Training..

So the journey has begun to prepare for the Ragnar relay race in June. As the members have formed groups online, I have found it acts as a driving force to keep me motivated, there is something to be said about healthy competition. This week had ups and downs, but it reminded me of how grateful I am to be able to run, relatively pain free. I had a few bad runs with some sore muscles. But overall I glad that I had a successful surgery outcome and that my hip is on the mend!
Special shout out to Dr. Marchant for fixing me up!

November is looking good

I was able to spoil Rex with a date night to the Utah/Uof Washington game. It was a good game, but Utah didn't pull it out in the end. It was also unusually cold... Brr!
I took some pictures of life while I was at it. Like father like son!

Saturday... When dads away.. We will play!

Rex had to go to an ROTC field training to lend a hand today. So Asher started off the day by "fixing the computer"... That he took apart of course. I included a photo!
Then we went to Walmart and looked at the superhero toys and of course we had to play with some and try them on. It's cute, cause he is wearing a batman shirt and trying on different mask! He loves his superheroes!
Just another day in the life, with a toddler!

Funny boy

So For all who know Asher, knows that he is one determined individual! This last week, he reassured me of that. First I guess that he didn't think my quality of cleaning was sufficient, so he took it upon himself to clean the sink! Pretty adorable! Second after shooting his Cpt America darts all around, one landed up above the cupboards. And since mom was busy and told him I would get it in minute, he then took it upon himself to get it himself. He got his step ladder, pulled it over to the counter and then got himself up onto the counter... This is when I intervened, who knows what he would have done next, had I not stepped in & saved the day! Anyways, it makes for some good photo ops! And since we are attempting to potty train, he is pant-less all the time! Enjoy!

Nfl kick-off

I am excited for NFL kick-off today! I am on-call and I am dressed up an ready to go! I better pull out some football serving trays and have a party! Check out my earings, necklace and t-shirt!

I-pad time

So I recently downloaded the Dora alphabet app for IPad... I was shocked how much Asher got into it. He was tracing letters for hours. I love how technology can make learning fun!

FAI- femoroacetabular Impingement

So I thought I would share some photos of the pain in my side, literally, when it comes to running and life. So over 5 years ago I fell and landed on my right hip. It was never the same since. After years of on and off again physical therapy, interventional radiology injections and constant pain I was again back at physical therapy, this was the lucky time. The physical therapist examination was highly suspicious for FAI and or labral tear that usually caused by FAI. So I had an MRI last winter, which indeed showed a labral tear. Many appointments later I found myself in the Orthopeadic surgeons office consulting on surgery. So we preceded for a hip arthroscopy on May 14. At that procedure they found my femur to be worse than anticipated, so they had to shave that down so it was concave- since it was not nice and round fitting in the socket. They fixed me up and below are all the cool photos they took.  The photo are labeled, below is explanations for photos
CAM: the Labral tear sure it doesn't seem like much- but it can be compared to a hang nail- in that if u don't trim it-t won't heal
LABRAL REPAIR: The repair itself.
CAM (with the little snake camera): The femur head before- rough and not cool!
CAM RESECTION: The repair of the femur, look how pretty!
PSOAS STIPPLING:where they cut my psoas tendon because it was so tight it was causing my hip to "catch", they said the redness meant it was inflammed.
Hope you have enjoyed the read!

Femur BEFORE

FEMUR AFTER

Summer time

For many that don't know, apparently this time of year is 'frog-time' around here. This time of year we see frogs quite often and Asher loves to try and find them to catch them. However he doesn't ever actually touch them. They are too jumpy for him.. So included is a pic of Asher attempting to hold the frog- no luck!

Haircut

So I went ahead and gave ash a buzz today! He looks handsome. Not my best hair-cutting skills, but I did fairly well considering how much he wiggles!
See photos of him checking himself out & I was surprised how long it was!

It's hot outside!

So Asher has been running around outside and got all sweaty. So what is a mother to do...why not try and spike his hair. However this lead me to discover that he is in desperate need of a haircut! maybe that will be my task tomorrow if I don't go to work? If not it can wait till Sunday.

