Our 10 year anniversary trip to Rome

Trevi Fountain

Spanish Steps

So we spent this past weekend in Rome celebrating our 10 year anniversary! Hard to believe it has already been 10 years....and 3 children later. Our dear friends watched our children for us while David and I flew to Rome for a wonderful 5 day getaway without our children. It was absolutely amazing. To actually stand in and see the famous coloseum was surreal. The food was amazing!!!! There is one word to describe it all...creamy. I know that sounds weird but it was. The wine was smooth and creamy, the latte's were smooth and creamy. The food was smooth and creamy. Everything was wonderful. We stayed in the cutest hotel that consisted of only 6 rooms. Very quaint and quiet. It was absolutely amazing seeing all of the history you always hear about.

Seriously?

Today Reagan and Brennan got their flu shots. Heartbreaking really! Anyway...now Reagan says his legs won't work so I am having to carry him everywhere.

Housekeeper?

Today Campbell told me he is Wall-E and is picking up trash. Needless to say my house is so clean. I hope this lasts a while.

Our Thanksgiving....a few days late.

Addie's birthday cake

Me, Brennan, Kathy (my wonderful neighbor) and Addie

The spread

We celebrated Thanksgiving today with some of our dear friends who opened their home up to about 20+ adults and about 15+ kids. Mind you they have the same floorplan as we do so it is a tall house but not a wide house. We also were celebrating her daughter, Addies, 2nd birthday. It was such a great experience because we introduced most of them to our American Thanksgiving. Their was a mix of South African, Danish, Singaporan, American and British. Everyone enjoyed the turkey, green bean casserole and don't forget the pumpkin pie. I will never forget this day in which I was surrounded by so many wonderful friends.

BLACK FRIDAY

All I can say is thank God I don't live in the states for Black Friday! England is just such a different pace of life. I don't know how many times I have said that but it is true. You would never hear of someone getting trampled at Wal-Mart. That is just insanely sad. It just seems that there is little respect for human life. It is all about who can get in first to get the best deal and screw whoever gets in the way. I would rather pay the extra money than deal with that. I hope that everyone that was brave enough to venture out is at home safe now.
On a lighter note...David and I have a date tonight so I must go and get ready!

Happy Thanksgiving

I hope everyone is having a fabulous holiday with great food and great company. We have chosen not to celebrate today because we are celebrating with friends on Sunday. So, the boys are in school and David is at home and it is nice and quiet. This time of year gets a little challenging because we have no family near us and it gets a little sad. This is when you realize how important your military family is and the one we have over here in England is fabulous. I must say I am very sad to leave them. So many come and go but you know most likely your paths will cross again.

Cookie Monster

So I decided that since we weren't having a Thanksgiving today I would at least make do something a little special with my boys and make cookies. Of course they were the ready to bake kind with Christmas trees on them. I wasn't ready to get the mixer out and deal the flour everywhere which is what happened last time. They thought it was more fun to throw flour at each other than to put it in the mixer. Anyway, look who is super smart and pulled a chair all the way across the kitchen to sneak up and get a cookie. Luckily, they were cooled by then.

Well...it's that time of year again!

Poor Brennan woke up at 3am on Friday with 104 degree fever. Of course I called pediatrics to book and appointment and they didn't have any. I spoke to a nurse and he some how found a magic appointment on Monday. So we would have to wait it out over the weekend unless of course it got so bad to warrant a trip to the ER. Luckily it didn't. He continued with the high fever over the weekend and was pretty miserable. We went yesterday and low and behold he has another ear infection....or so they say. She said merely that his ear was a little red. I guess I'm all for antibiotics if it will make the fever stop. Plus he isn't on antibiotics all the time but I still hate that I'm not sure if that is what is really going on. Then today, I wake up with my left eye stuck together. Hello.....I have conjunctivitis. Are you kidding me! I love the holiday season but I hate the holiday bugs.

Let it Snow....

They couldn't wait to get outside to play in the snow. Unfortunately it was never thick enough to build a snowman. They sure had a great time though!

Watching the snow!

Now....trying to slow down!

This week has been crazy busy, or so it feels. David is working late nights again this week which I am so done with at this point. If he goes to work at 5:30 am he doesn't get home until late and if he goes to work at noon he doesn't get home until late. So I guess I am happy when he is home to help me in the mornings. It feels like we haven't seen each other in ages. The boys are upset because he isn't home to tell them goodnight and tuck them in. Colorado Springs is starting to sound better and better. A set schedule with no guessing about when he will be home. How nice will that be! Does anyone else have the problem of always having to pull the information out of your husband about his schedule and then he gets all sarcastic like you should know it? Ok that is enough of my complaining. I must go because the couch is eating more crackers than my boys are. Time to hoover again.

Dear Friends

Last night I helped to organize a birthday party for two of my dearest friends in England who aren't militarily affiliated. I have never thrown such a big dinner party so I was very happy that it ended up being at my other friends house who is much better equiped to handle 14 people. The food was fabulous and the company GREAT. I am going to miss this group of girls so much when we move back to the states.
Happy Birthday Annie and Lil. You know I love you and will miss you!

