THE PARK POST

TF 21st CSH was an acronym that meant nothing to me about 8 months ago, other than those words changed our lives. But now I understand the army acronym lingo, well at least this one: Task Force 21st Combat Support Hospital.  It was so nice to finally see a picture of all of the people surrounding Mike. They have really bonded with each other and I am so grateful he has people there to talk to that are going through the same thing that he is. The official 30 day countdown will begin next week. Yahoo!!!

As part of being in the Nutcracker this year, Paige is doing short little performances around the community to advertise their upcoming show in December. Last weekend they went to the Landings (a shopping center nearby) and performed out in the street. The kids liked watching the lighting ceremony and seeing the fire truck, Santa, and Miss Georgia drive by. They threw little footballs to the crowd and Jackson literally gathered up around 15 balls. He was giddy over that detail. Next week they will go to Barnes and Noble and to an elementary school to help tell the story of the Nutcracker while in costume. Paige is soaking it all in. She will be a flower, snowflake, and marzipan this year. We have all become more familiar with the whole Nutcracker experience. We're excited both grandmas will be able to come watch her this year.

The girls found my old prom dresses in the closet and spent a good half hour mocking my taste in clothes. (I just can't understand why, these were really the "in" thing 20 years ago :)Then they tried them on and realized they fit and were even more shocked that I actually used to be their size. They couldn't believe their dad was attracted to me while wearing these dresses. Honestly, I can't believe it either. But I told them they better watch what they say, because what comes around goes around.

I think Sydney is the only one this year that thoroughly embraced Halloween in the traditional sense. She genuinely wanted to dress up for every party and activity. She seemed thrilled to get all types of candy, and loved playing every corny carnival game out there. That's why it is so nice to still have a kid around that doesn't want to grow up too fast. Jackson, on the other hand, had his Quidditch uniform on for a total of about 15 min. and then decided that was all he could handle. He didn't want to go trick or treating and stayed home to pass candy out instead. I had to drag him to the Trunk or Treat, but once there he did have fun on the hay ride and playing soccer with his friends. McKell made a minimal effort to enjoy Halloween. She was a black-eyed pea, which I thought was pretty creative, but she just didn't have a real gusto for the holiday like she has in years past. I think she is starting to feel she's too old for it, but I think she still enjoys the p...

Without Mike here I wasn't sure how we were going to carve pumpkins this year. That has always been his domain, but Sydney really wanted a carved pumpkin and wasn't going for the paint idea. So I bought a pumpkin carving kit and tried to put a pattern on the pumpkins and then trace it. I should have realized I am not good at that sort of thing. Basically you have to have a lot of patience and time, and honestly I don't have much of either, so I went back to the basics and figured out how to make simple cuts in the pumpkins with the good old kitchen knife. I was so proud of myself after 2 hours of cutting with the final product. Even though "Jack and Jilly"(as Sydney called them) looked pretty amateurish, Sydney seemed appeased so it was all good. I didn't notice until today that we have a serious petry dish full of mold growing out in both pumpkins. With all of the rain and humidity they are taking on a life of their own. When I took the lid off, ther...

"This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it. Once we truly know that life is difficult – once we truly understand and accept it – then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact life is difficult no longer matters.” (M. Scott Peck – The Road Less Traveled.) Re-reading one of my favorite books, "The Road Less Traveled."

> 9 Years Old!! It's been a great ride!! Happy Birthday Jackson!!

We took our first trip to Florida last weekend to attend one of McKell's gymnastic's meets. Palm trees, blue water and white sand are simply medicine for my soul. The first night we went to Pineapple Willy's and the kids all picked out a T-shirt. We took some pictures on the beach at sunset. It was gorgeous. We hopped back in the van and started out the wrong way because the GPS hadn't kicked in yet. I pulled off the side of the road so I could make a U turn and didn't realize I was in some really soft sand and got us stuck. We were on a dark street at about 9 at night in a new town and I honestly had a moment of panic, but then I noticed two men on bikes headed towards us. I flagged them down and they helped me out. The last thing the stranger said was, "you need to get out of here, this is a bad part of town." I think we must have some guardian angels watching over us right now. As beautiful as the beach and resort were, there was a gnawing loneliness...

Paige is learning all about what it means to actually study and work hard in school this year. She has always been able to get by without having to do much, but her high school Biology class is pushing her to new heights. She finally realized that her teacher is not going to spoon feed her all of the material and that when she reads and knows the info in the text book she does better on the test. She was proud of herself when she got a great score on her midterm. It's so rewarding to see your kids make the connection between real learning versus regurgitating facts. It's also science fair time. ugh... She decided (with her Dad's help) to do a project on why blubber is such a good insulator for marine animals in the antarctic. She has spent a lot of time with her hand in a bowl of ice water the last few days. Amazingly, Crisco really does help insulate your hand from the cold. (One advantage to having some extra blubber around the middle). I'm so glad Mike has tim...

Sydney turned 6 yesterday. With Mike being 7 hours ahead of us in Iraq, we decided to open Sydney's presents first thing in the morning so that he could be a part of it all. Sydney was a little excited and came up at 4:30 a.m., ready for action. I told her she had to wait until 6:00, but she never did go back to sleep. Finally at 5:45 everyone was up so we decided to start. I was amazed at how alert and happy everyone seemed. Normally when we get up to read scriptures everyone is groggy, grumpy, and not able to communicate. If I could just convince the kids that reading is really like a party, maybe they would respond better ? After school we had pizza and then went to our new favorite frozen yogurt place, Chill. They let you put how much and whatever flavor and toppings you want and then the price is based on weight. We have had some pretty interesting concoctions, but I think we have realized it's best to go more simple and not add every flavor and topping available. After...