Gotta Love the Army

Check out this "Important Notice" for our post:

Important Notice!!!

On 9 February 2011 there will be an Active Shooter Exercise at L_____ Army Community Hospital. There will be sporadic gunfire at the hospital on this day so don't be alarmed. It is just an exercise.


WHAT????

Welcome to My Blog!

You can find more blogs over at Household6Diva, the host of this bloghop.

Hello, Bloghoppers!

I started blogging in 2008 as a way to keep our friends and family updated about our crazy Army life. Our adventures started immediately after the wedding. We were stationed in Italy for five years, where we survived two deployments to Afghanistan and had our first child, our son. He goes by "Bean Dip" on this blog, a nickname that evolved from calling him "The Bean" after my first ultrasound.

My husband is an active duty soldier, and after his second deployment, was accepted to the Warrant Officer program to become a helicopter pilot. So from Italy, we came to Lower Alabama for flight school. We also now have a daughter, "Baby G," nicknamed because she has a fierce love for gangsta rap.

My blog is mostly about our family as we adjust our constantly changing life. I stay at home with the children, and they keep me busy. We are almost finished here in Alabama, and sometime this spring/summer we will be packing up and moving again (although we still don't know where)!

Thanks for stopping by!
Susan

It's That Time of the Year ...

... for butchering deer.

Win shot a deer this weekend, an 8-point buck. It was a big deer for down here. This time around, I felt much more comfortable tackling the meat -- I think I'm figuring it out finally. I butchered the hind quarters, and today I took in the shoulders to be turned into smoked sausage.

Looks like we'll be eating a lot of venison this winter.

Adventures with Sourdough

I have been attempting to bake bread. My mom made sourdough starter during Christmas, and she sent some home with me. I've been feeding it and loving it and hoping it will give me the yummy bread that I want.

Well. So far, I've tried twice. The first time, the bread didn't rise all the way, so it was a very compact loaf, and not very sour.

The second time, last night, the bread exploded and stuck to the pan. OK, so it didn't actually explode, but it rose to epic heights while baking and erupted to form an curl over. It was remarkably similar to a sea lion's snout. The bread was also way too salty.

Here's my disclaimer: I've only baked bread from scratch once before these sourdough loaves. So I don't have a whole lot of baking experience. I've also been winging it a bit -- not doing very much research. I'm slowly realizing that bread baking requires time, patience, and a little more finesse than I've been giving it.

So, any advice?? (And, I've already figured out you have to grease the pan!)

Three Things

Three things I've learned today:

1. Split pea soup takes way longer to cook than I thought.

2. Ham hocks may taste delicious, but they are disgusting to handle.

3. I really need to remember to grease the bread pan.

And with that, we are having peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner, on store-bought bread.

Distracted

I finally upgraded to a smartphone. I'm pretty excited about it, but I'm also still trying to figure it out. Is it embarrassing to admit that my three-year-old son can navigate it better than I? My husband already has the same phone, and Bean Dip gets to play games on it sometimes. So ... he knows his way around the phone pretty well. I, on the other hand, am still trying to figure out how to send a text message.

Sigh. Technology is both amazing and scary.

Fast New Running Shoes

Baby G got new shoes yesterday. She needed some running shoes, but as Bean Dip said, they couldn't be faster than his shoes. After a family outing in Dothan (to the train library and out to lunch), we stopped at the shoe store. They were out of her size in the pink, but as Win pointed out, we really couldn't take her to the store, put her in shoes she clearly loved, and not get them for her. So she has gray and white ones, with not a speck of pink on them. I'm sure my feminist sister-in-law will be happy with that. G was so happy with them, she wore them home, even though they don't quite go with her dress and tights.

Changed Identity?

Man, I broke my New Year's streak of posting every day. Sigh.

So have you heard the news about how the Zodiac signs have changed? I guess it isn't really new news, but it's popping up on the Web. If you follow the Zodiac based on constellations, they're off by a month. Something about how the Earth's axis has moved during the 2,000 years since the Zodiac signs were created. So now, the dates for the signs are different, and there is a new(-ish), 13th sign -- Ophiuchus.

It's kind of interesting, even if you aren't that into astrology. But I think everyone knows their sign and at least, identifies with it a little bit. According to this, I'm no longer a Scorpio, but a Libra. And I don't know how I feel about that.

Anyway, those are my deep thoughts this morning, before I've finished my first cup of coffee. We have no special plans for the long weekend, what about you?

More on Co-Sleeping

Well, she did it again this morning. Once again, she woke up with one desire -- sleep with us. Maybe during the long weekend we will have to do some sleep training.

Lately I have been putting them to bed at the same time, mainly to avoid having to read the same story twice. Last night, when I put them to bed, so G could see the book, I put her in bed with Bean Dip while I read them a story. Tonight, she wanted the same, so I did, and then she threw a fit when I put her in her crib. She clearly wanted to snuggle with her big brother. Oh man.

She's not crying anymore, and they are both still awake (in separate beds), looking at books. I think they are a little too young to sleep together, but I wonder what will happen when she's no longer in the crib.

The Return of Co-Sleeping

While we were up North for Christmas break, we had a resurgence of co-sleeping. All four of us are in one room while we are visiting, and this time, between the illnesses and the cold, we played musical beds the entire two weeks. At one point, Win was curled up on the single air mattress and I was sandwiched between two feverish little bodies. Not fun.

Bean Dip, the biggest co-sleeper of them all, had his share of sleeping with us, but at least he seems to understand now that he's supposed to sleep in his bed (at least at home!). He even said he missed his bed. Baby G, on the other hand, the one who has always enjoyed her own space, has become a Grade A, Number One snuggler. And it has carried over to Alabama.

