Walkin' in Memphis

One of the perks to this duty station (Officer Selection Officer) is all the traveling Paul gets to do.  Last year it wasn't very feasible for us to go with him anywhere, what with a newborn and all. But now the kids are a bit older and a bit more mobile so we decided to tag along with Paul on his latest trip to Memphis.
We stayed at the legendary Peabody Hotel and got to see the march of the ducks!

The kids were so excited to be a part of it!

We went up to the roof afterwards, where the duck's Grand Palace is located. Ethan even got to see two ducks "wrestling"...and he still talks about it to this day...very embarrassing when he brings it up in public, actually.

I {heart} my goofy family!

A view from the roof of the Peabody

We hit the streets the next day to do some sight seeing. Not a lot going on at 11am in Memphis on Beal Street. Thank goodness.

Beal Street

JOHN!

at the FedEx Forum

psst...apparently this is where sports are played...i have no clue about these things...

you can see here i'm wondering why he's making me stand here freezing to get a picture...

A view up Beal Street

Purple Haze Theater?? No idea, but thought it was cool looking!

It was a short trip but we said goodbye to the ducks before we headed home...

A trip to Memphis wouldn't be complete without at least seeing Graceland. I heard a rumor kids under 5 weren't aloud in...that's what we told the kids anyway. But here's a snapshot of the Presley home:

the wall outside the property is covered in "I heart Elvis" graffiti

Overall, it was a memorable trip, both in photos and in the bank account. Eating in a fancy hotel with 3 children gets VERY pricey. :) We had fun though and the kids are STILL talking about the ducks!

Paul is Beef

This post is dedicated to my brother who turns {age undisclosed to protect the elderly} today!!!!
Happy Birthday PAULY WALLY DOODLE ALL THE DAY!!!

A few memories about my brother!

1. The time he break danced on a piece of plywood for my fifth birthday party. Rad. Totally rad.

2. The time he planted a stereo speaker under my bed and ran wires to a nine volt he had by his bed so he could scare me at night with clicky scratchy sounds...ahh, older brothers rock.

3. The time he told me the back yard neighbors had run a driveway through the back of our garage so they had easier access to the main road. And I believed him.

4. Playing keyboard and singing while he played the drums to Steve Miller Band cds.

5. Stealing his Jerky Boys cds and having him SEARCH my room and NEVER find them! heheheh

6. Making REALLY lame home videos with his sweet camera!

7. Realizing Jon Candy didn't die by getting stabbed in the leg.

8. "what's going on? what's going on?"

9. Who could forget the home movie of when dad dug the basement under the house? Put to a complete Beatles Soundtrack.

10. Riding bikes and wiping out on Maple St because I had to try and eat my skittles while biking. He walked me home to safety.

Thanks, Beef, you're the best brother a girl could ask for!!!
Happy Birthday, I hope your day is filled with awesome events that make radical memories!
LOVE YOU!!!!
Abber-cadabber

Welcome Autumn!

Happy Fall to everyone! Hope you're staying nice and toasty with all these cool breezes! I am LOVING this weather! Sure, my sinuses are outta whack, and I can barely breath without wheezing, but it's so worth it to have that crisp air! YAY!
Well, Autumn wouldn't be complete without a trip to the Cider Mill. Apple Orchards are all over in MI, so I pretty much assumed that was the case everywhere else. Well, I was wrong. I told my friend we were gonna try to get to the Apple Orchard this weekend and she just looked at me, "What's that?" HAHAHA! Wait, you mean you don't have those here? I totally had a Robin moment from HIMYM, "You don't have a Danby's Here?! Where do you get your Grizzly Bear Ice Cream Sandwiches!!!???"- only less Canadian.
So, we figured out they're called pumpkin patches (go fig!) and we found a great one to take the kids to this past Saturday! Walden Farms is up in Almaville. (Smyrna area)

Paul and the Kids

"Wait a minute..."

I can't believe I got her to look!!!

Awesome pic! Thanks babe!

My Granty Wanty!

Stuck in the Corn Maze!!!

I Heart this photo.

Ethan being Ethan

What you may not see here is the "bones" long sleeve pajama top under 2 additional t-shirts, paired with red running shorts, soccer socks pulled ALL the way up, dinosaur socks ON TOP of those and Sandals. Oh yeah, and the sunglasses on his head, which would have been goggles if we had brought them with us.

