jonathan and andrea

as of late

2009-10-29T10:17:00.003-07:00

this is super long, folks. but stick with it. or not.

i've been trying my best to keep busy and be productive with my time. it's actually been a lot easier than i thought (at least, the "busy" part - "productive" is another story...)

#1 - dallin. oh my lands, he takes up so much time. it's so fun, but so exhausting. he has mastered crawling, knows how to flip over while getting his diaper changed, can pick up anything with those pincher fingers, pinches mom with those pincher fingers, eats everything, laughs, babbles, roll over in his sleep, digs in the trash, and pulls himself up to standing all the time. in fact, he can stand up without holding on to anything. if he is sitting in my lap on the floor, he can just stand up....i have to offer some help with balance, of course, but not much! he loves bath time, and is particularly interested in the drain. whenever daddy walks in the room, dallin just starts laughing, because he knows he's about to have fun. if jonathan isn't looking at him but dallin wants attention, dallin laughs to get jonathan's attention. and whines to get mine.

he knows how to find all the wrong things in the room. if i have two small items in a room full of stuff that is otherwise baby-proof, dallin finds it. he also can feed himself chunks of sweet potato, and LOVES it. he is constantly learning new things. for example, just now he learned how to take his shirt off...this is probably because the shirt was really loose - i learned it slows him down if he is wearing clothes that are too big for him:) we are working on getting him to go to sleep on his own at an earlier time. i think we can do this.

anyway, dallin. yeah. that kid. keeps me busy.

#2 - pilot training. yep, it finally started! today is day three. i think it's going to go by quickly, but that we're going to have some long nights. granted, it's jonathan (not me) that will be kept busy by pilot training (or UPT), but with jonathan so busy, i lose my dishwasher and laundry folder.

shoot.

(i made jonathan smile for this picture before he went to his first day of school. the lighting is kind of weird here...)

and in case you were wondering why he will be so busy, here's a little taste:

these are most of the publications he is responsible for. don't worry, they are all front-and-back. and yes, he will be tested on all of it (not like the books and packets we had to buy for college classes, and then we didn't use them more than twice). once he tracks (meaning he moves on from the T-6 to either a "heavy", fighter/bomber, or helicopter route), he will have more information specific the the category of plane he is flying. then once he graduates, he will be given an assignment and we'll finally know what plane (or helicopter...or UAV) he will be flying. and then he'll be given even more training with that one.

point is, if you hear your southwest airlines pilot was a former military pilot, know that you have a well-trained pilot up front.

the other point is, pray for us.

#3 - i have other projects to fill in the time when dallin is sleeping and i don't want to face the dirty laundry on the floor because it means i have to face the clean laundry in the dryer.

for starters, i made a wreath. i like it on most days, and jonathan insists that "it's gorgeous" (he's a good husband) i bought a wreath for $3 at ross and took it apart, added some of my own pine cones and the oranges i dried last year, and glued it on a $3 grapevine wreath from wal-mart, and that was that.

and then who remembers this number? (please excuse the mess, but i think it adds nicely to the effect...)

i turned it into this number:

it's not perfect, but i feel pretty good about myself - especially since i've never done such a big project by myself before!

#4 - i have a few other little projects i'm sure you'll be hearing about, i'm sure. i've been a little more consistent with working out, and some days i can almost convince myself i like it. ish. i'm trying to make more foods from scratch, and so in the past week i've expanded my cooking horizons, making granola, whole wheat bread, and homemade ravioli. i thought they all turned out pretty well. i've also painted our tv stand (it's a terrible paint job, but i no longer look at that corner with disdain), and started finally recovering the pad on the rocker. i have a couple antique shop finds i'm going to be revamping, and i'm excited about them. it's been really fun for me living out here, because there aren't any craft stores at all. so i have to get really resourceful. even when the outcome isn't so hot, it's fun to have a challenge. i know most of my little projects aren't that exciting, but i've had fun with them. i feel like such a nerd writing about them, but, well, it's what i've been up to, so there you have it.

#5 - one of my other projects is the matter of food storage. jonathan and i have been trying to figure out how to do it for a while, and so with the help of foodstoragemadeeasy.net, we decided to just take the plunge and start with a month's supply of food. we brought in an extra shelf from the shed, and...

it felt good to have that supply. living in such a remote area, it's nice to know we have a backup plan in place. we still need to get water (especially since we have been without drinkable water at least twice since we've been here) it's in the works.

i also wanted to throw in this story:

for those of you unfamiliar with our faith, we are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. we believe we have a living prophet who talks to God the same way Moses and Abraham did. our prophets have long been counseling us to build a supply of food storage. it is something that helps in times when finances are low, or natural disasters, etc. one thing i love is how our church really emphasizes self-sufficiency. this is a perfect example.

anyway, jonathan and i have spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to do this. currently we are trying to pay off a student loan as quickly as possible, while building up some savings. this means that we don't have much extra cash laying around, waiting to be spent on much beyond the basics. but we felt strongly we should get our food storage going. so we opted to start with a month, so we can test it out and see how the whole rotation routine goes. as we were walking through wal-mart with a cart approaching overflowing, jonathan and i just had to keep reminding ourselves to picture Pres. Monson's smiling face and not focus on the cost.

when we came to the checkout stand, i stood at the front, helping to load bags into a second cart. jonathan and dallin were in the back, loading cans, etc. onto the conveyor belt. a man walked up to jonathan, talked to him for a bit, shook his hand and walked away. jonathan looked at me with something of a surprised expression.

