Hello friends and family from Afghanistan. I figured that although I can't physically be with L and the kids this Mother's Day I can at least give her the very public praise she greatly deserves. I am hoping that this post turns out OK, and I that I don't mess up some part of the Blog that L maintains.
So as most of you know L and I have been married for five years, going on 6 this fall, and I am the luckiest man alive. For those great five years have been the best of my life. However, they have not been the easiest. I have been gone for a total of two years for combat deployments, numerous months of field exercises, and in the last eight years I have only been home for one of her birthdays. Although L did not choose the military directly she has stood by me through the last eight years of service as my cornerstone and sounding board. During these past five years of marriage she has also given me the ultimate gift in the form of the ever growing and curious Greyson, and our beautiful daughter Peyton. In my kids lives I was lucky enough to be home for most of Greyson's first two years, but as you all know I will have missed 90 percent of Peyton's first year of life. So it should come with no surprise that I will be leaving the military after 8 years of service to find a job in the civilian sector, and frankly L deserves to have a husband who is actually home. We joke that we don't know how we are going to handle a three day business trip to New York...(how hard is that really!)
L you are the most amazing and strongest woman I have ever met. You were my college crush, and you still are today. I love more with each passing day, and I look forward to growing old with you! Our lives have been interesting over the last few years with multiple moves, and changing jobs for me, but you have always been one thing my perfect partner. I am the luckiest man alive.
When it comes to parenting I can take very little credit for our how wonderful, smart, and perfect our children our. You are the most caring, compassionate, and loving mother any child could ever have. Over the last year you have helped Greyson become potty trained, and when Peyton takes her first steps it will be solely your doing! For the last year you have been a single parent who has successfully juggled two kids under the age of 5 while still putting yourself through your Masters Degree. I have no idea how you do it, I doubt I could, but it is just another thing about you that amazes me.
L I know that I can't put fully into words how much you mean to me. I look forward to being a complete family soon, and taking some of the burden that this deployment has placed on you off your shoulders. I love you, I miss you, and I can't wait to be a parent to our children with you!
Your K
Monday, May 9, 2011
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Long Overdue Update
Hello All! First, I must apologize for my long absence since my last post. The past few months were quite busy with events with the kids, family visits, and grad school. Now that my class ended a few weeks ago and my inlaws returned the pace has slowed and I have a bit more time to devote to other things. Here's a recap of the last few months and what's new with our family.
February was all about getting back on track with the regular routine after Kyle's midtour and also about celebrating Greyson's 3rd Birthday. My Mom and stepdad, Mike, came to visit for the occasion and we kept plenty busy celebrating his special day. He awoke to a mountain of presents and ended his day with a fun filled party at Artsports, a local tumbling gym. Greyson and all his buddies had a lot of fun topped off by yummy pizza and, of course, a Toy Story cake.
Greyson doing a flip at his birthday party
March we had a blast with my sister visiting and then a trip up to Breckenridge with my Dad and stepmom, Robyne. We stayed in a fabulous house right near the slopes where Lisa and I enjoyed skiing....she really helped me improve and got me going down black diamond runs and doing my first bowl...quite an adventure. My Dad and Robyne were wonderful babysitters and kept G and P plenty busy at the local children's museum, playing in the snow, enjoying the house, and helping in the kitchen. It was a fabulous winter wonderland getaway.
My skiing skills in action
April was full of ups and downs. Sadly, my grandfather on my dad's side passed away from his long battle with Alzheimer's. So, on a bit of short notice I arranged a quick trip home to be with the family. A huge thank you to my amazing inlaws for rearranging their trip back to Colorado to get a here a bit earlier to watch the kids so I could be back in Chicago. The kids are thrilled to have Pop Pop and JoJo back in town for the next 6 months or so and as much as it was sad to lose my grandfather it was wonderful to see so many family members I haven't seen in so long and to celebrate the amazing man he was and how important he was in all of our lives.
