Snowpocalypse 2015

People keep talking about this "snowmageddon"/"snowpocalypse" that is going on in New England?!

People up there keep posting pictures and stuff on Facebook about some ridiculous cold weather and massive amounts of snow...

Because meanwhile...

In TEXAS...

Yep...that's 82 degrees...

Notice my sandals, sleeveless dress....and Dannika's attire...

Oh, and we grilled and had dinner and wine outside on our patio tonight...

I was actually really worried about our friends in New England.

I was watching the news like crazy to get details on the blizzard that hit them yesterday.

I was freaking out about the possibility of some of them losing power for DAYS (according to the news).

But of course, most of our friends are "hardcore New Englanders", and none of them seemed too worried.

I guess if you've lived there long enough, a blizzard every few years is bound to happen, and it's nothing out of the ordinary.

I lived through one of the all time top 10 blizzards of Massachusetts...."Nemo"...

That blizzard pretty much solidified my decision that New England would NEVER be my forever home. 

Some people can hack it during the LONG...COLD...LONG....MISERABLE...LONG...SNOWY...LONG winter months of the northeast.

Did I mention long?

While watching all the news reports about the blizzard, and seeing all my friends post their snow photos, I sat here in good ole sunny Texas thanking the good Lord for bringing us here.

Nick and I grilled on our porch tonight, and ate dinner in our backyard...

We listened to country music, watched the sun set over our fence, and drank wine...

We both kept telling each other how we couldn't believe that we were doing this in January.

All of my close friends and family keep telling me how much more happy, upbeat, and positive I seem since moving down here.

I honestly feel better.

My marriage is awesome...my relationship with my kids is awesome...

I feel like I am where I belong, and it's gonna be tough when we have to leave here.

I've been making the most of our time here, because I know it's limited.

We drove down to Houston last weekend to take my mama out to lunch for her birthday.

I realized I hadn't spent a single birthday with my mama since I left the house at 18!!!!

She was really happy that we could do little things like go out to lunch on a random weekend. 

Anyway...

School has been taking over my life!

My kids are barely fed!!!!

(OK...just kidding...don't call CPS...)

We hired a part time nanny (an Aggie, of course!), and she's been a HUGE help so far!

I'll try my best to keep up with this blog.

I'll do a post on time management soon...

I feel like I'm an expert on time management (thanks to the Marine Corps), but being a full time mom taking 18 credit hours is a whole different beast!!

I had a nervous breakdown last week, and poor Nick got the brunt of it!!

I hope y'all are having an amazing 2015 so far!!

And to my New England friends...

Stay warm! Our home is always open to y'all!

And some random photos...

Nick's best friend from high school (who lives in Alabama still) is in Texas this week for work!

He stopped by our house for a few hours to hang out!

(disregard the auburn shirt....)

Mattis' bedhead...

 Alfalfa?

Nick set up two computer screens for me in our office so that I could do my school work!

Best hubby ever...

I took some Valentine's Day photos today of the kids....

This one makes me smile...

Ice Dams?

 Ever heard of an ice dam?

Neither have I until I moved to this part of the country.

Basically, ice dams happen in your home when you get snow, the snow melts, the water runs into tiny little cracks and crevices on your roof, the water freezes overnight in the cracks, the next day, the water starts to melt (due to the sun or poor insulation), and it starts leaking into your house.

Yeah...we have those.

It's not fun to have leaks in random parts of your house. 

Oh, and we are expecting another 6-8 inches of snow tomorrow followed by rain towards the end of the week which could possibly make our little problem a big problem.

 

Nick is leaving today, and I was originally pretty pumped because it's his last week away.
But now that I have to deal with these ice dams and leaks, I'm not too happy about him leaving.

I've always thought Boston/New England would be a cool place to just visit.
There's so much history here and just some really cool things about it that you can't find anywhere else in the country.
Now that I've lived here, and it's put such a sour taste in my mouth, I'll be ok if I never come back to this part of the country ever again when Nick is done here.

I'm so over this.

As you can see, Mattis was not impressed with the snow or the snow attire.

He's definitely my son!

Winter Storms, Happy Lights, Sad Face

No photos today...

Just some thoughts...

There's a HUGE Winter storm heading our way.

Actually, it's already trickled it's way in.

I guess what makes this one so bad is that it's so unpredictable.

