Friends...

So tomorrow is Thanksgiving...

I have to admit- it’s not my favorite holiday... as all of my neighbors can attest to since I’ve had my Christmas decorations up for a week!

Don’t get me wrong, I’m very THANKFUL for the health of my family, for my faith, and for everything that God has provided for us.  I guess that it’s just that I’m thankful everyday (or at least try to be) for our blessings so I just don’t get what makes tomorrow so special.  

And to be honest- I think that I actually HATE Thanksgiving... not for what it stands for, but because 30 years ago, on Thanksgiving, I lost one of my best friends.  Dawn Ann Shepherd was a sweet, vibrant, & caring 11 year old girl who was killed in a car accident.  I’ll never forget the day after Thanksgiving in 1982, when my mom sat me down and told me the news.  Death is such a scary thing, especially for a kid to understand.  It was so hard going back to school and her not being there.  She had the BEST laugh and smile...

I can hardly believe that it’s been 30 years... and as I sit here at the computer typing and crying... it’s still painful.  

So please forgive me for jumping straight from Halloween to Christmas... it’s my own little coping mechanism, I guess.

We will be spending Thanksgiving this year with our dear friends the Masterson’s.  And if we can’t be with family... I’m so happy to be spending it with friends!  

Moving all over the country like we have, I feel so fortunate that I’ve been able to meet some truly great people both military and civilian.  I’ve been blessed with so many amazing friends throughout my life- and on this day that makes me miss Dawn so terribly- what I'm most thankful for this year-

are my FRIENDS...

Make it True...

So a month ago I returned from a 5 day "Command Spouse Leadership Course" in Newport, RI with my hubby.  It was an optional course for those of us whose spouses will take the position of "Commanding Officer" in the Navy.  

While almost all the ladies there were going on to Operational tours (Their spouses will deploy most likely) and were there to soak up all the information they could possibly get their hands on how to survive their tour- I was there (with my husband in a non deploying "Red Headed Step Child" of the Navy Commanding Officer tour) solely for a free trip to Newport with the bonus feature of getting away from the kiddos for 5 glorious days!

The class was not the Walk in the Park like I thought it would be...
We were in class for 10 hours a day, had homework every night, and a final project due at the end!!   

One of our homework assignments was a "Personal Vision" that we had to write for ourselves.  This was extremely difficult for me since I barely know what I am doing tomorrow let alone what I have visions of years down the road.  After struggling with this assignment for 2 days and seriously wanting to stick a fork in my eye- I thought back to our earlier assignments of reading Steven Covey's "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People."  (Yes, I actually did read most of it... especially the highlighted parts that my hubby outlined!)  Habit #2 really stuck out in my mind:  Begin with the End in Mind.  

And that is exactly what I did... I went to class the next day with my completed assignment:

My Obituary. 

Nothing says "THE END" quite like an obituary and even though my husband didn't want me to turn it in, I did it anyway...

March 6, 2071
Kimberly Renihan Dimmock passed away peacefully in her sleep last night after her 100th birthday party. She is survived by her loving husband, Aaron, her 4 fairly adjusted and contributing members of society children, their loving spouses, along with countless grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Kim was known as an award winning author, blogger, and small business owner. However, she was known to her close friends as honest, creative, patriotic, funny, caring, and lover of all things Disney.

During her husbandʼs military career, Kim stood by him through thick and thin. Though there were heartbreaks and hardships, both Kim and Aaron supported one another and worked as a team. No one was happier or more proud when Aaron retired from the Navy than she was.

Please do not mourn her passing, as she was a woman of faith who lived life to the fullest, loved her family, and left with no regrets... 


Now all I have to do is...

Make it True

Crappy Birthday to you...

Brand new baby Peyton

5 years ago today... honestly the BEST day of my life.  You see, it was five years ago today that my boy Peyton was born.  Now, what makes his day of birth the best day, is that when they said “It’s a BOY!” and I held that little guy in my arms, I knew that our Dimmock family was complete!  He evened out our team of 2 daughters and 2 sons- and now everyone had a partner to ride with at Disney World!

