Noah's First Beach Trip!

Late last night, Greg found out that he didn't have to work today. I was soo excited!! We could finally explore the town as a family! We spent the morning just hanging out and relaxing; drinking our coffee/tea and playing with Noah. I was even lucky enough to take a shower and get ready while Greg and Noah played in the park. It was AMAZING!
After that, we took a walk over to the Housing Office to find out when our house would be ready. They told us April 9th we could "probably" move in! Yess! At least we have some kind of date. We are so excited! We drove by the house and it is one of the furthest from the gates, but looks pretty nice. We aren't sure if it is a 2 bedroom or a 3 bedroom. We drove by tonight and saw people working on it. We ended up driving back later on, hoping to go in and take a peek, but they were gone. Maybe tomorrow? ;)
ANYWAYS, we took a drive to Wildwood (about 10-15 minutes from Cape May), hoping Noah would get a nap in while we explored a bit. We were pretty shocked by the town. It was not what we were expecting, and, well, was a little less appealing than we thought it was going to be. They had the boardwalk with rides and a water park which looks like it would be fun to take Noah, but everything else was..eh. Because it is off season, the town was pretty dead, so maybe it will be more appealing next time! I definitely want to go there when it is busy and everything is open. The beaches are beautiful!
THEN, we went back to Cape May and took a walk down Washington Street, which is actually called the Washington Street Mall. It's a few blocks full of independent shops and restaurants. Yesterday Noah and I walked around there and everyone was so nice. I am so glad we are able to walk around the town before the big crowds/tourists get here. I really feel like we moved in at a great time. Then again, I am very excited for everything to open up!
We stopped at this cute little store called "Dellas 5 and 10". The store has a ton of old knick knacks and in the back they have a 1950's style food counter/soda fountain. Yesterday Noah and I got a milkshake and today we got a kite to fly at the beach.
SO, onto the reasoning of this blog! Noah's first beach trip! Noah acted as if he had been there before. Haha. He did have a little taste of the sand, and probably chewed on it for a little bit. ;)

 Rain was coming! :)

 It's been pretty windy that past few days, but today was not...we struggled a bit with flying the kite!

When we got home, I made Pepperoni Ziti Casserole for dinner. We had a nice day together!

Greg and Noah being silly =P

Tomorrow is the Spring Carnival/Easter Egg Hunt in the gym on base tomorrow morning. Greg has duty but we are hoping he can get a break to come watch Noah hunt for eggs and meet the Easter Bunny. 

Entertaining a Toddler

Keeping Noah entertained can be quite a challenge when you live in temporary housing! I could barely fit any toys in our suitcases so I had to start thinking of other ideas :) 

Pots and Pans are the best way to go. Loud? Eh, who cares! He enjoys it!

"Cooking" Fried Bananas

Playing in Daddy's Boots (LOVE this!!)

Jumping on Pillows!

Bats and Paper Rolls

Photoshoot, of course!

More Pots and Pans ;)

THE PARK!!!!!

Another Park :)

Even when it's 36 degrees out! "Brrr" as Noah would say

 Rolling around in a Suitcase, hehe.

Cabinets

Hmm what else? This morning we went to the laundromat. That definitely kept Noah busy! I was pretty nervous he was going to be difficult, but being the only ones there, he was great. He didn't get into too much! ;)

 I took Noah to the ER today because he woke up and couldn't put pressure on his right foot. He cried every time he tried to walk. It was really sad! I called the doctor and they said to take him to the ER in case he needed x-rays. We got to the ER, and with all the waiting, Noah ended up "running it off". He was perfectly fine! To say the least, today was an entertaining day all around!

Tiny Update ;)

Well, things are going well over here. The first actual day here, I lost my ID. Oops! I felt awful when I realized the next day that it was gone. I looked EVERYWHERE. I'm pretty sure it fell out of my pocket :(  Boy did I feel bad when I had to tell Greg. I don't want to make him look bad! So Monday morning I will go to the office and get a new one. I need it by Monday because our car is getting here that day!! Ahh can't wait to get our car back!! I can't wait to explore the town!
Greg's schedule has been pretty weird. Friday he worked 8am-3pm, had today (Saturday) off but has to go back tomorrow for a possible 24 hour shift. Apparently he has to do that every 3 days, we will know more about that tomorrow I hope!

Yesterday I spent a lot of the morning looking for my ID (fail). Noah and I then took a long walk around the base where we found another park by the baseball fields. I can't say it enough, being on base is awesome. Noah can run around anywhere he wants and I don't really have to stop him. There are 2 parks on base, at least 3 parks just outside the gates around on-base housing, and open fields galore!

 Park #2 :)

We checked out the Daycare Center yesterday just to see how it all works. Right now they are pretty full and only allowing full time kids (5 days a week). Prices depend on your rank/pay; we would likely be the cheapest because Greg is a seaman (meaning low on the totum pole) and I am not working. Drop ins are $4.00 an hour or $30 per day but you have to call in the morning to see if their are any openings. I am considering putting Noah into daycare maybe once a week. That way I can get a few things done (and a little break), and he can be around more kids. I always worry he hasn't been around other kids enough. He doesn't do too well being away from "mom" (unless he is with family or close friends) so I kind of want him to get use to it before he goes to preschool! Although it pretty much is a preschool.