Just goofing off

Thought I would post something, I know it's been forever. I figured if I can do it straight from my phone- where I take 97% off all my pictures then maybe I will be able to re-enter the blog world! Here's to using technology to keep my peeps up-to-date!

Is it good?

Just wanted to post something... haven't in forever! Asher is super cute- ok, I take that back, he just pulled out the bag of salad I just threw away out of the garbage & dumped it all over the floor. Time to go clean up!

Enjoy the photo!

another day... another deployment.. in the life as an army wife

After a yo-yo'ing past few months, I am still unsure of what the future holds for our little family! But a quircky thing happened recently that I thought I would share for a little bit of enlightenment into our unique little lives.  

My fellow army-wife-friend was 'randomly selected' to partake in a survey for military spouses. One of the question asked was: "Do deployments get harder or easier to cope with?" After some contemplation she answered :"Harder".  Simple answer to a hard question, but that was not enough for the surveyors. The survey then prompted the following: "Please explain why coping with deployment has become more difficult. "

This was her answer.

                "Because it becomes tiring. I got married to be with my husband, not to have him gone all the time. As a couple we realize that this is a part of the army way of life but that doesn't make it easier. It is very hard and becomes harder every deployment to have to explain to your young children way daddy has to leave again. As a mother watching your child cry everyday wanting daddy, trying to get out the door to find daddy, breaks a mothers heart. You not only have to deal with your own grief but the grief of your child. And then to top it all off with the thought in the back of your head that you may never see him again, never smell him again, never hear him again. You pray every day that it won't happen and you have to know that, no news is good news. But when they are gone and someone comes to the door and you weren't expecting anyone, the first thought that goes through you mind is, "This might be it. This is the moment I have to tell my children they will never see their dad again.” even though you have promised everything will be okay. This is just what happens during the deployment. This doesn't include the stress that comes before or after a deployment. The fighting and bickering about everything and nothing. Before the deployment you are so stressed and worried about him leaving that everything becomes stressful. You fight over money, the kids, the fact that he is never home to spend time with you, and he is at work too much when that is time that he needs to be spending at home. When he leaves you go through about a week that you don't have the energy to do anything. The house doesn't get cleaned, you don't call anyone and the home is filled with pizza boxes, frozen foods, and every wrapper from fast food restaurants all around. Some days you don't even have energy to take a simple shower. After that, if you are smart, you get into a routine, a schedule that will keep you as busy as possible. You volunteer everywhere you can, you have play dates left and right, doctors appointments and your house because so clean that you can't find a speck of dirt in the house anywhere. Even the baseboards get a wipe down every couple of weeks. You make every meal and the dishes are always clean and put away. During all of this what is really going on? Well, you are trying not to think about anything that reminds you of him. You don't look at that side of the bed or his closet. You avoid looking at any pictures of him or any family pictures. Mean while you begin to forget him. You know that you have tried to block him out of you head so much that if something did happen to him, you wouldn't be able to picture him in your head. You begin to forget what he looks like, smells like, sounds like, and feels like. And it scares you, but you can't stop yourself because it is too hard to think about it. If you think about it you can't function. You can't take care of your kids or yourself. And if anything you have to be able to take care of you children. When they return home it seems to be the hardest. The two week of training they go through does help however it is not enough. You have a two week honeymoon phase were you are so happy to just have him home. After that come the extremes. He has been gone for 9, 12, or 15 months. He has had to do everything on someone else's time. He just wants to come home and relax, watch TV and not have someone telling him what he needs to do all the time. Meanwhile, what they fail to tell him when he comes home is that you are tired too. You have had many sleepless nights too. You just want to relax too. Instead, it is like picking up after another child. And I know from talking to many a wife that this is not just me complaining. He doesn't understand how hard it really has been, because while he is gone you have been playing "the good wife" on the phone. "No, honey, everything is fine, the kids are doing good." because you know that if you told him how really hard things were it could distract him and cost him his life. So, while the kids are coloring on all the walls, peeing on the floor, telling you, “no" every time you tell them to do something, screaming at you, throwing a temper-tantrum in the middle of the commissary because you won't let them get that sugary box of cereal and anything else you can think of that children can do, he assumes you are living a calm life. So, when he comes home he assumes that he is the only one that has had it ruff. I am not trying to compare war to a stay at home mom, but I am trying to tell you know the reality of how hard it really it. That maybe some of the training that they go through when they come home is giving them a reality check that moms need a brake too. Just help them to understand that, because, sometimes the stress of it all can sometimes become unbearable. We also have the reactions that our children have. The regressions and explosions of rage and sadness, sometimes for what you would think would be no reason at all. Remember the temper -tantrum in the commissary turns out it was because, “I hate you, I want my Daddy. Why can't my daddy come home?" One thing I have found is that the children and the moms get tired of each other and there are things that daddy give, that mommy can't. Sure we have the pre and post deployment briefings to help us know how our children are going to react to all of this but that is all we get. It kind of feels like, “Here you go, this is going to be your life, good luck with that.” Programs need to be set up for children to help them cope. We all know there is counseling available when it gets out of control, but why do we have to wait for it to get out of control before we can get help. To help reduce the stress of our children and the parent at home with them, there could be playgroups set up with a counselor there to monitor the children behavior and give tips on what to do. Or a Rent-a-dad, A program that could offer men, not in uniform, to just play with the children while the moms have a mom's area to sit, talk and drink a soda. Sometime kids just need to be thrown around, wrestle with and have someone that has the energy to play with them and chase them, or play catch. It is simple help to fix some if the aggression that these kids feel during a deployment. Deployments are hard. It is not just the time that they are gone but the whole cycle and as much as they are getting deployed right now we only have about 3 months of normal before it all starts over again. And through all of this each member of your family changes and when he returns you have to start that relationship from scratch again and learn who everyone is and how to communicate with them and as for parents how to parent again. Parenting skills change as the child changes and as a spouse you have to teach your solider how you now parent and how to manage the children. There is nothing easy about it and the more he leaves the more you feel like you're not even married to begin with, that he was just a roommate that helped you get pregnant and pays for the house, food and occasional shopping spree you go on (that you will later get reamed for) to release stress and get your mind off of things. Is saying goodbye easier? Sometimes, sure. Is talking to him on the phone easier? Sometimes, sure. Do you get used to living on your own? Sometimes, sure. But to say that sending your husband and the father to your children off to war gets easier, you are simply out of your mind.