It's supposed to start off as snow, then turn into freezing rain, then possibly back to snow again.

But no one knows exactly for sure or when it will happen on the timeline of events.

We're supposed to get over 12 inches of snow where we live, and there's possible power outages that might happen in our future. 

Last year, we had a blizzard (remember Nemo?).

I wasn't so nervous last year though because my husband didn't go into work that day, and I had that security blanket of having a man around the house in case of crisis or emergency.

We spent the day indoors on the couch watching movies, making forts, and drinking homemade hot chocolate. 

This year, being alone with 2 kids terrifies me.

I think it's the Marine in me, but I always have the "prepare for the worst, hope for the best" mentality.

So in my mind, I've already assumed we'll lose power, and something is going to happen to the house. 

Nick is supposed to fly in tomorrow night, and I'm looking at all the flight cancellations and delays for today, and I've already told myself he won't be coming home this weekend.

Again...prepare for the worst, hope for the best. 

I already feel like I deal with seasonal depression, and adding all this other snow storm crap on top of it puts me in high anxiety. 

Last night, I purchased a "happy light" off amazon.

I've heard great things about it, so I'm hoping it'll sorta ease the "blues".

I seriously can not believe that I spent money for sunshine!

I've just been so down in the dumps this week because of this stupid storm, the cold, the weather, and just living here without close friends or family around in general.

It's a part of military life I hate.

I'm very selective with my friends and who I let close into my life.

I think it's a wall I put up because we move around so much.

I don't want people to get too close.

I'm the type of person who has lots of acquaintances and very few friends, and the few friends I have, I am extremely loyal to.

You know what else bothers me?

I never realized how out of touch civilians are with the average military family until I moved here where being in the military is not the norm.

I know people mean well, but I feel like shaking people sometimes on just how ignorant or naive they are about my life. 

I have to remind myself that this isn't a military community, and it's not their fault.

It's a tough adjustment when you've come from a place like Camp Pendleton where if you find someone who isn't military, it's not normal.

People look absolutely shocked when they find out how long "Nick's business trip" is.

"Eight weeks?!?! Oh my gosh! I stress out when my husband is gone for a week!"

yes...thanks for reminding me. I was just starting to accept the fact that it's ONLY 8 weeks, but now you've just made it seem like it's an eternity...thanks.  Oh, and please never ever ever compare your husband's business trip to my husband's military commitments.

"He's gone AGAIN?! Wasn't he JUST gone for entire Summer?!" 

why yes, he was gone ALL summer. I'm also getting over that, but thanks for reopening that wound for me. To me, it feels like we've had a lot of time between these two separations, but now you've just made me realize that it wasn't a lot of time...thanks.

"How do you do it all on your own?!" 

uhh...I don't know! Maybe out of necessity for the survival of my children? I don't think I have a choice.

"Why can't you go with him? He's only in VA, you can fly down there for a weekend or something."

Uhh, I can't go with him because the military is only paying for HIM to go. I can't go with him because it's not some fun "business trip". He is there for training. Most days he is in the classroom for 12-14 hours a day, so even if I did go with him, I'd never see him. Oh, did I mention I have a child in preschool, dance, and gymnastics? I can't just take her out of all those things (that we've already paid for) for 8 weeks to follow daddy to his military training assignment. Let me just add, I'm not spending $350 for plane tickets to fly to VA for a weekend with two kids. Get real people. 

"Just rely on God."

What? you think I haven't been relying on God? God is all I have a lot of times, and I painstakingly rely on him every single day of my life. I rely on him more due to military life than I would prefer. You didn't make me feel better by saying those words to me.

I'm just tired of this place.

this weather.

I'm tired of people telling me with their happy voices to "embrace it!"

I'm tired of people telling me to "find a fun winter activity, and it'll be much more enjoyable for you!"

I'm tired of people telling me to "quit complaining."

I'm tired of people telling me "how beautiful the rest of the year is here".

I need more than just 6 months of beautiful.

I need more than just 6 months of uninterrupted sunshine.

It was brought up to my attention to get my vitamin D levels checked, and I'm seriously considering it.

I started taking Vitamin D supplements, but I think I should get them checked just in case.

Ya know?

I was just not bred to be a "New Englander".

You can take a girl outta Texas, but you can never take the Texas outta the girl.

Just One of Those Days

Today's been a "blah" kind of day.

