for financial backers, and it seems he is on the cusp of getting that money from some interested investors. So, I will be praying for that to all come through in perfect timing, for JD to leave his current job and hop into that job with his Dad when he gets home (at least before his severance pay runs out). And both JD and I are okay with saying, "Good riddance!" to his career as a pilot and the crazy rotation schedules and time away from home. I guess that may mean I won't be a pilot's wife anymore and I will have to start a new blog. Ha!
This last rotation JD was gone I went nuts a few times. I wasn't handling it very well. I found handling my daughter's tantrums and mood swings difficult while trying to juggle the needs of a baby at the same time, and trying to eat well and sleep well was a challenge. When I don't sleep or eat well I don't function well. I tried my hardest to find someone that can come into my home and watch the kids for a couple hours a day, for at least a few days a week, but no luck in finding such a person. I got tons of offers from neighbors and friends to take the kids or got references for daycare places that were run by friends of friends in their homes. Those kinds of offers are somewhat helpful. But I don't always want to be separated from my kids just to get the household chores together, or just to get a nap in. It would be nice to be in our own home all together and have someone around to just handle the kids and play with them or feed them while I either do some laundry and cook meals, or have some alone time in my room and take a rest or a mental break. It would be very very nice to have someone here at night when its time to put KD to bed. Its hard to deal with a crying baby on my lap and try to read a book to KD and rock both of them together, sometimes while the baby is nursing. And that neighbor who was around the prior rotation was either sick herself or one of her 3 kids was sick. She didn't help me ONCE! Ugh.... and KD and I both got sick at the beginning of JD's rotation away and at the end of his rotation away. And of course JD's parents were sick when we were sick, or when we weren't sick, or they were busy when I was at my end and needed a break. It was a horrible rotation. Plus JD missed Thanksgiving with all of us. But he did come home for Christmas, so I will take that trade off. (Although we did get JD sick when he got home... he had no chance, with the baby, KD, and myself all being sick.)
This next time JD is gone KD will be starting in a pre-school. They meet Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri for school and then Wed they do field trips. I have to work one day a week, since its a co-op preschool, and that day will be Tuesday. So, it will be very different from the last rotation with this new school adventure. Once KD is comfortable enough I can drop her off at 9am, on my non-work days, and pick her up at 11:45am. That will give me a couple hours of free time, I can even drop off the baby during that time at a neighbor's house or with my Mother-in-law if I want to do something "kid free." And my MIL is even going to get a car seat so she can take KD to school or be able to pick her up for me, if needed. So now I am thinking at least once a week she can take KD to school, I can drop the baby off at the neighbor's down the street, and I can take one of my favorite exercises classes at the local gym that is from 9am to 10am. And then two other days of the week I can drop KD off and then when I get home pop in an exercise DVD and work out that way (if I can work that around the baby's feeding schedule as well). Or I can just be alone with the baby for a few hours with no pressure to do anything, that is good too... especially if I had a rough nights sleep the night before or whatever.
So, you can see, I am hopeful that things will be different in 2011. And I hope things will be better for everyone this coming year. I think 2010 has been rough on a lot of people. I pray God brings everything around full circle and we see the many blessings He has been planning for us to enjoy. God bless, and Happy hopeful new year!!!
My brother with the stage 4 Melanoma cancer did get into that clinical trial in San Francisco and the pill he is taking has shrunk his tumors and seems to be keeping them at bay. The down side is the side effects of prickly feet and sores on his head, but the Doctors are trying to figure out a dosage that minimizes the side effects while keeping his tumors shrinking, or at least keep them from growing any larger. And the bright side to all this, of course, is that he is still alive! He is such a strong person, able to handle a lot of pain. I can't imagine going through all he has gone through, but I am happy he is still with us... whatever condition his body is in.
