iPhone & Easter

Today was a good day! This afternoon I had a lunch date with some amazing ladies and two adorable little ones. It was so nice to get out with friends for yummy food and great conversation. It was equally fun to spend the afternoon with two of the most adorable kids. It was so cute watching them hold hands at the table. They were definately the center of attention, and rightfully so!

This afternoon I decided I had had enough of broken, water ruined, malfunctioning, funny noise making phones so I took a trip to the AT&T store after getting the girls from school. I'm now the proud owner of an iPhone, with a purple and pink case of course. Just call me old fashioned for not upgrading sooner. I just couldn't ever justify the higher phone bill to have all that extra stuff. I needed to be able to make phone calls and text. I figured if I needed to get on the internet I had a computer at home and if I needed driving directions I could print them out before I left the house. I still don't really see that I need a smartphone, but we had the upgrade option, the phone was cheap, and if I don't do it now I'll really be left behind by the time we can upgrade again. Technology moves so fast these days. I've been playing with the silly phone all evening and it's already frustrating me. It's so different than the simple call and text phones. I'm sure I'll figure it all out eventually and then I'll wonder why I didn't upgrade sooner. I'm just happy to have a reliable phone that won't die on me in the middle of a conversation. What I'm not looking forward to is my next bill. We have 4 lines on our account as it is now so to add the smart phone fee, plus the upgrade fee it's not going to be pretty next month. I have a hard time justifying spending more than necessary on things like this that aren't necessities, but I guess it is what it is. When Trint gets back next year he'll be upgrading too so...wow! I guess I won't think about that right now. First I'll get over the shock of what it is at the moment. I'm sure it isn't that bad compared to what a lot of people pay, so I'll just leave it at that.

When the girls and I finally left AT&T we headed to Price Busters to find Easter goodies for daddy. We decided to forgo the whole basket thing, it wouldn't fit in the box anyhow, and we're going to make the box the basket. The girls had fun walking through the isles picking things out. I won't go into detail about their finds because then it wouldn't be a surprise when Trint gets his box of goodies. I did have to finally tell them we had plenty of stuff because they just kept finding more and more. They would have bought out the store if I had let them. Everthing they saw I'd hear them say, "daddy would love this". I just told them, "I'm sure he would, but we can only fit so much in a box and we do have a budget to stick to so pick your favorites and we'll buy more later." I anticipate many more fun outings with the kids to find that perfect gift for daddy's box.

Every day I try to do something for Trint to remind him that we love him and that we're patiently waiting for him to come home. Today was Easter shopping. Yesterday I made him a photo book online, totally free I might add thanks to the company (I can't remember the name of it) and to the USO for paying for the shipping, with our family pictures. Some days it's just a message through facebook or a comment on his profile, but always something. Every day I find a way to tell him "I love you". So, if you're reading this baby...
WE LOVE YOU! WE LOVE YOU! WE LOVE YOU! XOXOXO

SGO Night!

I always look forward to Wednesday nights with my Grace Bible small group. It was especially nice to go tonight since I haven't been in a few weeks. I had been spending my time concentrating on my husband and spending as much time as possible with him before he had to leave which caused me to miss sgo. It was nice to get back into the swing of things and visit with the girls again. Tonight we celebrated Jerri's birthday which meant dinner at Gyotaku's. Such a yummy restaurant! My mouth was watering all day, just waiting for some ahi poke, shrimp tempura, California rolls, and miso soup. Yummo! 

This afternoon I finally got motivated to work on coupons. It always feels great at the checkout when they start scanning the coupons and the total slowly keeps falling. If only I could save like those extreme couponers they show on TLC. I guess I probably could if I just took the time. Part of me just likes the convenience of driving a few blocks away to shop at the commissary. However I'm really starting to consider looking into other options. It would definately be worth it to drive to another store to save on groceries and necessities. From the looks of these extreme couponers a person should never have to pay full retail for anything. Maybe as time goes on I'll get better at this and come home with a credit on my receipt. Could happen! I probably have about $200 in coupons sitting on my floor right now waiting for me to sort them out. Now I just need to sort them, find the cheapest place to use them, and I'll be good to go!