Lucky for her, there was no limit on space for her answer! 

our little cruiser

Asher has developed a new talent. After Rex accidently put him in the cruiser backwards, he learned that he could move so much better. When he gets excited he goes round and round. I thought I would try to capture the moment and luckly I did.

He is starting to get more and more mobile everyday. Any day now I expect him to start crawling, yikes!! I better get the house baby proofed soon!

Wow time flies!

Asher is getting bigger & stronger everyday. He has finally mastered sitting. He does such a good job. Now we are working on crawling, which ought to be a blast. He reaches for EVERYTHING now, wait till he is mobile... that will be a fun day!

He is just such an awesome addition to our family! We are having so much fun with him.

(Cristi-my sister-in-law took this picture & our new family one... you can check out her blog @ cristinelsonphotography@blogpot.com)

I decided to run a half-marathon....WHAT was I thinking!! As many of you know, I have been suffering from some hip/butt & back pain for about 3 years now, so needless to say training for it has been a bit of a challenge.

Rex & Candice (sister) have also decided to be crazy & do it too! I hope I can continue to train & not injure myself (any further) and FINISH the race! So June 26th is the big day... I am sure I will post stuff when the time comes.

What else has been going on... one word that can sum it up is

WORK!

Rex has been busy as ever, doing what, I don't know. He has been in charge of coordinating some training stuff for the brigade that he works at. All I know is that they have got him busy almost every day & I am sure he is doing a great job. And on a lighter note, we just found out that his trip for work was cancelled, so he will be here for my first mother's day ever!