I looked at the weather forecast (as I do every day), and saw that we have another Winter storm headed our way on Thursday.

I've been here long enough to "get over it", and just silently complain to myself about how much I hate the Winter here (ok not silently...my wonderful FB friends get an earful...eyeful?...from me).

I have come to accept the fact that it snows here, and no matter how much praying, wishing, and hoping I do, snow is just an inevitable part of living up north. 

What made THIS week's forecast of snow so irritating to me is the fact that my husband is flying in on Friday for the 3 day weekend.

All I could think was, "if this weather messes up my husband's travel, I'm going to have to deal with one brokenhearted four year old who wants daddy home on Valentine's Day."

It just put me in a sour mood all day.

Oh, and let me just add that I am reading the Book of Job for my "Bible in 90 Days" group, and if you don't know, the Book of Job is pretty depressing.

When it comes to seeing my daughter disappointed with things like getting to see her father, it really gets under my skin.

I feel like at four years old, she's dealt with enough disappointment with him not being there all the time due to the nature of his job.

I don't need something like WEATHER to contribute to that!

I prayed SO hard today it's unreal. 

Almost with tears running down my face, hardcore prayed.

Begging God to pllleeeeaaase give us favorable conditions on Friday for daddy to make it home.

I just don't feel like seeing disappointment in my daughter's big brown eyes.

I already had to see it when she found out all her friends were going to a "daddy/daughter" dance last weekend.

She's been looking forward to this weekend, and counting down ballet class after ballet class until her daddy comes home to visit.

So please....

Can we get some prayers please?!

Oh, and if school is cancelled Friday because of "said snow", I'm going to have even more disappointment to deal with.

My daughter's worked SO hard on her Valentine's Day cards for her classmates, and if she doesn't get to take it to school ON Valentine's Day, she's gonna be upset!

Just a Jumble of Things

 Another Snow Day...blech

 This is what I woke up to this morning.

You can't really tell in this pic, but it's "pouring snow".

I'm not one of those people who get excited about "snow days" (as you probably already know if you've followed my blog or Facebook for a while now).

I wrote a post about my "winter blues" last month, and how weather like this affects my overall mood.

So today, I'm feeling "bluesy". 

I feel trapped inside my home, and almost claustrophobic.

Seriously...once again...I will complain....

I am counting down the days till we are out of this frozen tundra.

And to my friends in Alaska...I don't know how y'all do it up there!!!

I can't even handle Massachusetts!

The Grown Up Cutting Board

I purchased my very first "nice" cutting board along with some mineral oil to take care of it.

I didn't know how ridiculously expensive they could be!

But after some research and talking to some friends, I was convinced it's a "must have".

I'm so glad I listened!

Just chopping my vegetables and stuff on it feels so much more different than my old cheap cutting boards!

I feel all "chefy".

My Future Crossfitter

I love Crossfit.

I incorporate it as much as I can into my normal work outs.

It's totally helped tighten and tone everything back into place since having my second baby.

BUUUT, I'm not one of those hardcore "I ONLY Crossfit and eat Paleo" type of people.

(Kinda like those crazy turbo people).

I do eat a "loose" Paleo diet, and it's been so good to me.

Anyway, I love that my daughter is obsessed with my workout equipment at home, but she freaks me out when I see my little 4 year old trying to carry around my kettlebells and weights.

I just see an accident waiting to happen.

So I got on Amazon, and found a company called "Wod Toys", and found all kinds of "pretend" Crossfit equipment.

I ordered a kettlebell, and it's seriously the best purchase ever!

My daughter does "her work out" with it at least 5 times a day! lol.

I think it's important to show our kids through example of a healthy lifestyle, and I am loving my little "WOD'er".

Random Valentine's Day Stuff

 Everyone knows my love for Valentine's Day.

Y'all can read about it here.

Dannika and I spent an evening crafting away and making home made Valentine's Day decorations for our house.

I like to be a little festive, and she had a ton of fun gluing the paper chains together.

It was fun bonding time.

It would have been more fun if Mattis wouldn't have kept screaming for attention while we were trying to make pretty things.

Gosh...doesn't he get it?! :)

This year, I made personalized Valentines for Dannika to take to school to pass out off Shutterfly.

I also sat down with her for a painstakingly 45 minutes while she wrote all 11 kids names on each Valentine from her class.