 

My Drummer Boy

FYI...I wrote this post last night, but when I went back to reread it I couldn't concentrate because I was too tired. I saved it last night and posted it this morning. I didn't want it to be just a bunch of jumbled up mess of words that made no sense. hehe

Last night I didn't get much sleep due to an unexpected visitor in our bed. Shay occassionally will just break out in hives for no apparent reason. Last night was one of those nights. She came into our room still half asleep and told me her back was itchy. I barely even remember her coming in. I must have still been asleep because I didn't get up so she just crawled in bed.  I don't even recall her getting in our bed. I have no idea what time it was when she came in, but sometime in the middle of the night I felt her arm whack me in the head. That woke me up for sure. After that she just couldn't stop wiggling and stealing the blanket from me. She's always a wiggly sleeper. My alarm clock went off way to early this morning for my taste, especially after not getting very good sleep. I used lack of sleep to justify taking a nap this afternoon. Tibbles cuddled up with me on the couch and we were both out for the count. Needless to say today was not a productive day. I shouldn't have napped because I woke up even more tired than when I layed down. Oh well such is life. A lazy down now and then never hurt anyone. I did get some laundry done so that counts for something, right? hehe

Tristan had his second session of rock band today at skies. Last week was his first class and after getting there we were told that the class didn't even exist. They didn't have enough kids signed up to make the class worth the cost. Luckily the instructor had a class earlier and was still there. He told Tristan that since they already signed him up and it was coming out of his allotment from our blue star card benefits that he could stay and he would just be taught one on one for the night until he could talk to skies and see what was going on. Since the class was only 45 minutes long we decided to hang around until he was done. After class the instructor, I wish I could remember his name but I'm awful with names so we'll just call him instructor for now, came out with a smile. He kept saying how Tristan was a breath of fresh air for him and he really enjoyed listening to him. His previous class is at a beginner to intermediate level so he's still teaching some of them the basics of drumming. He was impressed that Tristan could read all the music and play everything he was asked to play. Tristan has never had lessons before aside from school where he hasn't really learned anything except how to play quieter and how to do paperwork. That's a whole other story for another time. So he told us he would try to find some more students for an advanced class and if he couldn't he requested we bring Tristan to his studio in Aiea. He hated to see Tristan miss out on something he's so passionate about and good at. I didn't hear from him all week so I took Tristan back to class tonight to see if the class was still on or not. Tristan was the only one there, but the instructor was all set up and ready for him. He told me that he thinks he has a couple kids who play guitar on a higher level that can join Tristan. He's trying to get this class going and get a band going for these kids again. It makes me feel good that my son is his inspiration for doing this. I really admire his dedication to these military kids. He has his own studio and yet he has agreed to come on post and work with our kids here. Not only is it more cost effective for us, but much more convenient than driving so far to the studio. I really appreciate what he's doing, not only for my son, but for all the kids. I'm still considering taking Tristan to the studio and checking it out too. As much as Tristan likes to play it would be worth it for him to have the extra practice. Who knows what the future holds for him. Maybe God is preparing him for greater things in music. Only time will tell.

It's yet another late night so I'm off to get some zzzzz's. I don't know why I stay up so late when I know the next morning is going to come early. I really need to start going to bed when the last kid gets tucked in. Maybe next time. hehe Nighty Night friends!

Romance

I was talking to a friend today who said something that has stuck with me all day. I don't even remember the words she used, but she said romance and deployment in the same sentence. It suddenly struck me that she had a point. All day I've been thinking about our past two deployments and how we got through them. Looking back, I see now that it did have it's romantic moments. Not the kind of romance you get when you walk home and there's rose petals on the floor with candles lit all around, or the kind of romance you get when you're all alone with your spouse walking the beach at sunset, but more like an emotional romance. The kind that melts your heart and makes it skip a beat just from hearing three little words, "I love you".

On an average day people get up, go to work, come home, have dinner and go to bed. Of course we work other things in when we can, but a lot of time it's pretty much a routine that we get into. When your spouse is deployed the routine that you consider normal for your family is completely broken to pieces. As the one left behind we now have to take care of our normal responsibilities along with all of our deployed spouses responsibilities. Add into that we are the sole caretakers of our children. Even more, we have to be ready at any minute to drop what we're doing because our spouse finally had a chance to call us. It sounds like a lot and really it is, but we do it because it has to be done. For me, it makes me feel good about myself to accomplish all these tasks because I'm doing it for my husband who wishes he could be here to help. I'm doing it because I want to take care of him and make sure he has absolutely nothing to worry about except what's right in front of him in the midst of all things army. All of this sounds like anything but romance until...

