First Day of School

So, I have come to realize that even as much as I love to blog, I am not that great at it. I simply just do not have time to blog everyday, so many of my blogs will consist of several days worth of stories and photos to more clearly paint the picture for you. And, since I am so busy, many will contain typos from my rushing to get it done!



This particular blog is all about going back to school for the year, although I am starting at orientation, August 14.



Since my kids are in two seperate grades, we had two sperate orientation to attend last Thursday. First is was Kylie's. We went into the multi purpose room and listened to the principle talk briefly and then we headed to her classroom to meet her teacher and see her desk. Her teacher's name is Ms. Beldt and I have heard that is very good, so I was very excited to meet her in person. I have to say that I was just as impressed as I thought I would be. Kylie really liked her too. She got to go on a tour of the school while Kaedyn and I listened to the teacher tell us what to expect this year. All sounds very promising!

I took a photo of Kylie at her desk when she got back.

Next, we went to Kaedyn's orientation and got to meet his teacher. I hadn't heard much about Ms. Presson, but I was still anxious to meet her. Kaedyn was too. We walked in to find a very kind older woman. She had a very soft voice and seemed very loving, so that made me happy. I didn't get a chance to take Kaedyn's photo because the room was very crowded and lots of people were always standing around him.



After orientation, we went to TGi Fridays for an end of summer celebration. The kids and I all really enjoy eating there.

Kaedyn always gets the ribs and eats every last bit of them!

I think what they really look forward to is the mud in a cup dessert! That is the real reason they love going to Fridays!

After leaving TGI Fridays, we went to the mall to get new shoes for school. They were having an awesome "buy one, get one for $1" sale, so we ended up with 4 paris of shoes! Kaedyn got some Sketchers he has been wanting and a pair of Cars Crocs, while Kylie got Disney princess light up shoes. You can see them in the photos below because they wore them the first day of school. Well, Kaedyn wore the Sketchers anyway! LOL Even I snuck in a pair of super cute heels!

The weekend was spent with a sick little girl and getting everything ready for school on Monday. Friday I was planning on going out with some friends when Kylie came down with a fever last minute. Needless to say, I had to cancel with the gals and attend to her. Because I was so afraid she wouldn't be well for school Monday, I took her to the ER Saturday afternoon to nip whatever it was that was causing the fever. I didn't have an extra day to waste if she needed to be on an antibiotic. So, we drove to Eglin and found out that she likely had strep throat, so the doctor put her on amoxicillin. What a relief that she woke up Sunday with NO FEVER!!

Sunday night, as I tucked the kids into their beds I began feeling a bit anxious about the first day of school. Sending my baby off to Kindergarten is an emotion that only a parent can truly understand. It was bad enough that Kaedyn was in 1st grade, but now Kylie in school too was just too much to bare. I talked to each seperately telling them how proud I was of them and how I knew they would do great. I read Kylie a book that her preschool teacher had given her called, "Welcome to Kindergarten." That reminded her of a song she sang in preschool named the same thing, so she began to sing it. HELLO TEARS!!! Oh my, I was blown away by how sweet and grown up she was. I gave her kisses and told her I loved her and had to leave the room. She asked me why I was crying as I was leaving and so I tried my best to explain that I loved her so much and she made me so proud that I was just brought to tears by the emotion. I don't think she understood, but she still replied with outreached arms (wanting a hug) and an "I love you too, Mama!" MORE TEARS!!

Well, then I got Kaedyn all tucked in once my emotions were under control. I guess I was less emotional too about sending him since he has gone to school before. I was, however, nervous about this being both of their first times on a school bus. So, I took the opportunity to tell him to be a big boy and behave on the bus. His response was his usual, "Mom, I know that!" I just had to laugh and say, "I know, baby, but I just want to be sure."

Monday morning came soon enough. I woke up at 5am because I just couldn't sleep anymore. My dreams were filled with tons of "what if" and "did I remember to" questions. I got up, started the coffee, and double checked their backpacks and lunch boxes for anything I might have overlooked! I woke the kids up at 6:15 and they sprung right up, excited about their big day.

I made them a nice breakfast with eggs, bacon, toast, and cantaloupe.

