End of May already?!

Is it me, or is this year just flying by? It seems the older I get the faster they go. Yesterday, Thompson celebrated his 20 month birthday along with my dad who celebrated the big 5-4! I don't think he would mind me telling his age, if anything I think he is proud. I know I would be.

We had a big week this past week! We left for DC/Arlington on Tuesday. Wow! 6 hours+ on a plane with a toddler is work! We switched planes in Dallas, but had ZERO time to even let him get out. Poor guy. But he was mostly good. Everyone always compliments on how well behaved he is. Ha. I wonder if they know how many times I felt like pulling my hair out during that flight?

Here is the little man at the Palm Springs Airport waiting for our plane. Which by the way, he can say "airplane". Very proud!


The hotel we stayed at was so nice! It was right in the middle of everything. We had the Metro train run right by our hotel via a tunnel. So cool. It was our first time riding the Metro.

Wednesday morning was our only time to get to go sight-seeing. So we took full advantage and tried to work in as much as possible. We visited the Arlington Cemetary, Washington Monument, and Lincoln Memorial. I really wanted to go to the Smithsonian, but knew that I would just be mad if I got there and had to leave. I even got to taste my first street vendor food. Yum!

That evening was the awards ceremony. It started out with a cocktail hour (or 2) and then we had our dinner and ceremony. This was such an incredible honor for Robert. I could just see the nervousness on his face. But hey? Who wouldn't be nervouse trying to socialize with 2-3 Star Generals, Colonels, and Seargent Majors? Me being the social butterfly I am felt right at home. I, luckily, am a people-person and can talk to anyone. I think that it helped Robert be a little more sociable. The dinner was amazing! Very, very elegant. I love stuff like that! Afterwards was the ceremony. Robert received a huge sword. He calls it something and acts like I should know what it is, but I really don't. So here is a picture of it.

Overall, we had a fantastic night. Thompson was in the great care of a babysitter. She seemed so nice, and I was lucky to have that care so we could really enjoy the night.

Again, after another 6+ hour flight back, we are glad to be home! We will be going back in October for another awards dinner. This time it will be for the USO Servicemember of the Year. We don't know yet if Robert has received this award, but they told him that he HAS to go... So, I am guessing that they don't just send every nominee, but who knows? I am hoping that maybe we can make a longer trip out of the next time.

Yesterday we went down to Palm Desert. We ate lunch at the Cheesecake Factory! Mmmm....so good. The past few times we went there has just been so-so. But yesterday, I thought the food was great! I tried something new -- the Baja Chicken Tacos! They were so yummy. Afterwards, we went to Sams. YAY! I love going there. Then on the way home we stopped at the newly found SONIC! YAY! You don't realize how bad I crave their drinks. Its worse when there is not one anywhere around. BUT, low and behold I found one in Palm Desert! Go me! Robert was just thrilled. LOL! So we got our slushies and went home. It was a very relaxing day!

Don't want to get my hopes up, but...

This morning my friend, Christina, called to tell me about an email that we had received in regards to some scholarship funds available for spouses of the active duty military! I was estactic. As you know, I am STILL completing my degree and that money would help out tremendously! I know my parents would really love it! :) Anyways, so I called the people and you can receive up to $6000 for pursuing your career development. So of course I applied and now I am waiting for a counselor to call back to verify my information. After that, then they cut a check to the U of A!!! Pray, Pray, Pray that it all works out!

Thompson is laying down for a nap right now. I think him watching his shows is wearing him out. I might have to start turning off the tv already! Just when it was good, I didn't want him glued to the tv and that is what he is!

Thompson telling me that he liked the show :)

Uh oh, he is glued

This could be tiring, I better have a seat

This was him yesterday...the beginning

Not too much happening today. I have been sick throughout the morning and luckily Thompson was in the mood to watch cartoons. Thank Goodness! He is definitely getting to the age where he will pay attention to the show. So after an episode of Handy Manny, Imagination Movers, The Backyardigans, and Robert bringing me a Sprite, I am feeling much better.