The phone rings. My heart starts pounding as I pray that it's him. I run to the phone as fast as I can and I see the crazy row of numbers lined up across the screen that look nothing like a normal phone number. I instantly know that it's him and my heart jumps out of my chest with excitement. I answer the phone with "I love you, I love you, I love you". Seriously, I really do answer the phone like that when I'm sure it's him. Is that not a romantic sentiment? Throughout the entire conversation we must say "I miss you" and "I love you" 20 times or more. We can be in the middle of a conversation and one of us will just blurt out "I love you". The conversation then continues as before. Who does that on a daily basis when you are going about your routine of a day. We often talk about memories from the past that bring a smile to our faces or about the future and things we would love to accomplish together. These are things we talk about all the time while he's deployed, only occasionally when he's home. When he's home we talk about how our day went, what we want for dinner, who's going to help with the homework (usually ends up being him on that one) etc. Nothing really deep like our feelings for each other. Occasionally we do but that all ends up getting taken for granted sometimes. If we're on web cams we sometimes just sit and look at each other without words. Words aren't needed because we're feeling the love that's coming from the other end of that camera. How many times have you sat in front of your spouse for a long period of time and just took in the amazement of his beautiful blue eyes, the smile that you can't help but smile back at, or the little smile wrinkles on the outer corners of his eyes that remind you of all the happy times you've had together. I can say that doesn't happen on a regular basis when we're going through our routine of a day. During deployments it happens on a regular basis. How often do you sit down and write a letter to your spouse, something they can hold on to and read over and over again? You don't have to because he's right there and if you have something to say you just say it. During deployments that luxury isn't there. We write each other letters that we can pull out on a rough day to remind us that no matter the distance they are here for us. They are praying for us and loving us like we are them. Just waiting for the day when we can experience that first kiss all over again. And about first kisses. How many people can say that they have experienced a first kiss with the same person dozens of times. Everyone that has gone through a deployment can surely say that. Every homecoming kiss is like a first kiss all over again.

So you see, deployments shouldn't be looked at as these horrible terrible experiences that have no purpose. Of course we would all decline to embarq on a year of seperation if we had the choice, but given the fact that we don't have a choice, we can make the best of it. We can look at all the good things that come out of it. If you look deep enough, there are so many things about a deployment that bond us closer to our husbands/wives than anyone in the civilian world could ever understand. God has a purpose for every single soldier that is over there fighting for our country. He has a purpose for all of the spouses and children that are left behind. If you let Him, He will use the opportunity to draw you closer as a couple and closer as a family. Maybe He wants to use you to help other spouses going through the same thing. There are a multitude of reasons that could be. You just have to look deep and find that reason. It makes it all worth while in the end.

So as you face a deployment, or even separation for military training, or possibly you're not even military and your spouse travels a lot for a job, take the time to look deep and find the romance that comes out of the situation. It makes the rough days apart a lot more bearable when you look at the bright side of things.

From Happy To Sad

Today started out to be a great day! A little earlier than I like, those of you that know me well know that I like my sleep and mornings are not my favorite time of day, but well worth the 4am wake up call. My husband has made it safely overseas. The computer he was on didn't have a webcam or microphone, but any correspondance is wonderful to me, and at any time day or night. At least we could message and see for ourselves that we're both doing good. He got to see me on my webcam, apparently I'm beautiful at 4am hehe, so I'm thankful for that. Not the beautiful part, but the part where he could see me. I know it brightens his day to be able to see me.

We talked a little about how hard it was to say goodbye this time. Yes my friends we still use the words goodbye. Many people say "It's not goodbye, it's see you later", but to me goodbye doesn't have anything to do with finality. It just means we're going to hang up, or walk away in this case, and see each other again soon. In the end, a final goodbye will never exist for us, because we're going to spend our eternity together no matter what happens here on this earth. Anyhow, it was nice to know that he loves us just as much as we love him. Not that I ever doubted that for a second. We both mentioned how hard it was to keep walking. I explained to him how I had to just walk away after kissing him one last time before he got on the bus. Previous deployments I would stay and watch the bus pull away, but if I hadn't forced my feet to move when I did, I may have just jumped right on that bus with him and gotten myself in a heap of trouble. Not to mention lost a little of my dignity. It took everything in me not to look back. I grabbed onto my girls, one on each side, and just kept walking. He too had to force his feet to step up onto that bus. When it's all said and done, I give God the glory for giving us the strength to just do what had to be done, despite our emotions.

After about 45 minutes we had to say goodbye and I lay in our bed, Shay and Tibbles next to me, and fell back asleep assured that God is watching over him.

