Homecomings...

This video is going around Facebook right now and just had to share it. It's a beautiful video, but pull out some tissues...it's a tear jerker.

My Nephews!!!

There will be no rhyme or reason to this post.  I'm writing partly because I have many random thoughts that I KNOW you are interested in ;) and partly because it's a beautiful Sunday evening and I'm sitting on my porch with nothing else to do and at 7:40; it's still a bit too early for bed...even for me.

So first, I have a new nephew!!!!  Andrew Maxwell Reynolds was born Friday evening at 6:18pm and was 6 pounds 12 ounces.  Jennifer and Andrew are both doing well and Andrew was born a very healthy baby.  They will be going home from the hospital on Monday.  I now have two new members of the family to meet when I come home at Christmas this year, Andrew and Jack.  It's going to be a fun Christmas with two little ones to entertain us!

As Taylor said, "the newest die hard Vol fan in the family".  There will be no questioning his allegiance...starting out right from day one!!

And I woke up Saturday morning to an email with this picture in it!!  How cute is this??  I loved it and it made me feel included even though we're so far away!!

Here is my other precious nephew, Jack, that I have still YET to meet!  But in a few short months I'll get to meet and play with him at Christmas!!  This is Taylor's sister Catherine and brother-in-law John.

Baby Jack in June on his first birthday in North Carolina!!

I swear, everywhere I turn there are babies all around me.  Maybe it's partially my age, but I think even more so it is my location.  There is something in the water at Aviano...I mean seriously there are more pregnant women and kids here then anywhere I have ever seen.  It's a well known fact that everyone comes here and has kids.  Among the seven married captains in the squadron, all between age 26-30, there are 4 kids (under the age of 2) 3 of which were born in Aviano.  And two wives pregnant...one with twins.  Kika and I are the only ones still holding strong...child less and currently content!! 

It's funny, my mom was just saying the other day, her and my grandma used to tease me that when I had my first baby they were going to take a trip to Europe so they didn't have to be with me in the hospital.  Anyone who has ever been with me in the hospital/doctors office will fully understand their threat.  I threw up the last time I was in the hospital supporting my sister during her pacemaker surgery...yep...I'm that bad.  I've never even been in the hospital for myself.  Knock on wood (yes, I really just did).  But mom said, I never thought you might actually be the one in Europe!!  Funny how the tables have turned.  Don't worry people...children are not currently in the plans.  We have too many things to cross off our To Do list still, but I love borrowing kids and giving them right back!  Therefore Christmas will be a perfect time to get my baby fix with two new little ones...can't wait!! 

My neighbor Rosario has been over almost everyday checking on me and bringing me food.  Seriously, last week it was a mushrooom pesto risotto, spaghetti, a mushroom dish, bread sticks, eggplant dish, breaded and fried meat with vegetables, chuck roast with potatoes and soup, spanish sausage, and a bottle of wine.  I cannot keep up.  As custom goes in Italy you should never return an empty plate.  But I don't cook that much, especially since I'm by myself!!  So I try to give him whatever I have, I made him pancakes the other morning, I gave him a few caramel rice cakes the other day.  How sad, I mean caramel rice cakes...really??  I know, it's embarrassing!!  He gives me little Italian cookies and chips too sometimes, but still. 

So the other day I was grilling chicken and corn on a mini Weber Kettle on my porch and he came over and sat with me for awhile and he loved the small grill.  He said he thought he'd like one for his back balcony.  So I found one at the Shoppette on base and I bought it for him.  I brought it over to him the other day to give him and he was so excited.  He asked me how much to pay me and I told him I wouldn't take any money, it was a gift for him.  He looked angry and said, "Ohhhh no, no, no.  I no want then.  I only pay."  I finally convinced him that I wasn't taking any money because he brings me food almost everyday and he does SO much for me.  He finally agreed to take it, but was trying to send me home with all kinds of stuff; eggs, wine, lunch, but I finally agreed to take home a thing of Spanish sausage and to come over for dinner that night.  He's so funny.  He says, "you need anything, you come see me, Ket-ee".  (That's how I'd phonetically spell how he says my name!)  He's excited to meet our families when they come to visit, first it's Mama, my grandma.  "Nonna" in Italian, pronounced, "no-na".

In other news...my brother just moved up to Cookeville.  He is living in a house that is owned by a friend's family.  They got super cheap rent, but it came with a catch.  They are cleaning out the whole house that was owned by the grandmother who died 4 years ago.  The house has not been touched in 4 years...food in the cabinets and all.  How weird is that?  So he's been scrubbing, steam cleaning, and painting the last few weeks.  Last I talked to him they had gone through 32 of the big black trash bags and still had quite a bit to go!  He's earning his right to live there, I suppose!  He is starting back school full time at Tennessee Tech this fall so he'll be staying busy!  Kelly will soon be moving out to Murfreesboro to start MTSU this fall.  She and mom just went apartment shopping to get new stuff for her new place.  Bedspreads, pillows, dishes...all that fun stuff!  I wish I was about to be a freshman at UT again.  MAN, those days were SO fun!

