Constant Beginnings

My Christmas wish came true. In a strange turn of our bad luck, Chris missed his rotator to Kuwait. As a result, he was able to return to Boston with us, actually, before us. After waiting 12 hours in the airport, my flight with Claire was cancelled from Baltimore, but Chris' made it back. He picked us up from the airport on Monday, we ran some errands on base and returned home to unpack and pack again. We all made the trip to ND. Chris was a bit skeptical about his flight since he had a 2 stop journey. His first flight was delayed, which in turn, affected his second. Luckily, O'Hare was delayed too. My sister and her family picked him up around 1:00 am and we flew in at 11:00 pm. It was a long day. My Mom is in the hospital for her second Christmas in a row. She has had an infection in her body, which makes it extremely difficult to walk. Sadly, she found out yesterday, she has to have a knee replacement. Hard to believe as she is far from old. We are going to visit her today

Ok. We are in Baltimore. So glad to see Chris. Claire is all over him, soaking up every second of attention he gives her. He had issues with his flights due to the weather, so he didn't arrive until nearly 5:00. We basically went to the hotel, ate and hung out. It was nice and relaxing. Saturday we decided to head into DC to see some sights. We had fun. We took a trolley tour, ate lunch, wandered around a bit and decided to try the Amtrak for the ride back. Neither of us had been on a true train before, so it was a fun first experience. However, things took a horrible turn for the worst. I had to show my ID on the train, so in the midst of dealing with Claire, getting situated, etc., I simply stuck my wallet in the front pocket of our diaper bag. Somewhere in the process of waiting for a shuttle bus and getting off, my wallet was stolen. There was a suspicious man who was pacing back and forth which made me double check for my camera and wallet. Both were accounted for at that poin

I don't know what I was thinking. I am not a surprise person and I should just come to terms with that. I was laying on the ultrasound table after giving the cute little note card to the tech, only to beg her to tell me what it was. So....another little girl will be joining our family in May. I guess my senses were off this time around. Not sure they were senses per say, but more or less trusting in the old wives tales. My pregnancy has been so different that I thought it just could not be a sweet and innocent girl. Boy was I wrong. Hopefully, my experience thus far isn't a predictor of things to come. I called Chris who decided he rather know now vs. in a few days, so I guess we are two of a kind. We are back to the drawing board with names. We just can't seem to agree on anything, so luckily we have 20 more weeks to brainstorm and hopefully this kiddo won't come home with the name Baby Boynton. Although a bit surprised, we are very excited that our little darlings wil

On a very happy note, today I have an ultrasound to thoroughly check out our little bambino or bambina. That too will be determined. I am having them write the gender on a card, but I am not taking my eyes off the screen. I generally can't tell what I am looking at anyway, so I am not sure if it will matter. I am and have been somewhat convinced for sometime that we are having a boy. I don't know what it is that makes me feel this way. I just do. Chris claims he has no idea and doesn't want to say either way as he was wrong last time. I guess we will see. Either way, obviously, we will both be happy as babies are such a gift.

We have returned to the land of the living. As you've probably heard, MA was hit heavily by freezing rain. Although storms of this nature are quite common out here, this is the first I've been through since moving here three years ago. Of course, it had to occur when Chris was away as all bad things do! Thursday night was filled with a whole lot of security work and not much sleep, well at least for me. Claire and Harvest slept great! Trees were snapping throughout the night, sounding like gunshots. It was awful. Chris used to worry about the huge trees that align our house. I guess I took over that worry. Each seemed to stay intact and fairly upright, though. I thought we were in good shape. The electricity went out around 2:00 am, which sounded off our security system. Scary. I shut it off and went searching for candles and a lighter. I did manage some sleep for a couple more hours and later called in to work, thinking I'd be a few hours late. The main problem through my

Envision me singing this lovely song while doing a happy dance while Claire is spinning and trying to sing along because that is what she does best. This activity will be going on for the next several days. We are so excited!!! We get to go see Chris. We get to go see Chris. Hi Ho the Derry Oh, We get to go see Chris. I am so excited. I am so excited. Hi Ho the Derry Oh, I am so excited. In only 9 more days. In only 9 more days. Hi Ho the Derry Oh, In only 9 more days. We'll stay all weekend long. We'll stay all weekend long. Hi Ho the Derry Oh, We'll stay all weekend long. I love my husband, Chris. I love my husband, Chris. Hi Ho the Derry Oh, I love my husband, Chris. This is a wish come true. This is a wish come true. Hi Ho the Derry Oh, This is a wish come true.