As for me, well I have been getting back into the swing of things at the new job.

I just finished all my hospital orientation and have a few more shifts on the unit orienting. This weekend I also renewed my ACLS certification, which was a great refresher, for having taken the last 6 months off. So far I like the job and am excited to interact with grown ups & use my brain lots more.

Other than that, things are the same old, same old! We are all healthy & doing good. Hope everyone is able to enjoy the beauty of spring. My next project is planting my garden, I am super excited and I hope I can grow some yummy treats.

Happy Spring!! Go out & be active!

$>The Brodericks

another month goes by...

I can't believe it has been a month since I blogged last. So what has happened. For starters, I got a job!! I started today in fact. I am working at St. Peter's hospital in Olympia, WA (which is only a few miles from home). I will be working in their Critical care unit & working nights. I am excited to get back to work!!

What else... I learned that I have a boy that LOVES his food... no big suprise there, if you know his father (he loves food too!)

Asher loves just about everything that I put in his mouth and I hope it continues. The only thing he hasn't liked so far is Banana's (wierd!). He even likes prunes!!

We also got our growing boy a little play gym, so he can start learning how to move & entertain himself. He is having some fun!

And also, Grandma & Grandpa Goodrich came to visit. Asher got to get all dressed up & go on a brunch cruise to celebrate their visit. Super cute !!!

And Mr. Spoiled also got a snazzy new hat, to keep the sun out of his eyes.

It is so cute! He wears it and his sunglasses all the time, and he totally doesn't care!

Anyways, I better get going! Hope you all enjoy the pictures & little update!

Later!~

Posting Craziness!!

I thought I would post some pictures of Asher's recent adventure... eating Rice Cereal. The first is first time we tried it... as you can see, it went well.

But I think he is getting the hang of it. After our recent visit to the Doctor for his 4 month check-up, we realized his spitting up (reflux) is getting in the way of him growing :(. He is now 4 months, 26 inches long & 13 lbs 1 oz, which puts him about 90th % for height, but only 15th % for his weight. So we are now doing rice cereal more reguarly & have added Zantac. The Zantac seems to have started helping already. So we are excited to start our fun adventures of eating!

I guess it took me too long to get the next spoonful ready, he started to eat the table!

"this table taste good"

"why are you taking a picture of me eating??"

And Finally... a video. He just figured out today how to use the spoon.

I think he is picking it up pretty well, hopefully he will remember tomorrow, when we try again!

Washington

I thought I would share some photo's of our new home... WASHINGTON. When Megan & Candice drove up in early January, we went to the space needle. It was pretty fun & we got to take some pretty cool pics and watch the sun set.
The other day during a break from the rain, I drove down to the Puget Sound, which is just a few minutes from the house and snapped some pictures. It is so awesome when it stops raining because you really appreciate the sunny days that much more. Anyways, this is what we have to look at every day... (well when the rain clouds clear that is!)

From House to HomE!

I thought I would finally take some pictures of the house.. This is just the main living area. I finally remembered to take pictures of it, while it is clean. So enjoy. Now I will just have to do the rest of the house!! HA HA

My plumbing fun

So today I learned that I have mad skills- mad plumbing skills that is.

I decided to tackle the powder room downstairs as one of my first projects.

I plan on doing things one step at a time.

So my first step was to change out the sink faucet.

As you can see we had such a fancy one to start with, how could I ever improve upon that.

Well I found a way... TADAH!!!It's hard to tell in the photo, it's a rubbed bronze. It is much nicer than the last one. Everyone complained that the original faucet was too close to the sink, so you couldn't fit your hands under it. So as for now, this is how the bathroom looks.

I plan on changing out the towel rack (you can't see it in this photo). Changing the mirror and painting the walls some fabulous color.
But for now I am proud of my new plumbing skills....
(which I had no help from Rex)

So- Happy Valentines days to everyone!! & Happy Anniversary mom & dad!