Going to the big “D” and I don’t mean Disney

Plan B is in full effect.  One of them, that is.  We packed the car and embarked on our family vacation.  Yippee!  Almost without a hitch.  For the first 12 minutes of, what was supposed to be, a 4 hour and 44 minute drive, Fabul-O expressed her utter hatred for anywhere that wasn’t home.  After winding our way through the torrential rains, gusty winds in the mountains of NC and dinner of Momma’s Pancake Breakfast, our 5 hour and 39 minute journey landed us in Pigeon Forge, TN.  Dollywood, here we come!

Overview of day one: Goat poop, camel slobber and a peacock that hissed.

Pictures and details to follow.

Long time no post…mini-updates

Been crazy the past couple of weeks.  Forgive me.  I’ve had tons going on and, quite honestly, nothing new and exciting to blog about.  Yeah, you all know this blog is always chock full of new and exciting.  [insert snark here]

I’m having a hard time wrapping my mind around Will’s situation.  Physical therapy isn’t working.  Not even a little bit.  He goes back to the spine specialist in a couple of weeks and they will talk about plan B. 

Trying to get ready for vacation, which is also a Plan B.

Dammit.  Plan B seems to be running my life right now.

Our FRG for Will’s unit (Family Readiness Group)…Holy cow they have TOTALLY ticked me off and I wasn’t at the last meeting because I had to work, but I promised to be at the next meeting and will be laying some smack down.  I’m thinking it’s a good thing I wasn’t there in the beginning because I fo sho would not have been back.  Even though I still get angry and upset, I have another 3 weeks to let it cool off.  Them changing their mind on a commitment to me has the potential of costing me big bucks.  I’m not talking $50, $100 or even $500…way more.  I’m scrambling for a Plan B.

I’m preparing for the funeral of my friend’s husband.  That’s also hard to wrap my mind around.

Olivia’s school started back August 7…she goes to a private school and their schedule is a bit different than other schools.  The fellowship they fall under starts earlier, but they don’t really get out that much earlier – close to the end of May.  Well, one kid has already been diagnosed with strep throat.  Guess what?  His mom still sent him to school.  Grrrr.  Then had the kahunas to gripe about the kids who put their mouth near the thing on the water fountain.  Guess what?!  I watched her kid do it.   Keep him home, please.  Now we are stuffy and snotty and all things green. 

There’s more, I’m sure, but this is all I can come up with.

I will say, I lurve my new bubble bath.  This was the scene for me last night.  Thanks, in part, to Will taking care of Olivia’s bath and bedtime.

Yes, that’s an iced tea glass of wine.  It’s too messy to get out and refill my regular wine glass.  Proper planning on my part while staving off being a lush.

I normally stay until the water gets cool.  Not last night.  I stayed until all the bubbles were gone listening to my 80s hairband ballads. 

Despite the musical arrangement, the theme of bath time was “Tiny Bubbles” by Don Ho

Tiny bubbles (tiny bubbles)
In the wine (in the wine)
Make me happy (make me happy)
Make me feel fine (make me feel fine)

Tiny bubbles (tiny bubbles)
Make me warm all over
With a feeling that I’m gonna
Love you till the end of time

So here’s to the golden moon
And here’s to the silver sea
And mostly here’s a toast
To you and me

So here’s to the ginger lei
I give to you today
And here’s a kiss
That will not fade away

Be well, my friends.  More soon.

Prayer Request – Updated

First, thanks to all who offered up prayers, well wishes, etc.  It was much appreciated by me and I know by the family.  I just received a call that he passed away this morning.  My heart is broken.  There are some people in this world who live for others rather than themselves and these are those people. 

 

I’m reaching out, again, to you all for prayers, good wishes or whatever you will…

I emailed a friend I met about 3 years ago who does some contract work for a company I do some work with.  I wanted to see how she was doing as I had not heard from her or seen her in a while, although I had been keeping up with her through a mutual friend.  F is a very, very special person.  She is one of those people you meet and, the instant she speaks to you the very first time, you know you’ve got a friend for life.  They have biological children, have been foster parents for many, many years and they have adopted several of the children they’ve fostered.  I’m posting her email below. 