I had my dr's appt yesterday and it was pretty uneventful! Lots and lots of paperwork. BUT, next time we will get an ultrasound. I am very excited yet a little nervous. I just want to see the baby and see the heartbeat and make sure everything is ok. When I was pregnant with Thompson, his umbilical cord was a 2-cord vessel, instead of a 3-cord vessel. Basically, the umbilical cord didn't form all 3 vessels, and this could affect the way his heart and kidneys formed and how he was able to grow. I had to do monthly ultrasounds to make sure everything was developing properly. So, I have been a little nervous about making sure that wasn't an issue this time.

I have been looking for Thompson's big boy bedding and found a set on Pottery Barn kids that I love! I had been eyeing it for a while, waiting for it to go on sale. Well...I looked this morning and guess what?! It had been discontinued. WHAT?! I was so mad! And now I can't find it anywhere online. Everyone has the sheets, but no quilt. Gees, that is what I get for waiting. So, now I am onto looking for a new set.

I have been following a blog, and my heart just goes out to this family. Their little girl, Avery, was born with CDH- Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia. She is currently at Arkansas Children's Hospital and had the surgery to repair the hole yesterday. She is doing as well as possible, but definitely needs your prayers. She is absolutely beautiful! I am praying and thinking about her around the clock. I have her button on my page, so feel free to keep up with them as well.

Another sweet little baby boy I keep up with is Gaines. He is such a trooper. He was born at, I believe, 28-29 weeks gestation, very premature. He is having some trouble with his oxygen and such and needs your prayers as well. You can check on him here.

That's about all for me for now. I will try and take pictures tonight on our walk if we get to go. Until then...

My kid is a nut!

He walks around the house putting random things on his head. He loves the attention we give him because we always burst out laughing. I think he will definitely be a class clown.



He also loves putting on hats. Today he found his skull bandana and thought it was the coolest thing. So he walked around for a little while with it on.


Ok, here is a big question. Thompson has become one of the pickiest eaters I know. He will literally look at something and turn it down. He won't even try it! This KILLS me!!! ARGHHHH!!! Yesterday, it took 3 different lunches to even try and get him to eat. He hates sandwhich meat, cheese, macaroni, etc. He eats lots of breads... cereals too. I am just running out of ideas on things to feed him. So for those who have had a picky eater, what did you feed them?

Well, I really wanted to go for a walk today. But the last time I went, it didn't go to well. I started my walk and got about half-way done and literally thought I would have a heat stroke. Seriously. The air here is so dry and it feels like you can't ever cool down. As I was finishing my walk, I almost got hit by someone backing out of their driveway. I literally had to run while beating on the back of their vehicle to try and get her to stop. When I made it across (ALIVE!) I just started shaking and crying. She just looked at me like, "oh, sorry!" No joke! I was furious! Robert happened to pull up on me right before I made it home and I just burst out in tears again! She scared me to death. So, needless to say I have not been to happy about walking. I might just take Thompson up to the gym and walk on the treadmill. I would love to go to the pool, but it is really hard to try and keep up with Thompson without Robert. I am more of the one that likes to lounge by the pool. Robert is great with swimming with him and keeping him entertained. The pool is just a little too cool for my liking. They desperately need to take a lesson from my sister who keeps her pool about bath water temperature! That's what I am talking about! :)

One of my best friends found out she is having a baby GIRL this morning! Jade Allison Emitt is due October 8th, and I can't wait! I so want a baby girl and would LOVE if I were to have a girl and the two could grow up and be best friends like Becca and I did! Congrats Becca and Kenny! So happy for the you!!!

This brings me to another thought.... a few weeks back I found out about this test that you can take that supposedly can tell you the gender of your baby based on hormones in your urine. It is called Intellegender. Well, Becca took the test and it came out boy! What?! Obviously we know she is having a girl, so the test was wrong. It is getting so many rave reviews and it claims to have a 90% success rate, so I might still try it out in a couple of weeks just for fun. I will let you know how that goes.

I have my first dr.'s appt on Wednesday. It is just with the nurse, so I am sure nothing too exciting. Hopefully soon after (like the next day) I can have my appt with the dr. :) We will see...

