Update

I just checked in today and saw that it has been over a month since I last posted anything! So now I have to see if I can get things updated some as well as posting some pictures of the girls.

Zoey has been playing soccer and has been doing really well. The team has won all their games and we have two left for the spring season. Zoey seems to be enjoying it and has gotten better with each game and practice. Here is a picture from her first game of the season.

Zoey's team is the one in the green/blue.
Our future soccer star!

Richard and I had our 10Th wedding anniversary last month and while he was not here to help me celebrate it was still a nice day. We were able to have a visit from my grandparents on their way back from Arizona for a couple days and that was great. We had not been able to see them in a long time so it was great visiting with them.

Zoey and Trinity with their great grandparents.

The girls loved having them here and had such a good time. Trinity has turned into a Grandpa's girl from her visit with grandpa Goris so she was ecstatic to see grandpa great. She is still asking about her grandpa's.

I love my grandparents!!!

Richard was able to send me flowers for our anniversary and I got some really pretty earrings as well that he picked out. He is so sweet. Even from thousands of miles away he still made me feel special on our day.

The end of last month we became the owners of a new puppy. Zoey has been wanting a puppy for a few years now and she finally talked her daddy into getting one for her. It is a Pomeranian and he is about 10 weeks old now.

This is Buddy, our newest family member

Trinity had her last ballet class last week. She had so much fun. I can't wait to get her in another ballet class, but the instructor on post is moving away for a year and most off-post centers don't offer ballet for little ones yet so we might have to wait until she is three to get her in another class. It was fun for her and she did so well.

Trinity is on the right. This is at the beginning of class when they do their stretching.

The girls after the class with their new shirts from Miss Erin.

So I think that is an update for now. Summer is almost here and we are ready for it I think. The girls and I will be making a trip to California for the Fourth of July. We will be meeting Nicole and Sophia in Phoenix and continuing the rest of the way with them. We look forward to seeing them again as well as the Baker Family for a few days. It will be great to get away from the base for a mini vacation. I am still not sure if we are going to be coming up to Indiana this summer, but I will be sure to let everyone know as soon as I decide. There are a few issues that we are still dealing with that might not be worked out until later so we have to see. Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend and enjoy all the family time you can get. We miss you all.

Love,
Naomi and the girls

Happy Spring! Family time together!

Okay so some of you might be wondering why I have not posted anything new in a while. Well if you did not already know it was because Richard was home on leave! So family time took priority over everything else during his time here. I will try to update as best I can though to fill in the last couple of weeks.

Welcome Home!

Everyone was so excited to see him.

To start Richard came in on March 16. That worked out great because Zoey had Spring Break the 17th-21st so he was able to be here for break. We had not really planned to do anything during break since we did not know when he was going to be in so we decided just to go to San Antonio. Zoey had wanted to go to the Alamo so we figured we could check out SA. Well it was a great trip. Not bad for not really having anything planned or anything. We left for SA on the 18th after ballet lessons and got back on the 21st in the evening.

Zoey standing across the street from the Alamo entrance. A rather neat building, but smaller then we were expecting:)

While we were in SA, we also visited the Ripley's Believe It or Not!, Wax Museum, the Guinness Book of World Records, and the zoo as well. They were all neat exhibits and we had a great time.

The girls loved the elephants. Trinity was not sure until Zoey got close then she knew they were okay to be near:)

Not sure how accurate the Shirley Temple was, but Zoey had to be in front since so many thought she looked like her when she was little:)

Once we got back to base things were pretty normal. We had a good Easter and even though we had to make a run to the ER for Trinity and missed the sunrise service we were still able to attend the normal service that day. The girls hunted for eggs later that afternoon. Here is a pic of the girls in their Easter dresses. They were too cute!


While he was home also we moved Trinity into a "big girl" bed. Of course daddy had to get her a new bed and sheet set to go along with it:) Trinity absolutely LOVES her new bed. She has been doing really well with staying in bed for naps and such and I have only had a few troublesome days with her getting out right after she is put in there for naps and bedtime. But mostly she is doing well with having it.

