The last four weeks of SOS

  We got back from Alabama an entire two months ago.  I can't believe how long I have procrastinated updating this blog and how fast the time flew by!
  Alabama was great. We went to the zoo twelve or thirteen times.  Maybe more.  I ended up losing count after five. The girls absolutely loved going, though.  Their favorite part was probably the Parakeet Cove where you could feed the Parakeets.  I ended up buying some bird food at a local pet store so that I didn't have to spend $2 for ten pieces of bird seed stuck to a stick.  Whenever we went in with a hand full of bird seed the Parakeets would swarm us, which Kate absolutely loved.  The girls also enjoyed the Giraffes.  We fed them a couple times as well.  I had never done that before so that was probably my favorite part.

  Our second weekend in Alabama we were able to drive down to Hurlburt Field AFB, FL to visit my brother, Jared, and his wife, Kristen.  It was only a 3 hour drive verses fourteen hours from where we are in Texas.  Jared deployed a week later so we only went down the one time but it was awesome!  We hung out at the beach the majority of our time there.  When we first got to the beach we made both of the girls get in and try out the water.  You don't know if you like something till you try it, right?!  Well, they didn't like it, like hardly at all.  So we set up some towels and they ended up have a great time playing in the sand and finding sea shells.

  I was able to try snorkeling and boogie boarding for the first time!!  Both were a lot of fun!  Jared said that the water was not good for snorkeling, and it wasn't.  We couldn't see more than a few feet in front of us, but I was just amazed at being able to keep my head under water for long periods of time and being able to see under the water - even if it wasn't very far.  It was great!

  Our third weekend we went to Atlanta to visit the Georgia Aquarium.  It was SO awesome!  I felt like a little kid when we first arrived.  The fish and whales and sharks were HUGE!  I couldn't believe it. Because we spent quite a bit of money on the tickets we decided we were going to get our money's worth and spend all day there so we walked through some of the different exhibits a couple times.  Both the girls napped in the stroller which worked out great.  We through the gift shop while they were sleeping so that we could get our souvenir without them begging for all the toys while doing so.  After they woke up we went to the Dolphin show.  That was amazing!  Very entertaining to watch and the perfect way to end our day at the Aquarium.

  Fourth weekend was Independence Day and my brother Jon was able to come out with his wife, Noreen, who just arrived in the states from the Philippians! It was a miracle she was able to get her visa so we were incredibly happy for them to finally be together after being apart for their first year of marriage. And! We were able to meet Noreen in person!  She a wonderful person and we are so happy that she is apart of our family.  Kate attached to her fairly quickly although it took a little bit more time for Kate to fully open up and talk to Noreen, but they had a wonderful time hanging out together.
  Saturday we went and watched the fireworks. We went to a little town that was setting them off at their high school stadium.  The show was fantastic.  And the food!  Yum!  Wonderful time had by all!
  Sunday we went to a different church we hadn't been to yet because it started at 11 o'clock instead of 9 o'clock.  We sat down and Jon immediately leaned over to me asking me if I remembered a friend of Jon's from when we lived in Minot, ND.  I said yes and then Jon pointed to the stand.  His friend was in the bishopric.  We met up with them after the meeting was over and caught up on the past few years.  Because my parents were set to come in the next week we exchanged numbers to set up a dinner date.
  Last weekend in Alabama my parents, my sister Kiersten, Jon and Noreen, and Kristen all came up for a half of the family gathering.  It was great.  We drove around Montgomery, did some sight seeing, went out to eat, swam at the hotel pool, and played games.  It was a short visit, like all our visits tend to be, but it was wonderful!

  Andrew, the girls, the dogs, and myself all packed up and drove out Sunday morning.  We did 7 hours each day.  Andrew stopped in San Antonio on the way back to pick up his mom from the air port while the girls and I continued home.
  When pulling into the carport Kate teared up because she was so happy to be home.  We went inside and it was like Christmas for the girls, seeing all their toys that they hadn't played with in ages.  Kate jumped up on the couch and gave it a big hug and a kiss!  Made me laugh.  I guess it's always nice to be home no matter where you live, as long as your family is with you.

...pictures will be posted later.

Montgomery, Alabama

  We are in Alabama!   Andrew got picked up for SOS (Squadron Officer School) mid April and after changing our summer plans around quite a bit, the girls and I...and our wonderful dogs... decided to join Andrew for this 5 week course.  Canada trip has now been cancelled completely with hopes of doing a family trip with the Strongs one year in the future.
  Kate also had her teeth fixed a week before we came here. That was fun. Six crowns, two of them root canals, plus two additional cavities later, all fixed in the hospital under anesthesia, equals a hefty bill that insurance does not cover. Even though our savings account got a pretty good dent taken out of it, I'm so grateful we had savings put aside so that we didn't have to take out a loan. I'm so grateful for Andrew's job.
  So, Montgomery. It is great!  Very hot, but I've gotten over the fact that I am going to be sweating every single minute I'm outside. There are so many things to see, places to go, shops to spend money! We are having a good time!
  Today we went to the zoo. I bought a family pass and plan on using it at least twice a week. It was hot, as expected, but the girls and I had a great time.

