We made it!

So, we've arrived. Got the keys to the house today and furniture will be delivered later this week. Yahooo!

However, as great as things are going here in Kansas, things are going horribly bad back in South Carolina. We've had major issues with closing - in fact we haven't technically closed yet, even though we were all sitting around the closing table Friday morning. Long story short, we hope to finalize it this week. Please let it close all the way this week!

Justin has already timed how long it will take to walk from Sam's house to ours. *laugh* And since the school is between us, now he also knows how long it will take to get to school. That was very important for him. :)

Both Kaden and Cammi were AMAZING travelers. I knew Justin would be fine, he's always been great on long trips. K and C were unknowns. For Cammi, once we got about 45 minutes into the first day, she must have realized we were in it for the long haul and she hardly let out more than 10 meows the entire rest of the three-day drive. Whew! Kaden got a bit fussy a couple of times, but that's to be expected for a one-year old on a 18+ hour drive.

He's still not thrilled about getting in the car even today. I don't blame him. I'm pretty sick of it as well...

Turning in my official resignation...

On Monday, I'll be turning in my official resignation letter. I'll be VERY glad to not be working under such tight time restrictions again. Trying to schedule an appointment has been crazy, since I'm still in the hole over 120 hours of sick leave due to my maternity leave. I've been hoarding my annual leave hours in case I or the boys got sick. It'll be nice to schedule things easily again. I'll have quite a bit of open time this coming semester.

Speaking of this semester, I'll be taking four classes. My advisor thinks it's at least one too many (full time as a grad student is 6 credits, I'm scheduled for 12 I think), but one of them is only for the first month of the semester and another is a 100 level computer course (pre-req for the GIS certificate I'll be working towards). I think I can swing it. :)

I'm excited to see what changes have been made to the undergrad geology lab program. I would have loved to make some changes myself, during the year I was in charge, but I didn't have the funds or the time, nor really the authority as the coordinator should be at least an instructor and I was a non-degree seeking grad student. Ah well, changes HAVE been made now and I'm looking forward to them.

Justin is getting very excited about the upcoming move. I'm just glad school will be starting up only two weeks after we get back to Kansas. Since I'll be having both boys 24/7, my sanity will just about be running out by the time I ship him off to his first day of 2nd grade. I'm not cut out to be a stay-at-home mom.

Kaden is still not walking, although it really could be any day. It doesn't occur to him to try to let go of the couch/table/bed/whatever and just go for it. He always drops down to his knees. I'd love for it to happen before Darrell leaves for Texas, but I don't think it's going to. :( Of course I'll try to catch his early steps on video, but it won't be the same.

Closing scheduled!

We have an official closing date and time. Woo hoo! It's in the morning, so after I sign my name a few thousand times (nah, not so many as a seller...), I'll pick up the boys and we'll hit the road.

I need to come up with somewhere to put the cat. I can't leave her at home, since I'll be turning the keys over at closing. Can't leave her in the car. I'm still working on ideas...

The appraisal was a few days ago. We haven't heard the result yet, but she did say there aren't any red flags and we won't have a problem reaching the number we need. I'm very interested in her results, of course...

Still left: heating/air and termite

One step closer...

The house inspector came yesterday. He only found two 'gigs' - the garage door opener needs to be adjusted and we need to fix the weather stripping around the front door. He even showed Darrell how to do it the cheapest way possible.

We can handle that.

Darrell tried to fix the garage door opener, but it's apparently not as easy as he thought it'd be. He'll keep trying.

Next: appraisal and heat/air inspection

Break out the beret!

Darrell's drill sergeant hat has been retired. His last day "on the trail" was Saturday, 30 June. Of course in typical Army fashion, he ended up having CQ that night, extending his last "day" about eight hours through the night and into the next morning.

I hadn't had a chance to see him in uniform on post since then until today after work. I got off work early and called Darrell to see what he was up to, to spend some time with him if possible before picking up the kids. He was headed off post to do some grocery shopping, so I met him in the parking lot.

He gets out of the car with his beret on. I'd forgotten how awesome he looks with it on, although I prefer the look of the Army soft cap (looks like a baseball cap). He prefers the soft cap as well (MUCH more comfortable, cooler than a black wool beret in the summertime heat, gives more eye/sun protection, etc...) Anyway, it was nice to see NO MORE BROWN ROUND (aka the drill sergeant hat)!! Our two years are over!

And those two years went FAST. Darrell had something like nine cycles during that time (might be ten, I'll have to ask). He worked up to 130-140 hours a week some weeks. Rarely had a whole weekend day off, never had a full weekday off while in cycle. Only had a couple cycle breaks longer than a weekend. Trained HUNDREDS of Soldiers.

I'm extremely proud of him. He's a great leader, a fantastic Soldier, and a dedicated mentor. I knew when I met him that he was one of the best, and he proves me right every single day.

A surprise at work

I got quite a surprise yesterday. I was named Fort Jackson Garrison Hero by the garrison commander, Colonel Stevens. I've never even heard of such a thing before, but now I am one. :)

I can't help by think of the kids' show Higglytown Heroes. The premise is that anyone in town can be a hero, depending on what talents and skills that person has and how he or she helps other people. I suppose I'm a paperwork hero?

I'm completely stumped at how I got on the GC's radar. Yes, I've done a couple of things at work to get local notice (worked two jobs for two months before Christmas while the section was shorthanded and was awarded employee of the quarter about five months ago), but neither of those things are that big of a deal to get recognition by the garrison commander. *shrug*

In any case, I'll take it. It'll certainly look good on the ol' resume. And if my son wants to think of me as a Higglytown Hero, who am I to complain?

Kaden's walking progress...

Kaden's lead daycare teacher is completely set on having Kaden walking before his last day at daycare here in South Carolina. She wants to see it happen, and with her determination, it might actually go her way!

At the moment, he's a master cruiser. He LOVES to push things around - I think his favorite is the rolling computer chair. We've caught him standing without holding on for periods up to eight seconds or so, but as soon as he realizes what's happening, he makes a grab for support.

Honestly, I don't see him walking before the end of July, but I'd love to be proven wrong. So go ahead Miss Gail, see what you can do! :)

A very overdue tooth-loss report

I'm sad to say I don't remember exactly when it happened, but Justin has lost his THIRD tooth. Not sure when the next one will go, as the other top middle tooth is only slightly wiggly... Luckily for Justin, the bottom two are growing back in pretty quickly. The one replacing loss #1 is about halfway up now, and Justin announced a few days ago at dinner that the new one now "works just fine." I saw proof - little tooth marks in a previously unmarked green bean. Woo hoo! *laugh*