A New Home for the Sitko's

We woke up to our first morning in Moline Illinois to about 5 inches of snow on the ground. We had perfect weather for our entire drive, aside from the last 45 minutes that showered us with a little rain. It started snowing about an hour after we pulled into Mom & Bob’s driveway. Perfect, right?

We went from nice, warm (or somewhat cool) weather in Georgia to cold, cold days in Illinois. I must have spent too many years in a warm climate. I lived in the Mid-West for 22 years…why am I so cold all of the sudden? But the cold wasn't slowing Dylan down one bit. And he looks darn cute all bundled up!

We had almost a week until our things were to show up at our new house, so we were spending some time at Grandma Linda & Grandpa Bob’s house. But we also spent most of our time working on our future house. We were cleaning the house, fixing small things, and filling up the fridge and pantry. Busy, busy, busy!

Then March 1st came and so did all of our Household Goods! Our house was about to become our home! Once again we had wonderful weather while they movers were unloading and it was followed by an afternoon of snow that started about 2 hours after they left. Thank you, Mother Nature, for your kindness!

The first room we tackled was Dylan’s. His room is awesome!  

Dylan has now made the transition to his big boy bed! And he is a rockstar!

He loves his bed and hasn’t had any problems with the transition. Here I was, all worried that he'd roll out, or be confused about his new room, or not even stay in the bed all night. He proved me wrong on that first night. And he is almost always waking up (in the morning or after his nap) in a good mood. Such a big boy!

Mom and Bob have helped me so much here at the house. Not only did they put in an unbelievable amount of man-hours before we got to town, but they helped us unpack and make our house a home. It's still not perfect, but it's getting cozy...and we are happy.

And the only reason we have this house is because of our landlady, Grandma Gisele. She seems to really like us being here, and I think it makes her happy to see her house as a home again. I'm sure we're going to make lots of happy memories here.

Moving Day and Getting on the Road

Oh, where can I even begin to describe the last month? I have experienced extreme stress, exhaustion, relief, sadness, and joy. It’s been quite the rollercoaster. I wonder if it will slow down anytime soon? It all started with our move out of Georgia and into Illinois in mid-February.

Using my desk that Matt took apart as his new recliner

My mom caught a flight into Jacksonville the day before the movers came to our house. And by the time we got back to the house, Matt and Brittany were there too! I don’t know how I would have gotten everything done without that house full of people helping. I know that I am so lucky to have such great friends in my life. Matt & Britt drove 3 hours to my house just to help clean, organize, and prepare for the packers. It was so hard doing the move without Josh. And I know it would have felt practically impossible without Mom, Matt & Britt. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

Grandma & Dylan relaxing in our hotel room

Our entire home was packed into boxes in 4 hours, but the movers weren’t scheduled to come for another two days. Matt & Britt went home, and my mom, Dylan & I camped out in a hotel room and tried to relax for a couple days. I was really frustrated with the delay, at first, but I have come to realize that I really needed that day of rest before our upcoming road trip. One of many blessings in disguise throughout this experience.

Dylan and his Paczki

Our day off between the packers and the movers happened to be Fat Tuesday, so we picked up some Paczkis from Publix and let Dylan dig in! He only had one bite - but it was a huge one! I think he was a little overwhelmed. I happily finished it for him. We were thinking of Daddy while chowing down on our Polish treats. He usually buys them for us, and I didn't want to break the tradition, even if he wasn't physically there with us.

The actual moving day was pretty overwhelming for me! The movers took about 5 hours to get everything we own on the truck. Mom and I managed to finish cleaning the house, got the kid to take a nap in the car, we had the carpet cleaning guy come, I said goodbye to the best neighbor ever (we love you, Von!), turned the keys into the rental office, reweighed the car, and finally got on the road. It was several days worth of things packed into one. We were on the road by mid-afternoon.

We made it North of Atlanta and by the time we got into the hotel room, I was experiencing a level of exhaustion that I’ve never felt before in my life. I felt like I was moving through a dream. It was almost a scary situation. Thank goodness I had my Mama there! She was my rock when I needed some extra strength.

Behind the wheel, helping me drive :)

Dylan was an absolute rockstar in the car on the way back to Illinois. He and Grandma sat in the back seat playing games and having a ball the whole way. We managed to make it back to my parents’ house by about 7pm the second night.

