Getting Ready for Deployment -- Countdown!

Over the past week, the kids and I have been crafting like crazy getting ready for My Marine's deployment. 

One of the first things we did was make this countdown calendar.  There's a lot of ideas out there on Pinterest and I had it narrowed down to the chalkboard countdown and the calendar cubes countdown.  In the end, My Marine decided that he liked the chalkboard better.   I have to say - I did too.

I found the chalkboard for 50% off at JoAnn's.  It was already white so no repainting necessary.  It did have a floral background on the top, so I just recovered it with some patriotic scrapbook paper. 

JoAnn's also had packages of felt red, white, and blue stars.....so I snatched them up and glued them at the edges.  Add a photo of My Marine and the girls, some stickers and viola!

Deployment countdown calendar!

Read more...

Thankful Thursday - 5/10

During this upcoming deployment, I wanted to set aside some time to focus on gratitude.  I wanted to make sure that I and my girls focus on good things.....and not just boo-hoo'ing over the fact that My Marine is gone.  (Not that we won't have those kind of days of course!)  And while searching for clipart to accompany this weekly posts, I stumbled across the above verse and just loved it.  In fact.....I'll be printing it out and adding it to my inspiration board that I'm creating as well.  (More on that later!)

But in the meantime.....this week my gratitude covers so much!

• That we were able to make two road trips over two months and that we all remained safe and healthy!
• That my mom is able to come out to Colorado for a few weeks.  She'll be here for Nani's dance recital and to help me get ready for deployment during the month of June when My Marine will be gone for the majority of the month training.
• That my mom and daddy basically took our girls for the entire time we were in Pittsburgh and gave me and My Marine the gift of a couple days by ourselves in a hotel.  My girls spent 10 glorious days being spoiled rotten by Bubbie and Grandpap and making memories they will have forever!
• For extremely supportive and loving friends who are offering all sorts of support and encouragement as we prepare for our deployment.  The offers of coffee, babysitting, and even just a shoulder to cry on are pouring in.....and I am just overwhelmed.
• That I finally got my Daddy on Facebook!
• And again to my mom, while I was in Pittsburgh, for passing on to me a pair of earrings that belonged to my grandmother as well as a pair of her own gold earrings.
• For Primanti's sandwiches, Eat-n-Park Superburgers, good halushki, and hunky music!

So what are YOU grateful for this week?

Read more...

Wordless Wednesday - Pittsburgh Skyline

Read more...

Pittsburgh - The Incline

Yesterday I posted about taking the kids to the Carnegie Science Museum.  After we left the museum, we decided to take the kids for a ride on the Duquesne Incline.  The history of inclines in Pittsburgh is amazing and at the top there is a display of old photos showing the incline's history through the years.

To read more about the inclines, click here.

Here's some photos from our adventure!

Waiting to get started!

We saw a crew of workers repainting the rails.  It was so cool because before the cars could start moving, you could hear the foreman yelling, "Move 'em over!" and they would move to the center of the tracks.  You can see in the one picture, one of the workers waving to the girls!

Peeking out the window as we go up!

Skyline from the window

The other car passing us!

Read more...

Pittsburgh - Day 1

Our first day back in Pittsburgh!

We took the girls to breakfast at Eat-n-Park - home of the famous Smiley Face Cookies and our favorite Superburger Combination.

After a yummy breakfast, we headed down to the Carnegie Science Center.  Neither I or My Marine have ever been there, so it was a big treat for us all.  And boy, were we NOT disappointed!  This is an AMAZING place for both adults and kids! 

They had one whole floor just for robotics.  Nudgie was pretty excited to see C-3PO.....not so much with R2-D2.  And we all enjoyed watching the giant computer arm play basketball against a human --- and win!

From there we went to the miniature railroad and village exhibit.  This was just absolutely amazing!!  I remember seeing something similar at the Buhl Planetarium when I was a kid.  Even now, I'm still in awe over the tiny moving miniature exhibits.  The girls just LOVED it!!

A few other highlights were building a structure to see if it would withstand an earthquake.....

And playing with the Google maps exhibit and finding our house in Colorado.  Funny thing is that it shows our old Eclipse parked on the street......and we haven't had that car in almost 9 months!

Overall it was a lot of fun for both us and the kids!!  If you're ever in the Pittsburgh area, I HIGHLY recommend adding the Carnegie Science Museum to you list of "Must-Sees!"

Read more...

Deployment - Here We Go Again.....

Hi everyone!

It's been awhile since I've posted.  The past 2 months have just been crazy busy between My Marine's being gone at school and our travels to Portland and Pittsburgh.  We just got back this past Friday from an almost 2-week trip back to Pittsburgh.  It was so amazing and such a good trip.....I just didn't want to come home!  I'll be sharing more of those adventures over the next few days!

But....while we were in Pittsburgh, we got the news that My Marine will be deploying this summer for a year.  Starting in June, it will be a whirlwind of training before they actually leave for their MOB station.  (The place where they meet up with all the other soldiers to head overseas.)  It doesn't really leave us much time together as a family - really, only about 3.5 weeks. 

But even though this isn't my first rodeo, I still have mixed feelings about this deployment.

We knew it was coming....but it was a long time coming.  There were times where we would get so frustrated because we just weren't getting any information at all but were still told to move on as if.  That's kind of hard when you have kids that you need to prepare as well. 

This deployment won't be as long as his first one when he was gone 18 months.  Nani was only 8 months old when My Marine left.  He came home to a 2-yr. old.  At the most, we're looking at only 9-10 months overseas + 1-2 months training here in the U.S.  Not too bad.

The hardest part is going to be dealing with Nani.  She's much older now and more understanding that daddy needs to go away for awhile.  While she's ok now, I know there will be days when she won't be ok.  I'm planning on getting her a puppy when My Marine leaves.  He had no say in this.  I figured that with the puppy, it may help take her mind off missing daddy at times.  She'll have something to look forward to talking with daddy about.  I'm not sure how Zoja - our other Shepherd - will feel about it....but she'll suck it up like the rest of us.

So, in the meantime, I'm pulling on my big-girl deployment panties, making my checklists, and getting my ducks in a row.

Here we go again......

Read more...

Easter Tree

With our recent road trip to Portland, I didn't get much Easter/Spring decorating done around here.  My Marine did pull the boxes down, but I just didn't have the time to put anything up.  We did, however, manage to get our Easter tree decorated......or at least the girls did!

We also needed a tree topper.  So, I gave Nani an empty Crystal Light container and asked her if she could make a bunny out of it.  Let me know what you think......

So, at least I've got some "spring-y" decorations up!

Read more...

Trip to Portland - Lego Exhibit

On Monday, we got back from a visit up to Portland.  My Marine's family lives up there, so we stayed with his brother's family.  I was mostly excited to see my sweet niece and nephew (pictures coming soon!) and just spend some time relaxing.

On our first day there, we made a trip to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI).  There was just so much to see and do....but it was a bit crowded due to spring break, so a lot of the "hands-on" exhibits were otherwise occupied.  But we did manage to see the Lego exhibit.....and can I just say - WOW!!

But let's let the pictures speak for themselves!

Read more...