After a long week, I was looking forward to Friday and some much needed quality time with the family. 

I bookmarked some recipes for the week and went to the store.  I ended up making Red Beans & Rice for dinner and it got devoured.  Morgan, who can be a little picky, was saying to all of us "Are you going to finish that?", so I think it's fair to say I did okay.  Although, I felt it came out more like Jambalaya than Red Beans & Rice.  Either way, the fact that I'm still kind of new to this whole cooking thing and the response is always "MORE! MORE!" gives me hope that I'm not a lost cause in the kitchen. 

We sat down to watch Bedtime Stories with Adam Sandler.  I laughed my arse off and really enjoyed sitting down with the kids to a light-hearted family flick. 

Well, I also bought My Bloody Valentine 3-D.  I don't watch too many horror films anymore because I simply think they all suck these days.  They tend to assume that more gore means more scary and I still hold to the theory that it's the suspense that people want.  I don't know, I did enjoy the first Nightmare On Elm Street and the early Friday the 13th movies, but over the last 15 years, I've really not found much I enjoyed in the genre.  I didn't buy it because I thought it would be a good horror movie.  I bought it because it's 3-D and my TV already has a 3-D looking aspect to it.  I made the purchase strictly based on "Oooh, this is gonna look awesome on my TV!" and I'll let you know how it turns out.

This morning, my kids took the cake.  They surprised Kris and I with breakfast in bed.  Max made the eggs.  Morgan made a french loaf.  Madison stood watch.  We each got an apple and a soda.  I was truly impressed.  It's mornings like this that make me look at the kids and think I've managed to do something right in the last 14 years. 

We absconded with Max to go buy a birthday present for his friend's party tomorrow and a gift for the baby shower the rest of us are going to.  I went the practical route. 

  • A package of diapers
  • A baby nail care set
  • A "sick baby" care set.  It's got the nose suctioner, a nursing medicine doser, measuring cup. 
You know when I first had Morgan, these things came up that I hadn't even thought of.  So the first time you have a cold, fever, diarrhea, some strange rash...You find yourself running out to the drug store at all hours and that's just no fun with a new baby. 

I guess it's also the medic in me, but I just think "practical" is better than "cute and adorable - will sit in the closet for a year before being tossed out. 

Our last stop was a drive out to Schloss Buttenheim to restock our wine cooler.  I had run out of Marzemino and it's one of the few wines I really like. 

You know, I never thought I'd see the day when I was talking about drinking wine and cooking dinner and cleaning my house.  Has anyone seen Holly?  I'm offering a reward for some information leading to the location of my former self. 

Enjoy your families this weekend.  If you're single, enjoy yourself.  Take time to sip wine or cook a nice dinner or take pictures of flowers in bloom.  It's important.  It's your sanity!
Today I'm inspired by Mr. Jason Mraz.  Thank you, sir!

I've reached the 5 week mark of The Broken Foot Debacle.  Antsy doesn't begin to describe my state of mind.  Today, I finally put the crutches in the closet and set about getting my life back.  It hurts like hell to walk on it, but I just can't sit here and stare at the computer, walls or TV anymore. 

Along with all this navel gazing, I've been going through some stuff.  I've come to a point in my life where I just want peace.  Not silence.  I like noise.  For instance:

  • Music
  • Kids laughing
  • My silly dog dreaming
  • I love yous
  • Talking till all hours about philosophy
Lately, I haven't been enjoying these sounds.  Why?  Because they haven't been there!!!  Instead, we've had a smattering of:

  • People stalking through the house with iPods on
  • Kids arguing and teenagers snarking
  • My silly dog barking at me because he needs out and I can't take him
  • I love you...but you're driving me insanes
  • Arguing till all hours about ridiculous, unimportant crap
Here's the thing.  I'm 34.  I have 3 children that are teenager, almost teenager and can-you-stop-aging-right-now-please (10).

I've done the "young" marriage.  I've done the back and forth and misunderstood and reading into something you did NOT say.  I don't want to do it anymore.  I'm too old for drama and crap.  I actually said "I don't need to be understood by you or anyone else.  I won't fight to be understood.  I need no vindication.  I KNOW I'm amazing.  What's YOUR malfunction??"

So, how do you deal with a situation you totally walked into?  I married a "newbie", so why do I find myself with the lack of patience to get through the beginning? I just want to jump ahead to the part I should be at. 

God love him.  He stepped into a full house.  I just can't help but throw my hands up and say "You were warned".  I realize my intolerance is my own problem, but I've got three kids to figure out.  My plate is full!

Until all of this sorts itself out, I think I'll sit here and have a glass of Marzemino, listen to some G&R and continue to try and decode the teenager.  And that's a whole new post.

It's been over a year.  Where have I been?  I thought you might ask that.  Really, I was kind of hoping you might have an answer for me.  I'm not entirely sure. 

August 2008 - Lost my mind Got married. 
Wedding161.jpgSeptember 2008 - Flew back to Germany and spent a month trying to get into housing.  Lived with 9 people (4 adults, 5 children). Moved house the same day my husband left for a month.  Lucky bastard!
Moving001.jpgOctober 2008 - Kris comes home and we start really getting things put together.  House comes along nicely.  We're both working too much.  I start to realize that perhaps my time as a soldier is drawing to a close and it's time to fight the good fight on the homefront. 

November 2008 - Hosted Thanksgiving at our place.  Decided next year, we'll go to someone else's house!!!

December 2008 - Christmas in Germany.  It was a first for all of us as we'd always gone back to the States for the holidays or we were deployed.  It was lovely!!! 