(and yes, my child dresses himself)

The House of Skank

Ok, it's nasty here. For the past few days every single one of us has had some form of the flu. Head flu and stomach flu have been circulating around our house like it's cool. Well, guess what. It's not. After being com.plete.ly miserable on Tuesday, I had to summon up the strength to get Ethan to school on Wednesday so I could at least have some resting time. This would be the day Hannah woke up with a fever. A fever that escalated to 102.4 throughout the day. This is good and bad. The good part is that she laid around all day falling in and out of deep sleep. The bad part is that she wanted to this right next to me, so as if my hot flashes weren't enough, I had my very own personal heating pad drooling on the pillow next to me. Grant, through all this, was bubbly, smily and playful, and oh how I wish I could have played with him, but really all he wanted to do was grab at my glasses while I lay comatose on the floor.
My biggest fear was that Ethan would arrive home sick from school, since that's the way this all hit me on Monday. I was perfectly fine in the morning, and by 2pm I was a wreck. Thankfully, though, when Paul brought him home (p.s., thank you SO much!), Ethan was still his lively self. With no energy to grocery shop, or clean my kitchen, Paul planned to run to Panera (mmm) and grab us all dinner. 10 minutes later he arrived back, Ethan in tow, and ran right up to the tub. No, NO, NOOOO! Yup. He threw up all over himself in the very back seat of the van. All I have to say is leather cleans up fairly easy.
Let's not fail to mention that The Man of the house is also sick through all of this, but seems to maintain composure for the benefit of his family. You amaze me with your ability to hold it together for the sake of us. You truly are stoic.
I finally made it to the Dr today and, with the same treatment as last time, have some how started to feel a bit better.  I still am a little queasy and light headed, however nothing to the extent of Tuesday's "worst day ever" (in my book at least). And all this happens the DAY after Paul and I sit down and come up with daily, weekly and monthly schedules and routines to get our lives back in some sort of a "non-survival mode".
Well wasn't that a nice how do you do!? We'll try this schedule thing again next week.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!

Since I will be sleeping in, getting breakfast in bed and then shopping all day without children (right, Paul???), I figured I would wish all the mommies out there a Happy Mother's Day a little early. We are all so blessed to have children that fill our lives with love every day and don't forget, our home would fall apart without us :). Even if you're not a biological mom, I know you have children around you that are blessed to have you in their life, even if one of them might be your husband!!! ;)

I want to share a few of my blessings with you...

Mommy's boy Ethan, always making me laugh with his sense of humor!

My little Hannah, always enjoying gardening with mommy.

Grant fills mommy's day with smiles and laughter!

 And let's not forgot the women who made this all possible... :)

Me and my mommy (do you love my 80's sweater??)

4 Generations of love right here folks!

Thank you mom, and Grandma, for all the mothering you did. There is not a "right" or "wrong" way, you do what you can with love in your heart and everything ends up just as it should have.

Happy Mother's Day everyone!!!!!!!

XOXO-

 Abbey

Ode to my brother

Here is my post. I had a great day.

Have a great day.

Holy Cow...Was That 2009?

by Paul

As 2009 draws to a close, I am looking back on the past twelve months and wondering how we managed to squeeze so much into a calendar year. Abbey and I have jokingly labeled the last few years with an appropriate title; 2006 was the "year that wouldn't end," as a littany of events and changes made the year stretch on and on. 2007 was the "year of fun," as I finished my post as an aide and we hosted both sets of grandparents in Okinawa and got out to see a lot of the island. 2008 we dubbed "the year of sickness" due to both kids being in pre-school and life on that tiny island bringing every manner of germ and bacteria home...it seemed like at least one or all of us was consistently down with something or other for the entire twelve months. 2009 had to be the year of transition, or maybe activity, as we have been running non-stop.

The year began for us back in Oki. Just after the new year, we were enjoying the warm breeze on our back porch one night and I said to Abbey, "you watch...it will be 2010 before we know what's hit us." Not that I looked in a crystal ball, but I suspected that the moving process, starting a new job, recovering from surgery, a new baby, setting up house back in the States, and multiple family visits would make the year fly. And so it did.

Here's a quick recap of what went down, in no particular order...

Michigan

We managed to all make it back to our home state twice in 2009. Abbey & I had each visited once separately but it had been our first collective visit since 2005. I had been really missing the ol' mitten but a properly-timed trip in the throes of winter made me again thankful for living in the South.

Grant

We added another boy to our family with Grant's arrival in August. The bonus of living relatively close to home (well, compared to Japan) allowed both Grandmas to come and assist with the first weeks of his life.

Mark

My brother, Mark, earned his commission as a second lieutenant and was able to move to Tennessee temporarily to work with me. This was definitely a once in a lifetime opportunity and I'm so thankful we were able to make it happen. His presence in Middle Tennessee has allowed us to pursue the "Pizza Quest," where we sample all of the local pizzerias and see how they stack up. So far, so good. We also got to take a family road trip to our old stomping grounds in Virginia to see him graduate OCS.