My sister-in-law and her husband have been chosen again by another pregnant lady to adopt her baby, which is a girl! Which is very good... since the last baby they prepared for (and lost, when the birth parents changed their minds) was a girl and the room is not suitable at all for a boy baby. This time the woman is divorced, her husband left her because she got pregnant, and she has no family or the means to raise a baby. Very sad story. I am now praying that this time the birth Mom doesn't change her mind and that my sister and brother in law get their baby that they have been waiting for and praying for all these years. I don't know if I could handle seeing another baby being torn from their arms. But I am hopeful that 2011 is going to be the year that turns all this sad stuff around.
My husband will be leaving for his last 5 week long rotation with his current employer (knock on wood... that it will be his last). More than likely he will be giving his notice this time when he goes back and then we will either live off his severance pay for a few months, until a new job comes along or until JD's Dad has his company started. JD's Dad has been looking for financial backers, and it seems he is on the cusp of getting that money from some interested investors. So, I will be praying for that to all come through in perfect timing, for JD to leave his current job and hop into that job with his Dad when he gets home (at least before his severance pay runs out). And both JD and I are okay with saying, "Good riddance!" to his career as a pilot and the crazy rotation schedules and time away from home. I guess that may mean I won't be a pilot's wife anymore and I will have to start a new blog. Ha!
This last rotation JD was gone I went nuts a few times. I wasn't handling it very well. I found handling my daughter's tantrums and mood swings difficult while trying to juggle the needs of a baby at the same time, and trying to eat well and sleep well was a challenge. When I don't sleep or eat well I don't function well. I tried my hardest to find someone that can come into my home and watch the kids for a couple hours a day, for at least a few days a week, but no luck in finding such a person. I got tons of offers from neighbors and friends to take the kids or got references for daycare places that were run by friends of friends in their homes. Those kinds of offers are somewhat helpful. But I don't always want to be separated from my kids just to get the household chores together, or just to get a nap in. It would be nice to be in our own home all together and have someone around to just handle the kids and play with them or feed them while I either do some laundry and cook meals, or have some alone time in my room and take a rest or a mental break. It would be very very nice to have someone here at night when its time to put KD to bed. Its hard to deal with a crying baby on my lap and try to read a book to KD and rock both of them together, sometimes while the baby is nursing. And that neighbor who was around the prior rotation was either sick herself or one of her 3 kids was sick. She didn't help me ONCE! Ugh.... and KD and I both got sick at the beginning of JD's rotation away and at the end of his rotation away. And of course JD's parents were sick when we were sick, or when we weren't sick, or they were busy when I was at my end and needed a break. It was a horrible rotation. Plus JD missed Thanksgiving with all of us. But he did come home for Christmas, so I will take that trade off. (Although we did get JD sick when he got home... he had no chance, with the baby, KD, and myself all being sick.)
This next time JD is gone KD will be starting in a pre-school. They meet Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri for school and then Wed they do field trips. I have to work one day a week, since its a co-op preschool, and that day will be Tuesday. So, it will be very different from the last rotation with this new school adventure. Once KD is comfortable enough I can drop her off at 9am, on my non-work days, and pick her up at 11:45am. That will give me a couple hours of free time, I can even drop off the baby during that time at a neighbor's house or with my Mother-in-law if I want to do something "kid free." And my MIL is even going to get a car seat so she can take KD to school or be able to pick her up for me, if needed. So now I am thinking at least once a week she can take KD to school, I can drop the baby off at the neighbor's down the street, and I can take one of my favorite exercises classes at the local gym that is from 9am to 10am. And then two other days of the week I can drop KD off and then when I get home pop in an exercise DVD and work out that way (if I can work that around the baby's feeding schedule as well). Or I can just be alone with the baby for a few hours with no pressure to do anything, that is good too... especially if I had a rough nights sleep the night before or whatever.
So, you can see, I am hopeful that things will be different in 2011. And I hope things will be better for everyone this coming year. I think 2010 has been rough on a lot of people. I pray God brings everything around full circle and we see the many blessings He has been planning for us to enjoy. God bless, and Happy hopeful new year!!!
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