Thompson is watching tv and breaking into the entertainment center! Obviously having a great time! Ha! We watched a great movie last night. It is called "Taking Chance". It has Kevin Bacon in it and one of Robert's good friends. It's about a marine who gets killed in Iraq in 2004 and Kevin Bacon plays a LtCol. that wants to escort the Marine back home. It shows his journey and the impact that this marine's life had on him. The movie is based on the journal from the real LtCol. It is a very touching movie and I encourage everyone to watch it.

Here is a pic of the little guy this morning

I forgot to show this picture earlier. Here is a picture of the shirt that I had made for Thompson to wear. This is how we decided to tell people we were expecting! I love it!

Thompson's BIG haircut!

So, Robert and I have been discussing how we would like Thompson's hair cut. We both agree that we think short and neat is the way to go. His hair was starting to get a little wild, so... we decided to take him to get a haircut today...with Robert. Eesh! No, it's not bad. Just short. Really, really short. Here are his before pictures:

And his after:

I can tell that it will be so great for him, especially with this 100 degree temps! He was always sweating so bad because of his thick hair. So now this will keep him extra cool. If you are wondering why he doesn't have a shirt on in the second pictures, it is because the nice lady decided to give a big tootsie roll sucker to help occupy him. Well, when he got done he was dripping in slobber, covered in all of the stickiness. Ewww... That was his first sucker, and I didn't plan on giving him on for a while, but I would do anything to make sure they didn't screw up his hair with the clippers. Ha!

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We went outside today for a whole 20 minutes to let Thompson play. Here are some cute pictures from the day.

Pointing out the birds a.k.a. ducks as Thompson likes to call them.

Gotta stay hydrated in this heat!

When I asked him to show me his teeth, he started "brushing" his teeth! :)

Last night we went to the Gretchen Wilson concert here at the base! It was awesome! That girl can sing. Thompson had a blast! He rocked out!

We made it back!

Well, I haven't blogged in a while. Things have been definitely hectic, so I just haven't had much time. Here is the run-down on what has been happening with the Riedel family:
May 3- Supposed to go home -- Can't due to the Swine Flu on base -- stay a couple extra days
May 8- Take Thompson to the walk-in clinic due to a prolonged sinus infection + possible ear infection... eesh...
May 9- Supposed to go home...again...doesn't happen...again. Noticed a lot of green looking stuff coming out of Thompson's right ear which scared me to death to fly with him.
May 9- Later on that day, Thompson dislocated his right elbow. So off we go to the emergency room at Washington Regional. BAD IDEA!!! There were at minimum 100 people waiting and I didn't feel like sitting there for hours and hours. We then head to NW Medical Center of Benton County. Luckily we get right in and they do the x-ray and see the dislocation. While the x-ray tech was trying to get pictures, Thompson popped it back in place. Luckily I noticed this before the dr came back with the morphine to give him so he could pop it back. Poor baby. Honestly, it was like he was a new person as soon as it went back. It was definitely the most heartbreaking thing I have had to deal with when it comes to him. He would just lie there in my arms holding his arm over his tummy. He couldn't move it at all. He would just look up at me with the saddest eyes wondering why he was hurt and why I wasn't helping him. It was awful. And I know that with him being a boy this is just the tip of the iceberg. But I really, really hate it. It breaks my heart to see him hurt. He is all better now, and wouldn't even know that something was ever wrong.
May 10- Mother's Day! My mom came back from Florida just in time to go out to eat at the Marketplace with all of the family. It was great! I think that is what I miss the most when I am out here in CA is just being able to get to eat dinner with the family. I love spending time with them.
May 11- We came home! I was so ready to just relax at my own house. I love being away, but I love sitting on my couch or sleeping in my own bed even more! Oh, and seeing the husband isn't too shabby either! ;)

I had so much fun though visiting with my friends! I love getting to see them! My friend, Becca, is about 19 weeks pregnant and is too cute! She finds out what she is having in 4 days! (Even though we KNOW it is a boy! ;) ) Very excited for her.

