Hickam Air Show

Here we are this past weekend at the Hickam Air Show. It was a hot hot hot day but one well worth battling the heat. The kids were in heaven being able to get super close to planes, looking inside the areas where bombs are held, sitting in the cockpit pretending to fly, and witnessing the demonstration of the Air Force Thunderbirds. All Asher has talked about this past week are the Thunderbirds.

Anna flying a huge helicopter (I guess it would help if I knew all the REAL names but that would require Daddy).

Jesse and me getting ready to watch the Thunderbirds. Don't we look cute sporting our Boston roots?!

Here are 2 of the Thunderbirds. I wanted to post this picture so you can see how low they fly-right in front of the crowds-and the amazing tricks they do...barrel rows in formation, straight up and down dives, flying upside down under one another. In this demonstration, they turn at the last minute to skim right by each other.

Anna and Asher heading towards a C-5 (yes I know the name of one of the planes!). The is the largest plane in the Air Force able to carry multiple types of any military vehicle (including tanks and helicopters!). How cool is that?!

The Thunderbirds flying over our heads as we watched from our backyard.

Asher is now attached to his Thunderbird toy plane. As he watched, he had his plane do all the maneuvers.

Jesse was even enthralled with the planes and would not stop saying "WOW" and pointing at them. He follows Asher around with his toy plane, flying one of his own.

Daddy, again, we wish you were there (at least to tell us all the names of the planes!).

What's for Dinner?

Crayons are for dinner!! Well there are according to Anna. The kids were "supposed" to be sitting at the table eating their supper while I chatted with Joel on the computer. A fight broke out at the table and I hear Anna saying "sorry Asher" over and over again. When I went to find out what was happening Asher tells me that Anna made him eat a crayon, and I see spit out orange crayon on the floor. I know many will ask why would Anna do that? Strangely enough that isn't the part that bothers me...that is the Anna I deal with everyday (and now I have a mental picture of her making another kid eat dirt on the playground..AAHH), but what bothers me is why in the world did Asher do it?! He is bigger then her and could easily have said no or at least called for me. What in the world?!

We are now officially 3 months away from daddy coming home. We have survived 7 weeks, 1/3 of the way through. We have certainly had some bad days. To be honest, I have had some breakdowns. The verse of the week for me to cling to "Let the peace of Christ rule in your heart" (Col 3:15). Our God is God of peace, not chaos, and even with the mess around me, screaming, fights, and constant demands, I can find peace and rest in Him alone. A neighbor gave me that verse as I was walking home late from bible study one evening with Anna screaming at me while Asher drenched himself with a hose as I was dealing with her just because "I wanted to get wet Mommy". Peace and rest dear Lord please!

On a fun note, the United States Air Force Thunderbirds (special F-16 flying team that does amazing tricks) are in town for an air show tomorrow. One of the perks of living on base is we got to watch them fly in and then do their practice show today from our backyard. We do however plan on facing the crowds and attending the airshow tomorrow so hopefully I will get some really cool pictures. The kids loved watching them today and have been playing "thunderbirds" all afternoon...even Jesse bear has been running around flying his toy plane making the cutest little noises.

A fun filled Saturday

It all started with Spencer's 2nd Fun Run. Our friend's 6 year old invented this race because he wanted to sponsor a race just for kids. The kids love it and us parents adore it. It is so great to see the kids doing their best, having fun with whatever place, and encouraging each other.

Here are all the kids who participated. Jesse was a wanna be. The next Spencer Fun Run is going to be in December, a jingle bell run, to include a diaper dash so Jesse will get his turn.

There goes Anna!

Here is Asher crossing the finish line.

The next event of the day was our dear friends Mia and Carter's 6th birthday party which included miniature golf, pinatas, pizza, cake, and fun at the beach. Jesse has an obsession with balls so he kept stealing all the kids golfballs and running off. When I finally got him to try playing with the club that boy had quite a swing!

Jess after cake. I was running backwards trying not to get touched!

Anna pretending to be a mermaid at our favorite beach in Hawaii.

As you can tell by the look on her face all the kids had so much fun.

Asher with his buddies on a "jellyfish" hunt. Unfortunately, this beach tends to have bad jellyfish days. Today was great for 2 hours until the birthday boy got stung on both legs. All of a sudden, jellyfish were washing ashore everywhere. It was so odd. It kept all the kids out of the water but as you can see, it didn't stop them from enjoying their day.