Morgan and Madison played several parts in "A Christmas Carol" at the post Community Theater. 

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January 2009 - We got Loki.  A beautiful 8 week old Siberian Husky.  He was teeny. 


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24 hours after bringing Loki home, Kris left for another month to a school.  I got plenty of exercise going up and down 3 flights of stairs every thirty minutes! 

February 2005 - On 05 February, I cleared the Army and became a bonafide SAHM with my hands quite full.  I expected that I would spend 2-3 weeks sitting on my couch and doing ABSOLUTELY nothing.  I was wrong.  I felt completely lost and found myself doing things I never thought I'd be doing.  I vowed to start blogging again. 

So I'm a little late on the jump.  Oops.  I found myself more busy at home than I ever was when I was working.  A lot of it comes from being married to man who is so OCD that 2 pieces of mail sitting on the phone table equates to "This house is a disaster!"

Glassesofwine.jpgWent to a Wine Tasting for Valentine's Day.

March 2008 - Kris was sent off to another school and the kids threw me a "Happy 23rd Birthday" party while I was in the kitchen making soup. 

I note that the kids and dog are growing at alarming rates. 

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Took the kids skiing in Garmisch. 

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April 2009 - Took a very quick trip to Baton Rouge to sign some paperwork and see the folks and Logan.  Spent most of it asleep.

Went to the Battalion Ball.  Decided that wearing 5 inch heels after years of Combat Boots is not ever an intelligent choice.  The first smile was genuine.  The end of the evening, it wasn't really a smile.  It was a grimace.

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On April 21st, I was having a bad day.  I took a friend to an appointment, the appointment ran longer than expected.  Loki had a very unfortunate accident in his crate and I had to take it apart to hose it down.  I honestly don't remember what else had happened, but it had been a bit of a rotten day and when my friend and I went to the mail room, I said it.  Right out loud.

"This Day Could Not POSSIBLY Get Any Worse!"

Don't do it, folks.  Don't say it.  No good can come of it. 

I've been a mother, a soldier, I've climbed (as well as fallen down) mountains, I've seen combat and medical miracles.  I've also done some pretty stupid things in my lifetime.  Then, in the simple wifely duty of going to get the mail, I stepped off the curb and bit it. 

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This also happened to take place the day after Kris left (are you guys sensing a trend here) for the field for 30 days. 

I'll admit absolute panic.  What about the dog?  What about the kids?  What about the simple tasks of being able to get a glass of water from the kitchen and transport it to the couch? 

May 2009 - Well, here we are.  It's been a month and I'm still on crutches.  No sign of the bones healing yet.  In my last ditch effort to retain some of my sanity, I allowed them to put a glow in the dark teddy bear cast on this last time. 

The kids have hung in like champs and stepped up to the plate to take care of me, the dog and themselves. 

Kris made it home and gets to do fun things like drive me 4 hours to Landstuhl to get Teddy Bear Casts. 

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So, there we are.  All updated and ready to hopefully keep it a little more current. 

Sichy, The Casted

So, I guess in keeping with the normal course of things (which I don't often do), I'll do that whole "Hi, I'm Holly and I'm a... (oops!  wrong place!) this is my new blog.  For clarification, I've spent years blogging, but I finally decided I wanted my own site with my own layout and a little more control. 

Let me go ahead and introduce the cast of characters that you'll probably read a lot about (all three of you) as they are key players in my life.

  • Holly - That'd be me.  The soon-to-be Mrs. Reynolds.  I'm mom to three darling children, engaged (for 2 more months) to an amazing man and a soldier in the U.S. Army.  As if these things didn't take up all of my time, I'm also a bit of a writer, music is always the soundtrack of my life and I am decidedly a little insane.
  • Kris - The man I'm going to marry.  It took me 31 years to locate him, but boy did he ever arrive like a stripper into a monastery!  If I ever saw a neon sign saying "HI.  I was born to be yours!", it was the moment I saw him.  If you know me, imagine me without the filter.  Seriously. 
  • Morgan - My daughter.  My holy crap in 8 more days I'm going to be the parent of a almost teenager.  Morgan, sometimes known as Emmy, is a ray of sarcastic sunshine in the life of everyone she encounters.  She's got a heart of gold and a smile to match.  I'm still in awe of the fact that not only will she claim me publicly, but she'll actually hold my hand. 
  • Madison - The eldest of my two boys (11 1/2).  Madison can best be described by a single word.  Precocious.  He's always been the one to test the boundaries of everything.  By no means is he bad.  He just has a thirst for knowledge and understanding of all things.  It's a blessing and a curse.  He's also strikingly handsome and has a built in "model's pose" in photographs.
  • Max - My "baby".  In 3 days he joins the ranks of the double digits.  Despite my repeated requests to stop growing up, he just keeps maturing.  Max is bright, quirky and could sing in perfect key before he could speak.  He may seem to be from another planet, but sit down with him long enough and he'll really make you think!  Still thinks I'm the coolest mom...EVER!
  • Logan - My best friend in the world.  He's been my rock, my sounding board and is like a brother to me.  Also the #1 Dad to my niece and nephew.  One day we'll get around to building our houses next to each other and actually just combine the families into one giant blob of love & dysfunction. 

 

There you have it, folks.  The main characters on this stage of mine.  These are the ones that I'd be lost without and wouldn't want to be lost without.  Deserted island - party of 8, please!

 

Welcome to my world.  Sit down, kick off your shoes and enjoy the mental striptease!

 

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