Now You See It...Now You Don't

Spencer is seven years old and in first grade. One would guess that he would be a pro at loosing teeth, after all everyone of his first grade classmates have lost at least one. Unfortunately, genetics have declared that my children will get teeth late and lose teeth late. ( I blame Ben!!)

Tooth loss is somewhat of a status indicater in first grade and our little guy has been struggling with his position on ladder rung zero. Well, for the last few weeks he has been hopeful...there has been a wiggle.

He has worked fervantly, if ever so gently and finally...he lost his tooth. He pulled it out himself and he has been standing a little taller for the last two days!!

He is now working on another tooth that is a bit wiggly. I have no doubt that soon he will be have a little pumpkin smile and be sitting pretty on the top of his status ladder!

His exclamation, "I am just so proud of myself!"

Now you see it!!

Now you don't!!

A is for Antiques

Alphabet Date 1

A is for Antiques

Saturday morning, Ben and I left a house full of sleeping kids and went antique shopping. I have wanted to do this since we moved here to VA and wonderful Ben decided to make it our first Alphabet date. There are shops all over and it's such a historical place, we knew we would see interesting things.

Some of my favorite things we found were benches, chairs and chests with beautiful wood work. All were either sold or way out of our budget but still so fun to find. I am not into delicate or dainty things but I really enjoyed all the old tea sets and china. One of my favorite finds of the day was an old brass diving helmet, the huge round kind with the round glass door in the front...so cool!!

My take home treasure from our adventure is an old Mason jar filled with wooden spools. I absolutely love it. I saw it on the shelf and my heart jumped...silly I know but true. We only allotted $20 each for our treasure hunting and we only ended up spending $9, total. It was so much fun.

I can say, without a doubt, our first Alphabet date was a huge success!! I want it to be 'A' again this weekend!!

Michael and Mountain View High School Soccer

My Baby Is Seven

Our Super, Silly, Handsome, Brilliant, Friendly, Loving, Creative, Happy, Determined, Talented Seven Year Old!

SPENCER

Spencer is seven!! Happy Birthday! We can't even imagine our life without your light in it!!

ALPHABET DATES

Last summer I read a book, Alphabet Weekend by Elizabeth Noble . The 'hook' is that Natalie is dumped by her boyfriend, and her childhood best friend Tom (who really fancies her) arranges for them to go on a series of dates according to each letter of the alphabet.

It was a mostly fun read (there was a very uncomfortable affair between friends that was regrettable) and it got me thinking...

Ben and I could spice up our dating life, no, not by an uncomfortable affair between friends, but by planning dates alphabetically.

We decided to take turns, he is starting with 'A', I get 'B' and... well, you get the picture!! We will have to be creative and in some cases even actually make plans for our dates to work. We agreed grocery store dates don't count, so C for Costco, our typical date night, is a no-go!

Our schedules are super busy but we are going to try to do at least two Alphabet Dates a month! I will let you know how it goes! SUPER EXCITED!!

Let It Snow!!

We all really enjoyed our first snowfall in 8 years!! What a fun time! It's already melted but we look forward to our next, and our next after that!!

My Glass is Half Full...Mostly!

It an economic climate of wary looks and unsteady knees I really should express my great appreciation that my husband has a job.
We are very fortunate to get a paycheck every month.
We are so blessed to have wonderful health benefits, especially with appendixes needing removal and gashes needing stitching.
I am greatful that my husband enjoys his work and feels valued and challenged there.
I acknowledge the opportunities that come from relocation and travel.
I see the benefits of being a part of a military family.
...BUT...
I'm tired of him being gone!!
Just six months of togetherness is all I ask.
Just six months of seeing his face everyday.
Just six months of not having to worry about his safety every minute.
Just six months of childhood milestones he won't be missing.

I'm tired. For now I will just keep my chin up and my glass half full, focusing on all of my blessings. In a few weeks, when he gets home he can fill up the other half.