Update

Again thank you all for the sweet and loving messages.
The boys and I left out at 5am and got to South Carolina in time to go with Senior to the funeral home to make arrangements for his dad. The viewing is tomorrow night and funeral Saturday with military honors.

Let me tell you all that we are in the wrong business. Funerals are expensive..holy cow!


We have held up pretty good..until tonight when we were going through pictures. ND began crying and told me he did not want some lousy picture..he just wants his grandpa back.
That is when I lost it..then NW lost it
 Then Senior walked in the living room and  he lost it   It did us good to cry, it felt good to let out the all the stored up emotion. Best of all it felt good to remember....


- JUGM

My Heavy Heart

The call came at exactly 5:48am.  Seniors dad was found in his bed at the rehab center unresponsive and not breathing. Senior had just been up there on Sunday and Monday, and had got back home Tuesday.

The staff tried to work on him for a bit, then transported him to the local hospital in Columbia..he was pronounced when he arrived.  Seniors dad passed away.

My husband is now on his way  back to SC, the boys and I are packing and will leave out in the morning.
 We are naturally in shock..as the scope of it all has not hit us yet.
He was not just my father in law, but a Dad. I was ALWAYS treated like the daughter he never had, and it aches my heart knowing that I didn't get to see him one more time.
It hurts knowing that my boys did not get to hug him once more, or go for one last tractor ride. 
This is going to be rough, and it is really going to hurt. We all ready feel the void in our hearts and lives.
The world is a lot less bright for us today, Heaven has a new voice, Tonight a new star will be shinning down upon us.

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
 A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
 A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
 A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;



-JUGM

Over Reactions.....

 

 

As soon as I pulled into the school car line I noticed the news van antenna. "In the name of all things holy", I thought.  "what has happened"  !
I got no emergency phone calls... couldn't be that bad.

I ask around and no one seems to know. The ladies are all oblivious... 

Then I got home, and check the new stations web site and there is the story and it will be on the local news tonight:

Last Thursday, a 1st grader brought bullets. The teacher, instead of confiscating them and making it all an issue. Asked the child to put them back in his backpack and take them home.

On Friday, parents learned of the incident...then the over reaction started. All chaos has ensued and parents want the teacher fired, and their kids moved out of her class. School ends in one month... just put the teacher on administrative leave or something until then...

They suspended a 5 year old for making a gun out of Lego's , this was in Hyannis West elementary in Boston area. In Maryland a 6 year old WAS suspended for a "finger gun" and saying bang. An 8th grade student was expelled for wearing an NRA t-shirt. And please let us all not forget the poptart incident.
 This kid actually brought a bullet, he should be expelled for life! I mean come on now!

My point is, yes it was wrong for the student of that age to have a bullet, and it was wrong for the teacher not to confiscate it AND notify parents. Lets leave it at that. Lets stop this irrational fear of guns, that's all over reaction  like this is meant to do.

People have been saying for months, Guns don't shoot themselves! and for Gods sake bullets don't shoot without guns. If you hit a bullet square with a hammer, it'll explode and yeah it is potentially dangerous. But its not being launched through a barrel at 1000s of feet a second. People actually pulling their child out of school because some kid brought a bullet, these people are afraid of their own shadow and an embarrassment.. 

I have since learned that it did not happen to ND or NWs teachers. I love those ladies and would not want them to suffer through this..

-JUGM

Nor'Easter and Kids

A good spring Nor'easter is setting up off our coast.It is bringing us clouds and high winds, with some light rain. Its Sunday morning, and I thank God for another day.
Senior is off again, up to SC to check on his dad. He got what could be some potentially bad news about the rehabilitation center. Things there may not be going the way we have expected them too.
So please keep Senior and his Dad in your prayers.

