Wordless (ish) Wednesday ~ Daily Vegas

Squish and BobBob's Welcome Home picture.

  

 

We have made it a tradition to take one when he leave, and one when he is home.

That way Squish can always see how sad his Daddy was to leave him, and how happy he was to be home.

Happy Wednesday!

Other Wordless Wednesdays:


Angry Julie Monday

Parenting By Dummies

5 Minutes for Mom

A Beautiful Mess

Live and Love Out Loud

Daily Vegas ~ Daddy is HOME!

I can't believe I am still up, but I suppose it is the excitement of having the hubs home. He is currently SNORING loudly next to me - Ahhh! The sweet sound of a hubby home!

Squishy took a late nap, and managed to stay up way past his bedtime to wait for daddy. And boy oh boy, was the Hubs happy to see him! So much has changed in 6 months!

My favorite part was when Squish said "Hi there Bob Bob!" (He has never really called the Hubs Dada or Daddy. I am sure that will change now that he is talking more, but I know Daddy doesn't mind one bit! In fact he thinks it is cute!)

I can tell you Squish loved having his "Bob Bob" home. He has already shared several hugs and a couple sloppy kisses. Not to mention he had to show off some of his new tricks!

Tomorrow we are off to the circus. Hopefully the Hubs will be okay. I know - not the best timing, but it is for Squish so he is going to try.

Other than a few pre-written posts and the announcement of the Toddler Wonderland Winners (Tomorrow is the last day to enter!!), I am probably going to be absent for a few days, which I am sure you can understand!

So happy to have my family back together! Now I am going to attempt to fall asleep next to my sweet chainsawing hubby! Love that man!

Daily Vegas ~ Single Parenting VS Single Parent ~ Wordfilled Wednesday

We have reached the end of another deployment. The day that my Hubs will be returning is within reach. I can count down the hours instead of the months.

And boy oh boy, I ready to be done with Single Parenting! Every part of me is ready for a break. My son is a sweet little Squish, he is by no means a “difficult” child, but that doesn’t mean that doing it on your own isn’t extremely exhausting.

All the choices whether they are small or large decisions are all yours. Every time your child wakes in the middle of the night it is all you. Late night runs to the ER when your child has a temp of 105.5, yep just you.

Daddy Leaving - Squish just shy of 5 months

You sleep when you can, and cry when you can’t. You love every moment with your child, and praise every moment you can get away to breathe.

But the main difference between Single Parenting and being a Single Parent is eventually your spouse comes home. Whether they have been deployed for 5.5 months or they have been on business for 2 weeks. The moment your spouse/partner comes home and wraps you in their arms, you know that rest is in your future, the pressure of making choices for your child is again split, and you are once again parenting with someone you love.

Daddy home - Squish 9 months

I have had two deployments spanning just less than 10 months total to learn how to deal with Single Parenting. Those 10 months have given me is an amazing perspective into the daily life of a Single Parent.

Single Parents are amazing people. I don’t know how they do it, because let me tell you, it is not easy. Rewarding? Fun? Crazy? Chaotic? Amazing? Lonely? Yes, it is every one of those things, but it is not easy.

When the Hubs deployed the first time post baby, Squish was 5 months old; I had no family in Las Vegas. My mommy friends were newer friends, and had families of their own. I was embarrassed to accept offers of help, and forget about asking for help. By the end of that deployment I was SO.INCREDIBLY.EXHAUSTED.

There were days when I wasn’t sure I could do it anymore. I hadn’t slept more than 3-4 hours at one time. I look back and feel like I missed out on so many moments with my son. Even though I was there, mentally I had checked out.

This holiday season why not offer a full day off to a friend or family member who is doing it all alone. Tell them no is not an option. If they don’t want a whole day, tell them to take an hour to go to the grocery store, better yet tell them to take 2 so they can do some holiday shopping.

If you happen to be a Single Parent, or are Single Parenting and someone offers to help you. Just say yes. I know it isn’t easy to say yes, and harder still to ask for help.