as we proudly walked out, feeling good that we were trying to follow God's commandments, i asked jonathan what that man had to say.

he said the man just asked if jonathan was in the armed forces, what branch, and if he had deployed yet. he then told him that he himself was a former marine, and that when he joined the marines he had a young family much like ours. he said he remembered how it was a hard time, and that with children, they were financially strained. he told jonathan he would like to give him a gift. seeing that the man had a bill in his hand, jonathan respectfully declined, but the man insisted. bill in hand, he shook jonathan's hand and walked away. he gave us a $100 bill. he didn't look particularly wealthy, and he didn't make a big show of it. just a quiet gift.

it was so touching to us, both that this stranger gave us such a generous gift, and the God would bless us so quickly for doing what we can to follow His prophet. i feel a little bit guilty - surely there are others who would benefit more from that money, but for some reason it was given to us. both of us were tearing up as we walked out of wal-mart.

i told jonathan we should write Pres. Monson and glenn beck...i thought they were the people who might appreciate this story the most. the goodness of God and the american spirit.

hallelujah.

i love those moments when you get a reminder of how very aware God is of us. this was one of them.

pictures off my phone

2009-10-23T06:48:00.006-07:00

they aren't the best quality, but here they are. they are from the past few months...

he fell asleep like this.

uncle eric and cousin ethan

cousins ethan, andrea and natalie

camping in idaho

this is one of my favorite pictures of my niece, andrea. she looks so grown up!!!

aunt melinda and the girls on the hammock at grandma's

we rented a wave runner for the lucky peak reservoir in boise

the man my friend calls "the duke" of del rio. he helped us get into the homecoming game at del rio high. such nice people!!! hope we see them again!

this is full of pictures...mostly for the grandparents...

2009-10-23T05:16:00.008-07:00

so last friday morning, jonathan and i were talking about what we wanted to do with ourselves over the weekend. i threw out the idea that i think every wife in del rio has in the back of her mind at all times: take a trip to san antonio! i was half joking (but maybe not), but jonathan went for it. so i called the hotel at each air force base in san antonio, found us a place to stay, and when jonathan got off work, we left. (just a friendly reminder to other AF families...make sure that you get directions to more than one gate to the base. sometimes the gate you have directions to is closed...not that that happened...)

saturday morning, we decided to do the san antonio mission trail, which i remembered thinking was pretty cool when my family did it 15 years ago. turns out, i liked it second time around, too. it's a lot of history, but they were pretty cool.

Mission Espada

outside of the monastery at Espada

hanging out by the well at Mission Espada

the front gate at San Juan

more San Juan...

and some more San Juan

a B-17(?) that flew by several times really low...jonathan said he just wanted to get a picture with the plane and dalpal, but it kinda looks like he's offering dallin up...or something.

i just like this picture.

jonathan was playing monks and indians in the bastion at mission san jose. i'm pretty sure dallin was loving it.

more san jose. this mission is preserved amazingly well - it was pretty cool.

one of dallin's favorite things to do is to walk. (with a little assistance from daddy.)

outside of san jose.

dalpal

and of course, the alamo.

i overheard a lady inside the alamo saying, "there's other buildings just like this at ???(i don't remember where)??? same era." she was not impressed. i kinda wanted to hit her. i didn't realize how much the story of the texas revolution impacted me until i heard someone brush off the alamo like it was just an old building. that is not the case, friends.

we went to market square, and ate at a fabulous tex-mex restaurant. (another helpful hint: be sure that between you and your spouse you have at least $5 cash on you. otherwise you might have to only be able to give $3 for the guys that serenade you while you eat. it could be awkward.)

to end the trip, jonathan suggested we go to target. just because he knew i would enjoy walking around a store that wasn't ross, wal-mart, or a dollar store. and he didn't stop there, either. get this: he suggested we go to a craft store. and we did. do i have a great husband, or what?

so that was that. a great start to jonathan's week off before UPT starts.

spigot

2009-10-08T12:25:00.003-07:00

we recently got dalpal a bunch of little balls and threw them in a box for his own little ball pit. he really seems to enjoy it (except when he slides down onto his back and gets stuck). last night we put him into the box and turned on some veggie tales while we tried to get dishes done. jonathan and i sat down on the couch and soon found ourselves sucked into the world of dr. jiggle and mr. sly. and then we noticed we couldn't see dallin's little head bobbing around in the box. so we got up and found this:

he was asleep.

in other news, he loves chewing on spatulas. only our good quality ones though - he would bite the other ones in half. so i get to use our cheap ones, and dallin gets the good stuff. welcome to parenthood.

check out the rolls...

while giving dallin a bath today, i turned on the faucet and let him experiment. he was sooo intrigued by it. everytime i'd pull it away, he would pull the faucet right back over. (genius, right?)

dalpal also has learned that he loves drinking (water). he dances around and starts hollering when he sees his sippy cup. and then he drinks until 1 - mom or dad takes it away, 2 - he pukes and mom or dad takes it away (he drinks to fast and he can't seem to handle it), or 3 - he throws it to the floor and mourns its loss.

so during his bath, it didn't take him long to try drinking the water from the spigot.

don't worry. i didn't let him put his mouth on the spigot.