It is unreal how much Thompson learned by being in AR for that short amount of time. His vocabulary expanded so much! I think being around Jilian and Jude contributed to it a lot. He isn't around many kids here, so it helps when he does get to spend that time with them. Which reminds me...I am going to enroll him in pre-school this summer. I think the wait list is a little bit, so maybe around August he can get in. Which is perfect! I will be starting my last semester of school and will need some extra time. And of course since there is a new baby :) coming in December, I will need that much more time to prepare for him/her! We found out that we are expecting #2. Currently, I am about 9.5 weeks along due around Dec. 15. I have my first appt on the 20th, which is just the nurse appt where you give all of your family history, etc. Supposed to have my first dr. appt about a week after that! Can't wait! We had an ultrasound on April 14th, when I was 5 weeks and you could see the little yolk sak. Too cute!!! Ha! It was still too early to see a heartbeat, so I am excited/nervous for the next appt. I have been feeling ok. Nausea came when I was in Florida. It was like a ton of bricks. I really could not function til about 2 in the afternoon. Luckily, it has slowed way down and I hardly notice it at all. There will be times when it hits here and there, but that is about all. Severe dizziness is also another thing I go through. I feel like I do when my blood sugar gets low. So, I eat about 6 times a day to try and stay level.

I have been a bad mommy and haven't taken any recent pictures. Hopefully it won't be too hot today, and we can play outside. We went to the pool the other day and it was so nice. Thompson had a blast until he decided he wanted to run down the side of the pool by himself. Needless to say, we went home after that. He will learn...eventually!

I will try and post pics tonight. Hope everyone has a good day!!!

There's No Place Like Home...

Sorry for the hiatus. We have just been extremely busy! Brittany, my beautiful sister, got married last Friday! Happy 1 week Anniversary to her and Denver.

She had the prettiest cake!

My beautiful sisters and I

They are currently on their honeymoon in Ireland and having a wonderful time. I have received a few emails from her and sounds like they are staying busy.

Florida was amazing! I don't think we could have had any better weather! We arrived there on Wednesday and stayed busy, busy, busy. Trying to put together a wedding is very stressful. But it turned out gorgeous! On Saturday, I finally got to relax on the beach. And apparently, my ghostly white legs have not seen the sun since LAST year because I burned. I mean burn baby burn! Luckily, Tara came over and said that I look really, really red and should put some sunscreen on. THANK GOODNESS she did. I would have been doubly miserable.

Thompson is looking cool in his shades!

At the beach -- he had a blast!

We had some wonderful food while we were there. The reception was held at the Ruth's Chris Steakhouse and it was amazing! The food was simply fabulous and the staff was very accommodating. I know that took a lot of pressure off of my sister. On our way down and on our way back we stopped in Mobile, AL and ate at Felix's Fish Camp. It was sooooo good! I love seafood and this place was fantastic! The best part we found out was the freshest Key Lime Pie. I have never tasted anything so good in my life. Not kidding. I probably could have ate 3 or 4 whole pies. Ha!

So, yesterday was very overwhelming for me. I finished my classes (almost) and I was trying to get everything turned it. I am doing the Human Resource Development program from the U of A and unfortunately for me, they let you work at your own pace. Well to those of us who are procrastinators, this can be really, really bad. But, I did finish. And I am praying for all A's this semester. I know 4 out of the 5 will be A's, I am just waiting on one last class. So keep your fingers crossed for me.

Yesterday was my Papa's 74th birthday and Thompson's 19 month birthday! So Happy Birthday to them!!!

We are heading to Virginia towards the end of May for Robert's awards ceremony. He and 3 other men will be awarded as the Marines of Year; each for their own Marine Division. Robert is the Marine of the Year for the 1st Marine Division. It is supposed to be a very nice event with some of the biggest names of the Marine Corp there. So you know what that means?! NEW OUTFIT!!!

I went and got a beautiful dress from Dillard's and I can't wait to wear it. Mom calls it a "party dress"-- so girly!!!

So, I will hopefully be back tomorrow with some more great pics! Have a good Friday!