HAPPY BIRTHDAY SARAH!!!

FROM THE AID STATION AT FOB KALSU, CHARLIE COMPANY WISHES SARAH A HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

ALL WITHIN THE SIGHT OF THIS BLOG, BE SURE TO CALL MY WIFE TODAY AND OFFER LOVES AND KISSES! IT'S WHAT I'D DO IF I COULD TODAY. INSTEAD, I'LL OPT FOR EMBARRASSING HER ON HER OWN BLOG.

LOVE YOU, MY SWEET!

Why is Adria growing up so fast?

A few little Adria stories of late that make me think she is three going on 12.

She was getting dressed this morning and her shirt was inside out. So while she was turning it right side out she said, "Wait for it, wait for it." She said that about 25 times because it took her a while to accomplish the task. Then she yelled out, "Ta da!" when it was complete.

In the car, on the way home from dropping off Danae at school, Adria said, "Mom, I want a TB in my bedwoom." I told her we didn't have a TV to put into her room and she replied, "Well, lets go buy one then."

This afternoon when I gave her her PB&J she smiled that happy, content smile and said, "Mom, after my doo doo (pacifier) you da best."

I'm just waiting for her to ask me for a cell phone any day now.

Singing in Church Today

Today we sang in church as a family. My mom just got released as the ward music chairman and as her last act in her calling she asked if we would sing as a family. So, my mom, Andrew, Danae, Adria and I sang "I'll Walk with You" during sacrament meeting today. We practiced it a few times this week. Andrew and Danae did very well. Adria didn't really know the words so I was just going to hold her in my arms while we sang so our whole family was there. (Or at least as much as could be.) Well, we got up front and Adria saw the nice wooden stool next to the podium. She asked to stand on it instead of being held. I thought, not a big deal, right? She would stand right there next to me while we sang and then we'd go sit down. I'm right there, right? She's not the type to run away. Not a big deal. Well, we started singing and Adria started dancing. She was just doing a little dance at first so I just put my hand on her arm to settle her down a bit. Then the girls in the family right in front of her started to giggle and that got her going. So her motions got bigger and bigger. The grip on her arm got tighter and tighter, but she didn't mind. I couldn't do anything. If I picked her up she might have screamed and wiggled herself back down and I figured the dancing was less of a distraction. So I just let her dance, trying to minimize it as well as I could. The most embarrassing part was when we were finished singing I picked her up and she said at full voice, "Mom! Those girls laugh at me. They like my dance! Those girls." And she turned and pointed across the room. I felt my face blush as I forced her pointing arm back down to her side. Little giggles from all around. Nice, my little three year old steals the show.

Sealing Celebration

The adoption finally went through. My sister, Genella, and her husband Brian have officially adopted his sister's two children. Now they are a happy family of five. Shortly after the adoption, they all went to the temple to be sealed for eternity. It was a wonderful day. I even got to be the escort of sorts. I helped the kids get dressed and went with them every where they needed to go. It was great to be there to share such an amazing occasion with them.

So yesterday, we had a big party to celebrate the adoption and sealing. We fed about 85 friends and family dinner and cake. There were crafts and games for the kids and lots of socializing for the adults. It was a lot of fun. I haven't been a part of such a big party in a long time. (thank goodness) So. Yay for them!

...for those of you who didn't believe I was really in the Army. Hooah. The only reason that I'm smiling is because it's the dead of winter and only about 75 degrees. OBAMA GET ME OUT OF HERE BEFORE SUMMER!!!

Now that I've figured out how to add photos...here's one with me and a camel. Yes, a real, live camel. I don't know about the spitting thing, but they don't smell so great. Does it look like he's taking aim? I should duck.

Close Encounter of an Olympic Kind

So, while I was out and about in the Iraqi countryside, you know, checking on the state of the troops in far away places called Summers and Zulu (not as fun as it sounds), I came across 4 Olympic gold medalists doing a USO tour. Two I immediately recognized, diver Laura Wilkinson and gymnast Shannon Miller - you know, one of the Fab 7? I knew Joey Cheeks by name and then there was some runner dude.

