What a day... What a trooper

Seems like every year Audrey's check up gets pushed back further and further in the year. This year they couldn't get her in until March... oh well she's a healthy kid she can wait till March. So yesterday was her 4 year check up (at 4 and 1/2) anyways doc says she's perfect and growing just they way she should. So I was pleased. But the oh so dreaded "S" word came up as the nurse was leaving. Since Audrey can't start kindergarten this year the nurse gave us the option to split up her immunizations and do 2 this year and 2 next year before the start of school or all 4 next year. I looked at Audrey and figured we should just do all 4 next year and just have 1 bad day rather than 2. So that's what I went with we will do 4 next year and just make it an one awful day. But after the nurse left Audrey looked at me and said, "I'll get 2 shots today." Really? I asked if she was sure and as she reassured me (as if I am the one getting the shots) and soon enough the nurse was back with her little tray of doom. The nurse instructed me to hold down her arms (like we had in years past) but Audrey just laid there and didn't even resist. As she puts the shots in she let our an "ouchie" and then she was done. What?! last year was awful because she knew what was happening and there was definitely a lot of crying. But this year nothing. No tears, no whining, nothing. She was excited about the cool band aids and the finger prick was nothing either. We laughed about the Elf scene where he gets his finger poked and screams like a girl and she was fine. I honestly was shocked I know that she's good in those kinds of situations but I was preparing myself for the worst. To top it off earlier that morning she had a dentist appointment where they had to fill a cavity. How does she have a cavity already?! I don't know she brushes her teeth and if it were up to her she would brush them 16 times a day but doc says that some people are just prone to cavities even if they brush. So our morning started our with drills and Novocaine and Audrey just laid there and took it. No complaining, no crying, no whining. One "ouchie" when he was drilling but otherwise she cooperated beautifully. On the way out the hygienist said she goes down in the books for one of the best at that age. I can imagine children kicking and screaming as soon as they got close to them with a tool. I was dreading this day because I knew we had both of those appointments but it went great! She's quite the trooper! I don't mean to toot my own horn but I think I've got a pretty good kid :) She definitely made the day go much smoother than I had anticipated!

Still kinda swollen from the dentist but this was after shots and she did great! 

St. Patty's Day... The Miller way

St. Patty's Day was spent the only way I know how anymore.... with Audrey :) No late night bar hoping, green beer or early morning kegs and eggs for us. Just a day with Audrey spent doing crafts and then dinner at my moms house. 

The green paint mess

4 leaf cloves canvases

These were cute! They were little leprechaun spoon puppets... plastic spoon, googly eyes, a little orange paint and a green hat!

A little St. Patty's Day gift for grandma

Annnd a 3 eyed monster! 

It was a nice relaxing day (we don't get very many of them) so I'd say it was a success! 

6 months home! "I Drive Your Truck" (cry warning on this one)

Chris has been home from Afghanistan for 6 months now and it has been awhile since I've posted personally about his deployment or about deployment, Afghanistan or about how the whole last year sucked.  But when Lee Brice's "I Drive Your Truck " came out so many emotions came rushing back. Everyone who knows me knows my obsessions with country music and how it impacts my life. The first time I heard this song and actually listened to the words I just began sobbing. As I was on my way to Walmart I parked the jeep and just continued to cry as ever emotion from his latest deployment came rushing back. I know how boys are with their trucks and this song became so personal and  tough to get listen to so of course I had to torture myself even more and YouTube the video. Holy crap Lee Brice you really did it this time! So by the time I was done putting myself through this I was a hysterical sobbing mess in the parking lot of Walmart  So after that day  every time this song comes on the radio you already know what happens. This morning while listening to the radio they were talking about where the inspiration for this song came from. Turns out the song writer was listening to an interview with a mother and father who had lost their son in Afghanistan and when asked how they cope with his loss they said, "we drive his truck." and continued on to explain the items that are still left in there from him. All I can picture is Chris' truck and how all the same things are rolling around in there. 

We are so lucky to have him home. 

It's been a long time since I have had to put a cry warning on a blog post (luckily) but this video is a tough one for any military family. 

Thank you Lee Brice for such a great tribute because I am sure there are so many military families who have had to go through this. God Bless you all.

Signs of Spring

There are no signs of spring here in Ohio as far as the weather. Actually they are calling for a few inches of snow tonight but I guess it is only the middle of March. Generally we have to get all the way through April until spring weather is in full swing. But here are a few sure signs of spring! Easter pictures!