Birthday Breakfast

So, I had some fun plans for my little guy’s birthday.  Chick-Fil-A for breakfast, shopping at Target for a special toy, seeing Finding Nemo in 3D, playing sports outside, and going out to dinner with the family.  Then, tomorrow would be his big birthday party with our friends and neighbors with a big Denver Broncos cake designed just for him...

Strep Tests are no fun

HOWEVER... he woke up with a cough.  Not a regular cough, more like a barking seal.  So, guessing that he had the croup I made a doctor’s appointment.  We show up for his appointment (which was NOT on my list of things to do today) and discover that he has STREP!   Ugh.  

Now we were able to go out to breakfast and to Target where he bought a brand new Nintendo DS game as his special present before we went to the doctor’s.  His new game is what got him through the doctor’s office because I kept telling him if he was a good boy and if he stopped crying then he could go home and play his new game.  He was very brave and managed not to puke everywhere when the nurse rammed the stick down his throat for his strep test.  

Brand New Super Awesome DS game!

So, meanwhile the cake lady calls to let me know his cake is ready for pick up.  Crap.  The Cake!  So, I go and pick up this amazing cake, get back into my car and text everyone that we have to postpone the party until another time due to germs.  

Next we go to pick up his antibiotic, which by the way, isn’t ready yet.  Peyton says he wants a “long sandwich” for lunch so off we go to Subway.  By the time we are done with Subway we go pick up his medicine and head for home.  Once we are home I tell him “You can play your brand new super awesome DS game as soon as you take AND KEEP DOWN your medicine (he’s well known for barfing it back up because he hates the taste)  So my brave little guy takes his medicine...

NOW!  He can play his game, only IT DOESN’T FIT INTO HIS DS!!!  I tried shoving that sucker in about 50 times and finally realized... his brand new super awesome DS game... is only for the DS 3D... which of course, he doesn’t have.  So the tears start flowing, first from him and then from me.  This birthday has not gone the way it was supposed to for even one minute.  Now, I’ve already spent $40 on this game and I CAN’T return it because we’ve already opened it.  So I do what any half crazed, not thinking clearly, Mommy who just wants her baby to have a great birthday would do and we drove straight to Target and BOUGHT THE DS 3D for the price of a small car payment.  

Bronco's cake... now in neighbor's freezer

Meanwhile, I have to decide what to do with this cake!  So, I decide to freeze it until the party... only after emptying my entire freezer do I realize IT WON’T FIT!!!  Luckily my amazing friend Robin had room in her freezer to store it in there!

Instead of going out to dinner we had pizza delivered.  Peyton opened and loved all of his OTHER presents including a big boy bike.  And I’m pleased to say that Peyton is happily playing on his brand new DS as I type this.  So while it wasn’t the birthday that I had planned for him, he doesn’t know any differently and thinks he’s had a great day!!

New Bike!

My little guy taught me some lessons today.  Don’t sweat the small stuff, things have a way of working themselves out, and most importantly... if you get sick on your birthday... Mommy’s will buy you even MORE presents! :)

New Jammies + New DS + Cupcake Face = One HAPPY BIRTHDAY BOY!! 

Imaginary Friends...

So, half of my kids had imaginary friends... and surprisingly enough, it was just my boys.  Camden got his when he was 4, the same as Peyton.  I'm not sure what's going on in their little lives at 4 years old that they need to have these imaginary friends- but I like it.

Camden's friend was an old man named "Horace."  He just appeared one day.  Camden would interact and play with old man Horace and I'll never forget our trip to Indiana for Christmas one year when apparently Horace failed to get into the car with us!  Camden was crying and I had to promise him that Horace would somehow find his way to Grandma's and Grandpa's.  That seemed to console my boy except he then worried because the next day was Saturday and that's when Horace went to church... which let me know that Horace was either Seventh Day Adventist or Jewish.

Little Camden...

Horace's departure was earth shattering to my little man.  It happened the night of Camden's Kindergarten graduation.  He came running out of his room BAWLING because Horace had died!  I was beside myself and had no idea of how to comfort this little guy, so I called my dad (a retired elementary principal) but unfortunately... this was a new one to him too!  So, we let Camden cry it out. He made Horace a headstone out of paper and he put a flower by it... and Horace was gone forever.

My boys goofing around!

