Sleep is overrated

"Half My Heart is in Afghanistan"

This past Saturday was my first Family Readiness Group meeting to lead on my own.  The most important part of the meeting was, of course, the update from Kandahar courtesy of my commander hubby.  I was sweating bullets, refreshing my e-mail inbox throughout the night (each time that Emmy woke up--but that's a different post entirely), in the hopes of finding Nick's very important e-mail.  Four hours prior to meeting time, it arrived!  Nick did a wonderfully thorough job explaining to our spouses what their loved ones have been up to since D-Day.  Here's a summary:

Nick's brigade (which is made up of of several battalions which are made up of several companies like Nick's) is replacing the 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade.  Since the majority of Nick's company of soldiers (he now has 70 troops under his command) arrived "in theater" on March 19th, they have been completing mandatory classes and briefs, orienting to the area and completing training flights.  His company has been performing exceptionally well at dust landings, two-wheel landings, gunnery, mountain operations and knowledge of the Kandahar flying area (which is very congested with aircraft).  He has been told that their 82nd counterparts are impressed by their performance and how quickly they have learned the ropes.

Nick's company will be supporting the Medevac aircraft as they provide care to wounded and fallen Soldiers and Marines throughout the Area of Operations.  They will also be supporting ground forces as they complete a variety of missions throughout the area.

Nick and his soldiers are now situated in their permanent living quarters called a "Mod".  The Mod is comprised of seven 21'x15' rooms with one bathroom, consisting of three showers, four sinks, three toilets and two urinals for 36 men.  It's definitely tight quarters!  And that's just half of Nick's company! The others live in a different Mod about 100 feet away.  Nick is hoping to build some sort of an elevated bed with a desk space underneath to maximize his tiny space.  Fortunately, his company packed wood and power tools for such projects before they left.  I have already been told by other spouses that their soldiers were green with envy when they laid eyes on Nick's Tempurpedic mattress topper...There was a whole lot of planning that went into packing for this deployment!

Nick is hoping that they will settle into their "ground hog's day" routine in the next week or so and then, hopefully, the days will begin to fly by...It feels great to have two weeks behind us already (although it will feel even better to have 12 months behind us, with him on a plane headed for home!)  One day at a time...

Wiped out after our FRG meeting...She was on her best behavior!

Spring Cleaning

All of this sunshine has sparked an urge to purge!  Spring Cleaning 2010 in the Horn household is well underway!  Getting the two cars parked in the garage, with room to get in, has been a goal of mine since we moved in...Nick had a shed put up in our backyard to help with our storage problem before he left (thank you, Babe!)  He loaded it up with all the heavy items and so I tackled the remaining clutter filling one side of the garage.  I detest clutter with such great intensity (I try not to use the word "hate" but it might apply to my feelings toward clutter)!  It was positively cathartic to sort through and pitch so much garbage!   In the end, I made room for both of our cars!  Nick didn't think it could be done...Which I guess makes me a miracle worker. ;-)  I take spring cleaning very seriously.  I was on such a roll, I decided to attack our "man room" and attic space during Emmy's next nap...Before I knew it, there was order in the second level of our home as well!  Today my focus was on the exterior of our house!  As soon as I laid Emmy down for her morning nap, I secured her baby monitor to my hip and sprinted to the shed to gas up the mower and get to work.  Four hours and two Emmy naps later, the yard was mowed and the backyard was weeded! It's amazing how a manicured yard can turn any day into a good one!  Now I just have to figure out my planting and mulching strategy for tomorrow...

Bored with Spring Cleaning 2010.

Just Three Words...

I DID IT!!!!!!

I fit both cars in the garage for the first time EVER!!!!

(don't worry honey, I didn't throw too many of your things out ;-)

Someone has the giggles...

Field Trip #2

Emmy and I were invited to join our mommy friends for a special outing at the Nashville Zoo yesterday!  We jumped at the opportunity to go on our second field trip on such a glorious spring day!

I had forgotten how much fun it is to visit the zoo! It was my first outing with Emmy at such a venue, flying solo no less.  I had definitely played out every worst case scenario in my head...Thankfully, she was such a perfect angel!  (I am still curious how one might go about using the restroom when you have an itty bitty baby strapped into a big stroller and your by yourself, but I decided to figure that out on a day when the zoo wasn't, shall we say, such a zoo.)  I felt like one of the cool kids pushing my stroller around among the masses...We spent some time hanging out with my friends and then on our own getting lost among the animal enclosures...After a solid two hours, feeling great about our day and with an excessively full bladder, we headed back to our car to feed the little one and to drive home in time for Emmy's nap.

