Jim came home early from Iraq in November, then we had the holidays, and family commitments, so the blog has been ignored for quite some time. Here are some photos to catch back up to speed.
November 2009: Happy Thanksgiving!
December 2009: Merry Christmas!
Meeting Santa for the 1st time!
January 2010: Happy New Year!
February 2010: Happy Valentine's Day!
Addison started daycare last week, so we are very much a family in transition. She also managed to cut 3 new teeth, share a stomach virus germ with Jim and me--a bug that thank goodness she did not get! It has been an eventful week for us and now that things have settled down I intend on keeping the blog a updated more frequently!
Have you ever had a conversation with someone that went something like this...
Me: "Gee, I am really tired today" John Doe: "oh, you think you're tired...well I (Insert laundry list of complaints)
Typically when a conversation starts off like that I usually just hear, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH.
Or how about this one:
Me: It was so cute today Addison rolled all the way over! Jane Doe: "Well, MY baby (insert miraculous feat)when he she was only 4 months old. (Again, I hear BLAH, BLAH, BLAH)
It really irks me when I make a statement or try to start a conversation with someone and they have to one-up me throughout the entire conversation. I just want to say to them--WHO CARES---I was just trying to be friendly or make small talk.
We take so much for granted in life and unfortunately, so many of use spend the majority of it complaining, wishing it away, or being jealous of the things other people have.
I LOVE the Darryl Worley song, because he has absolutely nailed it on the head. Life isn't supposed to be easy, it isn't supposed to be a walk in the park, and we aren't supposed to spend our days moping around feeling sorry for ourselves, complaining, or trying to start a pissing match with someone else to see who really is worse off.
I didn't have an ideal pregnancy and I certainly do not have an ideal situation with a deployed husband and brand new baby. If Jim's deployment has taught me ANYTHING...it is to be thankful for what you do have and more importantly for WHO you have in your life. In both instances of pregnancy and deployment, I constantly have to remind myself, "it could be worse, it could be worse, it could be worse." Believe me, there are days when these have almost become my daily affirmations.
When I had to go back to work and be away from Addison for 40+ hours a week, I had to remind myself daily that "it could be worse" and that the best thing I could do for my child was to go back to work to provide her with a stable home, food on the table, and a bank account in her name to provide her with a blanket of financial security. That being said...I HAD to go back to work, the mortgage had to be paid and staying at home was not an option for me, especially with a husband in Iraq. Again...I had to remind myself, it could be worse--Addison will have 0 recollection of Jim being gone. (THANK GOD--that in itself is a huge blessing).
When I am having a bad day or if I hit a rough patch I remind myself of how good my life is and I think of the military wives who have 4 small children and a husband in Afghanistan who is out in the field, whom she hasn't spoken to in weeks, or the 65 year-old man who has done manual labor EVERY single day of his life and is being forced to retire by his company--his wife just lost her business--their house is being foreclosed upon and they will have to move to a different state to live with their children. I think of the mother in Florida whose 7 year old daughter was murdered and thrown in the garbage. I think of all of these people and then realize that I have absolutely nothing to complain about, and then I feel thankful for all of my blessings.
My challenge to myself and to all of my friends is for us to think about those less fortunate, those people who are in REALLY REALLY REALLY bad situations before we complain about not getting enough sleep the night before, or complain about our jobs, or complain about your spouse or significant other. We need to realize that missing a few hours of sleep isn't going to kill us, at least we have jobs to go to, and be thankful for our spouses and significant others---they may not always be with you and most importantly..."That's life."
Leah and I share more in common than just being former college roommates. As a matter of fact, I partially owe my existence in Virginia Beach to Leah in a round about way. Nonetheless, Leah and I not only share the same wedding anniversary date, we share the fact that her husband Matt (United States Army), and my husband Jim (United States Marine Corps) are both reservists, who are now serving active duty in Iraq. She and Matt have a 4 year old daughter and Jim and I have a 5 month old daughter.
Leah and I celebrated our marriages, our husbands, and our beautiful daughters on October 11, 2009. We wined and dined at the Cheesecake Factory and most importantly, we laughed, we smiled, and we shared conversations that only a wife/mother experiencing the deployment of a husband/father could share and understand.
Here's to our 1 year wedding anniversary and Leah and Matt's 6 year!
I mentioned in a previous blog that I see so many randomly abandoned shoes that I was going to begin cataloging them. I think I will also announce where I find them so in case the owner stumbles across my blog. =)
Shoe location: Danville, VA Western Sizzlin' parking lot Riverside Drive