All of my Batmen

Daddy & Brennan with a sucker

Mommy and her little bat

Reagan, Charlie, Harry, Campbell

Campbell

Halloween was fun. We took two of Campbell's friends from school to the base to trick-or-treat. They loved it since Halloween is still trying to catch on here in England. They were all so cute and had so much crazy energy. Not to mention it was crazy crowded on the base. It gets dark now at 4:30ish since the time change so we got an early start.

Edinburgh, Scotland

just kidding:)

We just took a fabulous trip to Edinburgh. Hey, why not? We have to move in 6 months so we are trying to cram as many trips in now as we can. We went to Scotland with some of our great friend Jason and Amy and their two kids. We stayed in a 4 bedroom apartment which IS they way to travel when you have kids. It was freezing cold...about 5-10 degrees Celsius. It made the trip a little less enjoyable since we walked everywhere but we had a great time nonetheless. We saw the Britannia, Edinburgh Castle, the gorgeous coastline, the crown jewels, bagpipers and, oh yes, don't forget the pubs!

OK...so where do I start?

refueling the jet from the kc-10

Campbell with the boom operator refueling the jet on our way to the states

I'll just back track a bit. Back to the summer. July to be exact. We flew back to the states on a military hop which was a great experience. Campbell got to go back while the tanker refueled the jets. The boys were able to sit in the cockpit during take-off. It was so exciting for them. Thank God I had David with me because it is very difficult to maneuver with 3 car seats, a double stroller, carry on's, snacks, diaper bag...did I miss anything. We must have looked like a joke.
Anyway, we spent 6 weeks with family in Texas. David and I were able to take a vacation, without kids, with our dearest friends Hunter and Rachel to St. Lucia. We had a great time. Oh yes, I became scuba certified the week before we left. Talk about cramming it all in. David has been certified since he was 11.
We had great visits with family and friends, great shopping and great food!
We returned to England at the end of August for Campbell to start school.
Now fast forward....

Trying to Catch Up...

Sometimes I feel like I just want to give up when I realize how long it has been since my last post.....but then too many good things have been happening lately.
Does it ever amaze you how good God is? It does me. I wonder "why is he so good to me?" All I do is go to church on Sundays and that is it. No daily fellowship in the word, barely pray anymore, no light in anyones life spreading the good news but then God does something amazing to let you know he is still there. What happened you ask???? I was standing in the kitchen while my boys were eating dinner and I was on the phone. I guess one of the boys heard a knock at the door because then next thing I heard was "is your mom home?" I went to the door and saw my friend and neighbor Emily standing there with a brown paper grocery bag in hand. She said "I brought you dinner. I know it must be difficult sometimes with 3 and I wanted you to not have to worry about dinner tonight." It may seem insignificant to you but I am getting choked up just thinking about it. It is those little things that people do, and expect nothing in return that show you God's love. Thanks Emily....you are such a bright light.

Ollie...

So, we had the pleasure of keeping my dear friends son, Ollie, while she and her husband traveled to Rome...crazy you say! Not us, in return they have agreed to keep our 3 boys in December while David and I head to Rome for our 10 year anniversary. Who is getting the better end of that deal? Anyway, Ollie was such a pleasure to have. He fit in so well to our family. I just love this little boys temperament. He is so easy going. I was hoping my boys would pick up some of his characteristics. His mother says that is only because he is at our house but I think I might have to disagree.

One morning I awoke to find Ollie playing in my make-up. A problem I have never had with any of my children. I still have no idea how he got to it. He had a great time with my mascara especially.

I am so looking forward to December:)

4th of July.....

We had a wonderful 4th. We had a little bbq get together at our house with some friends. Food was good, company was great and to top it all off we drove to the base for fireworks at 10pm. Yes, 10pm as that is what time it is getting dark around here. It did get rather cold that night so we bundled up in sweaters, watched some fireworks and ate candy floss as they call it here(cotton candy).

The wonderfully delicious cake my friend Amy made.

Adam, the most patriotic one of us all. Isn't he cute?

Little Brennan just hanging out.

Jason holding Sean's new baby girl Caroline Grace.

Mollie and Kim

Brennan sliding down the slide by himself

Today we went to a birthday party at a park on the base. They had a bouncy castle and tons of food. The boys had so much fun. Brennan wants to keep up with the big boys so bad. He was climbing up all of the play equipment and sliding down the big corkscrew slide all by himself. He doesn't want any help. I think he is going to be my daredevil. Well...he and Reagan. The weather wasn't quite as nice as yesterday, quite windy but still somewhat sunny. Too bad the weekends go by so fast. I can't wait for our vacations. Poor David worked 16 hour days last week. Let's hope this week is somewhat better for him.....and us!

It is a gorgeous day here in England finally. We rode our bikes to the Abbey gardens today and had a picnic with the boys and let them play. Then we walked around the market. All I bought was some blueberries. I love it here. It is so great that you can just walk around town on Saturdays and buy whatever you want.....fruit, vegetables, hats, vacuum cleaner, fresh fish, cheese, bread, clothes, gardening stuff, oh and the best part...flowers. And to top it all off we had ice cream cones.

