Best part of a long vacation....

... is the mental/emotional payoff at the end!

We also had a good time with our grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins!

Ainsley did it! Really?

A few weeks ago I was typing away at the computer and Camryn comes down and starts telling me some story.  I'm not listening but putting in the appropriate "hummm..."  and " uh-hugh" when I start to smell baby powder REALLY strongly.  I finally look at Camryn and she is covered in baby powder.  It is puffing off her head when she moves, her black skirt is white and grey, she has to squint one eye... you get the picture.

Me:  "What happened?"
Camryn:  "That's what I'm trying to tell you.  There's baby powder all over my room!"
Me:  "What!?"
Camryn: " Ainsley did it!"

At this point Ainsley comes up from the basement in dress up clothes.  Not a hint of powder.

Me:  "So if Ainsley did it and she was down stairs, why are you covered in powder?"
Camryn:  "I fell in it." 
Me:  "Really?"
Camryn:  (looking at me, herself and then Ainsley)  "I fell a lot!"

you can see the now empty powder container in the background

I get up stairs and there is baby powder billowing in the air in their room and big container is empty.

Me: "You want to tell me what really happened?"
Camryn:  "Nope"
Me:  "Camryn?"
Camryn:  "Maybe I did this" (motioning turning the bottle upside down)  "and then this" (motioning swinging the bottle around in a circle)

Well  at least it's not Vaseline or Desitin. 

Ainsley's off the hook too.

An Undisclosed Location

Aaron has safely arrived at his undisclosed location in SW Asia.  I don't know why they don't say the Middle East but whatever.

Here at home we have made it through 3 days of the first week.  I give myself the first week to be sad for as long as I want; working out a new schedule for each day of the week without dad.  Then it's go time.  Sunday night I was apologizing to the kids for crying and Alex said, "It's OK mom, you cried way more last time!" 

Drop off time was 9:45 am at the squadron.  Because of the number of guys leaving, all their bags, and the smallness of the squadron auditorium, our goodbye was more of a "kiss at the curb" event.   We drove to the base, found our own private parking spot in the parking lot, kissed and hugged the kids then I walked Aaron to the door.   It was quick and sad but there is a point where there can be too much goodbye time so it was nice to get on with it.

not too bad considering all the crying!

the poster family for deployment

Once there Aaron said they had a short briefing and then it was on the buses to head to the deployment center.  They ended up flying out later that afternoon.  I got an email Sunday morning saying that they had landed. Let the count-down begin.

Thanks Whitesnake: Here I (we) go again

A couple things in the positive catergory:

1.  We've done this before so it's not such a shock
2.  no baby!!
3.  it's the second/busy half of the year so it should fly by (at least that's what we are planning on)

I do have picture of the "goodbye" but I forgot my camera so they are on Aaron's, which is now over international waters.  I'll throw some up if he can email them to me in good time.

We are good, just sad right now.

Oahu - also check out pictures of Kauai below

After a week in Kauai we said goodbye to the Burnhams and hello to Oahu.  We stayed at Bellows AF Station.  It's land that belongs to the Air Force and is the only private beach area in all of the islands.  We had a family beach cabin, 100 yds off the ocean.  You can't beat that!


In addition we visited the Dole Pineapple Plantation, the Polynesian Cultural Center, the Hawaii temple, Pearl Harbor, hiked Diamond Head, and of course swam in the ocean with the sea turtles.

one hot day of hiking!!

Polynesian Cultural Center luau

View from our back door

Waikiki from the top of Diamond Head

Sydney found a lizard

Aaron, Sydney and Camryn

The USS Utah memorial

Dole Pineapple Plantation

a red pineapple means it's young and not ripe

Ainsley at Pearl Harbor

Polynesian Cultural Center

And what trip to Oahu isn't complete without a tour of the Magnum PI sites.  Funny thing is, we weren't the only ones taking pictures!

TC's helipad

the Turtle Gates at the Robins Nest

 I'm not going to lie, I preferred Kauai.  A lot of the time it felt like I was in So Cal, but hey, still TONS better than South Dakota.

Goodbye Hawaii!!

Kauai

With Aaron getting ready to deploy again we thought we'd get some family time in with a vacation.  We also thought, what better way to vacation than in Hawaii.  Go big or go home right?!? We spent a week in Kauai with some friends from Ohio.  A great time was had by all!!

We hiked, swam, boogie boarded, ate and had a blast.  It was an actual vacation.

Brooklyn B, Paige B and Sydney before hula lessons

"I done (hiking)"

Ainsley loving the pool

Aaron boogie boarding

Ainsley, Camryn, Brooklyn B, Sydney and Paige B

Alex and Ainsley

Sydney, Camryn, Ainsley and Alex right off the plane

One of the wettest spots on Earth

Camryn and Barbie enjoying the sand

family picture

Amanda B and Camryn

the Hawaiian Grand Canyon

Disney World: Sans kids

So Aaron was part of a group from the clinic here at Ellsworth that got selected for "Customer Service Training" at Disney World.  It sounds kinda funny, but I also got a trip to Disney World while he was "learning".  Lucky for me Aaron's mom was willing to come out for some grandma time to make it all possible. 

We got there Monday afternoon.  We got to stay at the Disney Yacht  Club Resort.  I did not realize that Disney had so many resorts on the complex. 

Class started Tuesday evening so Tuesday-day we went to Blizzard Beach, home a super long lazy river and 120 ft drop water slide.  Water parks are fun with your kids, but being an adult on the loose in a water park is just awesome

I you look just behind us you can see the big slide. 

Wednesday Aaron, Lance and Darwin (the other two who went with Aaron) had class all day and I hung out at the pool and read the "Book Thief" (a MUST read!).  Aaron took a field trip to the laundry facility where Disney does 1.2 million pounds a month.  That evening we headed to Epcot.

Thursday was the same for me although I did buy the "never ending refill" mug at the pool and definitely got my money's worth.  Aaron took a back stage tour at the Magic kingdom.  That night we headed to Hollywood Studios and hit the Tower of Terror and I almost threw up on the Star Tours ride.

Darwin and Lance

 Friday Aaron graduated (again!) from the Disney School of Leadership Excellence.  We then headed to our last night at the Magic kingdom.  We got to see the new Rapunzel princess so that was cool. 

Graduation #7 since high school

I had to take the picture through a window since the line to see her was 2 hours!

I was a great vacation for Aaron and I, but I realized that I'm such a mom since by Thursday afternoon I was wishing the kids were with us.  There is definitely a magic at Disney. 

Dance recital 2012

 This year's ballet theme was "Musique Classique".  There was a featured composer and then a few dances.  Sydney's composer was Tchaikovsky and was a blue bird for a small excerpt of Swan Lake. 

Sydney (right) with her friend Annaliese

Sydney and the Tchaikosky poster

 The tap/jazz/modren recital was all "love songs".  Sydney danced to "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You).  Best part of the weekend was that dad was there this time!

Same sass!  Just a year older