Shaner on a Saturday

Since everyone and their mother has been asking about Shane today it seems, I figured I would share some photo updates of his adventures over-...well, wherever he is.

Here is Shane on his tour of Jerusalem during a port call a few weeks ago. 

Here is Shane and the CO of the Kearsarge during the frocking ceremony this morning.  

Congratulations Shaner, we are SO proud of you and your hard work finally paying off.  

The Best Way To Read. Ever.

Shane was always the one who took care of bedtime around here--baths, snuggle time and books.  You may remember that in his absence we have been doing the "Goodnight Kisses From Daddy" jar to help keep him 'involved' at bedtime.  Speaking of which, that jar is looking quite different than it did when we started, so maybe an update on that soon.  Anyway, regardless of the nightly chocolate (which Trevor loves), we have still missed Shane very much when it comes to reading bedtime stories together.

Today in the mail, Trevor got a small envelope from Daddy, and I have to say I was over. the. moon. when I saw the United Through Reading sticker on the back of the envelope.  Trevor didn't have any idea what it was, until I plugged it into the computer and let him watch.

 Trevor loved seeing Daddy and having him read to him.  The smile on his face was priceless, and at the end of the video he immediately asked to watch it again at bedtime.

United Through Reading is an initiative that really does accomplish its mission of keeping families who are separated by deployment connected through reading aloud.  The benefits of reading together are countless, both to the child and the family as well.  I am so thankful that we have this opportunity for Shane to stay connected to Trevor while he is gone.  Seeing Trevor so happy and listening him talk back to Daddy and interact as he read the books was priceless--definitely filled a void that we've been feeling here around the house when it is story time.

To find out more about the United Through Reading program, click here.    

Monday Mail Call

Shane finally received the other two packages that I mailed out to him today.  I could tell from his email letting me know tonight that he was over the moon about them.  It means so much that I am able to make him feel "a little closer to home" even for a little bit.  (Shane's words, not mine)

That brings our care package count to 3 for this deployment.  I still have 22 boxes left to go in the military mailer package that I got.  Hmmmm, what to do next?

Of course, care packages here don't just mean that I go buy Shaner's wish list and throw it in a box before sending it off to the abyss that is often the FPO mail system.  There is FUN and CREATIVITY involved.  Also known as:  Kim refuses to send just care packages.  Kim has to send AMAZING care packages.

If you know us at all, you know that Cinco de Mayo is HUGE at Casa de Chapman.  Usually, when the weather cooperates, that means poolside on the deck with nice salty margaritas flowing by the pitcher!  This year, I had to forego my margaritas, and had to send Mexico to Shane in a box.  That aside, it turned out pretty well!

Next time I need to use poster paint on the inside of the box to cover up the USPS writing better.  

In addition to some mail-able Mexican food eats (note that I bought salsa in a can to avoid potential glass breakage) I hit up our party store and sent out some maracas  sombreros and fiesta candy.  Shaner says he and the boys are planning on having a little fiesta later on this week.  

The other package had less of a theme to it, but I did let T-rex go nuts decorating it. 

This box had items that Shane had requested and the rest of the box we filled up with snacks and treats that we thought he would like. We did hand prints and lined the entire box with scrap booking paper (I even got in on the fun!).  On the panels that didn't have hand prints, I gave Trevor one of his sticker books and let him go to town.  Sidenote:  T-rex may just be type-A like his momma.  Look how neat and orderly those stickers are!  

to calm your nerves...

For those who have expressed concern over my stubbornness in doing the lawn myself (ahem, Mandy and Katie....) you will be pleased to know that I have gotten two bids from lawn companies in the last two days and hopefully my lawn mowing days are coming to an end soon....as in this week.  

Sharing

Because I am too tired to sift through all the fun that is currently saved on my memory card to come up with a decent post, I will share an e-mail sent to Shaner earlier this afternoon.

From: Kimberly Chapman
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 2013 5:01PM
Subject: Things I Love....or not.

I love.....
being 23 weeks pregnant with a baby girl.
living on half an acre in a nice neighborhood.

I don't love....
mowing that half an acre while 23 weeks pregnant with a baby girl.


You're welcome....for the childbearing and the lawn mowing.


Love you.  

He responded by telling me that when I decide I am human, he'll hire a lawn service for the summer.  Good man.

...I am going to tough it out for a while though.

Fair Winds and Following Seas

I apologize for the crazy stream of consciousness that this post contains...I am trying to work through everything from today...and maybe even force myself into having that 'one good cry' that will hopefully get me over the hump and cruising through this deployment like a pro. I almost got there after we got home from the pier, but with a child who didn't want to take a nap, I  have just ended up feeling pretty raw all afternoon.  

Today was the day.  Deployment day.  We were prepared for this, everything on our to-do list was completed and so we were worry free about all those loose ends as this date finally arrived on the calendar.

We woke up this morning and Shane cooked breakfast for us.  Trevor loves when Shane cooks, because that means pancakes!  I just burn them...need to work on that.  We packed up the last of Shaner's stuff and headed off to the ship.  We were able to spend some time with him on board, before they asked the families to depart so that they could begin their final preparations.  Shane walked us back off the pier and we said our goodbyes before I went to help out with the FRG group and wait to see the ship pull out.

