Major Mom

My name is Patricia, but in the blogging world I became known as "Major Mom" thanks to a friend in the Air Force Reserves. As soon as he had said it, the David Bowie song "Space Oddity" went through my mind. I am a mother and wife first - an Air Force wife, that is. My husband proudly serves in the Air Force as a weather officer. I also continue to serve my country as a Major in the Air Force Reserves. It's a wonderful double-life I lead. It was a very difficult decision for me -- I had our second son in early 2005 just before the 10-year-point in my career. It was already tough having to turn my oldest son over to a child care center every duty day -- 50 hours per week. So in spring 2005 I took advantage of a Reserves job opening for which I was qualified in Norfolk, Virginia -- my hometown! It's truly wonderful getting to see my sons grow up, and be able to help out at their school, on their sports teams (I've coached soccer before) and as a Cub Scout den leader. I'm not sure I'd have had time for that if I had remained on active duty. We currently live in Navarre, Florida, while my wonderful husband is assigned to Hurlburt Field, Florida. We've also lived in the following locations since we graduated from Penn State University in 1995: Fort Polk, Louisiana, 1995-1998 Yongsan Army Installation, Seoul, Republic of Korea, 1998-2000 Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, 2000-2002 Patrick AFB, Florida, 2002-2005 Raleigh, North Carolina (Dave was assigned to North Carolina State University), 2005-2008 Offutt AFB, Nebraska, 2008-2010 Hurlburt Field, Florida, 2010-present I started this blog in December 2007, thanks to suggestions from friends. We're in our third home since I started the blog. I used to send out captioned photo albums -- from AOL Pictures to Shutterfly albums to Picasaweb albums. Instead of flooding everyone with photos, now I can use this blog to send out the highlights. I'll talk about anything on here -- usually I'm talking about the kids, but I'll also delve into the local scene wherever we're living, and you'll also see some great posts about the two military moves (PCS: Permanent Changes of Station) we've had. Sometimes I talk about utter nonsense, such as finding a product called "Piggies in Pancakes" in a grocery store in South Carolina. In my spare time I write for the parenting blog GeekMom.com, I serve on the board of the Hurlburt Spouses' Club, and I'm a Cub Scout den leader. I also enjoy running and playing the violin.

Now is Time We Talk About Our Feelings….

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Before I get going with my Colorado blog posts, I’m going to take a moment to discuss my feelings. “Really? You RARELY talk about your feelings….you fill this blog with things you’ve seen, things you’ve done, things you would like to do….” Yeah, I guess you’re right, my dear imaginary blogosphere friend. I think the … Read more

Nebraska Discoveries 18: Fontenelle Splashground

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Today Shannon and I took our boys to this new “splashpark” that opened 2 weeks ago in North Omaha.  What a fun, FREE, way to spend a hot summer afternoon! School starts Monday!

Since the original post this afternoon I’ve had a chance to add more commentary about this place. The City of Omaha has built several of these “Splashgrounds” around the city and they’re a great time for the boys. Papillion has one, but Bellevue has none (hint hint!)

Today the boys spent nearly 3 hours at the park — then the horseflies started attacking and the boys were happy to go. Shannon and I sat under a tree in the shade and had a good old fashioned chatfest.

This particular one was intriguing: there’s this innocent looking post stationed near the entrance to the fenced area — you rub the top of the post (yes, I know what I’m saying here) and that activates the water for 5 minutes.  As long as a kid runs back to the post every 5 minutes or so, the water stays on.  A nice conservation tool.  You can see the post in the 3rd picture here.

From 2010 08 13 Fontenelle Splashground

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Nebraska Discoveries 17: Ashfall Fossil Beds & "Fossil Vacations"

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A couple weeks ago, Jacob and I (Timmy was in NY visiting Grammy and Grampy) headed out with our friends and neighbors, Shannon, Brandon, Connor and Dean to the Ashfall Fossil Beds State Historic Park, which is near the small town of Royal, Nebraska.

From 2010 07 30 Ashfall Fossil Beds

We had learned about it from our visits to Morrill Hall State Museum in Lincoln, there’s a room dedicated to the skeletons assembled from Ashfall, along with an advertisement for the facility.

Ashfall isn’t close. About 180 miles from Bellevue, and well over 3 hours worth of driving each way. So Shannon and I aimed for a 7am departure time, and headed out.


