Much needed rest....

I knew it was only a matter of time until the last week caught up with them too.

I told all three of them this morning, before they left for the bus, that their chore for when they returned home from school was to really clean their room.

I've been needing to finish going through their clothes and shoes to pull out everything that no longer fits them anymore.

We haven't done real school shopping yet, especially seeing that it is just August and they can still wear shorts to school.

I have been cleaning our house all day long.

 My day of rest yesterday really helped.




As they all three came walking in this evening from school......they looked exhausted.

Extremely.

Completely.

Exhausted.

They washed their hands and told me about their day, then fixed a snack to eat.

As they were eating I told them I was going to give them a "chore pass" today.

No cleaning their rooms. Just homework and resting.

I told them we'd have pizza for dinner and maybe watch a movie and relax.

You would have thought it was Christmas in the house.

Ten minutes later......they were all three sound asleep.




I knew the week we had last week would catch up to them eventually.

They still have homework to finish, but for now they are catching up on some MUCH needed rest.

A day to rest....

Today is  a quiet August day.

Our life for the past year has been so busy.

This past week especially.

School started just a little over a week ago.

We weren't so great at getting ready for back to school this year.

School started when it was beginning to feel like summer was just beginning.

It has been rainy and cold here all summer, not the hot, humid summer days we are used to having.

Kate was in school three days and had her first allergic reaction. Now I worry daily while she is in school. It has been hard learning to live with her severe allergy.

This past Wednesday my husband's granny died.

It was hard news to take in.

It was even harder to be the one to tell my husband the news.

I ache for my husband, I know he was close to his granny; shared many special memories together with her. She was like a mother to him.

She will be greatly missed.

We spent most of last week traveling to be with family during this time. We came home long enough to unpack our bags and then pack again.

We said our goodbyes to her Friday at her funeral.

We came home Saturday, just long enough to start packing again. This time for military orders for my husband.

Saturday evening we went out to dinner, since we knew he was going to be away again for a little while.

Sunday he left and I spent the day at my parent's home with our kids, for my dad's 62nd birthday.

Both of my parents were sick and not feeling well.

We made dinner, my sister's and I.

Then after dinner I went to my parent's garage to pull out pictures, VHS tapes (I'm specifically looking for the video Jerome and I took of my Grandpa and his brother and them telling their story of WWII, it was a history assignment we had in school) and found slides and old video reels. We all started going through them. Dad showed me how to use the slide projector and Mom was reluctant to let me bring it all home.

The kids and I crawled into bed late last night. It was a busy day yesterday and an even busier week we had had.

Today my intentions were to get our home put back in order.

If you can imagine, we have been home long enough to unpack, do a few loads of laundry (but not get them put away) and then pack again and leave.

But today I woke up, and felt like I had been hit by a freight train.

I am completely exhausted from the past two weeks.

So I decided to do what I can, and spend the day resting.

I wanted to do something I always enjoyed doing.

And that was writing.

Writing here and keeping a journal of our life and our children's lives, so that one day they can look back and remember their days at home.

So.....I decided to rest.......and to write.

Something I have greatly missed.

~Amber Hope

Hot Summer Days

Last week my sister and her two boys came to visit.

My two nephews are a whirlwind of energy, but I love it.

We took them outside to play some games.

They threw balloons into a chalkboard drawn target on the ground.

My girls were trying to show them how to play hopscotch.

And then we ended up taking them on a walk down the road. Bradley was peddling the same little tricycle that was Katie's when she was little.


 Caleb loved his wagon ride.

.

I believe Katie's tricycle has seen better days.

The front wheel bent on the way home and Bradley was unable to peddle it. Natalie took his place and rode it back home, Flinstone style.

A Navy Chief and his tattoo.

Back in March for Jerome's birthday we took a weekend trip, just to two of us, to go visit his brother and his girlfriend.

Jerome's brother has several tattoos and set an appointment up for Jerome with his same tattoo artist.

Jerome had been wanting to get an anchor tattoo for a while now.

We searched for ideas, found some favorites and gave them to the tattoo artist.

He did a wonderful job putting together exactly what Jerome was wanting.



The shop had this Norman Rockwell picture hanging up.


Jerome's brother Joey and his girlfriend Lauren checking out the progress of the tattoo....