Claire's closet was replenished from our trip to ND. Can I just say thank goodness for cousins? I've said it before, but really, Chris and I have spent so little on clothing for Claire because my sister, Lisa has graciously given us all of her children's clothing. We are so greatful!! My latest trip brought back several dresses, including the one that Claire wore to church today. So cute. Thanks again, Lisa & Phil. We appreciate the clothes so very much!

Claire and I ventured to church by ourselves this morning. I was actually kind of emotional about it, oddly enough. We belong to a fairly small church, where the pastor comes around and makes it a point to visit with nearly everyone. I was concerned he'd ask about Chris, which typically brings tears to my eyes. He did and I did, but thankfully Claire stepped up as the center of attention. Thank God for little kids! They have excellent timing. Church was awesome. Claire sat or snuggled through the entire service with nothing louder than a little singing coming from her lips. She was so tired by the end, immediately falling asleep on the way home. I made the mistake of changing from our usual seat 3 rows from the back to the very last pew. It was a huge mistake. Chris and I used to laugh and laugh because there was this guy who sat behind us 1 or 2 rows and always belched loudly during the service. I had the priviledge of learning that is not all that he does. Gas is also flowing fre

16 weeks have flown by. I remember while pregnant with Claire if time would ever pass, but with this second pregnancy, I've been too busy to even notice that 16 weeks have already passed. Things are going well. I have gained 3 pounds, which is putting me near the maternity wear. I actually broke out a pair of pants this morning. Can't say I am too thrilled about this, but it comes with the territory. I had a 16 week appointment last week and all is well. The baby is where it should be, heartrate is good and I am in perfect condition. We discussed delivery options, yet again. I am 90% certain that I will be going for the repeat Cesarean around 38 1/2 weeks. I had a great C-Section the first time around, despite laboring for 13 hours, healed quickly and easily, and by doing so, would allow my Mom and/or sisters to be here to help with Claire and the new babe. That will be nice. The nausea is gone, I feel great, eating anything and everything--not really any cravings in particular

I finally talked to Chris last night and gathered some details of his training. He is currently in a tent, sleeping on bunkbeds with the 22 other guys. They have to walk three tent lengths to go to the restroom, which is a port a potty in a tent. He says they just began heating the "bathrooms" yesterday despite the cold temps on previous days. He walks to another tent to shower. There is a building for the chowhall, which does have television, so he's been able to keep up with the world news. One day they practiced riding in convoys, identifying roadside bombs, another day walking through town desiphering the "good" guys from "bad" guys and shooting appropriately. Soon they will be practicing riding in a convoy through live fire. I thought it sounded rather interesting, but I suppose it is in practice--not so much live. He thinks he may wrap up training a day earlier, which would allow Claire and I to meet him for a night. Although he continues to say

My Grandma Arlene was a great baker and cook. She introduced our family to a homemade oreo cookie recipe years ago that EVERYONE loves. Claire and I decided to make some for her Daddy and his friends at training (over 3 dozen). We will ship them off tomorrow, hopefully in time for him to receive them when he returns from his week long camping expedition. I know he will appreciate the little taste of home. Claire had to try her first Oreo too. She liked them, continually saying "mmmmm." I am giving the rest to some friends at school.

Our little girl is tiny. I took this picture last weekend before our lunch date. The clothes she is wearing are only 6-12 months, which she wore last winter! Other than the jeans beginning to look a wee bit short, it is a perfect fit. How sad! I had purchased a few items last summer on clearance, but won't do that again until her growth becomes a bit more predictable.

Claire loves music, so it was no surprise she loved the piano. She could be found at the piano nearly every 10 minutes or so, hopping up on the bench and hammering away a few notes. I tried to get a picture several times during our trip, but each time I ran to get the camera, she was down again. Here she is playing a song for Ava who is singing along. Great imagination, Ava!! They were so cute together. We'll see if her love for pianoes continues at Christmas when we visit my parent's house.

We had a great visit to ND. The plane ride ended up to be rather long (4 hours to Denver), but Claire did great. No crying, just ate me out of house and home. Thankfully, we had an empty seat next to us each way which allowed her some space to move around a bit. As usual, everyone around us marveled at what a great kiddo she was. I guess the fact that this is her 8th trip in only 16 months may have something to do with it. It was fun seeing her excitement as she watched out the window during the take-offs and landings. She has never really been interested before. Anyway, while in ND, the kiddos went outside for Claire's first snow experience. The snow had basically been melting, so the snow that was left was rather hard. She definitely preferred the grass or sidewalk, but ventured into the snow with great encouragement from Luke, Olivia and Ava. They really loved having Claire around and Claire was thrilled with all the attention. She played so well with them all and didn't mak

Claire woke up last weekend with some awful bedhead, so I decided to whip out the camera. What a nice Mom. I think the pictures are rather funny. She looks totally exhausted and then kind of comical.

