"Things you may not have known...or cared to know for that matter"

OK, so my friend Wendy tagged me to do this, so here it is...

Four Jobs I've Had In My Life

Cookie Shack - first job ever, in Plano Texas
Assistant Manager at Children's Place
Assistant Director of Human Resources at a Hilton Hotel
Second Assistant Manager at Yankee Candle

Four Movies I Would Watch Over and Over

A Knight's Tale (weird I know)
Notting Hill
13 Going on 30
Pretty in Pink

Four Places I Have Lived

Washington
Indiana
Florida
Texas

Favorite Bands And Singers

Third Day
Jeremy Camp
Def Leppard
Night Ranger
Yes, I am showing my age here, but that's ok, I love those 80's bands

Four Loves of my life

Jesus Christ is number 1...the more I learn the more I love him and know that he is my Agape Love
My family obviously - my four boys and naughty dog
Fall - I look forward to the season every year. I think it's so beautiful
Popcorn - love it

Four Most Memorable Moments

The first time I saw Darrell. I remember what he looked like, what he was wearing, and what he said
Of course I will never forget when Theron was born, but it hurt. I will never forget dancing with him when daddy went to work in Spokane, Washington
Taking naps with Shane in Ohio when he was in pre-school. He used to hold my hand to fall asleep
Collin's "big hugs". He says, mommy, I'm going to give you the big hug now. He goes to the other side of the house and gets a running start, and well, gives me the "big hug"
Seeing Darrell for the first time when he got off the plane after being gone for a year, and how all of us jumped up and down and hugged him
I cheated, that was five.

Four of My Favorite Foods

Popcorn!!!
I agree with Wendy, Mexican food. All three of my boys got it A LOT in utero
Chicken fried steak and mashed potatoes (yes, I know, really healthy so far)
Chocolate

Four Places I'd Rather Be Right Now

Paris with my family
On a Mediterraean cruise with Darrell
Back in the mountains
At the movies with Wendy

Now, I don't really have anybody to tag. I'm new at blogging. So, if you're reading this, and you haven't done this yet, I tag you. Be sure to leave it in my comments that you're doing it so I can go read.

Rocky Mountain High

So, here we are on our short little family vacation before our move. We're up in Estes Park. I've been checking the weather forecast, right up until we packed yesterday, and it was calling for weather in the 50's and 60's. We packed some warm clothes, but not really heavy winter gear. I mean, seriously, it wasn't supposed to be like this! We've had snow all day. We're stuck up here on this mountain. I mean, serioiusly, I'm from Texas, winter storms don't just show up out of nowhere. How naive of me! But, the good news is we're spending some nice family time together. We played Uno and Pictionary Jr. last night. Of course, with three competitive boys, there was crying and moaning, but you can't ask for perfection! (But that's a completely different game we didn't bring with us) The house is absolutely beautiful. It's three stories, and has a huge window wall spanning the entire three floors. Of course, the windows are covered with snow and we can't see outside, but let's not split hairs here. We're having a wonderful time in this beautiful house, surrounded by beautiful mountians.

Lots of fun for everyone, a hot tub and a pool table!

So, perhaps some of you other more ambitious mothers would make a homemade breakfast while on vacation. Not me. I fed my boys the breakfast of champions...Pop Tarts. They never get it at home, so I thought, why not on vacation? They were loving it!

Can you see what that is? Outside that window is a grill, covered with snow. Darrell will be out there tonight freezing, but we're going to have our grilled chicken! I only brought food to be grilled, because...well we've been through all that! You get the picture.Here's some local wildlife hanging out as we were driving up the mountain yesterday. What do you not see? SNOW!!!

Serious thinking going on here. It could be serious life thinking, or what song to download next on my iPod. You just never know.Here's a closing picture of Darrell drinking his breakfast of champions, Diet Dr. Pepper. Seriously, I should get paid for all the endorsements I've put in this post. I mean, I mentioned Pop Tarts (which I know you're going to run out right now and buy), iPod, and Diet Dr. Pepper (cause why would you drink something else?)I'll post again if we make it back down the mountain in our little family mini van with the cargo carrier on top! Just kidding, mom, we'll make it back down. It's not really sticking on the road.

