Cute Puppies Go Vote Please

We entered Mr. Banyan in a contest on Facebook over at City Dog Country Dog. If you have a Facebook account please go look at all the pictures see how super cute they all are, then Please Vote for Banyan-LOL He has a chewing problem & we just found him finishing off a brand new flip-flop from Aeropostle we just purchased last week- naughty pup! The prize is a chew toy from Mr. Chewy's so that would be perfect! Plus it's his first birthday next week! What a great birthday present for him & mom! Help save our flip-flops & click "LIKE" under his picture. Thanks!

Being Bold

Ok so if you don't want to hear a few of the plain hard facts & truths of how this momma is feeling right now here is your WARNING: LEAVE THIS BLOG NOW!!


Taking a page from a great blogger over at My Camo Kids who decided to tell it like it is about her recent new deployment . I am right there with her at the moment only mine is the tail end of the deployment phase. Here goes hang on folks you may hear things you don't like but guess what ? It's the truth & the way I feel at the moment so deal with it please like grown - ups. Only leave comments that won't get you yelled at & possibly beat up by this tired Army wife & mom.


 First yes I know I should be excited that I am now mere weeks away from seeing my husband after ten long months- but NO that does not make it any easier now then it did when he left. As a matter of fact I'm even more exhausted & tired! Why you may ask because the four boys have now declared WAR on eachother- NON- STOP!! They apparently have used up all their good moods/ manners at school . When they arrive home they argue, fight, yell all night or day long! I'm tired of playing referee!


Second just because your husband is just starting a deployment does not mean my deployment experience is any less valid because my husband will be home . EXCUSE ME- he has been gone ten months while your husband was still home with you & your kids! Please get over yourself and realize we are all going through deployment hell together so shouldn't we all be supporting eachother not comparing who has it worse?


Third stop thinking you are coming to Homecoming with my family if I haven't asked you. This time is so emotional for my boys & me that we can barely make it through by ourselves let alone with others present. We always have one person who I take who is a friend of mine to take pictures. But she stays back quietly we never know she is there. She leaves in her own car & gives me the pictures later. Homecoming is special, private time filled with extreme emotions that unless you've been through it you can't possibly understand so please don't pretend you can. Don't expect because your a friend you get to come. Reintegration to me is THE HARDEST part of a deployment cycle. In our home we barely had Paul home for five months before orders dropped again- so we never really even bonded again before he left. We have a long hard road ahead. He has missed three consecutive birthdays of Jeremy's. his kids have grown, changed not only physically but emotionally- BACK OFF let us get to know each other again. This time would include the first few weeks he is home as well. Call say hello, leave a Welcome Home on Facebook- but please don't be offended if we aren't running to invite you over.


Fourth did I mention I'm exhausted! Maybe even more so then when this started- sleep what is sleep?? So if I act like I'm fine just know asking is a super loaded question so be prepared. You could possibly get the nice " I'm fine" or you could get the total break down in tears me. Emotions are running high- so suck it up & ask with caution then be prepared to accept you may not like what you hear.


Anyway that's my vent for the day- I'm hanging on to my rope for six more weeks. I am on what I call the steep downhill slope of the roller coaster ride from Hell!! We all go through phases this is my phase at the moment. This is my life & I'm Ok with it, but I'm SOOOOO ready for it to be OVER!

** Edit**
Thank you to all my close friends who have read this then chose to send me some outrageously funny emails. You've made me laugh so hard- for that I am grateful ** 

Happy Dancing Through the Post Office

I bet you never would have thought that anyone would be doing a Happy Dance in the post office?? Well this girl did today! We have lived in the same military town for the last three deployments so I know the employees at our local post office. A couple who always chat with me & ask about Paul are super great! I got one of those ladies today as I slung a heavy care package up on her scale. She smiled & asked what I packed this time for Paul? I smiled a huge smile & told her it has all the favorites he requested because it's HIS LAST CARE PACKAGE of this deployment!!

That's right folks we have finally made it through almost 10 months of this fourth deployment. We found out a couple weeks ago my husband's unit will be home one month early- so I only have to hold on to my sanity six more weeks! I can do this I CAN!! Six weeks is a heck of a lot shorter then when we started back on July 5, 2011! It takes his boxes about ten to fourteen days to arrive so I won't mail anymore. I hate that he is spending his big 40th Birthday over there but we can celebrate when he returns. Now is time to buckle down and get all those projects done I said I would finish ten months ago,oooppps. I can barely wrap my brain around the fact that we have almost done it, we have almost kicked this fourth deployment in the booty! I pray it is our last, but who knows what God & the Army have in store for our family. I just had to share with everyone. I hope you all who are just starting your journey can read this & realize eventually they come to an end. Just hang on tight with both hands & go along for the ride!