Before Chris left, he had talked about sending our niece and nephew, Olivia and Luke things from Iraq to share with their classes. They love to get mail and are thrilled to show us their school when we visit. When we were there last fall, I went and enjoyed school lunch with them and they beamed at the idea. Anyway, even though Chris isn't in Iraq yet, he wanted me to get the info for their school. He is going to send them an RME (??), which is basically a packed lunch. I had envisioned this to be dehydrated food, but it sounds much appealing. My sister talked with the school and they are quite excited. The kids are going to print out Chris' picture, so the kids have an idea of who he is, and then they are going to share letters back and forth. Olivia is especially excited. She wants to know exactly when the first package will arrive. Hopefully Chris gets on the ball and sends the package soon! He definitely has some excited kiddos!

Just an update on the past few days... 1. Claire and I enjoyed a lunch date with a few of my friends and their babies. My friend Erin had Liam in June. He, at 5 months is larger than my daughter at 16 months. She was convinced Claire was giving him the evil eye from across the table. Should I be worried? Perhaps an early feminist? Renee had her two month old daughter, Delaney, along and Claire loved her. She kept reaching out to touch her hand and looked quite concerned when Delaney fussed. Michelle also joined us and she is expecting her first in July. It was such a fun date filled with good food and great company. 2. We are gearing up for our big trip to ND. I've been packing a bit each night, but Claire seems to have a different idea of the process. She threw in a couple of "must haves" as she saw them and took out a couple of essentials as I saw them. I found her snow boots laying in her bedroom. I had carefully gathered up all of her snow gear for the big trip days e

Chris emailed a few pictures today. He didn't have time to post them on the blog, so I will do it for him. He told me to mention that he made the "squinty-eye look" specially. I think he thinks it makes him look tough. I am not too convinced. He says he has to wear all his gear to and from trainings. The other picture is of his bedroom or cot.

--When we heard Chris was for sure leaving, we started looking seriously for a housecleaner who would also do laundry. I found her and she is awesome. There is nothing like coming home to the overwhelming smell of CLEAN!! The best part is that I am in no way responsible for that smell. I love it. I love her! We are going on the better part of 4 weeks with her and I can't believe we didn't get her sooner. --2 days before Chris left, he picked up the Pathfinder from the shop. It looks lovely, but smells a bit "painty" inside. I guess that is what the result is with so much damage. It turns out our initial estimate nearly doubled to $11,000 by the time it was all said and done. I am glad to have my cool momma vehicle back. Mostly, I am thrilled to have my heated leather seats back! Yes Lisa, I know your van has heated leather seats as well. Chris liked the van. I think that can be his next vehicle and I'll keep my SUV.

Claire loves the markers at daycare. Half of her clothes are covered in marker at this point, so I am careful to only send her to daycare in the same clothes each week. It is a fashion delight. Anyway, I ventured out and bought her a small dry erase board with some markers on Saturday. They were a hit, although as you can see, I stripped her down to her nothingness before setting her loose.

Claire is trying her best to understand why her doggie brother does not eat with utensils, so she has taken the matter into her own hands. As you can see, she is rather thrilled with his progress.

Ok, it was a miracle. Yesterday when I discovered my wet cell phone, I took out the battery and threw it all in my bag before I left for work. Low and behold around 2:00, I put it together and it WORKED!! I have a cell phone again. Not only that, but Jessica's arrived in the mail as well. I am totally set. I have a cell phone and a back-up! Yahoo. It is amazing how out of touch I felt without it. It is rather sad how much I rely on that thing. Chris called late last night. We talked only briefly, but he fired all day yesterday. It was rather cold, but he passed the test. I have to capture this on video, but Claire loves "5 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed." We actually have both "5 Little Monkeys..." and "8 Little Monkeys..." books, but it is so cute. Chris and I had been doing the actions for awhile until one day she finally caught on and started waving her finger and saying "no more monkeys jumping on the bed." It is adorable. Definitely o

