better together

The weekend was bittersweet. Our last together as a family for a while.

We made it count. In between packing his bags, Jason got lots of play time in with the kids--and helped me too. While I made dinner, he helped with dessert.

James insisted that we eat at the Pooh bear table with him.

This morning was a hard one. We got up early to say our farewells before he reported in. After staying up late last night, we were all dragging a bit. Jason was running on nerves and adrenaline. When James walked out of his room and saw Daddy in his ACUs carrying his rucksack, he said, "Where you going, Daddy?" My heart broke. I tried to be upbeat as Jason and I explained that Daddy's going away to soldier school for a while. James took it surprisingly well only asking "Then you'll come back to our house?" and was reassured when Daddy said, "Yes, I'll be back before you know it".

I sat on the couch with a boy in each arm while Jason packed the car with his things and my heart sank a little. I hugged and kissed him hard and watched through the picture window as his car disappeared down the road.

The boys have been a little testy, but no more than usual. I have that familiar, heavy feeling at the pit of my stomach that comes with saying goodbye, but I'm okay. Being on my own used to mean fear, anxiety, loneliness. Anticipating what can go wrong that I won't be able to handle. After four years, I have already had it go wrong and have already handled it. I'm comforted by the fact that it's only a few months that he'll be gone this time and that he's safe and close by. I'm not anticipating weekends or a family day, but it'll be a nice surprise if we get any. I know that this time apart is worth it to better his career and it means better things for our family. All there is, is missing my husband now and taking care of my boys as they miss their daddy.

Callaway Gardens

Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Georgia, opened their beach and farmer's market Friday so we went to check it out. We got there later in the afternoon, so we didn't have much time to explore the gardens, but since it's so close--a little over 30 miles from us--we'll be frequenting it this summer! The farmer's market was lovely, lots of produce and baked goods and more. We sampled some baked goodies like oreo balls and pumpkin brownies. Jason got some coffee from Blue Donkey Coffee stand--it was delicious!! We bought red potatoes, spinach, strawberries (James almost ate them all while we were walking through the market!), real Georgia grown peaches (that I've been dying for!), and some beautiful tomatoes of all colors. After the market we headed over to the beach. It stretches out all around Robin Lake and was just beautiful. The water was warm, the sun was hot, and we had a blast!

It took some warming up, but the kids inched their way into the water.

James asked if there was a pool when we were on our way there (there's not). I was afraid he wouldn't go near the lake since it's a beach setting, like the ocean was.

While Daddy and the boys played in the lake, I got some reading in. I started "The Happiness Project" by Gretchen Rubin this week. So far pretty good, but I'm feeling a little mixed. It's still early in the book though.

Jason came to lay out with me for a while.

They were psyching each other up to get in the water.

They did eventually venture out, and loved it! Riley kept going out too far and would lose his balance and fall face first. When Jason pulled him out he would throw a fit then head back out.

When my newly brave little fish, James got his courage up, I couldn't keep up with him! He kept going out too deep too, dipping his face in the water, kicking his feet and blowing bubbles.

Every time I called for him to come back in he would grin and say, "But I want to go too deep!"

After a while I put the book down and joined the boys in the water. The lake was warm and calm and the floor was soft ground compared to the grit of the ocean the week before.

Jason torpedoed Riley in and out of the water, splashing and laughing.

Riley got tired of the water before James did (as usual), so we snuggled up on our beach blanket with some juice and goldfish crackers.

We practically had to drag James out of the water, but the strawberries we'd just bought were a good bribe.

Our farmer's market goodies. Yum!

We drove away with a snoring backseat, golden and sandy.

Somebody got his dress blues today! Excited, much?

orange blossom special [florida part ii]

In the evenings, James insisted we got to the beach to "catch crabs". Jason grabbed the net and a few flashlights and we trekked out there. The second night, Jason caught 2 or 3 of them, one was missing a claw :( Of course he was the fighter. Jason pretty much spent the whole week pissing off the crab population of Miramar Beach. Between picking them up and catching them in the butterfly net, he accidentally stepped on one. Finally while he was out snorkelling, he got pinched! During the day, James wouldn't have ANYTHING to do with the ocean. But at night, he became invincible! He ran through the freezing cold water, soaking his clothes and splashing.