My three sons...er...dogs

Quick post...we were sitting in a parking lot, waiting for daddy to get done running an errand, and it was pretty windy, so all three boys decided to be "dogs" out the window. Just as I went to take the picture, the older one stopped! I've got to be faster next time.

Adjustment Phase

I know, I haven't posted in like three days. I'm going through what you could call an adjustment phase. I am so very, very thrilled to have my husband back, and wouldn't want it any other way. However, after a year, I kind of started doing things my own way, and I'm having to adjust. Even the dog is having to adjust. She's just not sure where she's supposed to sleep now. She walks around the bed at night, as if to say, "mommy, what's going on here? that's my spot to sleep!" You see, she got really used to sleeping right next to me. Now, she's just a lost little yellow lab wanering the house at night. When she prowls around the bed, all we can see is her little yellow tail above the bed. The jaws theme comes to mind. I think, "Da da..." You get the picture. I'm waiting for her to attack to try to regain her spot. She walks over to my side, and either just sits and stares at me (which is kinda freaky in the middle of the night) or licks my face (stinky dog breath). Poor little lost yellow lab.

There's also the additional mess in the house that I'm just not used to. Yesterday, my husband let me sleep in, which I thought was really nice of him. Until I looked out my bedroom down to the main floor and saw the entire front room filled with little plastic pirate ship thingies. I continued to the kitchen, and on the kitchen table was leftovers from McDonalds, along with three remote controlled planes charging. On to the family room, the situation didn't get any better. On the sofa where I USUALLY sit was a laptop! I just decided to cut my losses and go back upstairs. Marriage, it's all about compromises and adjustments, with a lot of love thrown in.

But, worth mentioning is the fact that my husband agreed to go to my Wednesday morning Bible Study to meet the ladies who have been praying for him all this time. He indeed wore his "I Love My Wife" shirt (well, I did mention in my last post that his luggage was lost, but I didn't tell them that). I just let them say, "awwww, look at his shirt!" He was an immediate hit! They couldn't believe he came the morning after he arrived from a 30 hour trip and wearing his "wife" shirt. I was so proud! (he he)

Finally, I want to say to my new blogger friends out there, that I have really enjoyed starting to get know you. I feel a connection to you already. I know you must visit my site, and it probably looks different than the last time. Not to mention when I leave comments on yours, my name keeps changing there as well. We have it mostly worked out now. I won't be changing the site name now, and when I leave comments, it will be under "Kristen". Again, thanks to Wendy for helping me!

He's Here, He's Here!!!

Well, for all of you who have been waiting, he's home! He was detained in customs, and missed his flight. He got in three hours later than he was supposed to. They lost his luggage. We were detained for 15 minutes leaving the airport because my little garage ticket was not readable to the parking guy, and he apparently didn't believe me when I said that I was only there an hour. He told me to "just be honest." Seriously? I was being honest. Weird, huh? Oh well, he's home, and that's just all that matters. Praise God!!! Thanks for everyone's prayers and thoughts.

Seriously?

I have not slept in two nights! I am a Grey's Anatomy fan, so the title of this post is "seriously?" I'm laying in bed thinking about all my seriously? moments throughout the year. There's been a few. The most recent one being that I woke my dog up at 3:00 a.m. this morning to talk to her, and she's looking at me like, seriously? That's sad. So, you're thinking, seriously? how can the dog be saying seriously? Well, this picture is her seriously? look. I was teaching her not to eat chocolate kisses. Which brings me to another of my seriously? moments when we first got here; we got a free box of Girl Scout Cookies from a Deployed Spouses Dinner. My son put it on our table, and the dog ate the entire box. Thin Mints. I mean, first of all, Thin Mints? Those are my favorite. Second, I mean, seriously? that was a free box from the Deployed Spouses Dinner, that dinner is supposed to support me, not cause me more trouble. And lastly, I was definately thinking seriously? as I rushed her to the emergency vet. You get the picture. That's her seriously? look.

