CHP Academy Days 114 & 115/187

So I am going to start off today's post by saying...I have a video of Brian being tased.  A fellow cadet filmed it on his cell phone and Brian had him email it to me.  I have to say I am extremely proud of him!  He handled it really well.  In the back ground, you can hear others crying out in pain, but Brian just made a sound like Chewbaca groaning.  Honestly, the sound he makes is funny.  It is very confusing to watch; because, it hurts to see him in pain, but I have to laugh at the sound he makes.  I am still not sure what is tougher to watch; Brian actually being tased, or Brian waiting to be tased.  He was so nervous.  To make matters worse, the instructor played a joke on him.  A cruel joke.  He called out the "taser, taser, taser" warning but did not tase him.  Brian was all prepared, you can see him flinch, and nothing happened.  Then the instructor said "Alright, now are you ready?"  Poor Brian.  I am absolutely not allowed to post, Facebook, or email the video.  It is forbidden.  So if you want to see it you have to come over to my house.

Other than getting the video, nothing really exciting has happened.  I think my dishwasher is broken.  The dishes are not getting clean.  It is a huge bummer when you have to re-wash dishes that have already been washed.  It kind of turns me into a bear.  A bear, that for some reason, my girls cannot help but to poke.  I forgive them, but only because they actually cleaned their bedroom!  Then they kept it clean!!  :)  The highlight of the day was when M told me she loved me and I was her best friend.  AWWW, I know, right?  That was quickly followed up by her lunch order.  I am not joking, this is seriously what she said:  "I love you Mommy, you're my best friend. I want a hotdog and ketchup for lunch.  No bread, just hotdog and ketchup...and a cheese stick...some crackers...maybe something else...and milk...no bread.  Please."  At least she remembered to say "please".

Brian had mostly a quiet day at the academy.  He said range was fun and involved a lot of exercise.  He still has not had another chance at High Speed.  It has been a few weeks since his second attempt.  So far, that is the only thing he has not passed yet.  Hopefully he will get his next chance soon.

Tomorrow is Thursday and that means Growth Group, Pregnancy Center, and movie night.  At least that is what I think is on the schedule for tomorrow.  :)  'Night everybody!

Blessings,
~Cara 

CHP Academy Days 108-113; A 4 Day Thanksgiving Weekend

Hello everyone, hope you all had a great Thanksgiving.  The weekend did not seem very long, but it was nice having Brian home.  Thanksgiving was spent at home with my side of the family.  We had a lot of yummy food and then vegged out while watching Polar Express.  Friday, the harvest decor went down and the Christmas went up.  Saturday morning the girls put the ornaments on the tree, then went and spent the night with Brian's parents.  They had a blast, completely worn out Sunday night.  :)

The weekend was very relaxing for Brian.  Which is good since today he introduced to the taser gun.  He said it was pretty painful and he is happy that it is done.  He did go into more detail, but out of respect, I will not repeat it.  I will, however, tell you I laughed so hard I couldn't breathe.  It was filmed... :)  So that is how Brian spent his day.  He learned about the taser, got shot with the taser, then shot the taser.  Great way to start off week 17!

My day was not as shocking as Brian's.  :)  I drove my mom to her doctor's appointment, so I spent most of the day reading a book.  That is it, nothing exciting.  Tomorrow should be fun, I have a MOPs meeting!  :)Maybe I will have something to write about.

Blessings,
~Cara

CHP Academy Days 102-107/187

Once again the past week has been full.  Thursday, Brian got to feel the pain of OC Spray.  He said it was one of the most painful experience of his life.  Second only to actually being on fire, even then it was a close call.  He sent me a picture of his face and I can confirm that it looked like he was not having fun.  By the time Brian came home on Friday night he had boxed, got sprayed with OC Spray, and passed his certification in pistol, rifle, and shotgun. So week 15 was busy for Brian.  Once he got home the weekend flew by! A had her first real sleep over at her friend's house Saturday night.  My mom watched H and M so Brian could take me to Breaking Dawn.  Yep, I have an awesome husband.  Sunday, we went to church and then out to lunch with Brian's parents.  Then it was time for him to leave.

Nothing special happened on Monday.  I did twist my ankle, which is never good, and that kind of put a damper on the rest of the day.  The quick trip to Wal-mart for the last of the Thanksgiving supplies did not improve my mood.  At the Academy Brian had a quiet day.  He found out that on Monday they will be using the taser gun on him.  That was the highlight of his day.

Today, both A and H had shindigs in their classrooms since it was the last day before the Thanksgiving break.  A's class joined the rest of the second graders and had an egg drop.  The principle had the honor of dropping the wrapped up eggs from the roof while the children chanted "DROP THE EGG!".  It was all very exciting.  After the egg drop M and I headed over to H's class.  On the way she got distracted, tripped me, and made me re-twist my ankle.  Now I am gimping around even more.  :/  We got to H's class in time to make a few crafts. H was having a blast, but M was reaching her pre- nap limit.  So after crafts we headed home so M could have her nap.

