So far life at the Hood...

Has been cray cray. 

When I say that, I mean it in the most fun loving way. We have become a lot more active, and finally found some good friends. It was very hard at first. There was a rough patch in our first few months. I just couldn't find a good, honest, group of friends for a while. Thankfully we came out of that rut with a great bunch!

Since the last time I blogged was in September, I feel like one blog won't be enough to catch everyone up. Maybe we'll just go by month? That sounds about right. Let's start off with October, shall we?

October 2012:

Wes had a little bit of leave so we snuck off to Colorado for a few days. It was a much needed break from the heat in Texas. We got to see real Autumn leaves and trees. Mark just loved stepping on crunchy leaves in Old Colorado City. It was very sad leaving Colorado and coming back to a still warm Killeen. Fall here at the Hood is nothing more than rain and a few days of chilly weather. I couldn't help but giggle at the moms by the bus stop that had their kids in mittens, hats and scarves when it was only 50 degrees. Texans can be kinda silly. 

November 2012,
This was a very busy month! Wes took Command over a company here at the Hood. It was such a proud moment. We decided to bring Mark to the ceremony. If you've ever been to a change of command ceremony, you know they're not the most exciting for a toddler. He completely surprised us by sitting still the whole time and being super quiet. There was an adorable moment when Wes went to give his speech and Mark heard him. He lit up like a Christmas tree and yelled "Dada!" Everyone got some giggles out of it. My parents were able to come down for Thanksgiving as well as one of our good Army friends and his daughter. I love how no matter where we go we have family around us. It is a huge blessing to have them visit us. Since my parents stayed with us Wes and I snuck away for some Black Friday shopping. Picture an 8 month pregnant woman in line at Toys R Us. It was a magical night/morning. 

December was way too busy to fit into one blog, so it will have to wait!
Until next time!

Ask and you shall receive

We have been blessed in a variety of ways. Wes and I found each other with the least of perfect timings: he was getting ready to deploy and I had lost my boyfriend in Afghanistan. It was a weird time to meet. Wes was already in a deployment mindset and didn't want to get tied down, and I was not ready for another relationship. Yet somehow we have managed to create our own little family in less than 2 years and couldn't be happier. It is crazy to think about all of the blessings we have received as a family. Wes has come home safe and sound from his deployment, we have a seriously handsome little guy, and have had a fairly easy post-deployment PCS.
However, there is one part of our life where we have had some struggles. After my c-section with Mark, there were some major complications. It was a hard recovery and after a series of tests in both Colorado and here in Virginia, we have yet to find any answers to what exactly is going on. The doctors told us nothing but bad news, anything from more surgeries, to precancerous cells. But the hardest pill to swallow was the fact that the doctors believed Mark would be an only child. We had been planning a big family; we liked the idea of tiny feet running around, yelling at each other and making a huge mess in our living room. It was so hard to tell Wes, and while he didn't show a huge disappointment I could tell it was tough on him as well. We realized that we could still have our large family through other methods like adoption, surrogates or even hormonal methods. Our hearts were set on it, but we still found the time to wonder and pray about what another little Finkster would be like. There is no doubt that we would love a child unconditionally no matter how he or she became a part of our family, but the thought of having another baby danced in our heads. I finally prayed, lots. Mostly for an answer, but also for another miracle baby.
Mark is our first miracle baby. We had taken every precaution to not get pregnant before Wes deployed simply because I didn't want him to be left out, plus we knew that once Wes came back from Afghanistan we'd have a fairly easy year. However God had different plans. By some miracle, little Mark found his way into our family and we wouldn't have it any other way. And now, we have yet another miracle baby. The one that we thought would never get here.

After several weeks of fighting for tests only to receive incorrect results (it said positive yet the doctor told me they were negative, silly Army) and having to get them done again, we have the results we've been wanting to hear. When I went into the ultrasound test, the lady said that we'd look for a little "surprise", but she was no surprise to me. I knew she'd been there for a while, 7 weeks to be "exact". Sure I'm nowhere near far enough along to know what she is, but I have a huge gut feeling she is a girl :) we already even have her name picked out. When I told Wes the news, he was thrilled. We went out to lunch and he saw the ultrasound picture and instantly had the biggest smile I've seen on him for a while. It's safe to say she is our little miracle, but I've come to realize that our family IS a huge miracle. How lucky are we? I hope I'm not jinxing us by saying all of this but we are just soo happy right now. There are so many families that wish they could even have just one little nugget and we have been blessed twice already. We are the luckiest mommy and daddy ever, and neither of us would have it any other way! The three of us are so excited for October to get here so we can meet our littlest nugget. Until then, we'll be listening to her heartbeat, reading, singing, and playing with her. We can't wait for her to get here!

