No Re-do's

It feel like almost everyday something happens to remind me what a special little boy I have.  Yesterday I was mopping the floor and, like most curious toddlers, Jake was anxious to help.  It is a daily occurance for him to "pitch in" as I zip around the house working on never ending housekeeping tasks, but as he mopped the floor yesterday I was struck by how rare it is that I have to re-do his work.  People always comment when they see him helping me push the grocery cart, count out apples, or put something away, "Oh, it is so cute that they want to help when they are little?  By the time they are big enough to actually help then they don't want to."  The crazy thing is that my little, just-turned-2 year old, really does help.  Yesterday as he diligently cleaned the floor he told me, "I need to clean up those spots."  Sure enough, he mopped up them right up.  It got me thinking about how often Jake really does help.   Several days ago he spotted me wiping down the counters and wanted to help.  I handed him a wet paper towel and asked him to go clean his little table that was covered in milk and rice crispy pieces that had escaped from his morning bowl of cereal.  I didn't expect anything, except for maybe a few mintues to finish what I was working on. By the time I had finished the counter, he had also just finished.  Watching his little hand carefully trapping the last few rice crispy pieces in his little paper towl was adorable, and the best part was that I didn't even have to do a "redo."

Our Soldier

With the craziness and excitment of the last few months, I have been unable to update our blog in way too long and now I feel overwhelmed with all the events, moments, and milestones I want to record. So bare with me as I rewind to the end of Frebruary, back to when Arthur graduated from Warrant Officer Candidate School. 

February 25th 2010 was such a proud day for our family. Jake, Arthur's parents and myself were all able to see Arthur, along with the 74 candidates of blue class, recieve his rank as a Warrant Officer for the United States Army. Arthur's class, the "Trailblazers," were an exceptional class and excelled both scholastically and physically. They recieved all but one of achievements awards possible during the seven week course, and the class songs they wrote were said to be the best anyone had ever heard. They were told by TAC Officers that they had raised the bar. Most of the WOC classes that graduate from Fort Rucker primarily consist of future Army helicpter pilots, and this graduation brings them all one step closer to their dream of flying.

The graduation was beautifully done. The ceremony took place in the Aviation Museum, which added a dramatic visual element to the morning (and made for a great back drop for pictures), and all the speakers were moving. I know that these events happen almost once a week at Fort Rucker, but they do a great job of making it a special day for the graduates and their families. At one point during the graduation all soldiers, past and present, were asked to stand and recite the Soilder's creed along with the graduating class. As I looked around the room at all the men and women standing around me, I was overwhelmed with gratitude that there as so many people who have sacrificed, some their life, to keep this county safe and free. Then my gratitude shifted

to pride when I looked over to my husband sitting tall in his uniform. As the key note speaker explained that the individuals in this class were among the 1% of the population who had chosen to protect the other 99%, and now my husband is a part of that. The last piece of the graduation is the rank pinning, and family  members are given the honor of pinning the Warrant bar rank pins on the shoulders of their soldier's uniform. Maria, Arthur's mother, and I bickered a little over who should pin first, but eventually I won and she pinned her's on first. I felt it was only right that she go first, as she was the first woman in his life and helped to shape him into the amazing man he has become. But niether one of us really cared. We were both just so proud of him and the man he has become. Earlier that week another wife asked me if it felt wierd to see my husband in uniform. I had never really given it any thought, but her questione made me realize that Arthur looks more like himself in uniform than he ever has before. This is who he is, this is who he was always meant to be.

Jake of course was of course adorably cute that day, so are just a few of the cute moments I got of him that day.