Sigh.....the joys of military life!!!

If you've been reading my blog for a while, you will remember that I really detest swing shift and midshift. I was really happy a few weeks ago when Curt came home and told me that he was back on day shift, it's been wonderful and the kids love it :)

Well yesterday he gets home and he says

Curt - "do you have any appointments planned for this week, during the day?"
I look up from fixing dinner.
Me - "Nooooooo, why?"
Curt - "well because this would be the best time to do it".
Me (still acting dumb) - "why is that, do you have the week off?"
Curt (quickly walking away) - "no I don't have the week off"

I knew it, right there and then I knew that he was either back on swing shift or midshift. Yep, I was right, back on midshift for this week (or so they say). In military lingo it means something completely different, if they tell you they need you on swing or mids just for a week, it usually means 3 months the least. Grrrrrrrrrr!!!
But hey, at least he's home with me, right? And I shouldn't be complaining about the schedule, I know a lot of military wives out there would rather have their husbands home working cruddy shifts, than having them overseas. :)

I managed to get all my computer work done yesterday, in between getting interrupted every two seconds with the kids either fighting, whining, begging for food (like they never eat), or needing my attention for something.

If you go over to our Pug Blog, I've redone the template and the name to include Bella.

I also redid my food blog and added a new recipe, for Baked Mexican Chicken. Be sure to go check that one out. I will be adding more today and the menus for the next two weeks as soon as I have those completed.

I am dreading summer, I have to say that even though school just got out, I'm already daydreaming about the day it restarts. Does that sound mean? Does this make me a bad mommy?
I hope not, because there's only so much whining and fighting a person can take before joining the loony bin. I love my kids to death but there's days (well lately, everyday) that I just can't bear it, I want to run away.

While talking to my friend Veronica on the phone, we both have stated more than once that we just want to run away LOL
At times it becomes impossible to hear each other or have a conversation, I'm either yelling at my kids to be quiet, or she's doing it....it's actually quite funny!!!

Are any other mom's going through this right now? Please say yes because I'm tempted to throw my kids in summer school just so I can keep my sanity for the next 3 months. *Sigh*

Lord give me all of us strength to get through this.

I have to run out and get WIC checks, then run to the library (yes I spend a lot of time there, no need to mention it) to return movies. Hubby watched "Jarhead" last night and then woke me up at 2:30am just to tell me what a BAD movie it was and how much he disliked it. LOL
I also need to go by the Self Help for another carpet cleaner, grass seed and some other tools to work on the yard. What fun!!!

So girls, ladies, kids, I hope you have fun today, whatever it is you need to do, put a smile on your face and get through it. Let the Lord take over, you'll be amazed how much smoother things will run.
See you all tomorrow, I will have my Works for me Wednesday tip up. Still gotta go figure out what to use for that, there's days that my brain wakes up fried. Today is one of the said days.

Look below for my Tackle it Tuesday and Treasure Tuesday posts. :)
God Bless!!!

TREASURE TUESDAY!!!

Time for another Treasure Tuesday. You know I have to tell you, I just love tuesdays because if for some reason there is nothing going on or I'm drawing a blank as to what to write about, this just fills up my day. LOL

So here we go:

Nowadays with technology being so advanced, very seldom do you rely on snail mail. We all get so carried away with emails and computers that we've lost that personal touch of actually sitting down with a piece of paper and pen, and jotting down our thoughts and news to distant family members.

I know, I do the same exact thing. There's always an excuse, I'm too busy, I didn't get a chance, I will do it next week, I would rather just email it's quicker.......tons of excuses, yes they're just excuses. But to me, there is nothing sweeter than going to the mail box and finding a hand written letter from a family member all the way across the world.

That is why for today's Treasure Tuesday, I picked handwritten letters. I've been saving these for years, they are either from my mom, or my grandmothers or stepmother and they all mean a lot to me. It's great going back and reading them again, reminiscing about what was going on at that point in my life. So here you go, my handwritten letters!!!

