Communion!

I got up about 0930 this morning and that was nice being able to sleep in.  Robert had already had a poptart when I got up, and I had one as well.  We headed to church and they actually had Communion this morning!  The Nazarene Church doesn’t have Communion very often.  I sure miss having it every week, or at least every other week.  Soon we’ll be back to going to a Lutheran Church again. . .  After the service, they had a soup and sandwich lunch so we stayed for that.  Then we headed into Watertown to go to Herb Philipsons for something for Ryan and then to Michaels for a little stitching kit for Robert.  There was a plastic canvas kit with a heart, a star, and a rainbow in it and that’s what we got.  Then we stopped at the grocery store on our way home for a few groceries.  After I had put the groceries away, I went up and folded a few batches of laundry, gathered up the dirty clothes, and went and got laundry started.  Then I sat with Robert and he started working on the heart. He started with yellow and after the first piece of yarn, he wanted green.  So we started green but then he didn’t want to stitch anymore so we put it away.  He did really good for his first time.  Hopefully he’ll keep at it, and someday he’ll be able to stitch without me helping him on every stitch.  We watched the NASCAR race that we had Tivo’ed and eventually I made supper.  After we ate, Robert got his toys cleaned up and I cleaned out the litter box.  After Robert was in bed, I called Mom and Dad except Dad was working on putting in a new water pump so I only talked to Mom for a little while.  And I stitched.  I should be able to have a finish tomorrow evening!!

Today’s high:  53, and super windy.  Again, when is it going to be summer?
Current:  44

Windy picnic

We all slept in until about 0900 this morning.  That sure felt good.  About 10 or so we headed off to a park in Watertown for Ryan’s Political Science Club’s picnic.  It was super windy when we got there.  Ryan was manning the grill, and Robert and I went and played on the playground for a while.  Once we got back to the area the group was at, there were more people there, and Robert had a great time playing with all the other kids.  There was lots of food and it was nice talking to some of Ryan’s friends and their families.  We left about 1330 and headed home for quiet time, which of course, Robert didn’t want to do.  I played on my computer for a while and then I stitched for a while.  About 1730 we headed out to Walmart for stuff we had forgotten about when we were in town earlier.  After shopping, we went to Arby’s for dinner and then to the car wash.  Then it was home to clean up toys and Robert had a snack of yogurt before bed.  After he was in bed, I stitched more.

Today’s high:  59 – can we pretty please have summer??
Current:  55

The oddest thing happened this morning

So there I was laying wide awake in my bed this morning.  I thought it must be raining pretty hard out since it was pretty dark.  I looked at my watch – 0450.  WHAT??????  How am I wide awake at 0450 in the morning???  I shut my eyes to go back to sleep.  Nothing.  And then I had to do what most people do when they first wake up in the morning.  Back to bed, shut my eyes.  It’s only 0500 so I’m going to sleep longer.  Nope.  So after laying in bed for a little bit trying to find sleep, I headed downstairs and took out my stitching.  Yes, I had my stitching out at shortly after 5 in the morning.  It was actually kind of nice.  The house was sooooooooooooooo quiet!!  Around 6 I was going to get changed and go for a run, but Mother Nature had other plans.  Just as I was getting up, the sky opened up and dumped yet more rain on us.  So I sat back down and stitched some more.  I did 1 3/4 hours this morning and got a lot accomplished with no distractions.  Finally a little after 7 I headed back upstairs and read for a little while, did some crunches, and got into uniform for the day.

