Wrapping up October

What a fast month October has been. I've been so busy with stuff that I haven't posted in forever and I feel so far behind. So here's a recap rundown...

Volunteering at the Save a Life Golf Classic, October 6. It was a nice day that we got to spend together.

We took Sadie for her first trip to the river. While we were there I realized that we have taken all our babies to this same spot for their first river trip. Obviously it's a special spot. And this time there were geese in the river just swimming around. I have never seen that happen.

I have managed to survive this first month of Sadie's shenanigans. She's done very well with going out to potty and has had an occasional accident when I slip up and let too much time pass without taking her out. She will usually come to the door or to me, sit and whimper, and that's my cue to take her out. We also made it through this past week when Bryan was out of town at a class. I dreaded it, honestly. But it was not nearly as bad as what my mind had conjured up. Thank goodness...

Maddie went to a friend's Halloween party last weekend as a vampire ballerina. Much fun was had by all... the decor was over the top awesome.

We've recently started going to a new lifegroup. This week we had chili, smores, and pumpkin carving. It was a lot of fun. I'm happy to have found a good lifegroup fit.

Bryan will be home from his class tonight, I'm looking forward to a minutes peace. You cannot take your eyes off Sadie for even one minute or total destruction will begin. She attempted a prison break on the front porch by trying to chew her way through the wooden railing. I didn't take the first pic because I really don't want to remember it. I just want to fix it quickly and act like it didn't happen. I did catch her chewing on the dining room table chairs, which is a big no-no. I sure hope this chewing phase hurries up and ends soon. New house + new puppy= not good combo.

Moving on to November.. there's lots to do. We're hosting the Long family holiday weekend so planning for that will need to start quickly. We'll also have my family Thanksgiving and a trip to the Christmas tree farm. I love traditions..
And I'm off to wait for my handsome husband to return home and to enjoy our weekend...

~Tara

Un-Invincible

This is a LEO wife post... I do them to help me process what this LEO life is all about. I do them in hopes that maybe someone out in the world will read it and see a side of law enforcement that they had not ever thought about before.  I do them because I want to shine a positive light on officers, their sacrifice and their service. But often I find myself in a situation I can't understand or that is so surreal that it feels like our lives are on a movie screen, with actors all around, and costumes and makeup. You see when my LEO gets into uniform he almost transforms before my eyes into the hero of the movie. He doesn't ask me to see him this way, and to be honest probably wishes I wouldn't. But I do. I see him become the problem solver, the shift manager, the go to guy when you have a question, the leader of the pack, the "brother in blue". They call him "Sarge" and say "I Love You, mean it" all the time. He becomes the one looking out for the others, the one who will back you up, help you out, talk you down, lift you up. It's like the shiny gold badge makes me feel that he's invincible, and he wears the makeup of strength, calm, control. But it's just a mask really, a defense mechanism that protects him from feeling too much when the calls get rough, when his eyes see things he can't even describe to me. Wearing that mask keeps others from seeing the fear, shock, and horror that come when he regularly responds to things people in this evil world can do to each other.
Thankfully, the 10-42 comes and the shift is over, the uniform is off, the mask laid down (sometimes and sort of), and the real man comes out. The part of him who's a husband, a father, and brother and friend. He still manages the shift because really he's never off duty. He's the one they call when there's something to celebrate, something to talk over, some advice to give. Sometimes there's the calls that come late at night when one of his "brothers" is in need. He will give anything to any of them, anytime. I know it and they know it. It's when I am watching this that I realize that each one of them is just a man, a human trying to do a super human job, trying to maintain a façade of having it all together when inside they may be falling apart. They have problems... family problems, marriage problems, money issues, children to raise, the list can go on and on. And then comes the fact that they are un-invincible...imperfect, mistake making, regular people. Sometimes the mistakes are huge, shake you to your core mistakes, the ones that turn your life upside down, the ones that make you ache for the man who made them. Sometimes they aren't and you can learn from them and move on. Either way, it's the times when you see someone at their rock bottom and when the tears stream down your face for your "brother", that the LEO life in uniform and the LEO life out of uniform can be equally heartbreaking, stressful, and difficult. It's not a movie, it's real life, hard real life. I'm trying to remember my LEO is not a hero just because of what he wears. There are times he does a heroic thing, yes, and that's wonderful. But I am changing my perspective to what's more accurate... my LEO's just a man...that I love with all my heart.


~Tara

Escape from a Terrible Weekend

Sometimes you just have them you know, a terrible day or series of them as my luck would have it. It's early Monday morning and I have just escaped the most terrible weekend I've had in quite some time. I had a sick child who was feverish and throwing up, rain, a rambunctious puppy, and Blake away for the night at a friend's house. None of these are bad things really, but when you combine them all at once it can push you over the edge. I was ok with the sick child because I've been a mom long enough that puke doesn't scare me anymore. Anytime a kid is at someone else's house I am uneasy, that never changes. Rainy days are usually nice but not when you have to take a puppy out to potty in it. Sunday started off wild because I took Sadie out and slipped on the wet steps and fell. It was bad!! Luckily she didn't get hurt but I sure did. My back hit the steps in two places and I landed hard on my right elbow. It's gashed open and so very sore. Not to mention that Sadie is starting to play me about going potty, she likes to hit the grass running and not come back. I spent a lot of my day chasing after her. The kids and I being cooped in the house with a rowdy puppy that needs space to run and wear herself out made for the perfect storm of volatile emotions. I lost it too many times and had to apologize lots. There were tears and yelling and lots of frustration. But like any other bad day, eventually bed time came and it was over, thank goodness. And now today is a new day, my sweet girl left me an encouraging note on my bedside table, I slept ok considering I could only lay on the one side that didn't hurt, and Bryan's got Sadie duty today. Ha! On the to do list for today is a vet appointment for the wild pup, dentist appointments for the kids, and a stop at PetSmart for a leash. My chasing days are done.... and if you read this entire post you can understand why there are no pictures to accompany it. I feel it was quite an accomplishment to have survived this weekend.

