"Oh, about 308 days - so far"

That's 308 out of 365. Can you guess what this fraction represents? If you said "The number of days you've spent taking care of house, raising 3 children, moving across country (in a car!), and basically being Mom, Dad, and everything in between ALL BY YOURSELF", then I commend you. Chances are, you're either a military wife yourself or a very good guesser.

This has been quite the year for the Cadle clan. With Daddy onboard a Precommissioned Unit on the Eastcoast, the kids and I have managed to retain just a tad of sanity in this crazy world. Xavier who is almost 9, has become quite the man of the house. Taking on tasks such as 'doggie-poo collector' of the backyard - without having to be asked. A miracle in and of itself! Norris who just turned 6, probably takes Daddy being away the hardest. For the first two months, almost nightly we had an episode of tears. Oh don't worry about him, he's also very resilient - and the one who most commonly brings me the telephone and says "Can we call Dad?". And then there's Ava Dune, our 4 year old angel-haired diva of a daughter. I never knew so much personality could be packed into such a small package! Ava and I are spending this school year doing Mommy-Daughter days. Next year she'll be the smartest, most well-rounded kid in Kindergarten!

I plan to explore. I plan to take photos. I plan to meet strangers. And walk. And laugh. And ask questions. And eat. And...'blog' it all, of course! What on earth does "BLOG" mean, anyway?! I mean, I obviously know it's exactly what I'm doing right this very minute. But who on Earth came up with the idea of rearranging the letters to one of the 1980's most notorious horror films, and turning it into a worldwide obsession with disclosing our private lives to anyone and everyone who wants to read?!

Ha! The 'Blog Bug' claims its newest victim - ME!