Oh, and it just so happens that EVERY single kid in her class has a ridiculously long name.

The Birthday Party Invite

Dannika got invited to her first birthday party for a classmate at school.

She was so excited when I picked her up from preschool yesterday to show me her invitation.

It's a party at Chuck E Cheese. 

I hate Chuck E. Cheese.

My daughter loves Chuck E. Cheese.

I guess we'll be going Chuck E. Cheese for a birthday party!

Sweet Moment

When I went to wake up my daughter the other morning, I noticed that this photo of my husband had been moved on her shelf next to her bed to face her.

I asked her if she had been looking at daddy's picture.

Her response absolutely melted my heart.

She said, "I moved daddy's picture closer to me so that he can watch me while I sleep every night."

She sure does miss her daddy.

Makes me think how much harder these short and long separations are getting as she gets older.

I feel like when she was a baby, she didn't know the difference between him being gone for a day or 7 months.

Now, I feel like she really starts to feel the days without him around.

Tiger Mom/Asian Parenting 101

Since school is cancelled today cause of snow, it doesn't mean it's cancelled in our home.

We spent an hour this morning working on penmanship, numbers, big and little letters, and words.

I couldn't believe how frustrated I would get when she kept writing her "Z's" backwards.

I caught myself raising my voice at her, and then I realized I was becoming my parents.

My parents raised me in a stereotypical "Asian parenting" home.

I remember having to learn my multiplication tables an entire year before I even learned them at school.

My dad used to yell at me when I couldn't spit out the answers fast enough.

ie:

Dad: what's 9x5?

Me: umm...

Dad: WHAT IS IT?!

Me: uhhh....(panic)

Dad: That's not fast enough! You have to say it faster! You haven't memorized it enough!

Me: 45?

Dad: (look of disappointment).

It's not quite the way I want to raise my kids, but I do want a healthy balance of "Tiger parenting" and my own style.

I mean, I guess Tiger parenting can be a little harsh at times, but there really are some awesome results, and some amazingly smart and bright children that come out of these homes.

Love

She got dressed for school, and came downstairs with this green necklace on.

She said, "Mommy, I am wearing this green necklace to school today because green is my daddy's favorite color."

Yeah...she's definitely a daddy's girl...no question about it.

I told her to smile with her eyes (or in Tyra Banks terms, "Smeyes".)

This is what I got...lol.

Tyra Banks would be proud.

Just me and the kiddos.

We are seriously counting down the days when daddy comes home!

He comes home next weekend for President's Day Weekend/Valentine's Day!

We're so excited!

Winter Blues

We survived our first "winter storm".

It wasn't as bad as everyone was saying it was going to be.

Thank God for my awesome husband for hiring a snow plow to do our driveway in the morning, so that I wouldn't have to worry about it.

The only thing I am complaining about is the fact that it is frickin' cold outside, and my daughter's gymnastics class was not cancelled.

That means I have to go outside.

I read an article today on militaryspouse.com about the "winter blues" (a common name for seasonal depression).

I totally related to it!

I've never hated a season so much until moving here to Massachusetts. 

I've tried really, really hard to make the best of our family's time here, but I have given up on winter.

The winter months are so depressing, and I honestly feel that I suffer from seasonal depression.

I get moody, lazy, and "bluesy". 

I don't necessarily get depressed.

Depression is a serious medical condition, and I don't think I'm medically depressed.

I just don't like to leave the house, and the thought of leaving the house just stresses me out.

I'm a runner and an outdoorsy person, and when it's 12 degrees outside with no plowed sidewalks, there is no way for me to get outside and run with a jogging stroller and two kids.

The indoor workouts get old, and this girl needs some serious vitamin D.

So I am 1000% sure that the north is not a place that I could make a forever home.

Never.

I can't deal with having the "winter blues" every year for the rest of my life.

I need warm sunshine, and maybe just a few chilly days a year.

I don't need snow unless I am going on a ski trip to Colorado.

I give major kudos to the people who have lived here all their lives, and have "adapted" the the cold winter months. 

I don't think I could.

No way.

No how. 

So here I sit...

counting down the days until we can go somewhere a little warmer...

Life Through My iPhone

Just randomness from my iPhone this week.

 I've never made snow cream before.

In fact, I've never even heard of it until I moved here to New England!

I made some for Dannika on Sunday when she was playing outside in the snow.

It was a big hit!