Then it was picture time, of course. We went out front to the same spot I took their photos at last year before Kaedyn started Kindergarten and Kylie started VPK. That way I could have a comparison for later.

I just love how Kylie grabbed Kaedyn's hand for the picture. It was like she was letting him know she was nervous for school and needed his help. What a great memory that will serve later in life.

Here is my big 1st grader!

And my Kindergartener!

They were so excited to ride the bus that they wanted to go out early, so we did, 15 minutes early! We were the first ones there that morning!

My friend's little girl was second out there. She was really excited too!

Finally, the bus came and Kylie was so excited to get on and start her new adventure. I, on the other hand, could have waited another year or so!! =)
Here is Kaedyn getting on the bus. He was the second one to board. The boy holding his shoulders is a neighbor of our's that I asked to watch after them on the bus. I told him I want a full report if they get picked on or anything out of the ordinary happens! LOL
Kylie must have known I had my camera ready (that, or she just wanted one more look at me before leaving) because she turned and smiled at me just as I went to take the picture. I will always tresure this photo!

Now is when you may start to laugh at me! After the bus pulled away I got in my car and drove to the school. I didn't actually follow the bus, so I guess I am not that crazy. I just wanted to go to the school and take a few more photos of them on their first day. The only reason I put them on the bus to begin with was because they were so excited to finally get to ride it. They have wanted to do that for years now. Also, I wanted them to get right into that routine and not get used to me taking them.

By the time I got to the school, the bus had already pulled in, but the driver had them wait a minute to get off.

I saw Kylie's pig tails, so I snapped this quick photo! Notice where they are sitting, right behind the driver? That's because I told them too. I told them that the big kids sit in the back so that is where the bullying happens. I am so glad they listened.

Now it was time to get off.

Kaedyn seemed embarrassed that I was there, but still he sat nicely for one last picture before going inside.
Kylie's classroom is the second one down the hall, so I was going to drop her off first. But, when I stopped to take another picture of Kaedyn...
she turned and walked in all by herself! WOW! I thought she might ask me to come in too, but no. She is so big!!

So, I told Kaedyn he could go alone too since Kylie did. I kissed him, told him to behave, and then he started down the hall. Little did he know that I was following close behind to make sure he made it to the right class. His classroom is in the middle of the hall, so I was worried he might not find it, but he did with no problems! I am just so astonished at how much my kids really know without my help. He had only been there once, and yet he remembered right where to go. Talk about a big kid!

I still snuck up and took one last picture though, for my own sake. As soon as he saw me, he yelled out, "MOM!" Like, go away and stop embarrassing me kind of "MOM!" I just laughed and waved good bye, knowing that he would get over it!

After knowing they made it safely, I left the school with confidence that they would okay and headed to IHOP for breakfast with two of my best friends, who also sent kids off to the same school that day. My friend, Jenn has a boy in Kindergarten. His class is right next to Kylie's. And, my friend, Michelle, has a girl in 1st grade. She is in the same class as Kaedyn, which is super exciting!! We laughed a lot, like I knew we would, and wished each other a great first day of school. I think we all needed to meet to help settle our emotions!

Then, I went to buy my textbooks for my classes and stopped in the AT&T store to see about getting a new cell phone.

After that, well, the longest day of my life began!!! I was soooooo bored I was about to go nuts. The bus could not have come any faster! I made Kaedyn some brownies since he has been asking for some for a few days. I was holding out until the first day of school so he would come home to a special treat!

Finally, at just past 3:30, the bus rolled in!

And off came two very hungry and tired kids.

Before going inside, I insisted on one last photo to mark this momentous day!

So, all and all, we all did good. Kylie came home telling which hand was right, and which was left. She also made the sweetest hand print art ever and worked on writing the letter "Aa." She has learned so much on her first day, so I am really excited to see how she progresses the remainder of the year. Kaedyn brought home quite a few papers he worked on including, counting items and writing the numbers on the lines and putting things in order. Even I did well, I think. They were on my mind all day long, but I managed to not race to the school to check on them!

