We aren't hermits...

...so I know I haven't blogged in almost 3 weeks. I apologize. I guess since Eddie has been home I have really been trying to spend as much time with him as a family as possible. It has been so nice having him home again. I really can not explain the relief I felt when he walked in the front door for the first time in 6 months.

He completed everything on his 'honey-do' list.....things Elijah broke and I needed hung up.... he he he.

Plus 2 days after Eddie got home, school started again. Now all my teacher friends that read this already understand what that first 2 weeks involves and how blogging is just not happening right when school starts. For everyone else, I am literally exhausted after waking up at 4:30 to workout, come home get Elijah up at 6:30, get showered dressed, fix breakfast, get students into the routines of school again......only to mention I have 2 sets of 28 kids throughout the day, come home cook dinner, eat as a family, help with Elijah's homework (Eddie does most of it actually - while I am cooking), then sit down for about 2 hours with my hubby before bedtime.

On Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays Elijah has some extra-curricular practices to be at also. You will see those blogs soon.

P.S. I am not complaining......I am very thankful for my family and work!

So all that to say I will blog this weekend..with pictures :) Thanks for holding on with me :)

......I can finally exhale!

After a 6 month deployment, I finally exhaled yesterday evening when Eddie got home!

Arriving on the flight line on a chartered flight......all the families were waiting

Elijah waiting to see his Daddy with his sign and that favorite t-shirt AGAIN!

Our front door decoration

The love of my life - we were waiting for customs to check Eddie's luggage in the arrival hangar

Transformers....robots in disguise

Hmmmm I sent Eddie the pictures and he informed me that they were not 'real' Transformers, they were just robots. 

Sorry, apparently I am not well-versed on super heroes.  Elijah thought they were Transformers though so I am still a cool mom.  We ran into these on the side of the road - literally - it wasn't a theme park - they were on the side of the road.... only in Japan!

Blueberry Picking

We went blueberry picking.  I had a GREAT time!  We got to eat all the blueberries we could possibly eat while we picked through the fields.  I mean it had rained that morning so I figured that the good Lord had already washed the blueberries off for us so that we could eat them right off the bush. (I know country, huh?)

Elijah, on the other hand, was NOT feeling the experience.  He even had a friend there, Aiden, that was overly excited about the experience....but not my lil man.  

Here are a few facts about Elijah:

1. He does NOT like his hands to be dirty for too long

2. He does NOT like his clothes or shoes to be dirty either

3. He does NOT like insects to fly around him

4. He STRONGLY believes that you MUST wash all your fruit before eating it( ....... pretty sure he gets that from me).......now I know this sounds like a good thing, but my lil man even washes his oranges!  

5.  He does NOT like blueberries.....I had him taste some in the field and he said he did not like it, but after we got home - he said he MAY try some after I have washed them off in the sink. hmmm??? 

check out the look on his face....this was in the beginning...things weren't looking too promising for a return trip to the blueberry fields already...he he he

This is my girl, Jene, she has been my right hand through this 6 month deployment!  Her hubby is deployed with Eddie also. Love ya Jene!  She has an accent mark over the 2nd e, but I just can't seem to do it on Eddie's Mac.  Sorry friend:( 

....he 'acted' like he was tasting it..he threw it down afterwards

So these are our baskets ....... he tried his hardest to get enough to cover the bottom of the basket, just couldn't mustard up the strength to brave all that dirt, the possibility of frogs in the field and random insects flying around his head.

Trip to the Coex Aquarium

Here are pics of our trip to the aquarium. As you know I am not exactly the world's biggest animal lover....I mean I guess my theory is.....as long as it (meaning the animal) doesn't touch me then we are both cool.

But the most important thing is that Elijah enjoyed himself and was really excited to see and touch the animals! Enjoy!

Elijah liked this refrigerator fish tank

in the kids area where you get to pick up the marine life

..........the toilet bowl fish tank

These are the fish that nibble at the dead skin on your fingers (or feet if you are getting a pedicure) Elijah said it felt like the fish were tickling his fingers.

Happy Birthday to the World's Greatest Husband!

Happy Birthday Baby!  Though we can't be together on YOUR special day, I want the WORLD to know that you are the greatest husband ever!  

'Keep on keeping on' during your deployment.......we can celebrate your birthday when you get HOME!!!

I love you!! We are stronger than ANY deployment!

Piranhas.....

Elijah has wanted to see a piranha for awhile now. We ran into a fish tank at the store that had piranhas inside and you could pay $1 so the store clerk could throw a live goldfish inside! Yep, you guessed it! So we coughed up $2 and the tank full of piranhas tore apart and ate the poor little goldfish so quickly I couldn't capture it on camera!

Oh notice the poor little goldfish that was left over for a snack later. The piranhas ate 2 of them and left that poor lil guy hanging around for at least 10 minutes....we walked away after that!

Hey Elijah thought it was really cool!