Last night we were told that Fridays are "Family Night" at the Harbor View. Turned out that Thursday night had more kids than Friday but we had a good time. Our fam and Greg's buddy he graduated with went to the Harbor View for dinner. Since it's on base, the food is SUPER cheap. Sandwiches are like $3.50! Noah loves it there, too! There is a game room so he just runs all over the place. It's pretty exhausting running after him but he likes it and is able to play with other kids.  (Sorry, no photos)

Today was a rainy day in Cape May! This morning, it was barely drizzling so we decided to go for a walk. By the time we were about 2 blocks outside the gates, it started pouring. We turned around and ran home. We were DRENCHED by the time we got home. Noah's stroller had a puddle in the front of it!! It was a good laugh :) Later in the day we were able to make up for it. We went for a long long walk! There are some pretty amazing homes here! When we got back, Noah was able to play in the "backyard" for a bit. About 5 minutes after we came in, it started to pour again, at least we had SOME good timing! ;)

Alright onto the PHOTOS!

"Backyard Park" :)

 Beautiful Sunset

 The bigger boat is the "Dependable", which is what Greg is working on until the Vigorous gets back

 Why play in the park when I have this cool hole to play in?? With rocks!!!!

 Below our T.V. is this empty shelf; Noah loves to crawl inside and attempt to get out :)

 A Bed and Breakfast we walked by today, one of many!

 Park #3 we found. Noah loved bouncing on this thing..

Jumping in puddles! (well, stomping)

Until next time, cheers! :)

First Day!

I know what you're thinking...awwww!! Right? Okay maybe just me? Greg was up and at'em at 5:45 this morning getting ready for work. He had to dress up this morning to get some paperwork done. He was back by around 9am and didn't have to go back until 11. We were able to go out and get a few things done around base and around the house. Last night, we got home around 11:30pm, so we put Noah right to bed. This morning, I ended up waking Noah up at 8:30am so we could get him use to the time change right away. Remember when I said he didn't cry at all yesterday? Well today he made up for that! We went grocery shopping after Greg went back to work, and the poor little guy cried MOST of the time we were in there, AND probably the whole ride there! He was so exhausted. He fell asleep in the car on the way home and then refused to go back to sleep when we got there. The time change is definitely going to take a while. Same thing happened tonight! I put him down at 8 but he wasn't ready to go to sleep, even though he was exhausted. I finally got him down around 9 or so.

I'd say today was a little hectic. I still have this all set in my mind that I am just on vacation, so I think adjusting is going to take a little bit longer than I thought. Our temporary home is very quaint. It's 2 bedrooms, 1 full bathroom, with a living room and kitchen. I feel pretty comfortable here but since it's not "my" home, it needs a deep cleaning before I can really get comfortable. The neat thing is when we look out our kitchen window into our "backyard", we have a nice big park area. I swear, Noah is in heaven! It's a park all to himself! Temporary housing consists of 6 little homes (2 each attached) and I have only seen a couple of people. Tonight we went to the only restaurant on base. There were a ton of kids, so Noah was able to run around in the game area. We were told that Friday nights are "Family Night" so we are probably going to go check it out tomorrow, too. I met one wife who's husband is a Company Commander...I think. She is very friendly and gave me her number if I have any questions or need anything. I can tell there is a lot of support here and temporary housing is pretty secluded from everything, so I am anxious to get moving into our house. It's looking like April or May, but likely April.

"Where am I mom?"

 "Why did you wake me up again?"

 Panoramic View of our Backyard :)
(If you click the picture you can see better)



We're Here!

From Cape May, HELLO EVERYONE! We are settled in our "Temporary Home" and doing well!

Just an update from this past week.
Sunday, we started the day off with my sister's bridal shower. Great company, delicious food and drinks, and being with my sister; it was all around a great party! After that, Greg, Noah, and I had a "little" going away party which it turned out pretty spectacular. It was definitely bittersweet for me. I had a great time talking to everyone but when they left, I had a few breakdowns! ;) I miss everyone already, but I am so glad I was able to talk to every single person!

Monday, the movers went to our storage unit and home in Petaluma to pack up all our things. We were definitely surprised at how much stuff we really had! They were in Petaluma from 10am to 6pm! So it was a long day! Thankfully, we had Greg's whole fam to watch Noah while we got everything done!

 

Tuesday, we went to my work and said our goodbyes. It was pretty sad, but it's a good feeling to see how much everyone cares about me over there. After that we got our taxes done (woohoo!), and packed up the rest of our things. That night, we went over to the in laws for dinner. Greg ended up staying the night because his dad was taking him to the airport at 5am. I got home that night and had a nice visit from Jamie and her newest boy, Kellen.

Wednesday, my parents took Noah and I to the airport. Boy was that a tough good bye! But I must say, that was the hardest part of the whole day. Noah was absolutely fantastic on both planes! I could not be more proud of him. On the way to Denver, he slept for about an hour of the 2.5 hour flight. When we got to Denver, we were lucky enough to see my soon-to-be brother-in-law, Doug. He was working and met us at the gate for a little bit until our next flight. It was great to catch up. Wish we could have talked more but with Noah running all around the airport, and our next flight, we only had about 20 minutes. Better than nothing! On the flight to Philadelphia, we were lucky enough to get an upgrade. We had a ton of leg room! Noah stayed awake for at least an hour and a half and played, ate, and talked to the people next to us. (We had a middle seat, eek!). We were so lucky that we sat next to great people on both flights. On the way to Philly, the woman next us (window seat) ended up holding Noah as we landed. She was very sweet and mighty helpful!