Robert and I had breakfast together and then I checked my e-mail and stuff before heading to work.  We played at a deployment ceremony this morning, and formation was a little earlier than usual because of that.  The ceremony was short, and I’m glad.  It was in the gym and it was HOT and muggy in there.  The way I was sweating I felt like I should have been on the field in the middle of July.  After the ceremony, I did a tiny bit of work in supply before heading to our farewell luncheon for NJ and JS.  Ryan and Robert joined me for lunch.  Since there were so many of us, and we all were ordering off a menu, and the place we were at is short-staffed, it took quite a while for everyone to get their food, so it was a long lunch.  After we got back to the band hall, we had a little less than an hour before job formation for our afternoon job – the monthly retirement cermeony.  The ceremony went well – about an hour with 20 Soldiers retiring.  Once we were done with the job, we were done for the day – and the 3-day weekend!!!  Monday is a recovery day for us for the parade on Monday and a couple of Saturdays ago.  I headed home, and after relaxing for a bit and getting changed out of uniform, we went to Pizza Hut for pizza night.  Robert had gotten a certificate for a free personal kids’ pizza from the reading thing they did at school last month.  They had to read (with parents) 4 books a week during April and they got the certificate.  That was easy for us, since we read a book every night at bedtime and therefore read at least 7 books a week.

Once we got home, Robert got his toys cleaned up, we filled the bird feeder (although it’s not nearly full – ran out of birdseed), and then he headed up to bed.  I stitched for a while more and we watched The Bucket List.

Today’s high:  64
Current:  56

Another BQ gig

Rain, rain, rain, rain.  Yup – more rain.  After formation this morning, I got a lot of stuff done in the supply shop.  SGT KW and I are working on an Examples Book for the OCIE (Organizational Clothing and Individual Equipment) side of the shop and I printed out some regulations and spend a good part of the morning perusing them.  Army Regs aren’t the easiest reading in the world.  I ate and stitched during lunch and then after lunch I worked a little bit more on credit card and OCIE stuff.  We had ceremonial band rehearsal at 1400 for tomorrow’s 2 gigs and then I had a gig with Brass Quintet later in the afternoon.  We played for the Monthly Remembrance Ceremony, honoring the memory of a 10th Mountain Soldier who gave the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq.  After the ceremony was done, I was done for the day and I headed home.  Ryan had dinner started when I got here – we had chicken cordon bleu, mashed potatoes, and peas for supper.  It was really good.  I took a long shower after supper and that sure felt good.  3 gigs down, 2 to go to complete my 5 gigs in 3 days.  After Robbie was in bed I did computer stuff.  I didn’t feel like stitching tonight.

Today’s high:  68
Current:  62

Two BQ gigs

Rain, rain, rain. That’s what we had today. We were supposed to have drill band after formation this morning, but it got cancelled because of the rain. We had shop training time instead, and we had some good discussion/training going on in the supply shop. I left before it was done as I had a Brass Quintet gig. We played for a Change of Command for the CID detachment here. At the end of the ceremony, we got coins. We were then done for most the day and were on job prep time for our next gig. I went back to supply to wrap up a few things and then I met my guys for lunch at one of the little restaurants on post. And then we all came home. We had quiet time today, and of course, Robert didn’t want to go up. I did stuff on my computer for a little while, but then I went up and took a nap as well. I woke up to a little boy snuggling next to me. 🙂 Then I got my Class A uniform set up – Robert helped me. Once my uniform was set up, I got changed and headed out the door to go back for BQ gig number 2 of the day. We played for a dinner AUSA was having. It was a pretty short gig – just 3 patriotic tunes and then the National Anthem and then we left. Ryan had mac & cheese ready when I got home so we could eat. Actually Robert cooked with just a little bit of help from Daddy. After we ate and got cleaned up, we measured a few windows that we’re putting shades in and then Robert headed up to bed. I crocheted and watched the Tribute to George Strait on tv.

Today’s high: 57
Current: 57

Quick day

Today was a civvies day so I didn’t have to wear my uniform or put my hair up.  That sure was nice!  We do civvies days as fundraisers to help pay for plaques for Soldiers departing the unit.  E4s pay $4, E5s pay $5, E6s pay $6, etc.  After formation, we had a supply meeting in our office to talk about tasks in progress, new tasks, etc.  Then I did some checking on government credit card stuff and got another application faxed off.  By then it was almost lunch time.  During lunch after I ate, I stitched for a while.  The afternoon went by fairly quickly with 2 hours of Brass Quintet rehearsal (our only rehearsal 3 gigs in 48 hours) and an hour and a half of salsa rehearsal.  Both went well.  I checked back in supply and there was nothing for me so I headed home.  Ryan made breakfast for supper and after we ate we went grocery shopping.  After Robert was in bed, I crocheted on another baby blanket.