Look how big these two are! Carter will be 1 already next month and Audrey just loves hanging out and helping out with her little cousin!

She really likes the camera if you can't tell :)

Check out Emily Manders Photography on Facebook to see other great pictures!

My Latest Adventure

After I graduated college in December I have been asked probably hundreds of times... "now what?" "what are you doing now?" Well people I am doing the same thing I have been doing for 6 years but at least now I don't have to go to class and I have a very expensive piece of paper that says I graduated college. Finishing college was a personal goal of mine. Although it would be great if I could land an amazing job right out of college it was about finishing school through all the stress and hardships of the last few years. Plus I kind of like this "part time working, more time at home Mom". Nothing about working 40-50 hours a week sounds appealing to me. And even now I don't really know what "I want to be when I grow up" so I guess now is as good of time as ever to figure that out. I landed a position doing Volunteer Trail Patrol at the local metropark which is already becoming beneficial as far as networking. At my first training class I met a lot of people and got names and contact information for other volunteer opportunities. I am pretty excited about this volunteer gig because as I was getting ready to graduate college I realized my resume was... well... rather empty. I have a solid work history in food service but that's about it (and I don't want a career in that field!) and with a very general Biology bachelors degree no one is ever going to look twice at my resume. I wish there was a bullet point on my resume that said, "I have been very busy the last few years with Audrey and my husband being deployed a few times that I have not had time for volunteer work and taking low paying crappy jobs that will give me experience.... I am lucky I finished my degree." I am kidding but really where was I going to fit in time for other work experience and volunteer time. One thing I have always been interested in is being park ranger so this trail patrol position will get me some experience and as we are "an extension of the park rangers" at the metropark I can meet and work directly with the rangers. So I am pretty excited to start this new adventure this summer as well as a volunteer opportunity at the zoo. They say networking is the way you get a big kid job anymore... I can network through the drunks at the bar at my work but I don't think they will get me to far so I have to look outside of Frickers. I really don't mind my job now and the money is terribly hard to walk away from so I always say, "Frickers is okay for now, but when it's not okay at least I have another plan." At least I know I won't be there forever. On that note, I better get ready for another lovely Saturday of dealing with angry tables, drunk men, and St. Patty's Day fools.  Enjoy your Saturday everyone :) 

"How about them cowgirls" George Strait weekend in Kentucky

The whole time Chris was deployed I was always ending up with a surprises for birthdays, anniversary, Mother's Day, and somehow I never knew. Flowers would show up at my work, massage and spa gift cards would appear in the mail, Keurigs would be delivered by friends. I think he had pride in knowing he could pull these things off from the other side of the world without me knowing. It was wonderful and he really did do wonderful things for me while being deployed! But now it was my turn. When we were on vacation in Tennessee post deployement we heard on the radio... "George Strait's last tour!" What?! So immediately I got on my phone to see where he was touring. Of course all southern states and not a single show in Ohio :( Chris and I talked about how amazing it would be to see him but with the closest show over 5 hours away it didn't seem reasonable. But as he continued to talk about it and I knew his obsession yes, it's an obsession with George Strait I knew I had to get tickets. A few weeks later the tickets went on sale and quickly sold out... at least that's what Chris thought. I was on it though! This time I was going to surprise him lol so along with my friend Katie and Ali we snagged tickets and I held onto them with my mouth shut for months. Anyone who knows me knows this was awful hard. I was so excited myself but wanted to wait until our anniversary to tell Chris. So the surprise went off without a hitch and we were going to see George Strait!! But it was only November and the concert wasn't until March... crap now that is a wait. But it seems like as quickly as we got the tickets March was here and we were going to Kentucky! I had been planning this weekend for months and everything went smoothly. Sometimes going out of town for 3 days without Audrey is more work than its worth. Arranging baby sitters, finding a house and dog sitter and everything seemed overwhelming but I had a plan and a to do list and we were leaving Friday morning at 9am no matter what! Well it quickly turned into 11am but finally we were on the road!

We stopped in southern Ohio for lunch with one of Chris' friends from deployment. That was a nice break and I know they were excited to see each other. Then to finish out the drive and finally get to Kentucky!

And we were here! First night out we headed downtown for dinner and drinks. We ended up at some pub and it was awful. Well not completely awful apparently the band that night was a girl from American Idol who had been kicked off lol but she sang country music so we listened for awhile. 

Saturday morning began just as I had hoped :)

We had lunch at the adorable cafe type place called Shakespeare and Co. we sat on a couch for lunch and used a coffee table to eat. The decor and atmosphere was remarkable. Definitely something different and a great start to the day.

