Free Vacation at the Beach!

They insisted they swim in all three of the hotels pools. Here they are lounging around the pool.

Landon & Chris taking a little nap poolside.


Whitney and Gavin loved going up to the 15th floor to look out the windows.

Gavin found a real live Marco to play Marco Polo with at the pool! He and Marco became good little buddies during our stay.

I am really annal about sun exposure so Landon spent most of his time indoors with one of us. After 5 pm we brought him down for a little bit. Here he is dipping his toes in the surf for the first time. Every time the waves would come he would pull up his feet.

This past weekend we enjoyed a pretty much free vacation at the Destin Hilton which is located right on the beach. The Army was holding a marriage retreat for couples where they paid for our hotel stay, food and provided child care while we were in class. You can't beat that! I was a little skeptical about the quality of our free food but it was really good! Whitney said it was the nicest hotel she has ever stayed at. She was quite impressed with the Hilton! The childcare providers were right across the hall from where our classes were held. We opted to keep Landon with us since we were worried about illness and he is still content to be held all the time. Though the Chaplain kept "encouraging" us to take advantage of the free childcare. =) What I found really interesting though not surprising was that the classes were largely based on Stephen Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective People series of books. I have not read these books but I know he is LDS. Basically they were telling us to have date night, FHE, family councils, sets goals and think generational. I can't say the classes were all that enlightening for us but we did enjoy our free time. The chaplain also seemed to consider himself quite the Romeo and dispensed lots of romantic tips for the husbands. We have gone on several free vacations during our time in the Army. Definitely one of the perks! Scroll down to check out my beach collages.

Beach Collages

Big sigh...Gavin never wants to pose for me. I have to settle for action shots and funny faces like the one in the left hand corner up above.

I can always count on Whitney to model and pose for me. She delivers every time with nary a complaint! (Poor Wit is literally as blind as a bat and can't see a thing without her glasses. She wears her old pair when we go to the beach.)

I love Ashlyn's little polka dot bikini! If only it was yellow it would be perfect!

Whitney, Gavin and Ashlyn have always been water lovers! There is nothing better than a day at the beach. This was probably our last trip to the white sand beaches of Florida's panhandle. One of the things I'm really going to miss about living here at Fort Rucker is our close proximity to gorgeous beaches.

Our Trip to Tucson

Our trip was a whirlwind and very short lived but I think I am going to love Tucson! We left Wednesday morning and came home Friday night. Can cacti be described as lush? If so, that was the case. I love the light out west! The area seemed really nice and our house is really close to the kids school and shopping. One interesting thing about Tucson is that there are hardly any street lights. Our realtor said they have an ordinance that prohibits it because they have an observatory on one of the peaks. It was a little creepy after night fell to be in a city with hardly any lights. Whitney, Gavin and Ashlyn each stayed with three separate and wonderful families while we were gone. Words cannot describe how grateful I am to each of these wonderful women. I was really nervous about Chris and I being so far away from them. In fact, I did not want to go but Chris pushed me into going. He really wanted me to pick the house I wanted. He was also able to go to his new workplace and meet his co-workers. He came back even more excited about his new job. We are both realizing that this is going to be a real lifestyle change for us. It is exciting but also a little scary. Army life is all we have known since we said I do and the unknown is always a little unsettling. There have even been moments when I've thought maybe we should just stay in. Life is truly an adventure, isn't it?

Chris working his Vanna act. Whitney has told me on several occasions lately that her favorite cars are 1.) Toyota Precis and 2.) Nissan Altima so we took this picture just for her. The clerk at the rental car counter got really excited when Chris showed up. He thought he was the host of a TV show called Future Weapons. (He has been getting that a lot lately.) He wanted to give him a free car upgrade to a Camaro. Chris had to turn down this sweet offer since there was no room for Landon's car seat and other baby paraphernalia. He took this blow manfully and settled for being green instead of sporty. =)

Some hot construction workers hard at work on our new home sweet home.

