January 30th: The day started out normal. I was waiting on John to call to let me know if he was getting an earlier flight into Savannah. He was not due to arrive until 3pm which would have been plenty of time to get things done and situated before having to pick him up. He hadn't called by the time I had to take the kids to school, so I dropped them off and came back to the house to finish up some things while waiting for that much anticipated phone call. At 930am he called. He had just gotten confirmed for a flight into Savannah at 10am, he would be arriving at 11am. OMG! I went into panic mode... without letting him know I was panicked of course. I had so much to do. So much for getting my nails and my hair done, I didn't know if I'd have enough time to arrange for the limo. The first thing I did was call our limo driver. He was just about to wash it but he would give it a quickie and be right on over. I then ran up to the school to dismiss the kids for the day. Thank goodness they get 5 days excused for their dad being home from deployment. We hurried home and rushed to get ready before the limo came to pick us up. I think we may have set a record for getting 5 kids and 2 adults (my sister was here) ready. I was nervous and pacing and trying to be patient waiting on the limo. He arrived about 1030 giving us only a half an hour to get to the airport. We would arrive just about the same time as John's flight. I was so nervous, I was shaking. I grabbed a bottle of beer and a Mike's from the fridge so John and I could have his first drink together in the limo on the way home from the airport. I knew he would love me more for that. I had the kids wait outside with my sister by the limo while I went in to meet John in the military lounge they have in the airport. I was wearing a little black dress, black flats and my hair was down. I was quickly and semi-confidently. I felt like everyone was staring at me. I wonder what they were thinking. I considered whether I should take the escalator or the elevator to the second floor. I took the escalator. I smiled as a soldier passed me going down and wondered if he knew I was there meeting my own soldier. My heart was pounding, my palms were sweaty and I was trying not to hyperventilate. Deep breath in... and out. I looked around to see where I was supposed to go and I spotted my husband sitting on a bench in the atrium. I alternated between looking at him and looking at the floor. I was so nervous about how he would react... how our reunion would be. It took him a minute to realized that the hot blonde walking through the airport was his wife but when he did he got up and started walking towards me. My knees felt weak and I wondered what he was thinking. The next second felt like the scene from a movie. I literally felt the eyes all over us... the camera doing a complete 360, getting us from every angle... as he put his hands on my neck and kissed me deeper than he ever has. I was on cloud nine. It was turning out to be the most perfect reunion. We walked out hand in hand. I guided him down the escalator which confused him since pick up is usually upstairs. I told him my sister was waiting with the kids down by baggage claim. As we got closer to the glass doors he could see the kids waiting by the limo. He said, "What did you do?" and he called me crazy. Not that I didn't already know that. It was so great to surprise him like that. I gave him his first beer in the limo, a Miller Lite, and I had a Mike's Hard Lemonade to celebrate his homecoming. The kids had a great time in the limo and the driver was such an awesome guy. We may end up getting him again at some point.
Jan 31st: Not too much exciting happened today. Well, we got quite excited and took advantage of my sister being here to keep an eye on the kids but I'm sure you don't want the details of that. I was following John around like a puppy dog. I didn't want him to leave my site and I was lovin' on him any chance I got. He was really enjoying that. That evening he had his second drink. A Jaeger Bomb. He made one for my sister and I too and we gulped it down. I went to bed shortly after and he joined me after a few more drinks (I think, hard to remember that far back). I'll leave it to your imagination about what happened after going to bed.
