Catching Up 3.1

So to continue with my backlog of posts that needed to actually get posted, here is the next set and then we're almost done!!!

On October 13th we flew home to Spokane, WA for my grandfather's funeral. I know - it is a sad occasion, but I just had a hard time being too sad. I loved going home. I was surprised by how much I loved it and I can't wait to go back for Christmas. The trip was a sudden surprise paid for generously by someone else, thank goodness. It was so expensive and we wouldn't have been able to even think about Christmas.

So we arrived in Spokane at around midnight which, for those of you counting, put our family at about 3am. We never really adjusted and I didn't work too hard to get it that way due to the fact that we were leaving within the next five days. It wasn't worth it to move the kids' internal clocks. So we were pretty much exhausted every day and night. The rest of both our families didn't make a time change. It felt like they kind of forgot how much a change it really was for our family because they kept wanting to do things long after we were toast, but what can you do, it's family!

chillin' after breakfast at Grama's

Anyway, we arrived the 13th, a Wednesday, and slept until about noon their time (3pm ours) before we even dragged ourselves out of bed. It was really hard. Thankfully, we stayed with the Fosburgs and they love to get up early. They got up with JC and Evie every morning. I don't have to tell you how nice that was. They fed them, played with them, entertained, and disciplined them. They have visited us twice since we got to South Carolina so my kids actually listen to them in general. It was a special treat for me since Chris deployed a day and a half after we got home from the funeral and sleeping in is not an option when you're an only parent.

kids table at Grama and Grampa's - great set up

So Thursday, 14th, was very relaxed or at least it was going to be. We lounged and ate and watched the kids play and really basked in the Fosburg's new home.

{They had moved since we had and it was our first time there. So beautiful and so them. I actually got lost once, not kidding, at night when Lizzy woke up for a pacifier. It was a bit disconcerting. All that kept coming up in my mind's eye was their old house. I don't have to tell you, that wasn't very helpful in the house that never ends.}

carriage ride - go figure - one of his favorites!

We enjoyed ourselves and both Katie and Renee's visits. It was so nice to see my sisters. Katie had just visited the month before due to her sister-in-law's wedding only 2hrs from us in Charlotte, NC. I missed Renee' so much! She really had become one of my best friends while we lived in Spokane and then we moved! It was terrible. Now that I have texting, we are reconnecting better.

caged Evie - sometimes, how I wish!!!

In the evening, we had dinner with everyone from both families at Chuck E. Cheese! I had mentioned that it would be nice to do a little something for JC's birthday while we were in town since the stress of the travelling prevented me from doing much for his special day. She loved the idea and had it moved up in the plans to the day after we got there. I loved seeing all my nieces and nephews, and of course, their parents. What a beautiful family we belong to! The kids had a great time and wonderfully surprising for me, mom and dad sat with me at my table the whole time! I loved the little extra attention, especially with all my siblings there. I really had missed them a lot. We talk pretty much every Sunday, but it's not the same as a mom-hug.

aren't I so blessed!?

So that was our first full day in Spokane. It was long!!!! I'm sure it didn't feel it to anyone else, but for our family it was a lot so quickly. We understood the rush; we weren't going to be in town long, but it was hard not getting to bed until 12/1 am every night. It was so late for us! But so much fun, how do you say, "no, I've got to get to bed" ?

Week #2 of the Dep/Mar Project

Okay, so how did everyone do? I hope you all had wonderful weeks full of love, gratitude, and spiritual experiences.

I think for me, it was a really good way to stay focused on what's important. Overall, I found that I had a hard time remembering to write things down at first. As I got going though I got more consistent. I also found that my lists were huge!!! I found that some things made it on the list every day (my kids, inspiration, energy, the gospel) not because of the general stuff, but because each day there was something that my kids did that made me laugh or helped me grow; there was not one day that I didn't need or receive inspiration and energy, and every day I was grateful for the blessings of the gospel. (My list was of course, more specific).

I hope you had some neat insights too. So this is week #2 - FAITH. Hope you're up for it and don't forget that the companion article(s) are listed to the right in the "pages" section.

