Waiting for the other boot to drop... by Jasa

Our family has been in a somewhat constant state or worry over the last 7 months. Since the day Jake and I met, we have not been together for more than 17 months. The 17 month 1 day mark hits and Jake comes home with orders to be deployed. It seems like we get into a good rythmn and then BOOM, the other boot drops and we are disrupted again.

I have gotten used to it, or so I think. It has gotten easier for me to wave good-bye or not go into hysterics when we drop him off in front or some non-descript building near an airfield - in the middle of the night. I have watched him walk away from us more times than I care to recall, but thankfully he has returned safely to us when his time was served.

What does not get easier is the look in our childrens eyes when he walks away. As they have gotten older, the real meaning of what daddy is doing has begun to sink in. When our oldest was younger, it seemed like daddy was on vacation and would come back when he was done, and I wish I could have felt that. But as both of children have grown up with daddy gone, it has become harder to sugar-coat. Our son gets moody and our daughter gets SUPER clingy, to the point where I have to be in the same room at all times, even the bathroom. We talk about what daddy is doing and where he will be and that he has a very important job to do and that when he is done he will come home again.

So Jake has been home for just over two years now and we are just waiting for the call or the envelope in the mail and when it does come I will be prepared to take on the many additional roles that my children need me to play. We will go on as close to normal as we can and wait for the phone calls and letters and cross off the days on the calendar until the one that says "Daddy is coming home"

Have a fabulous day.
Jasa

Stroller Strides Gives Moms the Strength for Motherhood

Stroller Strides Gives Moms the Strength for Motherhood
Stroller Strides opens in Wilmington area

Wilmington, North Carolina (Grassroots Newswire) January 9, 2008 -- Stroller Strides, the nation’s largest fitness program for new moms, has arrived in Wilmington.

“Stroller Strides is a great way to get back in shape, as well as stay in shape,” said Jody Smith, owner of Stroller Strides of Wilmington. “We present a fun opportunity for the moms of the Wilmington community to turn their strollers into a workout.”

Stroller Strides of Wilmington is celebrating its grand opening on February 21, 2008 at 10:00am at Hugh MacRae Park, Shelter #5.

Stroller Strides is a total fitness program for new moms that they can do with their babies. It includes power walking and intervals of body toning using exercise tubing and the stroller. Taught by nationally certified instructors, it’s a great workout for any level of exerciser. In 60 minutes, you will get a total body workout improving your cardiovascular endurance, your strength and your flexibility. The classes are equally beneficial for babies as instructors will weave songs through the workout and incorporate activities to make it fun.

In addition to the classes, Stroller Strides offers playgroups and mom’s night out, giving women an opportunity to socialize and further relationships.

To celebrate their arrival in Wilmington, Stroller Strides is offering the Grand Opening class free to the Wilmington community. There will be great deals on membership for moms who sign up at the Grand Opening as well as a raffle and goodies for everyone.

“We provide the outlet that moms need to enjoy time with other moms, while also focusing on the much needed exercise to fuel their demanding lives,” Smith said. “You can make new friends, get into shape and enjoy time with your baby.”

According to Smith, Stroller Strides allows women to exercise in a social atmosphere and children can benefit from watching their moms participate. For more information on Stroller Strides, contact Jody Smith at 800-691-6154.

About Stroller Strides
Founded in 2001, Stroller Strides has 300 locations and more than 15,000 participants nationwide. The unique stroller workout offers a challenging class for moms who bring their babies and toddlers in strollers, utilizing power walking and exercise tubing. Stroller Strides instructors weave songs and activities into the routine designed to entertain and occupy baby, while mom is led through a series of exercises incorporating stretch tubing, the stroller, the baby and the environment to create an outdoor gym. This unique program also provides moms with the opportunity to meet other moms, form playgroups for their babies, as well as form lasting friendships. Stroller Strides is open to all child caregivers from fathers and grandparents, to babysitters and nannies. Stroller Strides has been featured in publications such as Entrepreneur and Woman’s Day and on programs such as The Today Show and Access Hollywood. Its tremendous growth comes from a franchise opportunity that supports motherhood.

Sadie's a Night Owl

After a whole week and weekend of pretty much no sleep my husband and I were starting to argue over the silliest things. Sadie Lynn seems to either have really bad teething problems or is deciding to be a night owl...As her mother who thinks she couldn't be rebelling against bedtime ( since she is such a good baby) I truly believe its teething. :)

We decided to get out of the house and try to get Sadie to be happier...it worked!! For the first time Sadie sat in her stroller like a big girl instead of just in the car seat. It was so cute watching her in the stroller looking around at all the different sights and sounds of the MALL!! OOo exciting..oh well its winter and the Mall is a warm and convenient place to go out to. Sadie cooed and talked while we pushed her around she also loved laying down in the recline position and drinking her juice. These cute moments wipe away all the lack of sleep and frustration. We also ran into my parents who gladly watched Sadie for a few moments while Dustin and I had a break ( I love my parents and parent n laws so much for raising us kids and also still wanting to help out with grandchildren!! got to give them credit.). We love Borders so we went there for some quit reading time.

This week seems to be getting better and she is just back to waking up 2-3 times at night instead of every half hour.