Feb 1st: The in laws came in town. They arrived Thursday night but headed straight for the hotel. First thing in the morning they came by to see their son (and us of course too). It was a sweet reunion filled with presents and love. They brought John a chocolate pound cake (his favorite) and a jar of Tony Packo's Sweet Hots (at his request). I made him chocolate covered pretzels and when the kids got home from school we opened some leftover Christmas presents. I got him a digital picture frame, Deal or No Deal the DVD game, and a Wii with a bunch of games. Lexi picked him out a pair of Adidas sneakers (which he loved), Jacob picked out a Clive Cussler book "because it looks like the Polar Express," Kadie picked out the Charlie Daniels Band Live From Iraq CD (he really likes that too), and Sara & Adam got him Bones Seasons 1 and 2. The kids opened up one last present as well. Lexi got her pink digital camera, Jacob got his Nintendo DS, Kadie got a Doll Care Center, Adam got a learning lawnmower (which is annoying and he doesn't even play with it anymore) and Sara got a Walker to Wagon (a learning to walk toy, which she ALSO doesn't even play with anymore). They all really enjoyed their gifts and I watched them open them. I did get one thing... John bought me Shopaholic and Baby by Sophie Kinsella which I was dying to read but I had to finish reading The Nanny Diaries first. I have since finished BOTH books. Impressed, huh? When do I find time to read? Sitting on the toilet, riding in the car (when John was home) and before I go to bed at night. With such easy reads I can finish them rather quickly. Try it sometime! We went to John's favorite restaurant for dinner, Texas Roadhouse. I tried to call ahead to let them know we would be coming with 10 people but they don't take Call Ahead Seating for parties of 7 or more so when we got their we had to wait an hour. Since everywhere else would have been just as long of a wait, we decided to stick around. Luckily we were in the mall so we could walk around and the kids could play at the arcade so no one was too ancy waiting to eat. My mother in law and I went shopping at the craft store for Lexi's birthday cake supplies. John and his dad took the two babies and went down to Bass Pro Shop... typical men! And my sister opted to stay at the arcade with the three biggun's to let them play games (with a $20 bribe). Shortly after making our way back to the restaurant, our buzzer started to buzz. We had to sit at two separate tables and couldn't really talk... but our dinner was good. John and I shared a Ribeye and Ribs... it was good. The best part was the rolls, as usual. I swear, I could go there and get a margarita and some rolls and be set. Mmmmm. His parents followed us back to the house after dinner and we played a little Trivial Pursuit. It was my new game from my friend that I got for Christmas, the 80's, 90's and Pop Culture Edition. We all pretty much sucked at it. I don't even know who won. His parents left and we went to bed to have our own fun.
Feb 2nd: John's cousin called. He just got home from overseas and he wanted to stop by. He didn't know John was home and John didn't know Scott was home. I was hoping to surprise John but his mom blurted it out that Scott was on his way over. Oh well. We had to get ready for Lexi's birthday party today. The theme was High School Musical. My mother in law is BRILLIANT! We bought this High School Musical Party Planner book at the craft store and rigged cake decorations out of the pictures (all her idea)! She even suggested putting a picture of Lexi on the cake as well. I baked the caked and she decorated it. I kinda helped but I mostly stayed out of the way of her creativeness LoL We blew up a ton of balloons and we still had the red and white streamers up from decorating for John's homecoming. I also ordered an HSM door poster to use as a decoration. Lexi liked posing next to Troy! The party was a hit! There were tons of kids here and we just had a lot of fun letting the kids play with all the balloons we blew up and then did cake and icecream. After the party died down and the in laws went back to their hotel it was time for the REAL party. Scott, April, John, Windy and I stayed up pretty late drinking. Windy was blitzed after 1 drink... a Jaeger Bomb. She got so sick... I felt so incredibly bad. We played Guitar Hero 3 on the Wii, quite terribly I might add. Not a good idea to play when you are drunk. I had a bit too much to drink as well. Both Windy and I ended up in the bathroom wanting to puke but neither of us did. I'd definitely be paying the next day. And before long I wouldn't be remembering much from that night.
Feb 3rd: Sunday, lazy day... well, kinda, at least for me. The in laws and my husband did yard work all day. It really needed it and you should have seen all the bags of leaves. It was crazy. I was feeling like crap so after getting the roast in the crockpot I went to sit out back by the firepit. John saw something was up so we went for a walk. Just the two of us. It was so nice and relaxing. I felt like us again... not mom and dad. Dinner was really good. It was the first time I ever made a roast. It could have cooked longer but it was already after 6 by the time we got to eat.
