"I can't believe I'm getting paid to do this!"

Monday the 26th brought an event that Jay has been looking forward to ever since he first applied to the CHP: his first day on the EVOC course! Just between you and me, I think getting paid to drive a patrol car at high rates of speed was his whole reason for considering the CHP as a career in the first place. Helping people, shemlping people, it's all about the car! Of course I'm kidding. (No, I'm not.)

So, given my statement above, it shouldn't surprise you that it was "the best 4 hours" he's had at the Academy thus far. He called me that night and was as giddy as I've ever seen (heard) him, and that's including after I said I would marry him! He spent the majority of the conversation giving me the details, but I have to admit I don't remember much because I'm old and have 3 young kids that feed off of my remaining brain cells.

What I do remember is this:

The cadets go to EVOC in small groups and are taken for a "ride-along" across the course with an instructor so that they know what they're supposed to do. Of course, they only go through it once with the instructor so it's not like they're very prepared when they get in the car by themselves, but that didn't stop Jay from being excited. He had the patrol car window down and yelled (probably in the same giddy voice he used on the phone with me) to Fernandez, the cadet next to him, "Isn't this cool?!? I can't believe I'm getting paid to do this!"

He then proceeded to drive the course 4 or 5 times, moving in and out of cones, doing various moves and stops as he was instructed. He was also required to back-up for about half a mile "as fast as he dared," and then whip the car into a parking space. He couldn't tell me how fast he got up to because he obviously couldn't turn around and check, but knowing Jay I'm sure it was pretty fast. He was actually being tested on all of this, and he passed!! Whoo hoo!! The first phase of EVOC is done! Up next: The Skid Pan. Yes, it's as daunting as it sounds.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

The longest 3 days & the shortest 4 days

For a short week, Week 6 sure did drag.

For Jay, it was a tough week physically because he started double PT and had it all three days. (Double PT means he does his company's floor workout then stays in the gym and joins the next company for their floor workout. He then goes on a run with that company. Ugh!)

It was tough academically because they had a pop quiz on Monday which at least half of Jay's class failed. The half that failed do not get liberty this coming Wednesday. And yes, Jay was in the half that failed.

It was a tough week emotionally because an officer was killed in the line of duty over the weekend prior. The cadets (along with the family, other officers, the CHP Commissioner, and the Governor) attended a bell-ringing ceremony in his honor on Monday. It is a terrible loss for the CHP family and obviously brings home the fact that Jay's chosen career is a dangerous one. We don't focus on that too much, of course, but it's always in the back of our minds. For more information on Officer Miller, click here.

So, needless to say, Jay was beyond exhausted when Wednesday finally came. Surprisingly enough, though, the staff let the cadets out early (gasp!) and Jay surprised me by showing up on our doorstep 2 hours earlier than normal! It was a happy ending to a long 3 days. I'm not even going to tell you why my 3 days were long, because frankly I just don't have the energy right now. It's amazing that I'm awake enough to even type right now.

Anyway... as is always the case, the next 4 days moved at the speed of lightening.

Thursday we had a very nice Thanksgiving at my mom's house, and then Friday we took a long winding drive into the Los Gatos hills to cut down our Christmas tree. We busted out the Christmas music and everything. We spent that afternoon decorating and telling the kids to stop touching the ornaments.

Friday evening my fantastic mom-in-law watched the kids while Jay and I did a little Christmas shopping. We were also going to see Enchanted, but we are getting old or something and decided to go home and sleep instead. I've heard good things about that movie though, so hopefully we'll get a chance to go another time.

Saturday we had a nice family day and took the kids to see Bee Movie, which they enjoyed, even if Beatrice spilled her water all over the theatre floor. Oh, Jay also helped my sister move that day. Dang ... we really had a busy weekend! Sunday was church, hanging out with Betsy, and saying a tearful goodbye to Jay. Blegh. It's really weird to dread Sundays, but I have to admit that I do. I only have to say goodbye 20 more times, though... I can do that.

