News from home

Last night I got to talk to the family again.  Everyone was excited to tell me about "new plates and cups!"  Apparently Trent's cup (yes cup, he has one and we wash it at every meal--limited cabinet space) broke so the family went shopping!  Princess and Cars dinnerware and coloring books were all the kids could talk about.  It was so cute!  Then Katreina was talking to me and said, "Mommy, tell them to bring the ship back."  Of course I told her I would try, but then she said, "no Mommy, now!"  I love her determination!  That sent me into a fit of sobbing, so I had to get Frank to end the call.  I feel like I tell them I'm coming back all the time and I wonder how long it will take until they give up on me.  Kills me.

Today I was happy to get a note that Trent said, "kisses and hugs, coffee?"  He and Katreina love to help make coffee with the Keurig and I loved that he thought of me so far away!  I got word that they were all headed out fishing today.  Hope they had fun and caught something!

Sundays are special on board...brunch and a surf and turf dinner.  Yes, the world revolves around meals here.  And I am quite excited to go grab some ribeye and scallops!  :P

A phone call!jdklxldldnshlnflddbfjfjjfjjfkdkfk

I called home tonight!!! It was bitter-sweet, really. It was so great to hear everyone's voices, but it made me cry, right there in the office. I know it's only been a few days, but it feels like an eternity. And Frank is awesome for not complaining about me calling right in the middle of his attempts to cook dinner for the family. The kids were interested in me for about 10 seconds before they turned their attention back to the TV, but it was still awesome.

I miss you guys!

Haze grey and underway!

Taking a moment during a drill here to give you all a glimpse into my life aboard.  A typical day is:
0200 Wake up
0300-0700 Watch
0700 METOC watch turnover (I like to stop by there)
0715 Breakfast
0800-0845-ish Admiral's Brief
0930-1000 Future Ops Meeting
1100-1300 Lunch (sometime in there)
1400-1500 or 1530 Planning Group Meeting
1500 Workout
1600 Dinner
1900 METOC watch turnover
19?? BED! (Usually NOT because of drills and general noise about the ship until 2200)
0100 Workout if I didn't get to go earlier...

In all the "white space" in this schedule I get to do training, be part of ship's drills, listen to all the alarms for ship's drills, work "emergencies," do more planning, etc.  Every day is a little different and getting settled into this routine is just about killing me.  But....

Frank likely has a schedule something like this (M-F):
0500 Dad wakes up
0530 Kids wake up
0600 Waiting outside to get into daycare
0615 On the bus (this would be a VERY good day!)
0635 More than likely getting on the bus
0745 Worky work
1545 Depart work to walk to the train/bus
1610-ish Get on train/bus
1720 Arrive Everett
1730 Arrive at CDC to pick up kids
1745 Finally leave CDC with kids (they seriously take FOREVER some days!)
1800 Home sweet home
1830 Dinner
1900 Baths
1930 Stories, potty breaks, etc.
2000 With any luck there is silence throughout the house
2030 Awesome Dad is sending Mommy pictures and a note about how exciting the day was or maybe cleaning up the dishes, or putting a little girl back to bed...

This is certainly tough for all of us, but we have a routine.  I might be off a little on Frank's times, but it's an idea.  Thankfully his job allows him to telecommute sometimes so he can let the kids get a little more sleep and he can catch up a bit. 

Ok, my eyelids are closing but I have to go to training!

Brief stop

After yet another week in San Diego I was lucky enough to snag a standby seat on an early flight and got home well before bedtime last night. Just that one hour with them was wonderful.

Today Frank is working from home and I went in to the ship for a few hours. After waking up I came out of the bathroom to find both kids in bed with Frank and I just had to jump back in and snuggle with them! Now I'm trying to knock out a bunch of domestic duties to help the hubby out before I leave again tomorrow. Yep, leaving again and this time it's for about a month.

"This is a test of the momma away system. Had this been a real deployment, momma would be gone for 6+ months..."

Beautiful, breezy day!

Today we invited some friends to head out for a day sail with us. We only had one taker, Eric, and we had a blast! The winds were very gusty when we got underway and we were heeling like crazy, pulling 10 knots under reefed sails. After a while the wind settled in at 10-15 knots and we had a nice sail around Hat Island. Eric (in the pic!) took the helm way more than I ever have and did awesome! The funny moment of the day was when I was at the bow messing with the genoa furler as we pulled into the channel and got SMACKED by a wave! So cold and wet! The boys got a kick out of it. Despite wind right on the stern we moored easily, cracked open some adult beverages, and relaxed in the cockpit. Another great day out on the water!

Home again to the world's greatest hubby!

I just got back from yet another week in San Diego and will be heading back there on Sunday. While I was there, Frank was super-Dad once again. Here he is washing dishes, even after I got home and offered to help! He even somehow found time to do laundry AND install a new toilet in the forward head! He is absolutely awesome!

Hopefully we will head out sailing with some friends tomorrow!

Hoppy Easter!

Though we've been pinned to the dock this weekend with high winds and I've been sick, we did manage to relax a bit and have a fun Easter. This morning I snuck out to do laundry and hide eggs, then Frank brought the kids up to hunt! It was so cute watching them run around. They even shared nicely!