At the Academy Brian had his Felony Stop test today.  He feels that he did well, but his instructor did not say whether he passed or failed.  He said it was awesome (sarcastically) to hear the cadets in company A get their turn with the taser today.  Apparently there was a lot of screaming.  I might have to take it easy on the teasing him about the taser this weekend...maybe...probably not.  I can always wait to see how often he joins in with my brother in teasing me on Thursday.  He is excited to get a four day weekend this week!  Especially since there are a lot of Saturdays coming up that he will spend at the Academy.

Tomorrow is going to be spent preparing for Thanksgiving!  Cleaning and baking should take up the majority of the day.  I have a craft for the girls to do to keep them busy.  Hopefully it works!  :)  Fingers crossed that everything goes according to the plan.  :)

Blessings,
~Cara

CHP Academy Days 100 & 101

So I am really excited to tell you all what is in store for Brian tomorrow, so I am just going to give the highlights of yesterday and my day today.  :)

Yesterday- Also known as Day 100!

• Went to MOPs. The craft was a chore bucket.  Very cute, but I already have a chore chart.  I think I will make my an menu bucket.  In all honesty, I will probably never get around to finishing.  :)
• The girls wanted to see who the One Direction of my era was, so of course I went onto YouTube to show them videos of New Kids on the Block and then some of N'sync.  It was hilarious!  While watching the NKOTB video of "Please Don't Go Girl", M asked "Is that a girl or a Boy?"  
• For Brian- it was a quiet day at the academy.  Not much to report.

Today:

• Went to Save-mart and bought the turkey for Thanksgiving. Bought one and got one free!  I cannot believe Thanksgiving is in one week!
• I spent a large part of the day on the internet shopping for Christmas.  In total I bought 14 presents.  There was a lot of research involved and I was pooped when it was over.  On the bright side, I think I am done with A!  Woo-hoo!
• After picking up the girls, I drove over to the food bank and dropped off the free turkey.
• On the way up to meet Brian I found out that someone used Brian's debit card in Maine and Indiana. Pretty sure it was not Brian.  So now we get new cards.
• We had dinner at Chick-fil-a and it was de-lic-ious!  
• Brian passed his pistol certification today!

Which leads us into tomorrow!  Here is what is planned for Brian: PT first thing in the morning.  Then PMA- boxing, where Brian is hoping not to get any open wounds on his face. :)  After PMA, Brian has his shotgun certification. THEN Brian gets to be sprayed in the face with OC spray (pepper spray)!  Now you understand why he really wouldn't want to have an open wound on his face.  I know me saying I am really excited makes me sound like a horrible wife, but I can't help it.  I am really excited that this is something we have been waiting for, and now it is here!  When Brian was explaining to the girls about the pepper spray, he mentioned that he might even get some in his mouth.  A and M said "eww, gross", but H said "YUM! Pepper is good!"  After getting sprayed in the face, Brian has class where I am sure that he will not be distracted.  ;)

I am hoping that my day tomorrow is better and less painful then Brian's.  I have the normal Thursday stuff, except no movie night.  Tomorrow night is the PHC Banquet, the biggest fund raiser of the year.  Now it is time for bed.

Blessings,
~Cara

CHP Academy Days 94-99/187, Week 15!!

Day 94 thru 99 have been busy.  I know... what a surprise.  Last week Brian passed five out seven techniques for handcuffing/ searches.  The two he did not pass are pretty much the same thing and he is already feeling pretty confident about retesting.  At home the girls and I just stayed in the groove of things. 

This weekend was great!  Brian's parents took the girls early Saturday afternoon and kept them over night.  It was nice to have time to catch up with Brian.  We went out to dinner (thanks to who ever bought me the gift card for my b-day), then took the dogs out for a night time walk.  It was nice to reconnect.  Sunday, at church the pastor started the new series "Hope for Troubled Time", except he didn't really get to the "hope" part. :) Still very good!  After church we went home, had lunch, Brian watched the Niner's game and did his laundry.  Brian needed to get back to the academy early, so of course the game went into overtime.  After the game, I quickly cut Brian's hair and sent him on his way.  Only 12 more Sunday night good-byes!

Today was the start of week 15!  A and H had the day off for Veteran's day.  So I had made an appointment to get their Christmas pictures taken.  But first I had to take them to Target to buy black stockings.  Of course you cannot go to Target and get only one thing.  I think it is impossible and maybe against the rules.  I left with: two Christmas presents, Christmas lights, two head bands (for pictures), napkins for H's Friendship Feast next week, Dixie cups, and who knows what else!  Oh and the stockings, I would have been so mad if I would have forgotten the stockings!  The pictures turned out pretty cute!  We had a heck of a time getting all three girls to look at the camera and/or smile.  Even in the individual pictures.  They would look at the camera and not smile, or have a great smile but be looking off in the wrong direction!  :)

Brian passed his certification in rifle today!  Wednesday is the day for the pistol certification and shotgun is on Thursday.  His day ended really early, he called before 6:30 and was already done with his studying.  He mentioned this weekend that life at the academy was starting to change.  It is not any easier, but they are being treated differently.  He said the staff/ pt officers even, sometimes, joke around -mostly at the expense of the junior cadets.  They still yell at the senior cadets, just not as much as the yell at the junior cadets.  :)