Anyway, like a giddy schoolboy, I introduced myself as a big fan of the two that I knew and got to ask all sorts of geeky questions (like how scary is it to leap head-first from a 10-meter board). Apparently, it's not scary at all. Riiiiight. But, one question that I didn't ask was, can I take a picture with you. That just seemed way too uncool. I regretted that decision, however, as we left the FOB. They were on the same travel as us, just in a different blackhawk. SO, to make up for my shyness before, I took a picture of their helicopter as it flew next to mine. If you look closely enough, maybe, just maybe you can see their golden auras.

That is, only if I can figure out how to upload pictures...

Aren't these kids (mine and Genella's) just the cutest! And man, can my wife work a camera! She's getting really good at shooting the kids without shooting them (harder than it sounds). Thanks for posting that, honey. While it makes me so homesick it hurts just a little, I love that everyone back home is smiling.

--Hugs and kisses from Iraq

Photo Shoot Day

My sister, Genella, asked if I would take some pictures of her girls (her boy is at his cousin's for the weekend) for their yearly photos. Of course I said sure. While I was getting ready to go I decided my kids needed a photo shoot too. So I threw a sweater at Andrew, made Danae change her outfit entirely and got Adria dressed (she was running around naked with a jacket on 'cuz it's cold mom.') Genella had a great venue and we spent a lot of time shooting pictures. It was fun for me, but probably not so much for the kids.

Maleah was first.

Then Sweet Carissa.

Then Adria needed to get out of the car, so it was her turn.

Then Danae was finished being patient.

Then I had to force Andrew to 'want' to.

Then, a group shot. The kids were 'done' at this point and I was only able to take a half dozen or so. Oh well. They'll just have to put up with another shoot later.

I messed a bunch of pictures up, but we got some good ones. I have decided on a new lens for my birthday. I'm excited about it. Some of these shots would have come out that didn't. But I guess it is all in the learning process.

New Blog Site

So I had to switch blog addresses. The main reason I started blogging was to keep Jeff up to date from far away. Well, it turns out that he can’t access the MSN site that I used for my old blog. So, I gave in and now reside at blogspot. We’ll see how I like it. I’m going to keep my other site for the next year and if I feel the need, I’ll go back. But for now, this is where I’ll be. :o)

Christmas was wonderful. It was very sad to be away from Jeff for the holiday season. We all missed him very much. People actually wanted me to cook stuff. Um. I don’t do that. Jeff does. In our family, if you want to be fed, I can do that. But if you want to be fed well that is Jeff’s job. I am the cook. He is the chef. Just so we have that straight.

It was a really pretty relaxing vacation. We traveled to Utah the few days before Christmas for my niece’s wedding. It was beautiful and so much fun to be with family. I also got to visit some of my wondermous Orem friends. Man do I miss them! It was a really short trip, so visiting was limited. But it was great, nonetheless.

We returned home before Christmas and we were able to take part in the annual Bender Family Christmas Eve dinner. My kids got some great presents from Aunts and Uncles and Great Aunts and Great Uncles. I made them matching flannel pajamas to wear to bed that night too. We all had lots of fun.

Christmas day was relaxing and enjoyable. I only had to make Andrew wait two hours until the girls got up to open presents. We gathered around our paper Christmas Tree and the melee began. So much paper, so many gifts. It was a wonderful day. We got to talk to Jeff and we opened the package he sent to us and he opened our package. They were allotted 5 minutes of talk time, but we didn’t really observe that rule.

The rest of vacation was spent hanging around the house playing with our toys. The kids were sad to go back to school, but mom wasn’t so broken hearted.

We’re back into a routine. In fact, we’ve started a few new things. Danae started a Cheer class tonight. She has one practice per week and they cheer at a kid’s basketball game every Saturday for a few months. She is really excited about it. I think Adria is almost as excited. We’re going to have to go to the dollar store tomorrow and get Adria her own set of pom poms so she doesn’t steal Danae’s. . . And Andrew starts indoor soccer next week. He needs something active like soccer. Right now he wants to spend all his time playing video games and reading. Balance is a difficult thing to teach kids. . . And I’m going to get Adria into some kind of gymnastics class or something. She is a bouncy, active girl and I think she would thrive in a dance class or tumbling.

Okay. So I need your little secrets on how to make this site great. I think I know how to find the cool backgrounds. I think I know how to do photo albums. Give me a little time on those. But what else do I need? Let me know!