  The Bengal Tigers were the first cool animal that we saw. This white one decided to go for a dip which was fun for us to watch. 

I couldn't believe how close the Rhinoceros was.  He was just chillin in the mud, but we enjoyed being so close.

The Black Bear was super close as well. His eyes were open but he didn't move much.  Kate wanted to take him home with us :)

 

Walking though the bird cage

 

Happy baby

 

The monkeys were our last stop for the day.  They were very entertaining to watch.  They were screaming at each other, smacking each other, one monkey got pushed into the water and then pulled out by the tail.  It was crazy!

 The girls got a decent nap on the way home but the zoo must have really really tired them out because they both passed out by themselves while we were trying to get everything ready for bed.  Works for me!

Kate's 3rd Birthday

  My baby girl is now three years old!!  We celebrated her birthday this past Saturday at the bowling center on base.  Best decision ever.  All I had to do was bring the cake and ice cream.  No clean up before, no clean up after, and no worrying about anything in between.  It was wonderful.

  Kate's day started off with a visit from our friend Brian.  He stopped by to drop off Kate's gift - an Elsa dress, Elsa jewelry, and a birthday card that sings "Let it Go."  As soon as Kate opened her gift bag, also Elsa, she squealed with delight and ran to her room to change immediately.  Her adorable self danced around for a good little while afterwards making me smile.

  Bowling was fun.  It took Kate a little bit of time to warm up to bowling by herself but once she did, she had a good time.

  Last year Kate needed a bit of help from her friends opening her presents but that was not the case this year.  She was very excited to see what she had gotten from her friends.  

  We did cake and ice cream after presents.  Singing to Kate started off just fine but then she got shy and I had to hold her.  :)  The song was short enough that tears did not flow.  Having the cake right there to distract her worked out well, too.  

  Once the party came to an end, the Strongs came over.  Kate wanted to show Julia "her new puppy."  The day before we, mostly Kate and I, decided to foster a momma dog and her baby.  Kate is fairly gentle and careful with the dogs and she was super excited to show her friends.  

  We've now had Momma Dog and Baby Dog for six days.  I keep telling Kate that we can't keep them forever, just until they find a new home.  I guess we'll cross that bridge when we get to it but she sure is enjoying this tiny puppy that she can carry around everywhere!

Wonderful weekend

  Gosh, we had a great weekend.  It started last Thursday. We drove out to San Antonio that morning for Andrew's follow up surgery appointment.  After being in the car for three hours we knew it wouldn't be fair to set high expectations for the girls' behavior. So we dropped Andrew off at the hospital and went to go find some fast food and a park to play at. 

  Well, we found quite a few parks. And they were awesome. Andrew's appointment went faster than we were planning and the girls didn't want to leave the park so I told them we'd come back after we picked up daddy.  

  We came back and ended up playing at the parks for two more hours!  They had bridges, ladders, long slides, music toys, toy balls, rocking bugs (not horses), swings, steering wheels and more. We all had a great time, including Andrew and myself. 

  After the park, we headed over to our friends' house. They are in San Antonio for fighter fundamentals and will be heading to Whiteman AFB in June. It was nice to visit with them and catch up on all the exciting things going on in our lives. While there, my friend April convinced me that I should start fostering puppies. She has had seven great experiences with finding unwanted dogs new homes. Her last and present experience involving three 10 day old puppies. Kate was smitten, as was Abby.  ...As was I.  

  Friday morning we had breakfast and departed for Houston. We arrived at the hotel one minute before my brother, Jared, and his beautiful bride, Kristen.  The girls took quite some time to warm up to their aunt and uncle, no surprise there. We got our swim suits on and headed down to the pool. The pool was quite chilly. Jared braved the cold in an attempt to get Kate to play with him. Kristen even hopped on Jared's back to show Kate how much fun she could be having but Kate wasn't convinced. 

  We returned to our room to change back into our clothes and left to go to the Houston Astros baseball game. The entire evening was awesome. I haven't been to a baseball game in fifteen plus years and it far exceeded my expectations.  The girls even had a great time! 

  After the baseball game there were Friday night fireworks which was icing on the cake. The girls loved all the pretty colors. 

  Saturday morning Andrew and I went to the temple while Jared and Kristen watched the girls. We grabbed the girls right after so they could go through while we headed off to the zoo.  

  Here Andrew is with the girls right before going into the zoo. Yes, before. I guess they were tired. :)

  We just moseyed around until Kate woke up. Worked out great cause Jared and Kristen arrived ten minutes later. 