Not enough sleep later, the alarm went off and it was time to get ready for church. This morning I was okay with getting less sleep. I woke up happy and ready to start our day. I got to talk to my husband and I had two kid's church classes to teach. I love my kids and I'm always excited to see them on Sunday mornings. I was doubly blessed this morning with teaching a second class to help out a friend who couldn't be there. Both classes went well. We had practice for our Easter program, I was worn out after practicing it with two classes. I'm not as limber as I use to be. Running I can do, but jumping up and down and dancing all around is another story entirely. It doesn't help that this girl does NOT dance. Just ask my husband who wishes I would at least slow dance with him. I will do that, but only in the privacy of our own home. I don't know why, but I just don't dance. If you saw my uncoordination (not sure if that's a word) you'd know why. It should be interesting the day of the program when I have to stand up in front of the kids and dance with the whole church watching. Did I mention I don't get up in front of people either. Unless of course you want to see me pass out. God be with me on Easter Sunday!

I was proud of myself this morning when people asked about Trint. I didn't shed a single tear. I just smiled and answered questions. I suppose I was just psyched that I got to chat with him this morning. If you've ever spent an extended time away from you're spouse you know how refreshing it is just to know they are thinking of you. If that extended stay is in a dangerous place, it's extra refreshing to know that they are okay. It's doubly refreshing to know that you just made their day a little brighter because they got to hear from you.

After church we came home to make pizza at Tristan's request. I decided to jump on facebook for a little while since the kids were playing. I got some horrible news that just turned my insides in knots. A friend from KS who is engaged to a soldier in Afghanistan had been shot. As I read her postings, I felt my heart hit the floor. I met my friend when Trint was in the reserves in Osage. Her then husband served with my husband. She headed up the frg, and she was a great leader I might add. We became friends instantly. I've never met her fiance, but that doesn't matter. I know she is hurting like never before. A pain that no one should have to feel. All she can do now is sit by the phone and wait for the next update on how he's doing. It just puts into perspective what our military families are really facing. Up until now I haven't personally known any family who has had to go through this. Although I've never met him, I know her and her girls and I just can't put into perspective why this would happen to such good people. She loves God and she's just an all around great woman. However, God has his plans for our lives even when we can't understand those plans. It's hard as humans to trust that there's a purpose for tragic times, but as we go through the storm God will reveal his plans to us if we just let him. We have to cry out to Him, as I know my dear friend is doing right now in the midst of her storm. I know that in the end she is going to come out of this with her head held high and an understanding of what she has been through. Please keep lifting them up in prayer. Pray for her fiance to fully recover, God can do miracles after all, and pray for them all to have a peace inside their hearts that transcends all understanding.

Please also keep my husband, our friends, his unit, and all our military families lifted up in prayer until they ALL come home! God Bless Them All! God Bless You for your prayers! The best gift you can give anyone is prayer!

Kids

I just want to brag on my kids a little bit today. They have certainly stepped up to the plate in the short few days since daddy has left. They have been cooperating with each other very well and helping me out around the house so much. On a normal day when I ask them for help with something I usually get the annoying sigh and then they turn around and continue to do whatever is was they were doing before I asked. Many times it would turn into a fight trying to get them to act. In the past couple days, however, I haven't heard a single sigh from any of them.

Tristan asked me Friday if I would take him to the beach to surf, so that's what we did today. I asked them to help me pick up the house this morning so we could go to the beach later. "Sidetrack Sydnee" had to be told more than once to pick up her things, but the other two didn't take long at all. In Syd's defense, she was picking up her things, she just gets so tempted to play while she's picking up and gets sidetracked with the first task of actually picking up. She did get it done eventually though. It didn't turn into a fight just several reminders to get her back on track.

The kids helped me pack up our things in the truck without having to be told and we were on our way. I was so proud of them that we stopped at McDonald's for a treat on the way there. Once we got there, everyone grabbed their own things and we walked down to the beach. It was a short trip due to cloudy weather and wind, the kids got cold, but Tristan was able to get in a little surfing and the girls played in the water too. It was nice and relaxing just sitting out there watching them have a good time. Tristan came in and decided he was done so he told the girls it was time to leave and they walked up to us without any complaints. I usually get the, I don't want to leave yet whine, but not this time.