Asher boogie boarding (pre-jellyfish). He is so good at it now! He was out there all by himself catching waves. The smile never left his face.

Jesse, the sand man. This boy is the ultimate beach bum. He has never know any other life. He is too into playing in the sand to even smile at me for this picture.

The truck was his favorite toy of the day.

Pajamas, movie, and popcorn at the end of a long but fun fun day!

Daddy, all these pictures were mainly for you. We missed you so much today. We knew how hard you would have been cheering at the fun run, remembered how much you love put-putting (Asher kept talking about the last time you took him), and you would have the loved the great boogie boarding waves at Bellows! Everyone missed you...it wasn't the same without you. We can't wait for all the fun moments we will get to have with you when you come home.

Wild at Heart

I have been reading this book "Wild at Heart" which is about the spirit that God gave boys and how society tries to stifle it. It has certainly convicted me about what I let Asher do and how I see my husband. Joel encouraged me to read it saying that I would understand his desire to be deployed once I did. OK, so I understand but it sill mystifies me! Boys have a heart for adventure, exploring, and battle designed after God's own image. It just so happens that Asher asked me if he could play in the mud while I was in the middle of the book. My skin crawled with the idea of cleaning up the mess but knew how freeing it would be for him and FUN! I remember those days at a kid. Why is it so hard for us moms to let go and let boys be boys? Get dirty, explore, and enjoy Asher! Oh, and be ready for the cold water hose when you are done because you are not coming in the house like that!

1 Month Down...3 months and 3 weeks to go

Here is Joel with his team. He is doing well over there, enjoying his job, being challenged in his leadership skills, and training for a 1/2 marathon on September 11. He works long 12 hour days with one day off a week but his biggest complaint is the heat (up to 120 degrees) and humidity. We get to talk on the computer almost every day but only for about 20 minutes. Sometimes they are great conversations and other times they are chaos with the kids screaming and climbing all over. However, we are so thankful for that time everyday and the kids always notice if a days goes by and we haven't seen Daddy on the computer.

Here are our tomato plants after 1 month. They are looking great! But they have become a source of revenge. Jesse has pulled out a couple of Anna's and Anna has pulled out one of Asher's in anger. Does anybody know about tomato plant? Is it time to tie them to stakes?

This is Jesse coloring a picture to send to Daddy. He always wants to do what the big kids are doing.

As for me, I feel like I have somewhat gotten into a groove. My mind at least has stopped waiting for him to come home in the evenings and we have developed our bedtime routine (Joel usually does bedtime). I am clinging to the verse 2 Corinthians 5:14 at the moment. "And he died for for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again." Every morning I attempt to lay myself down and live for the kids. It is a daily struggle to give up my wants and needs with a good attitude and I often fail. The Lord is guiding me and I lean on Him. Just please don't tell me the time is going to fly by because it hasn't. This past month has felt like a year! One day at a time.

The Ballerina

Anna has a love for ballet. She is now old enough to be in a class without mommies so I am not banished to the corner anymore (she never wanted me doing it with her). She lives for ballet class days. There are about 10 little girls in the class but Anna takes it the most seriously by far (maybe not in a good way either). She is always focused with her hand on her hips, patiently waits her turn, and listens to every instruction...however, she is often yelling at the other little girls or ordering them to be on their tip toes, to get back to their spots, to raise their arms when they turn. Maybe Anna has a calling to be in dance (or to be a drill sergeant). Either way it is a true joy to watch her thriving in something all her own.

The Boys

Even though he has been potty trained since he was 2, Asher has still been wearing pull-ups to bed at night. A few weeks ago he told me he didn't want to wear them anymore so (in fact it was the night before Joel left), so we are in the process of night training with Asher. He sleeps so heavy that I am not sure he even knows when he has an accident. Regardless, we are determined to get through this. It involves me taking him to the bathroom when I go to bed. Sometimes he is alert...other times he is not. This is how it ended last night. I tried and tried to wake him up and stand him at the potty and the poor thing just didn't seem to comprehend anything I was telling him. He just collapsed into a ball on the bathroom floor and I believe would have stayed there all night if I hadn't carried him to bed! But he did wake up dry this morning...YEY!!!

This is Jesse's interpretation of how to use a baseball glove...

Cute, aren't they?!