Oh, and how could I forget? Our washing machine decided to gush water out all over the laundry room and kitchen floor. Good times!!! Luckily my landlord rocks and is having a new one delivered on Friday.

If you see me wearing the same jeans 3 days in a row, you'll know why.

Natalie's Thanksgiving Feast

On Natalie's last day of school last week, they had a Thanksgiving Feast with the other kindergarten class. Natalie's class was the Indians, the other class was the Pilgrims. They traded beaded necklaces, signed their names on "Plymouth Rock," and ate a turkey lunch together. Good times were had by all (except me, because I was battling a screaming baby, a feeling-left-out toddler, and a kindergartener who didn't want me to leave her side).

Pilgrims & Indians, chillin' together

Bea enjoying some time on the kindergarten playground

Models in training

In honor of Thanksgiving

Some Things That I'm Grateful For
Written by Amy
(Sung to “My Favorite Things”)

Finding a twenty in my back pants pocket
Going to LaFondue for the chocolate
Shopping at Target all by myself
Jay finally hanging up that new bookshelf

Moving from our old downtown neighborhood
Reading my scriptures (like I know I should)
Dancing and laughing with my hubby Jay
When the kids stop fighting and happily play

Austen and Potter and Halpert and Beasley
Never getting morning sick just kinda queasy
Winning at Skeeball with the highest score
These are some things that I’m grateful for

When Natalie whines
When Bea screams
When I’m hopping mad
If I remember all of my blessings
Then I won’t feel so bad!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

(and to clarify, the mention of morning sickness does NOT mean I'm pregnant!)

Just 22 more to go

Week number 5 of the CHP Academy has come and gone. In the words of Kip Dynamite... "yesss!" It's so nice to have another week crossed off.

So, can you tell Jay is losing weight, or what? He's lost somewhere between 12-15 pounds in the last 5 weeks. I have great plans for getting in shape myself while Jay's away... so far I've lost a grand total of ... drum roll.... 1 pound!!! No, I didn't forget a zero, it's only 1 (one) pound. Maybe I'm doing something wrong. Let's compare my workout regime and diet to Jay's, just for fun.

Jay

• Restricted 3-meals-a-day-no-snacks-except-maybe-an-apple diet
• MWF: Wake up at 0-dark-30 for 45 minutes of intense physical training plus a 2 or so mile run
• TTH: "Optional" PT, which really means "you-better-be-there-or-else PT", where he practices physical methods of arrest or does a shorter PT workout
• 3 days a week - PMA class which includes boxing and baton practice

Amy

• Run around like a chicken with it's head cut off and forget to eat breakfast until the girls are already eating lunch and I'm wondering why I'm so impatient and grumpy. Then eat half of Bea's PB&J that she left on her plate.
• Get on the elliptical for an hour once every 5 weeks

Hmmmmm.... maybe I need to reevaluate my program. But for now, let's move on...

The highlight of Jay's week was PMA class. As you saw in the Week 4 post, Jay made a practice baton last weekend and really made it a priority to practice the PMA skills they've learned up to this point. On Wednesday during PMA the instructors called certain cadets to the front to lead the rest of the class in the various baton holds and draws, and no one was able to to lead properly. The instructor was getting highly agitated and finally yelled "Does anyone know how to do this?" Jay was the only one who rose his hand, so she selected him to lead and ... he did it! I guess the couple dollars spent on PVC pipe and electrical tape was worth it!

The next day, Company A showed up to PMA and there was a little surprise waiting for them. The PT mats were laid out in a large square on the gym floor, and a few of the instructors were dressed in heavily padded suits. They spent the next two hours "beating up" on the cadets one-on-one while the cadets tried to fight them off with a padded baton. And guess who was selected to go first? That's right! That's what you get when you show off your skills! Jay was nervous of course, but he stepped up to the plate and besides a big 'ol whack to the head, he did good and was able to fight off his attacker properly. He was then able to sit on the sidelines and cheer on his fellow cadets.