Feb 4th: The in laws left today. It was nice to not have a houseful anymore even though I love having them around. They are such a help. I love them to death. We made a last minute decision to go to Orlando for a couple days starting Tuesday... the next day. I made our hotel reservation and I bought our tickets for Universal.
Feb 5th: The kids went to school today while we packed up the clothes and the van. With 3 adults and 5 kids, that is ALOT of stuff just for a few days. Well, I packed through Sunday since we would be going to a friend's house straight from Orlando since my sister was going back home on Friday and the airport is much closer to my friend. As soon as the kids got home from school we packed them up in the car too... a couple on the roof, one in the underneath storage and one in the trunk. Ok, not really... they all were in their car/booster seats. We all squeezed in and headed further south. A couple hours into the drive John started to look really agitated. He was shaking like a leaf and pale. We were driving through construction and over bridges (he hates bridges) and so soon after coming home from Iraq he really shouldn't have been driving. He needed to get out and calm his nerves and I had to take over driving so we pulled into the next gas station. We all made a potty run while John smoked a cigarette and walked circles around the parking lot. We also cashed in some scratch tickets for some more... we all have our addictions :) After about a half hour, minimum, we were back on the road with me driving the rest of the way. We finally made it to the hotel... but they didn't have our reservation. OMG, I have 5 tired kids in the car and we NEED this hotel room, I KNOW I made the reservation here. So the lady let's me use the business center to look up my confirmation number in my email. As I'm reading my confirmation to see what the deal was I realize I made the reservation for the wrong damn nights. Instead of the 5th and the 6th, I made it for the 4th and the 5th. I don't know how I did that but luckily our room was still available. A sweet three room suite. Two bedrooms connected by a sitting area and kitchen, complete with full size fridge and a dishwasher. The kicker... it only cost $160 a night. It was so great and comfortable allowing us a good night's rest before a full day of foreigners and peppy employees.
Feb 6th: Our first day at Universal. We have decided to visit Islands of Adventure first since they have more rides there than at Universal Studios and the weather called for rain the following day. So to be on the safe side, we went for Islands of Adventure. We took the shuttle from our hotel which was basically right across the street from Universal. We got to the park shortly after 9 and headed into City Walk. The kids loved the moving walkways but they wanted to ride, not walk. City Walk looks like a great night spot. Lots of shops and restaurants. I would love to go back there with John if for nothing else than to let him eat at Margaritaville. We took lots of pictures before ever making it into Islands of Adventures. We stopped at one shop that had a surfboard to pose on and took some pictures. Then we stopped in front of Hard Rock to take some more pictures. We thought about staying there but got a room twice the size and half the cost at the Holiday Inn. It would have been nice to stay at a Resort Hotel but we had already spent $1000 just on tickets and the hotel room at The Holiday Inn. With 5 kids and 3 adults, it gets pricey. After making it into the park finally we headed straight for Seuss Landing. This was the kids' favorite part of the park. They loved all the book themed rides and seeing the characters. Sara took a picture with the Cat in the Hat, I took a picture with the Grinch, and Adam took a picture with Thing 1 and Thing 2 very skeptically. Sara couldn't ride a lot of the rides but she had a good time munching on some goldfish and crawling around while waiting for the other kids. We rode so many rides while here. Almost all of them to be exact and more than once. We waited max 15 minutes for any ride so we were able to take turns riding with the kids so all us adults would get to ride too. My sister and I rode the Dueling Dragons... one of the best roller coasters in my opinion. Then John and I rode it, riding the opposite one that my sister and I rode to get another experience. It was great. The kids got scared on a few rides but still had fun none the less. We ate lunch at Dagwood's in the comic book section and saw all the Simpsons characters