  Kate didn't totally open up to Jared and Kristen but she did warm up to them enough to hold their hands and allow them to hold her.  

  We saw the monkeys on our way out. I'm not a fan of monkeys but the girls sure loved watching them swing and jump around. They were both laughing together which was super sweet to watch. 

  After the zoo we went and got some delicious Texas bbq at Fainmous BBQ. It was so delicious and the service was great. 

  We headed back to the hotel happy and full.  After breakfast the next morning we parted ways. Our drive home was long-ish and fairly uneventful, minus the nail Andrew found in our tire. We arrived home safe and sound and only $10 out of pocket to fix our tire. So much less than I was expecting!

  Had dinner with the Strongs and brought the dogs home which nicely finished our wonderful weekend!

Damn fire ants.

  I used to love Texas. Up until a few hours ago.  Up until it's indestructible resident pest decided to attack my baby.
  I was inside with Abby while Kate was outside with the dogs.  Everything was just fine until I heard screaming.
  I ran outside to Kate screaming and crying as she's trying to get fire ants off of her. I immediately take her clothes off and get all the ants off.  My friend's little boy had the same thing happen last summer.  He ended up getting a fever from all the bites so I put Kate up on the counter, gave her a dose of Tylenol and started rubbing hydrocortisone on her ant bites.  Kate is still crying but is now itching all over.
  I start to notice red splotches all over. Then bumps start to pop up.  Then Kate's face starts to swell.  Her nose, eyes, cheeks, lips, ears.
  I immediately start to cry and freak out. Andrew tells me to calm down and get ready to go to the doctor.  He's home on medical leave for getting his appendix removed last week. That's a whole 'nother story. Anyhow, we get the girls in the car and head over to the clinic.
  I go inside with Kate while Andrew stays in the car with Abby. I'm crying as I walk to the front desk and ask if I need to take my baby girl to the ER. They immediately go get the doctor. I'm taken to a room where Kate is checked out and given a shot within 10 minutes.  Her swelling starts to go down fairly quickly. We stay there to make sure the swelling continues to go down. Kate is given a steroid an hour later and we continue to wait.  She is finally starting to look so much better. Her face is still a bit swollen but not quite so worrying.
  I learned quite a bit while there.  Fire ants don't drown. Usually. When it rains, they clump together and float to wherever the rain takes them and then build a new fort wherever they land. So if you're in a lake or river and you see a pile of ants floating along, don't touch them. Because once they crawl onto you, jumping into the water won't make the damn things let go. They are the devils pest. Good for nothing but making your life hell.
  This new knowledge of how they travel  connects a few dots in my mind because I've noticed before how there always seems to be new piles of ants after it rains. Now I know. And now I will be more diligent about decimating ant piles after it rains.
  Kate will continue to be on benadryl and steroids for the next 3 days and I now have an epi pin for her, just in case. Her face is still a bit swollen. And her ear. She has rashes on her arms, chest, and back. But it is so much less than before. My poor baby girl.
  Hate those damn fire ants.

Easter

  Abby met the Easter Bunny for the first time this past Sunday.  No touching occurred and as a result, no tears were shed.  Just observing from a distance.
  Kate had fun jumping on the bouncy castle...after all the other kids had left.  This girl.  She is so shy.  She also had fun finding her Easter Eggs, decorating an egg, coloring a picture, and playing with her friends.  

Andrew's birthday

  Sunday a good day. For one thing, it was Andrew's birthday!  Yay!!  He turned 28 years old and holy cow, that sounds really old to me. Not sure why cause most of our friends here are 5+ years older than us and I don't think they are even close to being considered "old".  Anyhow.  So, Sunday marked 28 years from one of the most important days that has affected my life.  Little did I know that, until 4.5 years ago.  I am so grateful for Andrew and love him to pieces.
  My plan to wake up early and cook a nice breakfast totally crashed when we woke up with only 50 minutes to get out the door for church.
  Church went well.  Andrew taught second hour and I subbed in nursery.

  We came home, got the house picked up and Kate helped me make the birthday boy his cake.  While it was in the oven baking we decided to open presents.  Highlight of Kate's day.  ...even though they weren't for her.  She is always happy to help anyone open a present.

Abby was happy to help out as well. 

Birthday boy and his girls

Love Kate's sweet, happy face :)

We had forgotten to give Abby one of her presents on her birthday two weeks ago so we decided to pull it out.  Kate was so happy to show her how her new toy works.

  After presents, we made dinner and had the missionaries over.  I had asked Andrew previously if that was okay.  We love having them in our home and I was eager to share Andrew's yummy cake so we wouldn't have an entire 9x13 pan all to ourselves.  Because we all know, the entire cake will still get eaten.  That night.  ...not really, but really.

  The day wasn't anything extraordinary, but it was a good day.  28 years lived, 72 more to go :)