I was thinking about when the whole experience started. I decided to move on a Friday afternoon, the packers were there on Monday, and soon after that, I'm driving down the highway thinking seriously? I had just left a very dear family who lived two doors down, who I love, and I was thinking seriously? I think I cried until my head throbbed. Then there was the time my dryer stopped working again, soon after he left. Seriously? But, hey, I called him, and he said go out and buy a new set. Get a good set, like a front loading set. So, dude, I was there. I bought the set. The delivery people installed it. I washed my first load. Water was everywhere. Seriously? I called the "home improvement" store where I bought it. They said they couldn't help me, it was the delivery people's problem. I called the delivery people. The lady on the phone actually said, "well, can't your husband just fix it?" Seriously? I mean, really, aren't there single women in the world? Do you just assume everybody is married? So she told me to call the company who made the washer and dryer, and they said it was the store's responsibility. Seriously? So, my only choice was to waltz right back in that store, and...well, cry my eyes out and tell them the whole story about my husband being gone and everything. They had someone over the next morning.

Then there was the time the light in my husbands car said "check tire pressure". Seriously? So I went to the tire store. Wendy said they'd fill it up for me. The man looked at my back tires, and said, um, ma'am (seriously, must you call me that?) you need to come look at this. I knelt down, and he proceeded to show me how the metal was exposed on the tire, because all the rubber had worn off. First of all, seriously? he left me with tires like this? Secondly, seriously? I don't know how to pick out tires! So, I just told him to put on tires he'd choose for his own car. Did I get a good deal? Seriously? I have no idea. I had to get tires put on the van within a month also. Seriously?

When summer came, I thought, I can do this mowing and edging thing. I went to start up the lawn mower. Nothing. Seriously? After I got that fixed, I was thinking everytime I mowed, seriously? There was also the time my son was going through a "counting money" phase. When the disposal stopped working, I was thinking, hmmm, wonder what's wrong with it. When the repair man pulled a penny out of the disposal, I was thinking, seriously? "Collin, could you come in the kitchen please?"

I could go on for hours at this rate. I've had so many seriously? moments this year, I just can't remember them all. But, as I do that, I think, seriously? I'm so lucky. I'm so lucky I've had the opportunity to step up to the plate and do things I've never done. I'm so lucky I have a car at all. I'm so lucky I have a house, and a washer and dryer at all. I keep thinking of the Casting Crowns song, "I Will Praise You in this Storm." I have listened to that song this year. It's helped me through it. But, seriously? It really hasn't been a storm compared to what some people endure. It's been more like a gentle spring rain compared to some.

So, I'll close with a picture of the t-shirt I got my husband for a homecoming gift. Do you think he'll like it? Yes, those are crumbs on the table. Sorry. I'm not the best housekeeper in the world, but I try!

I also wanted to mention that my background is definately different, as people who have been here before would notice. It's more me, definately. My friend Wendy did it for me. Seriously? She was up late last night trying to fix my background and make it look more like me. She's not done yet, I don't think. She's going to try to add a graphic. So, seriously? What a good friend! Thank you Wendy!

Three More Days!

OK, so I really am digging this blogging thing. Honestly, it's kind of fun. Just sending your experiences out there for family and friends to see. I've even already come into contact with a few new people who have been so kind in suporting me! Some of you have read the kind blog that my dear friend Wendy put on her site about me. She's so dear to me, and I love her so much.

I haven't put an entry on in a few days, so I guess I can recap my week. We're counting down! The counting down is excrutiating! The days are slowly ticking by. I never knew time could go so slow. But, I am incredibly thankful that my husband is coming home. I know a lot of wives out there don't know when their husbands are coming home! God spoke to me in November 2005, when I was at a Women's Christian event. He very clearly told me that my husband would be going oversees, and that He would bring him back safely. Some of you might be thinking I'm crazy, but that was a month before either myself or my husband knew he would be leaving. So, when he came home and told me that he might be taking this assignment, I wasn't surprised at all! I truly believe that God speaks to his children, and we just need to be willing to listen!

So earlier this week we went to the zoo with a wonderful friend that I've met through church here. We had a good time! So here's my 9 year old, who decided he'd sit on this statue of a gorilla and "pick his nose" for him. Ugh, the joys of raising boys! I mean, seriously, couldn't he just sit there and look angelic? NOOOO! Lovely isn't it?