come walking through. John and Jacob went out to see Woody Woodpecker while the rest of us finished up eating and then we headed towards the Marvel section. They had a really cool 3d Spiderman ride that Lexi and Jacob got scared on. John and I rode Dr Dooms Fearfall which shoots you up but no where near as awesome as the Power Tower. Doesn't go as high but still fun. The comic book heroes made an appearance and Jacob had to get a picture with Spiderman. Actually, I think it was John who was most excited about that one. I think the kids' favorite ride was in this section. It was a spinning ride and we rode it probably 15 times. Even Adam loved it but after about 4 times he was starting to look vomitish so I wouldn't let him ride anymore LoL When John and Jacob finally made it over to us we rode it some more and then went to ride The Hulk, which I can only explain as The Corkscrew on Steroids. I HATED that ride... I hate the corkscrew cause it gives me a headache and this one was MUCH worse. It corkscrewed like 3 times and was pretty fast too. Ouch. I had to take my glasses off too cause I was afraid I was going to lose them. When John and April rode it she warned him to take off his glasses but he said he would be fine. As soon as I saw him I noticed he didn't have his glasses on. For a second I thought he actually lost them but he was too calm while telling me that I was going to have to drive home. He hadn't taken them off when April suggested but as soon as they started going he realized the error of his ways and pocketed them. We went back to Seuss Landing since we still had time before heading back to the shuttle and the kids had fun re-riding all the rides. We caught the shuttle back to the hotel then sent John for Taco Bell. We would realize the next day that this was a BAD idea.
Feb 7th: Everyone woke up cranky. Too much fun and sun the day before and not getting enough sleep the previous night will do that to you. John woke up and ate leftover Taco Bell for breakfast... again, NOT a good idea. We decided to drive to the park today incase we had to leave early and because we were checking out too so we wouldn't have to go back to the hotel to get our car. We opted to pay a few more dollars for preferred parking and it was nice. Since it was the beginning of February the park wasn't overly crowded so parking was great. We got a really close spot right near City Walk. Only took us a few minutes to get from the car to where all the action was. Could have paid just a couple more dollars than that and got valet parking. Might have to do that the next time we go (if we go again). We went to Universal Studios this day. I wouldn't recommend taking little kids. There isn't much for them to do that isn't too scary for them. Jacob was being super cranky and didn't want to ride anything, he just wanted to go home. John's stomach was in knots... that's what he gets for eating Taco Bell from the night before. April was getting cranky cause she didn't think any of the stuff at Universal was that great. She is more of a doer than a looker and spending so much time with the kids is bad for her attitude. I was a bit annoyed cause the kids didn't want to do anything, April was being a butt and John was in the bathroom about every 15 minutes. Jaws was closed, we picked the couple of weeks to go where it was under renovation... Twister closed before I got a chance to do that... and The Mummy line was way longer than the posted 15 minutes so we jumped out of line. Disaster was a fun ride though. You get to make a little movie and then watch it. Adam and Jacob rode with me and April and they were both scared. Jacob cried really hard and I was trying to calm him down so I didn't get the full effect of the ride. We also didn't get to see Fear Factor Live. I thought about competing in it but I would have had to separate from everyone else for an hour and then do the show. I didn't want anyone waiting on my account. Maybe if John and I go back ourselves one time then we can do it. I think the kids' favorite ride was Men In Black. It was fun getting to shoot all the aliens and I kicked John's ass in the last few seconds when we rode it with Jacob. I don't remember what we had for lunch this day but we got our fix of Dippin' Dots before heading out. We also spent a lot more money today than we did yesterday since there wasn't as much to do. I would have bought the Margaritaville blender if John would have let me. We finally got on the road to head back to Georgia about 7. It was a fun two days but we had other obligations.