Overall, Dylan has adjusted pretty well for a kid who has been dragged across the country and who has slept in so many different places in such a short amount of time. And the move was only the beginning. Stay tuned for more about the craziest month I’ve ever had to survive. Coming soon…

A Whirlwind of Moving

Even though I don’t have the time to write a post right now, I am allowing myself the escape in order to clear my mind and try to relax for a minute. Things have been absolutely crazy around here for the past couple weeks. Not only am I missing my husband (and Dylan is very obviously missing his Daddy), trying to prepare for the move, and trying to complete a few large projects with work before they turn my internet off…Dylan was sick for about a week!

I think the root of his sickness was the fact that he was trying to push 6 teeth out! You read that right, my poor little guy was struggling with sore gums because SIX of his teeth were trying to cut through at the same time. This lead to not eating, a runny nose, and an off-and-on fever for days. I also think his immune system was down and there was a bit of a cold too. He now has a really nice cough too! But those teeth finally pushed through and he is finally eating again!

Since my little man wanted more Mama time than usual, I wasn’t getting as much done as I needed to. So, now I’m running around like a mad woman trying to get our life in a somewhat organized fashion before the movers walk through my front door. Movers ETA = 4.5 days.

Perfect Valentine's Day shirt!

The good news is that I survived two weeks without Josh that were jam-packed with holidays. Super Bowl (yes, I think it is a holiday), Josh’s Birthday, our 5-yr Anniversary, and Valentine’s Day. Yes, there is the argument that I wasn’t alone and I had my own little 19-month old Valentine. And, it‘s true, he was my little sweetheart all day. I thank God that I have him. But, I still wish my husband could have been around for the Day of Love.

While talking to Josh on the phone yesterday, we realized that we’ve had more Valentine’s Days separated than we have together. We decided it’s the other 364 days that count. But, again, I am a hopeless romantic and did find myself wishing for the dream instead of yesterday’s reality. A girl can dream right?

Can I blame Disney and fairy tales for my hopeless romanticism? Maybe it’s dangerous that I work for a company completely devoted to Disney World. Disney gives me all those thoughts of happiness, and dreams coming true, and memories of our lives in Orlando. On the other hand, maybe having Disney on the brain every day while working for the next year will help while Josh is away.

The Disney Company stated this today (which made me smile), “On this day in 1950, Walt Disney Picture released ‘Cinderella,’ reminding little girls everywhere that the right shoe can make all the difference…”

Okay, I have to get back to my whirlwind of a week. Where is my Fairy Godmother when I need her? I’d wish for all of my lists to be completed with the snap of a finger! Or wait, do I need Mary Poppins instead?

To keep with my Cinderella theme I have managed to conjure up today, this is my Smile of the Day. As with the last one, I saw this on Pinterest and feel it needs to be shared. It‘s just great!

Celebrating Five Years!

Feb 2, 2007
(Yes, we wore flip-flops!!)

Yesterday was Groundhogs day. But more importantly, it was the day five years ago that Josh and I got married. I know that’s confusing for some people who were at our wedding the following September, but our first exchanging of vows took place on Feb 2, 2007 in the Downtown Orlando Courthouse. It wasn't really a secret that we were already married at our wedding. I’m sure everyone knew. We wanted to have that party where we could celebrate with our family and friends even though we exchanged vows before Josh went into the Military.

We got married on the 2nd and Josh left a few days later for Basic Training. We did managed to squeeze in a weekend at the Disney Resort on Hilton Head Island and a Superbowl party before he left. Now, here we are 5 years later and separated again. Oh, the joys of a military life! But I fully support him and I’m so glad we are in such a good place in our relationship right now. Otherwise, this separation and deployment would probably drive me crazy!

Dylan and I have been keeping really busy this week. We had a family come through to look at the house and an hour later, my rental place called me cancelling all the future appointments for others to come because an application had been filled out. I’m hoping they get the house and I don’t have to have any more strangers wandering through my home! Only 16 days until the movers come. Holy cow, I have SO much to do! We’ve already dropped off two huge loads of stuff to Goodwill - and there’s more on the way. But, I feel like I’ve turned a corner and that I might actually get my to-do list completed in time...maybe.

"Hello? Can you hear me?"

