Keeping Myself Busy

Things have kind of started slowing down and with Jones still gone, I needed to find something fun to do with my spare time. I have a lot of used baby girl clothing, so I went to Joanne's and bought buttons and ribbon and other crafty type items, and decided I would try and spruce them up a bit.

I am an artsy person and pretty good with hands but crafts usually aren't my thing. I have tried but I just don't see it, you know the end result in my head. Anyways, I like what I have done with these clothes though.

The last three pictures are just cute clothes I thought I would show off. The girly ones were awesome sale finds and the boy shirt is what I like to call "Clothes I would buy for my brother-in-law S-bug if he were 2 years old." I have found a lot of those kind of clothes.

Boy Genius

C Bug has really gotten into drawing the letter A lately. This picture in no way captures the intensity of the real one. He was drawing on a poster board so its pretty big and this is only a little piece of it. Once he got tired of A's he started drawing choo choo train Thomas, which is what the first picture is. I love how focused he can be and how clever he is. To the world he isn't really a boy genius, but he is to me.

Trinkets and Charms

My littlest sister is getting married next month and I am doing her hair for the wedding. I really wanted to find a pretty hair jewelry for her but the more I looked and found painful looking and feeling headbands or way to big and loud hair clips, I decided to literally buy her hair jewelry. I found a beautiful fish wire pearl necklace with silver sparklies that I am going to use like a head band. I have never been this excited about hair at a wedding.

Since I was out, I couldn't help but notice other adorable jewelry. They were calling to me really. I tend to like pieces that are small and trinkety, but there is occasionally a loud and boisterous piece that will catch my eye. The mix sometimes makes me feel confused inside like I don't really know who I am or quite understand myself. Like a child still playing dress up.

Bohemian french chic? I don't know, with a touch of all American Californian? and awkward artsy ...yeah, anyways.

Mother's day is coming up so maybe I can convince Jones to get me something :)

Sacrilege

Today when C was saying a prayer before dinner, he made a face when I said to bless the food, instead of the usual, " bless us that we have a good night sleep." So when we got to, "in the name of Jesus Christ..." He decided to change it to " in the name of choo twain thomas, amen"
:)

Long and Wavy

I have been growing my hair out for the last two years, in hopes that I would someday be able to pull off an easy breazy kinda look, with natural sunkissed waves.I have yet to acheive that look and the hotter it gets the more I find myself missing a bob.

I am getting closer though and I have afeeling it will be a hair style i'll stick with for while. With a T-shirt, flip flop and skirt, yeah... I like it.

My name is October. I like to dance!

I am blessed to live next door to my cousin and his wife, We'll call them Mateo and Christoff. They have a little boy, HW, that is C's age. They play together all the time and are truly best friends, which makes me so happy. There is always the occasional hitting or toy stealing but that is to be expected from 2 year olds. They watch this show called Yo Gabba Gabba, which also makes me happy, and on this show they have little clips of kids who say "My name is _____ I like to dance" followed by funny kid dancing. Every night when I am trying to go to sleep and October is kicking like crazies, I picture her in pigtails and a jumper dancing away.



I love my babies.

Pretty California

C bug and I spent the last couple days in central California with Jones. It was a wonderfully spontaneous and quick trip, and I am soooooo glad we went. I had dreamt up this life we would have if we were to live up there more permanantly. Now that I have actually had a chance to explore it I feel I have a much better idea of what to look forward to if it does happen, and/or what I am really missing if it doesn't.

We spent the first day we were there out at Morro Bay, which is where Jones and I were pretty sure we wanted to settle down. It is a beach town and we love the beach so it should have been perfect. The drive there was nice, and as Morro Rock came into view I definately was excited to check out the town and get that gut feeling like this is where we are meant to be. That feeling never came. I found an adorable place, the ocean was beautiful but it didn't work. Too many exposed freeway views and not enough places to keep me entertained long term.

This has happened to me before when I have seen an outfit at the store that I thought was fantastic, and of course we couldn't afford it but I waited patiently til we had the extra cash and then took a mommy fun day to go buy it. I try it on and to my disappointment, I look silly in it.

I didn't want to say anything to Jones about it til I had had time to think about it and feel it out a little more. The next day he had to go back to work so C and I set out to explore Paso Robles all by ourselves. Now, Paso Robles is the town just south of Camp Roberts and my first impression of it was that it was just another truck stop town, small and dusty.

This was not the case.