You can tell she is happy about her new bed:)

Aside from leave being short, we had a great time having him home with us. I was lucky enough to have him home for my birthday so that helped a little with my "leaving my 20's behind" and embarking on the next adventure "30 somethings". Richard and the girls went shopping for my gifts and then we all went out to dinner. It was a nice birthday even if I am not happy about turning 30. We were even surprised by a visit from his father on the 1st so he was able to spend time with us as well. It was great having him here and being able to see Richard before he took off again and the girls just loved having grandpa here for a few days.

Zoey took this of me with one of my gifts. It was a fun day.

Well Richard had to head back on the 4th so that was not the greatest day for everyone. The girls and I were able to stay with him at the gate so that helped a little that we got some extra time to spend with him. He, unfortunately had a canceled flight in Dallas that night, so while we did not get to see him we were able to call him at the hotel to talk to him. I just was not in the mood to make the drive up there. We both knew how hard it would be on everyone again to go through the "good-byes" so it was best that we did not see him again. We know the days have gone pretty fast so far, so I am hoping they will continue to go by so that we can be together again soon. I think that is everything that has been happening for us here. I hope that all of our family and friends are doing well and is having a great spring. I will try to keep this updated more often now that things are getting back to "normal". Continue to keep the troops and the families in your prayers for a safe quick return. One last picture before I sign off.

My beautiful girls at the San Antonio Zoo.

We have a future ballerina? Maybe!

I just wanted to post a few pictures of Trinity at her very first ballet class. It was a rather small class I guess, but maybe next time their will be that are there. Trinity was not sure what to do and the other two girls there were not really interested in doing anything that did not require them to be sitting with their mom. So because of that, Trinity was a little more reserved then she usually is with new things. Hoping she will be more comfortable next week when she has lessons again. Here are some pictures I thought you might like.


She was checking things out first to be sure it was okay.


This was her after she did a somersault. She was very proud of herself. The other girls did not want to do one.


They were dancing around in circles just before class ended.


She was patiently waiting for her sticker at the end of class.

On an exciting note, leave is coming soon!!! I will post new pictures of him soon. So all is going well with us here. Spring has arrived and everyone is doing well. Trinity is getting over a cold and pink eye so she is better. Zoey is feeling good now and has been doing well. Her first state is done and she thinks she did well so now we wait and see. Spring Break has begun so we look forward to spending time with Richard and just relaxing next week.


One last picture of the girls before I sign off.

Love,
Naomi

March has arrived!

Well it is the first of March already. I am not sure where the year is going, but days seem to be passing faster and faster. While some days I am greatful for this, others I wish everything would just slow down long enough for me to relax. Things have been okay since my last post, but at the same time they have been a little emotional and busy. We made it through February without too many bad days. Although I did have times when nothing seemed to be going right. Zoey has a big state test this week so she has been stressing and anxious about taking it. I have been trying to get her to stop "thinking" so much about it and just taking her time, but that has not seemed to help. With her anxious about it, I have been fretting about it as well. This caused many days of "feeling like a failure" as her mom because I can't get her to relax about it. Along with Zoey and her feelings about this test, I have also been dealing with Trinity going through the clingy stage. While I hoped we had passed this phase and she was not going to have it, it seems that she just waited until she was a little older before having it. That has made for long days since she never leaves my side. So last month was pretty emotional for me and the girls. Here are some pictures from last month that I wanted to share.


Jake and Trinity taking a "nap". She has so much fun with him. You would think he would not like her after what she puts him through:)


A fun afternoon of bowling. Trinity is starting to enjoy it more and does not mind us going as much as she use too.


Hanging out at Wendy's.


This month brings a much anticipated event with leave coming soon. We are all looking forward to the day that Richard is able to come home for a visit. We do not know when exactly, but we do know sometime this month for a few weeks. We are all excited. I will be sure to post more when I hear from him again as soon as he knows what is going on. For now, he is well and doing a great job. The many thoughts and prayers are appreciated from all of us. We love you all.

Naomi and Girls

Pictures of the girls

Trinity being cute:)
These were taken at dinner the other night. The girls were having fun playing with Zoey's headband:) Made for a lot of entertainment while we waited for our food to arrive.