Everything is going well. Chris is doing fine. He hasn't really started training per say. On Monday, he spent until 7:00 getting equipment issued. Today he has to qualify on the M16 "army style." He already qualified for the Air Force, but the Army uses moving targets. That will take the majority of the day. His spirits are up and he is working out and trying to eat well. We miss him so much. I think about him all the time and really miss his phone calls, but we are doing well too. Claire had her 15 month immunizations yesterday, so she was a bit clingy. I confess I kind of liked it. My cell phone quit working on Sunday, so it has been a long few days. I switched to one that won't hold a charge for long until I get my new one in the mail. Claire took care of that one this morning. She dumped it in the sink. Water is her big thing. She loves to wash her hands or just stand on the toilet playing in the water. I guess the phone issue was my own negligence, but STILL. Thi

Life is good again. I am so glad that I am working. It feels good to be around friends and co-workers and even my kiddos. I can't imagine being home all day just wallowing in self-pity. I feel better, so thanks for the prayers and well wishes. I've had a number of emails and phone calls from friends/family, which helps the day pass quickly. My cell phone died yesterday, so Jess is thankfully sending me her old one. Hopefully I'll be connected again in a couple of days. Chris is doing okay. He read powerpoints from 7:00-5:30 yesterday, went to the gym and ate. He finally called around 9:00. Again, it ends up to be a day filled with anxiousness as I await his phone call. He sounds good, although convinced that the military life is no longer for us. I am fine with whatever. He just needs a good paying job on the outside!

I had an interesting night last night. One that I do not wish to encounter again. Claire and I took a nap yesterday afternoon. My stomach felt unsettled afterward, but I thought it may be due to hunger. I ate a hotdog around 5, and later began vomitting. Claire was crying, I am sure simply out of fear. This fun continued through another round when I just happen to be talking to Chris. What a lucky guy! Claire actually woke up in the midst of my trauma only to freak out again. She was extremely restless the entire night with bursts of moaning, so I was a bit worried that her tummy was unsettled. She seemed okay though. We took a morning nap and ate lunch and I feel a bit better. I am trying to limit my foods today to make sure my stomach stays well. I don't know how single moms of little toddlers with family around can do it. i just thank God that I don't have to do this all the time. Anyway, Chris' freetime is very limited. He didn't call until after 9 last night, which

Chris called last night. He arrived in Wisconsin safely. At the time of our conversation, he was getting to know his 22 roomates. Chris said the 22 of them share 3 showers. He wasn't sure of the other amenities as his life is pretty restricted. There is a club on base, but since he is there for training, he isn't allowed to go. Chris also said that he cannot leave the base. He in-processes today and the actually starts class on Monday. Hopefully the time goes quickly.

Chris left this morning. It was a rough night, trying to wrap up all the loose ends, Chris had to pack and then to top off the excitement, Claire vomitted in our bed. I spent the rest of the night lying awake worrying about her poor tummy. She's been her normal self all day, so I am not sure what was going on. Anyway, we are surviving day one without Chris. Yesterday, Chris and I went to a lunch thrown in his honor at his work. I really didn't want to go as I knew what it would be like. Even though his coworkers/friends have the best of intentions and are filled with kindness, it was awful. I felt like a widow at her husband's funeral--50 people telling me that if I needed anything, just call. Again, I appreciate their kindness, but it is hard to listen to it over and over again. My family won a battle this week as I decided to take up my Mom on her offer to buy Claire and I a plane ticket home for Thanksgiving. I had really planned to just spend the weekend together, quiet

Claire had her 15 month well baby check on Thursday. We definitely have a petite little girl. I have a friend with a 3 month old little guy who weighs more than Claire! Weight:19#4oz. (5%ile) Height:29 3/4" (25%ile) Head Circumference:47 1/4cm (75%ile) She's a bit of a stomach bug the last few days, so I opted to not have her vaccinated. It was the one thing I swore I would never do and thankfully, I've stuck to my word. We'll return in 2 weeks for that adventure. Here is an update on her talents at 15 months: **She can ID her mouth, nose, eyes, hair, & ears on command. **She is beginning to put 2 word combinations together--"good morning, Hi Harvey, all done." **We watch 2 1/2 Men everynight. Claire sings the theme song whenever it comes on, "Men, men, men, men, etc." It is adorable.