Yesterday, Wendy and I went to the park here near our houses, and had a nice time enjoying the wonderful weather. She takes such beautiful pictures. So she finally talked my 12 year old into letting her take a few pictures of him. He has the most beautiful eyes of anyone I've ever seen. Of course, I'm totally biased. He's a rock. He's so strong in his faith, at such a young age, he amazes me. He has been a source of encouragement this year that has far exceeded his age. And, I can't leave "little bit" out. Wendy also took a few really nice picutres of him playing. Cute, huh?

So, one last thing, does anybody know where I can get a good background template for my blog? I like this one, it's ok. I do enjoy a nice glass of wine, but it doesn't look like me. It's too dark. Any suggestions where to get one, because I wouldn't know where to start to make my own.

Blessings!

Winter Jam 2007

The boys and I drove down to Colorado Springs on Sunday night to go to Winter Jam 2007. It's a rock concert featuring headlinging Christian acts. The boys wanted to see Steven Curtis Chapman, and especially Jeremy Camp. Afterwards, we were able to meet Jeremy, and get his autograph. The boys loved that! He is their favorite artist. For all of you who don't know who he is, you should really give him a try. You might think that since he is a Christian singer, he's not good. Well let me tell you, he rocks! Shane was jumping up and down and singing to his songs, and having a great time. It was a lot of fun, and I'm glad we went. I didn't have my camera at the concert, so afterwards, when I found out Shane could get his autograph, I sprinted out to the car and back to bring the camera in. Geez, it's really hard to run when it's like 29 degrees outside, at a high altitude, unless you're used to it! I highly recommend some training first.

As we were walking in, it was so cute, Collin was half awake, because he had fallen asleep on the way there. He saw a car with a fish on the back of it, and he yelled, "Look mommy, a Christian!" He was so excited. The older two were laughing. I said, baby, there's going to be a few of those here. He pointed out half the cars on the way in, because they had either a fish, or a Christian bumper sticker. He was so excited that he had found so many in such a short period of time.

So, here's some pictures of them wearing the shirts I bought them at the concert. Jeremy Camp sings a song called Tonight, and in the song, he says, I will take my cross, Tonight. So, that's what the shirts are mentioning. For those of you wondering, no the 12 year old did not want me to take these pictures, as this last one demonstrates! I'm putting it on here, and showing his wife someday! Ha!

Mice, Rock and Roll and Toilet Paper

So I went to the movies with my friend Wendy last night, and right at the beginning of the movie, I thought I saw a mouse running around the floor! I was freaking out. So, I was only half watching the movie, watching the floor really, and Wendy told me, "Quit looking at the Floor". When he didn't show up for a while, I talked myself out of the fact that it was a mouse. Until he showed up again, and Wendy saw it this time! So, I grabbed all my stuff, because there was candy involved, and I think I climbed right over Wendy and ran up like five rows. Two ladies were staring at me, and I said, "oh, sorry, there's a mouse". The girl immediately picked her feet up off the floor! He stayed down at the front, and we didn't see him for the remainder of the movie. Oh, yea, the movie, "Music and Lyrics" was cute.

So, you all know the song by Joan Jett, "I Love Rock and Roll". Well, my son Collin heard it, and when he was in the bath tonight, he started singing it. Here's how the song goes to a five year old..."I Love rock and roll, here's another juice box baby!" Because of course that's what a five year old would think the song says.

So, to top off the day, our house was TP'd tonight. So, I just went out in sub-freezing weather and cleaned TP off my van and my two trees. Ah the joys of raising three boys, cause you know it was one of their stinking friends! But, I only have 10 more days!

January, February...um...um.....

Well, I have a great friend Wendy who puts up wonderful posts every day, with beautiful pictures, and I am having blog envy, because mine is boring. My day exists of taking care of my boys, going to Bible Study and watching back episodes of "24" or "Alias". I also just recently found out that my mother and father, who are, well, grandparents, purchased a 40 inch flat screen HDTV. Now, I'm thinking, all right, all right, I'm supposed to be the one who is more technological! I mean come on, when I visit, I have to help them use the remote! I need to catch up, and quick!

So, here's a cute thing that happened the other day. Collin, my youngest son, was sitting outside my room in the morning. He's in kindergarten, so he is learning the months. He started singing, in a cute little "sing-song" voice..."January, February,...um...um...skip a few, October, November, December-er" . Cute, cute, very cute.