From vacation. When we last left off Jessica had just turned two. The following day we buried Corky at my parents in Rimrock. Thanks Mom and Dad for letting us bury him there.
This is going to be along post. So pull up a chair, grab some popcorn and enjoy the novel .
The following Friday, which would have been October 3, we headed for Chris’s sisters in Hanford, California. On Saturday, along with his mom, Tricia’s mother-in-law, and the kids (hers and ours) we celebrated Tricia’s 34th birthday. I wish I could say I was turning 34. Well I guess I could . . .
On Monday, Tricia’s brother-in-law and his girlfriend arrived from Colorado. You may be asking yourself why am I telling you all this . . . well because Tuesday, October 7 Tricia’s husband, who had been gone for 7 months came home. Darren, or as the kids affectionately call him . . . Uncle Frog, is a pilot for the US Navy and had been on deployment since March of this year. Our family was given the unique opportunity to be apart of his homecoming. The experience of the day was amazing. The emotions and electricity that filled the hanger of the Bounty Hunters was awe inspiring.
To witness the fly over and the anxiousness of the children, wives, mothers, fathers, sister, brothers and girlfriends who waited with baited breath to greet their loved ones is indescribable. There were wives holding newborn babies of husbands whom had not had a chance to meet or hold their new little ones. There was an explosion of happiness as each jet landed and taxied to park. There was excitement as we were released and families were finally able to be reunited and begin or find what normal was again.
The tears flowed freely from loved ones as they greeted these American Heros.
Welcome Home Darren!!!
After the fly in we packed the car and headed for San Diego for another amazing day of homecomings. Here at the North Island Naval Station we greeted the USS Abraham Lincoln and the “Dads”. Chris’s dad and Darren’s dad has the opportunity to experience what life is like on an aircraft carrier. For 7 days they joined the Navy. . . well not really. But they did get to cruise from Hawaii to San Diego. That afternoon, Jessica was introduced to the ocean. She was not to sure of the sand or the water at first but soon enough she was ready to go swimming. She even go rolled by a wave and wanted to do it again. This child is going to give me gray hair.
On Thursday, we headed for Sea World. The girls had a great time and by the end of the Shamu show, Kristin no longer wanted to be a baby doctor, now she wants to be a trainer for Shamu or for the Dolphins. She also fell in love with the Manatees. As we went for a walk along the beach that evening, Kristin picked up trash (not that there was much on the beach. This is a Naval base and the beach is kept very clean, not to mention it’s not a public beach) and said to me “Mommy, I don’t want any manatees or other animals to get hurt so I picked it up”.
I will add pictures of San Diego next time and write more of our time there.
Today we baptized Jessica at Chris’s family church. It was nice to have Mimi Pat, mom and dad, Larry and Carole, Darren, Tricia and the kids there, as well as Diane, Wayne, Austin, Ashlynn and Chase.
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Jessica and I baked cookies and the girls decorated a couple of them.
What a wonderful time. Since Chris had to work we waited for our turkey until Friday. Most of you probably know that we have sea food for Thanksgiving but this year was a little different. Since everyone is coming for Christmas we chose to hold off on the buttery shrimp scampi and crab legs until then. Mimi Pat, Uncle Teddy, Aunt Kathy, the girls, Chris, Mom and Dad, and of course me, all sat down to a scrumptious turkey dinner with all of the trimmings. That evening for desert Chris’s parents and his sister and family joined us for pie. After pie we sat around and just talked. It was nice and relaxing. For some reason doing Thanksgiving on Friday didn’t seem quiet as hectic as it does on Thursday. May it’s because we had another day to get ready. Mom everything was wonderful. Thanks so much for all of your hard work. 
The magic marshmallows worked. We planted and watered and in the morning . . . BINGO, two pumpkins, one large for Kristin and a smaller one for Jessica. It would have been larger but she ate half of her magic marshmallow before we were able to plant it. She had orange dripping down her face. Hopefully, a pumpkin doesn’t grow in her belly.
While in San Diego, over break, we decided to take the kids to Sea World. We hadn’t been there since Kristin was about 18 months so this would be Jessica’s first trip. We had a blast the Shamu show was amazing. It’s amazing how they can get those beautiful, majestic animals to do the tricks they do. I love it there.
The tears flowed freely from loved ones as they greeted these American Heros.
Tonight, Chris and I had to make the very difficult decision to put one of our beloved pets down. On Thursday night, our dog Corky, had been showing signs of being in pain and he was very lethargic so Chris took him into the vet today. The vet informed us that he was in the beginning stages of liver failure and that the only thing we could really do was to take him to an emergency vet for IV, and then an ultrasound to find out what was wrong. Unfortunately with liver failure there is not much you can do other than prolong life. Chris and I were faced with a difficult decision, take him to an emergency vet with no guarantee that anything could be done, or end his suffering. It was very difficult but we chose to end his suffering.
While there we talked, ate, watched the deer come in to feed, and took Kristin fishing (Jessica went rock throwing) although Kristin didn’t catch anything, other than a tree, she still had a good time. 
Kristin thought it was funny to see Mommy acting like a monkey when I climbed the tree to try and untangle the fishing line. There were a few tense moments when I heard the branch cracking under me that I thought I was going to get a bath in Wet Beaver Creek. Luckily the branch held and I was able to get back down without getting wet.
