Monday, August 31, 2009

The First Day Of School

All I could think the night before as I lay there with no sleep is, "I am not getting old, I don't feel this old, do I look like I have a kid in the 5th grade, Oh my gosh I have a kid in the 5th grade 2nd grade and 3 still at home!"
I remember how my mom looked when I was in the 5th grade, she already had gray hair, drove a P.O.S, and was not "up on the fashion". Was that me? Could that become me? Even if I don't think I am like that do my kids and there friends think that?
5th Grade that's a pivotal year, you discover your body and how its changing. The boys start noticing you and this is the time where you start trying to figure out what "click" you belong to. I remember it as being one of the hardest years besides high school I had. I got glasses that year, started my period, got hair in those "places" you get hair, and started shaving.
My teacher humiliated me in front of the whole class which ruined me for the rest of the year. She thought she was doing something good but really it killed me. She made me and another student stand up in front of the class against the wall, she showed off "what great posture you have Holly, you see how Holly's back is flush with the wall and 'the other student' back is not" I towered over him like the statue of liberty. Well there came the name "Holly green giant"! Man I thought I would never shake that name lol. Kids can be so cruel.
One thing I am happy for, my kids don't have to ride a bus here. I hated the bus! From what I see on the news and you tube its only worse than what it was back then.

Along with most other military kids our kids will be changing schools this year. I can not imagine how hard that is. I never had to do that as a child, I went to the same school with the same kids from kindergarten all the way to graduation. I guess that can be just as hard, never being able to shake the 5th grade nick names lol. At least our kids get a chance to make a fresh start every 3 years. A total reinvention of them selves if thats what they choose to do.  

So, how did the morning of the first day of 2nd and 5th grade for our 2 oldest girls start?
Jeff and I had it all planned out, we were going to get up and both cook breakfast for the girls while they got ready, then together walk them to school (its across the street). The alarm goes off at 6am...the next thing I know its 10 mins after 7 and Jeff has already cooked breakfast, gotten the kids up, had a shower and was getting his uniform on. He had let me sleep in knowing I didn't sleep well. I got out of bed walked into the kitchen and sure enough the kids had not even touched the big breakfast he had gotten up early to fix, and 2 of their friends were already standing inside the door waiting to walk to school with them. I felt bad for daddy, he is not home very often for these precious moments and when he is he trys really hard to be a part of it.
He and the girls set off at 5 till 8, he comes to me and says "do I walk them all the way to their class or just to the school?" I said "just ask the girls what ever they want you to do." A few minutes later he comes back and had the biggest smile on his face. He leaves for work, comes home for lunch at noon and has the cutest little pink sparkly back pack filled with a Dora coloring book, pink and purple notebook, pack of crayons, markers, clue sticks, scissors, and a huge pack of construction paper and tells Ramie that he wants to see her homework when he gets home tonight. She was so excited, we sat in the floor after he left and colored, cut, pasted, and stickered. Jeff made sure that all of us had a good first day of school today despite all of our fears.   Its those things that are the reason why I am doing this blog.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Starting off on this blogging journey!

I have no idea how do this (blogging). I am a very good talker and "story teller" so we will see how this all pans out.
I wanted to start doing something like this because last night as I sat with Jeff watching T.V. it came to me that I could barely remember things that I at the time it happened told myself "I wanna remember this". My mother in law has told me before that I should keep a journal of some kind and write down all the little things the kids do that I don't want to forget. That of course is an awesome idea, but when you live in a house of chaos all the notebooks around here either get colored in, spilled on, ripped up or just plain lost!
My daddy has always told me that if you can't say it write it. That is something I have used A LOT. 
In the past people have told me "Holly you could write a book", that is something I would really like to do and have actually looked into it, not only for me but Cecilia as well (she has a great imagination). Right now this is the best thing for me and in the future we will see what happens.

Ok  if you are reading this and you don't know me, or if you do know me maybe you don't know all there is to know about me. For starters my name of course is Holly Staton I am 30 years old married to a wonderful man who is also in the United States Army. We went to school together and also went to his Jr prom. After that we went our separate ways. He moved to Auburn Alabama and I moved to New York (Bronx), In the year 2000 I moved back to Scottsboro, met a guy Andrew and had my first child Cecilia. Things didn't work out with Andrew and I which was for the best, but we are still real good friends. By chance Jeff and met back up and now 9 years and 5 kids later here we are! Of course I am leaving out SOOO much but that is the run down.
Jeff , the kids and I now live in Baumholder Germany, we have been here for almost 3 years. I am so ready to leave here, which we will be doing soon. White Sands Missle Range in New Mexico is where we will be moving to later this year.
We have survived as a family threw 3 deployments to Iraq and one move to Germany LOL. It is and was very hard leaving everyone, having the boys over here by myself while he was deployed and I was half a world away from our families. But we did it!! The saying "what doesn't kill us only makes us stronger"......that is now our family motto!

Jeff had taken the kids to get school supplies and clothes that is the only way I have been able to sit here and do this lol.......he is back now and they want to model and show off all the new things.