"Momma! C'mere and look at this!"

I never knew that such a simple phrase could wreak such havoc on my "Mommy Psyche"....otherwise known in these here parts as "my last nerve".

Those words, when strung together by the Bubs, can mean I'm in store for a plethora of things. From a lizard in his playroom to a major spill of some kind. And when it was time to start the fun task of potty training...well, let's just say it took on a whole other meanin'!

There are variations of the "c'mere" phrase complete with different wording and tone of voice. I know I'm in trouble when he comes in the room and very quietly tells me, "I had a little accident, Mommy."

He just did this, in fact. While I was typing this post. Not kidding.

I know it's not gonna be particularly pleasant when he goes all quiet and solemn on me. *sigh* I followed him into the living room to see the window curtains in a pile on top of the loveseat. As I'm takin' in the fact that the solid wood curtain rod is still attached to the curtains and the rod holder on the wall has cracked in half, I hear this small voice behind me, "It didn't fall on me, though, Mommy. I'm okay."

All I could do was whimper in confirmation.

So now when Hubby comes home from work he's gonna hear me say the phrase, "Honey, c'mere and look at this!"

To them it was just a job...

"It's just a job," my husband tells me. He often refuses any acknowledgement of his service in the military. He has stacks of certificates, plaques and commendations that he's earned over the years tucked away in his closet. The only time we see his "stack" of ribbons and medals is when he has to break out the dress blues for a wedding, funeral or inspection. That stack has become considerable.

I've noticed that he's not the only one to eschew any praise or acknowledgements that are offered. Many see their service as "just a job". There's nothing wrong with that. It may be a mindset that helps them cope or see their demanding jobs through. Demanding, by the way, is such a gross understatement. They are asked to give everything and more...sometimes on a daily basis.

Where is my place in all this? I stand, I watch, I support, I love, I forgive and I understand. I stand for him when others may not be able to, I watch out for him when his eyes are focused on others, I support him when he can't hold himself up, I love him for who he is not for who he thinks he should be, I forgive him because the obligations placed on his shoulders aren't his fault, and I understand because that's what he needs, not judgements.

To my Marine~ My love, I may not see every sacrifice you make for our family and others', but I know that they're being made all the same. Thank you.

Look, Momma, I lost my toof!

The Bubs has lost his other front tooth...the last one to come out after the pre-school injury (pushed into a merry-go-round). We noticed that it was a little loose this morning. I figured that it would be ready to fall out sometime tomorrow.

Nope! The Bubs had other ideas.

For a couple of hours this evening I watched as he twisted, yanked, pulled, tongue-flicked and generally grossed me out as he tried to finagle that thing out of his mouth.

Finally, finally a pair of bloody fingers waved that tooth around in front of my face. I thought he'd be tickled with himself, but I think he was just relieved. I was too, honey! A quick phone call to his Ammah and Poppi to share the news, which was greeted with happy exclamations, and he was ready for bed. We'll do the tooth fairy thing tomorrow night. Hopefully, he'll leave it alone so his dad and I can pull the whole thing off...

Nothin' new to report...

We're finally seeing some sunshine around here after almost a week of clouds and rain. It's another "beautiful day in the neighborhood" and I'm itchin' to get out and enjoy it but I must stay the course and finish up some things around the house. It'll be worth it to have things finished before the Bubs and Hubby come home. I'm very protective of our time together in the evenings. It's important for us to have time together and not loose touch with one another in the weekly grind. I'm feeling more of a need for this since the Bubs has started school and the Hubs has been coming and going for work and I get the feelin' that they appreciate having that time in the evenings.

There's not a lot goin' on around here at the moment. The Hubs will be starting some much-needed leave sometime next week. He's already counting down the days and so am I. I'm sure he'll take a day or two and sleep in a bit, but after that we'll be going through the house with the purpose of decluttering and de-junkifying it. Whether we move or not, it's something that definitely needs doing. I'll also be able to see what baby stuff we have that's still usable and what needs to go. It's all put way up in the laundry room and the Hubs doesn't want me climbing up to take a gander...especially now that I'm pregnant.

So even there's not anything noteworthy goin' on at my crib, I know that by the time the holiday season rolls around, I'll be begging for a day like today!!

Yes, it's me, Procrastinator Extraordinaire...hear me groan!

I woke up this morning all excited at the idea of voting later today. I've only voted once before and was looking forward to making my voice heard again. Not to mention, with a Hubby in the military I take the right to vote seriously.....but not seriously enough, apparently.

I started to fish through my wallet for my registration card. A frantic but thorough search turned up nothing. Nada! Suddenly it dawns on me that I don't remember amending my registration card after we moved. *insert groan here* I felt like a complete dolt as I sat there with my demolished wallet and a hand slapped on my forehead.

If you were able to vote today, I'm so proud of ya, Baby! I understand that we had a huge number of new people register to vote....if that was you, don't be like me and let the privelege slide by you from negligence. Keep up with it, and take pride in the right so few people in this world are fortunate enough to have. I sure wish I had!

So, to continue with the cliche theme from yesterday, I shouldn't have "put off 'til tomorrow what coulda been done today".

I hate to be so cliche, but...

It's okay to be cliche! Today is Cliche Day, after all. I found a website that's all about cliches and I took a few minutes to pick out a few phrases that I've actually used and some that just caught my eye.

"As welcome as a skunk at a lawn party."

"bass ackwards"

"Darned if you do, darned if you don't."

"Busy as a one-legged man in a butt kickin' contest."

"You can't squeeze blood out of a turnip."

"His left hand doesn't know what his right hand is doing."

"Madder than a wet hen"

"Take it with a grain of salt"

"If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."

"It's nice to be important, but it's important to be nice."

So there you have 'em! I wonder just how many cliches we all use in a day......

I promised I would and I did....

Here it is, y'all. Proof that I wore my delightfully gaudy Halloween hat to the Bubs's school~

Yep, that's me in all my goofy, ridiculous glory! The kids loved it and everyone got a giggle. Mission accomplished and it felt so good to see the Bubs laugh right along with everyone else...without coughing until he hurt.

I hung out with him and his classmates most of the day at a carnival. A local nursing home facility put on a small event for the school's kindergarteners. It was a simple affair, which I think was just enough to keep the kids entertained but not enough to totally overstimulate them. The kids got to dress in their costumes for the carnival and they were all adorable! We had everything from pirates to a little 50's girl. David was, of course, Thomas the Tank Engine. Take a look~

Since the Hubs came home yesterday afternoon (glory hallelujah!) and it was too cold to take the Bubs out trick-or-treating, we chose to hand out candy. It wasn't a big letdown for any of us. Hubby loves handing out goodies and seeing the kids smile when he loads them down while the Bubs gets a kick out of all the people coming to our house. I got to sit back and watch all the fun ensue. Bliss, people, pure bliss!