Easter

Our third Easter in a row without Ryan...I did my best.  I decided to focus less on capturing our activities on "film" and more on enjoying the activities with the boys.  Thus, I used my cheap point and shoot, often with the flash.  Oh, my!  So, I apologize for the blown out photos and odd colors.  I don't feel like fixing them.  :)

The baskets.  I'm proud that I remembered the baskets in advance this year.  Last year it wasn't until the kids were out of school on Spring Break that I remembered I had to play Easter Bunny.  It was the one time I was grateful for my pack rat tendencies as I was able to create baskets with what I had on hand.  This year the baskets rocked!

Despite all the goodies, both boys were most excited by the chocolate items.  I can't blame them.

Next up was our egg hunt in the overgrown backyard.  It makes it last a little longer when the grass is 2 feet high...that's my story and I'm sticking it to it.

The boys are holding up their loot--stretchy robots, silly bands and tattoos.

For lunch, I filled empty egg cartons with halves of their plastic eggs.  I put together a snack lunch that the boys were very excited to eat.  I probably saw this idea on Pinterest.  Thank you, Pinterest, for making me seem far more creative than I really am.

Naturally, we decorated our eggs this year following a space/alien theme.  Target had these adorable $5 kits that once again made me seem far cooler and more creative than I am.  We purchased an extra kit (animals theme) for next year!

Back to March

Oddly, the easiest way to share pictures with Ryan when he is deployed is via this blog.  Forgive me as we jump back to March to share some pictures.  Easter photos are coming soon, I promise.

Ian lost another two teeth in March, bringing his total lost teeth to 4.  I had the pleasure of yanking the fourth tooth out because he left it hanging by a thread for days and it was driving me crazy.  There was blood and screaming, but 10 minutes later he posed for this ridiculous photo.

On March 13 we said good-bye to Ryan for the third time for this deployment.  This turned out to be the "real deal" as he flew to the ship later that evening.  Since we just completed our last deployment 9 months earlier and Ryan was in and out so much during those 9 months, it seemed normal to say good-bye yet again.  As usual, I was the only one who cried, but that only lasted for about 2 minutes.  This time I knew I could keep the kids alive and happy without Ryan for an extended period of time.  :)

I almost forgot to take a St. Patrick's Day picture!  I apologize for the odd expressions and blurry photo.  The boys were on their way up the stairs to get ready for bed and I quickly snapped this crazy shot.  We enjoyed a fun rainbow-themed playdate with a rainbow fruit salad and some cute crafts, but I won't bore you with those photos...this time.

March ended with back-to-back school programs at Nathan's school.  This year was a patriotic theme in honor of the military.  Of course.  Instead of crying, I sat with friends and laughed at the kids the whole time.  That's what we're supposed to do during these programs, right?

The kindergarten class sang the National Anthem.  It really was quite adorable.  Nathan was front and center and sang his heart out.

We have many active-duty families at our preschool/kindergarten.  Here are photos of the deployed fathers of kids from the kindergarten and 4-year-old preschool classes.  The music director read the names of each deployed parent and had the child wave to the crowd.  In the three years we've had children at this school, I think Ryan has been able to attend one program -- the school hosts 3 each year.

Back to April soon!

Birthday Boy

What a different four years make!  Ian enjoying the monster truck at Chuck E. Cheese's on his birthday in 2008:

And still loving the monster truck yesterday:

Pretty soon they're going to be too old for Chuck E. Cheese's!  Well, that's probably the best thing about them getting older.  (Am I right, moms???)

Six & Seven

Last night was the final evening our house was full of six-year-old boys so we snapped a quick photo.  Ian turned SEVEN today!  Can you believe it?  I cannot!  He amazes us each day with his compassion for others, his intelligence and quick wit as well as his ability to pack away more food than the rest of us without putting on any extra weight.