I love giraffes!

So does Emmy!

This guy was doing some "trunk lifts" with a log-pretty cool!

I didn't dare take her out of her stroller and mess with a good thing!

This one's for you, Baby! These guys were making all kinds of noise!

Such gorgeous creatures!

Catching flies.

Nick Update!

I have received a few phone calls and a couple of e-mails from Nick over the past week (one week down-HOORAY!!!)  He tells me that they are very much still in limbo.  He's been sleeping in a "bay" with about 200 other soldiers, but should (hopefully!) be moving into his permanent "home" within the next two weeks.  He said that despite the fact that this base in Kandahar has been in existence for several years, it is a model of inefficiency.  There might be many amenities, but there are so many people stationed there, that there is a wait for everything.  A typical wait for food at the mess hall is 15 minutes...ugg!  So it's taking him much longer than usual to get even the simplest tasks done.  All of his soldiers are looking to him for answers to their questions (and there are lots!), so his "to do" list is endless.  He flew for the first time last night, and said that it felt great to get behind the controls again.  He promised that they weren't doing any dangerous maneuvers!  We've discovered a couple of  interesting facts about Afghanistan--it is 9.5 hours ahead of me here in Tennessee; and that they drive on the right side of the road with the driver seated on the right side of the car...Just a couple of examples just how different things are in that part of the world.

Helicopter Boy Update: He has called his mother!  Hallelujah! (Unfortunately that hasn't stopped the e-mails; how am I supposed to know what the "task organization" of our company is?!?)!  I can thank my husband for reminding him, upwards of 20 times a day, to reach out to her.  When Helicopter Boy asks if she has sent another e-mail, my trusty hubby's response is always, "Probably."  What a good man he is looking out for me and my inbox! ;-)

Shake, Rattle and Roll!

Caught in the act

I have taught Emmy that it's ok to be a little bit vain...

But this is a little much...

It's understandable, though, I can't stop looking at her face either. ;) 

Just Three Words...

GLIMPSE OF SPRING

Our trees are blooming! Unfortunately our weeds are growing too. :-/

Field Trip #1

One of the many goals that I set when Nick and I had our pre-deployment goal-setting session, was to take Emmy on a "field trip" once a week. My intention is to find activities, they don't have to be expensive (but that might not be the case when we do some spring shopping this week...just being honest.) Something to break up the week and expose Emmy to new things-I figure you can never start too young!

This week we checked out the Clarksville Greenway, a new 3.6 mile walking/running/biking path that I had learned about from a friend. Oh my goodness was it awesome!! Many of you know that I am far from complimentary about the amenities offered here in Clarksville, so you know this has got to be good! The tree-lined path winds through farmland on one side and a river on the other. There are picnic tables, benches and swings along the way as well! I was beaming the whole walk over the excitement of my new find! (Except for when I came upon a few steep inclines and Emmy was giggling at me while I got a running start to move her stroller up the stretch--I told her that I wont laugh a her someday when she pushes me around.) I couldn't help but think to myself that I should write someone a letter to encourage more good things like this in Clarksville. Low and behold, as I re-entered the trailhead, there was a group of well-dressed gentlemen. One of them emerged, while shaking my hand, his colleague introduced him as the mayor of Clarksville. I promptly started raving about my new favorite walking place...He saved me a letter!

Can't wait until everything is in bloom--it will be even more beautiful!

My personal Jillian Michaels-I will forgive her because she's cute ;-)

Emmy's soapbox

Baby, If you check this before you check your e-mail, can you please have helicopter boy call his helicopter mom at his earliest convenience?  My inbox is full...Thanks, my love. ;-)

Four Less Peppermint Patties!

I do believe that I have more than deserved my daily little piece of York Peppermint Patty Heaven this past week...If only Nick could share in a similar ritual to brighten his day.  I got my first phone call from him last night (or early morning, whichever way you want to look at it) around 1am.  It was so wonderful to hear his voice...He arrived in Kandahar, Afghanistan a couple of days ago and has been trying to "stay afloat" since he arrived.  He didn't go into details, but he did say that the chaos/confusion/frustration that he was experiencing prior to take-off was "just the tip of the iceberg".  Somebody better watch out, because Nick has his dukes up ready to fight for his troops.  He is currently living in a crowded building with only a few phones and computers used to communicate with loved ones back home.  He is unsure when he will be moved to his 6 person living quarters (just one of the many reasons Nick is needing his dukes up-all the other pilots are required to sleep no more than 2 to a room).  Hopefully he will have the internet up and running on his personal laptop once he moves into his "permanent home".  We spent a lot of our time discussing the various Family Readiness Group issues that have cropped up in the last few days; a hospitalized child, pregnancy complications and a (literal and figurative) "helicopter mom" who contacted the Battalion Commander's wife because she hasn't been able to Skype with her son yet.  (As an aside, this woman mentioned our "FRG staff" in an e-mail which I found temporarily humorous because my only staff member is a mere 3 month old, who is much more of a hindrance to my work than a help :-P).  Then, his voice softened when I told him all about our girl...Emmy just has a way of making a bad day so much better.  Here's to hoping that Nick has a much better day today...