Now Peyton has an Imaginary pet.  This one showed up while we where in Pensacola, FL this summer.  Now as any parent can imagine, when your little boy yells "Hey, Mom!  Look at my TURD!!" and you know for a fact that child is NOT in the bathroom... there is serious cause for concern!!  But, as luck would have it... He was holding his imaginary pet TURTLE named TURD!  Now Turd plays a daily part in Peyton's life.  He came on vacation with us to Myrtle Beach in what Peyton said was his favorite dinosaur swimsuit.  And since then we are being updated daily with different facts about Turd...

*Peyton is his Daddy.
*Turd's mommy "Passed Out" (died) but her name was Edith.
*Turd changes sizes... somedays he is as big as a sea turtle while other days he is very small- which I find very helpful when we travel!
*His favorite way to wear his hair is in a mohawk.
*Turd attends High School.
*His favorite song is "Someone That I Used to Know" by Gotye.

Myrtle Beach

   Now, I don't know why Peyton has an imaginary pet, or how this will all end... but I must say that I love the imagination of my boys and more importantly, the comedic value!  I think that we should all have Imaginary Friends... someone who is always there for us, that we never have to share with others, and of course... makes us LAUGH!

Home Sweet Home...

My beautiful babies were all in the wedding.

So earlier this week we returned from a 13 day trip back to Indiana... HOME.   Now, we haven't lived there in 16 years, but we have moved all around the country 11 times since then.  Going home is never really a vacation- it's running here to see family, it's running there to see friends, and it's the 20 million things that we have packed in between.  (This trip included a 4th of July Party, my dad's 75th Birthday surprise party, my niece's wedding rehearsal and wedding- in which all 4 of my kiddos were in and my hubby sang, C's 14th Birthday, and the Annual Family Fishing Party) Honestly, it's exhausting... but we always look forward to going.

"Flower Girl" should be on her resume' 

The handsome Usher

For my kiddos, going to Grandma and Grandpa's house is the one true constant place in their lives.  Over half of their Christmas mornings have been spent waking up there, and shooting hoops and riding their bikes up and down the long driveway are summertime favorites.

Just fishin'

Fishing Party!

For me, it's a return to my bedroom from my teenage years- filled with the exact same ocean theme decor that I picked out when I was 16, along with my plaques and trophies from all the blood, sweat, and tears that I shed while trying to earn them.  I swear, just walking into that room makes me feel younger than I felt the day before!

But it's not just the place that makes Indiana "home."  It's my mom & dad, my siblings, their spouses, my nephews and nieces, and now their spouses, along with great friends from my youth that make it such a special place.  It never fails though... every time we go home there is always someone that I wanted to see, have lunch with, or just get together with and we just run out of time!

My niece and my new nephew at their gorgeous wedding...

As we got in the car this time (at 4:00 am) to come back to Richmond, I found myself a little excited to get back to the house.  Don't get me wrong, I miss everyone in Indiana TERRIBLY... but we were all excited to get back into our own beds, see our neighbors, and hang out with our friends.  We know that we will be in this house for at least 4 years- and that's the LONGEST we've ever been stationed anywhere.  The kids really like it here and have already said they want to graduate from this High School.  With the hubby retiring at the end of this tour, staying here is actually a possibility.  We love this house, neighborhood, and schools... which raises the question:  Could this be our forever HOME?

Best buddies- made here in Richmond

It makes me happy just thinking that this could be the place that my kiddos actually consider "HOME", even after they go off to college.

Maybe, just maybe, this is their "Home Sweet Home."

I believe in Magic...

For those of you who know me, know that I have a minor obsession with Disney.  Well, maybe just a tad bit more than a "minor" obsession.  We just love it!  The shows, the movies, the merchandise, and the theme parks!  We have lost official count of the number of times that we have been to Walt Disney World, but we know that it's been over 300 days...



I have a friend who just got back from Disney World and HATED it!  The crowds, the heat, the prices... and has no desire to go back, even though she has been several times before.  This actually breaks my heart!  I can't fathom feeling that way about somewhere so completely magical.  That's when it hit me- it's not a magical place for her.  I realized that there are 2 different kinds of Disney for people.  The first kind are the people that go, take their kids, and basically just try to get through it, almost like a chore.  The second kind are the Magic believers.  The kind that go (whether once or 500 times) and every time they see the castle at Magic Kingdom actually get a flutter in their tummy.  It's not just the rides, the characters, the toys, or even the fireworks... it's the combination of all those things that make... Magic.