Sports

I've admittedly never been a huge sports fan, but being in Okinawa and having little or no access to such things most of the time leant itself to rekindling my interest in hockey and college sports. Plus, my duties require me to talk collegiate football a lot so it's really "researching," right? I hadn't been to a pro sports event in years but I managed to squeeze in the following in 2009: a couple NHL games, a Texas Rangers game, in Arlington, a Memphis Grizzlies game, and something like 10 NCAA football and baseball games. And Ethan got to go with me to see a minor league baseball game (Nashville Sounds) and watch the Predators lose to the Flames.

Family Thanksgiving

Abbey and I decided over a year ago that, when we returned to the States, we would love to host our families to a Thanksgiving dinner. We were really excited about doing it but, honestly in the back of our minds we didn't think our families would ultimately be able to make the trip. To our delight and their credit, everyone made it down and it was easily one of the most memorable holidays ever.

Officer Selection Duty

My new job has been stimulating and rewarding. It keeps me on the road a little better than half the month on average, but I love what I'm doing and enjoy being out in the civilian community. I think we all miss being near a lot of other Marines, though.

There's so many other things but those are the big ones. We have a lot of goals in 2010 and are hoping it turns out to be as amazing as 2009 was...although hopefully a little more stable and less busy. :)

Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving

I hope everyone's Thanksgiving was wonderful and you all got to see your families. We had our families down from each side for a few days and it was great to spend time with all of them. Our (first) turkey turned out fabulous, and we found some good deals on Friday that I just never could find at the PX on Oki. We're looking forward to coming up for Christmas but we're still finalizing the dates. Hope to see most of you again soon, and if we haven't seen you yet, perhaps we can catch each other in the north! Have a great December!

Announcing Grant Bertolone

We added a beautiful baby boy to our family on August 25th named

Grant Benjamin Bertolone.

Weighing in at 8lbs 10oz, and measuring 21 inches long, he is adorable!

Dark brown hair, blue eyes and a little dimple like his daddy. We can't get enough of him!

Brother and Sister are already smitten as well. It took a few days of warming up, but now we have 2 wonderful helpers on our hands that are ready and willing whenever we need them.

We've had so much help from family, it's overwhelming. We are not used to being this spoiled when a new Bertolone arrives, we may have to have more! (TOTALLY JOKING)

We've had pictures taken already, birth announcements printed and they'll be posted and mailed out soon. We hope everyone is doing well. Abbey bounced back the quickest with this one so things are going very good.

We're just hoping someday we can have some alone time again.

Male Domination

Paul is very proud to announce the household takeover of the male gender in the Bertolone family. (Although I still think it might be a tie, since we're still not sure about Louie)

We found out Friday at our ultrasound that we're having another BOY. It's very exciting. We were hoping for another boy so Ethan could have a wrestling partner, and mommy could keep her one and only princess. (2 would just get entirely too expensive)

We haven't decided on any names yet, but we have 2 days of flying to sit and think about it.

If you have a suggestion, fire away...unless your name is Rich, and then you are not allowed to help name this baby. For instance "Whitmore Lake Bertolone" is unacceptable, along with other prior suggestions including but not limited to: "8 Mile Bertolone", "Detroit River Bertolone", "Highway 96 Bertolone", "Whoo Whoo Bertolone", and "Brighton Millpond Bertolone".

Thank you for your cooperation.

On The Move

Here we are, sitting in the concrete jungle with only 10 days until the flight out. I can not express how ready I am to leave. I feel like we have taken advantage of many different sites and attractions in the last 3 years. We've done some twice, even. Starbucks, a few times more than that...but who's counting?
There are a few things I will miss, however. And here, I will list them for you. All you prior and current Okinawa Dwellers will appreciate these things I'm sure, as you others won't have a single clue what I'm talking about...but still read it, cause I would be sad if you didn't.
1. 100 Yen Store
This place is AWE-SOME. You can't even begin to compare it to a dollar store either. It has nice stuff, cool toys, and even some pretty decent dishes. But most of all I will miss the plastic bins, and baskets for the kitchen and bathroom. Now I have to stop before I start crying.
2. The Bunny Store
This place didn't really mean a whole lot to me when it was just Ethan. But when we found out that I was having a girl, it's the first store I went to and I loaded up on adorable, cheap, Engrish clothes for Hannah. I can't walk out of there without a bag full of stuff!
3. Driving Offensively
How could you not miss being able to pretty much run red lights, go around people that are too slow and parking where ever you feel like(sidewalks included)...I mean come on. And as long as you have your flashers on, everything's ok.
4. Laughter=Apology
In what other place could you giggle and have the natives completely understand that you are sorry?
5. Safety
The days of sending your 3 year old to the park while you catch last nights Oprah are over.
6. Coffee Casa, Hearth Cafe, Jakkepoes, oh dear, any cute cafe with awesome coffee over by the seawall or anywhere really...
This needs no explanation except, maybe, mmm, banana pancakes.
I just might cry with this next one.
7. Cocok's Pedicures
Your 25 minute leg massages, the hot towel wraps, your tiny glasses of sweet green tea with little woven cozies, and most of all, the adorable nail art all for an affordable 30 dollars. I will miss you my dear friend.
8. Nice people
Sorry U.S., but you lose on this one.
9. Affordable Childcare
Cherry Blossom preschool taught my son more than most kindergarteners know plus some Japanese language. And I didn't have to break the bank at all.
10. And Finally- The Limited Selection at stores that teaches you to settle on things.
It will be very overwhelming to get back and see an entire grocery aisle dedicated to different brands of cereal. It will also be overwhelming to see that no where else "runs out" of dairy products for days at a time. Yogurt whenever I want?! Wow.

