tidepools and tadpoles
We not only have a new home here in Monterey, but three new additions to our family: Lightening, Fluff and Methuselah, named by Nathanael, Lydia and Steve and I, respectively. These are the names of our new tadpoles which arrived in three separate styrofoam cubbies just yesterday. As they wiggled their way out of their temporary homes into another temporary home, a gallon-sized water bottle sawed in half, we bestowed our names on these soon-to-be froglets. If anyone hasn't heard of growafrog.com, it's the coolest thing. The kit even comes with a plastic palm tree and blue sand to make them feel more cozy.
Seriously, this is a part of our settling in and since we move so often, small pets are the easiest for us to handle. We have unpacked all of our boxes in record time, just under three weeks. It has been much smoother this time with Steve being home and we really enjoyed having him with us for a few weeks before he started classes. Now that he is back in school, we're still thankful that we get to see him every day, even for lunch some days.
We are loving time as a family here in Monterey. There is so much natural beauty here, the closest beach being only five minutes away and the mountains less than an hour drive. One of our favorite things to do as a family is to drive down to Pacific Grove, a small town about twenty minutes from us on the Peninsula, and explore the tidepools. Now that Nathanael is older, he loves to climb all over the jagged rocks that form the Pacific coastline here. I have to deliberately back off from wanting to hover over him, but he's a great climber, so it's getting easier to let him explore on his own. Lydia climbs wherever big brother goes, with a little less steadiness, so Steve and I are usually not far from her. She is an agile climber, but a little more daring than we're comfortable with, just yet.
The best part of tidepool exploration is the sound of the kid's shrieking in excitement over finding something new. "I just saw something move!!" or "An anemone! (or amemone, however you choose to pronounce it. Lydie prefers amemone). It's not just them that feel that wonder and excitement. I'm finding myself scrambling over rocks just to see a crab that Steve spotted. Or I've found myself yelling, "I think I just saw something behind that rock!! What is it??" Then when we get home, flipping through our tidepool just to name and learn about whatever we saw. This is when learning gets really fun. And when the small things in life take on new meaning, a fresh sense of wonder. We've needed that.
We've returned to our church in Carmel Valley, the first and only one that we've ever felt really at home. It was wonderful to hear friends say, "Welcome home!" to us on our first Sunday back. We never really felt comfortable in any of our three churches in Clarksville. We are so encouraged by the pastor, who speaks both truthfully AND gracefully. There is a good group of military families who attend and a few of them are also headed to the Middle East. We've also started going to an OCF group (Officer's Christian fellowship) and have met some nice families there, with children Lydie and Nathanael's age.
It's only been a month since we've settled here, but we've already had two visits from family-- the first from Adrienne's brother David, who spent a few days in Monterey before driving south to LA with some friends. Then Steve's parents came on their way back to Japan. We had a great time both times and loved sharing Monterey with them.
Steve's courseload is pretty heavy this term. He's taking courses on the Levant (Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and Palestine), economics, comparative politics and research methods. It's a lot of reading, but he seems to be enjoying it (most of the time!). There are several international students in his classes which has made discussion more interesting. I've been to a spouses seminar on the Foreign Area Officer program and am feeling more comfortable with the idea of heading to the Middle East. Many of the couples who have just returned from a term there said that they enjoyed it so much that they didn't want to leave. The irony, however, is that Steve has heard most of the FAOs are not getting placed overseas just now. We'll see how things, go, because you never know with the Army.
I've been busy with getting things organized with the house, getting to know (and catch up wtih ) new and old friends and prepare for homeschooling. I'm excited about the opportunity to homeschool and I've already met several women who are homeschooling here. It seems like homeschooling is more of a norm here, for some reason. There are two or three homeshoooling groups that I can be a part of and a plethora of opportunities in the community to learn through real life field trips and activities. It's going to be a challenge, but I'm looking forward to learning as I teach the kids and for them to see Dad more throughout the days he is home.
Seriously, this is a part of our settling in and since we move so often, small pets are the easiest for us to handle. We have unpacked all of our boxes in record time, just under three weeks. It has been much smoother this time with Steve being home and we really enjoyed having him with us for a few weeks before he started classes. Now that he is back in school, we're still thankful that we get to see him every day, even for lunch some days.
We are loving time as a family here in Monterey. There is so much natural beauty here, the closest beach being only five minutes away and the mountains less than an hour drive. One of our favorite things to do as a family is to drive down to Pacific Grove, a small town about twenty minutes from us on the Peninsula, and explore the tidepools. Now that Nathanael is older, he loves to climb all over the jagged rocks that form the Pacific coastline here. I have to deliberately back off from wanting to hover over him, but he's a great climber, so it's getting easier to let him explore on his own. Lydia climbs wherever big brother goes, with a little less steadiness, so Steve and I are usually not far from her. She is an agile climber, but a little more daring than we're comfortable with, just yet.
The best part of tidepool exploration is the sound of the kid's shrieking in excitement over finding something new. "I just saw something move!!" or "An anemone! (or amemone, however you choose to pronounce it. Lydie prefers amemone). It's not just them that feel that wonder and excitement. I'm finding myself scrambling over rocks just to see a crab that Steve spotted. Or I've found myself yelling, "I think I just saw something behind that rock!! What is it??" Then when we get home, flipping through our tidepool just to name and learn about whatever we saw. This is when learning gets really fun. And when the small things in life take on new meaning, a fresh sense of wonder. We've needed that.
We've returned to our church in Carmel Valley, the first and only one that we've ever felt really at home. It was wonderful to hear friends say, "Welcome home!" to us on our first Sunday back. We never really felt comfortable in any of our three churches in Clarksville. We are so encouraged by the pastor, who speaks both truthfully AND gracefully. There is a good group of military families who attend and a few of them are also headed to the Middle East. We've also started going to an OCF group (Officer's Christian fellowship) and have met some nice families there, with children Lydie and Nathanael's age.
It's only been a month since we've settled here, but we've already had two visits from family-- the first from Adrienne's brother David, who spent a few days in Monterey before driving south to LA with some friends. Then Steve's parents came on their way back to Japan. We had a great time both times and loved sharing Monterey with them.
Steve's courseload is pretty heavy this term. He's taking courses on the Levant (Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and Palestine), economics, comparative politics and research methods. It's a lot of reading, but he seems to be enjoying it (most of the time!). There are several international students in his classes which has made discussion more interesting. I've been to a spouses seminar on the Foreign Area Officer program and am feeling more comfortable with the idea of heading to the Middle East. Many of the couples who have just returned from a term there said that they enjoyed it so much that they didn't want to leave. The irony, however, is that Steve has heard most of the FAOs are not getting placed overseas just now. We'll see how things, go, because you never know with the Army.
I've been busy with getting things organized with the house, getting to know (and catch up wtih ) new and old friends and prepare for homeschooling. I'm excited about the opportunity to homeschool and I've already met several women who are homeschooling here. It seems like homeschooling is more of a norm here, for some reason. There are two or three homeshoooling groups that I can be a part of and a plethora of opportunities in the community to learn through real life field trips and activities. It's going to be a challenge, but I'm looking forward to learning as I teach the kids and for them to see Dad more throughout the days he is home.
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