Two Months Down

Two months down, ten more to go.

The newness of this deployment wore off in month two. I started feeling overwhelmed at times and C was more moody with a lot of random “I miss Daddy” moments. There was quite a bit of tantrums, big emotions, and apologizing that happened between the two of us. I guess the good thing is that we are building a relationship in which we are becoming comfortable sharing and dealing with these things together. I think this year alone together will help us bond in a way we may not have otherwise.

I began to feel how long term this really is and fell into a slump of sadness and low motivation in the first half of the month. Thankfully the second half of the month had enough in it to pull me back up and get me through.

My best friend and her daughter came to visit from out of state for a weekend and it was an amazing time, though way too short! Our daughters are just over a year apart and at this age they were able to play and interact really well together. I love that we each have a daughter close in age and hope we can take many girls trips together in the future. We had long-overdue time to catch up with each other and I appreciated having another adult in the house to interact with and talk to.

J planned an amazing trip for all of us later this year and the plane tickets are purchased! He gets a couple weeks off for “rest and relaxation” because this is a year-long deployment so C and I will be meeting up with him in Europe during that time. It is going to be a legendary trip and we can’t wait! Having this planned hugely boosts our morale and gives us something to look forward to with a definite date to count down toward.

C had spring break during the last week of the month so she and I took a stellar road trip! We spent two nights in Savannah where we ran the Skidway Island Half Marathon and saw Beauty and the Beast in an amazing movie theater, we spent a day on Tybee Island touring the light house and playing on the beach, we spent a night on Jekyll Island and had fun exploring and playing on the beach there, we spent a night on Daytona Beach which was covered with stinky seaweed so we spent a lot of time in the swimming pool instead, we spent an entire day at the Kennedy Space Center, and we spent three nights at Disney World visiting the Magic Kingdom and Epcot. That was supposed to be the end of our trip but we added on two nights in Jacksonville to spend time with my parents who happened to be there, going to the beach and the zoo.

The road trip was incredibly rejuvenating. Traveling with an only child at this age was so fun, easy,  enjoyable, and relaxing… it was more like traveling with a good friend. We had such a great time together! It was refreshing to get out of Valdosta for over a week. Allergens are very high here, illness was rampant (flu and strep), and this isolated southern town gets me down after a while so it felt physically and mentally good to be in different environments. Returning was an assault on our sinuses that took a few days to grow accustomed to again.

I did better cooking this month, meaning I made more “real” meals than mac and cheese. My favorite quick, easy, and healthy real meal is chicken (raw, cut) and any softer veggies (harder ones like potatoes and carrots require longer cooking) tossed together with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and then baked for only 15 minutes at 500F. Here is website inspiration for that meal:
http://gimmedelicious.com/2016/03/22/15-minute-healthy-roasted-chicken-and-veggies/

Month 2 events:

  • We spent a day at the local Azalea Festival
  • My best friend and her daughter came to visit for a girls weekend!
  • We took a Spring Break road trip traveling to Savannah, Skidaway Island, Tybee Island, Jekyll Island, Daytona Beach, Kennedy Space Center, DisneyWorld, and Jacksonville Beach.
  • We saw Beauty and the Beast – we’ve been eagerly awaiting it and we loved it!

Month 2 accomplishments:

  • We planted our gardens during the first week of the month
  • I made C a Dr Seuss outfit for Dr Suess day at school
  • C learned how to start pedaling herself on her bicycle (we said good-bye to training wheels when she was 4years 4months old just before daddy left in January)
  • I made C a St Patty’s Day skirt for school
  • I ran a 5K race
  • C and I ran in a 1 mile fun run race
  • C performed in her first play at school, she was a black kitty
  • I ran the Skidaway Island Half Marathon pushing C in a jogging stroller

On to month three!

*******
“Not all girls are made of sugar and spice and everything nice.
Some girls are made of adventure, fine beer, brains and no fear.”