Minot AFB Spouse of the Year

Thanks to everyone who voted for me!  I was awarded the title of Minot AFB Spouse of the Year!  This Thursday, they will announce the Top 18 winners (3 from each branch).  There isn't a public vote for this stage, but I've updated my profile and added a little video. 

Check it out if you have a chance!  Thanks everyone! 
http://msoy.militaryspouse.com/vote/#view/19583/1779553

MSOY Voting-Today Only

My sweet Mother-in-law nominated me for a Military Spouse of the Year Award.  Voting is open today only:  January 21st.  Take a second and vote for me!  :D

1)  Go to the following website:    http://msoy.militaryspouse.com/
2)  Click on the pink box that says, "vote"
3)  In the search box, you can type my name, "Ellen Kehs" or "Minot" and you'll see my picture. 
4)  Click on the yellow box that says "vote" and enter your email address. 

Baby It's Cold Outside

People across the nation everyone was getting all excited about the POLAR VORTEX a few weeks ago.  Basically, what we Minotians call Winter.  The temperatures were VERY cold despite the fact we don't actually have much snow on the ground (maybe 4 inches).  The wind up here just rips through you, and there are many days when we're advised not to be outside with any skin showing because frostbite can set in within 5 minutes.  This makes it difficult to get all those toddler (and mommy) jitters out.  We try to venture out of the house most days, but some days it just isn't an option.

Here's one of the activities we did with Mason while he was home one evening.  Throwing out a pot of boiling water into the cold air. WARNING: Check the direction of the wind before doing this otherwise you'll end up with a cold blast of snow pelting you in your face.  

 

Our next activity was a repeat of one that we did last year.  We filled regular balloons with food coloring and water and set them out to freeze.  Last year I was ridiculed for burying the balloons in the snow, as I was told by my lovely husband that  I created an igloo affect, so it took a long time to freeze.  This year I decided to let them freeze on the sidewalk (which I was also critiqued for).  Anyways...it was SO COLD that a few balloons burst immediately upon touching the cold sidewalk and that immediately froze, which meant that other balloons essentially because frozen to the ground.  Oh well.  They froze pretty fast and were fun to see once we peeled off the balloon layer. 

We also took a chilly walk one day, because we just needed to get out.  It was difficult with the stroller, but we managed.  It was so cold and icy that neighborhood kids were actually using ice skates to skate on the streets.  Theo and Mason have been out to play a few times on our little snow hill that we created, and they've been building up their snowmen. 

Happy Birthday Mason

Yesterday was Mason's 29th birthday, and I hope he had a great one!  We did some minimal balloon decorations around the house and basically had a lazy day, but what more could one want on their birthday.  It actually warmed up here in the Frozen Tundra so Mason and Theo got some time to play outside, while Woodrow and I sorted clothes inside. 

Theo's favorite part about the day was the cake.  We surveyed Mason to see what kind he wanted (he was getting chocolate cake/chocolate frosting), but Theo still asked him, and then we got to work throughout the day with baking the cake and decorating.  Theo was a little bummed we had to wait until after dinner to eat it.  But, he picked the shapes we put on the cake and what color sprinkles to use.  He even snuck back into the kitchen and used his stool to help him taste test the frosting on the cake.  (He got caught)! 

We all took a long nap in the afternoon which was unusual and WONDERFUL.  The boys slept almost 4 hours each, and Mason and I slept 3 hours each.  It was AMAZING! 

I made a Korean Beef dish Mason requested for dinner, and finally we got to eat the cake!  Although Theo was not a fan of the sparkling candles we got that were also trick candles.  He just wanted them to blow out!  I was particularly excited for presents!  I love to give presents and I've been waiting awhile to actually give this to Mason, since I thought up the idea a few months ago. 

This year, the theme of Mason's Christmas and Birthday presents were things that he could use or have while he was away at Weapons School. 

For Christmas I gave this set to Mason with the poem, "i carry your heart with me" by E. E. Cummings.  The idea is that Mason would put the dog tag with his other dog tags and I'd wear the necklace while he was away, and we'd be able to be close when apart.  I also gave him an extra copy of the family picture calendar I make every year, so he'd have one to hang in his hotel room while he was gone. 