Its back to me and the boys again--they are unhinged-. ND has all ready stood corner duty once since Dad has left, and NW is about to "stand before the man" in the corner.
I have asked and asked for them to clean up their rooms, and make beds....to help mom out.. But, it has fallen on deaf ears.  The next thing to be done will be no Kindles.  NW is standing in front me with his little harmonica, he has a little smirk on his face, and his eyes are dancing back and forth between my stares and his brother. He's  brothers little giggles and grins are daring NW . both are seeing how far they can push mom today.

At this rate, they won't have anything left to play with...no kindles, no xbox, and I will make them pack up toys, and make them both sit in a room completely void of any and all entertainment.

They are teasing and calling each other names back and forth : "Mom!, NW said I am a motormouth",
"Mom !, ND called me a stinking democrat"....  

Oh for the Love of God I think!  I need a good stiff adult beverage and A tropical Island.  Yea thats it, white sand, cool blue waters, palm trees, sunny skies and a warm ocean breeze....

-JUGM

Happy for the Rain

I don't think I have never been more thankful to wake up to a rainy Saturday then I was today. All the things that were planned have been fortunately canceled. Two baseball games and babysitting a neighbors Two year old so they could go to a Submariners function..
Our family needed the little break from every thing. When Senior and I got the phone calls that games were cancelled, we rolled over at 7am and dozed back off.
Its a been a hard work week for us both, I helped Senior with a lot of work in the large community we maintain, and helped him with some residentials..okay so my edging skills are a bit wonky, but hey! Atleast I was out there trying which is more then some of these wives around me would have ever done.
His dad is now in a re-hab facility..such good news. But I think Senior will need to go back and forth a little more, so because of this we had to cancel our residential lawn customers.. Had several good elderly people I hate doing it to, but the added stress of taking care of old Mrs. Jones yard  was mounting up, and we had to make a decision.

You know most of our clients have been really understanding and loving about this decision..but there is always that one. One client got a little up tight with Senior...and thanked him for the "Short Notice", and now he has to go out and buy a lawn mower...  
If there is one thing I have learned while operating a customer service  based business is that there will always be that one client that you can never please. There will always be that one person in anything, that will be difficult.  It never fails.
It has always been my personal opinion that if you are a physically fit person, with all kinds of time on their hands, and weekends off...then there is no reason why you should need a lawn service company in the first place.
 One of our neighbors has the dad and a teenage son living at home..and they hire a company-- LAYYYZZZY!!!!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I would like to add  that I selectively deleted the "Suspect "Post from the other day. The wrong guys were mistaken for the Boston bombing. A lot of people believed they were the ones, and clearly they weren't. So, I did the right thing and took the post down.


-JUGM

PS:  My good buddy Matt has reminded me that the older brother was on the radar of the FBI..he was interviewed and "checked out"... assumed to be peaceful and living the American dream...well, we know that to be a much different story. And truely is the defination of what a "Sleeper Cell" is.
 So therefore, knowing agencies knew this guy was living among us, inserting himself in to society, does make me do anything but applaud . How does this make the residents of Boston feel? How does it makes the families of those killed feel knowing this information?  How about those that lost limbs, their lives forever scared but this tragedy? 

What everyone else is thinking

Everyone has done a post or two about it. So I will add one more. The thoughts and prayers of my family goes out to those who lost a loved one, or had a loved one injured. Senior and I are both so very sorry for your loss.
I can only hope and pray that our government does not pander to those who did this, but acts swiftly.
When we were stationed in CT, we visited Boston several times, its a beautiful and historical city. I am saddend this had to happen there.

They initially  wouldn't call it an act of Terror..but yet that is just what it was. The people who did this, achieved their goal of exacting terror on the good citizens of this country. They got what they wanted:  National exposure, and Terror....
Finally today, almost 24 hours later, POTUS says it will be treated like an act of terror... gee!

We give billions in aid to these countries, and this is how we are paid back? 
Yes we will probably catch the SOBs who did this, we will pat them on the wrist, they will get a free defense team, probably only be sent to  jail for life, give them free meals, a place to live, TV, exercise, an education if they so choose..  and it will be paid for by the very people who they hate, and want to exact terror upon..  Us, the citizens of this country.
 Reprehensible if you ask me... 