The Letter:

To my SB (I won’t even spell it out),

Oh, best friend of mine, how awesome you are! You’ve now been gone a whole week and geez, if I think about it too much I‘ll miss you terribly. So I’ll just say we miss you, we’re doing fine, I’m sure, and we all hope you’re doing as well there as you’ve always done here.

I know that by now you’ve gotten into some sort of routine. Hopefully the food is good, the bed is soft/hard enough for you to really sleep, your back doesn’t hurt, you’ve made a friend or two, and you’ve actually felt the spirit. I really hope that last week’s study helped get you through the initial difficulties of adjusting and catching up. I know how hard it can be to jump into something new (weather it’s very new or just a little new) and to not have us to come home to in order to help you recoup from the day. Yes, I know you miss us too, right?

Magnify Your Faith

“And Alma cried saying: How long shall we suffer these great afflictions, O Lord? O Lord, give us strength according to our faith which is in Christ, even unto deliverance. And they broke the cords with which they were bound; and when the people saw this, they began t flee, for the fear of destruction had come upon them… and the earth shook mightily, and the walls of the prison were rent in twain…” – Alma 14:26-7

So to keep us going on our little spiritual experiment, we will be starting another study. Don’t forget to continue recording your grateful moments and those blessings you’ve already received as the spirit continues to remind you. The point of these all is to build on the previous, not to stop and start. For week 2 – we will be studying faith. I know, you’re thinking holy cow, why are we studying something that you’ve already put so much study into on your own time. Well for one, principals are infinite in their vastness so I’m sure there’s stuff you haven’t learned yet, for two, as your life progresses your perspective changes so you have more to learn now, and finally, for three, we’ve not studied it together and you’ve never been deployed either. So there is a need to study faith again.

Okay, so our assignment this week is to grow in our faith. We are going to focus on magnifying our faith not gaining it as I know of a surety we both are faithful people. As the scripture I’ve chosen demonstrates quite clearly, we both know that faith is a principal of power and action. Alma and Amulek suffered greatly before they were delivered and yet their faith remained in tact. So much so that when they could no longer bear the wickedness of their captors (not the hardship of the imprisonment) they prayed and then were blessed with power to walk free. So first, we study the magnifying part and then we apply it to what we already know or are currently learning about faith. Let’s pray for the power of faith to do something and then do what we can to help it come to pass.

You are in a situation you’ve never been in before. You are meeting people you’ve never met before. You are doing things you’ve never done before. These are great times to be demonstrating your faith to Heavenly Father and by just being near you others will see your faith and the attitude that it brings. You are at your best when your faith is strong and you are practicing it. I love to watch you demonstrate your faith in the priesthood or the plan of salvation. It makes me so proud to be your wife, your helpmeet in this life. I know others have felt your strength and your confidence. That is why you have done so well in your career thus far. You have walked into the darkness of life with a sureness that comes only from the Father and you have been blessed as He has lightened your path. I know He will do it again.

You are wonderful. You are strong. You are my husband, my best friend, and my eternal companion. Remember who brought you to where you are and you cannot fail.

We love you so much and are so proud not only to be an airman’s family in the US military, but, more specifically, to be YOUR family. Have a little fun this week, be goofy, work hard, and pray often. Know you are dearly missed and loved deeply. Be good.

Healthy Eating

Okay, so I know you don't come here to hear about stupid things, but when it comes to my kids, I tend to think everything is important.

When Chris and I married, I was used to cooking, so cooking for two wasn't a surprise. Keeping up with his crazy over-active metabolism however, was a different story. I had to change the ingredients I cooked with. I began using a lot more whole grains (breads, cereals, pastas), less processed sugary things (speeds up digestion and absorption), stopped almost all salt (our food comes with enough already), and basically a quick, relatively overhaul. Thankfully, this was a learning process and Chris was very good about it, reminding me that certain dinners didn't fill him up or that he'd still want more later that night. To cut down on how often and how much I had to cook at a given time, I changed the way I cooked.

What's that got to do with my kids you ask?

Well, when you're pregnant, at least the first time, you have a tendency to go a little nuts with the health thing. I realized we didn't eat enough fresh vegetables or fruit, and that, though we got the right calories, fresh had it's place too. So we added that to every meal. I also realized that I often forgot to eat breakfast, or just wasn't hungry. I changed that by making sure I had things like Instant Breakfast, granola bars, easy to grab fruit, or instant oatmeal/cream of wheat. The easier it was to get to my mouth the more likely I was to actually eat it.