Goodbye this time around was different than the last couple of times in a few ways.  On the carrier, I always dropped him off at the ship the night before they left, and then we were able to say goodnight on the phone one last time before we went to sleep that night.  This time there was more finality to it all.  There wasn't going to be a phone call a few hours later, or texts the next morning before they got underway for good.  Hugs didn't seem that they were ever tight enough this time, and one last kiss wasn't enough before we went our separate ways and he walked down the pier for the last in a very long time.

We did get to see and hear from Shane one more time before they manned the rails and pulled out.  He was able to come back to the back of the ship and wave to us, so getting that one last look really helped.  We stayed there at the pier until the ship was gone and then Trevor and I headed home.

As much as I have ever wished for peace and quiet around the house, today the silence was deafening.  It has never seen more empty than it did today.  I know that will change, but after having Shane home for so long (and not even thinking about the last couple of weeks, but the almost 5 years since he returned from his last deployment) it seemed so much different. Tonight, I am taking comfort in feeling our little girl kicking inside me.  It makes me feel that he isn't entirely gone and the silence isn't as bad as it initially seemed when we got home earlier. 

I do wish that he didn't have to go, but that isn't my focus as much as it was with past deployments.  I know that he has to go, and that he is out doing the job he loves, serving a country he loves.  How can I not support him in that?  The sadness this time comes from all the things that I know are to come...things that he will miss, things that I don't want to experience alone, but will have to anyway, and things that Trevor will miss.  

Trevor has been handling everything pretty well.  A couple of times he has said that he misses daddy.  I knew that bedtimes were going to be rough for him, so tonight I gave him a jar full of hershey kisses filled with one "goodnight kiss" from daddy to last from now until when Shaner should be home. He seems pretty excited about it, and hopefully it will help with counting down at a level he can understand.

I am off to bed...getting to bed will officially mark the end of the first day of the deployment.  It has to start somewhere.

welp...

So, up until about 3pm yesterday afternoon I was mentally prepared for what was supposed to happen this morning and how I was going to process through all the emotions, be strong for my little T-rex and get this deployment started on the right foot at home....and then we got the phone call that due to predicted sea conditions, d-day had been delayed until after the weekend.  [Official announcement of this gem here]Extra time together as a family?  I'll take it!  Having to re-prepare for separation on Monday?  Eh, it is worth the extra time for this gang.

Upsides of note:

• Shane was able to attend Trevor's first soccer practice tonight (Soccer Saturdays resume tomorrow y'all!  Get ready for some world-class sporting events!!)
• Shane will be able to see Trevor's first soccer game of the season tomorrow.  
• One more time that we will be able to attend church as a family
• I have been given a couple more days to get used to the new lens I purchased for my camera, so hopefully pictures from the pier on Monday won't be totally worthless.
• The pier won't be 40 degrees on Monday, like it was supposed to be today.  

So, I am off to enjoy family time for the evening...Sadly here at Casa de Chapman, that means tissues and Vick's VapoRub (this pregnant lady wants some medicine!!!) for everyone tonight.  Ah well, at least we are together!  

A Hiatus I Won't Apologize For

I had gotten a little bit better about updating the blog on a regular basis during Shaner's work-ups....but I mean, other than going to the gym, swim lessons and working, how else was I going to make the time go by other than scheduling every moment of my days so that the time would pass faster....These last couple of weeks though, I have been doing everything humanly possible to make the minutes and seconds stretch for as long as they could.  Every possible second that the three of us could be together (aside from one fun date night thrown in there where it was just us two) we spent as a family doing fun stuff and trying to make the best of the preparations that we did have to get taken care of.

To recap our little hiatus:

With Shaner home for six days, we spent the mornings together watching the beautiful sunrises out the back window before getting Trevor off to school.

We replaced our couches (yay for amazing deals that stem from my cheapness turned procrastination!)  Trevor loves the new comfy couches with pillows all over.  Perfect for reading and snuggling, he says!

We switched bedrooms around...Trevor moved into the old guest room and the guestroom/nursery moved to the back of the house.  Trevor loved picking out his paint color for his room and "helping" to paint the walls.  He did originally want fire engine red, but Shane talked him out of that, and bargained for red shelves instead.  Pictures to come of that.

We went out for date night to the Commodore Theater.  It was our first time and I LOVED it.  Thank you for sitting Andrea, even if my love of sweatpants ruined the surprise that day.

We had a TREVOR DAY on Saturday.  We went to the aquarium and spent most of the morning there.  Once we got home, we finished up things in Trevor's room and then he got to pick out a movie for the night and we snuggled on the floor in the living room having dinner and dessert.  Trevor wanted to sleep out there, and have us join him, but this pregnant momma is not sleeping on the floor unless necessary.

Sunday I took the day off from work so we could spend more time together as a family and we spent most of the time running errands, packing stuff up for Shaner and getting the crown molding in the kitchen finished....almost.

Monday we had our official anatomy scan at the hospital.  Our sweet little girl (to be named Hailey Renee) is growing right on track.  We have two perfect little girl outfits hanging in what will be her closet.

This week has been back to normal for the most part.  The minutes are ticking by quickly until d-day, but like I said earlier, we are making the best of it....we don't have much of a choice.