Daddy Leaving - Squish 12 months

This deployment I was lucky enough to have my Sister-in-law here. She moved out to be closer to her nephew, find new opportunities, and to be there to help me when her brother deployed.

Because of her, and some really great friends; sure I am RIDICULOUSLY.READY for the Hubs to come home, but I don’t feel like I missed out on important moments. I’m tired, but I can breathe. I got out of the house almost once a week just me. It has made a world of difference.

Thank you Kim. Thank you Thursday friends. Thank you Hubs - for doing what you do, the privilege of staying home with Squish is one I am blessed to have. And Single Parents – You amaze me.

So more of a Wordful Wednesday than Wordless Wednesday, but a wonderful Wednesday none-the-less.

Other Wordless Wednesdays:

Parenting By Dummies

5 Minutes for Mom

A Beautiful Mess

Live and Love Out Loud

Daily Vegas ~ Deja Vu Wordless Wednesday

My Squishy looked so sweet taking his nap the other day, I had to take a picture. I wasn't worried about waking him up, because he had been sleeping for 3 hours, and needed to get up if it was going to be a good night.

Isn't he sweet?? He sleeps just like his Daddy...

Wakes up just like him too!!

Now when I saw this picture I was suddenly hit with a feeling of Deja Vu. No, and not because that is very literally the look my husband has on his face when he wakes up in the morning.

It was because I have posted this before....

Don't believe me? Have a look for yourself!

Blanket Full of Love ~ Starrrytime Keepsakes Review and Giveaway

As many know, my hub's job takes him away for months on end. These deployments were just part of our life until we found out we were expecting our first child. All of the sudden a choice we had made for our lives, was never going to be his choice. It was something he would grow up having to deal with, and learn to understand.

My hubs loves his job, but every time he goes away a little part of my heart would break. And through the months the phone calls and emails would help to heal that break until he returned safely in my arms again. With our Squish, it wouldn't be that simple. How does a little child learn to understand that when a parent leaves (for the day, night, week, or months) it isn't because they don't want to be with them. And it isn't because they don't love them, although many children can worry about just those two things.

This is our second deployment with Squishy here. The first time the hubs left when Squish was 5 months, and returned when he was 9 months. This time he left shortly after his 1st birthday. We video taped Daddy reading books, we look at pictures a lot, we let Squish push the buttons (usually hanging up on Daddy) when he calls. We try very hard to do many things to make sure Squishy understands that just because Daddy isn't here, it doesn't make him love him any less.

When I came across Starrytime Keepsakes and Blanket Full of Love by Kim Freeman, I knew I had to have this story. This book is personalized for your child, and tells the story of a blanket that symbolizes a parent's love. This blanket, like the parent's love, goes everywhere with the child. It helps them to understand that no matter where they are, or how old they are, that love will always be there. Kim wrote this book for her daughter, and then designed a book to be personalized so that every child could read about how they would always be loved.

I personalized the book to make it just for Squish. You can even include a picture and a dedication in the front for your child. Squishy's name is throughout the whole book, and I was able to create a child to look close to what mine looks like.

"I love the sun for days, the moon for night, and you forever." - anonymous
Your sweetness reminds us every day what is truly important in life. I hope this book always reminds you of our love.
Love and Squishes,
Mama and Daddy

"And if your blanket shrinks or fades, or rips or falls apart, Kellan, you know that does not change the love that is in my heart."

This story is absolutely beautiful, and the illustrations by Val Lawton are just perfect! It is a book I know we will treasure for a long time. It is my hope that this will help my baby to understand that Daddy and I both love him no matter where we are, or how old he is. I look forward to seeing my Hubs read it to Squish when he comes home.

"So if you ever need me near or feel a little blue, just wrap your blanket 'round you tight and hear my words to you: Kellan dear, whatever comes wherever you should go, my love is always there for you, I'll always love you so."