Feb 8th: We had to take April to the Atlanta airport pretty early. We packed up the kids to maybe spend the day doing something in Atlanta and headed up that way. I walked April in the airport to make sure she got her boarding pass alright and this guy that helped us was a complete jerk. He was helping her with the Self Service Kiosk and kept saying, "Put in a credit card to pull up your boarding pass." She said, "But she paid for it, do we need her card." He doesnt explain anything just gets an attitude and says that he is trying to help us if we would listen. What an ass! So we got it figured out and I headed back out to where John was waiting to see a cop walking away from the car. Oops. I was hoping I didnt get him a ticket for taking so long. He was a total jerk too but he can suck it. We headed out into the city and drove around for a little bit. I wasnt up to spending a bunch more money after what we spent in Orlando so we thought about going to Olympic Park or whatever. I wasnt even up for that so after driving around for like 30 minutes we headed back to Windy's. The kids played outside on the scooter and at the park all day allowing us a little time to actually relax... finally. We had been on the go forever. We made steak for dinner and Windy burned it... it was alright for the most part though. After the kids went to bed we had some drinks and played the Wii then crashed for the night.
Feb 9th: A couple of girls came to the door today. They were looking for a home for some puppies. They were only 5wks only and just too darned cute. I just had to have one. John said if I thought I could handle it I could have it but we had to get a boy and name him Buckeye. I agreed and he said I could consider it my Valentine's gift, that stinker! We would be able to come pick him up next weekend, yay! So we headed back home to wait for our newest addition.
Feb 10th - Feb 13th: These few days were spent mostly vegging around the house playing the Wii and just enjoyin each others company.
Feb 14th: Valentine's Day. Our 7th one! We gave each other our gifts first thing in the morning. I got him Buffy Season 7, Matrix and Scream 3 (the first movie we saw in theaters together). He got me a necklace and ring set, a heart necklace, a white button down shirt, a jean mini skirt and a black cowboy hat. He went all out of his way and put a lot of thought into my present. It was so sweet of him and I had no idea. I am the ruiner of surprises so it was great to be totally surprised. The only thing I knew Id be getting was a necklace since that is all that I said I wanted. He then kicked me out of the house so he could get some cleaning done... that in itself was a great present. I did take Sara with me but she kept me company. We went shopping at Target and Victoria Secret. We got back around dinner time. I decided to bring the kids some McDonald's and see if John's cousin could watch them after they were in bed so John and I could get some dinner alone. He agreed and John and I went to Texas Roadhouse. I had a new drink... its a margarita version of the Cowgirl Quencher and it was delish! John and I mostly just chit chatted and relaxed. We were home within an hour and a half but it was such a long over due hour and a half. It was great. The cowboy hat came in handy that night.
Feb 15th: Today was picture day. The kids had a half a day and then we were getting our family pictures done at Sears. The guy who did our pictures if the manager... sometimes I dont like him but he was super nice the last two times we had our pics done with him. Which reminds me, I can go pick them up and send them out to family. Anyways... we arrived about 3pm to get our pics done and the kids were being pretty well behaved. They cooperated for the most part... except Kadie. It would figure that right before leaving we would have some kind of minor tragedy. She fell and scraped up both her knees pretty bad. I covered them with bandaids and had to carry her to the car. She was screaming and wouldnt walk. Said her knees hurt to walk. And while trying to get pics done she was clinging to me. Had she cooperated I would have been able to get my creative posing idea in a 10x30 frame but she would have been cut off since she had to cling to my side. Oh well... all the pics turned out great. Save for the goofy looks that Jacob was giving and strained smiles on Adam's face and Sara looking the other way LoL Mine and John's were awesome though. I have not liked another picture of ours better. We finished up chosing our pictures and tried to decide what to do for dinner. Everyone wanted CiCi's but me. I just wasnt in the mood for pizza. So we decided on Golden Corral since it was right there across from Sears and we could walk. That turned into a nightmare though. All the kids were misbehaving, half of them wanted to go elsewhere so we turned around and went back home with everyone and their brother staring at us as we wrangled the kids... we didnt look nearly as bad as the woman we saw yesterday at the yardsale but that is for another blog. We went home and ate whatever we could find... leftovers I think. John and I had some drinks while alternating between Guitar Hero 3 and talking to Windy on yahoo messenger. John had just a few too many drinks and was really driving me crazy. He gets so loud and stupid when he is that drunk. He is now never allowed to drink that much again... he doesnt remember half the shit he did or said. It was pretty bad. I only had a few drinks and went to bed before he did. I ended up on the couch at one point which pissed him off but he deserved everything he got... or should I say, didnt get.
