Annie with the Uncles

Dan's Uncle David and Uncle Steve (brothers) called and asked if they could take the boys to opening night of Annie at the Civic Theater. Of course we said yes!

Before:

Afterwards, the boys got to go back and meet the actors. They were so excited! Luckily pictures were taken for this photo-obsessed mama!

Thank you Uncle David and Uncle Steve for a great night!

Grandpa Bob's Hospital Stay

Grandpa  Bob got an infection in his toe. The depth of the infection was due to his diabetes. He was admitted to the hospital for antibiotics. The antibiotics did not catch the infection in time and his toe was amputated. We visited grandpa Bob every day in the hospital and had lunch with him. We brought him balloons, pictures, and more. At night, mommy would go back for a few hours and play Cribbage with grandpa Bob. He is now home and doing well.

Since Daddy's Been Home, We Have...

1) heard a local author speak. Thomas and mommy had some time together and listened to children's author Kelly Milner Halls speak. Then we played games at Uncles. It was a great night!

2) picked up the boys wearing an Ironman costume (Molly). Then wore it to a park for a playdate (Katie).

3) fallen asleep like a rockstar on the couch.

6 Weeks Pt 2 (Alabama and Back Home Again)

Once in Alabama we met up with Dan for his State Oath Ceremony. The kids were so happy to see their daddy! (Dan was at school and graduated with his cousin Becca. His uncle Steve, now retired, read the State Oath to them...very special).

After that it was off to the hotel. The evening awards banquet was adults only, so Dan and I got dressed up and my mom took the kids to the pool.

The next morning we were up at at 'em early as Dan's graduation ceremony was at 7:30 (or 5:30 our time). Awesome. :( The ceremony was pretty cool.

After the ceremony they did a graduation parade. It was a lot of marching and formal line-ups and such. The kids really enjoyed it. The girls did pirouttes to the music.

We had some play-time after that and really just let the kids rest and play in the pool some more.

Dan's flight left early from Montgomery the next morning, we left way later in the afternoon from Atlanta. The trip back to Atlanta was uneventful. And the flights home were just as expected. The kids were tired but are great fliers.

Overall, a great trip.The kids did great. I could not have survived without my mom. It was perfect. And now, daddy is home. So life is good again. :)

6 Weeks (Dan's absence and the trip to Montgomery)

6 weeks. That's how long Dan was gone for. He went to Alabama for AMS (Officer School). Right before he left we found tickets at a rock bottom price that meant the kids and I could fly down for graduation. The last time I flew was over 10 years ago. The kids had never flown.

Life without Dan is always hard. It definitely gets easier as the kids get older, but it remains a challenge when your partner is missing. We had very minimal communication which also made it difficult. The kids missed him, and I missed him too. BUT, the preparation for the flights kept me busy!

My mom had an engagement the day we left so she flew overnight and met us the next morning. This meant that the flight down was going to be SOLO! We left on a Wednesday from Spokane and flew to Denver. The kids were amazing. They did great. Even in Denver where we did some massive fast-walking to do bathrooms and food before boarding our next flight. From Denver to Atlanta was a tad rocky just because it was a smaller plane and we were not all seated in the same row. Once we got in the air and got everyone settled, it was a dream. I'm glad I didn't bring anything for me to do on the plane, because I would have never had the chance!

The Atlanta airport did not turn out exactly as I expected. We walked a short distance to get luggage. Grabbed a luggage cart and then realized it was going to be difficult. The luggage cart was not something a kid could operate so I was forced to manage that (it was holding all four carseats and very tipsy). That meant Thomas had to push the double stroller containing the girls, and Joshua had to pull the carry-ons. It was quite the adventure. I did not realize we'd have a long walk at midnight to get to our rental car. We walked about 1/2 mile before we did an elevator (not exciting with all our stuff). And then a train...also not exciting. The tran gives you about 60 seconds to load before the doors shut. This is  not easy with four children and mass extras. Nevertheless at midnight.

**There was a guy who saw us and took pity and said he would help us load the train. Come about 45 seconds and the guy realizing that he was not going to make it on if he helped us, he did a "save yourself!" kind of run and got on somewhere else. :) We made it, but it was not an easy task. And managing the children on a fast moving train with all the luggage and stroller rolling around was incredibly difficult.

Once we got off the train it was 3 elevators, one stop and about a 1/2 mile walk and we were finally
at our car.

After getting mega-lost we made it to our hotel and settled down. Mom flew in and arrive at about 8 AM in the morning, so we showered and got ready to go.

The drive from Atlanta to Montgomery was beautiful and the kids were awesome. We stopped for breakfast, but not again until we reached Montgomery.