13 years and just 7 more to go

I can’t believe that I spaced Rodi’s anniversary date.  He enlisted in the Navy Jan. 4th 1996.  On Jan. 4th 2009 I was too busy watching Molly give birth to Faith that I completely forgot we were one year closer to Rodi’s RETIREMENT!!!!  Okay I know it is still seven years away but it’s ONLY SEVEN more years.

I long for that day.  I am proud of Rodi and the great job he does.  I am thankful for his service and the service of all our military members.  But I also can’t wait for this ride to be OVER.

I am looking forward to celebrating birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays with him in the same country as us.  This week he will be gone for JJ’s very first sectional gymnastics meet.  That was the two biggest events on the January calendar.  He will also miss Moe’s b-day, Nina’s b-day, My b-day, JJ’s b-day, His b-day (can you really miss your own b-day?), Bubba’s birthday next January, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years 2010, and possibly our anniversary this year and next.  I am sure there will be many other events he will miss along the way. 

Again I know this comes with the job, I am just ready for that part of our life to be done. 

I don’t mean to sound selfish, I guess I am just in a mood today.  I love him and the FANTASTIC job he does.  I even encouraged him to put in his paperwork to become a Supply Officer 9 years ago.  I think I knew then in the back of my head that we were in this for the long haul.  I know if he had stayed in the Nuclear field that he was in when he was enlisted  we would not still be doing this Navy thing. 

I am thankful for the opportunities we have had to travel across Europe and live in Germany those three wonderful years.  I have made long lasting, wonderful friendships along the way that I TREASURE.

I am thankful some of the things my children have been able to see and do because of our lifestyle.  I am also sad about some of the things they have had to endure.  I think I struggle with that part the most. 

Ahhh, okay, enough venting for the day.  Just came on to post about the fact that seven years from now Rodi will be able to retire….. now we just have to wait and see if he will actually do it.  That is an entirely different story!

Pictures from Commissioning day on the USS George H.W. Bush

I was freezing not sure how Rodi wasn't

 

We had to tell jokes to get them to smile...why don't boys smile for the camera?

My mom and I freezing before the event even began.

 

J & J take a minute to pose in front of the camera

The day before the commissioning Pres. Bush (41) paid an unexpected visit to the ship. Rodi was there to greet him.

What a week!

This past week was sort of a race to the finish and the memories looking back are somewhat of a fog.

I was preparing for my inlaws to come and stay the weekend and Rodi was preparing  for the Former President of the United States of America to arrive on his ship.  Who’s job was harder…Hmmmm I won’t say a word.  LOL

 It was a pretty stressful week for Rodi, but in the end very rewarding.  One of his jobs to prepare for the commissioning was to set up the tour of the ship with Pres. Bush Sr. two days before the commissioning.  He was able to shake hands with G. H. W. Bush and walk with him on the tour.  Then the next day G.H.W. Bush (who was very excited about this ship) came back for another tour unannounced.  Rodi was there again to greet him as he came on board.  It gets even better…. the day of the commissioning Rodi was there on the flight deck with the Secret Service to greet both G.W. Bush and G.H.W. Bush!!!! 

Here is a link with a video of Rodi shaking hands with G.H.W. Bush the day before the commissioning.  *Note this was the unannounced visit and that is why Rodi is in his coveralls*

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/01/10/bush.ship.commissioning/#cnnSTCVideo

One of those once in a lifetime moments that happened of couple of times in one week for Rodi.

Now it is Monday…. the inlaws are on a flight home to Iowa,  Rodi is back at work, the kids and I are diving back into our school lessons and life goes on as usual.

Do you not know what the term GROUNDED means???

For those of you who don’t know, I grounded Rodi from playing basketball when we were living in Germany.  It was early in 2005 when the grounding took place.  The reason at the time was due to the fact that he had to cut his wedding band off his finger.  He had been getting some injury or another every time he played the darn game and the cutting of the wedding band was my last straw.  I grounded him, simple as that. 

A few weeks later while he was on a mission in Italy I received a call from the medical officer of his unit.  This is something a wife never wants to get after 10 at night, well at anytime.  I was told he had badly injured his leg and was in an ambulance on his way to the Emergency room.  My heart sank.  I was VERY pregnant which didn’t help, as my emotions were all over the place. I am imagining the worst as I knew what kind of work they were doing.   Towards the end of the phone call I hear the Dr. say  “he was playing basketball when the injury happened.”  BASKETBALL!  Oooh I went from being scared for my husband,  to being extremely mad.  Then the Dr. told me he knew about the grounding but that he (the Dr.) had told Rodi that the grounding didn’t apply once you crossed a country border.  HA! 

Anyway several years later, one surgery, and a few more in the near future…. Rodi played basketball with the guys at work again on Friday.  He said he took it easy and didn’t do any serious running or major plays.  So WHY OH WHY on Saturday morning was I looking at what appears to be an injured foot?  Actually it looks like it might be broken. 

He knows he is in trouble, trust me.