LG

2009-09-25T08:41:00.016-07:00

so after my last awful entry, i thought i'd throw in some happy thoughts...

maybe not the best picture, but i like dalpal's happy eyes.

despite the bugs and critters (which really don't bother me most of the time), i remain convinced that, in the words of little texas, "God blessed texas with His own hands; brought down angels from the promised land..."

go ahead. call me crazy.

oh, how he loves the piano

1 - i really am happy here. when we first got here, it was mostly a "well, i'm not unhappy here, so i guess i'm happy here" kind of feeling. but now, i really am happy here. this may change once jonathan starts UPT the end of october, but for now, i really do like my life. i like the people here, i like my house, i like my new daily routine, and i like knowing that i can get really good chocolate ice cream any time i need it.

liz - note the pop-together wrists

i mentioned recently that i'm enjoying the simplicity. those of you who have read this blog for a long while (bless your hearts) might remember my late-night confession of always wanting to get away and live on a farm. i love the idea of getting away, and while this may not be the most scenic place to escape to, i still love it. i mean, as nice as it was to have 30 different grocery stores in a 10-mile radius to pick from in utah, i kind of like only having just two options: either the commissary or HEB (or the local meat markets, but i haven't ventured out to those yet). i don't have to decide between the two necessary evils of wal-mart or target, because we only have wal-mart. few stores = fewer decisions. addtionally, there is less traffic here. lovely. and i love that when the planes are grounded, it's so quiet here - you don't have any traffic sounds. i don't go out much, because there aren't many places to go. it's great - now i find i have more quiet time to spend at home with my family.

or doing dishes.

feeding time generally goes pretty well, because the second he gets in the high chair, he opens his mouth. and pounds the tray.

simplicity. i love it.

sometimes this happens.

2 - dalpal is amazing. he seems to be learning new things every day, and it is so much fun to watch. earlier this week he learned how to push up on his knees (and sometimes his toes!). he can scoot around a bit, but mostly just rotates in circles. he recently learned how to squawk. it's a little painful if he's too close to your ears, but it's hilarious. he looooves his daddy, which is good because his daddy sure loves him. i can't seem to get him to laugh like jonathan does - all jonathan has to do is wave an arm (literally) and dallin laughs. it's my new favorite thing to listen to them play. dallin has started playing games with us. his favorite seems to be a game in which he pulls his binky out, we act surprised, he laughs, and he puts it back in. (repeat.) a good time is had by all in this one, i tell you what. parker bros. ain't got nothing on us. and of course, he's still eating like a champ (no surprise there) and has moved into the 12-18 month sized clothes. happy 6-month birthday, buddy!

if you look closely, you can see his teeth

3 - i have been on a "project: fix andrea's life" kick as of late. this includes everything from waking up early every day (instead of sleeping in until, you know, whenever) to planning meals a month at a time (it really helps with groceries!) to going walking/running every day. it's been really fun. i am slowly getting the house in order, and am almost finished recovering our couch (something that has been fun, yet terrifying).

this is what happens when jonathan and dallin do the laundry.

i've always loved moving because it seems to provide a chance to start everything over again, from friends to favorite restaurants, to my daily routine. i feel good about my life. i feel like i could be somebody.

with all this said, i know i still appear to be frazzled and crazed when most people see me. i can try to simplify things all i want, but i am still covered in baby poop and puke most days. i still wish we had a fabric store within 100 miles (besides wal-mart in uvalde). and laundry still gets the best of me. if it would only put itself away.

but it doesn't, and i'm okay with that.

life's good.

it's time for me to be honest with you.

2009-09-24T11:19:00.007-07:00

all in all, i honestly really do like it here. my day-to-day life hasn't changed all that much, except that now i live in a nicer house, and i have to do a little more planning when i want to go shopping. and that's just fine. in fact, it's brought simplicity to my life. and i love that.

however, there is one thing i don't like:

critters.

lots and lots of critters.

first, there were the geckos. no problem. i can handle that. sure, they pop out from corners every so often, but so does jonathan, and i like him pretty well.

then i learned we have a big skunk problem here on base. "okay", i thought, "just be extra cautious when outside after sunset, and watch out when you walk into the carport, because they hang out there."

then one night while jonathan was gone, i got home kind of late. i brought dalpal inside, and came back out for my bag. to the carport. what i didn't see, was a skunk. what i did see was this:

(that's a penny next to it. just stop and think about it.)

okay, that was gross. but at least i didn't get sprayed by a skunk. and at least it was just one beetle (or whatever that was).

so some time goes by, and i make friends with the frog that lives in our backyard and likes to pop out of no where (it's about the size of my fist). and of course, the occasional spider is expected no matter where you live.

then i went to a "coffee" for spouses. i talked to other wives who have lived here for a while, and learned about the tarantulas, the rattlesnakes, and who can forget the lizards that shoot blood out of their eyes?

i had heard roaches were a problem, but i hadn't seen any. until one night. i was watching a movie with jonathan. i felt something kinda tickle on my leg, and what should i find?

a cockroach.

on my leg. did you catch that?

since then, it's been all-out warfare on the roaches. i haven't found anymore on my person, thankfully, but for a few days straight we had one laying on its back on the floor in the kitchen every morning. they aren't the hugest things you've ever seen - they are only a couple inches long at the most (that i've seen). i know most everyone has a "huge roach" story that can trump this. i just want to say that they are here.

then my walking buddy told me about the time her car was surrounded by fully-grown deer, how her neighbor came outside to find one snake eating another snake, that she thinks there's a water moccasin living in her flower bed, and that another neighbor has reported a mountain lion near the west gate (did i mention i live by the west gate?). she said it's like living in africa.

she would know. she grew up there.

you have to understand, i am fine with critters. i just don't like being surprised by their presence, i don't particularly like them crawling on me, and i prefer that they not attack me. and so when i find a newly-dug hole under our bush near the front door, i get a little nervous.

i just know it's a skunk.

and when i weed the flower beds, i jump every time a leaf falls from the tree, because i know it's a mountain lion (or at least a blood-shooting lizard).

but people seem to survive here, so that's encouraging.

and that's all i want to say about that. for now.

please try to contain your excitement.