We also finally trimmed Sadie's hair this week ..just her bangs b/c they were touching her nose! So far she has had to have two bang hair cuts...this girl has tons of hair for a baby :)

Also another incident that brought laughter in our house was caused by me (mommy)....
After two and half years of marriage and living on my own...I finally figured out why the koolaid mixes got so bad after I moved out. I would buy the 20cent lil package to make some punch..lemonade etc...mix it up with water
and then dump it after every time it tasted horrible...thought that the company just got worse.
Realized tonight after trying to make it again and it turned out bad again...Dustin commented about sugar!! Ahhh another Bethany moment that lasted for a long time,...I thought the sugar came in the packet and totally forgot about that. oops

We were all laughing even Sadie seemed to catch on that mommy had made a goof. She crunched up her nose and did her silly lil face that she loves making when we all laugh. We love her so much :) Even at 2am ...

No White Flour Revolution

There are articles, news reports and comedians that put there “two cents” in on what should be this years New Year’s Resolution. So I decided to join them and suggest to the world to eliminate white flour. There are many supporting facts on why we should do this but we are a Wonder Bread Society and habits are hard to break.

White flour came onto the scene around the time of the Industrial Revolution. We started milling wheat and removing the beneficial germ to increase the bread self life. Naturalist would say that they removed the life of the grain which is what makes it so beneficial to the body. I think this is a valid point but the thing that scares me the most is the use of chemicals in the process. The most common used in the production of white flour is called alloxan. This chemical is used to make white flour look so beautifully clean and this same chemical has the power to destroy the beta cells of the pancreas. What does that mean to our bodies in the long term, the risk of diabetes? Scientists have known the risk for years and even use it to induce diabetes in lab animals by injecting alloxan directly into the animals. How does alloxan cause diabetes? The alloxan makes beta cells fail to operate normally and they eventually do not produce insulin which causes one variety of adult-onset type 2 diabetes. The white flour industry argues if alloxan was the primary cause of diabetes more Americans would be diabetic. Even though that is a valid point we also know that not just one thing usually causes a single health issue.

If you are diabetic or have a family history of diabetics one of the first steps in prevention is the elimination of white flour.

The bakers at Bizzy Lizzy Bakery have come up with a wonderful solution. They have created a breakfast “Hearty” cookie that is packed with fiber and protein. These soft and delicious cookies have 4 grams of fiber and NO FLOUR. Most high fiber products have wheat flours, which many are trying to avoid.

From Grandma Darcey

When our daughters moved out, it was hard at first. But now it is fun. I get along better with them since they are out of the house. My oldest one is a spitting image of me and she calls me everyday. My youngest calls me about once every few weeks or so. But of course I still worry about them. No matter whether they are married or not and what age they are. They still need mom and dad. And then the grandkids. My husband is a pushover when it comes to the grandkids. We never had a boy and our first grandchild was a boy. He pals around with grandpa all the time. It is funny to watch. You do seem to treat the grandkids different from how you raised your own kids. And then our oldest will ask her father, "Who are you?" Anyone out there know what I mean?

Thoughts on the war from Jasa

It seems that being a military wife gives you an inside political track, at least that is what everyone thinks. Over the past ten years I have been asked things like, what do they do in that big building with no windows, do you know if the war is going to end this term, and the ever present, so how do you feel about the war, the President or the media? I always warn people not to ask me about the war unless they are prepeared to receive an honest answer.

This is my standard..." I think that we are over there for reasons that we, the normal people, will never know. But because I have a long family history in the military, I support the President and most of all, out troops. My husband and my father have both spent tours in Iraq, Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Kuwait. I have to support our troops, because I KNOW that there is good being done. I have walls full of pictures, real pictures not printed off of a web site pictures, of children waving and giving peaces signs to passing soldiers, pictures of old women collecting brass from the shooting ranges and being helped by soldiers, pictures of my husband and his unit feeding a stray dog and cat and I have pictures of a beautiful country that has known so much violence and suffering, but of a country where schools are being built, children are getting medical care and people can feel a little bit safer because the United States is there."

Some people might argue that there is also harm being done, but I think of it like this. When you decide to clean your closet, you have to pull out all of the junk and make a bigger mess before you can get everything in order again. So we are cleaning out all of the "junk" to make Iraq a safer place for it's people to live and hopefully, in the end we will have helped make it a place where people want to go instead of the place our husbands and wives HAVE to go.

Have a blessed day and remember to thank a soldier.

Jasa

The Nutritional Value of Plaster by Military Momma

My daughter, “Punka”, has a lot of behavioral problems that are not uncommon for children her age, such as being a picky eater, throwing tantrums, refusing to sleep, insisting on being naked, etc. She seems to take the phrase “Terrible Twos” as a challenge, and is determined to find the weirdest, most frustrating ways to test our parenting skills.

At this point she’s winning. It seems every time I make progress with Punka, her daddy goes to the field or participates in some other Army related event that takes him away for long periods of time, disrupting her schedule and setting off a chain reaction of bad behavior.

Her newest tactic in the quest to drive mommy insane is to gnaw the paint and plaster off the corner of her closet. Thankfully our house is less than 10 years old, so I know she’s not consuming lead paint. Just the same, this can’t be good for her. The frustrating part is that I don’t know how to prevent it.

It always occurs when she’s supposed to be napping, and so we don’t discover it until it’s already happened. I have no clue how to stop her. I’ve wondered if there were some sort of bumper to place on the corners, but that makes me think it would just make it appear more like a teething toy and an invitation to chew. I wonder what a liquid thumb-sucking deterrent would do to the paint? There’s got to be some sort of solution.

I tried to research it online, and hidden in between articles about how to get your puppy to stop chewing on your furniture, I found a few articles that suggested some toddlers may partake in this unusual behavior of eating non-food items when their nutritional needs are not being met. Very plausible considering my daughter’s recent refusal to eat anything that isn’t in hot dog form slathered in ketchup. What am I going to do with this kid? I wonder if there is any nutritional value to plaster…?