We don't have many photos from today's celebration as we experienced an F/A-18 plane crash a couple miles from our party site shortly after our celebration began.  As my phone began ringing off the hook, I spent quite a bit of time responding to texts, calls, emails, etc., all while shielding the kids from the event, passing out Chuck E. Cheese tokens and taking the party back to the house for cake and ice cream.  We are thankful that no casualties have been reported at this time.

I'll post at least one photo of the birthday boy soon!

Before Our Goodbyes

Right before the ship was scheduled to deploy, the three of us helped Ryan take his last load of belongings aboard.  We wanted the chance to see his new stateroom (that he only shares with one other guy!!!).  I think it helps the boys to see where Daddy lives when he's away from home.

They had a great time hanging out on Ryan's top rack and posing for pictures with Daddy in this cramped space.

The following day the four of us returned to see the ship as it pulled away from port.  This is the first time Ryan has flown aboard the ship with the squadron as opposed to heading out to sea with the ship.  I'm sure it must have been a little odd for him to watch the ship deploy without him...although he was "lucky" enough to fly aboard just a couple days later.

We rushed around the corner to attempt to capture one picture of the boys with the ship (and not crowds of people and cars) in the background as it headed out to sea.

Our last stop for the day was the squadron to snap a few photos of the E-2's before they deployed.  Ian was very excited when he finally spotted Daddy's name on one of the planes.

Of course, I made the three of them pose for yet another photo on this exceptionally sunny day.

And another...

Last one, I promise!!! 

It's That Time Again

Goodbye USS ENTERPRISE.  It's time for another deployment.  This is the 22nd and final deployment for the ENTERPRISE and our final deployment with the SCREWTOPS of VAW-123. 

The ENTERPRISE departed Naval Station Norfolk yesterday.  Starting a deployment on a Sunday is awful.  Whoever thought this was a good idea has clearly never been the spouse left behind.  A deployment that begins on a weekday makes so much more sense.  It's much easier to wake up and just get on with your weekday routine.  Sundays are family days. 

Oddly, Ryan is still home.  He is part of the CQ (Carrier Qualifications) crew so he will be flying to/from the ship today and tonight while all the pilots meet their qualifications.  He may deploy (stay on the ship) as early as tonight or as late as Wednesday.  While it is nice to have "extra" time with him home, the stress of not knowing is something that is new to us.  It's especially difficult trying to explain this to the boys.  I'm very used to the unpredictability associated with the Navy so I just roll my eyes and wave my hand these days.  :)

Wish us luck as we endure another deployment full of uncertainty.  We've never experienced a "predictable" deployment so this is normal to us.  We are lucky that Ryan will be transferring to his next command this Summer so he will not have to complete the entire deployment.  This is only our second "good deal" in almost 14 years in the Navy.  Woo hoo!!!

**All photos are from the USS ENTERPRISE Facebook page**

Monster Party Part 3: Let's Eat!

I cannot imagine hosting a birthday party and not serving food.  That being said, it can be incredibly difficult to present a well-balanced meal while still entertaining parents and eleven 5 and 6-year-old children.  Thank goodness Ryan was home for this party!

Theme food is also a must if at all possible.  I wanted to take things further than I did, but Ryan calling me "crazy" the entire week leading up to the party combined with real life forced me to draw the line eventually.

Pretty sure that the fruit monster throwing up was the highlight of the party for a few kids.  I will have to remember this for future Halloween parties.

These monster pizzas were very simple to make, but we needed plain cheese mini pizzas for the picky children.  I always fail to accurately predict how picky other people's children will be.  I don't really tolerate that sort of behavior from my own boys and didn't think it would be a big deal to just pick off 2 olives or 2 pieces of pepperoni.  For the most part, that was the case at this party.  Thank goodness!

Most of the remaining food is pictured below, but I completely forgot to take a picture of the "monster toes" aka pigs in a blanket.  We also threw together some "monster mix" which contained preztels, popcorn, cheese crackers and dried plantains.

The dining room before the kids covered it all in crumbs, frosting, etc.