Tomorrow is day 100!  It is hard to believe that we are in the triple digits!  I am going to spend part of day 100 (yay!) at my MOPs meeting.  We are doing a craft- it should be fun!  :) 

Blessings,
~Cara

CHP Academy Day 93/187

Today was nice! Got the girls to school on time...later than usual, but still on time.  Got home, set M up with some "Caillou" while I got some work done.  Work included: pruning- hence the flower above; cleaning of Ms. Chez N Crackers' cage; dishes; and laundry.  I even got two days done on my bible study! Which doesn't sound like much, but it is a Beth Moore study = a lot of work.  I finished rewriting the book of James-part of the study- and had time to have a cup of coffee!  By that time, it was time to go get the girls.  M was in an extremely bad mood after her nap, so to distract her I suggested we bring the dogs to get the girls.  And just like that, she was back to her happy self!  She giggled all the way to the school.  I have a feeling M will expect the dogs to come along more often.  At one point I looked in the mirror and saw Hans sitting in A's booster seat and Daisy sitting in H's booster seat! :)

So the girls and I have a deal; if they have their room clean and are ready for bed by 7:30, I will read a chapter (or two) from The Chronicles of Narnia.  Tonight at 7:29, just as I was about to go upstairs, all three girls started screaming for me.  Apparently, instead of straightening up their room, they decided to play with some glow sticks that A got from her soccer party.  One started to leak, and since I had warned them previously that the stuff inside is poison, they started to freak out.  By the way they were screaming you would have thought it had gotten all over the place, but there was one tiny glowing spot on the sheet and two on M's blanket.  I finally got them to calm down, made them wash their hands, and then noticed their room was a mess.  So after all that, I didn't even get to read to them.  :( 

Brian's day was a long one.  He had his first day of high speed.  He said it was fun, but he didn't pass.  He gets three more chances, starting tomorrow.  He is not very confident that he will pass tomorrow, but he is confident that he will pass at some point. :)  He did pass his basic stop test tonight!  Yay!  Tomorrow he has PT at 4:45 am, then his certification for handcuffing & searches.  He better pass that one!  Seriously. :)  He is feeling pretty good about, but you never know.  He does have liberty tomorrow night, but we are not going up to see him.  He is going to spend his evening practicing out at the range.  I am okay with that.  So tomorrow for him is busy. 

Tomorrow should be another quiet day at home.  I should go grocery shopping, but I am not feeling that plan right now.  :)  The only plan I am feeling right now is bed time. :)

Blessings,
~Cara
 ***Side note: Today is Election day.  Proud to say I did vote, not today, but a couple weeks ago.  I would have to drag M down to the polling place which would be no fun.  I am not going to say whether or not I am happy about the out come.  But isn't it nice to know that no matter who is in office, God put them there?  Biblical.  All part of a perfect plan.  Who am I to argue with God?  I do believe it is my duty/privilege to vote, but my faith does not lie in politics. :)  I will say that I am happy that the election is over.  The mud slinging was ridiculous!  Kind of made me sad.  

CHP Academy Days 86-92/187, Week 14

The past week has been full!  Saturday, we had the baby shower! It went pretty well, no major hiccups. Sunday we just stayed home and got ready for the week...week 14!  Only 13 more Sunday night good-byes. :)  

Today was all about getting caught up.  I did some of the stuff I put off last week.  The day was going smoothly, until after I picked up the girls.  A had her end-of-the-season soccer party at five, so I thought I would run to the store before going to the pizza place.  It was supposed to be a quick in and out stop.  We ran in, got our two items and and went straight to the check out.  The second the transaction was completed the computer crashed.  Of course they wanted to make sure transaction went through.  So they asked me wait (with all three girls) while someone in the office verified.  They said it would only take a few minutes.  THIRTY minutes later... no joke...they said I was good to go.  Yep, they forgot about me...did I mention that I had all three of my very impatient children with me.  Super fun!

After the soccer party, we came home and I noticed our gate was open and Daisy was gone.  Little Houdini has gotten out before, but it has been months since her last adventure.  So I loaded up the girls in the car and started driving around looking for her.  Found her running down the center of a busy street.  She was filthy, her white spots were brown and black. During her post adventure bath, I noticed she had cuts and scraps all over her body.  :(  Now she sleeping next to me, snoring.

Today, the new cadets arrived at the academy!  Brian said they looked overwhelmed and terrified. :)  He said he can remember the feelings like it was yesterday, but at the same time, it feels so long ago.  He got to teach a few newbies how to make their beds, put their uniforms together, and got to answer some of their questions. 

Brian passed his Physical Performance Test today!  Brian was pretty confident about this the test, so it was not a surprise.  Still, one more thing that is now done!  Today at the range, Brian got to shoot all three weapons. Very exciting!  Tomorrow he starts high speed.  He is not expecting to pass the first time, since most of the cadets don't.  Then tomorrow night he is going to be tested on pulling a car over. (Not sure of the actual name of that test, sorry.) So tomorrow is a busy day for him.

Tomorrow, for me, is another catch up day. Hopefully the day goes by smoothly for all of us.  :) 

Blessings,
~Cara