Whether you are a family like mine who has a parent who is gone for long periods of time or not, this is the perfect story for all families. You can even personalize the back cover to include your child's name.

"A custom storybook made with love for Our Squishapillar."

On the Squishy rating scale, this starrytime book receives an
Amazingly Squishable.
(this is not a normal Squishy rating, but this is just that special of a book.)

(Disclaimer: While I did receive a copy of Blanket Full of Love to review, no monetary compensation was given for this review. This is 100% my honest opinion, and may differ from yours.)

The Giveaway:
Kim, the author of Blanket Full of Love has very generously offered to give a personalized book to one lucky reader. (You can use it for your own child, or as a present for someone who may really need and enjoy this story.)

How to win:
Entering is easy – all you have to do is the mandatory entry. Extra entries are available but not mandatory. Please make sure to leave your email in your comment, or I will not be able to contact you about your win, and will have to choose another winner.
I will be checking each entry to the best of my ability, so honesty is appreciated!

Mandatory Entry:
Head over to Starrytime Keepsakes and tell me who you would personalize this book for if you win. You must also be a follower of Family and Life in Las Vegas
Please leave one (1) comment saying you have done both of these things.
(This is the only mandatory entry. The other entries below are EXTRA.)

Extra Entries:
(Please enter a comment for EACH entry. So, if it says that an entry is worth 3 entries, please leave 3 separate comments.)

1. Follow me and Starrytime Keepsakes on Facebook and leave a comment on their wall telling them I sent you! (2 entries)
2.Sign up for Starrytime's newsletter (3 entries)
3. Follow me on Twitter and tweet the following, leaving the link in a comment. (2 entries) (You can tweet once per day for extra entries!)
“#win a blanket be full of love personalized #giveaway 4 a special child in UR life from @FamilyNLifeLV ends 10/11 http://tinyurl.com/2f65a4k”
4. Vote for me on Top Mom Blog and Picket Fence (1 entry for each vote)(this can be done daily)
5. Grab my blog button and place it on your blog. Spread the word! Leave a comment with the link. (2 entries)
6. Subscribe to this blog via email (upper right hand corner) (3 entries)
7. Post this giveaway on a giveaway linky and leave a direct link to it! (5 entries)
8. Share this on your facebook page, and tell me you did. (2 entries)

This Giveaway ends 9/24 at 9pm PST. Random.Org will draw one lucky winner. That winner will be notified via email, and has 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen.

Daily Vegas ~ Orion

Late at night when all the world is sleeping, I stay up and think of you... and I wish on a star that somewhere you're thinking of me, too. ~ Selena

Wow I think I just dated myself a little here... Okay so the quote may be a little cheesy, but after last night's post, and just feeling a little out of sorts lately, I found myself looking through old pictures. One of the ones I came across was a picture from the Hubs return home after our first deployment as a couple.

During that deployment we were definitely put through a couple of hard months. I was living in Chicago, and while I knew the Hubs was going to be my Hubs, some of my girlfriends couldn't understand why I was waiting for a guy who was a million miles away. While I never really told Rob, there were definitely times when I found myself wondering if they were right. I would wonder if I was crazy for waiting for a man when I had no guarantees it was going to work out. I spent a lot of nights thinking. But no matter how I was feeling, I most often found myself spending nights wondering what he was doing and if he was okay.

One night I went outside and looked up and say Orion big and bright as could be. I know this sounds really cheesy, but it was like an instant calm came over me. A few days later Rob called from overseas and said to me that he would spend nights looking up at the stars, and hoped I was seeing the same night sky. He told me that Orion was looking especially bright lately. At that moment, any worries of making it through that deployment were put to rest. We were on the same page, and I knew that all the waiting I was doing was going to be well worth it.

I think I need to get out and look at our night sky a little more. Perhaps it will help me gain a sense of perspective again.

Vegas Daily (a new feature)

Another day down, another day spent inside! The good news is that both Squishapillar and I are

both really feeling much better. I am tired of the sick days, bring on the fun days!

