Even though we miss FL...

...it's nice to be back in VA Beach. How can you complain when you have an awesome backyard full of wildlife and calming water? Now, I can't say much about the seagull poop all over my roof...argh. When we left for SOAC in 2006, we did not have so many seagulls...now they're plentiful and we're not diggin' 'em. Plus, the kids want to feed the ducks & geese, but not the gulls since they steal everything!!! Did I mention the poop???? UGHHHH!!!


So, do you see the tree across the lake in the center of the photo...well, this is what I was taking photos of:

and a little closer (I'm limited in my zoom with my little point-and-shoot)...

Recognize it, my friends? Yup...a certified national bird...the Bald Eagle! Unless there are some orinthologists that recognize this as some other bird, we'll just call it a Bald Eagle and call it a day. We really do love this little lake and all the wildlife views it affords us. Plus, we see these guys fly in all the time:

Really, I'll take birds and all their poop any day over scorpions (in the house) and snakes (around my house)!! I do miss these lil' buggers though (sorry for the poor image quality):

This lil' guy was hanging out on a sprinkler head while I was grilling on the lanai:

Yes, I do miss FL, but change is nice.

So Much for Being Land-Locked...

So when the sub goes into dry dock, one can still get pulled to go out to sea. Ahhhhhh, the sub life. Still, with this boomer tour we can't complain...it beats fast attack life any day, hands down.

Earlier this month there was a distinct possibility that Sean was supposed to fill in for another WEPS that quit in our old homeport. The fun part of that was that he was going to be gone for 1.5 months...again, that's not too bad but considering he's in the shipyards and the smartest and more practical and most economical decision would've been to pull from the other available WEPS in the area...which they eventually did. Now, he's on this other little underway. It sucks because he'll miss our sister's (that sounds incestuous...so, my sister, his sister-in-law) baby shower...or moreover, I'll miss having him around this week while I am a crazy woman getting ready for a shower in a different state. Still, our BFFs Shirl & Hil (and our wonderful Mom) have a lot covered too up there.

Anyway, we miss having Mr. Muscles around...even though he hasn't been gone for more than a few hours yet. The kids always handle these underways with the easiest of ease. I love it. I used to be disconcerted that they didn't do the "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, DADDY, DON'T GOOOOOOO!" and whole crying bit...but easily adapting to new situations is preferable any day!!! Shoot, I still remember the first time Sean went out on his PWEPS tour and I was a hot mess and Kaia comforted me...at the ripe old age of 3!!!! I guess it hadn't helped that we had some psycho come into our house (who Mr. Muscles punched out) and we were living waaaaaaaaay far from The Fam AND had a new puppy (Jax...thanks to the psycho, we felt the need for a protection dog) AND two toddlers AND I had Sean home for 3 years, so I wasn't used to him going out to sea anymore. Now, it's back to military spouse mentality and my kids are tough too...we'll see you soon, Beb/Ba-ba, but not soon enough!!!

STILL...it's a mini-underway and I can't complain. Becca's in the middle of a move with a toddler and her hubby is on deployment (read: fast attack deployments are the real thing...6 months out and not counting the various underways before they leave and throughout the year...these guys are MAYBE home for a total of 3 months out of the year...spread out throughout the year)...we're talking single married spouses for an entire fast attack tour), Kelly has been home with the 3 kids while her hubby has been in a different state up the coast, and Ellyn had gone through a deployment and then her hubs got sent on a 1 year IA tour in Iraq, and Liza's been holding it down with her 3 cuties while her hubby does a geo-bachelor tour.

Yeah, we miss Mr. Muscles, but we have no complaints.

McDonald's

So, our kids are funny. Given Mommy's training and background, we've tried to instill a big sense of multiculturalism in them...through diverse ideas, people, customs, and FOOD. Yeah, yeah, yeah...so I'm not big on the whole "Let's do a food festival to showcase our culture"-thing, but with stomachs and tastes like ours...our kids NEED to have diverse food tastes.

Now, I miss me some South...esp. the Southern Fried Chicken...*droooool*. But, having to drive an hour-plus to get some Indian, Chinese, Korean, etc. food was re-dunkulous. It's great being back up here with a newly-opened International Supermarket (one of those ginormous Korean-owned supermarkets) right down the street and more diversity in cuisine all within a 30-minute or less drive...we're so happy. STILL...food in the Hampton Roads area (Norfolk, VA Beach, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, etc.) is NOT known for fabulous food. In fact...if you ever see something that's been voted "Best of the Beach/Norfolk"...you might wonder who the voters are and if their tongues are working correctly. Yes, I am a food snob...but if it's voted best...it at least better be GOOD...not "ok".

Anyhoo...I digress...we've posed the option of pizza or some other kind of fast food option to our kids. Often, since we're uber close to our fave Vietnamese location, we throw in Pho as an option as well. For those who don't know, pho is the wonderfully delicious Vietnamese beef noodle soup (which also is available in chicken) that you can top with some fresh herbs & other condiments and is soooooooo addictive!! Funny thing is, no matter what option is stacked against pho...pho always wins!!

Viral

We happen to be currently blessed with one of the best viruses known to mankind...a STOMACH VIRUS!! Hahahahaha...ok, obviously sarcasm, but this bad boy has managed to take out our whole family AND, not to mention, almost the entire wardroom (the officers) on Sean's boat!!! Even the CO (commanding officer...aka #1) had to go home early. It's that bad.

This bad boy has hit hard and fast. We took Kaia to school yesterday. I felt a little weird all morning. Then I get a call from Kaia's school saying she threw up twice and at least made it 1/2-way through her 100th Day (of school). As we're leaving to get her, I vomit twice. We come home, Kaia's in real bad shape. Jaron's fine and messing around before I put him to bed. Then the kids are sleeping and I'm downstairs. Kaia joins me later, followed by Jaron a while after that. Then Jaron pukes (he's the type of kid that gives no forewarning that he's about to blow...he just does it).

Sean got home and took care of us. He was starting to feel it a little but not too bad. Today he's achy, has the chills, and his stomach hurts, but hasn't come home yet...which he totally should since this thing comes so fast AND he has to stand duty tomorrow. Ughhhhhh.

Anyhoo...the kids are doing much better today. I am don't have the chills anymore nor am I'm throwing up...but still feeling it a little. I'm just happy the kids are feeling so much better! I hated seeing them so miserable yesterday.

Ahhhhhhhh...how's this post for TMI? ;o)

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