Growing up

Hunter is now big enough for the exersaucer!!!

 

 

3 Months Old

I feel like I just wrote Hunter's 2 month blog and here I am again and another month gone! Time with two kiddos flies by and they keep me pretty occupied but I'm loving every minute of it.

Hunter is now 3 months old and our little guy is really not all that little. He is quite the chunker and I love it. He is filling out more and more and continues to eat like crazy. He has developed his routine and I have adapted to it. He told me his bed time is around 9:30pm and would like to get up at around 7:30am every morning. He likes to take several naps during the day, but enjoys being awake for sometimes hours at a time. His hands are his new obsession, he stares at them intently with complete fascination and inspects them very carefully. He smiles often and loves to converse with me with his oohs and ahhhs. He's got quite the sense of humor, already laughing at mommy's silly voices and funny faces. At night he sleeps anywhere between a 4 and 6 hour stretch and only wakes to eat falling right back asleep once his belly is full. He has begun to drool quite a bit and although it seems kind of early for teething,  I wouldn't be surprised if one popped up soon. He no longer fits in 3month clothing and is wearing size 6-9months. Overall, he continues to be a great baby and my only complaint is that he's growing too fast and time is flying by! I love being his mommy! I'm so lucky!

USS Peleliu

Zane will soon be going on his 3rd deployment, but this one is a bit different. Instead of Iraq or Afghanistan, he will be deploying as part of the 15th MEU also known as Marine Expeditionary Unit on the USS Peleliu. A MEU is an air/ground task force on an amphibious assault ship consisting of a command element, a ground combat element, a logistics element, and an aviation combat element. The command element is responsible for command and control of the entire MEU. The ground combat element provides ground support and is made up of an infantry battalion, combat engineers, light armored reconnaissance, tanks, force reconnaissance and amphibious assault vehicles. The logistics element provide supply, transportation, and maintenance. And finally the aviation combat element, which is what Zane is part of,  is built around a phrog squadron, reinforced by CH-53E heavy lift helicopters, light attack helicopters and Harrier attack jets and provide air support. The MEU's  purpose is to be the first responders to any situation. They sail around the world ready to respond to any immediate crisis, whether its a humanitarian mission or a military one.

Today we had the chance to go see the USS Peleliu, which is where the 15th MEU will take place and where Zane will be spending the next 7 months. We were able to take a full tour of the boat and I now have a better idea of what life will be like for him. I must say, its not the best accommodations, but it is what it is. With no windows, narrow hallways, and steel surrounding you at all times, it kind of feels like a prison. Adjusting to this new lifestyle comes with other challenges as well since there is limited internet access and minimal communication overall. However, with all the workups and trainings in the past couple of months, Zane says he has gotten used to it and accepted the "boat life." He knows living on a ship will not be great but has come to terms with the situation.

It was very interesting to see and now Cally and I are now able to have a better visual of where he will be and what he will be doing. Here are some pics of Zane new home:

Entrance

 

 Zane's Office

Zane's desk

 

Zane's room...lucky for him there are only 3 guys in the room so he gets both bunk beds (other two bunk beds are on the other side)

 Love you daddy!

Dining area for officers 

Where the enlisted Marines unfortunately have to sleep

Balcony to the outside!

Gym

Cafeteria for enlisted Marines

Walking around the boat

 

The emergency room

 

The landing deck

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

Cally and Zane spent a "daddy/daughter day" today and drove up to L.A. to watch Mary Poppins, the off broadway musical. Cally loves the movie and sings along to all  the songs. She knows them all, from Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, to Stepin' Time, to Lets go Fly a Kite and all the rest. It was a special day for both of them and they had a great time !

 

A Little Fun, A lot of Work

Zane has been very busy in preparation for the upcoming deployment and has been gone a lot. He has been limited in his outings due to his restricted schedule and unfortunately he was not able to make it to the Running family reunion that was held this year at the lake. However, we didn't want Cally to miss out on the opportunity to see and hang out with all her cousins therefore we decided that I would take both kids without  him. A week before we left, I received notice that our tenants in Florida needed to move out due to the inability to pay so my fun family reunion trip turned into a "business" trip. I knew the house needed alot of work and with Zane not being around, I was a bit concerned about how I was going to do it all, so I called my parents and they volunteered my brother Danny to fly out and help me. My flight to Tennessee went without a hitch and both kids did wonderfully. Danny arrived the following day and we spent a day at the lake before heading down to Florida to go work on the house. I left Cally in Tennessee and took Hunter with us. I anticipated some work, but when we got there, I was immediately overwhelmed with the disaster I walked into. The house wreaked of smoke, there was trash everywhere and the garage had been converted into two separate rooms. There were door knobs missing, rooms painted every color in the rainbow, missing appliances, holes in walls, overgrown grass/weeds, and many more "issues." With the help of Danny, we took down the two rooms in the garage, hauled out tons of trash and construction debris to the dump and painted the entire house.

Danny working hard

It's finally down!

Danny left 3 days later and I stayed another 4 days to finish up the house and get it rented. Among the many mishaps and "bumps" along the way was an emergency room trip. I had been planting flowers earlier and was bit by an ant on my left ring finger. I did not notice the swelling until the numbness started to kick in and by that point my ring was impossible to remove. After trying many ways to get my ring off without success, I had to rush to the emergency room at 10:30 pm at night with Hunter and have my ring cut off.

I was able to finish working on the house a few days later and luckily for us, once I put it on the market, we had tons of inquiries and interest and I was able to rent it in less than 24 hours. It was a ton of work and I did things I never thought I'd do, but I have learned a lot throughout the way. It was definitely an experience! 

**Danny, thank you so much for coming out and working so hard! I could not have done it without you!**

I headed back to Tennessee a day before everyone left and had a chance to see and hang out with the family. It was wonderful to see them all and had a great time with them. Hopefully next year we will be able to be there the whole time and Zane will be there with us!

Hunter entertained by a flying pig

The Running Family Reunion Teams:

The Brown Bears: Scotty, Marlee, and Michelle

The Polar Bears: Ben, me, and  Bev

The Kodiak Bears: John, Amaya, and Brandee

The Grizley Bears: Chaz and Mike

The Gummie Bears: Mary, Greg, and Heather

The Black Bears: Laura, Faith, and Scott

The Teddy Bears: Mylee, Cally, Zuri, Mackenzie, AJ and Hunter

The Teddy Bears

Chaz and Hunter

Uncle Scott and Hunter