2009-09-16T16:00:00.007-07:00

and now for the video you all knew was coming....................(drumroll, please)...........

DALLIN EATING BABY FOOD!!! wahoo, right?

you just can't stage real life, folks.

sometimes things fall off dad's head and we laugh.

2009-09-15T18:29:00.005-07:00

for those of you (emily) who have informed me that i am slacking off in my blogging, here is a video of daddy and dal-pal to hold you over.

sometimes life is so funny, it's painful.

so it turns out that...

2009-09-08T10:53:00.006-07:00

...grocery shopping with a cart full of two weeks of groceries in an unfamiliar store while holding a 22-pound cranky, whining, squirming octopus who needs a diaper change is difficult.

(just in case you were wondering)

last week a friend of mine offered to take pictures of dallin. i've only seen these two, but i love them. (thanks kaylene!!!)

as you can see, his hair is coming back in (though not as thick or dark as when he was born). he cut two teeth in two days last week, and well, we're just glad that's over. two down, a whole mouthful to go. awesome. we also started him on baby foods (you know, "tender sweet potatoes" and the rice cereal, etc.) he is so funny about it! i figured we'd have to spend at least a little time getting him used to it, but no. not him.

he. loves. it.

so now when you put him in the high chair he gets so excited. he follows each bite with a nice, big "mmmmm." it cracks me up.

unfortunately, one of his all-time favorite toys are my toes. specifically, my painted toenails. he is fascinated by them. before he falls asleep, there is a period of time when he is just slap-happy, and will give you the biggest belly laughs. however, without warning, the laughs turn into sobs, and he gets really cranky. and then he falls asleep.

he's getting to be busier and busier these days, which is fun, but exhausting. now that he's got the rolling over, the teeth, the sitting up, and the baby food down, i think that means that the only things that could be next on his docket are either more teeth or crawling.

pray for us.

growing pains

2009-09-02T12:00:00.004-07:00

thanks to the suggestions of my readers, i think we have the blow-out problem solved for now. we were already using huggies, but we went ahead and moved up a size. SO much more room for, um, "everything" now! and so, my 22-pound, five month-old son is wearing size 4 diapers. the kid in the picture on the diaper bag is standing and has about eight teeth. my kid has rolled over once, and just cut his first tooth sometime in the last day or so. one of these things is not like the other.

thank you all for your comments and concern. you can sleep well tonight, knowing that you helped to save the environment (fewer diapers, fewer loads of laundry) and my sanity (blowouts are never pleasant). you made this world a little bit better. good job.

you know, this whole blog thing is really quite helpful.

it's like christmas eve

2009-08-26T15:19:00.006-07:00

last night i went on a run to home depot to get more paint. (i wasn't doing the walmart thing again. no way.) as if on cue, when the lady had a hard time finding the right paint base, dallin had a blowout. which means that for the next half hour, i had to hold him with my left arm in a very precarious position. but it all worked out okay. the home depot people were so helpful and gave me a different paint at the cheaper price when they realized they were out of what i wanted, and gave me a paint can opener, etc. (walmart employees, take note.)

when we got home, i ran dallin inside to go change him into his jammies. then i ran back to the truck to grab the paint. when i came back in, dallin had pooped on his jammies (and later, his bath towel too...just sayin'). so he slept in just his diaper.

and that's how he started out the day: in just his diaper. so today we started with...

outfit #1: plaid shirt with denim shirt. within 30 minutes of getting him dressed, he needed a new diaper. at which time he peed on the shirt...and shorts, my pants, the bed, the floor, and my purse. impressive range, bud!

outfit #2: back to just the diaper.

a few hours later, i started feeling bad that i don't dress my child, which brings us to...

outfit #3: played it safe with just a onesie. pooped on it within 15 minutes.

ended the day with the sumo look.

other in news...

dallin rolled over tonight!!! he was just angry enough about being on his stomach, that he plumb rolled over. he proudly smiled at me, but maybe just because i started clapping and smiling and talking really fast in a high-pitched voice like parents do. and then he started screaming again. good job, buddy! he has so many new tricks to show daddy when he gets back tomorrow.

did you catch that? jonathan gets back tomorrow! well, i suppose it's past midnight right now, so he actually gets back TODAY!!! i'm so excited! annnd he won't have to leave again for a while (i don't think). i'm really excited to be a family again. we figured that of the sixteen months we've been married, he's been gone four of them. i realize it could be worse. but i'm glad it's not. hooray! he's coming back! i don't have to be a single parent anymore! i don't have to leave so many lights on the house at night! i don't have to cook for just me! my best friend is coming!!!

i can't sleep - i'm too excited.

