3 days!

Oh, yes. Only 3 days left until the Knieriem/Rugh/Pannone caravan arrives on the island! I can barely contain my excitement... and I'm not sure if it's because I plan to lovingly convince Grandma Ann to cook for me or because I get an Ellie break with all the helpful relatives. Or maybe it's because BOTH could happen at the same time. More likely is that I'm excited to relax and spend a week doing fun things... a luau, Pearl Harbor trip, Dole Plantation visit, and plenty of beach bumming in on the agenda. I guess it's like I'm going on vacation? But 30 miles from my house? Whatever. Bring on the Coppertone!

I started grabbing a few supplies at the Commissary and guess what family will be enjoying root beer floats this time next week?

The packing continues around here. Blah. I hate packing. I especially hate packing when it is the result of a deployment. The only silver lining is that Andrew has been lax about asking me to cook... I guess he understands that I'm not in the mood. Therefore, we headed out for some comfort food and a Wal*Mart run. This was Ellie beforehand.

[Auntie Erin- thanks for the outfit! She looks so sweet and innocent in it.]

I must say one thing about Andrew; he is an awesome public baby wrangler. He can get Ellie in and out of the carseat, fed, and changed in seconds flat! [Exaggeration.] She usually sits with him during dinner and he pushes the cart and plays with her while shopping. It's really sweet and she LOVES to hang out with him.

They rock.

Today was even more exciting when MiMi [My Mom] and I nailed down her plans to visit. She'll be coming to help me get the household goods stored and the house cleaned for inspection. I'm really grateful for the help and company right after Andrew's departure. And she's really grateful to have a beach and island eye candy.

On Ellie development news: She can now hum and say "mmmmm." Here is a short video. :)