Letters from mom, grandma Odete, grandma Jacinta and my stepmom.

Just a few of the letters that I wrote to Curt when he was deployed right after 9/11. I still have a HUGE stack of the letters he brought back with him. I love reading them again, takes me right back to those days of feeling scared, worried, missing him etc. Beautiful treasure to us both :)

For a list of other participants, head on over to Faithful Mommy. If you play along, add your name to the linky list too :)

TACKLE IT TUESDAY!!!

Yay time for another Tackle it Tuesday. I was hoping to use my backyard as the project, but it will still be a few weeks before that one is completed, mainly because we have to grow grass out there etc.

So for today I tackled one of my dresser drawers.

I have one drawer that was just collecting unnecessary stuff. I think everytime I had some piece of paper or a photo or something that I didn't know what to do with, I just threw it in there and eventually ended up with this:

Not a pretty sight is it???

I realized that I was trying to fit the rest of my clothes on the other 3 drawers and just shoving them in there and squashing them together because I had no more room.
So this morning, I got up, sat at the computer and realized that it was Tackle it Tuesday and I hadn't done anything. I literally forced myself back up the stairs to reorganize this drawer. It wasn't easy but I did it LOL

So now I can put all my winter pj's, shorts etc in that drawer, which left a lot of room to do the rest of the dresser. Here is the finished project:

I feel so much better having gotten to that drawer, I'm ashamed to say that it had been collecting all that junk for years. Thank you Janice for getting me going with these projects, if it wasn't for you and Tackle it Tuesday, I think the drawer would have remained like that until I died LOL

For a list of other participants, head on over to 5 Minutes for Mom, and if you play along, just add your name to the linky over there. See ya next week!!!

OUCH OUCH OUCH!!!!

Since we got rid of Sam we've had to start working on the back yard which was totally destroyed, to the point where we couldn't even go out there anymore. He dug holes, he chewed up the trampoline padding, he tore up the bag for the lawn mower and then there was the constant barking which led to multiple visits by the SP's on base.

When we opened the door to the backyard this weekend and took a step outside it was almost like entering an area devastated by a tornado or nuclear bomb, really, that's how it felt.

Curt and I set to work, at 8am we stepped outside ready for battle. We started by moving the trampoline from the middle of the yard to the far back to give us more room. Then we moved the swing set too. Unbelievable, all of a sudden we had a LOT more yard than we thought. Now because Sam had dug up so many holes and torn out the grass, we were left with a patch of lawn and just dirt all around. We dug all that grass up and all the dirt, and this week we're getting the dirt ready for new grass.

By the time we stopped for the day it was 3:30pm and Curt and I could hardly walk. You don't realize how much work you're doing until you stop and then try to move again. I have pains in muscles I didn't even know existed. To top it off, my wedding rings cut into my finger without me realizing it, so now I have to keep my rings off which is just horrible. I feel absolutely naked without my wedding rings, but what are you gonna do???

So this morning I am soooooo sore. I can hardly walk, my arms are killing me, my lower back is killing me and I'm exhausted LOL

I'll keep you guys posted on our progress and will post pictures of the yard as we move through this huge project. Knowing our luck, the day we finish the yard is the day we get orders somewhere LOL

After stopping for the day, we came inside and everyone showered and dressed and then we sat down to watch a movie. King Arthur!!! LOVED it. We are huge fans of movies like that, medieval, dark ages, you name it. No surprise that our favorite movies are Troy, Alexander, King Arthur, First Knight, Excalibur, The 13th Warrior, Braveheart etc.
You have got to watch King Arthur though, it's just sooooo good. I also watched Tristan and Isolde last night and absolutely loved it too. Beautiful love story!!!

So today I can't be doing much, not being this sore, but I do have the never forgiving "laundry" (if you could see the snarl when I say it).
I plan on updating my food blog and setting up a new one for the Pug girls. I also need to get some graphics done for Lori Foster's store, so I guess I'll be busy at the computer.
One trip to the Airman's Attic later and probably the self help for a carpet cleaner (yet again), since cleaning the back yard and walking back and forth into the house has left my carpet a total disaster.