fact and fiction

2009-08-20T08:35:00.015-07:00

fiction: dallin is pronounced "day-lin"

fact: just because you knew several dallins growing up, and think it is a fairly common name, it does not mean people have heard of the name. most people look at us like we tried to come up with something creative and unusual.

fact: i kind of enjoy hearing revielle at 7am, the national anthem at 5pm, and taps at 10pm every day.

fiction: pampers will always prevent blowouts.

fact: if you stand in line at walmart trying to buy paint, it WILL take them an hour, your child WILL have a blowout that shoots clear up to his armpits at the beginning of this hour, you WON'T have wipes, a blanket, change of clothes, or anything else helpful, the lady who got there after you WILL jump ahead of you in line (even though she saw my dire need to get out of there), strangers WILL all of the sudden want to play with your soiled child, walmart will realize they are OUT of the paint base you need and it will take TWO WEEKS to get more in, you WILL remember you basically live in mexico, and on the drive home, the one english non-club-music radio station WON'T play anything but sugarland (and nothing puts me in a bad mood faster than sugarland.)

fiction: when the lady at the grocery store asks if she can touch your baby, she will just touch his fat feet and move on.

fact: she will, however, squeeze his feet, legs, arms, hands, and hold his face in her hands, while her children are pulling on his legs, and you are remembering every report of swine flu you ever heard...

fact: dallin can sit up on his own. sometimes he falls over.

fact: sometimes dallin wonders along with the nuns, how DO you solve a problem like maria? (he loves it!)

fiction: it is easy to find the motivation to get out of bed and go work out.

fact: it is easy to stay in bed all morning and read cookbooks and plan out meals to cook for jonathan when he gets back.

fact: i love our house.

fiction: just because the house is clean, it does not mean everything is in its place. or even in the right room. (visitors are welcome; just promise not to open any doors or cupboards)

fact: i'm excited for fall weather!

fiction: fall weather comes to del rio in december (but at least it comes!)

fact: i'm so excited for jonathan to get back i can't stand it.

fact: i have a darling, fat, sweet-tempered little baby boy who looks awesome in skinny stripey pj's, and a wonderful husband (who is pretty good looking as well).

fact: i am happy.

i just can't seem to...

2009-08-09T20:55:00.003-07:00

...be able to change the background of this blog. i've done the edit html/java script thing...many, many, many times. no enchilada. any ideas, anyone?

on a different note, i'm beginning to understand why the wife of the lieutenant colonel at byu's rotc detachment threatened to hunt us down if she got wind of any whining from any of the spouses when we reach our first station. thanks, sis. hopkinson. your threat was just terrifying enough to keep me in line.

there's a reason doves are a symbol of peace. and chocolate.

2009-08-07T21:05:00.007-07:00

here we are again. another TDY. this time jonathan's only gone for a month...maybe less. hopefully less. but the good news is, we did at least get the two weeks together before he had to go again. dallin got to play with his daddy some, and jonathan got to hear him laugh in person. he also hooked the washer and dryer up, helped me paint, and hung our big pictures for me.

i have a good husband. sometimes i wish he weren't so great, because then i wouldn't miss him so much when he's gone. but i guess then i wouldn't be very happy the rest of the time, so i suppose i should be content with the superbly wonderful husband that i have.

i love our house. i loved our last apartment, but it's exciting to have a living room and a dining room instead of combining them into one. i love having windows that are at ground level instead of looking at a window well. i love my big kitchen that has FIVE drawers, instead of just the one. i love that the ceiling of my shower is higher than 5'10" by a long shot, and that if i were pregnant (which i'm not, nor do i plan to be any time soon), i bet i could turn around in the shower without smacking my belly on a cold tile wall. AND there's a bathtub. i know it's an old duplex built in the 19?0s, but as far as i'm concerned, i'm living in my dream house.

life in del rio is different. the power has gone out on us on a couple occasions, and last week the water main broke, so we couldn't drink the water for a few days. border patrol trucks are parked hidden in the brush alongside the highway. so different.

yet at the same time, exactly the same. we still default to scrambled eggs when we don't feel like cooking. dallin is still twice as big as other babies his age, and i still love sleeping in (even if now that means sleeping through reveille). some things are even a little better here...specifically, there is dove ice cream at the commissary.

it is the best chocolate ice cream i've ever had. we're talking ganache, chunks, and swirls. it can soothe any soul.

because of this, i know the air force watches out for its spouses. we may have to say goodbye to our husbands over and over again, be single parents off and on, and smile through it all, but you know, at least someone had the good sense to add that ice cream to the commissary's inventory.

and so we're doing just fine.

ps - i miss you, jonathan. and i love you more.

sit tight - there are pictures at the end

2009-07-22T17:02:00.009-07:00

we made it. we're really doing the whole air force thing. whatever that is.

after a fantastic family reunion with my mom's side of the family at bear lake, my mom, dallin, and i headed out to denver, where i'd meet up with jonathan.

can i just say that leaving home is never fun? i love going home, but sometimes leaving is so painful. fortunately it was offset some by the excitement of seeing jonathan again. eric (jonathan's brother) and his wife, jaime drove dallin and me to the airport. as we pulled up along the sidewalk to pick jonathan up, i had to restrain myself from jumping out of a moving vehicle. as it turned out, it wouldn't have worked anyway. apparently eric and jaime have child locks on their back doors. i couldn't get out! it took a couple hours (or maybe jst 30 seconds), but eventually i jumped out and was back with jonathan.

