Welcome to a Soggy Vacation!

So again, too much time has passed since my last entry...but i suppose its a good thing that days are flying by to get closer to the end...I sit here listening to the rain go from pitter patter to torrential downpours in what is seemingly an endless pattern so far this summer. Its a given that my toes are going to stay wrinkly and I'm going to need hot toddys this fourth of july weekend instead of the usual margarita!
We have ventured up to the condo in Old Orchard Beach for what will hopefully be a good relaxing time away from the usual grind. My full time job officially starts Monday, so I'm indulging in the last few days of freedom before that starts. Working from home today had its priviledges, pack, clean, instant messenge my boss, throw laundry in the dryer, finish packing, web conference call with a client who verbally agreed to a $3000/month adspend...cook a dinner for Mike and Kathy and then I headed off at 1pm to try and beat the vacation traffic. Not before i almost flooded our car in some of Sandwich's low spots (u know portion of major state road, and the entrance to the grocery store/CVS!!!) The drive was reasonably good, although it looked worse for those headed south to fabulous cape cod. At 2pm there were reports of a 3 mile backup to get over the Bourne bridge (poor suckers).
So now we are here but Ainslea, Pam & Barry are out shopping. I've unpacked, found someone elses' internet and more importantly, beer in the fridge. So here's to all those who are serving in our military protecting our freedoms this holiday weekend (and everyday) you are missed and not forgotten! The harsh shrill shrieks of my 2 yr old frustrated with interlocking stackable cups is the signal that this post is over for now....Hope everyone has a fun and fabulous weekend wherever u may be!

Start the clock all over again

So all my good intentions of getting back on the blogging routine went out the window (obviously)...chalk it up to spring weather, too many projects to finish before Travis' leave, and just overall laziness...but be that as it may the whirlwind vacation Travis had home is now over and its back to life as normal, and by normal i mean, twice as much as housework, more screaming and not enough beer!
All in all it was time well spent, Ainslea had her Hannah Montana birthday party, her sleepover party, and a trip to Fenway park all before the grandparents and family started arriving to visit with travis. Lorelei was very happy to see Daddy again, but was not as happy when having to leave his side to go to daycare, or even to go to bed without seeing him. We got to go see Dave Matthews Band at Fenway park and had seats on the field which was awesome! Saw tons of friends, had tons of Barbeques, lots of overnight guests, and drank tons of beer! It was a good time had by all, and now its over. I'm counting down to Halloween, but Travis is hopeful that it will be earlier than that. Either way, with this week being the last week of school, the summer is looming and proving to be more of a challenge to get back into our single routine again!
Special Thanks to Wizzy Woo Woo for driving Travis to Boston, even if you did try to leave him behind at a closed T stop :) It was hard seeing him go, but very grateful that I didn't have to pack the kids in the car for a 3 hr car ride to drop him at the curb and say our goodbyes there.

Day 198

SO by my calculations we are just about halfway...but that is only based on the 400 days total...which we are hoping is actually not as long as its going to be for real. Travis says halloween, so that would make it roughly 171 days to go...either way you look at it we are close enough to the halfway point and its about bloody time my boy gets home for some well deserved R&R! Unfortunately he will miss Ainslea's birthday by a few days, but we've got enough fun filled activities between this weekend, next weekend, and his arrival to keep her occupied.

I can't apologize for my lack of posts, except to say that its been crazy busy. I've been reminded by the constant "Happy Mother's Day" wishes i've had over the past 24 hours that its really not all that exciting in my household these days. Mother's day was just like any other day. Waking up at 715 on a sunday, making my own coffee, and cleaning up spilt cheerios with milk after Lorelei came running in saying..."mama mama cereal mess" was pretty much the same day (not always the same object to be cleaned up) as most of the past 198 days of my life. SO while I wish all the mother's out there a day to be appreciated, and a hallmark card to be mailed to, its not as glamourous of a day for the rest of us! I've decided I'm going to start my own line of greeting cards geared towards the military families out there. "Happy Temporary Single Mother, cuz the military has taken my husband away, Day"

Updates: Ainslea has lost a total of 6 teeth and looks like the opposite of a vampire. She is playing spring soccer and getting ready for her Hannah Montana Birthday party this weekend. Lorelei has decided on her own volition to start potty training..and while the timing hasn't quite been perfected she knows the drill and is very pleased with herself whether or not it is a successful mission. We are getting ready for travis's return and that means many projects to quickly finish up in the 2 weeks remaining...to make the house look like he never left (insert laugh, chuckle or guffaw here). Also get the water heater replaced as we discovered last week that its been leaking for god knows how long!!! I knew there would be some sort of major homeowner's decision i would need to be making this deployment! I'm also choosing siding for our house, which has turned into a way bigger project than expected, as the original look i was going for was going to cost 3x as much and require 3 x more maintenance...so have been researching different options.

All in all a good start to spring, friends are popping out of their hibernation, real estate seems to be picking up (for me anyway) and work is getting busier with my recent promotion and new schedule pending July 1 start of new fiscal year. Hope all is well with everyone (my 1 follower) and i'll do my best to post more often (not guaranteeing daily)
Cheers!

Day 87??

HAPPY BARAK OBAMA DAY!!
Ok so its been way too long I know...I can't even blame it on the holidays anymore...but I just have no time to collect my thoughts. Maybe i'm just motivated by the historical events of today, or maybe i just need to unwind. I'm so tired and can't find enough energy to recount the holidays online. With Ainslea's stomach anxiety, missing travis and trying to get back to a normal schedule has been draining. All i can really say is thank goodness for all my friends. I can honestly say if i didn't have the ability to vent and unwind in the comforts of friends both close and far away I might already be committed! I"ve had my ups and my downs and i may be having a competition with my neighbors as to whose kids can scream the loudest, but at the end of the day a 10 minute video conversation with Travis is the highlight of my day. Even though I can't share the extraordinary day's events side by side with him, I know he's just as proud to be an american from way over there as I am to be his wife way back home. We both have the hopes that the majority of this country has today that although things may take some time to turn around, the spirit of everyone is a good sign of things to come.....now if only i could convince Ainslea to eat her dinner without a fight!!!