AFTER A YEAR OF LIVING IN ENGLAND....

we finally went to see Cambridge with some friends and their kids. We had so much fun. First we went to a fair with lots of crazy fun slides Campbell had a great time going down. Then we ate at Chili's....yes, I said Chili's. Not some place we usually eat at in the states but were so excited nonetheless to eat there. It was pretty much the same menu and was fabulous. After a huge lunch, we walked all over Cambridge to see the sites. What a beautiful place with such amazing architecture. We also went "punting on the cam." What is that you ask....see picture. We had a punter which we were glad about in the end because it was crowded and there were lots of people who didn't know what they were doing. It was such a great time.

Our Punter, Toby. Whose parents sent him to boarding school when he was 8. He said from 8-10 he hated it and then after that he loved it. Is that a viable option while David is deployed? Probably not. And mom, if your are reading this....I am just kidding:)

Today was a great day. Everyone woke up in a good mood. The weather is still crap but we knew that would happen. David surprised me with an hour long massage today. My neighbor came over to watch my kids while I went to be pampered. When I came home we had ice cream and popcorn and watched a movie. Then we played games. I was worried but it isn't so bad. I doubted myself but I feel like I am doing a great job by myself. I don't know that I want to do it for 4 months during the deployment but a few days isn't so bad......so far! Maybe that is the relaxed me after my massage talking.

ALL BY MYSELF....

is the lonely tune I am singing today. David left very early this morning for the states until
Tuesday. This is the first time that I have been completely alone with all 3 of my kids. The weather here is awful so I am trying to think of what to do since I know we will be stuck in the house. Luckily, Campbell is in school today and then the weekend....which I am actually looking forward to since I won't have to rush around in the morning getting everyone ready. We are going to "First Friday" tonight at David's work. This is a get together the squadron has every first friday (duh) of the month. People bring food and it is purely socializing. It is quite fun! Hopefully I can keep an eye on all of my kiddos.

Today we went back to the mountain biking place but took a different route so I didn't get as car sick. It was so much fun but crazy hard with kids on the bike. David had Reagan and Campbell in the bike trailer and I had Brennan in a seat on the back of my bike. It was an 8 mile trail mostly uphill which is extremely difficult with the added weight of children. Even though the lady said that route was the easiest with bike trailers, I found it extrememly challenging. I was off of my bike walking up most of the hills. We had about 2 miles to go when Reagan decided he wanted to ride with me so we switched Reagan and Brennan. We took a break and had a granola bar and for some reason David decided to check the bike seat. We were so lucky he did because we found that all of the screw but one had rattled off. The seat was barely being held on. What a blessing it was that God inspired David to check that. Poor David had all 3 boys in the bike trailer pulling them uphill and downhill the last couple of miles. I had it easy. Oh and by the way, just as we started off and were heading down a hill the whole seat fell off so he had the added weight of that on top of the bike trailer. Can you imagine if we hadn't checked that and Reagan was in there. I don't even want to think of what could have happened. God is good!

Today we went to see a real steam train. It didn't hurt that it was painted blue like Thomas. The kids loved it. It was about a 15 minute train ride to the next station where we got off and had a pot of tea. Again, the scenery was beautiful!

Today was uneventful. The weather isn't very nice so we decided just to go to the indoor pool with the kids. It is more like a lazy river type thing with a small rapids area they had fun floating through. The good news is they all love the water....the bad news is there is only two of us. It gets difficult keeping up with all of them. After the pool we took a car ferry to the other side of the lake for a drive to check out a mountain biking place we planned to go to. Unfortunately, I got crazy car sick. It was these winding, barely wide enough for one car roads which was kind of scary. I was thinking "there is now way I am coming back here to go bike riding." On a more positive note, the scenery was just beautiful. I love it here.

We have decided, somewhat last minute, to drive 5 hours to NW England to an area called the "lake district." We rented an apartment at a marina for the week since Campbell is on his term break. This is the view from the road near the marina. Just beautiful. The weather isn't great....overcast and chilly. Hopefully it will get better for us.

Fifteen Months Old....

Can you believe it? Brennan is 15 months old today. What a surprise how fast it flies by. I am done breastfeeding him as of 3 days ago, and am now suffering from the crazy hormone changes. He is still not walking, only says Mama and Dada, still not sleeping through the night however, the night before last he did. He has been teething like mad though so I am hoping that is why he wakes up in the night crying. He has four teeth to go and then it will all be over. I hear the eye teeth are worse than the molars though. I can't remember who told me that but I'm pretty sure it wasn't Brennan and now I am thinking "how would they know?" He enjoyed a waffle with powdered sugar this morning and then Campbell enjoyed taking some pictures of him. Campbell is such a great big brother. I am so proud of all 3 boys.

Campbell has been getting really good at taking pictures. He took this picture of Reagan in his Batman costume. Isn't he cute!