it felt good.

it was fun to visit with eric and jaime - we don't get to visit very often - but we only got to stay the night. and we were afraid to leave too late in the morning...we weren't sure how dallin would handle it. he did great on the way from bear lake to denver, but i sure didn't want to push our luck.

but as luck would have it (rather, the blessings of heaven), dallin was an angel in the car. and he did even better the second day. we spent the night in amarillo, and i could hardly stand my excitement. when we came to the texas border, i kid you not, my eyes were tearing up. we pulled over and took pictures by the state sign, but since dallin was sleeping, he missed out on that. some things just aren't worth it. anyway, while we were pulled over, two other cars stopped and did the exact same thing. now i've crossed a lot of borders in the past few days. no one does that for new mexico, i'll tell you that much.

and even though we were in the same sort of fields and such, i swear that colors were brighter, the air smelled better, and i think i even lost ten pounds just crossing over that state line.

can you tell i love texas?

we stayed at a courtyard marriot, not because it was close to the highway, or close to a grocery store, no, because it was close to not one, but TWO braum's! jonathan agreed we could eat there for dinner and breakfast, and even listened to my plans of bringing dry ice in the cooler so we could buy some ice cream and bring it to del rio with us. well, we skipped out on the dry ice part (and i think it was a mistake...), but we did eat there twice. and i got a shake both times. strawberry at night, and chocolate almond with breakfast.

worth every calorie. if i die a couple days earlier because of it, i'm okay with it. and i think heaven would understand.

anyway, the next day was pretty much like the first, only we were in texas. i think dallin knew something was different, because he was even better in the car that day. he only cried maybe a half hour that day. not too shabby, considering how much driving he'd been doing!

so. texas. it's definitely different down here. we stopped in at a grocery store in a little town somewhere between here and amarillo. the air smelled like a mix of manure and hamburgers (which is, i think, somehow ironic). in the bathroom stall, i looked at the boots in the stall next to me, and felt sheepish in my $2 old navy flip-flops. people say "ma'am" to me, and not because they think i look over 60. they have accents, and i even find myself saying things with just a bit of a drawl at times.

i love it.

as for del rio, well, it's not so bad. it's not great, but it's a lot better than i expected. if you take 277 in, you cross over part of lake amistad to get there, and it's really quite pretty. the land has VERY gently rolling hills, but it does add some variation, which is nice. mexico is less than three miles away, so learning spanish would probably be beneficial. they have a pretty nice walmart, home depot, jc penney, chili's and applebee's. i don't know what to say about the base - i don't have much to compare it to. there's a mix of leafy trees and palm trees, which is kinda cool. there are four (rumored to be five) radio stations here, two am and three fm. it's something like 1) today's hits, 2) country, 3) oldies and tejano, 4) tejano. but from what i've been told, that's quite a step from the one station they had 20 years ago.

we can't get into our house for a while (they told us it would be august 13th or so, but it's looking like it'll be next week, which is nice), so we're hanging out in the laughlin manor. all the TLF was full, so we're just in a regular hotel room. but we have a little refrigerator/freezer and microwave, so it's not half bad. and our room looks over the flight line, so i get to watch all the t-1s, t-6s, and t-38s take off and land all day.

i've gone out and kind of figured out tricare. i got a library card and checked out a couple books and movies. i've gone and looked at the fitness center, checked out the commissary and bx. family readiness services (or whatever they're called) got us a pack-n-play, which was great. we checked out the pool, and it's pretty nice. they even have a baby pool with a canopy, which is super nice to have. other perks of the pool include the oppurtunity to buy koolaid for 25 cents. kool, right?

our house is supposedly one of the nicest ones you can get without being a higher rank. we even have carpet in most rooms (which we have found to be unusual). it's a three bedroom, 1-1/2 bath house. and a garden box out back. i'm excited.

as for dallin updates, well, in addition to meeting aunt jaime, he also finally got to meet his uncle david, which was exciting. dallin is getting balder and fatter every day. i weighed him a week ago and he was about 19lbs 12oz...so big. we put pants on him and they make him spit up because they're too small! he has charmed all sorts of southern ladies down here, a trend that i don't think will be ending for a while. he smiles and laughs (i had the hiccups last night and he just laughed and laughed and laughed), and he can push himself up with his arms! pretty exciting stuff, right?

anyway, that's a basic rundown of what's been going on in our lives. and now here are the pictures of the last few weeks...

uncle eric (miller) and dallin:

dallin and me in the baby pool at my parents' house:

this is to show a very "dallin" mannerism - he will just sit there with his hands clasped for long periods of time:

just cute:

dallin with uncle david!

dallin with grandma miller at uncle dan and aunt cindy's house:

me, dallin, eric, melinda, and greg at bear lake. greg's had major knee surgery, wisdom teeth taken out, and a root canal recently, so he's on a bunch of painkillers. poor guy.

check it out! pushing himself up...sooo close to rolling over. also note the big cheeks, the receding hairline, and the rolls in the forearms:

he can arch his back :(

more bear lake:

dallin:

back with daddy!!!!

texas state line (note the other car pulled over, and you can't tell, but there was an awesome storm ahead)

what the land looks like about 45 minutes (maybe less) from del rio...it's not a very good representation - i don't remember seeing anything this green since colorado:

part of lake amistad:

daddy and dallin:

in the hotel room...studying with daddy:

the view out our window at the hotel. the reflection on the window from the flash is right just above the flightline. i just missed getting a picture of a t-38 taking off.

and there it is. del rio looks like a resort town, right? i know that's what you're thinking. palm trees, a pool, an international airport, mexico just down the road...what more could you want?