Keeping Daddy's side of the bed warm while I work on the computer. :-) The only difference is she's a lot more smiley when she wakes up! :-)

D-Day Recap

I want to thank everyone for reaching out and offering Nick, Emmy and I so many supportive and encouraging messages this past week. I haven't yet been able to respond to everyone, but please know that your thoughts and prayers are so very appreciated. It was hard to know just how it would feel sending Nick off this time. This deployment is unlike any that we've done before...While I always worry about his safety and miss him immeasurably, our lives have never been so intricately interwoven as they are now. Our first year-long separation was heart-wrenching, but in hindsight, we were just in a "further away long distance" engagement. The five short deployments with the Regiment were tiring because it was difficult for us to establish a routine with the volatility of the schedule, but the countdown always flew by. This time the goodbye was very different, for both of us...Thankfully we've got experience under our belt to help carry us through these uncharted waters.

The last week before Nick deployed was chaotic, to put it mildly. He made sure his soldiers spent as little time at work as possible to soak up the last chance at family time. Unfortunately, his duty still called...We got news partway through the week that not only was our company was being "attached" to a different Battalion but that we are nearly doubling the number of troops (and therefore families). The timing couldn't have been more unfavorable, mostly because the Battalion that Nick is now attached to had already deployed a few days before. So meeting the acquaintance of Nick's new boss and therefore establishing communication was an impossibility. Already being removed from our old Battalion but not yet being introduced to our new Battalion (and lacking an accurate roster of all the new troops and their family members) on the eve of this deployment posed a difficult and frustrating dilemma. We pretty much felt like lone wolves as we attempted to lead and provide accurate information to our soldiers and their family members. Not really how we had envisioned spending our last days together...But I am learning that that is to be expected when you are married to the commander. I loved that we could muster through the mess together, finding comfort in the ability to lean on one another.

I had wondered how to properly spend our final day together before this big adventure...The agenda kind of just created itself. We spent the day dropping off Nick's bags, running errands, visiting our friends in the hospital who had just had a baby...Emmy had many a feeding in the car, but we were all ok with that because as mundane as the schedule was, we were doing it as a family, which was the whole idea anyways. In the spirit of spontaneity, we decided to go grab a late dinner at the Cheesecake Factory on Monday night because Nick had a hankering for white chocolate raspberry cheesecake. We got Emmy ready for bed, buckled her into her carseat, and made the hour long drive to Nashville. We had a wonderful dinner and didn't skimp on anything (although, let's be real, it's really not possible to "under-do it" at the Cheesecake Factory). We laughed, talked about funny memories and made up an impressive (if I do say so myself) list of our personal and family goals for this next year. I would say it was the best way possible that we could bring our last full day as a family to a close. I cherish the memory.

The morning of the deployment came all too soon (I had kind of hoped that March 16, 2010 would magically fall off the calendar). We made sure to kick the day off with some family cuddle time in our bed. It gets a little crowded with the two of us, Molly, Darla and of course our sweet angel girl, but we love it just the same. Emmy was cracking us up with her smiles. Unlike her father, she LOVES mornings! We had a swedish pancake breakfast, Nick's favorite, and then spent the remainder of time locating last minute items and packing up his carry-on. Nick made a last minute trip to the store to surprise me with my special count-down candy jar! (At the end of each day, I put a bit fat "X" on the calendar and enjoy a mini York Peppermint Patty--one of my faves because they aren't as bad for you as Junior Mints-so I've told myself).

I was keeping it together until, in the car on the way there, he told me that he'd picked up his underwear off the bathroom floor. I had just told him how grateful I would be to arrive home to his mess. Weird, I know, but it's the little things that you find yourself clinging to in times of helplessness like these. Jersey Mike's sub sandwiches in hand (a pre-deployment tradition we've come to count on), we got to the drop-off hangar at 4:00pm up and down. After Nick checked in, he escorted us to the car for the dreaded moment (we wanted our goodbye to be private as opposed to doing it with the masses after a brief ceremony). It broke my heart to see him give Emmy his last kiss goodbye (and I know that it broke his as well :-()...