~Tara

Catching Up

That's what you have to do a lot of when you bring home an 8 week old puppy. Sadie has been home for three days so far. She has really done a number on our routine and amount of sleep we are able to get. She's in her crate in our bedroom and as long as she can sense Bryan close to her, she's ok. The first night she whined and cried quite a bit but she has improved daily. Last night she only woke twice and needed to go out each time. I am concerned about the fact that Bryan has a class coming up that will take him out of town for a week. I'm hoping I can manage her middle of the night potty breaks on my own. Our schedule has taken a major hit because someone has to come home regularly to let her out of her crate to go potty. Anyway, enough about Sadie... if I think to far into the future I have a mini panic attack.....

Maddie was home today with strep throat.. we looked after Sadie and rested some. She not happy to miss school so hopefully she'll be well enough to go back tomorrow.

I managed to sweep and mop all the floors which is quite an accomplishment. This morning I also successfully managed to move a problematic meat thermometer from my usual kitchen drawer into the buffet... and it really made me so very happy to have that thing out... it always made it impossible to close and open the drawer.

I still have laundry to do, a walk to squeeze in, and a blog post to write about the golf tournament over the weekend... some of that will go onto tomorrow's to do list and I can continue catching up then...

~Tara

A Story about a Pot

Yesterday was just another average ordinary day for the Long family. There was school and work, after school pickup, a run to Walmart, and a stop for puppy food for our Sadie. I tried to hurry through these chores because for one, I hate going to Walmart, and I had planned to make soup for dinner and I knew I would need some time to prep it. So, we got home, unloaded, and I got right to chopping veggies for my soup. This is my favorite part actually. I love the rhythm of chopping and I love the sound the knife makes as it's doing it's thing. It is so relaxing to me to cook. Until... I reached for my very favorite cast iron dutch oven, pulled off the lid, and to my horror I discovered this.

The enamel on the inside is cracked and flaking off. Pain shot through my chest, literally, and I gasped in shock. I'm not sure what happened to my beloved pot, either I just cooked it to death or my accidentally leaving it in the oven while I was preheating just did it in. I immediately text Bryan to let him know how heartbroken I was over the death of my pot. He understood and tried to comfort me as best he could via text.  I fully realize that if you are not a foodie, as I am, you cannot possibly understand my feelings about this pot. I loved this thing... we cooked delicious meals together, like a friend in the kitchen, it was the best pot and the thought of doing without it was just too much to bear. I did tear up... but I collected myself and went on to cook my soup but it just wasn't the same.

 

one last pic for memory's sake

It was about time for Bryan to get home from work and my soup was done. I hear the front door open and turn around to see Bryan carrying in a box.... that held a brand new enameled cast iron pot!!! Yes, I did burst into tears and give him the biggest hug I could. Having him buy this pot for me was by far the most grand expression of love I have ever experienced. And before you write me off as a complete loon, let me explain. I never expected him to replace my pot. I only shared my sadness about my broken pot because that's what you do in marriage. Good and bad, happy and sad, whatever it may be, we share it with each other. But here's the good part, he knows me so well and he knew what to do to make me happy. He knows that cooking is a passion of mine and that to be without my pot would be a catastrophe. And later when we discussed how special him buying the new pot was to me, he told me he went to four stores looking for one and did it in less than one hour from the time I text him. This speaks volumes to me. You see, I didn't ask him to, he didn't need time to think about it, it was instinctual, second nature, to think of me and to strive to meet my needs. And because he knows me and loves me, he knew just how to do it. He was surprised when I told him how the pot made me feel. And he said he was just trying to make me not be sad. But what he did was so much more... and I hope that I recognize the opportunity to do the same thing for him when he needs it from me. Marriage is hard and it takes a lot of work to maintain a good healthy one... hat's off to you my dear, you knocked it out of the park today. I love you!!

my new pot (thanks baby)

~Tara

Pig Pen Falls

I have no idea why this area of the river is called Pig Pen Falls. I should ask someone who knows because I'm sure it's an interesting story. We recently hiked here on a Sunday afternoon. It's actually one of my favorite hikes. It was a nice sunny but cool fall day.

This would be a rare moment of sibling love. This photo was not prompted and they asked me to take it.

Blake snagged his one and only fish of the day in this hole. It may have actually been his first cast.

She got tired and hungry. This was her begging to leave face. We did walk a little farther down river than we ever have and found a nice deep swimming hole with a rope swing. Blake tried it out and said it was a blast but unfortunately he was in his underwear so I will refrain from posting those pictures here on the blog. It would actually be a really nice camp spot but the hike in is about 2 miles and we doubt we can carry all our stuff in one trip. We plan to make a day trip next summer and picnic and play there all day. I love the river, I know I've said it a million times but it's so peaceful to me and I just am so happy there.

~Tara