Jerome said the outline was the worst part, but all in all it wasn't painful.


The before and after (I'll get a better picture of it this summer at the beach).....


Lauren and I walked to an antique shop while Jerome was getting his tattoo.

I found a little Jadite bowl that I love.

Joey and Lauren gave Jerome a Navy Chief pin from WWII that they had found at an antique shop earlier. Jerome absolutely loved it.

We had a good weekend together, Jerome had a great birthday, and now he has the anchor tattoo he has been wanting.

Our Book.

I've been finishing up our 2012 yearly book....I can't wait to hold it and see it in print.

This year's book was a lot like our 2007 book. It has SO MANY pages and pages of pictures and stories.

It is full of deployment pictures, pictures Jerome has taken over in Afghanistan of his life over there, pictures of us here at home that we sent him to give him a little piece of home, pictures of all the surprise homecomings and then the wonderful everyday things in our life.

It has taken me a while to finish it but I am finally down to two pages left to finish it up and then send it in for printing. 

I plan to do every year this way, a book to look back and read the stories that are easily forgotten with age.

I also plan on making each of the kids a yearly book of their first five years, order two copies, and save the extra copies for when they someday marry....it will be a bridal shower gift.

Memories to take with them on their new journey in life.

Here are a few pictures of our 2007 family book from blurb, I will post pictures of our 2012 book when I receive it.

 

1.24.2011

{ our book. }

I finished this book from Blurb over a year ago and always meant to post some pictures of how wonderful it is.  I have since started on our 2008 family book and am almost finished (I'm up to Halloween 2008) and cannot wait to order another. Although 2007 will probably be our largest book printed seeing that is the year Jerome was deployed to Afghanistan and I did a whole LOT of picture taking to keep him feeling a little closer to the kids and to home.



















I love this book. I love how it turned out and that I can open it up, look back and read our memories from that year. To me it is a priceless keepsake.

Posted by What Matters Most at 2:53 PM No comments:

You're gonna miss this...

I was driving home yesterday morning after dropping Spencer off at school. The song, "You're Gonna Miss This" started playing on the radio.

It made me smile and feel sentimental.

Maybe its because of all the pictures I was going through a few days ago (I sent negatives from 1993-1997 off to Scan Cafe and received my scanned negatives back). Pictures of Spencer as a baby.

Maybe its because hearing him talk to his dad about joining the military when he graduates, a regular conversation between the two of them.

Maybe its because he is now learning to drive.

Maybe its because seeing him dressed up in uniform to go to his military ball, makes me realize how much more he is growing into a man.

Maybe its because I realize two more years really doesn't seem like much time at all.

Maybe its because the past fifteen and a half years have flown by.

All those days when he was little that I struggled with, two year old temper tantrums, worrying he wouldn't stop sucking his thumb, potty training, taking my four year old little boy, my 18 month old and  3 month old little girls to the grocery store alone, trying to teach him multiplication, the bully on the school playground, learning to ride a bicycle, moving far away from his best friend, wanting to step in as a mother but knowing he needs to do things on his own to help him grow......

All those days I wish I could hold on to forever, singing him to sleep while rocking him in my arms, the way his hair curled on the top of his head, his little hands holding onto mine, watching him take his first steps, reading with him before bedtime in his favorite pajamas, watching him run home with a big smile on his face after his first day of kindergarten, watching him running on the football field and holding my breath hoping he doesn't get hurt, laughing with him because he can't wait until he is as tall as me (he is now MUCH taller than I am, he is over 6ft. 3in.).......

And now, now I am watching him grow into the wonderful, tall, young man I always knew he would be.

I know I wish those days hadn't gone by so quickly. It makes me realize that 16 years really isn't that long. And knowing he only has two more years until he graduates.....well, it just makes me feel a little sentimental sometimes.

Feels Like Home.

For the past few months I've been enjoying spending each and every moment with my husband again.

The kids are so happy to have their dad back home.

It feels like home again.

On September 14th we welcomed him home.

I met him at the airport and then we went to each of our kids schools to surprise them. I have so much more to write about this day, and pictures to share....but for now just a little video we made of the day full of welcome homes.




I will share more from this day soon.....for now we are still enjoying our time as a family together again.