Riley didn't care for the water, probably because it was so cold. He preferred digging in the sand.

We ran along the beach that evening, chasing the crabs. They'd start running really fast and squeaking and Kelly swore off california rolls.

James and the giant frisbee

Sunburned Grandaddy sitting in the shade.

Jason rented one of the kayaks and he and Drew paddled off. Jason got out in the deeper water with his snorkelling gear. It was short-lived when he saw a bunch of jellyfish out there.

James sprayed random passersby with his water gun! (they were all kids his age, at least!)

Kelly and Drew took off on the kayak next.

Riley wanted to take it for a spinJason and I hopped in for one last go before he had to return it. The whole time I was terrified because I was convinced that the waves were going to flip us over and I would be eaten by a shark. Or the jellyfish.

Jason kept rocking the kayak and fueling the fire. We weren't on it for long.

Though he wouldn't have anything to do with the ocean water during the day, James loved the pool. We had to drag him out kicking and screaming. Of course, the entire session would consist of him gripping onto Jason's or my waist/neck/shoulders while choking/pinching and kicking me to death. He's gotten so much more confident in water. Just 6-7 months ago when we were in Jacksonville, he wouldn't have anything to do with even the pool until the last day we were there. This time there was no screaming or tears, just playing. He was even brave enough to jump off the sides of the pool and let me catch him.

The beach wore Riley out. Between the sunscreen and sand in his eyes and all the playing, he decided he'd rather stay in the room with Granny. They had juice and macaroni & cheese, and watched tv, having a grand ol time
Wednesday night, Kelly, Drew, Jason and I went out to eat at a crappy, overpriced restaurant called The Crab Trap. We went to Target afterward to stock up on the most amazing ice cream ever (Ben & Jerry's Volun-tiramisu) and stole some plastic spoons from the Starbucks to gorge on it in the car. We rolled the windows down, let in some ocean air, ate ice cream and played Florence + The Machine.

When we got back and the kids and grandparents went to bed, we all piled onto the most uncomfortable pull-out couch ever and watched Blue Valentine.

After all our ice cream, we went for a much-needed morning run on the beach.

Every morning, we had a huuuuge breakfast (Granny fixed them all except the first morning, when I did). With all that food I don't know how I didn't gain 20 lbs from the whole trip!

"FISH MAN!"

Granny didn't much care for the beach (no wonder she and Riley were such buddies!). Here is the rare shot of Granny by the ocean. [for the record, she only stayed long enough for a few pictures. that was it!]

The pool and ocean didn't hold a candle to the amount of fun Riley got from the foot showers.

Family portrait

The morning we left the boys woke up a little cranky.

Cranky James fighting with Drew.
Right before the drive home. Being only 4 hours away now makes it awfully tempting to just turn around and go back to the beach, rather than facing real life.

Goodbye Florida!

Fortunately it was a short drive home and the boys were little angels, sleeping and watching Scooby Doo on the dvd player throughout the drive. We arrived home with mixed feelings. James kept telling me he wanted to go back to the beach with Grandma. When we got in our driveway he said he didn't want to go in. The 90 degree heat coaxed him inside toward the air conditioning, but not without more protest. I miss the beach, too. We had such a great time and got to be with family, it's hard saying goodbye. Being home means the comforts of all our things and home-cooked meals and our dogs and the garden, but it also means Jason's leave is almost over and he will be gone soon. I worry about settling us in without him. I love it here in Georgia, but it's still unfamiliar. We haven't really gotten into our routine yet. We haven't made new friends. The clothes and toys and pictures are scattered all over. There are still a couple boxes left unpacked and not everything has found its place. Jason's being gone will be hard on both kids, now that Riley's old enough to realize when he's not around. Adjusting to the move in and of itself hasn't been easy on them, but adding that in scares me a little. I know we can do it and we'll do fine, but the anticipation is a lot to handle right now. We're just taking things a day at a time now, trying to make sure everything's taken care of, and enjoying our last few days together. Which is all we can do.