The rest of his week was the same as usual... tough PT workouts, various classes, tests, studying, boot polishing, etc. Next week he actually starts DOUBLE PT, which will last for the forseeable future. He's obviously not looking forward to that, but he's trying to keep a good attitude.

A highlight of my week was when I looked at the CHP blog and saw this picture of Jay in his cadet blues.

Another highlight of my week... the girls using me as their client as they pretended to be hairstylists like Auntie Jen.

And I think that's all for now. I'm spent. I hope everyone has a great week!

One thing's for sure...

...there's no denying that my son is one handsome dude. (Go ahead, try to deny it!) BUT, I can't decide which sister Dex looks the most like. It depends on how he's smiling. What do you guys think?

Natalie & Dexter both around 6 1/2 months

Beatrice & Dexter both around 6 1/2 months

Week 4 in review

Week 4 is done! To tell the truth, things are starting to run together, at least for me. Here’s the run-down of the last week:

Academics – the cadets are in the classroom for a large portion of their day, studying various aspects of the law. One of their most time-consuming and important classes is Vehicle Code. It is the foundation for many of the other things they will learn in later weeks. They are also continuing PMA training and will be certified on the baton soon. (I suppose that should go under PT, but... too late.)

EVOC – the cadets started EVOC this week! They met the instructors and had a tour of the EVOC course. Most of what they are doing for EVOC right now is in the classroom, but the instructors have started taking the cadets in small groups for the very beginning stages of EVOC driving. Jay has not had his turn yet but hopefully he will this week. (Craig had his turn... see the Hartley’s blog for the report!) I know Jay is looking forward to his turn behind the wheel.

Drill – The beginning of week 4 included a *lot* of drill practice in preparation for the juniors to march during the Fountain Ceremony on Wednesday. The Fountain Ceremony is where the senior class has the privilege of polishing the names of the 211 fallen CHP Officers, which are listed on the fountain in the middle of the Academy Quad. It is an honor that the cadets look forward to.

PT – What can I say about PT? It is rough to be sure, but on Friday it was, in Jay’s words, “horrendous.” Apparently a member of Jay’s company told someone that PT wasn’t that bad (whatever!), and that comment got back to the PT staff. Uh-oh. They were NOT happy and they took it out on Company A for 2 hours on Friday morning. Jay was so sore when he arrived home on Friday; he was walking like a little old man. I loaded him up on Motrin and then we prayed that they wouldn’t have that kind of PT workout again this Monday.

Liberty – I am basically living from liberty to liberty. We took a trip up to Sacto on Wednesday to meet Jay at IKEA for dinner. It was so nice to see him. It provides us all with a much needed emotional boost. Jay also came home for the weekend, and we had a wonderful time just hanging out. Betsy watched the kids Saturday night (thanks, mom!) so that Jay and I could go on a date. (We saw Bee Movie... it was pretty cute!) The weekend went by way too fast, as always. The good news is that in a week and a half, Jay will have a 4 day Thanksgiving weekend! Whooo hoooo!!! I don’t think I could be more excited.

Bea watching Jay build a practice baton

My two favorite guys, enjoying the morning together

Survey says!!

Here it is, the long-awaited, highly-anticipated answer to the question:

What does Jay think is the worst part of the Academy?

4% (1) of you said "Getting up early"
9% (2) of you said "Making beds"
31% (7) of you said "Physical Training"

And 54% (12) of you said "Missing Home" was the worst part.

You would think that would be the right answer, wouldn't you? I mean, who wouldn't be sad to leave all this behind?


However... the answer was ... MAKING THE BED!!

Yes, it's true. Jay thinks it's harder to make the bed military-style than to be away from me. Which means if I was replaced with a chambermaid he would be totally fine. This does not bode well for me...

So I have to know... who are the two people who answered correctly? Leave a comment and let me know! Your bragging rights are gift-wrapped and ready for pick-up!