 

**** I made Rodi go to the ER last night.  He wasn’t kicking and screaming but I think that is only because he was holding back his real feelings.  I may have been wrong, it wasn’t broken but just very bruised and swollen.  That’s okay though, going to the ER and being wheeled through the hospital in the bed for x-rays was a great punishment that fit the crime.  He was not happy about having to do that.  Do I think he learned his lesson?  Probably not.  That is just life with Rodi forever 17 when it comes to the game of basketball (and many other things)****

Cinderella’s night at the ball

DIDN’T END LIKE MINE!

The ball was wonderful, Mike Ditka was an AMAZING speaker, Prince Charming and I managed to get in our dance for the year, The band was actually good, and my feet didn’t kill me until the very end.

We called it a night and headed back up to the 12th floor to our room with an ocean view.  Rodi did such and amazing job this year getting our room and making sure we didn’t leave the ball until they played just the right song for us to dance to.  Have I told you how much I love this man?!

If Cinderella’s magic hour was midnight mine must have been about 1a.m. That is when instead of cuddling with my handsome Prince Charming I was hugging the cold white toilet!  Yep leave it to me to get seriously ill the one night a year I have alone with Rodi in a beautiful setting like that.  Since we don’t drink I know it wasn’t that I had had one too many.  I think it was maybe the salmon I ate for dinner or a touch of the flu?  Whatever it was I was not impressed!

Life WITH Rodi

It is taking a bit of time but I think we are all getting adjusted to life with Rodi amongst us again. 

I think the one who is having the hardest time adjusting is Sunny.  Rodi seems to think Sunny is a bit too loud at times.  Sunny wasn’t here before Rodi set sail this summer so they are still trying to get acquainted with each other.  This may take some time I have a feeling.

Moe won’t leave Rodi’ s side and every time that Rodi has to go somewhere Moe runs to me and says  “Dad on Boat”  I think he is very fearful that he is going to disappear all over again.

I had to laugh last night as we were driving down the interstate on our way home and Moe sounded off with his favorite Moe-made noise…. a siren!  He is very good at this imitation and has the volume of an actual siren at times.  Rodi didn’t know what to do.  He was trying not to laugh but was upset at the same time that Moe wouldn’t be a bit quieter.    There we were Rodi was trying to talk on the phone Nina was upset and crying about something, a DVD was playing to keep the kids quiet (worked well can’t ya tell) and Moe was playing police man.  It really was fun to show Rodi a bit of what he had been missing.

Now we are heading into a new week and trying to prepare for JJ to turn 9 this coming Friday.  I told her she wasn’t allowed to have a birthday, she isn’t allowed to get older.  She didn’t think that was a great plan.  So I guess the cake will get made anyway.

YeeeHA! HE’S HOME!!!!

That’s right Rodi is back!  He came home late Saturday night while the kids were still sleeping.  We surprised them with the biggest surprise of their lives around 6am.  That was a priceless moment that neither I nor Rodi will ever forget.

I will post more later but I have a hubby to go and enjoy!

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

For Rodi…..

Someday soon you will be home where you belong. 

Someday soon we won’t have to talk via e-mail or phone.

Someday soon we won’t have to exchange pictures to show what we have been doing and where we have been.

 Someday soon we will be able to look at the clock and not have to count forward or backwards to know if the other should be sleeping or awake.

I am counting the days until that someday.

Missing and Loving you!

Will I ever learn?

When there is a trail of cheese I usually assume it leads to the whole darn moon.  The sad reality of it is that the only place it seems to really lead to is a big ol’ stinky RAT!

I took a big ol’ bite out of the bait this time. I  just kept believing all the little notes attached to the toothpicks stuck in the center of the cheese, as if it were a glorious flag of hope and promises.  Today as I went searching for that next bite of hope I was greeted by the RAT!  I could see him laughing as he turned and walked away tugging the rug full of single toothpicks scattered all around, out from under my feet.  Gazing in disbelief at the scattered “flag poles” on the rug I noticed those flags were never made of anything except… toilet paper.

 Yes today I had a bad day.  And no it didn’t have anything to do with the kids.  In fact the kids are doing a great job on their chores as I type.  Let’s just say this morning I had to make huge changes to my calendar,  no my dear friends, they were not good changes!

 I think I may have to go out and stick my head in the hay with Molly.  She seems to enjoy doing that.  I know she has to be bummed out today too.  The poor thing woke up still preggers, she was due in October!  I think she may just be faking her pregnancy to keep the 3 bulls we have away from her….LOL

Amazing!!!! LOL

JJ:  Mom did you know that they invented Etch a Sketch in 1960?

Me:  Sure didn’t

JJ:  Isn’t it amazing the technology they had back then?  The people who made that must have been super smart. I bet they were like hero’s or something.

 Kids are great!  They say some of the best things.

Last Sunday Nina had a conversation with me that went like this:

Nina:  Mom do they make all kinds of things for dinner on Dad’s ship?

Me: Yes

Nina:  Like Pizza?

Me:  Yes I suppose they have pizza on the ship.

Nina: Then how does the pizza man get the pizza to the ship?