Feb 16th: We headed back to Windy's because we had to pick up our puppy that I fell in love with the week before. We ended up taking another puppy that was No Name for the whole day becasue we couldnt decide on a name. He didnt have a home and Windy couldnt keep him. In hindsight, Im wondering why John didnt kick my ass right then and there LoL
Feb 17th: If I knew then, what I know now, I would have headed home at breakfast time. We decided to go to lunch at Applebee's. Not thinking it was a Sunday afternoon and everyone was going to be coming from church we headed out there. We waited a good 30 minutes with 9 kids and 3 adults... fun times, let me tell you. We finally get seated and our waiter takes 15 minutes before coming to take our drink order. We ordered our food at the same time, including some appetizers. I tried ordering an alcoholic drink but forgot it was Sunday. Apparently so did he cause he let me think I could get it then came back 5 minutes later to tell me I had to get something different. He asked if I wanted my soup before hand and I said "Please." After a while he brought my soup that looked like it was a mouse's serving. I ordered french onion soup and the thing was tiny... and there was no cheese. I asked for EXTRA cheese. He was about to just bring me a slice of cheese when he said "Do you want me to take it back?" Ummm, yah, melt my frickin cheese please. I was hoping that it wasnt going to cost me the $4.50 it usually does or else I was going to be mad. Can you see the way this lunch is going? Our food finally come, appetizers with the meals, and it was pitiful looking. There was barely enough macaroni to cover the bottom of the bowl and it doesnt even come with a side. My kids eat macaroni like its going out of style, that was not filling even Sara up. Then my friend's side order of buffalo wings was two short... that was for her daughter's meal... she needed more than that. I checked my full order of buffalo wings and those were missing two as well. By this time I was upset. I talked to the server who asked if I wanted to speak to a manager. I said yes and she came over. She asked what the problem was and I mentioned the picture of the chicken showing two more in each and she says, "We portion by weight because that is what corporate tells us to do." No apology... no offer of a resolution or taking the item off our bill or offering something else. My blood is boiling... so I move onto the macaroni almost not able to swallow the lump in my throat. I said, "I'm not trying to be rude but that macaroni... it is just... pitiful. I am not paying $4 for that amount of macaroni." She says and I quote, "I completely agree with you. That is why I dont order it for my kids." I was in shock... WTF?! Was she serious? Yup... she basically called me an idiot for ordering my kid macaroni and cheese from her restaurant. Before I bursted, I said "Well, I guess there was no point in you coming over then." And she says, "Is there anything else I can do for you?" as if she actually did anything but be a rude bitch in the first place. I was pissed... but she got the kids refills and left. I also had to leave. I lost my appetite and walked outside because I felt like crying or screaming or hitting her. Both my friend and I called corporate offices. We were both sent gift certificates... not enough to cover our $75 bill but atleast they were nice about it. If I ever go there again I better not see her. It was a terrible day... I was ready to go back home.
Feb 18th: Only a few more hours with Daddy. His flight left out of Savannah at 1130. We walked him in and the kids got to say their goodbyes and we took a couple pictures with my phone since I forgot my camera... I know, bad MOM! John didnt cry and I didnt act sad... we both held up to our end of the bargain. He called me when he arrived in Atlanta. We missed him already! We finally decided to name our puppy Captain Jack. Windy let us borrow a small pet carrier to take them home in and they love that thing. They sleep in it all the time. They arent going to fit much longer being German Shephard/Rottweiler mixes. The kids just love them to pieces.
Now: John is back in Iraq and the kids and I are back into our hellish routine. I wish I didnt have to do this alone. John was such a help to me and I miss him so much... for more reasons than that as you can imagine. I can't wait until he is home for good. Let the countdown begin.
Here are some pictures from R&R
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
