Updates from the Fall

Wow! I have really been bad about updating this blog! I'm so sorry! I forgot my password, and when I requested it, it went into spam, apparently. Well, today I got lucky with the guess on the password!

Well, as some of you know, Vince has been trying to get into the border patrol. He took a test back in September and passed it (we found out the next week, even though they said it would be 6-8 weeks), then he filled out this long drawn out packet of papers, then we went to Denver for an oral interview, then he had the physical, the background investigation (thank you to some of the friends and family for answering the investigators questions) all before Thanksgiving. He then had to take a drug test. Well, a few weeks ago, we found out that the investigators hadn't sent their reports in to the border patrol, yet, and we got a letter that said he was medically inelligible (because of an "abnormal" EKG and failing the colorblind test). He got those taken care of that next Monday (for free, thank God!) and we are now officially in the waiting game. We are waiting for a phone call with an offer of a duty station and a date and time for him to go to school. The school is between 3 and 5 months in New Mexico. It's 3 months for the school and then more time to become fluent in Spanish. So, if all goes well, we will be moving later this year. He requested west Texas/New Mexico, so that's where we should end up. He is currently still delivering animals to pet stores, mainly in Nebraska, and he can fix a mean dinner! He is going to have lots of practice with venison...we have a freezer full thanks to him!!!

Now for updates on the rest of the family...Amy is still working for the school district in Junction City. Staying busy and trying to keep out of trouble. My kind of trouble involves Hobby Lobby, JoAnn's or Ben Franklin crafts. :) I have been making all sorts of cards, and a few scrapbook pages, too! I am hoping to get to more scrapbook pages this year.

Anthony will be 3 in February...I know, already, right? Where does the time go? He enjoys pretend play (knight, baseball player, cowboy, etc.), playing ball, playing music (guitar, keyboard, singing, etc.), watching movies when we let him, helping mommy and daddy cook, and just being a boy! We are working on potty training, but it's a slow process. We are seeing some progress, unfortunately we can't go anywhere because he pretty much has to be naked or close to it to go in the toilet!

Here are some pictures from the last few months...again, sorry that I've been so bad!

August:

We helped daddy and his friends do a reptile show here in Manhattan. It was a huge success, and I think they are planning to do one every year! Anthony is the one in the middle, and those are tortoises in the container. I made picture frames to sell at the show, so this was our "display model".

September:

Family reunion...Anthony with his (technically mine) cousins. Don't they look thrilled? It was hot!!! And they had just spent about 30 minutes getting the biggest rocks they could find to throw in the pond (that's a family tradition, so of course, we had to pass it on!).

We also went to see daddy during "Army work" (National Guard weekend). We went to see these rockets shoot off, and almost didn't get to go out there because we were running late (late notice and naptime interfered, not just because I'm me!)
Riding a bus for the first time...he LOVED it!

Now I'm sure Anthony wants to go with daddy every time he has Army work...Anthony got to go in a bounce house, do all sorts of bubbles, and run around in the mud. Isn't that about what they do every month? ;)

October:

We went to visit my friends at their farm south of Topeka...Here's Anthony with Laura by one of the many tractors on the farm.
Look, a kitty followed us!

Anthony's Fall picture. This was taken at the zoo, believe it or not! I love the colors!

A few pictures in Grandma and Grandpa Hunsucker's backyard... my dad with his grandbabies...(sorry about the shadows)
Anthony and Kaitlynn

At Grandma and Grandpa Meyer's. The kids all love to roll around on the floor. Well, Anthony isn't exactly rolling here, he's really flying! He kept jumping over Selah and I caught him in mid-air!
Here's one of his not-so-great landings. That's what happens when you have something in both hands, though, right?
This is the Downtown Aquarium in Denver. It was awesome, but there were no dolphins. :(

Our lunch entertainment...

They were having their halloween gathering at the aquarium, so Anthony got a spider...orange of course. I think he was trying to scare the shark!

Boo at the Zoo...Anthony and his friend Sammie-they are the same age. Aren't they cute! A princess and her knight! They were watching a dance team.

Here's my knight...with all of his gear on this time!

Picking a pumpkin...Anthony was way over stimulated with all those beautiful orange pumpkins (orange is his favorite color, you know).

That mean, horrible mommy put that yucky stuff on my hand! "I need wash hand. I need wash hand."

This is more like it!

And the finished product.