Snapshot of Training in Alabama

2009-07-16T10:14:00.015-07:00

This is Jonathan reporting from Maxwell AFB at the tail end of my first Professional Military Education (ASBC). I would like to give everyone a little snapshot of an experience we had here with tear gas.
This is our flight getting pumped and ready to enter the small, one-room building where the tear gas was deployed.
That's me in the center in the grayish uniform.

The plan of action was to enter the room full of gas with our masks on and line up into two lines.
Then, after the instructor inside had us do a few jumping jacks to get the blood flowing and our sweat pores open, he had the first two Lieutenants at the front of each line take off their masks. They were free to exit the building whenever they felt the effects of the gas.
You can see me in the back there.

Now, I'm next in line...

By this point I was really feeling the gas stinging in the open pores around my neck and arms.

Off with the mask...

...wait a few seconds for it to set in....

A few seconds later... I was feeling it so out I went.

A few minutes afterward.... still a little teary eyed with some pain lingering in the throat and arms and necks still ablaze...
Mission complete!
Looks as though we got the whole flight through without anyone dying. Well done, Flight 407!

(Note the Lieutenant on the far left... he was definitely still having a hard time)

Some would ask the question, "Why?"
The main purpose was to help us individually gain trust in the equiptment that will be issued to us later on when we deploy. Also, now we know was tear gas feels like. I recommend a tear gas experience to all who not afraid of a little discomfort in return for an awesome experience.

there is a reason...

2009-07-08T09:47:00.003-07:00

...that pampers diapers cost more than generic brands: they actually work.

i've been using the generic ones, and i am constantly covered in poop and pee. every diaper is a blowout. thank heavens we're down to the last of the cheap-o's so i can go out and get a new bag...

i don't know how my mom did it with the old-fashioned cloth diapers. even the disposable ones weren't that great back then.

gratitude

2009-07-03T22:02:00.005-07:00

today marks one year from the day that we found out dallin would be joining our little family. it's made me think an awful lot about what a good life i have.

now, there are a lot of things i wish were different. for instance, i wish i had been able to finish school. if i let it, that fact alone eats away at me. and i wish we weren't going to be living so far away from family. i wish my pregnancy had been easier. i wish i didn't have nightmares about losing my husband to war.

but here's the thing: it's okay.

there are so many good things in my life. how can i complain when there is so much to be grateful for?

i come from a family who loves me, who loves to be with each other, and who cooks such good food. they've taught me to be patient, understanding of others, to be frugal, and to laugh. they're my best friends. i know that's something not everyone has.

i have faith in God. i know He loves me. i know He has provided us with our Savior, Jesus Christ, so that we can overcome all that is wrong in our lives, and return to live with our Father. i know there are many who do not believe what i believe, and that's okay. but i do hope and pray that those who have different beliefs can find some way to know their Father in Heaven. i can't imagine making it through this life without some glimmer of hope that there is a God.

i believe that families are eternal. this has been such a blessing to know, especially living far from family. whatever happens, i know we will someday be reunited. and should my nightmare of losing jonathan be realized, i know i will have him again in the eternities.

i love my husband. i love everything about him. i love that the guys in his flight were excited to hear he used to drive a minivan, because he's "totally a minivan kind of guy." it's true - he is. i love how concerned he is about my thoughts and feelings, how family will only ever come second to his love for God. i love that he is so committed to serving others that he took an oath to protect the lives and freedoms of other, willing to lay down his life if it is asked of him. i love that he is my best friend.

i love my sweet baby boy. during my pregnancy with him, there were times when i was so sick, i could barely stay conscious. times when i would throw up the half a sip of water i just swallowed, and then would dry heave for the rest of the day. but you know, i'd do it all over again. he's so worth it. i love dallin so much. i'd do anything for him. and i'm so grateful to have found that kind of love in my life.

and i'm grateful for this country. i confess i'm a bit concerned about the direction it's heading (okay, a lot concerned), but i still am proud to be an american. i love the principles it was founded on. i love that we are free to worship freely, get an education, own a car, and eat ice cream.

i never was very good at writing conclusions for my papers, and i suppose in this case, it's because i don't see how i can rightly end a list of things i'm grateful for.

so maybe i'll leave it as something to be continued...

memory of a goldfish

2009-06-28T15:04:00.004-07:00

dallin loves his uncles. and since greg has a bum leg (he just had surgery to repair a torn acl, meniscus, etc...), he spends a lot of time with uncle eric.

he's starting to play peek-a-boo! well, at least he lets us pop up and down laughs at our efforts. last night i kept popping up and down from behind the couch, and dallin was having a grand old time being scared to death then laughing every time i reappeared.

my brother greg was watching this, and commented, "he's got the memory of a goldfish."

how true that is.

i know, i know - another argyle sweater vest. but calm down already - both of them were donated to us from rich families (thanks to craigslist for enabling that one!). but come on - what a stud! he cracks me up - he folds his hands across his big tummy all the time. primary will be a cinch for him.

he looooooves the hammock. whenever we can't get him to calm down, we take him outside and swing in the hammock. usually we're holding him, but he sure likes flying solo.