I would like to first take a minute to congratulate Charity at Humbolt Cherry for winning the RubADub Buddies Giveaway! Don’t forget, if you didn’t win, you can still get $5 off your purchase OR free monogramming. Head over to RubADub Buddies etsy page, and tell her I sent you to get your discount! Don’t forget tomorrow is your last chance to win the $15 GC from EcoMom. This may not seem like a lot, but trust me you can get so much with $15. For instance:

andfor >$15.00

OR
andfor $15.00

OR
a 6 pack ofandfor >$15.00

You should get the idea... So make sure you get your entries in today and tomorrow!! Don’t forget to follow the mandatory entry, otherwise I will have to choose another winner.

With the Hubs gone, he has really been feeling left out of all the things Squish has been doing lately. It is amazing how fast the start to pick things up. He is now walking (albeit wobbly) across the room, he has added some new signs to his repertoire, “Hat, Eat, More, and even Car!” It is really fun to watch him learn. We are loving watching our baby-signs videos. He really enjoys them, and dances along. He watches them do the different signs and you can actually see the wheels moving in his brain on how he can copy them and do that too! So fun. Squish is also dancing all the time, but I think he inherited my rhythm. LOL! He has even started to realize when he does something that elicits a laugh, and will promptly try to do it again. (Tonight’s stunt involved crawling and pushing his head across the carpet until he ran into something because he wasn’t watching where he was going.!) In an effort to help Rob stay somewhat connected I try to take as much video as I can. Not that I need an excuse to pull out any camera! When we sent “Bob” the video of Squishy walking, he decided he needed to send Squish a gift for being a walker... I think it is his way of trying to stay connected. Either way, boy did Squish ever luck out. Check out Squishy’s new favorite toy!

So this has been my Vegas Daily. My more personal posts, where I can share about me and my family, and our daily going ons in this Vegas life. I will do other posts, but if you are looking for posts that are mostly just about us (hint hint to all family who reads this looking for Squishy updates - Vegas Daily's are where you want to be looking!)

Blahs.

Don't you hate the days where you look back on them and go "Blah!"
I do, and here is why it was a blah kind of day.

(Be prepared for a woe-is-me kinda post. Hey we all have them...)

• I woke up and picked up Squishy's messy toy area, he promptly made it look like I didn't do a darn thing.
• I burnt the pancakes twice.
• I realized I was out of a lot of Squish friendly food.
• I had aspirations of getting the dining-room/playroom make-over done today, those faded fast.
• I tried to take a nap, (only 3 hours of sleep the night before) but I couldn't sleep, and when I finally did slip into sweet nap-dom, Squish woke me up with MOM MOM MOM (okay that part is still cute)
• I should re-name Squishapillar to Squishypoo as we had 5 (yes 5) poopy diapers today. No one person should have to change that much poop in a day...
• I went to Target looking to spend $30, and spent WAY more... Seriously that store is my nemesis.
• I messed up Squishes sleep schedule by going to Target and falling into the wandering trap that is what Target was made for.
• I couldn't talk to my Hubs when he called. (I was trying to put Squishapillar to sleep.)
• I saved all the cleaning I need to do for tomorrow, for tomorrow morning! Joy!

Did I mention I didn't really get to talk to the Hubs today? I miss him something fierce. Squish cries now every time he calls, not because he misses Daddy (which he does) but because he wants the phone, and is in that "I need to get what I want or I am going to scream" lovely stage. So needless to say, any time the Hubs wants to be put on speaker, Squish enters melt-down mode.

Okay, enough woe-is-me-ing. I did have some sweet parts to my day too.

• Mom, mom, mama. It never gets old, at least for now!
• Kisses from my Squishes. (I melt every-time he leans in for a smooch!)
• Giggles and Squeals while playing.
• Getting books thrown at me to read, and then ripped out of my hands so he can 'read' them.
• A "I'm getting more comfortable" with walking little man
• A super-cute table runner for the dining-room table at Target.
• And this ridiculously sweet squishy face.