-JUGM

Rainy Sunday

Senior got packed up and back on the road again to check on his dad in SC. His Dad has got another blockage in his stomach and the VA elected to transfer him to a civilian medical center. I think after a month of him being there, they wanted him out.
 We got the call at 5am Saturday morning that he was being transferred. Senior was elated with the news, because it is actually what we were hoping for.
 This time, he packed up our camper and moving it up there to a campground. The cost of hotels is starting to put us in the red.
So after much discussion, we knew this to be the best option for these weekly trips.

After he left this morning, rain moved in. A nice little low pressure system has set up and giving the region a shower. So, when it rains I get out and wash the car. I know you all must think me crazy, and so do probably most of my neighbors. But, really do I care? 
It was Senior who got me started in the practice of washing a car in the rain, why you ask? Because silly, you don't have to dry it. And isn't that the worst part of the job, the drying?  actually I think the worse part is vacuuming it out and waxing.

ND and a much better NW donned rain coats and got in on it too. Its a warm spring day, and the cool water felt good.  They miss their dad so very much , so being silly and playing outside in the rain was a good way for them to take their mind off the fact  that he was gone again.

We have a complete weekend in May where there are no baseball games, so we are taking them up to the SC campground to visit Grandpaw in the hospital and get a little camping in before it gets too hot. 

So now the rain is coming down harder. I hope it last all night.....

-JUGM

Lots going on...

I know Senior and I both have been MIA. We just ask for our followers not to give up on us. We are still here. Just please excuse us if we don't post or respond to any comments.. We have just had a lot on our plates this past month.
Seniors dad is still in the VA Hospital out of state. He has been spending a part of the week up there, then coming back home for the rest of the week.
It is getting to be a lot on all of us. The good news is, his dad finally had the long awaited orthopaedic surgery on his hip. Poor man was in there almost a month waiting to get it done. It was one reason or the next why they wouldn't. Finally it took a  bit of complaining to his dads doctor about it all..  What an ordeal this has been for all of us.
So now his re-hab and physical therapy starts. Hotels are getting costly, so Senior has decided to pull our camper up there and park it in a campground...doing this will save us quite a bit.

On top of it all, NW got sick again. A violent gastrointestinal virus has been circulating around his school and classroom. Five other kids in his class have had it, along with 2 other boys on his baseball team. My poor child has been vomiting and having severe diarrhea since Sunday. He has had no appetite and has dropped 6 pounds. He has had severe stomach cramps that make him double over and cry in pain.
The doctor has given us a kool-aid solution with honey and salt to raise his glucose  and electrolyte levels because he was getting dehydrated. I feel so bad for him- It is always him getting sick and he doesn't understand why everything happens to him. My baby has missed out on so much this week at school and with baseball.  But today was better, he drank all the kool aid and ate a bowl of animal crackers..hopefully there is a light at the end of the tunnel for this nasty virus.

My garden is flourishing. Here are some pics of my baby cauliflower heads, and broccoli sprouting up.. I took these just a few days ago and the broccoli heads have doubled since...

And my beautiful first yellow rose of the spring:

 

Even Little Libby Lu-Lu got in on helping me water the roses:

 



-JUGM

A 6 yr. Olds Insight on Buffalo Wild Wings

Friday evening was a rare night as of late that we had no baseball games or practices, and Senior was home. It had been a few weeks it seemed since we had done anything as a family.
We ventured into a new sporting goods store and browsed the aisles, like most things these days the items were well over priced. So we left.
As we were driving around the dinner question was asked. Senior said BBQ and I agreed.
ND spoke up and said:

"I would like to go to Buffalo Wild Wings, but they don't let us have our guns, I don't think that's right cause what would they do if a bad guy came in with a gun, and no one had a gun to protect them and he shot every one"?