Taylor is doing well in Kyrgyzstan.  He just started back on his Master's classes online this week.  He's hoping to finish a few while he's over there so he'll only have 2 left when he gets home.  Better to be working on homework on the weekends when you're stuck in Kyrgyzstan then when you could be traveling in Italy!  He will be getting a new commander on Thursday this week and he is looking forward to the change and hoping to get lots of things done on the base under the new commander.  I'm sure I'm writing/interpreting that wrong...but until he writes a blog update, you get my civilian understanding version :).  And I wouldn't count on him writing an update.  Ever.  We chat on Skype a few times a week usually, so we stay in touch regularly.  I just mailed him his guitar this weekend so he will be a happy boy...his poor neighbors!

And as for me, I'm still doing just fine.  Work, work, work.  The only time I have to miss him is on the weekends, but those have stayed full so far.  Hmmm, I should re-phrase that.  I miss him all the time, but I'm not yet lonely.  As I told my friend, I'm trying to appreciate the little things like less laundry, less cleaning, seldom cooking, and the house looking the same as when I left it.  Although I have to be fair and say that I don't do much of his laundry anyway because he won't put it in a basket.  It's our little agreement, if it's not in a basket he does it himself, so he does most himself!  But we're almost at one month down, five more to go!

And I'm starting to get very excited to come home over Christmas!  I'm not at the point where I break down to tears and NEED to go home...thank goodness, because it's a bit more expensive then it was in college when that happened :)  But I'm looking at dates and getting excited to see family and friends!  I've been listening to the Big 98 WSIX online lately on my computer.  It's such a nice taste of home.  I sometimes hear the weather report (oh yeah...I'm so sorry to hear the nasty temperatures...I've slept with my windows open and had the air off for the last 2 weeks!) and the traffic reports and I kind of feel like I'm there!  And sadly there are lots of new songs that I haven't heard before...I'm so behind.  I often listen to Italian radio in my car and I'll get a mix of Italian songs with a few American ones...mostly Lady GaGa and some random ones like "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun".  But it definitely doesn't keep me up to date with current music!  Oh well...there are always trade offs I suppose. 

Alright...time for bed.  Buona Notte!

This is My 100th Post!

Wow, it's August already!  Although to be honest, August 27 can't come soon enough.  That special date would be the last day of the Summer Program at the Youth Center.  Halleluja.  We just completed Week 6 of 10 and it proved to be meltdown after fight after meltdown after whining from the little angels.  Yes, it was THAT wonderful.  I mean, it's understandable because many of the children are on week 6 of spending 40-50 hours a week together with the SAME people on the SAME hallway everyday.  A few of them could really use a 4 week break from the Youth Center...I'm just sayin...

But on the plus side of busy full days at work, I have little time to do nothing and be bored!  Last week I was the closer so I worked from 9ish to 615p.  I'd get home, eat my dinner, catch up on email/facebook, and head up to bed around 9 or 930 to read and go to bed.  I'm getting 9 hours of sleep by 7am, so I've been waking early and going on a run.  Wow, my life is exciting.  Next week I'm opening all week which means I go in at 6am and work til 3 each day...so all errands, running, etc. will be done AFTER work!

Besides that I stay busy on the weekends hanging out with friends, music festivals, dinners, barbecues, lake visits, etc.  Today is the first day I've had nothing planned all day and go figure, I woke up at 7am.  So I've been lying around, watching boring TV, and taking a little nap!  Rosario usually stops by every day with food and to say hello.  Often he walks by while I'm sitting out on my porch on the computer so we stop and chat for awhile.  Yesterday he cooked spaghetti for me and 6 of my girlfriends for lunch!  He taught me how to make the sauce on Friday.  I'll tell you what, it puts my Prego to shame!  He uses his fresh basil, hot peppers, salvia, and rosemary from his garden, his homemade wine, and all kinds of other goodness.  And he says you must cook it the night before for it to be good.  It cooks and simmers for a few hours before it's ready.  Mmmm...Buon appetito!

In other good news, I'm about to become an aunt again!  Phillip and Jennifer are about to have little baby Andrew any day now!  Now I'll have two little ones to meet when I go home over Christmas!!

And I am about to start counting down days until Mama comes to visit!!!!  I'm so excited I can hardly wait!  She's coming the end of September to spend almost 2 weeks with me!!!!!!!

Alright, time to get back to my boring TV.  I mean, it's really bad.  Here are my choices for 145pm on Sunday:

MLB Game
Fox and Friends
Armed Forces Boxing
Barbie Fairytopia: Magic of the Rainbow
Lost Worlds: Kama Sutra
Meals with Robin Miller
Hell's Kitchen
Like Mike (movie with Lil' Bow Wow)

I know you wish you had my selection, try not to be jealous.

Ciao, bella!