But, I found comfort in the fact that this wasn't the first drive home that I've made after seeing my love go off to war. I know that we'll be ok, and I know that he'll be ok...He promised me that. We're just taking it one day at a time...

Been there done that...

Deployment September '05- September '06 parking lot goodbye

Deployment March '10-March '11 parking lot goodbye

Going the distance...

D-Day

THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS

I heard the voice of the Lord saying,

Whom shall I send,

and who will go for

Us?

Then said I,

Here am I; send me.

Isaiah 6:8

My Guardian Angel

My sister is my guardian angel. She came to my rescue in this especially emotionally draining time. Kris is keenly aware of all the stresses that Nick and I have been dealing with as we approach the last days before he deploys. Our "to do" list seems endless and time is rapidly slipping through our fingers. One thing that kept falling to the end of the list was "Nick and Ali time".  Kris reminded me of that while we were chatting on Thursday afternoon. She also told me that she was driving to Tennessee the next day to take care of our baby girl for the night so that we might have a quick get-a-way. She said she wouldn't take no for an answer...So, less than 24 hours later, Kris and my 8 month old niece, Claire arrived on our doorstep and booted Nick and I out the door.

With Emmy in Kris' loving care, we enjoyed a delicious adult dinner at The Red Pony in Franklin. I realized that I had forgotten how to savor food over the past three months! We chatted constantly over our four course meal and then over drinks back at our hotel.  As if our night couldn't get any better, we enjoyed 8 glorious hours of uninterrupted sleep! Rested, rejuvenated and reconnected, we arrived home to my three favorite girls!

Kris, I cannot even thank you enough for your selflessness and for knowing what I need better than I do. Nick and I feel so indebted to you for your kindness and your unwavering support. Thanks to you and Clairey, we can now say goodbye after refocusing on what's most important: Team Horn.

My favorite girls!

Clairey saying hello to Emmy

Date night!

Family portrait (Emmy 12 weeks old)

Baby swap!

Just Three Words...

RUB A DUB

Feeling Girly

Not our Last Monday Together!

We got some great news-Nick won't be leaving until the beginning of next week rather than the end of this week!! I am so relieved that this isn't our last Monday together! Now if I can just postpone daylight savings for another week, I could squeeze in another hour...I know, now I'm just being greedy...

Emmy takes relaxing very seriously

Bedtime with Daddy & Dr. Seuss

The Ultimate Chili Throwdown

I say this with nothing but the utmost love and respect, but my hubby is a one-hit wonder in the kitchen.  He can make a mean pot of chili...It just keeps getting better and better in the (now) three times that he's made it since he created the recipe in the Spring of '07.

Nick is rightfully far from modest about his chili recipe and we recently decided that our inaugural FRG fundraiser would be a Chili lunch sale with a twist.  Nick recruited 9 guys from work and one of the wives, through relentless trash talking, to enter their best chili recipe in the Throwdown.  There was a $10 buy-in to participate, first place took 50% of the buy-in pot, second took 30% and third won 20%.  With the help of the rest of the wives in the FRG providing the drinks and desserts, it was on like donkey-kong!

Two nights before the big day, we made a spur-of-the-moment trip to Whole Foods in Nashville so that Nick could pick out some of the best, most fresh ingredients for his chili.  He found a few new ingredients as well to hopefully give him an edge over the competition.  Fortunately, I took a break from oogling at the beautiful produce department to notice Nick with three bags each containing at least a couple of peppers (serrano, jalapeno, poblano, etc.)  We talked about how much heat he would be introducing into his chili should he include all of the peppers that he was holding in his hand...The goal was for it to be prize-winning, let alone edible...So he committed to just a couple of them...Definitely brought a smile to my face.

Anyways, Nick was hard at work late the night before the Throwdown to make sure the crock-pot was doing it's magic for a full 12 hours.  It all paid off in the end, because, thankfully, Nick won third place in our competition!  Which, of course only boosted his ego, but I don't mind because it went to a good cause "boosting" our FRG bank account as well! Way to go, Babe!!

Here are a few pics I managed to take after the damage was done...

A few of the contenders

It's not a party without balloons and crepe paper!

Just Three Words...(and then some)

CALIFORNIA OR BUST

Nick and I made a last minute decision to fly back to California to visit with family and friends for his second-to-last weekend stateside. This past Friday afternoon, Nick flew in the door from work at 2:20 and we pulled our over-stuffed car out of the driveway a mere 20 minutes later en route to Nashville International.  We packed heavy no thanks to Emmy, although one very important item was left behind: a super-sized bottle of Pepto Bismol to calm my nervous stomach.  After my last experience flying with my darling niece and nephew, I learned how very important it is to be prepared for anything.  Because if there is a time that Murphy will show up, it's when you're traveling with little ones! 