We toured a brewery while down there was well

Apparently this stuff is 9% alcohol. I didn't know that as I enjoyed 3 glasses while at lunch... oops!

Holy hot messes!  Didn't plan on going anywhere after lunch but we didn't care!

So the brewery was really cool but it was time to get back to the hotel and get ready for George Strait!

Pre concert beverages

Martina McBride opened and she was amazing!

And there he was! Cell phone pics like usual and our seats weren't front row but it didn't matter we were there!

We have been to a lot of country concerts, we have seen a lot of people live, but this was by far the best concert we have ever been to. Absolutely amazing! His band was mesmerizing and although he pretty much just sat there and sang that's all George Strait has to do. It still gives me chills thinking about it. George Strait holds a special place for me. Right around the time Chris and I started dating "How about them cowgirls" came out and when I would go to North Carolina to visit Chris while he was stationed there this song always came on. He would sneak me into the barracks and then I would have to stay there all day while he went to work and sometimes I would just listen to the radio. I will never forget that song. So when he sang that one it was a toughy but what came next at the concert I did not see coming. 

So I already a sobbing mess and he announces that he is bringing a wounded veteran on stage. So out of a wheelchair and onto crutches an amputee and his wife come on stage to find out that they are getting a new house, free groceries for a year, and a new TV! Holy crap! The place goes nuts and I am hysterical! They had 4 kids and he had been wounded while serving in Afghanistan. George Strait you really did it this time. I had seen military tributes at concerts before but nothing like this. Absolutely breathtaking! 

So I would say you get the gist.... an amazing weekend with amazing people! The weather could have been a little better it was cold and snowing but that was the least of our worries.

Chris and I decided to stay an extra day since we don't get out much. So Sunday afternoon we spent shopping and hanging out in Lexington.

This was on a menu at the cute little pub ;)

And the rest of the day enjoying the sunshine and hot tub (from inside of course)

And then as fast as we got to Kentucky it seemed like it was already time to head back to Ohio... but I was ready! 3 days away from Audrey is the longest I have even been away and it was time to get back to her. I don't know how Chris does it spending a year at a time away from her. 

So thank you George for an amazing weekend and concert, an outstanding military tribute, and the best concert we have ever seen!

We are going to Disney!

Since last year was pretty much out of the question for a summer vacation seeing Chris was "on vacation" himself as he likes to call it. I guess that is just a fancy word for deployment. As for Audrey and I we would not consider last year "a vacation" by any means. Anyways with Chris home for this summer (as of now) we are planning a summer vacation to Disney! Now that is a real vacation! When kicking around the idea of Disney immediately the wife instinct kicks in "woah, now that is a pricey vacation" so I almost vetoed my own idea before looking even further. But after a little research come to find out it won't break the bank after all. Initially we were talking about Myrtle Beach because I am putting my foot down this year and we are taking a beach vacation. Tennessee is lovely, camping is fun, and Chris wanted to go to Yellowstone but for once I want the beach vacation I've been talking about since after we had Audrey. So Myrtle Beach sounded nice. Until I thought of Disney! I mean come on, what 4 year old little girl would not love Disney! Especially Audrey.. .she's consumed by Disney princesses, and crowns, and Disney movies... well Disney everything. What I did not know about Disney is how military friendly they are... I mean big time! So thanks Walt for thinking about those who sacrifice so much! I heard he was in the military himself and they offer HUGE discounts on tickets, resorts, and all kinds of other stuff! So we are going to Disney! 

This will be our first time headed down to Florida as a family :) Chris did some training down there and I spent some of my early college years on spring break down there (seems likes ages ago) but this will be our first trip as a family! And as suddenly as we decided to go my whole family jumped on board! So now everyone is going my mom, brother and his wife, sister and Carter and little broski! How fun! So after some dysfunctional family meetings and debates we finally decided on a huge 6 bedroom villa and my sister, Carter and mom's plane tickets are bought. Everyone else is driving down which we are used to road trips anyways and this will cut the cost of flights for everyone but it only makes sense for 15 month crazy Carter to fly. Can you imagine 18 hours in the car with a 15 month old?! No thanks. Send that baby on a flight and we will meet you in Orlando! 

Anyone with Disney tips for first timers send them my way! Money savers, tips to keep me sane, ideas for Audrey, or any military friendly secrets we can take advantage of! This is going to be quite an adventure to say the least!