The power of prayer does wonderful things and her strength and faith is amazing.  So, if you will, please pray for this family. 

Susan,

It was great to hear from you.  The kids are all doing great and I’m glad to hear about Olivia. It doesn’t seem like she should be that old.  Wow, time moves quickly. 

Things are not going too well here.  In fact, I haven’t had time to even let K know that D is in intensive care as we speak and the doctors are doubting he will pull through.  He was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease last year and then told he had Lyme disease.  He became totally dependent on me (bathing, feeding, dressing, bathroom, etc) and on Monday of this week developed blood clots in his right lung and left leg. He also has developed pneumonia. 

I’m very sad right now as I didn’t imagine becoming a widow at age 47 but I have to keep believing that God has a good reason to do this.  Otherwise, I would go crazy.  D and I have been married almost 24 years but he is really suffering and I don’t want that for him. 

Please keep us in your prayers.  I’m on my way back to the hospital.  Once the nurses got him halfway comfortable late last night, I came home to get a little sleep.

Thanks,

F

 

 

 

 

 I didn’t include their names, but God knows who you are asking prayer for.

Puckerless Lips

Today I picked Olivia up from school and she had a “boo-boo.”  Two, actually.  One is a scratch from like 3 weeks ago that she still hobbles along for and the other was a bug bite.   I offered up a kiss to make them feel better as full whining was in effect and it is a very, very long drive home.  This was her reply:  (Warning: Heartbreak ahead)

Mooommmyyy.  Kisses don’t help boo-boos. Only medicine helps dems. Kisses for boo-boos are for babies and I am BIG (Insert monster sized hand gesture) girl.  Please fasten my seatbelt.

I did as I was asked and tried my best to close my gaping mouth as I walked around to my side of the car.

Is she kidding me?  She had rather have a slather of cream or dollop of some salve than lips of love from mommy?  That’s what mommy kisses and hugs are all about; they fix everything.  Don’t they?  Please tell me yes and she’s just toying with my emotions.  Please?!?

Another Family Grows

Alyson and Ford have been in the ranks of waiting parents for a long time and it’s finally their turn.  Go on over and give ‘em a YIPPEE on their referral. 

Congrats!!

Total Blueberry Count

Approximately 60 cups of blueberries were picked.  About half were given away and I put up 18 pints.

So, all in all, we picked about 2 pecks.  (4 pecks equal a bushel)

Stay tuned for more blueberry goodness.

By the way, I learned that it is way more fun when mom does the dirty work of it.

I Like Big Grunts

Blueberry Grunt, that is.  I made this Sunday night, but it wasn’t the blueberries I picked Friday.  These are ones I had from when mom picked last time.  Sarge Charlie says it looks like we picked 3 pecks.  Mom took some of the berries with her to put up and I have the rest with me.  I don’t know how she measures them out so I’ll have to get with her and let you know exactly how much we had.  If I remember, that is, and if she paid attention. 

Someone first told me about this recipe about a week ago and I wanted to make it just for the name.  Apparently, it gets its name from the sound in the pot.  Basically, it is a blueberry cobbler you make on top of the stove versus baking it.

Overall, was okay.  There are different recipes out there for it, but I chose this one because it was, well, easy.  I lurve easy.  The only big change I had was I used Heart Smart Bisquick to make my dumplings (the shortcake recipe) so I super cheated.