So, by the time I had kids old enough to eat with us at regular meals, my cooking had changed quite a bit. I tended to stay away from pre-made things and just did it at home. Doesn't that sound so responsible?

Of course, that only lasted until I had my second baby, so about a year and a half. After JC was born my time was so much shorter. Cooking, while still something I enjoyed, was a bigger deal for them and less of one for me. I just wanted to get it done so I could relax. Now with a third starting table foods (she's so cute!!!) and a fourth on the way, cooking, while still something I take a good deal of pride in, is not as much a priority for health (though that's a main reason) it is however, a priority for our budget. Even with all the groceries and extra time it takes to cook, we still save over 100$ every paycheck by limiting our eating out to once a week max. Sometimes we don't go out at all. I've also limited the number of dinners I make a week to four. Otherwise I start to hate cooking and my fridge won't hold the leftovers.

So, why this great and I'm sure interesting, but boring insight into our family's eating habits? Well recently my kids have decided that the healthy frozen chicken nuggets that I buy for those last minute dinners or quick lets-get-you-to-nap time-now lunches are not good enough. They won't eat them. They'll eat the string cheese, the juice, and the fruit, but not the meat (which is the important one if you know kids). So I was in the store buying our groceries for this paycheck and saw something I hadn't tried for my kids. It was that Chef Boyardee pasta in the can. I usually steer clear of that kind of thing because one of the first ingredients is either a ton of sugar or a ton of salt. My kids already try to get as much of the first as possible. But, I was needing options, and I remember a commercial recently that mentioned how many servings of vegetables now come in one can. So I grabbed a couple to replace the nugget meal.

Holy Cow! My kids loved it! They thought they were getting a treat. It was only a 1$ a can, and it had tons of meat, whole grains (the important kind of carbs), and a lot of vegetables. I wasn't crazy about the salt content at 250 grams a serving, but it was comparable to other things that they had eaten. Plus, it's not like this is the only meal they get or even one they will be getting very often. It has it's place though. And the best part was, sugar was still in the list, but it didn't even make the top 10 ingredients! (Ingredients are listed by the amt included for those of you who don't read labels) This little cheap can of past my kids consider a treat for lunch was healthier than the nugget lunch I was replacing! With a cup of fruit and a glass of milk my kids were still eating healthy.

I was blown away. I remember eating those kinds of things when I was a kid and even in college on a camping trip. They're awesome, but they were never as healthy as they are today. Go figure! I guess that's why it's important to be aware. We would have missed out on something that makes my kids healthy and happy and still fits into our very tiny food budget.

Awesome is all I have to say.

Catching Up 2

Big Sister

So several weeks ago, before the funeral and Chris' deployment, we took the kids out for a very inexpensive dinner/evening. We grabbed the kids just before dinner, grabbed Wendy's from the value menu only, and took the family to the park. We had so much fun!!! We ate dinner at a picnic table and then watched our kids play, and run, and laugh. It was a great night.

The part that made it the best was something completely unexpected, but always hoped for by a mom. Joseph and Evie usually play together, but at the park they tend to go their own ways, especially if there are other kids about. Well this time, JC was on a playground alone jumping on one of those plank bridges when a group of older boys came by. They thought the game Joe was playing looked great, except for the fact that when they jumped Joe was no longer having fun. His hands slipped off the rail and he fell to the planks holding on for dear life as the boys jumped harder and harder. I was not happy! I yelled at the boys, imagining my two year old flinging off the side into the bark about five feet below.

The boys suddenly stopped. I thought they had heard me, but I quickly realized they weren't looking at me. They were looking at Evelynn! She had come up on the other side of the bridge and was yelling at the boys. I could hear her, "stop that, he doesn't like it." She sounded just like a mom. Joseph looked up and reached out. She bent down and grabbed him, helped him up and led him down the playground. Then she walked with him, hand in hand, to another playground and went on a slide with him. I stopped watching after that.