Government Broccoli

I may have mentioned (4 or 5 times) that Jay is on the Training Table at the Academy. (AKA the Fat Boy Table) He is not alone, however... over 100 of the 176 cadets in his class are on it with him. In order to escape this opportunity, you have to be below 16% body fat (20% for the women, I think). If you are 16.1% or even 16%, sorry Charlie, you're on the table.

So what does that mean?

Well, it means a restricted diet. You have to adhere to certain guidelines and there is absolutely no snacking. 3 squares, baby. In addition to that, you have to write a memo every night detailing the food that you ate. Since Jay has been on a diet for pretty much the last year and 1/2, the food restrictions don't bother him; it's the memo writing that he could do without.

The good news is that when you're on liberty you don't have to follow the guidelines. Whoo hooo!!! I know you think I'm "whoo hoo'ing" for Jay, but I'm really saying it for me. I was not interested in spending my weekends eating chicken breasts and salads (even if it would do me some good, too).

Most people, including Jay, say that the Training Table food is actually better than the standard fare, because the standard fare is almost always drowning in gravy. Mmmmmm. Sometimes they can't even tell what they're eating, which is probably just as well since the Staff Sergeants are standing over them yelling at them to eat faster and get moving ... "you don't need to taste it, just eat it!!"

Some of the Training Table food Jay complains about:

• Egg whites - just stay away. If you need to know why, just ask Jay's roommates.
• Mashed potatoes - Jay swears they mash up 6 potatoes for all 100 of them and just add gallons of water
• Fish - we're not talking grilled salmon with a teryaki glaze, people. Apparently fish was their only choice tonight and, in Jay's words, it was nasty.
• Broccoli - he was served broccoli at two meals today "because no one ate it at lunch." He swears the stalks are 6 inches tall. It's government broccoli... civilians can't buy this stuff.
  

In general, he's keeping a good attitude about it. Not like he has a choice anyway - breaking the Training Table rules is grounds for dismissal. Yikes! Being the kind-hearted wife that I am I asked him, "So, are you hungry?" He responded, "No, not really." Pause. "Except when I'm on break and I see Christensen inhaling a bag of cornnuts." Poor guy... not able to have snacks. I really feel for him. So, in his honor, I am going to polish off this bag of Swedish Fish..... ok, ok, and I'll buy him some cornnuts for the weekend.

Week 3 CHP blog up

Check it out at http://www.chp.ca.gov/cadet/07-III.html

No pics of Jay this time - I think it's Company C that is featured.
Starting Cadets = 188
Cadets remaining = 176

If you get a chance, you can also check out the Senior class at http://www.chp.ca.gov/cadet/07-II.html. They got gassed last week... something for Jay to look forward to!

Make it stop!

The girls are getting older and ... I don't like it.

Ok, ok, it's not that I don't like it. But it scares me a little. It seems like I blinked and 5 years went zoom! right by me. In another 5 years, Dexter will be the one in kindergarten, Bea will be 8 and Natalie will be*gulp* 10. Ok, I have to stop thinking about this.

Company A! Hoo-rah!

Yippee! Cross off week 3!

I’m a little hesitant to write this because I don’t want to jinx anything, but... Jay’s 3rd week at the Academy was a good one. He scored 100% on one of his POST tests and also really enjoyed his his classes. PT was rough as always but he made it through. The best part about week 3? Jay’s company, Company A, really started coming together as a group. Here’s how it started:

Friday morning, they all started with really good attitudes and even cheered as they went into PT. It was a good workout (they got to swim instead of run!) and they felt that the PT staff were impressed with their enthusiasm.

Later that morning Company A went to PMA class feeling like hot stuff... ok, maybe not hot stuff, but at least mild stuff. PMA is also taught by the PT staff, and any good impressions the PT staff had did not carry over into this class. The cadets were made to do knuckle push-ups, which go a little something like this: grab the baton, place it on the ground, get in plank position (starting push-up position) without your knees hitting the ground, and then do a push up on your knuckles. All your weight is essentially on your wrists and it is difficult and painful. No thanks.