Well better get my day started if I'm going to get anything done. :)
Have a blessed day!!!

Such a sad weekend!!!!

My heart is just in pieces this weekend. I've learnt of not only one but two soldiers killed in Iraq, so I ask that you send out a prayer to their families.

Faith from "Dedicated to the One I Love", mentioned another soldier killed. SFC Isaac Lawson from the 49th MP Brigade, left behind a wife and 5 children. Please keep his family in your prayers, and for more info you can go on over to Faith's site, she has a link to the story and a memorial video too.

I want to offer my condolences to both families.

God, we do not understand suffering, but we are grateful that You have promised to be with us in the midst of it. Let Your words be a comfort to these families in this time of tears.
'Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.' In Jesus mighty name. Amen

So yesterday we went out and got Bella. She is just a sweetheart, she's very mild tempered and loving, she gets along with the kids and for the most part Lola. They've snipped at each other a couple of times, but I think that's normal since they're becoming acquainted and it's only been a day. I'm sure by the end of this week they will be the best of friends.
Here are some pictures of the new addition to the Pug family.

Isn't she just adorable? You can see which one is the puppy and which is the oldest one, Bella has the white whiskers :)
The kids are in heaven with both pugs, I've said it before and I'll say it again, Pugs are by far the best family pets to have.

Last night while laying in bed, I admit that I felt disappointed. I think that I was imagining these two pugs meeting each other and loving playing, becoming instant best friends. The minute the first one took a snip at each other I cringed. I realized that this was not going to be as easy and pretty as I thought. So I lay there and contemplated and thought and thought about it, I was almost convincing myself that I had done the wrong thing, maybe I shouldn't have gotten Bella, maybe this was a bad decision. But just as quickly, I had this sense of calm come over me, it was like God letting me know that it's ok.

Just like everything else that is worth it, it starts off not so pretty and mighty difficult at times.

Me: I guess this is yet again another one of the "leave it in your hands tests?"
God: That's right, and what are you going to do?
Me: I think I should just leave it in your hands, but what if I can't?
God: You know Sandra, after all this time I thought we were getting closer to you not freaking out and trusting me.
Me: It's not that I don't trust you, I just like being in control.
God: You just answered your own question, you don't trust me enough to take care of you. Do you honestly think that I would ever do anything to hurt you, your best interests are what matters to me, trust me, let me show you.
Me: Ok, Ok, I think I will!!!

You know what??? I put it in his hands, I am leaving all this in his hands and not even worrying about it. I got immediate results this time, within a few hours, both dogs were sleeping on the bed, together, with no fighting. This morning they walked up to each other, gave kisses, and went on with their lives. We did have a growl or two when they got in each other's face, but that's normal, and it showed me that God is indeed and YET AGAIN showing me to trust him. I have to believe that I'm not that dense to keep having to repeat these tests, but hey, guess I'm s slow learner. Best part?!?!? He doesn't give up on me, he just keeps loving me :)

This is going to be a real quiet week. I have no errands to run, no appointments and nowhere to take the kids. It's going to feel good just being home and relaxing, so I think I will take the time to catch up on my reading. I'm expecting a book this week called "Diapers, Pacifiers, and Other Holy Things."

•every mother who has cried out to God that she no longer has to time to spend with Him.
•every mother who needs to be reminded that she is valuable.
•every mother who wants to laugh or cry over the ups and downs of life with preschoolers.
•every mother who enjoys her children and responsibilities, but just needs a break.

Each of the thirty-one short chapters will tickle your funny bone or touch your heart, challenge your thinking, and inspire within you the need to walk more closely with your God.

Sounds like the PERFECT book for me LOL

Well it's time to go back out to the back yard, we are working on getting it all fixed since Sam left. Can't wait :)