Christmas Break with my Soldier

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TC and CC built a snow wall the day before Christmas but it all melted when it snowed on Christmas day. I loved Christmas Eve dinner when we got our Christmas Jammies and played forbidden words. 


2/17 Thursday -driving through major snow piles we headed to the airport to pick up our soldier. We got there for his 9ish arrival which ended up being 10:15. Waiting for him to walk out of the tunnel was exciting. Finally he emerged, swaggering toward us with his mask hiding a smirky smile (I'm sure), and we embraced after his long absence. He looked awesome. He hugged me tightly. On the ride home he fell asleep with his head twisted up. One thing is for sure the Army teaches one to sleep anywhere, anytime. Once home CC and I went to sleep while the boys stayed up talking. 

12/18 Friday-After skiing the boys played COD together. 

12/19 Saturday

12/20 Sunday

12/21 Monday-the kids had ski camp 9-3. I spent the day running back and forth and Danielle came by for coffee and to exchange gifts. Infantry boy came and shared in the discussion. Then he was off to visit with friends.

12/22 Tuesday-ski camp

12/23 Wednesday-We had ham dinner with the family and Infantry boys sorta girlfriend. He went out to a fire with friends afterwards while we did some present wrapping.

12/24 Thursday -We scrambled to make our cut out cookies before dinner. Christmas Eve Dad worked all day. We had a nice dinner of steak, brie, and lots of junk. We played a game of Trivial Pursuit then put the littles to bed. Then we began to wrap the piles of stocking items. When we ran out of paper, Infantry boy went on the hunt and brought home the good stuff. Christmas is saved. 

12/25 Friday-Christmas Day We convinced the kids to sleep until 7. CC was so excited because Infantry boy was sleeping on the couch with Ripper protecting all the presents. We kept it quiet until about 8 when we just had to have coffee and cinnamon rolls. 

12/26 Saturday-the mountain closed due to high winds so we had one more day of fun at home. Infantry boy went visiting his friends while we played with toys and organized. I got a good 10 mile run as well. 

12/27 Sunday 

12/28 Monday I had a wonderful night out with the girls. We were in one of the igloos outside and it was perfect. 

12/29 Tuesday after dropping the kids at skiing, I had to rush home to get Infantry boy CB to his tattoo appointment. It came out really well. It is of an eagle flying focused and intent. He had to go show all of his friends. I really liked it. In late November, he sent me a picture of butterflies he wanted as a tattoo. I said, "NO." Too soft for my soldier. I asked him to look at eagle tattoos. He found one that he liked and it was settled. We are learning to support him. He doesn't like the same things we do, but we love him and that makes it easier to relate to his interests. 

12/30 TC Ran to the mail hoping to find his Christmas present from Nan. He came running out with a box, tore it open, and it was snowballs. He was shocked that it wasn't his gift. After recovering he had fund launching snowballs at us. Every night after skiing the kids all sat down to watch shows. Infantry boy usually came in and sat for a while to watch with them. It is these quiet moments that are precious. Cliche? Yes. True? Also, yes. It felt relaxed like he was home again.

 12/31 New Years Eve day. Infantry boy asked about seeing Gramp's grave site. Since the kids were tired from skiing and the roads were clear, we decided to take a trip to Portsmouth to visit Nan and anyone else around. We made it to town for 12:30 lunch. Moe's. CC is the only one that didn't eat a Moe's. She will learn. Nan enjoyed going to visit the cemetery to check on the inscriptions and to make sure everything was set. Cannon took a picture and fixed the flag on Francis P. Tucker's stone. I was a little surprised at how meticulous he was about the grave site. Around 3:30 we got on the road and returned home about 5:45. Time for more MOE'S and Air Fryer foods-Onion Rings, Fries, potato skins, and nachos. We got the NYC ball drop going and watched the show. Infantry boy went to a friend's house but returned by 10. We sat around talking and watching the show until 10:30. I think we all fell asleep before midnight but CC woke us up to watch (not me, I was out. Good riddance 2020). He had a few friends stop by to play games so it was a quiet night at home. 

12/30 Wednesday 

12/31 Thursday 

1/1 Friday TC had skiing at 9. I let him sleep in and slowly coerced him into the car so he could make training. CC went late at 11. 


1/2 Saturday-TC and CC had skiing while the Infantry guy slept in and played Cold War. It was a quiet day. I had time to stop and chat with my guy as he totally enjoyed his final day of relaxation before getting back to the grind. We wanted to have chicken and waffles but the restaurant was hit with Covid so no luck. We ended up getting Chinese. Then we pulled our guy away from Vet TV to watch Harry Potter. 8pm the kids went to bed, then we followed suit around 10. 

This kid looks so much like my father it is really weird. Especially the one where he has his head shaved. Over 


1/3 up at 3am left by 3:30 for the airport. I realized I didn't have a proper picture of him in his uniform so when he jumped out at the airport I got this shot. He didn't want hugs. He needed to keep moving forward. Just like me. I used to leave early in the morning to avoid the awkward goodbye moment. 

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