My heart melted. I saw my little girl act like such a big girl. She saw Joseph in need and did something about it without me. It was fantastic. We've been teaching her since Joe was born that her job is to keep him safe and for the first time I actually got to see her put her learning to action. It was great. Joseph had complete trust in his big sister to save him and those boys didn't mess with either of my kids again.

How many moms get to actually witness that kind of thing? We hear about it in stories or second hand after the event. We so rarely get to watch it happen. I felt so immensley proud and blessed at the same time. It was kind of like Heavenly Father's way of saying, "you're doing a good job, see - just keep it up!"

Catching Up 1

Okay so the next couple of blogs are going to be exactly what the heading describes: catching up. I've been so busy with so much that blogging, though wonderful, had to wait. So, even though the deployment and the corresponding project happened after the next couple of events, that's what everyone wanted to know about right away.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOSEPH

my very silly 2yr old

So tonight I'm going to share about our Fosburg birthdays this year. I turned 31 on Oct 6th and basically didn't do much. I'm not really into the whole "this is Tamy's day" kind of thing. Being the center of attention is rather uncomfortable for me. So, Chris has begun doing something different. He starts gifts and such a few days early. He works hard to do little things for a couple of days in a row. I have to be honest: I love it more than the actual day. It's so fun to have a special moment for a couple of days than a few hours on one day. (I blogged about this on Burdle's Box, if you want more details)

tractor lights up and makes digging sounds

Jospeh's birthday on the other hand was quite different. Originally we were going to have a giant "bash" type bbq on his birthday. We ended up cancelling because of so many other events, I would have been toast on the stress. So we had a small private, cupcake filled evening with a few presents - books and toys, about a million rounds of "happy birthday" since Evie and JC both love the song, and an almost blown out candle by my adorable two-year old. I can't believe he's that old already. He received a train with "the little engine that could" book, a tractor with "the hungry caterpillar" book, and a dump truck with duplo blocks with the "monkeys jumping on the bed" book from us.

fold able toy train

That next week we flew to Spokane, WA for a funeral, but celebrated his birthday again at Chuck E Cheese which he LOVED!!! So many family members came out from both sides of our family. It made me so happy for him. For his first we had just moved to SC and we had such a small family birthday it made me happy for him to get a bit of what Evie's had almost every year. He loved all the cousins, the whole ticket idea, the flashing lights, the games, and I think the sucker from the tickets most of all. It was great to see everyone having fun even though we were all together for such a serious reason. Thanks so much Nana and Papa!

Joseph's favorite ride was an off-roading jeep - such a boy

mouse is still a bit large for his taste, but he did wave!

To top it off, the Fosburgs threw a small birthday for JC and me and a little celebration for our anniversary (on the 26th) the night before we went home. We had a german chocolate cake (one of my favorites) and they sang (JC's favorite - he gets all shy and his grin looks like it's gonna split his face) and he got more presents! He also received a wooden blocks train and an elmo peek-a-boo type toy from Grama and Grampa.

opening cards from Grama and Grampa

It ended up being quite a drawn out birthday for him too. It was so fun and I know he loves all the toys. I see him playing with them so quietly, it's remarkable. He's such a boy!

playing with his new train - watch your feet!

So happy birthday to me at 31, happy birthday to my boy at 2, and happy anniversary to us at 9yrs (holy cow that made me feel old!)

Deployment/Marriage Project

So this is a special post. For the next couple of weeks, once a week we will do this post. That way if you choose, you may do our project with us.

This was inspired by a time early in our marriage when we were looking into an abyss of almost 9 mos. apart due to the constraints of both going to school, only two cities apart. We heeded Gordon B. Hinckley's challenge to read the Book of Mormon. We read our parts separately and were in different places quite often, but whenever we had a conversation we made sure to discuss any spiritual experiences, questions, comments, or insights we had with one another. Our phone calls were often quite involved and lengthy, but so enlightening. We had a wonderful experience that made our separation not only easier, but edifying. We both completed the Book of Mormon and at the end of our time, I joined him as he finished his education. But our marriage was different. It was stronger for the time apart, not weaker as is the way it happens so regularly. We appreciated each other's perspective not only in gospel matters (as we always did), but that respect grew in other areas too. Looking back on that time, I wouldn't want to do it again, but it was an experience that became a defining and glorifying time in our marriage. It helped create a very stable foundation upon which our family has been built. After this experience is when we began our family - having kids. We and they, have been blessed in so many ways because we listened to the prophet.