12 weeks of pregnancy has come and gone. Thank goodness. Although I enjoy being pregnant, the nausea and other illnesses I've experienced this time around, have made it a little less enjoyable. I am pleased to say the nausea subsided about 3 weeks ago. I do feel great. I have yet to gain any weight, which is a bonus. Chris and I went to my appoinment on Friday and the office was unusually quiet. I think we were one of two clients in the office, so they offered an ultrasound with the doctor. It was great. The babe was moving around and putting on a show. I am glad Chris was able to see the kiddo one more time before he returns. We discussed the delivery options with the doctor and it seems I will most likely be heading toward a repeat Cesarean. The one advantage in my opinion is that it will allow me to plan a bit so my family can be here. I have friends that have voluteered to watch Claire and accompany me to the hospital, so I am set either way. The practice is in support of whate

This week has been crazy busy. We've been coming home each night and painting in the basement. The carpet was laid on Wednesday & Thursday. Sadly, our painting did not end until yesterday afternoon. We both love color with nearly every room in our home a different color, but I was a bit nervous about the red in our basement. I chose the shade very carefully and I must say that I love it. It looks great. We will be putting everything back in place today and the rest of this week as Chris leaves on Friday. Can't quite envision what the next 7 months will be like. I just pray to God that I will get well. It has been a week of illness at which point, I am not sure what I have. Chris swears it isn't pneumonia, but I'm not so sure. Guess time will tell. In the meantime, we're headed to church...

Pictures with a smile are getting much more difficult to capture as of late. Claire doesn't cooperate, but even less when Chris and I are not near. Today we had our Christmas pictures taken and despite the camera guy's best efforts, a small smile was the best he could elicit without Chris and I in the picture. He assured me this stage will pass soon. I hope so. Here's a small preview of the shoot today. Enjoy!

Who would have ever thought Elmo could bring two grown people to tears?!! Chris went to a deployment readiness meeting yesterday and brought home a bunch of goodies including a Sesame Street DVD. The basis of the video was "Daddy is going away." It was great. Chris wanted Claire to watch it, but I can't say she was too interested beyond the singing. Chris and I, on the other hand, were crying like idiots. It was awful. I've been doing well mentally and emotionally preparing for this huge change. As long as no one talks directly about how I am feeling or asks about Thanksgiving, Christmas or if Chris will be back in time for the second kiddo's birth, I am okay. I can answer superficial questions or questions about when he leaves or where he goes, but I can't get personal. It has been a challenge with many of my friends as they dive right in and I cry everytime, which leaves them feeling badly. Honestly, the past three weeks have been awful. I have felt awful fr

Our blog has taken a halt as I have been feeling a bit under the weather. I seemed to have caught a stomachbug on Thursday, which I just can't seem to get rid of. Claire caught it on Saturday with Chris a bit later on in the evening. It has a been a weekend of hanging out at home. After being cooped up all weekend, we decided to spend some time outside. We were busy cleaning out the flowerbeds and cutting everything back for our impending snow. It actually was a gorgeous day today. I wore a tee-shirt and pants--love that! Back to the reason for this post...I planted a garden again this year. Last year's was much more successful, but I think I was more dedicated to watering it, etc. Anyway, I gave growing pumpkins a try, thinking it would be fun for Claire to see the progress. Needless to say, there wasn't much progress to report. Our little pumpkin that could, only grew to the size of a small ball. We picked it today. I tried to have Claire sit on the steps next to the pump

Yesterday was a big day at our house. Chris' to do list is long and the jobs are a bit overwhelming. One huge project for one person is the basement. He bought the sheet rock earlier this week with plans to work on it this weekend. However, his Dad called and said he'd like to come visit with Chris's Uncle Bobby. We, generally speaking, ask for little help from anyone, especially his family. I will always ask mine first, and they are exceptional at coming through for us. I encouraged Chris to ask his Dad to help with the basement project, knowing full well that it would take much less time for 2 or 3 to complete than 1. He did and they were more than happy to help. Thank goodness they did. It was a long job for such little work, but with a bit of prep work to do, trimming and alot of cutting, it took time. They worked diligently for nearly 6 hours, but finished 2 rooms plus 1 wall in our laundry room. They were lifesavers! I know Chris would have gotten the job done, but I

I realized it has been awhile since I've posted on Claire's developmental changes. She is just over 15 months, but acts like such a little person. * Claire sleeps through the night, going to sleep around 8:00 and not waking until 6:00 am. She only fusses for about 5 seconds when we put her down. When she wakes up, she fusses again for 5 seconds to let us know she is awake, but immediately begins to say "Havey,Havey," to which Harvest takes his cue and goes in to see her. It is precious! * Claire has perfected the spoon. She actually mastered this a couple of months ago, but she has also realized that little baby spoons aren't the quickest tools available and improvizes with her hands. * Generally, Claire calls all crackers, chips and anything similiar--cookies. She hardly has cookies, but you'd think otherwise listening to her. * I have the Today show on right now. People in the plaza are waving and Claire is waving back as if they are waving to her. Such a li