Blueberry Grunt

Ingredients:
Sauce:
4 cups wild fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup water

Dumplings:
2 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp butter or shortening
milk

Dumplings I made:

1 cup Heart Smart Bisquick

1/3 cup skim milk

2 T sugar
Instructions:
Heat berries, spices, sugar, lemon juice, and water in a skillet; boil gently until well blended and slightly cooked down. Sift flour, baking powder, salt and sugar into a bowl. Cut in butter and add enough milk to make a soft biscuit dough. Drop by spoonfuls into hot berry sauce. Cover tightly with a lid and SIMMER for 15 minutes (no peeking!) The dumplings should be puffed and well cooked through. Transfer cooked dumplings to serving dish. Ladle sauce over top; top with (unwhipped) whipping cream.

I didn’t have any whipping cream or ice cream so I was forced to indulge without the added fun.  Like I said, overall it was good.  Will I make it again?  Probably.  It’s definitely something that needs to be eaten right away so I halved the recipe when I made it. 

 

I found this bit of history on grunts, cobblers, etc.  Quite interesting…

Picking Blueberries

This afternoon, my mom, Olivia and I went to pick blueberries.  We had a great time and have a lot of berries.  When I say a lot, I mean a lot.

Gotta have our picking gear.  The sucker adds flair, don’t you think?

Grandma helped to encourage the special gear

 

Berries are such a pretty blue.

Picking one by one

Ran out of baskets

Let the fun begin

Deployment brings with it all sorts of questions ranging from how to adjust my schedule, work, worry, cooking for just Olivia and me, and the oh-so-dreaded question of: “What about another baby?”   First of all, deployment, for us, does not mean expand family.  The first words out of some mouths of wives in Will’s unit after the deployment was announced was, “I’m gittin’ pregnant.”  I’m not making fun.  It’s exactly how they sounded when they said it.  We are totally in love with Olivia and are thoroughly enjoying her.  Different strokes for different folks, but I’ve always wanted some space in between kids and, yes, this deployment will bring with it a wee bit more space than we originally planned for, but, hey, I had a luxurious Disney trip planned that crumbled right before my eyes, too.  The best laid plans… 

Honestly, I don’t know what our future holds for our family.  I think we both would love to have another child.  I have had one girl and now I’d take 100 boys.  Will, on the other hand, wants more girls.  I admit, sometimes I would love to find out I’m pregnant, but other times it doesn’t phase me.  I don’t get bitter when I see pregnant people and I hold no secret hard feelings for friends and family who have babies. For the record, I so enjoyed celebrating my wonderful baby shower my friend J hosted for me with a cold beer.  Anyway, to date, it’s not been in our cards and, for the most part, I’m okay with that.   Fertility issues are a bitter pill to swallow and miscarriages cause a lot of heartache.  Adoption costs are expensive, domestic or international, and the wait to bring a sibling home from China is wicked crazy long right now.  We’ve talked about our options and are thinking them through carefully.  When family planning involves paperwork that expires, fingerprints, homestudy with updates and a husband who will be thousands of miles away, it takes a bit more planning. 

I usually don’t mind people asking me questions and most people mean no harm in the stuff they ask, but I do feel the need to answer this one out loud: No, we will not be freezing sperm.

Chaps my arse

So, you all know Will had an MRI done on his back last month and physical therapy is the first step.  Well, bills have started to roll in.  I wasn’t too concerned about it because we’ve almost met our out of pocket expenses for the year and once we do, it will all be covered 100%. 

1. Bill for inital x-ray at doctor’s office: $1,128.00
2. Bill for MRI: $3,598.00
3. Bill for Radiologist and radiology assistant: $868.00

These are just the first three we’ve gotten and I’m sure there are more on the way.  So, where does the chapping come in? 

1. Insurance allowable amount $218.00 
2. Insurance allowable amount $650.00
3. Insurance allowable amount $157.00

With our co-pays and out-of-pocket amounts, we owe about $200.  That’s what chaps me.  We are fortunate enough to have decent insurance (we have Tricare through the military) and because we are so far from a military treatment facility, we can go wherever we want.   What about people who don’t have the power of the insurance company on their side?  What about those people who wouldn’t know to call to negotiate the insurance rate on a bill, or at least attempt it?  Everytime I get a statement showing where insurance has adjusted the bill down 60+ percent it makes me ill for others. 