Just writing

I am feeling a little scared right now so I wanted to put some things down. I have avoided watching, reading, or listening to the news since Richard left, but for some reason I found myself reading the news portion of yahoo tonight. The thing that stands out in my mind is "5 troops killed in northern Iraq". Well needless to say I am now restless and worried. I just heard from him this morning, but I know he won't call me again for a few days if not longer. The units involved were not released of course so now I sit an wait to see if someone is going to knock on my door. This is why I have avoided the news for the last few months. If I don't I sit and worry. I have been thinking about him so much lately and every time I do I say an extra prayer for him to return to us yet I am still don't feel better. I am ready for the whole thing to be over and him to return, yet I know he loves his job and is doing everything he can to return to his family. Of course that will only get me so far. I am having a harder time this tour. I am not sure if it is I am now left with 2 children or that I am just older and more aware of everything. Maybe it is because I don't have very many good friends around to talk to that are going through the same thing. I know it does not help that everyone in our cul-de-sac has their soldier home with them now so we get to see all the families together. I just want to cry. Maybe that would be a good thing right now. Have myself a good cry and feel better. I just don't know. I need to start trusting that whatever the Lord has planned for me, He will help me through and will only give me what He knows I can handle. Yet too many days I don't do that. I want my husband here with us, not with Him or anywhere else! I think I will have to say a lot of extra prayers tonight for the families of those troops that they might get through this ordeal. Having put this all down I feel a little better, but I am still very nervous and scared. I ask that you send out some prayers for the soldiers and their families left behind that those we are close to return safely to us.

Thank you for your support. We love you all.
Naomi

Video Teleconference and update

Okay well since there seem to be so many of my friends that are doing this blog thing I thought I would give it a try. Not sure I have a huge theme going with it or anything, mainly just my thoughts and feelings going on right now with my man being deployed. So here goes my first official blog!

Well to fill everyone in that might not already know, Richard deployed for the second time to Iraq. He left in November right before our girls' birthdays. Well while the communication was slow in the beginning I can now say it is so much better:) He calls and emails as often as he can (though not as often as his '04 tour) so we are able to hear from him at least once a week in some form. Well yesterday was the the very first Video Teleconference (VTC) that we have been able to have with him! It was amazing getting to see him. The time was short, but well worth it as it helped make the day a little better for all of us. He is going to try to sign up for another VTC next month, but we have to see if they are going to offer them monthly first. Knowing him he will let everyone else get one before he takes another one:) But that is okay since we should be seeing him in March or so for his leave. I must say he looks good considering the conditions they are living in. He seemed to be in good spirits as well so that was good to see.

As for our girls, well they are doing okay. Zoey is taking this tour harder then the last, but then again she understands a lot more this time around so I would not expect anything less of her. She is doing well with it just has days where nothing really seems right and she only wants her daddy home with us. She is doing great in school and has made the A/B Honor Roll yet again! We are so proud of her. She is doing great with tennis and is improving all the time. Trinity is well. She does not understand what is going on with her daddy being away, but she tells him "I wov you daddy" every day and tells him "daddy bye bye" when she sees his picture on the screensaver. She usually reacts to the whole thing with however Zoey and I are feeling at the time. I try to save my break downs for when they are not around to see it, but Zoey is not able to do that so sometimes I have to deal with both girls crying for their daddy.

I am doing okay. This deployment has been a lot harder then last time, but I am trying to find ways to keep myself busy. I am still at home with Trinity all day and love that, but part of me would also like to get away for a few hours each day so I am hoping that something will come up that I can leave her with child care for a few hours. We have been attending church in town for a while now and I am truly enjoying it and am thinking of making it our "home". To the point of I feel something is missing if we skip a service. I really look forward to going on Sunday mornings and the girls seem to like it as well. Zoey has even been asking about being baptized. So now I have to help her with that. The church we are attending also has a miltary wives support group that meets a couple Wednesdays a month that I have been attending since last month that has also helped me with this deployment. We are a diverse group of spouses with some husbands just leaving, some returning soon, and some that have been back a while so we are able to get all different kinds of views from everyone. It is very helpful some weeks to know that I am not alone even if it feels like I am. I have also been able to get to know a lot of the spouses in Richard's unit. We are starting to get to know each other and try to get together as often as we can. I have a great group of ladies to lean on when things get tough!

I think that is all for this first post, but I hope to put up some newer news and pictures in the next few days/weeks. Thank you to all our family and friends that have been supporting us on this journey. For those of you that we were able to see over Christmas, it was a wonderful trip and we had such a good time visiting with you. If we missed you this trip, hopefully we will be able to catch you on the next one. We love and miss all of you very much.

Love,
Naomi