notice the rolls. notice that you never see the kid's neck. it's a struggle to keep that thing clean. so today we're sitting in church and he had fallen asleep. totally relaxed, his head was bent back, exposing his neck. holy nastiness. he had this little line of dirt deep in the folds of his neck. poor guy. why doesn't his mother keep him cleaner? maybe we'll never know.

alright vern, two can play at this game

2009-06-25T22:35:00.007-07:00

a couple weeks ago, a lady at church commented on how dark dallin looks to her, and asked me what nationality my husband is. i kinda laughed and said, "he's...white. very white."

but let me just tell you about this very white husband of mine. (this is gonna be sentimental, folks.)

he has an awesome smile, and gives the best hugs.

no parking spot is too tight for him to get into (which is pretty impressive in the truck).

he is the first to say he's sorry, and admits when he's wrong (which is rare. no matter what he says, he's right more often than he thinks.)

you know when those commercials come on and all you can do is roll your eyes and wonder who finds them so funny? and then you look over and find that your husband's face is bright red from laughing so hard? i can't help but love that.

when i got too sick to keep working while pregnant, he told me not to worry, and picked up more hours at work.

even though we were living off of a much-reduced income, no cherry limeade cost too much.

he's the guy who will clean up trash cans full of vomit, clean the bathroom, do the dishes, take out the trash, and will always kiss his wife - even when she's all vomitty.

he will listen to his emotional wife cry, and only occasionally laughs at the dumb things i cry about.

he also makes that emotional wife laugh.

he volunteers for diaper duty.

i love you very much sweetie! we're excited to see you again in a few weeks!

From Maxwell AFB

2009-06-21T19:24:00.008-07:00

Yes, this is Jonathan reporting in from Maxwell AFB, Montgomery, AL. Earlier today Andrea and I were able to have a little "web cam" date with the Miller family's new web cam. (Thanks to Mel for getting such an awesome Father's Day gift). Since that fun experience I've found a little time this Sunday to reminisce of time with Andrea from first date to present and to look through some pictures on my laptop. Here are a few of the pictures that brought back the happiest memories of our time together thus far (I apologize to my wife if she thinks she doesn't look her best... I obviously adore her in these pictures):

The air show at Nellis AFB, Nevada. Despite having only been on a handful of dates, Andrea agreed to go and I'm glad she let her best self shine on that trip. It let me know just who I was dating and what she valued.Exploring together in American Fork Canyon. Fun times on new trails. Experimenting with hanging cameras and setting the timer for couple shots. A place we would visit again... only with more snow on the ground.

I didn't know it at the time but Andrea's co-workers were convinced that the upcoming date to the Salt Lake City Temple would result in a new ring on her finger. If she was nervous she didn't show it. We watched the Joseph Smith film and had some fun taking pictures around Temple Square. Andrea kindly followed me around as I came up with idea after idea of where we could take pictures. I think I was just impressed with how beautiful Andrea was that night.

Andrea taking one of our many breaks on the way up to where I proposed. She looks relaxed. I was more nervous and anxious than I've been before. Ever.

Do I look preoccupied? That's because I was. Where's the apple crisp?!?

Can you tell that I miss my wife? I love you, sweetheart!

summer days

2009-06-20T22:59:00.005-07:00

the past few days have been oh-so eventful. melinda came out to visit for a few days, and we went to town.

or rather, we went to the mountains. we drove to some hot springs a couple hours from boise, making a stop on the way to do a little hike, and to allow eric to do a (very) little bit of fishing. the springs were pretty cool - in a hot sort of way. they are on the banks of a river, which was extremely high due to all the rainfall. there were several different pools to sit in...some hotter than others, but all pretty dang warm. there were a couple that burned when i put my foot in. anyway, we hung around for a little while, and even found a little pool cool enough for dallin to stick his toes in, and then we left. it was good timing too - there were a couple old men just arriving when we were leaving, and i didn't see swimsuits in their hands...

and then we went to a boise hawks game tonight. dallin and i left early, due to his apparent distaste for the smell of beer in the air? or maybe it was the fact that all the clapping and cheering scared the poor guy to death. or maybe it was the sun that was in his eyes. or maybe he was just grumpy. i suppose we'll never know. in any case, it was fun to get out and about some this weekend.

and now for the pictures.

here's dal-pal (as melinda likes to call him) sitting all by himself in the "big-boy" armchair. pretty impressive, eh?

...and here's eric fishing...

here's a shot of melinda, eric and me in front of the springs (note the old men in the background...)

me and dallin at the ball game (the cap is sideways to help block the sun.)

here we are leaving the park...

dallin, with the beer lady in the background.

too bad i had a rat-tail going on. that sure is unfortunate. good thing dallin is so dang cute.

2009-06-16T15:33:00.004-07:00

dear dad,

sometimes when i fall asleep my head gets too heavy to hold up anymore and mom laughs at me.

uncle eric holds me a lot - usually so he doesn't have to do the dishes or take the trash out or something. but i'm okay with that. and look - i can spread my toes apart like mom!

also, i look awesome in argyle, but i try not to look happy about it, or mom will go nuts and dress me in it allll the time.

yep, that's about as exciting as it gets around here.

we miss you tons and love you more!!!

love,

dallin and mom

just some videos

2009-06-15T18:03:00.002-07:00

we miss you, sweetie! here are some videos for you...

and of course they are of guy smiley... :)

2009-06-15T17:42:00.002-07:00