Family Entertainment...the Old Fashioned Way

Sometimes you just don't need any kind of electronical device for entertainment purposes....especially when you are blessed with husband like mine.   :)

Aubrey's 1st Singing Performance

For this school year, Aubrey decided she wanted to take singing lessons instead of ballroom.  So after just a few months of lessons, here is her very first singing performance back on Dec. 10, 2011: 



Her instructor, Danielle, told us that Aubrey is (by far) her most improved student.  We think so too!  She has come a very long way already from where she began.  Singing doesn't come as naturally to her as it does to some others, she's really had to work at it.  Also, Aubrey is not one to get up in front of people and be comfortable with all the attention on her.  It was a big deal just to see her stand in from of an audience and SING of all things!   We are excited to see her continue growing and learning with her new found interest.   :)

Bittersweet

Today was a hard one.

We lost a companion and member of our family.  Our German Shepard was euthanized today.

He was such a wonderful dog, so loving, loyal, and obedient.

Alas, old age and a variety of untreatable health issues was enough for us to decide we couldn't watch him suffer anymore.  He was miserable on the inside and on the outside was swollen, riddled with infections, bleeding sores, and losing his hair in large patches.  Poor guy, he was in a very rough state.

We took the kids out of school early to come with us to the vet appointment. They wanted a chance to say their goodbyes. It was hard. We were all crying. I did videotape right up until the moment he was given his lethal shot.   As he was being injected, we held his head while he slowly slumped to the ground, quickly drifted into unconsciousness, and after several seconds, his heart finally stopped beating. 

We've had Jiro for 10 years now.  Jed put a lot of time and love into this dog.  They were buddies for sure.  Jed and Connor are having the hardest time by far, but even I'm surprised at how many tears I, myself, have shed over the last few days.  He's impacted every one of our lives.

But boy, will we have some great memories of Jiro to remember, like his adorable puppy stage.  As much as we tried to train him to keep his ears up (a characteristic of his breed), he became our floppy-eared German Shepard instead.  

Pictured here is Connor (3yrs old) and Jiro as a puppy:

We'll miss him but we know he's happy and healthy once again.

On the other hand, this day has been a wonderful one too, because we added another member to our family.  I admit the timing is terrible, we should have given everyone more time to mourn before bringing another dog in.  However, we felt the right dog had come along and we didn't want the opportunity to pass us by.  We already knew we wanted to get another dog.

We found this sweet guy at our local animal shelter, already housetrained and knowing several commands.  So far he's fitting right in just beautifully:


Just as I hoped, Jack is already making the loss much easier to deal with for everyone.

Backing Up to Last Year

Yes, people, I'm still alive and kickn'.

Life has been busy and it was nice to take a break from blogging for a few weeks.

However, now there is much to catch you all up on.  So let's start with the month of November 2011, shall we?

We spent Thanksgiving this year with Jed's dad up at his cabin home in the mountains.  This was Jed's first time seeing his dad since before he left for Iraq, so in a sense, Thanksgiving was a bit of a homecoming for those two.

The kids checking out a high-definition movie.  Pretty cool.

Chown' down.

We were joined by lots of nieces and nephews.

 Joe and Julie's family was there too, along with Jed's half-sister, Samantha, and her family.

Mo and Tom, thanks for the wonderful day at your house! 

Shortly after Thanksgiving, Jed had a birthday!!!! 

What an OLD man.  Seriously old.  That guy is only one year away from DEATH itself - he turned 39 years old.

We had a little get-together to celebrate.  Jed's so old now, even the kids have to help unwrap his gifts.  :)


My parents came.

Jed's mother and grandparents were of course there too.





What was my gift to Jed?  Well, it's what any girl automatically knows to give her husband.   A nice, expensive, top-o-the-line EO-Tech sight for an AR-15.   Can't take a chance in letting any bad guys get away, you know?

Quite honestly, I really suck at gift shopping for Jed because he always wants some kind of tactical gear or what-nots that I am completely clueless on.  Not to mention he is very particular when it comes to these kinds of things.  So I just tell him how much money he has for his gift and he goes and buys it himself.  For us, this works.  In fact, really well - Jed always knows what he wants and I don't know enough about whatever it is to buy it.  He takes all the stress out of it for me.

I love marriage.

So Happy Belated Birthday to the OLD MAN.  :)

Later that week, Jed and I were required to travel to Park City, Utah for a 60 Day Reintegration event for all soldiers who have recently returned from a deployment. 


Sounds like fun, right?   In reality, it consists of  two very long days filled with classes from counselors, military leaders, and therapists telling you what you went through on your deployment and that you're normal to come back different and make sure you don't become a drunk, or develop violent or suicidal behaviors.  Of course, by the time the classes are over everyone IS feeling violent and suicidal for having to sit through all of that.  As for our group of friends, we spent time in those classes honing our gaming skills on Ipods, Iphones, etc.....   Since I don't have anything as fancy as that, my friend, Kelley, taught me how to crochet.  She says I picked up the basics quickly.  It was fun learning, but by now I have completely forgotten how. 

The perks of the trip were unlimited, free food (buffet style), our beautiful rooms we were set up in, and when we had a little bit of free time to hang with other soldier buddies and their spouses.  The last night we were put on a ski lift that took us to the top of a mountain.  Once there, we were shown to a nice lodge restaurant where we gorged ourselves with delicious food and desserts.  Afterwards, a group of us got together for a movie night and treats. 

Good times, but I am very glad we are done having to sit through any more of those classes.


COMING UP NEXT.....DECEMBER!