The rest of the evening has gone just as smooth. After a quick trip to the commissary, Tristan helped carry in the groceries, we had dinner and now they're just hanging out in the living room together. I'm so proud of them for being so well behaved for me. It sure does take a lot if stress out of the day and makes me much more bearable to be around. When they start fighting I can't stand it, since they do it constantly, and I'm not a very nice mom. I've been praying for them to behave better and for me to have more patience. Looks like it's paid off. God is working in their little hearts as well as mine. Thanks to all of you who keep us in your prayers also. God is listening and he's working in each of us to help us through this deployment with smiles on our faces and joy in our hearts. Keep praying for Trint too. I don't know where he is right now and I don't know when I'll talk to him again, but I do know that God is looking out for him so he's going to be just fine.

If you're reading this baby, just look up and know that you'll be home in my arms before you know it! I love you with all my heart!

A New Day

I woke up this morning somewhat refreshed, considering my girls were awfully wiggly last night, and was determined to get through the day with a smile. I came downstairs, phone in hand of course, to make my coffee, which Trint always had waiting for me every morning. That was the first reminder of what we face for the next year. Sometimes it's the little things that drudge up the tears. I just forced a smile and a good thought of how thankful I am to be married to such a thoughtful man. I poured a cup of coffee and went to sit down with the girls in the living room. A short while later I heard my phone ding, which was on the kitchen island just steps away. Of course with Trint gone, every time it makes a sound I run to it as quick as I can. When I got there is said I had a voice mail. My phone never even rang so instantly my heart sank. I just knew it was my husband calling to tell me his plane landed at their first stop. I listened to the message and sure enough it was him. He had made it to the first stop like I had thought. The only problem is that he sounded sad which made me missing his call just that much worse. Then I looked up the last numbers that called my phone and it didn't even have a new number listed. I had no number to call him back at. I felt so bad, like I had disappointed him and he didn't even know why I didn't answer. I know he wasn't upset with me, he knows me well enough to know something had to have gone wrong for me not to answer. Still, I just want to be here for him, and I wasn't. I made myself come to terms with it and reassured myself that he would understand and he will call back the next possible chance he gets. However, if my phone screws it up again, I'm throwing it out the window for sure! Next week I will be sporting a new phone for sure!

The girls decided to stay home from school today but Tristan decided he didn't want to miss the day. It was a short day and Tristan likes his schedule on short days. Plus he doesn't want his homework to pile up so much that it takes a lot of time to catch up. The girls however will take a day off whenever it's offered to them. I gave them the choice today because yesterday was a rough day for us all. I know I wouldn't have functioned very well if I had to go to school after telling my husband goodbye, so why should I force them to go. The girls and I just hung out at home watching movies and Disney channel.

When Tristan got out of school we picked him up at the teen center and headed to the church office to drop off the thousand plus eggs that Trint and I filled. Of course loading the eggs in the truck just reminded me how helpful my husband was to help me fill the eggs that I volunteered to do on my own. Again, I had to hold back tears. As I talked to the director to ask if there was anything else I could take home to work on, I explained that I have more time on my hands that I need to keep occupied to keep my mind busy. Again, holding back tears as I said that Trint left yesterday. I did pretty good holding them back though so I know it will get easier to say the words without tears welling up. It is after all our first day without him home. I got a new project to occupy a little time and we were on our way.

Next stop was the mall to see "Soul Surfer". I've wanted to see this movie since our pastor mentioned it at church one Sunday a while back. That was before the previews even came out. Trint wants to see it too so I was hoping his deployment would be delayed a couple days so he could go with us. Obviously that didn't happen. Even if it had there would just be something else I would want it delayed for again. Of course that made me think again of the fact that he isn't here to enjoy it with his family. However, this time, no tears. I just thought of how I should buy all the new movies we see while he's gone and watch them with him when he gets home. For him it would be seeing a new movie, for me it will just be cuddling on the couch with him.

In case you were wondering, the movie was fabulous! I would recommend everyone go see it. What an amazing young woman Bethany is. She's a true example of courage and strength. Whenever I feel down I will think of her and of everything she's overcome. Nothing is too big for our God. I always love it when a movie comes to the theater that shares a life message of hope and encouragement. A movie I can take my kids to that they enjoy watching and that teaches them a valuable life lesson. Bethany is someone any parent would want as a role model for their children. Praise God for Bethany's story and the positive impact she's had on so many people. That just goes to show you that everything does happen for a reason. God allows tragedy to happen to better people and to help those around them. God is so amazing!

To conclude our day we came home, had dinner and are watching Disney channel together as a family. The day went fast as I pray every day does until he finally comes home. As with Bethany's story, this is all happening for a reason and before too long we are going to see some amazing results come out of the heartache we feel. I can't wait to see what God has in store for my family. Mark my words, it's going to be Amazing!