The last couple mornings, she's woken up crying and has made it very clear she wants to go in our bed. Win and I don't mind as long as it's in the morning -- say an hour or so before we get up. Then it's not too disruptive.

I love sleeping and snuggling with the kids. But ... I love my sleep, and I'm afraid we are falling into bad habits again.

The Storm That Wasn't

The weather people had been forecasting winter weather for today since last week. I kept an eye on it through checking Weather Underground, but didn't think too much of it. They were saying we would get some ice pellets, maybe some snow. No big deal.

Then last night, I check Facebook, and people down here had posted things saying that post, schools, and government offices were closed today because of it. Both Win and I thought, "What?!?!"

Yep, the governor had declared a state of emergency for Alabama, and just about everything shut down. On the local news, it showed Lowes completely sold out of portable generators. I checked the weather again, had I missed something?

Nope, the forecast was still for rain, with a chance of "less than a quarter inch of ice accumulation." I understand how bad ice is, and that no one down here is prepared for it, but really?

Anyway, Win got a late work call, and I think every kid in the state was off school. Nothing was frozen when we woke up. I think places north of us got hit fairly bad, but down here, I think some people may have overreacted a bit.

Christmas Morning (Part 1)

Waiting for all the grownups to wake up.

He has been asking for these for the last six months.

She loves these.

Starting off the New Year Right

Book-wise, I mean. I received this book from my mother-in-law for Christmas.

It is brand new, and I had not heard of it. It is a old people British romance, which doesn't sound that exciting. However, it is the most wonderful love story, with plenty of cultural and family drama, as well as my favorite British humor, mixed in. It is about a very traditional retired major who falls for the Pakistani shopkeeper in a small village, and of course, everyone disapproves for one reason or another. This book is one of the best I've read in a while, and I finished it before we came home. My mom is already reading it.

Another book I received from my sister-in-law was this one:



I have not read anything before by this author, I know Jessica is a fan. This is a book of short stories, and even though I've just started it, I'm really enjoying it. There is nothing like having a good book to read!

Semi-Annual Date Night

One of the highlights of our Christmas vacation was our semi-annual date night. Yep, that's about how often we get a night out for ourselves these days. The last one was in July, when Win's mom came to visit and practically forced us to go out to dinner. The one before that was in January, when we went out for a couple hours with Alex and Venusja in Florida. My parents watched the children in the hotel room. With Win being in flight school and me not wanting to leave the babies with anyone other than family, we have to wait for family to help us out.

Anyway, we had to be forced to go out this time, too. Both kids were sick the entire week after Christmas, and with them being sick, and all of us worn out from the holidays, Win and I seriously considered just ordering pizza and watching a movie. But in the end, we left the kids (both crying), and went to dinner and a movie.

We ate at Robust Wine Bar in Webster Groves, Mo. It was one of the best dining experiences I've had in a long time. It has a great atmosphere -- elegant and hip but not at all pretentious. Kind of like Webster Groves. The food is served tapas style -- small plates. I had a delicious Cabernet Sauvignon from Argentina that the server suggested. I wish I could remember the name. We ate chorizo sausage and marinated olives for appetizers. Win had a fish chowder and these absolutely amazing scallops over risotto. I had a yummy pork tenderloin with apple butter. I want to go back to have those scallops just for me. If you are in the St. Louis area, please put this on your list of places to eat.

After, we went to see True Grit, the Coen brothers remake of the John Wayne movie. It was excellent. Win said it was the best western he's seen since Unforgiven.

Maybe as the children get older, I'll find a babysitter so we can have date nights more often. It was definitely wonderful to go out with just my husband and not have to worry about the kids.

Oh, and the babies were fine. Both only cried for a few minutes, then Bean Dip took a nap, woke up and helped his Aunt Macon make chocolate-covered strawberries. Baby G ate dinner and went to sleep at her normal time. I am so thankful for our wonderful families, and also for text messaging. I got regular updates complete with pictures while we were out.

Football at the Movies?

Have I mentioned how big football is down here?

Check this out: Title Game Auburn v. Oregon Offered at Carmike Cinema

Instead of going to see a movie, take your kids to the theater to see the big game, free admission with the purchase of a snack and drink.

Wordless Wednesday

A white Christmas

Arrived

We are all back in Bama after a two-week holiday trip home.

The 12.5 hour trip doesn't get any easier, but once again I'm going to brag about my great little travelers. They both did wonderful, and we didn't listen to gangsta rap once (our go-to music when Baby G is crying).

I had more to say, but it's gone, I think my brain has already gone to bed.

Good night!

Best Joke of the Year

Vanessa:

Lem, I hear they call you 'Lembo'. Can I call you 'Lembo', too?

Lem (with an completely straight face):

You can call me 'Cheese Sandwich.'



This kid is definitely his father's son.

The (First) Night Before Christmas

Sacked out the night before the first of our Christmas celebrations.

Ringing in 2011

Happy New Year! I did not make it to midnight last night, what with caring for two sick babies all week, I was exhausted. We are having a quiet day of doing nothing for our first day of 2011.

I am enjoying my favorite part of the holidays -- pickled herring. In my family, you eat it on New Year's Eve in hopes of making lots of money in the new year. It is one of my favorite things to eat. It's probably the Dutch heritage in me that makes me love raw/pickled/smoked fish. At my family's house, a jar this size sometimes only lasts a couple hours. And now I'm off to finish off this jar. Try it, it's delicious!

(Baby G also happens to love pickled herring. She prefers in on a Ritz cracker, just like Mama.)

What do you traditionally eat on New Year's Eve/Day?