Today’s high:  67
Current:  57

Memorial Day

I hope everyone remembered to take a moment to think about the real reason for Memorial Day.  The real reason is to pay tribute to those brave men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice to help keep our country free.  Thank you also to all of my fellow brothers and sisters in arms, especially those who are deployed in harm’s way in Iraq & Afghanistan.

This morning was an early morning for us.  We stopped at McDonald’s for breakfast (which was eaten in the car) on our way to post for my 0620 formation.  We had a parade in Camillus, NY, a very small village about an hour and a half from here, just south of Syracuse.  I love small-town parades – the crowds seem much better and more appreciative that the larger towns.  The parade was only about 3/4 mile long, and the sides of the streets were just FULL of people.  Of course, having a beautiful day helped, too, I think.  After the parade, the Elks Lodge had a lunch for us – grilled chicken, potatoes, macaroni salad, baked beans, and drinks.  It was pretty good, and always nice to get free food.  Ryan and Robert were able to eat as well.  After we were done eating, we headed to the mall in Syracuse to look for a camera for Robert since he loves taking pictures and they make digital cameras for kids.  They didn’t have what we were looking for, but we each got a new book from Borders, and Robert got to ride the carousel.  Robert and I both slept in the car on the way home, and I continued my nap for a while after we got home.  We spent the afternoon watching the NASCAR race postponed from yesterday.  I made spaghetti for supper.  I found the camera we wanted online and I got it ordered – VTech Kidizoon Digital Camera.  Robert is going to be excited when it comes in the mail for him – he doesn’t know we’re getting it for him, and the package will be addressed to him.  After Robert was in bed, I called Mom & Dad since I kind of forgot yesterday.  Ryan taked to them for a while as well.  I also got some stitching done.

Today’s high:  60
Current:  47

The pool, yard work, church, play time, & ice cream

Last night I was sooooooooo tired that when I tried to type my blog entry, it made no sense whatsoever.  So I gave up and went to bed instead.  Yesterday morning, after sleeping in, Robert and I made cinnamon streusel muffins for breakfast.  He sure enjoys cooking with me.  After a little while, we headed out to post and spent probably an hour and a half or so playing in the pool at the gym.  We all had a lot of fun, and Robert even floated on his own a little bit.  They have the flotation vests for kids to wear in the pool if they want, so Robert got one of the "magic vests".  When we were done at the pool, we headed to the PX mall so Ryan could order new glasses, we ate lunch at the food court, did some shopping at the PX, and I picked up my uniforms from the cleaners/alterations shop.  After we were done at the PX, we tried to go to a new car wash that’s on the airfield side of post, but they didn’t take credit cards and the Shoppette there was closed so we couldn’t get to the ATM to get money.  So we headed home.  I got the lawnmower out and Ryan used the weedeater and we got the yard looking nice.  Robert played with a squirt gun while we were doing our yard work.    Since we had had a late lunch, we weren’t really hungry for dinner.  Robert had a yogurt before he headed up to bed.  Once he was in bed, I stitched and we watched the NASCAR Nationwide Series race.

This morning we were up for church – good service as always.  Then afterwards, we heeaded into Watertown for lunch at Applebees.  Once we got back home, we changed into play clothes and we played outside.  We played baseball, yard tennis (kids lawn game we have – Robert and I just hit the ball back and forth), and golf.  Ryan joined us on the golf, and I even dug out one of my irons.  Ryan has some foam-like practice balls and we were all taking turns hitting them toward the house.  We were outside for a couple of hours.  Dinner tonight was served at the ice cream shop – our weekly Sunday walk and treat.  Then it was home to play for a little while more before bathtime for Robert.  Once he was in bed, I stitched and we tried to watch the NASCAR race, but it was postponed until noon tomorrow because of rain.