It’s.just.not.right.

Myrta Beach

Yes, intentionally misspelled.  That’s how Fabul-O says it.  Moons and moons ago, she got the notion that whenever she sees an airplane, it’s going to Myrtle Beach, SC. 

About 18 months ago, we bought a vacation thingy and finally got the opportunity to go.  Auntie Amy took off work and we had packed our treasures and headed down to MB for the weekend.  It was supposed to be Friday through Monday, but I had to work Monday so we just used it as an opportunity to check out at 5 in the afternoon.  What was supposed to be a fantastico trip had its moments.  Oodles of them.

Start with packing.  I am missing four sandals.  Not two pair, but one of each of four pair.  I suppose, technically, that means I still have two pair of sandals with two matching pair somewhere.  I guess I could treat it like those little cake matrices in the women’s magazines.  You know the one: pick a mix, a fruit and an icing and you can have up to 966 different versions of cake.  I didn’t find but so much humor in it.

Fabul-O’s bathing suit left behind.  Thank goodness for an all night Wol-Marks and clearance.  $3 – bargain.

Let the games begin…So, it all started when we got into town and went to our welcome center to check in.  I was told when I booked our dates to call prior to departing and specify the type of room I wanted.  Goody. We like suites and possibly a kitchenette.  (Auntie Amy was bringing her wonderful Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville margarita maker).  I call and pretty much get laughed at.  Then transferred.  I was told I was not able to specify ahead of time and to talk to the peeps at the welcome center, but don’t worry this hotel has suites with kitchenettes.  I get there and am told that had to be done at the hotel.  So we get to the hotel and I’m told the package I paid for did not include a suite so I offered to pay the difference and upgrade.  Nope.  (insert mega frustration here)  Fine.  Give us our keys.  This is where the poo hits the fan.  The rooms are SMALL and nasty.   We were pretty much screwed at this point.  It was paid for a long time ago so there was no disputing it with the credit card company and, because I got a special rate, if we left then they would bill my c/c the whole amount to the tune of about $600.  Before you think that I should have known better, we are timeshare peeps and this was offered through our timeshare company and we’ve taken these little get away trips before without a hitch or problem.   I asked the front desk to 1. move us – they said no b/c hotel is full.  2. I wanted to see if the rooms in the “tower” were as nasty as ours or was it because we were on a promotional trip and we got the ghetto floors.  Again, told no.   FINE.  I would certainly express my discontent later.

Fast forward to dinner.  We wanted to hit outlet shopping Friday night because last weekend was the sales tax holiday weekend in SC and we figured Saturday the outlet malls would be a madhouse.  So, we ate at Ruby Tuezday.  Love their salad bar.  We walk in and the hostess tells us to follow her, but not before she tells Will, “grab that chair and bring it with you.”  We were dumbfounded.  I’ve never been asked to haul my seating in any restaurant.  She kept on walking, but with Will’s back, I carried the chair.  Waitress super sweet.  Manager came by and asked how we were, I was still a bit taken aback about the whole bring my own chair ACROSS the restaurant so I told him.  He comped our beer and all was well.  That was until the hostess came over, hand on hip and asked did I tell on her.  Yup.  Sure did.  You don’t ask a patron to carry their own seating across the restaurant to the table.  She looked me dead square in the eyes and said, “well, I didn’t tell you anyway.  I told HIM” and pointed at Will.  Who cares who you told, you did it and THAT is the point.  This went back and forth and finally I had enough.  I told her to leave my table and if she wanted to talk about it later, she can talk to me after I finish dinner with my guests.  And I turned back around to the table and she muttered and off she went.  Manager came back and I expressed my displeasure with being confronted by the hostess at my table.  His face drained of all color, apologized profusely and offered up free desserts.  We didn’t want it and dinner was good aside from that so all was well; just keep her away from us.  She glared as we left the restaurant, but didn’t utter a word to us.  Beyotch.

