Life After The Army » baby

Cranky pants

Charlotte — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 22:49:18 +0000

I think Benton put on his cranky pants this morning (or rather mommy put them on him) because he’s been quite cranky today. He only took one nap this morning and refused to take another this afternoon, like he usually does. Andi made him oatmeal and he refused to eat it. He refused to eat rice.

He has this habit of screeching for no apparent reason and he did that a LOT today. Normally it’s only when he’s tired that he screeches. I think we all need a dose or two of Tylenol now.. lol.

Right now his daddy is giving him a nice bath and Andi is cleaning up the kitchen. We usually switch off duties like that. If Andi cooks then I clean up afterward and if I cook then Andi will clean up.

It looks like an early bedtime for Benton which is good and bad at the same time. Early bedtime means he’ll be up really early in the morning… something which no one looks forward to.

What to take or not to take

Charlotte — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 00:53:50 +0000

I have one of those infamous “muffin tops”. It’s not real bad but if I don’t do something about it soon it will be. I was just checking out www.sideeffectsofdietpills.net and there are some that I just won’t even try. Either they don’t work or the side effects just aren’t worth it.

Now I’m wishing I hadn’t gotten rid of the elliptical I had because I sure could use it right now. I’m thinking I’m going to start dragging Andi and the baby out during the day and take a walk up and down the street. The past couple days would have been good for that because the humidity and temperature finally dropped to a more comfortable level. Starting tomorrow the temperature and humidity levels are going up again.

Walking is good exercise and my doctor has been wanting me to get out and walk but the condo complex I lived in wasn’t exactly the best place to take a walk in alone. This is a nice, quiet street and a good place to take a walk. Even if Andi doesn’t want to go with me I’ll grab the baby and put him in the stroller and take a walk. The fresh air will be good for him and me both.

Welcome Sophia

Charlotte — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 17:52:21 +0000

Yesterday my daughter-in-law gave birth to our 7th grandchild. Her name is Sophia Josephine. She weighed 7 lbs. 11 ounces and was 19 inches long. She has black hair and blue eyes.

Click on the picture above to see it bigger.

I can’t wait to meet her in person. That’s going to be awhile because they live in Texas and I’m in New Jersey. She is going to be such a pretty girl. I know that because her mom and dad are good looking people.

Moving soon

Charlotte — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 22:06:14 +0000

I’ll probably be moving in with Andi, Drew and the baby in the next couple days. I still won’t have my stuff until we can get storage paid off. I was hoping for some donations to help out but so far only one person was nice enough to contribute.

There is an extra desk that I’ll be able to use and soon I’ll have a baby on my lap while trying to type my posts. Soon you’ll see words like 7-dfbx, cjieryow and others. Don’t be concerned.. I haven’t lost my mind.. it will be Benton trying to help me out with my work

Plans change

Charlotte — Sun, 16 May 2010 16:53:54 +0000

We were going to get a place with Andi, Drew and the baby but that has changed. Andi is going into the reserves and will be moving about 45 minutes away to be close to where she’ll be stationed. So now we are looking at apartments instead of townhouses.

I really wanted a townhouse because it has a second floor, where the bedrooms are, and the stairs would have made great fat burners especially while getting things unpacked and put away. Last week we took a look around at the complex the apartments and townhouses are in and it looks like a really nice place to live. The apartments are only 2 stories high and if we get one on the second floor we won’t have banging and stomping over our head like we did at the last place.

—————————————————————

Benton (Jake, Booger, Boog – he has many names) is growing like a weed. He’s almost 20 lbs, 8 months old and 28 inches tall (I think). He crawls like a speed demon and runs around in his walker (that looks like a jeep). He pulls himself up and climbs the stairs. He can hold on with just one hand and almost stands by himself.

They have been away in Pennsylvania for the past couple days so I don’t know what new thing the boy has learned while he’s been gone. I’m going to miss him like crazy when they move away. I’m so used to seeing him just about every day. It’s going to be strange.

Oh.. forgot to mention

Charlotte — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 16:34:56 +0000

I forgot to tell you all that it looks like my Army Mom days aren’t over after all. Andi is going back into the Army… not the regular Army but the Ready Reserves. She’s tried and tried, since she got out of the Army, to find a job in the real world and hasn’t had any luck.

The one good thing about her doing that, besides a steady paycheck again, is the fact that there are a couple reserve units around here with open slots that she can get into so she won’t have to move to another state again. She’ll also have insurance for herself, her fiancee (more about that one in a minute) and her kids.