Time for bed now – early morning tomorrow for a parade.

Today’s high:  69
Current:  55

Nothing accomplished

I slept until about 0800 this morning – and I was actually up before Robert was!  That doesn’t happen very often.  He’s usually up about 0700 or 0730.  He must have been tired.  So nothing we had planned on doing today got done.  We were very lazy.  It was kind of nice to have a lazy and relaxing day, but we have soooo much that needs to get done before it’s time for our house to be packed up next month.  Mid-afternoon, we went to Kinney Drugs to get a few things and then to the Post Office to mail a few things.  Then we headed into Watertown.  We went to the newspaper office and Ryan did an ad for his truck.  It will go in the classifieds of 4 newspapers and online.  Hopefully we can get it sold.   Anyone want to buy a 2003 Ford Ranger, 2WD??  We had some time to kill before Ryan’s eye doctor appointment, and we saw that the Jefferson County Historical Society Museum was right next door.  So we went in and it was only $7 for the 3 of us to get in.  Robert was free, Ryan was $3 (student discount) and I was $4 (military discount).  It was pretty interesting, and in one of the rooms there were 3 or 4 cross stitched samplers from the mid-1800’s.  That was neat seeing those.  We found out there are a few buildings in the back as well that are part of the historical collection, but we had to get going for Ryan’s appointment.  We’ll definitely have to go back there sometime when we have a bit more time.  The eye doctor’s office had a small table with books and crayons and stuff for kids, and Robert enjoyed reading and coloring.  I stitched during Ryan’s appointment.  I had to drive after since he had his eyes dilated.  We went out to the back side of post because there was supposedly a new Mexican restaurant there, but when we found it, it turned out to just be a trailer-concession-like place.  And not even open.  So we went to KFC instead.  I tried their new grilled chicken.  It wasn’t bad.  Then it was home and we got all the toys cleaned up and once Robert was in bed, I stitched and we watched TV.

Today’s high:  67
Current:  53

Safety Day

Today was Safety Day on Ft. Drum, in preparation for the 4-day holiday weekend.  There was a Safety Day run this morning to kick things off, so it made for an early morning for the band.  We played for the run, so we had an early formation to be ready.  After the run, several of us went to the chow hall for breakfast.  Then it was back for formation at our normal time.  We had our safety briefing and then it was just office work or practice until 1045 – and finish up vehicle inspections if they weren’t done already, but the Brass Quintet’s were done yesterday.  So I went to my supply office and checked some of the new government credit card applications to see if they’d been approved yet.  Shortly before 1100 I headed to the gym for the Safety displays.  There were all kinds of agencies that had tables set up with free stuff and information.  There was one that was doing feet tests to see what kind of running shoes you should be wearing.  I did that.  They had paper on an inked thing and you walked across it and it made an imprint of your foot – kind of like the wet test.  Then the doctor there looked at it and talked to you about your foot type and what type of running shoe is best for your foot type.  Mine came back that I should be wearing Motion Control shoes, and that’s exactly what I wear with my Asics Gel Foundation 8 shoes.

After I had looked at all the displays and stuff and picked up some freebies, I headed back to the band hall to hang out until we knew what was going on this afternoon.  I e-mailed my sponsor at Ft. Huachuca, did some other stuff online, got an e-mail back from my sponsor.  Then we found out we would be having formation at 1500.  By that time, I was already over at the admin building where we’ve been having our formations (our rehearsal hall is being renovated) since I had been told that there was going to be information put out after the seniors’ meeting.  I ready my book until formation time, and after the information was put out, we were done for the day.  I headed home, and after getting changed, we went to the Golden Unicorn for an early dinner and then to the grocery store for some food.

Once Robbie was in bed, I grabbed a shower and then I stitched for a little while.  And now I’m heading to bed cuz I’m tired from the late nights and early mornings the past couple of days.

Today’s high:  81
Current:  67