So the PT Staff is counting off the push-ups and *everyone* is having a hard time. Jay wasn’t able to do a single one properly. The instructors didn’t notice Jay, however, because they were circling one particular female cadet, Cadet B___, and just yelling in her face. “Get your knees off the floor! You’re cheating! You’re weak! The whole company’s waiting for you!” You get the point. These instructors can tell when someone is on the verge and they just pounce.

They told everyone to stop and they called the entire Company up front where they all sat in a semi-circle. Sgt G stood, pointed at Cadet B___, and said, “You. Cheater. Get up front.” He made her grab her baton and get in push-up position. He did the same and was staring right in her face, yelling at her to do the pushup. The whole Company could see she was on the verge of tears because of the pain and the stress of the situation. Then Jay heard a voice from the back. A cadet named Espos sounded off, “Sir!” He walked up to the front with his baton. “I cheated too, sir!” He got in push-up position next to Cadet B___ in a show of support.

The instructor yelled “Any other cheaters out there?” Every single cadet in Company A got up, put their batons on the ground, and all dropped down together. The adrenaline of the situation helped Jay power through. As they were coming back up, Cadet Espos shouted, “Company A!” and they all responded, “HOO-RAH!” The PT staff looked impressed at the way they came together as a group, and knuckle pushups were not mentioned again ... at least for that day.

Later, during a break from another class, Company A cheered for Cadet B___ to thank her for “taking one for the team.” HOO-RAH! It may sound cheesy, but the teamwork and support they showed that morning helped them come together as a group and really got them revved up. That’s what it’s all about... as a CHP Officer you need to know you can count on your coworkers, and that trust starts to build in the Academy. Company A is the only company to not lose a single cadet this class. Let’s hope it stays that way.

And now another weekend has come and gone. It was wonderful to have Jay home and we had a great time as a family. I did make a slight mistake, however, when I bragged a few entries back about not doing any of the ironing. This weekend Jay was working on his autobiography that’s due on Wednesday so I attempted to military press his shirts. Two words for you: NOT FUN. I was so stressed out trying to make them perfect that it took me 45 minutes to do one! And I still wasn’t happy with it! Jay finally took over for me. Poor guy, having a wife who can’t even iron...

Here is Natalie helping Jay study... so sweet! Maybe Kindergarten wasn’t such a bad idea after all.


The new Saturday ritual: Jay takes the kids to get bagels while I sleep in. That, my friends, is heaven.

And now we start another week filled with adventure and excitement and ... dishes... and laundry... and cooking ... and... I think I'm going to go to bed.

This is Janet's fault

Ok, so, Janet "tagged" me on her blog (www.hartleyfam.blogspot.com) and challenged me to write six facts about myself and to then tag six other people to do the same. I can't say no to a direct challenge like that, so here we go...

1) I started the main frisbee golf club at Cornell. Where I went to college. I live to frolf!

2) Ever since I was a little kid, like eight or nine, I could sort of control things with my mind.

3) I never smile if I can help it. Showing one’s teeth is a submission signal in primates. When someone smiles at me, all I see is a chimpanzee begging for its life.

4) I just want to lie on the beach and eat hot dogs. That's all I've ever wanted.

5) I enjoy having breakfast in bed. I like waking up to the smell of bacon, sue me. And, since I don't have a butler, I have to do it myself. So... most nights before I go to bed, I will lay six strips of bacon out on my George Foreman grill. Then I go to sleep. When I wake up, I plug in the grill. I go back to sleep again. Then, I wake up to the smell of crackling bacon. It is delicious, it's good for me, it's the perfect way to start the day. Today, I got up, I stepped onto the grill, and it clamped down on my foot, that's it. I don't see what's so hard to believe about that.

6) I watch way too much The Office.

I know #5 says "sue me," but don't. I have no money. And yes, all of the above are from The Office (www.nbc.com/The_Office). It may be cheating, but it's also much more interesting than telling you about myself.

"Tag you're it!" to: Jenna F., John K., Angela K., Steve C., Rainn W., and Ed H.