Spring Break Getaway

The boys & I had the chance to head off for a quick getaway to Newport, Oregon for the last few days of their Spring Break. I had so much fun even in the van on the drive. The boys laughed , fought, & played all the things siblings do but in the end we had FUN! Banyan did great for his first long car trip. He slept with out his kennel in the hotel & was fine. We had my best friend Sam & her gang with us which made it even more special. Here are some of my favorite pictures, I hope you enjoy. I am off to rest then tackle all the dirty laundry.

 

 

Last stop was Tillamook Cheese Factory- seems Banyan was just as interested as the boys.

Where Does It All Go ?

Today after doing the books I realized we are already super low on funds for Banyan's training, uggg. It seems like we have the fundraisers & all the generous donations, then it just evaporates so fast. Where does it all go you ask? We spent $192.33 just on dog food alone in February. No he didn't eat that much in one month-lol He'd be one fat pup! But our Blue Buffalo coupons where expiring so we had to use them. Then the puppy treats, they do add up. Just this week the last trip to Pet Smart we left $48 lighter. Banyan still get's treats a lot for his rewards. Every new task he learns requires affirmations & treats. Plus you add in training sessions & gas to get to those sessions, yep folks it all adds up fast!
With that being said as much as I hate to do it we have to start fundraising again now before something comes up we can't afford. I set up an easy link for friends & family to be able to donate even $5 helps. I can now understand how the average service dog costs $10,000 dollars if they come fully trained. We are blessed with amazing trainers from All American Dogs  as well as the Chelsea Hutchison Foundation who are currently raising funds for several special children to get seizure alert dogs. But like anyone else they all rely on donations & if the money isn't there then we must help raise funds ourselves. So all I am asking is if your called to help then by all means please go to the link above to donate any amount you feel placed on your heart. But if you aren't able please help spread Jeremy's link & story so that if anyone out there is looking for a great way to help or donate they have options. They can choose to donate directly to the Chelsea Hutchinson Foundation or to All American Dogs , or to Team Jeremy & Banyan . Any of these great choices all lead down the path to helping our family & many others who are working tirelessly to provide a safety net for their child. Banyan is not only Jeremy's constant companion but he one day could save his life. To me that is priceless & I will find the way to make it happen. Thanks for checking in & please help spread the word.

We won't Give Up.....

SPLASH!!

We decided to go on a walk today and enjoy our rare 70 degree afternoon. By we I  mean Jeremy, Banyan, & I. Everyone else was too busy playing silly video games or at a friends home. Off we go & the first special moment came when Jeremy asked to walk Banyan by himself. We have never done this before but Banyan was being pretty cooperative. I handed over the leash & off they went!

Banyan never hesitated just went right off when Jeremy said "Let's go". I was so excited! A car soon came and they stopped to wait on me & then Banyan was content to walk in between us for awhile.

Now the story  takes a funny turn. As we get to the lake I let Banyan loose with his leash dangling. He decides to help Jeremy dig in the sand for a bit. Then when Jeremy would go fill up a bucket with water Banyan would wonder over to watch very curious.

This is where it got a little funny for mom at least. Jeremy dropped his bucket in the water. As he leans over I watch it happen in slow motion, SPLASH! In fell Jeremy! I didn't jump up because I was maybe 3 feet away & the water was only about 3 feet deep. But Banyan jumped whined then ran over to me. it was hilarious, poor Banyan wanted Jeremy out NOW! At this point Jeremy is giggling & I am laughing so Banyan settled down. But I am sure our handsome boy thinks we are both a little nuts! 

We decided to pack it up and head home at this point in our story. Jeremy was a real trooper walking about 1/2 mile soaking wet. At one point we must go up a very steep hill to reach our road. Jeremy grabbed on to Banyan's vest & you could see Banyan help him walk up the hill. Jeremy mentioned during this time how it was hard to walk with the extra weight of the water. You must remember that even though Jeremy is 11 years old he only weighs 57 pounds. He is pretty thin & thank goodness Banyan knew his job was to help. He did it & did it well for an 11 month old pup. All in all it was a fun afternoon adventure we won't soon forget.