That’s another thing I forgot to mention.. Andi is engaged! She’s engaged to Drew.. the guy who stepped up to be a dad to her son even though he’s not the biological father. I don’t know of a lot of guys who would be willing to do that. Drew is a wonderful dad to that little boy and he loves him like he’s his own son.

I am still alive….

Charlotte — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 19:31:05 +0000

Really I am… I’ve just been really busy trying to find a place to live and packing. I haven’t really had much time to do any postings here or on any of my blogs.

Benton is doing great. Andi said he had his 1st doctor appointment yesterday and he’s gained back the weight he lost after his birth and then some and is “the picture of health”.

Problems are still running rampant in this family though. Andi was visited by the bank’s repo guy the other day and now she no longer has a car. She told me that on the good side of that she no longer has a $520 a month car payment on a car she doesn’t like. That is all the Army’s fault as she hadn’t gotten a paycheck since the beginning of June and it didn’t help that the bank would not work with her at all. I have Ford Motor Credit for my car and I’m behind in my payments too but they are working with us. They say they want to keep their customers and vehicles together. They deferred the 2 months we are behind and tacked them on to the end of the loan. So we are good to go.

So since Andi won’t be able to come here with the baby we will probably be making a quick trip to Pennsylvania to see them soon. I can’t wait to see Andi and Benton. We’ll get to meet her boyfriend Drew too.

JoJo has been helping me pack. She’s been the “inspector”. She gets on the packed boxes and even in the empty boxes to “inspect” them and give her seal of approval. She climbs into open cabinets and drawers… basically ~~getting in way~~ being cute.

Well… back to work.. there’s lots to clean and pack!!

Let the packing begin

Charlotte — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 15:38:02 +0000

We haven’t found a new place to move to yet but I started packing this morning. I figured I should start packing up stuff that I know I won’t be using for awhile.

I have a few boxes and decided to start on my ~~clutter~~ china cabinet. I had the door opened and was taking stuff out, wrapping it and putting it into a box when JoJo jumped up and started taking a stroll through the cabinet… meowing the whole time. If my batteries, for my camera, had been charged I would have taken a picture.

That cabinet hasn’t been opened since I got JoJo so I guess she was curious as to what was in there.. She’s such a goofball.

I heard from Andi this morning too and her and the baby are doing fine and could possibly be going home tomorrow.

Not having a good day

Charlotte — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 17:29:33 +0000

Today isn’t a good day in the ArmyMom house. I bought a bluetooth for my cell phone and I can’t get it to pair with the phone. I’ve tried several times and no luck. I thought maybe it was because I only had 2 bars so I went out where I had full bars and it still won’t pair up.

Andi is pregnant, getting divorced and has absolutely nothing for the baby. I’ve been trying to find discount places for her to get stuff for the baby… crib, high chair, car seat, etc and have been sending her links. I just wish we were rich or could win the lottery. I’d send her $5000 to $10000 to get a bunch of nice things for the little guy. Oh… she did find out that it’s a boy.

It’s cold and rainy out. My contacts have been bothering me and I’m wearing my glasses. I’m aggravated and annoyed today. I broke down and bought a pack of cigarettes and I’m mad at myself for doing that. I had to force myself to do laundry because I have absolutely nothing to wear tomorrow. I didn’t feel like doing anything at all today. I absolutely hate when I get feeling like this.

I’m really not that old

Charlotte — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 18:40:18 +0000

Today is my oldest son’s birthday. He is 35 today which is impossible because I’m not old enough to have a kid that old… right? *I wish* No.. I’m 55 *cringe*. It seems like only yesterday that he was born. He had to have been one of the best babies in the world. He didn’t give me a lot of trouble. He was rarely sick and was just a very happy child.

He grew up, graduated high school and joined the Army. After his 3 1/2 years he got out and thought about what he wanted to do with his life. He finally decided that he wanted to be a pilot. He went to school in Arizona and worked as a baggage handler in the airport. He got a job flying with US Air flying their regional jets. He has recently gotten a job flying private jets. He flies the rich and famous around to many different places. We are very proud of him and what he has accomplished. He is married to a wonderful girl and they have 1 son and another baby on the way (UPDATE on this.. Theo called me today.. Misty lost the baby).

Happy Birthday Theo!! We love you very much!