Shopping: Great.  Lots of good deals and no sales tax.

Bedtime: Nightmarish.  Olivia loves going to a hotel, but for some reason decided she had enough of vacation fun and wanted to go home.  I was on my way to WM to buy her a bathing suit and Will called to tell me we weren’t going to have to worry about the nasty room that we were for sure going to get kicked out.  Fabul-O was in super, duper, kick butt meltdown mode.  Screams could be heard for miles.  Finally, at some point, she collapsed around 11:30 because I got back at almost midnight and she was sacked out.  With her purse. 

Saturday: We went to Ripley’s Aquarium because Olivia loves fishies and all things fishies and stands and admires the humongous goldfish at our favorite Chinese restaurant.  Well, devil in disguise wasn’t having any part of it.  None what so ever.  The first thing we came to was the pirate display and the dark of it and the music frightened her, I guess.  All I know is the most ear-piercing scream rang out through the aquarium.  Calming words from mommy.  Big hugs and some serious negotiations.  We found snack bar and bought popcorn and apple juice, two of her favorite things.  She threw her shades on and we tried again.  Nope.  Ain’t happening.  So, Will took her to see if he could calm her down.  Nope.  They were invited to leave, but I didn’t know this because I had left my phone in the car.  Amy and I did a quick tour and found them baking in the white hot of the sun when we were done.  Olivia had to go to the bathroom, but refused to let him take her.  She finally let me and it is a wonder she lasted that long.  We left.  Nothing else to do, but leave.  What did she say on the way to the car? “I like fishies.”  Seriously.  We went back to the hotel for some pizza and a forced nap.  6 pm we all got up for dinner and headed to one of our favorite seafood restaurants, Landry’s.  Dinner was delicious and the dessert was even better.  We walked around to some shops and picked up a few things and as we got closer to the area that had music/night life sounds, Olivia freaked out again.  She said it was too loud and she didn’t like it.  So, we left. 

Sunday morning we got up, had breakfast, did some more shopping and we went to visit the people who screwed us on our accommodations.  More blame passed.  I filed my written complaint, picked up a free weekend stay (sarcastic yippee) and we went back to the hotel to pack and come home.

Aside from the room, it was a fun stay and Olivia enjoyed the pool and the ocean.  We got lots of seashells and made tons of sand castles.  We loved seeing Auntie Amy and each time Olivia woke up, the first thing she wanted to know was, “Where’s Auntie Amy?  Next time she sleep in my room.”

Amy: thanks for joining us.  We had a great time and can’t wait to see you again. 

The big outcome of this little mini-vacay is a scrubbed trip to Disney.  Yes, we had our big family vacation planned for Disney at the end of this month.  I’ve had it booked for months, but cancelled all reservations, including our dinner with Cinderella.  Olivia isn’t too happy about that, but I’m not willing to risk misery in the hell hot of August in Florida if she decides to freak out.  So, we’re saving that one for our post-deployment vacation.  Besides, hopefully then it will be cooler.  When I originally booked our rooms, the lady asked, “August?  You’re sure about your dates?”  Yes, I didn’t pick August on purpose, it’s just the way our cards fell.  Now that the Guard has will on LOD, he won’t be attending his school, but he is unable to change his vacation time at work, so there’s a little bit of “Yee-haw” on the vacation horizon.

Pictures to follow…my card reader is being less than agreeable.

Another Family Grows

A fellow blogger has been dealing with the ups and downs of Russian adoption for quite some time.  She has maintained her faith and strength for as long as I’ve read her and has weathered some things that I’m sure would have made me throw in the towel a long time ago. 

In a surprise turn of events, they are now the proud parents of a baby boy and D is finally a big sister!  Pop on over and tell Suz and family congratulations.

Wordless Wednesday

How to get a 3-1/2 year old to eat broccoli casserole:

Rainbow goldfish.