After my trip to Chicago, I returned to Colorado and celebrated a joyous, yet snowy Easter. We've seen some odd Colorado springtime weather - hit the 80s in March, saw snow in April and even in the first few days of May. Thankfully today is sunny and upper 60's and the forecast is showing mid-upper 70's and sunshine for the next few. So, hopefully we've seen the last of the cold and warmer weather is here to stay. With the spring and with Greyson turning 3 we've also started some new activities with him. He participated in swim lessons and loves the water! He's a bit timid of doing things on his own, but he greatly improved over the time of his lessons and on his last lesson he swam with just the aide of a floating noodle about 10 feet all on his own. I was one proud Mom. He currently is playing on an indoor YMCA soccer team for 3 and 4 year olds. It's quite a sight, to say the least. He's not all the interested in the actual game, but he loves to run around, occasionally kick the ball, and mostly play with his jersey....it's a riot. Pretty sure he won't be the next David Beckham, but he's having fun and we're definitely not taking it very seriously. He'll be starting t-ball in June and can't wait to see how he does with that - 3 year olds with bats and balls sounds like entertainment to me.
Overall, both kids are doing so well. Peyton is 10 and half months and I can't believe that her first birthday is next month! I swear this year has flown by and in a way I'm happy because it means that Kyle will be home soon, but sad that my baby girl is growing up so fast. I swear this first year has gone twice as fast as it did with G. She continues to be the happiest, most easy going baby in the world. She loves sitting and playing with toys, and is currently obsessed with standing up - she likes to hold on to tables, her cribs, or people's hands. I think she loves the perspective from standing up. She doesn't show much interest at all in crawling, and I think she very could possibly just decide to walk one day, but hopefully not until Daddy gets home.
Peyton playing and talking (end of March)
Greyson is now a big 3 year old (and 2 months to be exact) and that has come with a lot of new found independence and skills. The biggest development is Greyson is potty trained...yeah!!!! In late March, about a month after his birthday I decided to be brave and dive into potty training and he did amazingly well. Within a week or two he was completely trained during the day. He loves wearing undies and is amazingly good at telling me or anyone else he's with with he needs to go potty. He still in pullups for nap and nighttime, but that will be our next skill to work on...no rush. So proud of him and loving life with only one kid in diapers..yeah! He's also gotten very independent at doing chores or tasks I ask him to do - like putting away his shoes or jacket. He also loves to help me in the kitchen - gets that from his Daddy. Lately, he's even started to dress himself. Can't believe what a little boy he is. I know Kyle is going to be floored with his development when he gets back.
Greyson's impressive dance moves - clearly, he gets his skills from me :)
Speaking of Kyle, the past few months have been quite eventful for him. A few days agos we had quite a scare when Kyle's truck drove over an IED while on patrol. Thankfully he and his guys were ok, and Kyle was treated for mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) from the shaking from the explosion. He was given the time to rest and was monitored closely and is doing much better. He's returned to duty and is now focused on doing his job, keeping safe, and getting home to us soon. On the flip side, we're excited to share lots of good news. First, we're about 2 months out from Kyle coming home...yeah!!! We can see the light at the end of the tunnel and are both committed to staying busy to make time fly by and staying positive by focusing on all the fun stuff we have planned for when he gets home (i.e. trip to New Mexico with his parents, Denver Great American Beer Fest, Mexican Riviera cruise with friends in November, etc). With him coming home soon it also means his mail service is stopping. So, reminder to send last packages in the next week because then mail will be shut off to Kyle and his unit as they prepare for redeployment. Other exciting news is that Kyle was recently accepted by Alliance International in their junior military officer job placement program. They are a headhunter that works exclusively with only the top 5% of JMOs exiting the military to match them with jobs with many Fortune 500 companies in a variety of positions. We have a good friend who used them and has a great job in the civilian world. So, the current plan is for the next 6 months he will do training with them with reading books, participating in phone discussions, webinars, and other activities to prepare him for the job conference. He will attend that conference in January 2012 and will be leaving the Army in March/April 2012 and looking to start a new job then. It's all very exciting, but naturally makes us both a bit anxious. Lots of question marks and unknowns in our future, but we're both confident that Kyle will be able to find a civilian job that he loves and will provide for our family without taking him away to dangerous places for long periods of time. We'll keep you posted on any news - but we're preparing for a move to who knows where in about a year, nothing new for this family.
