random rambles.*

Today is day two of my three days off this week, and we’ve all spent it with the icky sickies. The boys are coughing and snotting everywhere, and my left nostril is consistently clogged no matter how often I blow it.

I’m sure ya’ll wanted to know that, right?

I’ve been getting caught up on house cleaning, and relaxing for the most part. I was going to take advantage of our new Discovery Center family pass, but the boys are sick and I’m courteous enough to not spread it around.

Josh had his medical and physical exam yesterday morning. He has to go back on Monday so they can read the results of his TB test. He’s been tested for TB 4 times since coming home from Afghanistan, so I’m not sure why they insisted on doing it again. To cover their asses, I suppose. Then he has his final part of the hiring process next on Friday, the oral interview. Then we should know something "in a few months" says Josh, but he said this part of the process would take a lot longer than it has so far. It doesn’t really matter, I suppose. We just need them to make an offer before he goes on active duy, because then they can’t rescind it when he gets called up and when he gets back he’ll just pick up where he left off.

Yesterday morning I was trying to rummage thru my kitchen to find something for the boys to eat for lunch, because I desperately needed to go grocery shopping. (I haven’t had the time!) *And looking back, I had a point to this but got distracted. Oh yea! Josh walked in right as I was getting ready to make scrambled eggs for lunch, with lunch in hand. He worked all night, then went to his medical exam and physical exam, and was thoughtful enough to realise what time it was and that we had next to no food. LOL Then, he rushed me out the door after eating to go purchase groceries on my own, while he laid the boys down for a nap before falling to sleep himself. By this time, he had been up over 24 hours. I need to remember those sweet little things, because they are what mean the most. And doing a huge shopping trip without the kids is always very nice.

Molly is fairing well minus one eye. It’s taking a bit of getting used to on my part. We take her to get her stitches out on Thursday. And we can finally get rid of the stupid e-collar. She’s torn that damn thing to shreds and it’s all ghetto rigged with duct tape now. LOL

When you ask Gabe how old he is, he says "Gabes free!" and holds up all 4 fingers. lol

Gabriel & Xavier are so different from each other. Gabe is very independant, intense, emotional, he pushes the boundaries whenever he gets a chance and is just go-go-go all day long. Xavier is very dependant, sweet, calm, aims to please and a follower. I think the only reason he runs off and plays on his own at times is because he’s following Gabe. If Xavier was an only child he’d probably be content snuggling with me every second of the day. I’m really loving the ages they are at. They are so much fun and I’m enjoying the level of independance they both have.

So I’m getting ready to file my first tax return, ever. Xavier does not have a SSN because I haven’t been able to do his US Citizenship Card app. It’s $400 and something always comes up when I think I can afford it. So I was worried that I couldn’t claim him on my taxes, but I was just on the IRS site and found something called an ITIN number, which is for dependants of US citizens who don’t have their status yet. (Xavier is US citizen by right, since he was born to a US Citizen. The process here is stupid. Gabe got his Canadian status within 3 months of moving there, and there were no fees.) So I just fill out this application, send in his Canadian passport along with my taxes and it’s all good. Sweet. =) I have no idea what I’ll be getting back, but the first $400 will be going to Xavier application, that’s for sure.

* I really shouldn’t write entries while I’m distracted. There was an entire paragraph that I forgot to finish ’cause I got pulled away by Xavier. And several errors here and there. LOL And here I am trying to correct them while Xavier is tugging on me saying, "Mommy come sit doooown!" But I really need to scrub the kitchen floor.