So, there are the cons to leaving. Well I wouldn't call them cons, just little things I'll remember that were nice. But it's definitely time to go. We are looking forward to getting back to the states, buying our first home, and settling into Tennessee living.
Thanks for the good times, OKI, hopefully, we'll never cross paths again...

Sayonara!

Update

Had the 14 1/2 week check up today. Everything looks normal, and the baby was VERY stubborn for us, but after a few minutes we finally found the heartbeat. Paul went with for emotional support, it was very nice to have him there, since he heard the heartbeat before I did, so he calmed my nerves.
After some back and forth with the doctor, we decided that I should be seen once more before I leave, and she would order me an ultrasound with hopes they would do it before April 1st, as well. They usually don't do it unless you are 19 weeks, and I will be 18 and 1/2 on the 30 of March, SO they crammed me in and we'll be able to find out the sex of the baby before we leave!!! YAY!!! Let's just hope it's more cooperative this time around!!!
So, that's pretty much it, Our realtor sent us a bunch of homes to look at, so that process is moving ahead, and Paul is busy checking out so it's all downhill from here!!!!!
YAYA!!!
Hope all is well!

Christmas time is here....

ok, look up to the sky, shape your mouth like the letter 'O' and start singing like the PEANUTS! Cause it's that time of year!!! YAY!

I have to say, I love the fall, when sweater season approaches I get all giddy inside, but there is something even more cozy about setting up that tree and sitting in all it's twinkling glory while sipping on hot apple cider. (yeah, I've done it.)

It's great though. And you know what's even better? Actually enjoying putting the tree up and seeing your little children decide where to put the ornaments. Not worrying about perfection, just sitting back and watching him go. Trying to explain that if too many ornaments are on one branch, it might be too heavy. Watching his face while he figures out what you just said. And then seeing him carefully remove each ornament and find a new "perfect" home on another branch. Warm fuzzies abound! :) I'm lame, I know. But seriously. Previous years, I was so stressed out that an ornament might break, the tree wouldn't look perfect, I wouldn't get it up in time, etc.  All of that is gone, and I have to tell you, I couldn't be happier with our hodge- podge, non-symmetrical tree.

Here are some pics of our evening. "Tradition" was the day after thanksgiving, but the timing just wasn't right, so, I waited until the next day, when Ethan could help, and I'm so glad I did.

This was cute, everything that had a hole in it went on the tree...

FROM PAUL:

Hey everyone! Here's the latest and greatest... I graduated Communications School yesterday. So now I'm completely done with my initial officer training and am all certified to move on to the Fleet Marine Force and my next duty station in Okinawa. As it stands now we are set to leave in early January but we'll be back in Michigan for the holidays (should arrive the evening of the 15th). In the meantime I'm currently just working at the base reviewing some materials for an upcoming inspection. Nothing too exciting or demanding (which is good at this point).
Abbey has been trying to get everything ready for the move, and neither of us are looking forward to a 17-hour flight with an infant. I'm working her like a dog but she keeps feeling better and seems to be recovering from her infection nicely. Ethan is growing quickly and gets more and more alert every day. Abbey caught him watching TV recently so we've been trying to keep it turned off to avoid "rotting the brain."
Right I sent that newsletter out bragging about the warm weather, things took a nose-dive and we've had some snow and a few icy cold days. Kind of unseasonable for this time of year from what the locals tell me. Despite the cold we've been trying to get out and get back in shape, do a little unfinished Christmas shopping and see some friends for the last time before we move. The other night we went to a fellowship gathering at our friends' house and I tried brisket for the first time! Pretty good.
That's about it. Hope to see you all soon.