When I found out Chris was going overseas the Holy Ghost whispered this project-idea to me and I felt strongly that this could be another one of those building moments for our marriage. Chris suggested (maybe it was someone else) that I post our project as we do it for those of you who would like to participate. I've already noticed how just being excited to begin it together has already given us a leg-up as they say.

So each week is begun with a letter I wrote before he left and a talk or two from the LDS publication, the Ensign. Each article will be posted in the "pages" section of the blog (to the right). Outside study is definitely encouraged, but I didn't know how much he would have access to at the time, so I included all he needed to complete each week without going past the envelope. Good luck and I'm sure, he'd love to talk with anyone about it if you so choose. We will surely be discussing it.

WEEK #1 - letter

My dear, sweet husband,

You will just be unpacking or finishing out your first very whirlwind-type day. I know you’re tired and hopefully, missing us already. I’m so excited for this next step in your career even though it’s taking you so far from us. Just know how much we love you, think of you, and miss you every day.

Now, on to the purpose of this letter. For the next six to eight weeks we are going to do a fun little project. This idea struck me about a month or so ago and as we go, I’m sure you’ll be able to tell that I worked on this a bit. I’m so excited for it to get going.

At the beginning of each week you will open a letter with instructions and materials that will tell you what we’re going to be doing for that week of your deployment. Of course, this only works because you’re only gone for a little while. Anyway, this is week #1.

GRATITUDE

“And in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindles, save those who confess not his hand in all things, and obey not his commandments.” – D&C 59:21

In Week #1 – after lots of thought and prayer, we are going to be studying “Gratitude.” I have included a small notebook and pen, this letter, and an accompanying talk by a church authority. Our goal this week is to be more grateful. I know, you’re asking why in the world would we do this now when Thanksgiving is during you deployment? I wondered that too until the spirit spoke to me. He reminded me that to be grateful during Thanksgiving is not hard, everyone is doing it, and while everyone is doing it then, we will have missed an important opportunity by not doing it earlier. So, we are studying gratitude this week because it’s hardest to be grateful when you’re tired, lonely, stressed out, and just plain not feeling grateful. So, since I know we’ll be missing each other and needing that little extra spiritual help to get going on this adventure, we are going to use our notebooks (I have one too) to write down every single thing we are grateful for. Every time you think of something or an occurrence takes place that you’re feeling grateful, I want you to write it down in your book. Of course, I started it for you and put our family and the gospel, I figured those were no-brainers. Now I want you to really think of what has happened today and write down a few things you are truly grateful for, things that helped you, or reminded you how important you are or that someone is looking out for you. Okay, now stop reading for a minute and do it. No, seriously, stop and DO IT!

Okay, now that you’ve been reminded of the Lord’s love for you today (and of course, mine) I want you to take your first read of the talk that I’ve included. I looked at several and while I didn’t read it (I wanted to do this with you) I did scan it and felt strongly it carried the message the Lord wanted us to hear at this time. You have two options now: one – begin by reading it again and either taking notes, underlining, or picking out where you want to begin your study or two – let it sink in for tonight, let the juices flow while you sleep and ponder, and then tomorrow you can begin your study. Make sure that each day you are looking for things for which you are grateful and write them down. I did get you a small notebook so that you can keep it in your ABU’s and I know you always have your favorite pen. I would encourage you to keep it with you as much as possible. It will be a tactile reminder of the spiritual while you are dealing with the temporal.

So that’s the project. Each week we will open a new letter, a new talk or two, and begin a new study. What’s so cool for us both to look forward to is that I noticed as I was putting these things together how well each focused principal of study will build of the previous one. Good luck and I’m sure this will be fun. Make sure you keep track of your study and insights in your journal. I want to know what you thought about either when you get home or through blogging, emails, etc. We’ll figure that part out later.

I hope this helps get you through this time with a positive attitude and another spiritual leap in your progression. You never do things in a small way.