I had her bring me a bowl of fresh untouched snow, I added some almond milk, sugar, and vanilla extract.

It was like a milky snow cone.

Delicious!

You can find all kinds of recipes for snow cream on Google.

She insisted that she eat her snow cream outside in the snow so that it wouldn't melt. 

Smart girl.

Mattis loves his jumper.

I love it because I can put him in it, and it gives me roughly 15-20 minutes of time to myself.

The day after Nick left, he figured out how to turn himself around in circles in it to play with the different toys and buttons on it.

Go figure, he does this AFTER daddy leaves.

Isn't that how it always works?

This kid is like his father.

He falls asleep in the most random places in the most random positions.

Notice the foot resting on his Bumbo chair.

I'm scared that he's already starting to be mobile.

They were facing each other when I left the room to go to the bathroom.

I came back, and he had turned himself completely away from his sister.

(Yes, my daughter is wearing her Christmas jammies, Don't judge. They still fit and cost me 20 bucks! Girl will be wearing them until 4th of July if they still fit!)

This is my favorite jacket from Old Navy.

Dannika is officially starting dance this week.

She is taking ballet and tap.

I figured gymnastics and dance compliment each other well.

After gymnastics yesterday, we went to the Capezio store in Wellesley Hills to buy leotards, tights, ballet shoes, and tap shoes.

I seriously hope our son chooses to do activities that require little to no equipment, because this stuff gets expensive!

Oh, and in case you couldn't tell by everyone's dashboard photos posted on Instagram and Facebook, it's been cold across the country.

Post pregnancy weight loss update.

I have like 7lbs more to go, and I know the loose skin around my belly will tighten itself back up.

I know that part just takes time.

I'm pretty happy with how I'm looking after just 4 months after giving birth.

I was pretty decent over the holidays about not indulging TOO much.

I took a week off from working out because I was dying sick.

Other than that, I'm hoping to be back to my normal self and bikini ready by the Summer!

Oh, and I'm having massive hair loss.

This is one of my favorite photos taken of Nick and I by Erin Dietrich Photography.

I finally had it blown up on canvas after two years of telling myself I would.

Lastly,

Johnny Football is leaving the Aggies to go the NFL.

As sad as I am, I am thrilled for him.

He put Aggie football back on the map this season.

He gave me two years of the most exciting Aggie football seasons EVER! 

Good Luck, Johnny!

There ya have it.

My life through my iPhone.

If you made it all the way down here, congrats!

You survived a piece of my life on my blog!

Snow Play While Daddy's Away

Instead of feeling sorry for myself all day yesterday, I was determined to try and liven up the mood in my house.

The day that my husband leaves is always the worst day.

The house feels empty just knowing that he won't be back that evening.

After he left, Dannika went upstairs to lay in my bed to watch cartoons.

I got comfortable downstairs with the baby, turned on Netflix, and tried to pray in my head for this feeling to go away. 

I realize that when hubby is gone, my daughter watches way more TV than I would normally allow.

I just need the extra break!

I looked outside our back porch, and saw all the foot prints in the snow that Nick and Dannika made together the day prior while they were playing outside.

Dannika loves playing in the snow, and as much as Nick despises it, he knows how much it makes her happy. 

So he'll happily freeze and play with her outside in it while I watch out the window from the comfort of my heated home with my coffee in hand.

I usually stick my head out the door just to get some pictures, but that's about as far as I'll go out in it. 

After daydreaming about the day before about them playing outside, I decided to get Dannika suited up in her snowsuit, and I sent her outside to play.

No, I didn't go outside.

I don't own "snow clothes", and I still have a mildly sick 4 month old.

But, she was in heaven.

I kept poking my head outside to ask if she was ready to come inside (from the frigid cold temps), and she would wipe the snot off her face with her mitten and give me a stern, "no".

She ended up playing outside by herself for 2 hours before I made her come inside.

I coaxed her with a warm bubble bath, and she happily obliged to come in.

I did manage to poke my head out with my new DSLR to get some cute snow day photos for the memory books :-)

Mattis thought it was the COOLEST thing ever to watch his sister play outside through the window.

His mind was officially blown.

Oh, and watching her play outside and be so happy definitely livened up my mood.

I just think about how REALLY lonely I would be if I didn't have kids to keep me company and drive me insane.

And a child's laughter is by far the best cure for any blues.