Dylan is doing great! He’s added “Bowl” to his word list now. He had a fever yesterday, but it only lasted a short while. I’m not sure if it was picked up somewhere or if it’s because of the 6 teeth that kid is pushing through! But he’s back to his wild self today. We’ve been playing with the Runnels and trying to stay active. Dylan loves going to the park!

Earlier this week, TJ offered to watch Dylan so I could go to a spin class with Katie on base. Katie and I worked our butts off, and the kids had a blast! Then Katie and I picked up dinner on the way back to their house. I was really needing a pick-me-up that day and the Runnels really came through for me. They are the best!

Josh is doing well at School. I did get his mailing address that he will have from now until Mid-March. If you would like the address please email, text, call (etc) and I'll give it to you. He is still in the midst of administration stuff, but he did get his new Camo uniforms! I am impatiently waiting for a photo of my studly man in his new Camos!

Smile of the day: 
Now that Josh is gone, I’m finding the small joys in little things that make me smile. Most of them are posts on Pinterest (my new addiction), but I know not everyone is on that site (yet). So I thought I’d share some of those things that make me happy.

Today’s is a kiddie costume of the old man from Pixar’s Up. I can’t tell you how adorable I think this is!

We Survived Week One of PDT!

It’s official. Josh is away at school and we won’t see him until sometime in May. Right now he is at Pre-Deployment Training (which lasts about two months). After that he has two more schools (one in VA and one in CA). Even though he is going to have a brief stop here in GA between those schools, we decided that Dylan and I would move in a couple weeks anyway. It will be really nice for us to be around family while he’s gone. And that way, we will be completely settled into our new house by the time he gets to Illinois in May. We will be able to relax and enjoy our time together instead of trying to unpack and organize.

"I'm gonna stop him from packing!"

Josh left about a week ago and we already miss him like crazy. The day before Josh started packing his suitcase that he’s going to live out of for the next four months, Dylan came into our bedroom with his book and plopped down on top of the suitcase. I’m pretty sure he was thinking, “If I just sit here, Daddy won’t be able to pack and leave for Pre-Deployment School!” Unfortunately, his plan didn’t work and Josh still had to leave.

Dylan's Progress Report: I’m not sure why it worked out this way, but this week has been a huge week for Dylan. Just like everyone told me it would happen - he has decided that it’s time to start talking. When Josh left, Dylan had about 8 or 9 words. Now, we are adding a few every day. The big thing in the last couple days is animal sounds. Josh had been doing animal sounds with Dylan for a while, but Dylan just wasn't repeating. The other day I was telling him animal names out of his book and when I said Monkey he did the sound. Right now, our pile of sounds includes monkey, dog, cow, and lion. His words are Mom, Daddy, yes, dog, duck, cat, sock, car, teddy, and chewy (I feel like there’s more, but I’m drawing a blank right now). Today we were working on saying the letters D and S (his initials). He also shakes and nods his head and uses sign language for Eat and More. I’m a proud Mama!

We’ve been trying to keep busy here now that Josh is away. I feel like I’m being productive, but I’m not seeing the results that I want, so I’m a little frustrated. I guess I’ve got to just keep with it. I’ve been trying to organize our house for the move, throw things out, and get car loads of stuff to Goodwill. Once the house starts looking move-ready I think I’ll feel better.

Making Valentine's Day cards

Our lifesavers have been the Runnels Family. Katie is always letting me gab with her when I need a distraction, Elleah’s loving all the playdates, and TJ doesn’t complain with all of the Anika & Dylan time. They even had us over a few days ago so the kids could make Valentine’s Day cards. The greatest survival tool a military wife has are good friends. And I have amazing ones. On that note, I’m also grateful to Colleen and Jonathan for calling me all the time. They make my heart happy, and I need that. I am blessed in the friend department.

Josh moved locations today. His first week was a class and now he’s getting into the “fun” stuff that he’s been looking forward to. The good news is that he has better internet now, so I’m hoping we can Skype soon and Dylan can see his Daddy.

We survived our first week apart (of many). I told Colleen that I was a little sad that Josh was missing these new things Dylan was saying, but I was going to have to get used to it. She said, “Just frequently remind him he is not only ‘missing it’ to better your family, but all American families!” See why my friends are amazing?

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we adjust to our new lifestyle. Thank goodness I have such an incredible husband who is totally worth it.