(Yes, he is still in the bouncer, did I mention we missed bed-time?)

6 word Saturday

"Tomorrow has got to be better."

So What is a Kiss Can??

Recently I have talked about my Sister-in-Law living with us. About a 1 1/2 months ago, she made the trek from Indiana out to Las Vegas. I am going to be honest, as excited as I was to have an extra set of hands around while the Hubs is gone, and someone to talk to; I was nervous about it.

She is a great person, really laid back and easy going, and she loves Squishy. But moving in with someone is always a tricky situation. You could be best friends with someone, move in with them, and by the time the lease is up, you are no longer friends.

I like my space, I like being in my own world at times. I like control over the TV, I like cooking, and am picky about my food. I can be crabby, bi*chy, crazy, OCD'd, or just plain not want to feel like talking at times. I want help with Squish, but I don't want another parent. That is the Hubs job. I march to my own beat at times. (It's a wonder my Hubs puts up with me as much as he does!)

Thankfully, having Kim here has been wonderful. So great in fact we keep joking about how our first fight must be right around the corner. She is fun, helpful, picky about food like me, and enjoys her own space too. She watches similar TV shows, her humor is along the same lines as mine. It has been so nice to have her here. Squish loves it too. He often crawls all the way down to her room looking for her.

As wonderful as living with Kim has been, I never expected her to touch me so deeply with an act of kindness the words can not express how much it means to me. The other night I saw Kim, (a talented and undiscovered writer) scribbling away in her notepad. I asked what she was doing, and I was not prepared for her response.

She had written a children's book for Squishy, and The Hubs. The words still make me cry. Together we will be working on creating a kiss can to send to Daddy, along with the words of the story. I only wish I could see Hub's face as he reads the words.

I Blow Daddy Kisses Across the Sea

By Kimberly Knight

Today I found big bags by the front door.

And I asked my daddy what they were for.

He said, “I’m going on a trip across the sea to work in a faraway place.”

“How long will you be gone,” I asked Daddy with a sad look on my face.

He replied, “It will be a long time, but I will come back.”

I ran to my room to grab Daddy something of mine and gave him my bunny to pack.

Since he left, we talk everyday about how he loves and misses me on the phone.

Mommy is still here, and we play lots of games, but my daddy’s still gone.

One night as I was getting into bed, I asked Mommy what I could do. She said I could blow him a kiss.

Mommy told me if I wish real hard and blow with all my might, I’ll never miss.

She told me he catches them and keeps them safe in a can.

So when he’s working and thinks of me, he can pull out a kiss from his little man.

Daddy’s been gone a long time now, and I’ve been blowing him kisses every night.

The day he comes home is what I wish for with all my might.

My daddy finally came home, and he told me all the stories of his trip over the sea.

I hugged and kissed him, happy that I had my daddy back with me.

(This story has been copy-righted, please do not share this without express written consent from Kimberly Knight)

Thank you Kim for writing such a sweet story for not only my son, but also my husband. It really does mean more to me than I can express. It has been wonderful having you here. I am lucky not only to have such a wonderful sister-in-law, but also such a good friend!

Kimberly is the author of two brand new blogs. One detailing her Vegas adventures, and another where she reviews the MASS quantity of movies that she proudly owns.
Check them out here:
www.blondiesflickfind.blogspot.com
www.schweducky.blogspot.com

If you haven't read my updates lately, please email me if you entered the RubaDub Buddies Giveaway yesterday. All entries were lost, I will manually re-enter your entries for you, but I need to know how many times you entered. If you haven't entered yet, please do so per regular instructions.

Also if you commented yesterday from any of the blog hops, and I have not followed you back, please leave another comment, as it was also deleted. :(

Finally, I got Squishy's 1 year pictures back today. Did I mention my son is a huge Ham-bone????