Virginia, thus far

We have had about a total of 2 weeks of living out here on our own, and I have to say, Virginia is just beautiful! I didn't expect to like it this much, but I could not help myself. After my parents left I really got to unpacking, which was a little rough with a crazy crawling nugget. But now that most of our stuff is unpacked we have gotten into our own little family groove, and we all love it. We have never really lived together just the three of us so this experience is brand new yet magnificent.
So far we have managed to go to the zoo and even a few Civil War areas. It's all pretty neat considering I spent the entire last semester indulging myself in anything America, and well, Wes just loves anything American. Mak has been a super star. He is up and away, a non stop crawling machine. He is still the silly baby everyone loves, but now the silly is mobile and on the go.

Lately I have gotten a chance to work on my "house wife ness". I've been tackling the cooking scene with about 75% success. Not bad for a newbie!! I think Wes has liked most of my experiments so far, it's hard to tell since he is such a good eater :) one of his many charms! Mark has been doing food experiments of his own. Marky has had everything a baby can dream of eating, even whip cream. It's so fun watching him get into trouble. Lately he likes racing us around the house; I feel running might be in store for him later. We've also been ever so slowly, planning his 1st birthday party. I love how involved Wes as been. We don't even have a theme, location, or a guest list. But that's ok. If we end up celebrating with just us three and a delicious baby size cake I'm pretty sure we will all love it anyway. I've come to realize that as long as the three of us are together it doesn't matter where we are, who we're with or what we do.Wes has a wonderful way of making everything better; his positive attitude never seizes to amaze me. I can see where Mark gets it from.

With that said, we do miss all of our family so incredibly much. It has been weird living so far away from everything I know and love. However, Wes and Mark are doing such a good job of keeping me on my toes. It's hard to even think about missing someone when I have one telling me he needs something for his potluck in class and another one screaming in his crib. But, alas, such is life, right? Can't help but love them both either way <3

Let the adventures begin!

We have finally made it to Virginia. After what felt like years of driving and several crazy baby moments, we made it to our home for the next 6 months. We were blessed and had the chance to spend the holidays with both of our families; Christmas with the Finks and the Vielmas met us out in Virginia for New Years. Lucky for them Mark put on a crawling show like no other! He has been unstoppable since we left Colorado and has been a curious little one getting into everything.
Now that it is just us three for the very first time, I'm reminded often of the very many reasons I fell in love with Wesley. That crazy man gets me like no one else and our son loves it when we're all together. I couldn't be happier! Mark has been loving all this time with Daddy. He gets slightly upset right after he goes to work and has been a huge cuddle bug lately. It is so sweet to see our little nugget extra happy. I think he is really enjoying this wonderful weather. It is for sure working wonders on his many baby issues! We go on walks frequently and I've already found him a play group to keep his social life exciting! He wasted no time checking out the southern ladies, though! Mark has perfected his wave and loves showing it off to everyone. What a silly nugget!!
As far as Wes goes, he's back to the daily grind. He's on what I like to call Army vacay. He goes off to work bright and early and comes home no later than 4. This is unheard of in his work life so I'm enjoying every minute of it. Compared to the long hours and rough days back with his old unit, I can tell he's truly enjoying this little break, not to mention the fact that he's no longer living alone.
I've been busy myself. Unpacking and organizing has become slightly difficult with a baby that wants to empty everything out onto the floor and hide it everywhere. I've also started my Coupon group online and I'm on my way to setting up classes all over town!

As a family we have been enjoying sightseeing. We took my family to D.C. and Williamsburg, and lately we just discovered some battlefields nearby along with Civil War forts and beautiful old homes. Today we saw the sun set over the James River. A true wonder for history buffs like ourselves. We can not wait to see what else the South and East Coast have in store for us. In our first week alone we have seen many things. I'm hoping these next 6 months are just as exciting and wonderful. Until then, best wishes from the Finks!