I think that's about it, definitely been an eventful last few months. I promise to not let my update be so late. Now looking forward to my girl's weekend with my sister and mom in Savannah this weekend, my dear friend Shannon coming to visit mid May, and my Mom coming to seeing the kids at the end of the month. Then June is filled with P's first birthday, father's day, and my 29th birthday. Then July will be not only be about celebrating the 4th of July, but more so the homecoming of Kyle and the peace of mind of knowing we'll never have to do another deployment again.....yeah! Wishing you all the best and happy mother's day this weekend to our wonderful moms, mother-in-laws, stepmom, grandmas, and great grandmas. We love and appreciate you all!
Love,
K,L,G,and P
P.S. Lots of new pictures to look at in the links on the right - enjoy!
February was all about getting back on track with the regular routine after Kyle's midtour and also about celebrating Greyson's 3rd Birthday. My Mom and stepdad, Mike, came to visit for the occasion and we kept plenty busy celebrating his special day. He awoke to a mountain of presents and ended his day with a fun filled party at Artsports, a local tumbling gym. Greyson and all his buddies had a lot of fun topped off by yummy pizza and, of course, a Toy Story cake.
Greyson doing a flip at his birthday party
March we had a blast with my sister visiting and then a trip up to Breckenridge with my Dad and stepmom, Robyne. We stayed in a fabulous house right near the slopes where Lisa and I enjoyed skiing....she really helped me improve and got me going down black diamond runs and doing my first bowl...quite an adventure. My Dad and Robyne were wonderful babysitters and kept G and P plenty busy at the local children's museum, playing in the snow, enjoying the house, and helping in the kitchen. It was a fabulous winter wonderland getaway.
My skiing skills in action
April was full of ups and downs. Sadly, my grandfather on my dad's side passed away from his long battle with Alzheimer's. So, on a bit of short notice I arranged a quick trip home to be with the family. A huge thank you to my amazing inlaws for rearranging their trip back to Colorado to get a here a bit earlier to watch the kids so I could be back in Chicago. The kids are thrilled to have Pop Pop and JoJo back in town for the next 6 months or so and as much as it was sad to lose my grandfather it was wonderful to see so many family members I haven't seen in so long and to celebrate the amazing man he was and how important he was in all of our lives.
After my trip to Chicago, I returned to Colorado and celebrated a joyous, yet snowy Easter. We've seen some odd Colorado springtime weather - hit the 80s in March, saw snow in April and even in the first few days of May. Thankfully today is sunny and upper 60's and the forecast is showing mid-upper 70's and sunshine for the next few. So, hopefully we've seen the last of the cold and warmer weather is here to stay. With the spring and with Greyson turning 3 we've also started some new activities with him. He participated in swim lessons and loves the water! He's a bit timid of doing things on his own, but he greatly improved over the time of his lessons and on his last lesson he swam with just the aide of a floating noodle about 10 feet all on his own. I was one proud Mom. He currently is playing on an indoor YMCA soccer team for 3 and 4 year olds. It's quite a sight, to say the least. He's not all the interested in the actual game, but he loves to run around, occasionally kick the ball, and mostly play with his jersey....it's a riot. Pretty sure he won't be the next David Beckham, but he's having fun and we're definitely not taking it very seriously. He'll be starting t-ball in June and can't wait to see how he does with that - 3 year olds with bats and balls sounds like entertainment to me.