View Larger Map

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Our Delightful Long Weekend in Colorado

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Hello friends!  We just got home from our long weekend in Colorado!  I’ll summarize our trip in the next few blog posts, but in short, we had a really good time!  The day in Denver with Adam, Rose and Brad’s wedding, our day in Golden, and 2 days in Rocky Mountain National Park were all … Read more

Jacob’s Video of Howie

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Jacob asked me to share this with you. Jacob thinks that Howie seems to perk up at the word “Rhino”…and he does. But I’m not sure it’s the word as much as the inflection in his voice. Jacob enjoys watching funny dog videos on You Tube. His favorite series of videos is of Mishka the … Read more

Funnel Cakes!

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From 2010 07 29 Funnel Cakes! Wow, it’s been a while since I did a food-related blog post. I used to do them quite often, but I hadn’t done anything too blog-worthy lately… …until today. While Timmy’s in New York enjoying some Grammy and Grampy time, Jacob’s been enjoying a rare moment of “only-child-ness” here. … Read more

4000 Mile Road Trip: Part 3

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The next stop on our trip was our alma mater, Penn State University! The Department of Meteorology had a 75th Anniversary celebration weekend, and Dave and I took advantage of our time without the kids to have a good old fashioned party weekend!

We took a scenic route from Niagara down to State College, and had a chance to see what will soon become the extension of Interstate 99 from I-80 near State College up to I-86 in Corning, NY. It’s currently U.S. 15 and it’s really beautiful.

The heat wave was still in force, and Dave and I began to wonder if it was a good idea to book our accommodations in Irvin Hall. But that’s what our arrangements were, so we were sort of stuck. After all, it was half the price of all the other hotels in the area…more bar and souvenir money, right?

So here we are, Irvin Hall! This is the dorm I lived in all 4 years of college, Dave lived here his junior and senior years. It’s one of the oldest dorms on the campus, but the central location made up for the lack of A/C, old-school hot water radiator heat and small rooms. Remember, it’s all about location.

From 2010 07 09 PSU Meteorology Reunion

Here’s Dave checking in, like going back in time almost 20 years ago!

From 2010 07 09 PSU Meteorology Reunion

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4000 Mile Road Trip: Part 2

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So…where was I? Oh yes…we had just spent a great day in Niagara Falls! We topped off the evening with a very nice dinner in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

The next day, we took a road trip to Toronto. About 50 miles up the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW), a large interstate-style highway that curves around the western edge of Lake Ontario. Lots of lake views, plenty of nurseries, vineyards and fruit orchards to admire until you hit the Toronto suburbs. When the skyline came into view, the traffic slowed down some and we were staring at the CN Tower for quite some time:

From 2010 07 08 Toronto Visit

We parked underneath the Rogers Centre (formerly the Toronto SkyDome, where the Blue Jays play). This put us in convenient distance from several touristy attractions, so first things first: the CN Tower!

From 2010 07 08 Toronto Visit

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4000 Mile Road Trip: Part 1

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I’m sitting here watching Julie & Julia. Again. Adorable movie. About a girl and her blog. And lots of decadent cooking. It inspired me to get onto my own blog and bring you guys a bit up to date on things.

Our summer break is plodding along here. A slower pace than last month, which is a welcome change. It’s hard to believe my boys only have about a month left before Jacob starts 2nd grade, and Timmy starts KINDERGARTEN! I still can’t believe both my boys will be in school in a month!

Anyway, this past month, from mid-June till mid-July, was full of travel! First Dave took the boys to Pennsylvania for the Vollmer family reunion, then I took a TDY with my reserve job, then hopped in our truck on July 3rd with Dave, Timmy and Howie (Jacob was in NY visiting Dave’s parents) and declared “EASTWARD HO!”

First stop: My parents house in West Virginia. We spent a couple days visiting with my parents, my sister and her kids. We arrived on July 4th, and brought so many fireworks with us!

From 2010 07 04 Vacation Day 1-2

After 2 days with my parents, Dave and I headed up to Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. This would be Dave’s first visit to Canada, but I had been to Toronto in 1992. We stopped in Buffalo for lunch, and met an old Air Force friend from Florida, Rich:

From 2010 07 06 Anchor Bar & Niagara on the Lake
From 2010 07 06 Anchor Bar & Niagara on the Lake

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