Paso Robles was charming, it had small town appeal, little adorable houses, old downtown, giant old trees, hidden freeways, and easy access to the places I like to go while also having new places for me to try out. To our surprise we both liked the idea of looking in Paso Robles.

I think this is just another time when I am humbled into seeing that I don't always know best. I loved spending time with my husband, searching for a life for us somewhere, and learning that anywhere where we can be a family and build a home is really what matters. That sometimes the best view is from our front porch looking in.

A porch would be nice :)

Everythings gonna be alright

Since leaving Jones at Camp Roberts, I feel much better. I know he's ok where he is and that he's being watched over. We have been alright with out him but we miss him daily, and I of course harrass him hourly with phone calls about nothing. I am reminded of how much he means to me and love and appreciate all the love and support he gives me, even from a distance.
Lately my mind has been filled with the future and Jones always listens patiently as I go on and on about all the possibilities ahead of us. When I dream big I am often disappointed with the outcome of things, but I love how united Jones and I are in the things we want for our family. It makes me feel like whatever does happen everything is going to be alright, just like Alicia Keys says.

Ultrasound

I went in Monday morning for an ultrasound. I was excited and a little bummed Jones couldn't be there. Still I loved the whole experience. She, yes that's right She, looks so beautiful already. I loved watching her little hands open and close, while she covered her face. I loved hearing C saying "no mama.." in the background (he was a little freaked out by it) I loved knowing that she is growing into a perfectly healthy baby.

Now that I know it' a girl I can officially start buying things. This makes me happy. I went out to riverside today and bought a large bag of used baby clothes, lightly used but nice still. It included 7 sun dresses, onesies, sleepers, sleeper dresses, hats, tights and more. I'd love to say I have everything but there is still plenty to get. I hope to pick up a pack n play, with changing table attatchment today. It is putting my mind at ease a little to have these things, and to find them at such a good price.

I am so happy to be adding a new little spirit to our family. She doesn't feel like a stranger. In a way we always knew she was coming, and now that we have both a boy and a girl, I feel we will be prepared for whoever comes next.

Ghost Town Goodbyes

We received a phone call Friday night from one of Jone's Sergeants. He was offered a job up at Camp Roberts that would last 6 weeks and pay pretty well. We considered the offer, and decided it was something we wanted to go for, which meant talking to all of Jone's professor's and figuring out long distance schooling. This had to be accomplished by the following Wednesday. Four days, half of them on the weekend, was not a lot of time and I spent the weekend anxious and impatiently wanting to know our future.
We spent all of Tuesday united in our determination to work it out with his professor's, my baby belly only slowing us down a little, hand in hand, well aware that if it did work out this would be our last day together for a while.
Finally, by four in the afternoon we had an answer, and Jone's started packing while I went to a sleepover the Laurel's were having that night. We left early Wednesday morning, and had decided I would drive him up with his bike so that I would still have car available. This meant a full day of driving for me, 5 1/2 hours there and 5 1/2 back, but I was excited for my husband and enjoying our last few hours together. The last 3 1/2 hours of the drive was a long straight road with nothing but barren land around it. In my head I still pictured the base being close to a city and all the fun and conveniences Jones would need. I imagined it to be much like most military bases dull but a little city in and of itself.
It wasn't.
As it came into view my initial thought was these must be the older buildings, the ones they don't use anymore, because they were so weathered and well, in shambles really.
I was wrong again.
Ghost Town, are the only words that come to mind when I try and describe how the place looked and felt. It did not feel inhabitable. I was suddenly afraid of leaving Jones there. The image of Shia Labouf in the movie "Holes" popped into my head, like the moment I was out of site they would hand him a shovel and make him start digging.
I kept it together well enough until I caught a glimpse of his room. Tears just started coming out. How could I leave him in a place like that? and with only bike and the nearest "town" 10 miles away. Am I really that selfish that I would leave the person I love in a place where things have been left to just dwindle and die, and for what? some extra cash and comfort. Of course Jones insisted that he would be OK and what could we do at that point anyways, so we finished getting him settled in and after getting a better look at his room I realized it was quite as bad as I had thought. I still wanted to buy him a rug and new blankets for is bed.
We said our Goodbyes and I started my trip back.
Since then I have felt much better, and he has gotten a chance to buy groceries and realize his cable allowed him to watch his favorite show :) . I just pray that he will be safe and find a joy in what he is doing there. From past experiences I have learned that 6 weeks is not as long as it seems, or at least once they've gone by they are gone, and eventually Jones will be somewhere he calls home again with people who love him. Until then, God bless him for the sacrifices he is willing to make for his family.