The best part of the entire day was, as they enjoyed their special brownies with ice cream on top, Daddy called to see how their day was. He had waited to call when he knew they would be home. It was bittersweet. We were all happy he could share that moment with us, but still he wasn't physically here. He had missed Kaedyn's first day of Kindergarten and now he has missed Kylie's. We all understand that he has a job to do, and we support him to the end, but it doesn't make it any easier.

To end on a good note, Rob asked Kaedyn if he made any girlfriends yet (just teasing him) and his response was, "Not yet!"

The Search for the Perfect Sunset

Since Tuesday was Karen's last full day with us, I let her pick what we did all day. I had mentioned the outlet malls in Sandestin earlier in the week and she was still wanting to go check them out, so that's where we started. We found some great bargins! I got the backpack that I still needed for Kaedyn at The Children's Place. And, although I looked all over for tennis shoes for the kids, I was not sucessful. We did, however, pick up a ton of school clothes, so overall it was a great day of shopping with great deals.

After we left the outlets, Karen really wanted to get a good picture of a sunset. I wasn't exactly sure where we could go to get the best picture without interference, so we watched the sun and drove around for about an hour trying to find a great spot. We ended up on the Destin bridge just in time to catch this picture.

Then, I wanted to take Karen for seafood one last time, so we went around the corner to Dewey Destin. I had never been there, but had heard a lot about it, so I decided to try it with her and the kids. While we waited to order, Karen snapped a few more sunset pictures.

The kids were super hungry, but still managed to smile for Karen to take this picture.

She even got one of the three of us. When I looked at this picture later, I was shocked at how much we all look alike. People always say my daughter looks like me, but I never noticed it until this photo. And, Kaedyn too. He looks a lot like me too I think.

After we ate our yummy dinner, another lady eating at the restaurant asked if we wanted a picture of all of us. Karen said yes, so she took this one. As you can tell, Karen was thrilled about this!

When we left Dewey Destin, Karen wanted me to stop at Wings so she could get a few gifts for her family back home. She was also in search of a keychain with her name on it. We went there, but she was unable to find the keychain, so we ended up at Alvin's Island and Surf Style. She finally found it at Surf Style! Then, we went home so Karen could pack up her stuff to go home the next day. We all went to bed since we had to get up early to take Karen to the airport.

Monday of Karen's visit

There is not much to say about Monday. It was not one of our more exciting days, but it was productive. Karen went with us to run errands, so she got to see what my life is really all about.

We started off by registering the kids for school, then we headed to the post office to pick up some flat rate boxes. I had to grab a ton so I can mail my last round of boxes overseas to our single Horsemen. I plan to send two boxes to each location this time to hold them all over until they get home. I want to be finished before school starts so I can just focus on my kids and my own school stuff until Rob gets home.

After the post office, we went on base to sign the kids up for base sports. Kylie wants to join cheerleading, but we found out she has to be 6. Kaedyn will be playing soccer again, which makes Daddy happy. Rob played soccer in high school and is really good at it, so he likes watching Kaedyn play and helping him learn new skills. Since Kylie is too young for cheerleading, we agreed that it is time for ballet. This is something I have wanted her to do for some time now, but haven't had the time to commit to it. I figure I will never really have the time, so now is as good a time as any. She is really excited!

Our errands continued with a trip to TGI Fridays to get my friend a gift card. Her and her husband took care of my house while I was in Missouri, so I want to repay them by watching their kids while they enjoy a nice dinner, free of charge. They are awesome friends and I feel I owe them more than this, but for now this will have to do.

We ended our errands by going to Walmart to buy the kids their school supplies. It was rather stressful trying to buy stuff for two kids in two different grades, but Karen was a great help. We ended up with everything but a backpack for Kaedyn (Walmart's bags are too cheap, so I don't buy those there) and tennis shoes for both of them (the same reason).

After all our errands were complete, we came back and made some dinner.

Not too many pictures were taken this day, but here is one of Karen and the kids after dinner.

