So how are we doing? Since you asked...

Well, Vincent had a neuro exam this morning. Why? OH, because I decided TO BE HONEST on his physical for daycare and on the line where it says "has your child ever in his entire life, even once, possibly, maybe, EVER had a seizure?" I checked "Yes" BUT added a note stating that it was a febrile seizure that only occurred because we were 25,000 motherfucking feet in the air and HAD NO TYLENOL. And the genius at the paperwork factory that fuels the entire goddamn military decided they had to have a neurological evaluation. For fuck's sake. Anyway he's fine; in fact so fine that he stuffed both pockets with bright red packages of condoms, unbeknownst to me, and after I'd dropped him at daycare decided to share them with his friends. Good times.

Vlad is awesome; loves first grade, and accidentally (yes, a total accident) scored a goal in his first soccer game. So now he's all "I AM THE BEST EVER IN THE WORLD AT SOCCER." He gets his modesty from me.

Vincent starts gymnastics next month, which should consist of running around sock-footed and screaming, and bouncing off walls, trampoline, and fellow gymnasts. We're excited.

And me, started my pre-med courses, which consist of math and SCIENCE, so no easy A's there fo sho. Work is awesome, occasionally sticky, but awesome.

And there's Bart. My 75 pound chihuahua, AKA lab mix. Thus far he is afraid of loud noises, quiet noises, the tv, the dishwasher, the front door, back door, and garage door, the Vs, my hair, the microwave beep, and ohmyfuckinggod the smoke alarm. I have to carry him outside, and then back inside, because the world is just too much for him and if he had thumbs to suck, he would probably just sit in a corner all the time and do that. Maybe he needs a blankie. I don't know.

Anyway it's pretty much all good in the hood. And by hood I mean my primarily caucasian suburb.

Keeping Busy

Well Husband is finally in-theater. We were able to talk for a few minutes on the phone last night, and even though there was a terrible echo and a delay, it was still pretty great to hear his voice. I imagine anyone listening to our conversation (on either side) probably thought we sounded like a hearing-impaired married-for-sixty-years couple (a lot of "WHAT'D YOU SAY? THERE'S A LOTTA GRASS?!?!?" "NO I SAID I MISSED THAT ASS!!!!") Oh.

Vincent has been "expressing" himself a bit more lately; if you know me from facebook you've probably seen the video, or as I like to call it, The Evidence. The child has an unbelievable set of lungs on him. It's both impressive and discouraging.

Vladimir has been having some trouble at school; basically he went from kindergarten for 2 1/2 hours a day to seven hours a day, and you can imagine the difference in curriculum. In Washington they were still working on letters, sounds, rhyming, and not dumping your milk on your friend's head and not wiping boogers on the walls. In Illinois, they've learned 80 (!!!!) sight words and are starting to do addition. In kindergarten. It's discouraging to see how far behind he is, and I'm kicking myself for not researching this before we decided to come to Illinois - but what's done is done. I may hold him back for another year, because the last thing I want to do is throw him into first grade while he's still sounding out words, and the rest of the class is already reading. Unfortunately, he's already taller than most first graders and a few of the second graders (to be honest in a few more years he'll be taller than me, and probably shaving in third grade). At any rate, this may be the best thing for him right now, so he'll just have to start med school (or pool boy school, if he gets his way) a little later.

And me. I've interviewed for a couple positions at different hospitals, and hopefully will hear something back sometime next week. I have classes starting up again in May/June, so that with a full time job and the Vs will hopefully have me so mind-numbingly busy that the months will fly by. Hopefully.

I'm also trying my best to not obsessively read the breaking news from the Army Times, Lewis/McChord's website, msn/cnn/abc/etc etc, or associated press. But it's hard.

So - no best/worst for today; it's still early in the day to call it. But some Avenged Sevenfold for you, because AV is awesome.

So the first week...

...it's been dragging. Big V started his new school and I've been making daily trips into town for random things at Walmart (sorry Husband) in order to fill time a little better. Once I start working and classes, and summer kicks in, hopefully it'll go a little faster - but in the meantime going to the store for toothpaste and pasta one day and Sprite and baby wipes the next will have to do.

Meanwhile Husband is still in the states, finishing up the usual tasks and paperwork before he has to leave. It's a little harder right now knowing he's a quick plane ride away, and thinking that maybe we should have left a little later so we'd have had this time together - but goodbye has to happen at some point.

Best part of today (so far): Vlad coming home from school with a note from his teacher saying "Great behavior today; he worked really hard!" (school is an ongoing battle lately)
Worst part of today: running into my old creepy Walmart stalker (white hair in nose and ears, buck teeth, stands waaaaaay too close when he talks and wants to photograph me. Yerk.)
Song of the day:

So, meh. And stuff.

Oh, today was fun - Not. At. All. Yep, took my other/taller/balder/lover half to the airport. It sucks.

Yes, "we signed up for it." Yes, "we knew what we were getting into." Yes, "we should be used to this by now" (actually, no; if we ever "got used" to splitting up our family I think we'd have worse problems). Does any of that make it easier? It does not.

But, the Vs and I are closer to family, which helps. I'm so thankful I have a shit ton to keep me busy during the next couple weeks; with renewing my RN license to deal with (Illinois is sooooo slow), CEUs to complete, jobs to search, and Vlad to start at a new kindergarten, I think I'll have enough mind-numbing chores to get through to keep my hands and (hopefully!) my mind occupied, because as any military-affiliated family will tell you, it's the mind that'll get you into trouble.

Oh, the places my mind can go. As I've mentioned before, I can go a little nuts with the over-thinking.  At best (so goes in my head); he's a little culture-shocked after being away for so long; middle of that he comes back and decides he needs a fast car and a twenty-year old girlfriend. Worst... no, I haven't been able to go down those roads just yet.  I just can't.

So for now I'll leave you with these -
Best part of today: watching him watch the boys all morning, memorizing their smiles, their smells.
Worst part of today: feeling my chest seize a little as the family sitting next to us at the security checkpoint was reunited, and knowing we have so far to go.

Song of the day:

And now, chocolate. Peace, ya'll.