Overall, both kids are doing so well. Peyton is 10 and half months and I can't believe that her first birthday is next month! I swear this year has flown by and in a way I'm happy because it means that Kyle will be home soon, but sad that my baby girl is growing up so fast. I swear this first year has gone twice as fast as it did with G. She continues to be the happiest, most easy going baby in the world. She loves sitting and playing with toys, and is currently obsessed with standing up - she likes to hold on to tables, her cribs, or people's hands. I think she loves the perspective from standing up. She doesn't show much interest at all in crawling, and I think she very could possibly just decide to walk one day, but hopefully not until Daddy gets home.
Peyton playing and talking (end of March)
Greyson is now a big 3 year old (and 2 months to be exact) and that has come with a lot of new found independence and skills. The biggest development is Greyson is potty trained...yeah!!!! In late March, about a month after his birthday I decided to be brave and dive into potty training and he did amazingly well. Within a week or two he was completely trained during the day. He loves wearing undies and is amazingly good at telling me or anyone else he's with with he needs to go potty. He still in pullups for nap and nighttime, but that will be our next skill to work on...no rush. So proud of him and loving life with only one kid in diapers..yeah! He's also gotten very independent at doing chores or tasks I ask him to do - like putting away his shoes or jacket. He also loves to help me in the kitchen - gets that from his Daddy. Lately, he's even started to dress himself. Can't believe what a little boy he is. I know Kyle is going to be floored with his development when he gets back.
Greyson's impressive dance moves - clearly, he gets his skills from me :)
Speaking of Kyle, the past few months have been quite eventful for him. A few days agos we had quite a scare when Kyle's truck drove over an IED while on patrol. Thankfully he and his guys were ok, and Kyle was treated for mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) from the shaking from the explosion. He was given the time to rest and was monitored closely and is doing much better. He's returned to duty and is now focused on doing his job, keeping safe, and getting home to us soon. On the flip side, we're excited to share lots of good news. First, we're about 2 months out from Kyle coming home...yeah!!! We can see the light at the end of the tunnel and are both committed to staying busy to make time fly by and staying positive by focusing on all the fun stuff we have planned for when he gets home (i.e. trip to New Mexico with his parents, Denver Great American Beer Fest, Mexican Riviera cruise with friends in November, etc). With him coming home soon it also means his mail service is stopping. So, reminder to send last packages in the next week because then mail will be shut off to Kyle and his unit as they prepare for redeployment. Other exciting news is that Kyle was recently accepted by Alliance International in their junior military officer job placement program. They are a headhunter that works exclusively with only the top 5% of JMOs exiting the military to match them with jobs with many Fortune 500 companies in a variety of positions. We have a good friend who used them and has a great job in the civilian world. So, the current plan is for the next 6 months he will do training with them with reading books, participating in phone discussions, webinars, and other activities to prepare him for the job conference. He will attend that conference in January 2012 and will be leaving the Army in March/April 2012 and looking to start a new job then. It's all very exciting, but naturally makes us both a bit anxious. Lots of question marks and unknowns in our future, but we're both confident that Kyle will be able to find a civilian job that he loves and will provide for our family without taking him away to dangerous places for long periods of time. We'll keep you posted on any news - but we're preparing for a move to who knows where in about a year, nothing new for this family.
I think that's about it, definitely been an eventful last few months. I promise to not let my update be so late. Now looking forward to my girl's weekend with my sister and mom in Savannah this weekend, my dear friend Shannon coming to visit mid May, and my Mom coming to seeing the kids at the end of the month. Then June is filled with P's first birthday, father's day, and my 29th birthday. Then July will be not only be about celebrating the 4th of July, but more so the homecoming of Kyle and the peace of mind of knowing we'll never have to do another deployment again.....yeah! Wishing you all the best and happy mother's day this weekend to our wonderful moms, mother-in-laws, stepmom, grandmas, and great grandmas. We love and appreciate you all!
Love,
K,L,G,and P
P.S. Lots of new pictures to look at in the links on the right - enjoy!
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