Travel Time!

WOW. The past couple of days have been INSANE. Moving halfway across the country is no joke, you guys! Our trip went a little something like this...

DAY ONE:
We left around 10 AM on Friday, April 26. We drove through West Virginia (MOUNTAINS!) and into Kentucky where we stayed for the night. We had planned to stop at a children's museum to get some energy out/break up the trip, but te kids were silent, perfect angels so we just kept going as not to jinx the perfection going on in the backseat of our Jetta. We got to a hotel in Grayson, Kentucky around 5 PM and everyone was passed out by 9 PM!

DAY TWO:
On Saturday, April 27, we got up and on the road by 9:30 AM. This day, we were going to go to the Newport Aquarium in Newport, Kentucky. And we did! It was about two hours from the hotel where we had stayed. It was gorgeous and amazing! If you are ever over that way, I highly recommend it! Luka had the ULTIMATE BLAST and yelled "MOMO" (Nemo) at any orange fish, sea turtle, or shark. Blue fish were "DAWY" (Dory). He was in love! After the aquarium and lunch, we got back on the road until we made it to Effingham, Illinois around 7 PM where we stayed for the night.

DAY THREE:
Sunday, April 28th (MY BIRTHDAY), we got up and were out the door by 9:30 AM again. Our day trip destination was an Air and Space museum, but we ended up going to a Zoo instead! It.Was.AMAZING! It was a free zoo in St Louis and it was huge and beautiful! (much like the DC zoo back in VA!) If you know me, you know I have a HUGE thing for elephants...and I got to see 4 elephants on my birthday (I cried). We let Luka run through the whole zoo as it wasn't very busy and it thoroughly tuckered him out! He even ate a whole grilled cheese sandwich (crust included), half an order of fries, and a carton of milk. As soon as he was strapped in his carseat, he passed out. We then drove onward until making it to Kansas City, Kansas around 5PM. We went to dinner for my birthday where I got to order my first alcoholic beverage. Pretty cool!

DAY FOUR:
We woke up on Monday, April 29, and hit the road again around 10 AM to finish our journey to Fort Riley. It was only about an hour and a half drive, thank goodness. We are all exhausted at this point and if we spend ONE MORE MINUTE in our little car together...well, the number of members of our family might quickly dwindle. We made it to a hotel in Manhattan where we are staying until we find an apartment here. William has already been on post and I can't wait til I get a chance to go! We did pass the air field he will be working on, though, and saw plenty of helicopters throughout the day of exploring Kansas! We drove around in Manhattan and Junction City (on either side of Fort Riley) and we definitely like it out here! There are no trees, hills, or anything green out here which is a bit of a culture shock. The air is dry (no humidity, yay!) and it's really windy! Definitely going to take some getting used to!

Anyway, it's been an exhausting and fun trip out here, but I can't wait to get settled in a home. Sharing one room between the four of us is getting old fast! (Seriously, what is personal space?) I am definitely happy the travel part is over, though! Everything is slightly more obnoxious when your legs are cramping up and you've heard Toy Story on the portable DVD player six times and your infant seems to have forgotten how to suck, but also desperately wants her pacifier and you cannot reach it.

BUT WE ARE IN KANSAS!
-Kacy

Graduation Day!

Yesterday, William graduated from AIT! Despite both of my adorable spawn crying through a good portion of the ceremony, it was a fantastic day. How can you get upset about anything (like when your sandal breaks, you spill a whole bottle of water in your lap in the car, your kids are screaming in the PX while you look for new shoes and non-wet clothes, or getting stuck in some major traffic on the way home) when the love of your life is coming home with you and NOT leaving in a few hours? I would like to say I was the most excited, but I think Luka won that title. As William was packing his things into the car, the following conversation took place:

Luka: "What doing?"
William: "Putting my stuff in the car. I'm coming home!"
Luka: “What!?” 
Me: "Daddy is going to come home with us!” Luka: “MY daddy!?” Me: “Yeah! He’s coming home!” 
Luka: “WHAT!?”

He just couldn't believe it! Once we FINALLY got home, Luka just followed him all around the house. Although he may have been the most excited, I think it was a rather close contest. Going to sleep next to my husband and then waking up and having him still there felt like a dream. I can't even begin to express how happy I am that my family is back together again! Our soldier is officially home and we are SO proud of him!

And tomorrow we start our journey on the move to Kansas!!!

-Kacy

Ready To Go

As Williams's AIT graduation gets nearer and nearer (SIX DAYS), we are also nearing our big move halfway across the country: from Montpelier, Virginia to Fort Riley, Kansas. It has been a LOOOONG eight months with William away at training and we are BEYOND ready to reunite our family. In the time he has been away, our son, Luka, turned two (TWO!!!!) and I gave birth to our beautiful daughter, Eloise, in February. Though I have much enjoyed my one-on-one time with Luka, and now with both children, I am so excited to have my husband back. I am insanely proud of him and all he has accomplished thus far and will support him no matter what in his choices relating to his career, but BOY, did I miss him! The longest we had ever been apart before this was about a week. So imagine the shock to my system when I got MAYBE 15 letters and a total of 45 minutes on the phone over a ten week period! Add on my extra pregnancy hormones and I was DONE. Luckily, he was sent to AIT at a base very close to home and we have seen him quite often over the past few months and hear from him daily. However, this is still nothing like having him home with us. We have missed him more than we can bear and, FINALLY, the end is in sight! Though we are all apprehensive about such a big move away from all of our friends and family, it is beyond worth it to be together again. I am excited to see what is in store for us now that we are closing the Virginia chapter of our lives. I am ecstatic to see my son's reaction to waking up in the mornings and having his daddy still here. I am anxious to watch my little girl get to know her daddy better. I am giddy to have the love of my life back with me. After all, what's Barbie without her GI Joe? ;)

-Kacy