Love you, miss you, and think about you every moment of every day!

Tamy Lynn - Downy ; )

First Deployment

So, many of you know that Chris has now "left the building." In fact, he not only left the building, he's left the state, then the continent, then the hemisphere, and now is in his new home for at least the next 6-8wks. While Chris does not consider this a deployment due to the short term nature, the fact that his new "home" is more likely to get bombed than ours, makes it one for me. He's so excited and by now has completed a day or two. He's only 7 hrs ahead of us so that makes him almost done with a day when we start.

He sounds good and loves to receive emails and texts. His address for both is the same, but the connections are a bit spotty so be patient. He has access to a little media, but not much and what he does have access to he says he has better things to do. So far, he's right in line with our family. We just mailed back our DVR and cancelled our subscription to Directv. We save money and actually get off our bums to do things.

The kids are doing very well. Evie is pretty much guiding the behavior of the other two. She's been through this before and though a little bad behavior is manifesting, it's not like the last time at all. We had a lesson on where daddy went and why he's there. We even talked about his job and colored pictures of the countries in the surrounding areas of where he's working. They seemed to really like it and now look at our map a lot. They were surprised by a phone call from daddy this morning during breakfast and all three (even Lizzy) got all excited (she did that whole shaking like crazy thing). It was so cute.

Anyway, so we're several days into our deployment and we have just finished our "missing daddy" time. I give our whole family about 2-3 days to be bummy, miss dad, do nothing, and cry or talk about him as much as we want. Then, though talking doesn't stop, our days get "hyper-scheduled" and the kids settle down into a routine while I begin massive project mode. I usually do the projects that will take the most time or make the most impact when Chris gets home first. Then I do the projects that I've been avoiding and no longer have an excuse not to do. Finally, I do those projects that have a time-limit from when they are completed until Chris gets home (like massive cleaning, fixing up the car, whatever). It seems to work out well for us here at home.

That's about it for the moment. We'll keep you updated and Chris might even post a time or two!

Updated

So I updated our family wish lists as I will continue to do until Christmas is over. Hope you guys are getting enough ideas. Neither Chris nor I enjoy doing these kind of lists. It feels weird to list out all the things we would buy if we just had money running around. Most of the time we just say, "wouldn't it be nice..." and that's the end of it. We do understand how helpful it can be though so we do it for you. Love you all and happy Christmas/Birthday shopping, whatever you're doing. (if it's Christmas, holy cow, congrats you're almost as good as Grama Nix - almost!)

First Field Trip

I love my daughter. She is so smart. We recently joined a group of moms doing a preschool co-op kind of thing and to be honest, it's the best thing that's happened for us in a long time. I was doing school all by myself and while we were doing okay, it just wasn't what I was hoping for. It was also really difficult.

Katelyn and Evie - best friends!

Joseph loves tractors!

Then my best friend mentioned a curriculum book that I fell in love with and found some other moms to join us in home preschooling all together. It's been a fantastic experience.

"i've found it, I think."

"which one, which one, they're all so great!"

"this one, mom"

Well after a couple months we had our first official preschool field trip. We'd just finished colors and it's now October so we all went to a place called Willard Farms. It reminded me of a school field trip I did when I was in grade school back in Spokane.

"just one sweetie!"

Joseph and his pumkin!

Well this farm had tractor rides, a pumpkin patch, a giant slide area, swings that looked like horses, a bouncy platform, and a cow train. It was great!!!!

Yes, cows linked together in a train

Wooden tractor with slide at the back

The kids loved it. It was super inexpensive too because we got a deal for being a "school group" and the "students" little brother/sister just had to pay for the pumpkin they picked out as opposed to the whole price. We paid a total of 10$ for the whole morning. We ended all the fun with a picnic lunch at the table. It was a blast and my heart totally melted watching my kids doing such big-kid things. What a wonderful opportunity. I'm so glad we all got together to do this.

Super Cute!

Okay so everyone knows how cute I think my kids are and now you can decide for yourself. Here are the latest "cute kid" moments, including Lizzy's first picture standing up! Yes, it did happen the day I took the picture.

Ultimate cuteness, right?

Always moving!

My Little Monkey

She's getting so big!