Karen and I got the kids to bed then we stayed up being silly. We started by watching my wedding video, at Karen's request, and that lead to looking at all the pictures from that day. Rob and I got married in Reno, NV on July 15, 2001. We just went to a little wedding chapel where we were married by a christian minister and our witness was just some lady who worked there. I think Karen got a kick out of this! I loved my wedding. I hate mushy stuff where everyone feels they must cry, so this type of wedding was perfect for us! There was no planning, therefore, no fighting from the families. I didn't feel any pressure to look or act perfect (translation: FAKE!!! LOL) for anyone or any photographer. I felt it was just us and that's all it needed to be. At least we were there, right? =)

Anyway, looking at wedding pictures lead to looking at a lot of old pictures. We laughed a lot and even cried some. It was really fun. Especially looking at Rob's old albums that included tons of pictures of his ex-girlfriend that he dated for 3 years in high school. Karen was shocked by her appearance, to say the least. It was pretty funny!

After all the picture fun, we sat down and talked until the wee hours of the morning about who knows what. We learned some things we never knew about each other and I actually felt comforable telling her things that no one knows. Thanks Karen (I know you read this!) for the good talk. I needed some adult conversation. I am really glad that we had this opportunity because now I feel a lot closer to her. I don't get close to too many people, but she is just really easy to talk to. No judgement!

We finally went to bed at 2am so we could get some sleep before Karen's last day with us.

Sunday at the Beach

Karen was still here visiting on Sunday, and she really wanted to go to the beach in the sunlight. So, after taking her to church with me, we came back home, grabbed some lunch and headed out. She was all smiles as we drove back to Okaloosa Island. The kids had requested that we go back to where the playgrounds are, and Karen didn't care as long as it had the Gulf and sand.

The waves were really big in Sunday. Well, big for the Gulf of Mexico, anyway.

And, there were jellyfish all over the beaches
We didn't care though. We still got in. Kylie mostly just wanted to run around and be silly.
But, Kaedyn had brought his boogie board and was excited to ride those big waves. What can I say? Like father, like son. My husband loves to surf, so Kaedyn has picked up the hobby, but scaled more to his size.

After swimming, we all showered and got dressed to go eat at Floyd's. Kaedyn was anxious to show Karen how to eat crablegs and I wanted shrimp.

Here is Kylie and Kaedyn waiting outside to be seated.

After dinner, the kids and I went to the boardwalk playground and Karen went on a photo shoot. She loves Kenny Chesney, so this sign caught her eye. If you have ever heard this song, you know what I am talking about!

We had tons of fun at the beach, doing the tourist thing, but it was sad not having Daddy with us. We miss him a lot, especially when we do fun things without him. We took the time to let him know though: Also, Baby, just in case you forgot or need a reminder:
and I want the whole world to know, so I wrote it in the sand for you.

After our day at the beach, I reflected a bit on my life as a military wife. I guess hearing Karen talk about how lucky I am to live here really made me stop and think about how I got here and how great I really do have it. Some days I guess we all feel down about our lives or are tempted to pitty ourselves, but, despite all that, I have decided that I am the most blessed, not lucky, woman I know. I have an amazing husband who has taught me how to stand up for what is right. He defends our country and will tell anyone who asks that he believes that our troops need to be in Iraq and Afghanistan. He has done convoy duty where he is outside the wire (off the secure base) and in the towns daily, and he has seen the goodness in some of the locals. He believes that these people need and want our help, and he believes that we should see this war through to the very end for the sake of those innocent people. I am so blessed to have a man that has such amazing values. He is also the greatest daddy and husband. He would do anything for us and he makes sure that not a day passes without him telling us how special we are to him. Not only does he tell us, but he shows us every chance he gets. I know that some may think I have it rough because my husband has to go away a lot, but that is simply not true. I have it GREAT! I miss my husband TONS when he leaves, but I have a responsibilty greater than any other I know: to support him and to take care of our kids to the best of my ability while he is gone. You see, I have to be mom and dad, so I have to bring my A game. I have the greatest life, and I wouldn't change it for the world. I spend my days of the deployment talking lots about Daddy so my kids never feel far from him and finding new ways to send my love overseas to Rob. I cry some nights, but mostly, I feel proud that my husband is an airman in the United States Air Force, so that makes me smile!

Bottom line: my husband has to be strong and stand up tall, therefore, so will I. My husband has taught me how and I am so thankful for that. That's what gets me through. Well, that and his love, of course.