For his birthday, I went along the lines of "Weapons School Survival Kit."  Lot of snacks (mostly for the car ride there), class materials (dry erase markers, pencils, notebook), hygiene products (razors, deodorant, febreeze, etc), a bag of Hershey Kisses with one for each day he's gone, and a book of pictures with him and the boys.  But my favorite part was the 29 "Open When" letters.  I prepared 29 letters for him to open at different times while he's gone.  I figured he'd get made fun of it I was sending him letters all the time to the general address he gave me, so the kids and I prepared a few for the road.  Some of the letters have letters, special things from Theo, and others have goodies inside (can't elaborate or he'll see).  But, that was a lot of fun, but also very emotional writing some of those letters.

I hope that he had a great day!  I'm grateful we got to celebrate with him and enjoy the day as a family.

 

 

The Countdown

Right now is an emotional time for our family, as we prepare for a separation.  Mason will be leaving in approximately two weeks for Barksdale AFB where he'll be in training at Weapons School.  He'll be gone for five months.  His start date is early on February 2nd, and they'll fly out to Nellis AFB in Las Vegas for a week of training, and then back to Barksdale for four months, and then they'll spend the last month out at Nellis again, and all who complete the training will graduate the end of June.  (I can give these details because this isn't a deployment, or huge security breech).

Five months is a really long time to be separated.  Five months is Woodrow's entire lifetime.  Honestly, this is going to be the longest that Mason and I will have been separated in the last 12 years we've been together.  We consider ourselves lucky that we haven't had to face a longer (consecutive) separation prior to this, and that it isn't as long as some military separations, but for our family of four, five months is a long time.  In my world that's a lot of days as a single parent, in Mason's world, that's a lot of days working 16-18 hours with no breaks, in Theo's world it's an eternity, and for Woodrow, let's hope he just stays an easy baby.

There's a lot of emotions that come when preparing for a long separation.  Mason was chosen for this program last Spring, and due to cut backs they cancelled the class he was supposed to be in last July.  All in all, the timing is working out better for him be to gone now, but it's been a long time talking about Weapons School and preparing for class.  Mason's had the stress of preparing for the class, studying, working with others who are going to complete their pre-class workbook, he's also had to maintain his normal workload as a flight commander and instructor pilot.  All that on top of putting up with a wife who requests he spend time with us on the weekends and at night when he can.  This creates a stressed and tired Mason.

I am the worrier.  I worry about being a supportive wife to Mason while he's gone, even after a hard day here.  I wonder if I can be the best mom to my kids when I don't get a break.  The slightest things can create an emotional upset during this time.  The other night when I was rocking Woodrow to sleep, I was reading a magazine article in a parenting magazine about how at 5 months, a baby starts to develop object permanence.  They'll understand that something or someone will return if it disappears for awhile (like with peek a boo).  I'm pretty sure that after bawling for another 20 minutes I emerged from Woodrow's room, and told Mason he had to spend as much time with Woodrow as possible before he left so that Woodrow doesn't forget him.  Fortunately Woodrow LOVES Mason and lights up when he sees him, and little techno baby can already recognize faces on Skype, so he'll have some connection to Mason. His Daddy doll also arrived today so he'll have a Daddy to chew on.

We've been talking with Theo about how Daddy is going to Louisiana for training, and he'll be gone a long time.  Mason went there in November for a week, so we talked about it then, and our friends moved back there, so he has some reference of this so called Louisiana place.  Theo has been getting really attached to Mason in the last month or two, and it breaks my heart to think about Theo not having his Daddy around because he just lights up when he hears the garage door open and when he first gets to see Mason each day.

I think I've had a lot of judgements made about me for not going with him.   Mason will tell people I'm one of the spouses who "gets it."  I know that Weapons School means working 14+ hour days, 6 or more days a week.  To pack up my family to live in a hotel room for 5 months, when we'd only see him maybe one day a week, would just be crazy.  Sure I'd LOVE to see Mason and be with him for that time, but I don't want him to feel distracted from Weapons School.  I don't want to disrupt my kids lives from their routines, toys, friends, house, when they might not even see their Dad.  Anyone who has been through Weapons School has told me that I"m making a good decision and I value their opinions.  Whether we'll visit or not, will depend on a lot of factors.  Honestly the biggest one at this time is Theo.  If it's going to hurt Theo more to see Mason for a few days and then be torn away from him again, we won't visit.  If Mason just doesn't have the time, we won't visit.  It's going to be hard, but we'll make it work.  I do hope to visit family in Evanston/Chicago for a period of time sometime in the Spring.  Some of that will depend on our schedule/routine here and weather.