"Wow ND, " I responded  "that is a good question for a  6 year old to ask". And then I thought about this blog post, because I can bet the majority out there are not aware of the issues with BWW and their stance on gun control.

Buffalo Wild Wings launched this policy in 2009, and regularly issues the following statement when asked about it: “Buffalo Wild Wings respects the right of individuals to carry firearms. However, because we are focused on the comfort, safety and enjoyment of all of our guests, we have elected to exercise our right to restrict the carrying of firearms within our restaurants. We regret any inconvenience this may cause but believe that this policy is in the best interest of all our guests and our Team Members".

Okay, with that statement I do understand it is their establishment and they have the right to invoke it. However, it's pretty bad when a six year old can figure something out that the anti-gun folks can't: And that's making something a gun free zone, makes it that much more attractive to the bad guy.

Then with the paranoia the restaurant chain has caused, there is this recent story :
BWW Waitress invokes no gun policy on police

As far as dinner Friday night, we found a real hole in the wall Pizza place, with the best calzone I have had in years...   

-JUGM

Letter to the Editor

I thought you all could use some insight today...Proof postive that guns don't actually get up and kill people..just sayin....

Memories

This is a scene that will forever be in my memories of being a Navy Wife. How many countless mornings, did I drop Senior off before he got underway, or how many times did I pass this on a daily basis going to and from work.
 I loved being apart of the active duty community, I loved feeling the sense of family with the ships we were on and our divisions. We were all so close knit. Parties at this one or that ones house on the weekends, week night softball games....yea, those were the days all right.

I was so proud to be able to see something every day that most people never got to see. Those majestic ships, the guys standing in formation for morning muster, and then standing at attention for the raising of "The Colors". Going on board like it was a second home, Taking Senior dinner and hanging out on his duty days. Once, He had the mid watch on the Quarter Deck, and I drove out to sit outside with him in the wee hours of the morning.

It makes me sad to think of the way our government is depleting our forces, and the readiness of our military. We were once a mighty fighting force, now we can hardly afford to pay our troops. And the moral is rumored to be at an all time low. The kids in now will never know the Navy that I knew. Today it is all high tech, with email and chats... A Navy wife's biggest fear is the email being down...
She will never know what it is like to get numbered letters a stack at a time. She will never know what is like to get a surprise phone call saying the ship pulled in. Now with video chats, she will never know what its like to go six months without seeing your sailor. Once that ship untied, and got underway..that was it, until the end of deployment.

Yea, all those days are long gone..seeing that picture brought it all back to me..memories forever etched in time.

-JUGM

The Best April's Fool Joke....

This is the day that we all get to play innocent jokes on those we love. The origins of this day dates back to ancient Rome, and is celebrated by every culture around the world. Even the Iranians celebrate it....

I fondly recall one such Aprils fool hoax I played on Senior. It was before we had kids, and I had learned of the joke off a radio call in show-I knew immediately it was something I had to accomplish.
We at that time had a water bed, while he was reading the Sunday paper I quietly took a zip lock baggy, put water in it, and punctured it with some small pin holes, just enough for the water to slowly drip.
I strategically placed it at the foot of the water bed so the water would drip over the edge, and placed the comforter back over it. Then I waited a few minutes, I casually walked around the apartment like I was cleaning, then came out of the bedroom screaming.. " The water bed is leaking"!  

Senior threw down his paper and ran in to the room..  " Oh S****  he said"  He threw off the comforter and saw the baggy, there I was on the other side of the bedroom jumping up and down and laughing " April Fools, April Fools" !!!!   
He looked at me " You B****  that wasn't funny ! " 

" Oh yes it was" I said, "You should have seen the look on your face, it was priceless! "
The he proceeded to chase me around the apartment... 

That April Fools day still lives on in our memories. He still reminds me of it, and I still laugh about it. It was a classic prank that lives on in infamy.

So Have Some Fun, and Enjoy your April Fools Day! 

-JUGM