I love you Baby, for the life you have given to us and for the things you have taught me and our kids. You have truly blessed my life and I pray everyday that I have blessed yours too.

I AM YOUR BIGGEST SUPPORTER, AND YOU ARE MY HERO!

Happy Birthday Kylie

Saturday we celebrated Kylie's birthday with her friends. She really enjoyed her family party back in Missouri, but she was really looking forward to her birthday party here in Florida because it was at Florida's Gulfarium.

We had Kaedyn's 5th birthday party here too, so Kylie knew it was coming. We try to do big parties for the milestone years. We consider 5 a milestone because it marks the age they get to go to school. It was bittersweet though because Rob had to miss both parties at Gulfarium. We missed him tons, but took lots of pictures to show him. He was there in spirit!

The first show we watched was the dolphin show. Here is Kaedyn and Kylie waiting for it to start.

The dolpins are my favorite

They do sereral tricks during the show. Here is one of them doing a jump.

Karen captured this picture of the dolphin going through the hoop. WOW!!
After the dolphin show we headed to the sea lion show. One of the benefits to having a party at Gulfarium is that you get reserved seating for all the shows. Our seats here were right up front!
Next, we went to see the sharks! They don't have a show for them, for obvious reasons, but they are really cool to just look at.
The last show was the multi-species show. This is a show with dolphins and sea lions. Here the dolphin is taking a fish out of the sea lions mouth. That was pretty cool to watch!

The BEST part about having your party at Gulfarium is that the birthday boy or girl gets to go up on stage after the multi-species show and pet a dolphin. I got to go up also to snap a photo. Kylie was so looking forward to this moment after seeing her brother do it 2 years ago.

After the show, Kylie's friend, Emma, wanted to pet a dolphin too. She had to settle for this one though. Sorry, Emma!
This is one of Kylie's friends, Savannah. Savannah will be moving in September, so we were so glad she was able to make it to the party. We will miss her and her family. They are some of our best friends.
Kylie had lots of good friends at her party. This is her friend, Mia, and her mom and sister. Jen, Mia's mom, is one of my best friends, so I am so glad that our kids get along! What beautiful girls, huh?
Another one of my best friends, Melissa, and her daughter Hayleigh, who is sooooo adorable

All of these pictures were taken in the Living Sea room at Gulfarium. We were the first birthday party to use this room, as it is a new set up for parties. It was really cool having the aquaruim in the background of all the pictures. The kids thought it was really cool too!

Kaedyn picked out a Littlest Pet Shop toy for Kylie. She really likes it.

Karen and Kylie posing with the fun things Karen bought her
My friend, Becky doesn't have kids, but she loves mine, so she came too. Kylie really loves this polka-dot shirt Becky wears, so she got her one of her own!
Gulfarium even provides the cake for your party. This time it was a Hershey's ice cream cake...yum!

I told you Kylie had lots of friends there! They all had so much fun. Thank you everyone for coming!

After the Gulfarium, Becky, Misty and her kids, Karen, and me and my kids all went to the Olive Garden. I wasn't really hungry since you get lunch at Gulfarium too, but I was excited to catch up with my friends I hadn't seen in a month. Misty told the hostess that it was Kylie's birthday, so they brought her out another cake! There was enough that we all got a piece. It was yummy too!

Here she is blowing out the candle.

After another lunch, Karen and I said goodbye and went to my house to relax a bit before heading to the beach. Karen was so excited to go to the beach and try to spot dolphins, so I took her to the one place I thought we might see some: the pier on Okaloosa Island at sunset.

Well, we didn't see any dolphins, but we did see a sea turtle!

And Kaedyn even got to get the mouth of a shark!

Okay, so they were fake! Karen was bummed about not seeing dolphins, but walking in the sand, I think, made up for it. She loves Florida and kept saying she wants to live here.

We let the kids play on Angler's play area for a while and then we walked down to the boardwalk play area.

Here is Kylie on the slide

Then, it was down to put our feet in the water. I think after this the kids were officially happy to be back in Florida! And me too! I love the beach!

What a fun Saturday we had!