Let me just say that house buying is STRESSFUL but then just about everything is stressful for me. If money was no object I'm sure it would be a much better experience but such is not the case. If one had lots of time it would probably be more enjoyable but we are in a time crunch. There is nothing I hate more than feeling rushed! Not living across the country would also be helpful. Add in the fact that I am completely indecisive when it comes to making big decisions and it is not good. In order to live in one of the best school districts we had to go with less house for our money. Those darn kids are always cramping my style. I just hope they appreciate us someday! =D

This one is entitled "Almost No Room at the Inn". haha In case you can't tell that is a dresser drawer Landon is sleeping in. The Wingate was all out of cribs so we had to improvise. =)
We did have a giant king size bed but Chris is such a heavy sleeper he was worried he might smash/smother him during the night.

Landon flyin' the friendly skies for the first time.

I was a little worried about flying with a baby (it had been a long time) but this little guy was a traveling champ! Anyone who has flown with a baby knows the looks of horror people give you when you sit down next to them with a baby. By the end of each flight people were singin' his praises! Comments were made such as, "That is the best baby I've ever flown with" and "What a trooper! I didn't hear one peep out of him the whole way."

Landon's Photo Shoot

Mr. September

Landon: Mom, I feel violated. Please stop!

A dream died today. I had to face the facts. Landon is not naked baby picture material. He looks pathetically undernourished and scrawny despite my best efforts to fatten him up. He was my last hope of having a chubby baby. I had been telling myself he was getting downright chubby. Yes, I think I must be delusional. Nonetheless, he is still adorable even if he has no bum, doesn't have a double chin, nor chipmunk cheeks or even triple rolls on his thighs!

Sure Signs of Age

More and more frequently I am becoming aware that I am, to use the politically correct term, aging or in other words getting OLD! Here are a few clear indicators:

1. I can no longer keep my children's names straight. I can't even confine my mistakes to the same sex!

2. I have a bad back. This alone makes me sound like a Grandpa.

3. I hide things away and then forget I have them only to find them at a later date. This one is actually kind of pleasant.

4. I am starting to see fads I knew as a youth make a comeback.

5. I have gray hairs.

6. I prefer to eat dinner around 5:00 p.m.

7. When asked my age, I have to think about it before responding. Then I am mildly depressed by my conclusion.

8. I drive a mini-van.

9. I am somewhat baffled by new fashions and how they should be worn.

10. I am shocked by song lyrics I hear on the radio.

Little Boy Treasures...

Lucky for me, I do not fall into the majority of females that are scared of bugs. The other day when I opened one of Gavin's dresser drawers I was greeted by a horrible smell and this sight. Two giant beetles, both dead and smelling very strongly of it. Also take notice of that stick sharpened to a very fine point! A boy never knows when he will need to defend himself with his handmade shank. Upon questioning I discovered that Chris had been letting him practice his "whittling skills" with a pocket knife. I wasn't too pleased with that piece of news. Gavin was very worried that I had thrown away his beetles but being the nice Mom I am, I had placed them in a ziploc bag with strict instructions that they stay in there.

Lovable Landon

This baby needs a double chin. It is just not right for a baby to have a neck!

I love this sweet little face!

2009 is the year of the Ox on the Chinese astrology calendar.

Landon turned 3 months old on the 18th. On the 14th he weighed 13 pounds 13 ounces, who says 13 in an unlucky number, not me! He is the happiest little baby. He reminds me a lot of Whitney when she was a baby, some in his looks and a lot in his personality. The only time he cries is when he wants his food and then he shrieks! He goes from happy to shrieking in one second. I think he will hit his physical milestones early. He does not want to be in a prone position he can almost do a sit up and boy does he get his bouncy chair a bouncin'! He suffered through his first cold this past month. He was such a trooper though! He would be smiling at me while I was suctioning his nose! Unbelievable, isn't it? He only wakes up once in the night to eat now, usually between 3-4. He fights sleep during the day. He has lots of little cat naps but never sleeps for very long. This little guy is my daily guilty pleasure. In general I have a hard time relaxing but as soon as I sit down to feed this little guy I just melt. I jealously guard his feeding times and do not want to share them with the other family members. I do share - though grudgingly.