Most spouses that have gone through Weapons School tell me this is worse than any deployment they've experienced.  We're going to try to stay positive, but I know this will be a tough five months. So for now, any good vibes you have to send our way are appreciated, and don't mind me if you see me and I'm having an emotional day. 

Woodrow at 5 months

What a growing sweetheart our little Woodrow is.  Sometimes I feel like I don't have enough special moments with Woodrow, the way I did with Theo when he was little, but we're trying to make lots of wonderful moments together.  Theo and Woodrow are now on a similar schedule so that makes things nice for me, but some days I miss my opportunities with them individually.  Sometimes I think this comes from the fact that I don't "wear" Woodrow as much as I did Theo.  I would wear Theo on walks, when shopping, everywhere, but here, there's so much extra stuff to carry around that I have been toting Woodrow in his car seat carrier most of the time.  Once we shed our winter layer of coats, and gloves, and hats, etc...I 'll probably wear him more, especially since he'll be getting to big to haul around in the carrier.

 

Woodrow has been going to bed around 9pm (thanks to Mason being around a lot at bedtime to help put one of the boys down).  I nurse him right before bed, and usually about an hour or so prior, so his little belly is fed, and most days he will sleep until 10am.  If he sleeps until 10am then he usually will stay awake until his nap around 1:30/2:00pm, but other days if he wakes earlier or we are driving a lot in the morning, he'll also tend to take a morning nap.  He's in the sleep sack all the time now at bedtime, and has decided his favorite sleep position is on his tummy, just like Theo and I like too.  Since he is always moving in his sleep and grabbing everything we took his bumper off the sides of the crib.  Super mom also installed a new door handle on his bedroom door (a round knob) and put a safety lock on it, so that big brother Theo can no longer enter his room and climb into his crib in the middle of the night-terrifying!  

Woodrow is holding his head up really well, and can push up on his arms when he is on his tummy.  After talking to mall Santa, Santa brought him a new play mat and jumper for Christmas.  Both of which he just LOVES!  He's also enjoying the new Sophie giraffe and cloth books he was given for Christmas.  It's fun for him to have new-to-him toys.  He's rolling over both ways, and is an expert toe grabber. 

He's actually an expert grabber, period.  Woodrow loves to hold on to everything. Toys, his pacifier, books, your nose.  Whatever he can find, he'll take a tight grip to it.  Which means keeping a close eye on Theo's small toys. 

He had a slight fever after his 4 month shots, but Theo also had a slight fever later that week, so I'm not sure if they both got something from the clinic, or it was just coincidence.  He's now in size 2 diapers and wearing 3-6 month clothes, although Mason thinks we should start considering moving him up to the next size, or at least put away the 3 month cloths.  :( 

He had his first rice cereal on December 23rd, and starting this week, I'm trying to give it consistently every day around our dinner time or 7:30pm and he seems to enjoy it a lot. 

Woodrow's also been practicing sitting in his Bumbo chair, the high chair, and unassisted on the floor!  Woohoo! 

Woodrow's a happy go lucky guy and is paying more and more attention to Theo everyday.  He gives the best expressions and smiles and we're blessed to have him as part of our family.  

Flubber

This winter has already brought several days/weeks of subzero temperatures, where it is just too cold to go outside to play.  I try to get out of the house most days even if it's just to go mall walking or let Theo play at the local bookstore train set because we all get cabin fever.  However, I think this winter will be "project" central.  I've been trying to find fun/cheap/easy activities for Theo and I to do in the mornings to take up some time and this particular day (a few weeks ago) we attempted to make Flubber.

Preparing to measure the Borax

Squeezing out the glue.  (We used two bottles)

This was a fairly easy "recipe" to follow.  I looked at two different sites and ended up using the recipe from the first site, but the idea of glitter glue, instead of food coloring from the second site.  It was fun and Theo likes playing with his flubber.  Two warnings:  when you first mix it all together, it was still a bit watery, so I patted it dry with a paper towel, and kept smushing it together with my hands, allowing the water to drain and eventually it solidified up more.  Also, if you break it into lots of tiny pieces when playing with it, it doesn't go back together easily like play doh.    

Excuse the outfit, or lack there of, we had just started potty training

poke, poke, poke

Flubber!