T McD end of the year.

It's a good thing I got this picture before we left for school. We were supposed to go for an awards ceremony where Trevor was going to get an award for being on the A/B honor roll. We had gotten to the school and about 15 minutes into the principal calling names and listening to applauding, Trevor leans over and says, "Do I hear the tornado siren?" I said no, how could he hear that. Besides, he's a bit sensitive when it comes to tornadoes. He's not good about any sort of natural disaster. For years when we lived in Phoenix he had a huge fear of volcanoes. Of course our first full day in Kentucky after moving here....we spent time down in the basement because of a tornado watch. He still reminds me of that.

I was actually surprised when the principal stopped and said that they just found out there was a tornado watch and that we'd all have to move into the center of the school in the hallways for the next 30 minutes because the watch just was called for Boone County. Some people were able to sneak out, some were corralled and told they couldn't leave. I understand better safe than sorry, but I also had just called home where Matthew and Megan were and told them to go down to my room. (The basement.) I didn't want to stay. We parked close, and we live close. So we got into the car and came home. It was an ugly storm.....about 10 minutes after we got home the sky turned green. That's always weird! Trevor grabbed his turtles and we all hung out in my room. (Which also has the laundry room, so why not do some laundry while waiting it out. lol.)

All is good. We never lost our power (which I heard over 50,000 people without) and I folded some clothes. I feel bad that we missed the ceremony....but I am still so proud of this kid. It doesn't surprise me at all that he is on the honor roll. He loves to read, and loves to learn.

Mike is back to work right now and we are still getting settled. I always have nervous energy for the first couple of weeks, so I should be able to get some things done. I have enjoyed doing some yard work and trying to get some things in the garage put away so I can park my car in there. I promise to post some photos soon.

I can't believe that all three kids will be out of school on Thursday. The end of another year. I am proud of them all, and all the things that they learned this year. Megan and Trevor read like crazy and were both in the highest point clubs for AR. Matthew learned so much....his favorite things to learn about this year were about the Titanic (he brought in a piece of coal that I bought at the Titanic museum years ago.) The Civil War, and WWII. He is a little sponge. A sponge that also likes to sit around and watch the Military Channel. lol.

Out of order, random update...

I'm not sure where to begin. Sometimes I hate having a blog and feeling like I need to keep up with it, other times I don't know what to say, and other times I'm grateful for it because I like to go back and see things from years that have passed. So this is when I feel somewhat guilty for letting so much time go by between posts.

To wrap up the past month, we moved. Mike was home. We did a lot, but sometimes nothing at all. I feel like we didn't really get a chance to relax as much as I would have liked (I know Mike can really use the rest when he comes home.) But there was and still is so much to do to make this house more "our home" and what makes it more personal for us. There were so many projects. Big ones and small ones. Cleaning, rearranging, unpacking, hanging some pictures or shelves.....and really.....I hope I don't have to do this again. I am tired of moving. I kept thinking in my head that quote from Lethal Weapon where Danny Glover kept saying, "I'm too old for this shit." This isn't fun anymore. Hey, we even had people come in and pack AND move for us.

I love Newport. We went there a couple of times while Mike was home. First...to a restaurant that I have been wanting to go to for awhile. A friend at work kept telling me about Pompilios in Newport. I guess the area has quite an interesting mafia history, prohibition type stuff. Plus I had heard that they had the best alfredo sauce ever. After reading the menu and seeing some photos I noticed that the cast and crew had eaten and filmed inside the restaurant for Rainman. This is about the third time I've stumbled upon something we've been to that was in the movie. I don't remember anything about it, bits and pieces really. I think I may have to find this movie again and see it from another perspective now. See what I recognize. OK.....and yes, that was the best alfredo sauce I've ever had. That photo does not show the size of that manicotti. Yum.

We also saw a movie (Bridesmaids) and walked around the outdoor mall for a bit, and watched the river for a bit. I bought Trevor a book from Barnes & Noble (The second book in some series that he is hooked on and has been waiting for this to come out.)

For Mother's day I wanted to go to the Air Force Museum in Dayton. We had a great time, and I promise to post some photos of that next. They are on a different card.

Below:
Matthew's daily planner for school. I noticed that he had made a little heart around Nigeria where his daddy is. I thought that was cute.

It's still spring, but this marks summer!!

Thanks to my job, I was able to not only save up for a super cool patio set....but I was able to stack all of my discounts and coupons to get a sweet deal on my entire patio set!! I am definitely a Kohl's success story. Now I joke that I have sold my soul to the company. I will be there forever. Constantly paying off my card. Lol. BUT - after buying pieces at different times and taking them over to the house even before the official move in....and patiently waiting for the weeks of rain to stop.....we finally had our first night out on the deck. Granted, it was still kind of chilly, but we were determined to enjoy the deck for the first time.