That's what Disney is for us... absolute MAGIC!  It doesn't matter how many times we go, how crowded it is, or for how long we stay... it's this amazing wonderful place that brings tears to my eyes every time we leave it.

Maybe it has something to do with the smiles and sheer joy we see in the kids faces when they see their favorite character or ride their favorite ride.

But it's not just for the kiddos... It's for Aaron and I who are still kids at heart!  Whether it's Aaron singing on American Idol at Hollywood Studios, or us traveling there without the kids for our anniversary... it's truly our

                     HAPPY PLACE!

So, for my dear friend who does not want to go back... as hard as it is for me to imagine, I'll just have to assume that Disney World is not "Magical" for everyone.  And, I'm ok with that as long as she has somewhere on this earth that is Magical for her.  Whether it's a beach, a house in the mountains, or even her back yard... everyone should have a place that makes their tummy flutter every time they see it- a place of pure

Magic...

The measuring door...

Most homes have one... The door, you know the one, where all measurements of the growing kids are kept.  Most seem to be in either the kitchen or the laundry room.  I've seen them throughout my life in various houses- markings of old and new with slash marks, dates, and names all the way up.

I wanted that door for my children, but always knew that would be impossible.  Being married to a Navy man means never really putting roots down anywhere.  You get usually around 2 years, 3 years tops, to move all your things to, set the kids up at schools and with sports teams, and make that particular house your home.  Most of the time, you don't own that house... and if you did, you know that in just a few short years you will have to sell it.  So, with that knowledge, you certainly don't mark on the doors.

During our tour in Tennessee (Please don't make me explain why the Navy has a base in TN), my good friend Lauren, and I were discussing this very issue.  She had measured her kiddos on her rental house door frame in pencil.  I loved seeing it, but didn't really understand the purpose because it would just all have to be erased.  It was then that she suggested that we get door moulding from Home Depot and measure our kids on that, and then when we moved... we could just move it with us!!!  BRILLIANT!

I ran right out and bought one!  I went through the kids medical records and busily put any heights that I could find, along with their dates on my moulding.  The kids were almost as excited as I was to stand up and record their current height on the stick!  That was June 24, 2010.

My kids STILL get excited when it's time to measure on the moulding!  We measure about 4-5 times a year.  Always around someone's birthday... and with having 4 kiddos, we have just about every season covered!  They love seeing how much they have grown since the last time- and so do I!

Once all this Navy business is over, and we find our forever home... we will install the moulding into a door frame where we can sit back, admire it, and one day...

measure our grandchildren on it

P

Welcome to my Blog...

I'm a Navy wife of almost 16 years, a Mommy of 4, a huge sports fan, and a Disney FREAK!  We have moved 11 times in 15 years... and that exhausts me just typing it!  We've also spent almost 300 days at Disney World and I would go every day if I could.  I've always loved sports and have played them my whole life, and it's amazing to be able to sit on the sidelines and watch my babies play.  I also love watching sports on tv or in person, especially the NFL.  I used to be the biggest Indianapolis Colts fan until they recently let Peyton Manning go... so now I'm a Denver Broncos fan!

These gorgeous creatures on the left are our "PACK"

And as much as they can drive me crazy... I can't imagine life without them!

A

 So, this Blog will be about our (mis)adventures, the crazy things that my kids say & do, and random things that pop into my head!  I'm sure that my kids will need extra therapy for the things that I post on here- but since I carried them for 9 months, delivered their "off the chart heads" the good old fashioned way (with C cracking my tailbone... and yes, he's grounded on his 16th birthday for that one), and all the sleepless nights they caused me (especially K who did not sleep through the night until she was 3) then I own the rights to everything they say and do... especially if it's funny or entertaining!

I hope that you enjoy this blog... and if you don't- it's ok because it's MY therapy!

Indy Kimmy :)

C

*These gorgeous pics of my babies were taken by www.androsphotography.com  

She's an amazing photographer and I wish that we were still stationed together!!

K