UPDATED:

In response to some comments and emails: yes, it worked.  I tried it, but the goldfish were a little too bland for my taste.  I’m still a big fan of seasoned bread crumbs on the top.  Olivia likes broccoli, but isn’t so enthused about any type of casserole.  It wasn’t until recently we were able to put multiple foods on the same plate and she will now use the same fork for her entire meal, most of the time.   She used to be a fantastic eater, but we all know the toddler palate can quickly change and become quite picky.  We’re there. 

These little piggies went to the beach…

Doesn’t she just have the cutest feet on the planet?!?

A little bit of something and a whole lot of nothing

That pretty much sums up life at Chateau L.  This past weekend we packed our bags and had a lovely weekend with Auntie Amy at the beach.  That blog post is coming, but the thrill of griping about some of the events has been overshadowed by “the call.”

Will got the call yesterday advising what date he is to report for active duty.  The Guard has given us plenty of notice.  Heck, we’ve had almost a year by the time he actually deploys.  We have plenty of time for the realness of it to sink in and to enjoy the things we have upcoming.   This is my first Guard deployment so excuse my ignorance as I muddle my way though.  I speak fluent girl and this will be no different.  Apparently, he reports on state orders and then some time after that it changes to Federal orders.  None the less, it’s going to be a long XX months.  We’ll be having a mass celebration in the fall.  If anyone drops by the Chateau in October, don’t snub the Pamkey (pumkin + ham + turkey) and please don’t question the Nativity scene next to the Jack-o-lantern and cornucopia.  Oh, there will likely be heart-shaped fireworks and a birthday cake delivered by cupid and his side kick, the Easter Bunny.  Baby New Year will be the emcee and St. Patty will be checking coats.

I have a pit in the bottom of my stomach that will continue to grow.  I didn’t want this much advanced notice.  I didn’t.  Plain and simple.  Plain and freaking simple.  My genetic make-up includes a worrier gene.  A HUGE one.  One that will keep me from sleeping full nights for close to the next two years.  This on top of the fact I don’t sleep well anyway and I’ll be a sure candidate for zombie status come spring.

This is sort of what we know: He will be stateside for additional training for several months before they leave the country.  Their final destination is up in the air.  Could be, as Olivia says, “Hiraq” or “Afstamastam.”   Only the powers that be know and we won’t know until the last possible second and even that is subject to change.  Once they are in country, they will not come home for R&R.  Some people gasped when the CO said this.  Me?  Not so much.  I think a lot of the families, and soldiers, find it harder to have them come home and then go back.  Of course, I can’t actually say that for a fact because Will didn’t get R&R last time he deployed.

His back still bothers him and he starts PT this week.  He has been ordered to dental by the Guard, which means the work he was supposed to have done in May he’ll be getting done now.  Every piece of paper that is signed with the crossing of the “t” and dotting of the “i” will put him one step closer.

Having a hard time wrapping my mind around it, which frustrates me to no end because we’ve been waiting and waiting and waiting and preparing.  I guess with all the waiting we still have left, it’s possible things could change again, but not likely.  I’m a logical person who tries to stay pretty on top of things, but it’s proving to be more and more difficult for me.

Note to heart: Get on board with mind, please.  Pretty, pretty please.  With sugar on top.

I’m okay, really.  I’m just kind of in my semi-conscious state of limbo right now waiting for the reality of it all to really, really sink in.  I think once we get through Will’s PT it will all start to seem more real.  That means I have six weeks of denial left.  (heh.  did you count all the times I used “real” as part of a word or the word?!)

I know some of you *heart* me and some of you lurve me to pieces and I *heart* and lurve you, too.  I do. I really, really do.  I know I’ve got peeps standing by to wipe tears, babysit and help me with laundry.  Okay, so nobody has offered to do laundry, but I know deep down you’re saving it and I appreciate that.  I know who I can call on if I need help and it means alot. 

Mini-vacay post to follow…