I caught the boys out playing with Legos before we started to cook dinner on the grill. I bet they will spend a lot of time out there. They already have even without using the table. There is a patch of woods in our backyard at the top of the hill where they have made a little clear area for a fort. Which consists of a few pieces of wood to sit on, nothing fancy. They go up there and sit for hours. I think they will enjoy this entire yard this summer.

The deck had these tiki torches attached all around it. There are 8 of them. They will be coming off, but Trevor had to play Survivor with one. The garden that you see in the background is actually part of our neighbor's yard. They have a HUGE house, and this garden is BIG. The best is.....I don't have to tend it, but I get to enjoy looking at it through my kitchen window and when I'm outside. The back part of our fence is missing, so that is part of our fence (which will be coming down) so it's kind of hard to describe how the yard looks. The people next to us have a huge yard, which kind of looks like it is part of ours on the side. Again, the best.....not my yard to tend, but it looks like our house sits on a huge piece of property. Win/win!!
Megan and Mike out grilling. Mike was making steaks and Megan was using the burner on the side to saute some mushrooms and onions. That's the other side of our fence. It runs along both sides of the side of the house, but is not in the back. Kind of like parenthesis with our house in between....like this [ ]. So we have a clear view in the back. You would miss out on the wood view otherwise. I promise to get photos soon. - The last storm knocked a couple of panels down.
First official sit down meal. (Love the tire swing!) Behind that fence at the top of the hill is the pasture with the horses.
With buying my patio set when I did, I earned enough Kohl's cash (plus my discounts, coupons and buying on power hours!) I got the fire pit for free. My favorite thing about living here is that (at least in my first neighborhood where people actually sat outside) fire pits were always going, and kids would roam and play while neighbors sat around talking and having a drink together. Even if it stays on my deck, I plan on getting many, many hours with that fire pit. I love summer and fall nights.
Getting sticks ready to roast marshmallows for smores.

Oooo. I love the burnt ones. The boys made a few of those just for me!





That is our first night out doors. I'm sure there will be a lot of photos like this during the summer.

Whew. An update of sorts, and phone photos

Yesterday Mike and I went to the bank and they were giving away cookies. Get it? 5/3rd bank on May the 3rd? It was delicious too! Such a cool surprise. Cookies, especially frosted ones make me smile!

Well, we have been in this house for one week now. Things have gone by so fast. From the moment Mike came into Kohl's and showed me a picture on his phone of this big deck and the possibility of moving, to him being gone in Africa for another rotation, to coming home again and putting the entire moving process into place....

I have taken a lot of photos on my phone, but not so much with my camera lately. Like I said, the past couple of months have been a complete blur of keeping busy with work, school, daily things, packing, cleaning and preparing and moving.

However....here is a quick recap of the past couple of months.

Megan with brand new highlights. A friend of mine needed to do a highlight towards her grade in cosmetology school. It turned out beautiful!

The boys. Matthew had been complaining about having some stomach aches that made him miss a few days of school. On some days when he would go into school, I would get a call from the nurse that he was in the office and not feeling well. He went from pointing to his stomach to pointing to his heart. After taking him to the doctor, he went to Children's Hospital in Cincinnati for an ultrasound on his heart. He was actually looking forward to seeing his heart, and it was fascinating to watch. He did great for 45 minutes while the ultrasound was done. I can never say enough about that hospital. They are great with children. That is also where I take all three of them for dental appointments, and they are wonderful. - A few days later we got the results that everything was working fine, and his stomach issues are due to acid reflux.

Trevor ended up with a sinus infection that had him in the doctor's office. Which I am sure was cured by the Frosty that we stopped to get on the way home. ;)


A day at work. This was a fun day, and not what I usually do. I was helping the visual girl do a set up of new kitchen stuff. It totally appealed to the OCD in me who loved following the planogram for the display, and then putting stuff on the shelves.

Lap turtle. Sometimes they will sit still and watch tv with me. I'm usually warm, so I'm sure that feels comfy for them. That is Koopa, and Trevor's legs in the background.


Mike and Matthew, just after he got home from Africa. We went out to eat at Cheddars.

Yuck. Snow in April. This has been a pretty cold and wet spring.

Moving!!! Yay! See ya OSM. As happy as I am to not be there anymore, I always do get a bit nostalgic when leaving anywhere. (Then I shut the door behind me and didn't look back. lol.)

Accidentally taking a photo while sitting in my newly purchased patio chairs that I took directly over to the new house before we officially moved in. - But that is my carpet, and part of the stairs. More virtual tour of the house as soon as I get more put away! Promise!