Cruising through Summer

As we approach the Fourth of July, the kids and I will begin counting down the days until Aaron comes home for his two week leave. It's getting so close!!! We have been having a busy summer. Between work, play dates, hanging with cousins, and the normal day to day stuff, it's hard to believe we are nearing the half-way point of the deployment. Here are a few snapshots of the fun we've been having since the last update.

Having fun waiting for the pool to fill up

Mommy and Munchkin having fun in the sun

Clara and her first ice cream truck treat, a Dora ice cream bar

(a very loose interpretation of Dora, I'll add!)

I'm coming to get'cha!

Little man is getting pretty steady on his feet

Colton is definitely walking more than he is crawling now. It's so amazing to watch our children develop. It's been fun watching the difference in Colton's motor skill development compared to Clara. Colton took his first steps a few days after his first birthday and hasn't stopped walking since. He walked a little bit more each day and with every week that passed there was a marked improvement in his skill. Clara didn't take her first steps until she was 14 months old and then she waited well over a month before she gave it another shot, then she took off from there. Colton is climbing, riding toys and getting into mischief as much as possible. He has discovered my "hiding spot" for bags and blankets and the diaper bag in our storage bench and now putting the contents of it away has become a daily task! I definitely have come to understand the expression, "He's all boy" because, well, Colton is definitely ALL BOY!

Clara is blossoming into such a lovely little girl. She, in contrast to Colton, is ALL GIRL! She would wear a dress every day of the week if possible. She has discovered ballet, courtesy of Barbie Swan Lake, and now puts on recitals for me and her audience of stuffed animals. Clara is regularly mothering her baby dolls and making sure they are sleeping, being fed, and going for walks to the park. We went with some friends to see the movie Rio a few weeks ago. It's about a bunch of birds and their adventures in Rio de Janeiro. Well, my lovely daughter informed me halfway through that she didn't like the movie because it didn't have a princess in it.  I honestly don't know where she gets it? I'm definitely not a girly girl and Aaron and I haven't intentionally raised her to be that way. Score one for the nature side of the nature vs nurture argument.

As we wait the next few weeks before Aaron's leave we will be keeping busy with play dates, pool parties, sleepovers, and a trip to Detroit for Keri's baby shower. Let's keep our fingers crossed the time doesn't drag by too terribly slow.

How Do You Do It?

It's a question my friends and family have asked me many times over the course of the, so far, one and a half deployments Aaron and I have gone through. My typical response is, "one day at a time and don't get consumed with worry." I focus on the tasks for the day and try not to let the nagging worry in the back of my mind overwhelm me. That usually works. Usually being the operative word, there. Other days the answer to that question is "one moment at a time." On days like today, yesterday, and certainly tomorrow and a few more to follow, I end up asking myself that question. "How can I do this?" How can I do it when I'm struggling to cope with the loss of a young soldier, one who I knew, who came to the house many times and enjoyed bar-b-ques, laughs, and happy times with my family and friends? How can I do it when I can feel my own heart breaking because I know that Aaron's heart is breaking and he is grieving so deeply for the loss of a friend? How can I do it when out there a family is meeting the Flag draped coffin of their son who died fighting side by side with my husband and friends? There are no answers, except "with the support of those who love us". I only know that I, Aaron, and all the others affected by this tragedy will somehow make it through.

It's events like this that also call to mind the reason I chose to support Aaron when he embarked on his Army career. Being a soldier is an honorable calling. Perhaps, the most honorable, but certainly, we are biased in our opinion. Being a soldier, and a soldier's wife, is also a very demanding and exhausting undertaking. It's downright stressful and does nothing to prevent premature graying of the hair! Though, I have not for a moment regretted my decision to stand by Aaron and support him whole-heartedly in his decision to join the Army.

Generations of men have chosen to step forward and defend our nation. The soldiers fighting on the battlefields in Iraq and Afghanistan are no different that those who rode on horseback and fought for our Nation's independence in the Revolutionary War, or battled on the shores of France in WWII, or any other war Veteran for that matter. They share the same bond in that they are fighting to defend the freedoms their predecessors fought to earn. They share a belief in a people that are worthy of being defended and who deserve the opportunities afforded them.

Yet, this generation of Veterans doesn't seem to enjoy the praise and gratitude from the same volumes of people previous Veterans have. Should we be any less thankful to Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans because we don't agree with the politics of the wars they are fighting? Did we not learn that lesson from the Vietnam War? Where is the patriotism that invited the ticker-tape parades? Instead, we have protestors at funerals of service members who died for their country. How does that make any sense? Regardless of your political views and which side of the aisle you agree with, these soldiers are doing the job they were sent to do. Most give more than 100% and some give their lives. And they do it all fighting an enemy that would prefer our nation be wiped from the planet. I don't know about you, but I'd much rather have them fight in the enemies backyard, as opposed to my backyard. And if that means saying good-bye to my love so he can do that for us, I'm willing to accept the challenges that accompany it.

Like it or not, there are people who hate America and have once before tried to weaken our spirit. We learned quite quickly that that spirit can be strong and powerful after 9-11.  I'd rather we not have to find out the hard way, again, exactly how exuberant our sense of patriotism can be. I know patriotism is alive. I see it in the sea of Flags in the neighborhoods I drive through daily, in the reports of bikers who set up walls against protestors, and I see it on the faces of the fallen soldiers whose pictures flood the internet. I'd just like to see it more in the mainstream public. 

Well, I guess I'll get off my "soap box" for now. Sometimes, when emotions are high, you just need to get things off your chest, right?