Halloween night. We went to WestLoop with friends from church, then to dinner and the mall. It was beautiful...in the 70's no need for a coat or even a sweatshirt. I hope no other knight is around. Anthony's not very covered! ;)

I think I will pause for now...my mouse clicking finger needs a rest! I will post November and December soon. Thanks so much for looking!

"Perfect"

Anthony came up with a new project today. First he found a pen, then he wanted paper (wow, somethings sink in! "We only write on paper" :)). He got paper and came to the couch (OK, that's the next step). I was paying a bill over the phone, so that's where I was. Anyway, he started "writing" on the paper...OK, poking holes in it. Then he tore it into smaller pieces. The other day, I had taped up a picture he colored at daycare on the back of the door (while he was asleep). Well today he took it down, took the tape off of it and stuck the tape to the couch. Then he took one of his torn papers, stuck it to the tape, and said "perfect".

Then he went to the "junk drawer" and got out the roll of tape and started pulling it off the roll. I did help with that (and it was hard for me!) and I rolled it up for him so he could create more art.

He was so proud, but it didn't last too long. Just after the pictures, he took it all down. I guess it's an evolving kind of art...I may have to remember that for the classroom! :)

Now, the things that amaze me-he thought to take the paper down and get the tape off the back, and he knew where the tape was. I didn't even know he knew what it was, let alone where to get it! He's just amazing...he summed it up well....PERFECT!!!

Pictures

Hello all! Here are the pictures I promised!

Here's the train coming-finally-just when the sun was coming up!

Anthony flying the big dragon kite!
Here's an edit of the dragon kite-what do you think?

You did what with my marshmallows?

Anthony loved the water!

But this was his favorite part-the gigantic sand box! And his favorite activity in the gigantic sand box? Destroying what others make. Here he is smashing Aunty Teresa's castle.

I just really like this one!

Here's the Lombardi family traditional picture: in the shoe in Solvang!

Anthony's playmates in Cali...Killian, Keldon, and Keegan.

I hope this one speaks for itself!

My traditional picture-in front of the dolphin statue in Santa Barbara!

Oh, no, stuck!!!

One of my favorites!!!

Vince, Anthony, Tony, Larry, Roberta, (Max, the little one, and Bella, the big one). At least I got the adults to look!

Splish splashing in a puddle. Yes, that's a parking lot...it's in Salina. He had so much fun in that puddle! His shoes were wet for days!!!!!

Anthony's favorite seat. He wanted to drive that RV soooo bad!

Here's Papa, Nana, Anthony and Max.

Here they are again-I just love the look on Anthony's face! So silly!

My first Blog

Hey, friends and family! I hope this post finds you all healthy and happy! I started this site so I could update you on happenings in the Lombardi household. I haven't been good at sending out e-mail updates lately. My pictures from my new camera are too big to send more than one at a time.

Anyway, just a little update...we went to California this summer. We went there on a train-about 33 hours long. Oh, and the train was delayed 5 hours, too. We finally made it there and spent time with Vince's sisters and at the beach. When we got ready to leave to go see his brother, Mike, his dad ended up in the hospital for a week. Then, when Tony got out of the hospital, the RV was being fixed. We stayed with Wendy the entire time and probably drove her nutty! Needless to say, our 2 week vacation turned into 4. When we finally got ready to leave, we went to see Mike, Vince's oldest brother for a few days. Then we went to Arizona to see Larry, the next oldest sibling. Then we headed back to Kansas. Anthony had some great firsts when we were in California/Arizona. His first time meeting lots of family members! His first time on the beach, flying a really big cool kite, eating smores, fishing, seeing wild dolphins, riding in an RV, eating at In-N-Out burgers, El Pollo Loco, and Carls' Jr, etc.

It was great to see everybody and we had a great time, but Anthony summed it up best. When we finally made it home and we turned onto our street he started yelling "my home, my home, my home!". I think we were both glad to be back in our own beds and back into some sort of routine. I tell you, though, that little boy is amazing! Even with being gone for a month, he was so great! He just went with the flow, he took a nap when he could get one (or sometimes he just wouldn't give up-he loves those big cousins of his!), he slept wherever, and he drove for a week almost straight in a hot RV and really didn't fuss much! (At least not as much as his mother!) When we finally made it home, I only had about a week and a half before I went back to work, so we hung out at the pool almost every day and went to the park. We just tried to take it easy. I will post some pictures in my next blog of California.