Our biggest mistake was that we didn't leave ourselves NEARLY enough time.  We pulled up to the departure drop-off area a mere 30 minutes prior to boarding.  Nick left me with a mound of luggage and our daughter to park the car in the newly re-organized long-term parking lot.  From the moment he walked back in the door, we took off running, all the while I am wasting precious emotional energy worrying about how I will accomplish this feat all by my lonesome once Nick leaves.  We arrived, panting and sweating, to our gate just in time for family boarding.  I will let you in on a secret we learned after we drove a sweet lady to change her seat (we flew Southwest because they love bags): Always flaunt the small child that you are traveling with, because people won't glance twice at the open seat next to you.  You'll have a row (or perhaps a whole section of the aircraft) to yourself in no time.  Anyways, to make a long story slightly less long, Emmy did pretty well on her first flight (after four feedings and three diaper changes in the 4 hour and 40 minute flying time).  Our second flight from Ontario to Oakland was delayed, due to a small ice patch on the wing.  Apparently the airports in sunny California don't anticipate ice, and therefore have opted out of de-icing equipment.  As a result, we sat on the plane, for over and hour, WAITING for the ice to melt.  I could have chugged that whole bottle of Pepto at this point had I not carelessly left it behind.  I have never been so grateful to bring an end to a (very long) travel day.

Saturday morning came quickly, and we headed over to the Horn's house for Emmy's meet-n-greet with many of their good family friends. She did her very best to reciprocate the love that she was shown in the brief two hour shin-dig (one thing that Emmy is lacking is social stamina).  It was so nice that so many people decided to share their weekend morning with us! :-) After a nap that lasted a quarter of the time that it took to get her to sleep, we were back to the Horn's house for a special rib dinner prepared by their resident chef, Grantland. It was his first time making them, and he hit a home run.  Emmy was able to visit with some of Nick's close friends, and, met the acquaintance of her great-grandfather, my Grandpa Hagg.  I was so touched to watch my baby girl gaze into my grandpa's eyes as he recited his extensive repertoire of nursery rhymes to her.  It was music not only to Emmy's ears, but to mine as well. 

After a good floss, and an amazingly full night of sleep, we were ready for some more action on Sunday.  Emmy woke up to the the beautiful sight of her Great-Auntie Jackie and cousin Gracie.  She quickly offered up her own 1,000-watt smile! How wonderful it was to watch them get to know one another! We traveled out to visit Emmy's Great-Grandmother (G.G.), my Grandma Odell, where she is recovering from a very recent fall.  You would never know it if Grandma was in any pain.  She is either a phenomenal actress or Emmy is the strongest analgesic available.  Grandma finally met the little one that she had helped me pray for (and had given me tips on how to get the job done, but that is a funny blog post that will stay in my head!) Shortly thereafter, my dear Aunt Kerry arrived!  It was amazing to have so many people that I love so deeply in the same room...It made traveling to California Pepto-Bismol-less all worth it. 

After this very special introduction, Nick and I divided and conquered.  I spent some much-needed and appreciated down time with my parents and brother as Emmy did her best to avoid a nap.  Nick joined up with his family for a walk to the park and a good game of frisbee...We reunited for a big night out (Mom, Dad and Jamie put Emmy to bed for us!).  We noshed on some Ruth's Chris deliciousness and then watched the closing ceremony of the Olympics back at Nick's parents' house.  Very exciting, I know, we are clearly getting old.

After a very sleepless night (Emmy decided that she and I should enjoy some Q.T. between the hours of 10:30pm and 7:30am), we snuck in another playdate at the Horn's house before we were off to the airport to head home.  Two flights, a $10 slot-machine win, four feedings, and an angry call to the person who changed the airport parking lot signs later, we collapsed in our bed.  Only to wake up a couple hours later, at 3 am, to spend some more Q.T. with our favorite little girl...

Ready to start the day!

Emmy hanging out with Daddy, Poppy Horn, and Grammy Horn

My trigger finger snapped this one just as Grandpa laid eyes on Emmy...

Grandpa and his girls

Hey diddle diddle the cat and the fiddle... 

Three men and a lady

Still waking up a little bit...but so excited to meet Auntie Jackie

Emmy and Aunt Kerry

Surrounded by love

Grandma gives the best advice...

I made Mom and Dad late for work for this one....

"I'll miss you, Papa..."

"...and you too Mimi." Ugg, I hate goodbyes :-(