Vacay, thus far

I have an album on facebook called “Christmas in Dixie” – thought that was fitting since I’m in the south ;)

Here are some things I’ve done so far!

Dinner at the Atlanta Country Club with my Grandfather and Aunt and Uncle.

Decorating the tree with my brother and sister

I’ve eaten at Chick-Fil-A twice so far, and I’ve spent lots of time with Kynlee!

Baby sitting Kynlee, going to make cookies later!

Decorating the tree with Emily’s family, it was quite eventful, the tree fell on Becky, her sister!

Also got to spend some time with the LT’s family, this is his little cousin!

Christmas Vacay

I’m leaving Hawaii and coming to Ga/Tn next week, will be there until the end of Dec. I’m super duper excited. I can’t wait to see friends and family. I hate that the Lt won’t be able to join me, but soon he’ll be home, soon!!!

I am going to have to work on Christmas cards soon. So if you want one, email me :) I’ll put this out on FB too so, I have most of the family’s addresses, but if you want one and are a friend, let me know.

Forever Newlywed–Love Is

So I’m going to start over the Husband Challenge in October, I figure it might go better, and it’s our 2 year anniversary on the 31st, so why not.

I’m also going to try this Forever Newlywed Friday Meme, I am hoping to do it every Friday, I mean, we all know how well I do with these things! Ha!

I’m going to copy my good friend Jane, who copied Mrs. Alana(go here to link up), who copied Erinn

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Love Is…

Skype Sessions that make you feel like you’re not almost 7500 miles away from one another

Forehead kisses at the airport waiting for him to leave again, and now leaving the airport until you see his plane taxi away

Laui’s while he’s home for 2 weeks because all you want to do is be a tourist with him and spend as much time together until he has to leave again

Our last picture together for 12 months, not including R&R of course

His combat boots with your flip flops

Goofing around at the ER because your wife is a sickly woman

Seeing how great he is with kids, and knowing that one day he’ll be a wonderful father

Writing messages in sand just for him, to show him how much I miss him and love him

R&R is OVER, already?!! :(

So, I have been having trouble with posts, and pictures not showing up...and I also can't seem to figure out how to easily transfer pictures from my phone to the computer...SO this post is a little late...

He left on Monday. It was a good day though, he didn't have to be at the airport until the evening, so we had the whole day almost to spend together.

This time I was able to get to the gate, and of course since I brought his orders with us, they didn't need to see them...GO FIGURE...

We ate at the little cafeteria place by his gate, and then went and sat at the gate until it was time to board.

The airline had everyone clap for the service members and that made me cry...and then they started boarding, and he was one of the first on the plane.

I couldn't bring myself to leave the gate. I thought it would hurt more to stay, but I don't know, since I did stay. I just really could not get up and leave, and it was so hard to do that when the plane was taxi-ing away...I kept looking back at it, and watching it...I finally decided to just let it go, and get some Starbucks, I mean, a little pick me up is always good, right?

After he had boarded and they were getting the last people on and ready to leave, there was a rainbow, and it was over the plane, I think it was good luck, at least that's what I like to tell myself...

it's really hard to see, but it's there, above the jetway (is that what that is called?)

R&R

So, he got in a little earlier than we had thought, which was a good thing.. I had things mostly together for him.
So, I had a friend come with me to the airport to take pictures for me.
We got there with plenty of time to get our gate passes, and be at the gate when he landed.
However, the guy at the USO said we had to have orders to get to the gate. Which was not something I thought of, so that is the first thing that went wrong.
Then, we went to the baggage claim where his flight was suppose to pick up their baggage, even though he didn’t have any checked bags, I figured he’d just come down there. We waited and waited and waited…no husband.
At this point I’m getting mad, where is he, why isn’t he down here yet, because other flights had come in at this point. So I was not happy and thought maybe something had happened to him. I went to the baggage claim clerk counter and went off. The lady told me she couldn’t tell me anything, so I took that to mean she wasn’t going to help. But she ended up looking it up, and telling me he was on the flight. So okay, then where is he, and why isn’t he here.
Finally he calls me from someone’s phone, saying he got lost, and went to the wrong baggage claim, and could not figure out how to get to the right one. Seriously, great, okay, well, your ass is coming to me, or I’m leaving you and you can walk home…
So he finally found me, and things were great….So here are the pictures…

I guess I went a little over board, LOL

Finally found us…..

It wouldn’t be a proper home coming without a Lei…

HUGS, they felt good, even though I was still kind of annoyed…

Welcome Home Hun!!!!

Oh and the pics are from my phone, because the battery on the camera died, and we can't find the charger...

Wedding Challenge COMPLETE

Don’t be too happy with me. I’m going to let you in on a little secret, I did them all in like a day or two and just set them to post over time…I knew that was the ONLY way I’d get the damn thing completed.

But, at least I can say I finished something I started, because we all know how bad at doing that I am =P

The LT is doing well. I’m sure he misses me just as much as I miss him. We email almost daily. He doesn’t have internet in his room, they might be getting Wi-Fi, but who knows. He has to go to the MWR to get internet, and that isn’t something he does often. We Skype almost once a week. It’s nice to see his face and hear his voice. I’ve tried to get him to purchase some phone minutes, but I’m not quite sure what his hold up is.

We found out when his R&R is, so that is so exciting! Something fun to look forward too! I hope we get to go to Kauai, but every time we look, the hotels seem to be less and less available. I wish we knew specific dates so we could go ahead and lock it in, but we don’t know until he lands in Hawaii. We know a time frame, but like I’d tell you =P

I will start doing the Nanny thing full time, more than likely after his R&R because the father’s block leave just happens to be the same time. Things in the Army rarely work out, so for this to be happening is quite a miracle. But neither of the guys are back on island, so I don’t want to jump the gun toooo much. Things in the Army rarely make sense, and they change on a dime…Go figure…

Well, I’m going to shower and get in bed, 5:30am is really really early. But I did it today, I can do it tomorrow!

Care Packages & Bin Laden

So I took 5 boxes to the post office for the LT Saturday. It was the first care package I’ve sent him. We’re already into the 2nd month of the deployment, and he had things he needed. A whole list of things, and it took 5 flat rate boxes to send everything, and I even kept some things behind for other care packages. I should have taken pictures of my back seat. I not only had 4 boxes for the LT, but 1 box for my very best friend, and another box for my friend’s husband. Then when I was inside the post office I made 2 more boxes, 1 for the LT and another for another friend (that was more of an envelope though.)
Most of ya’ll know about Usama Bin Laden and that he was killed, which is good. One less bad guy. What people don’t seem to understand is that just because Bin Laden is gone, doesn’t mean the war is over. And the guys aren’t coming home early. People and their ignorance just kills me. Like why would they come home early just because 1 of the bad guys was dead? They didn’t come home when Saddam Hussein was captured and then killed, so how would this be any different. Bin Laden and Hussein were just part of the problem over there. So pulling troops out now, would be a mistake, in my uneducated opinion. I’m not scholar or political figure, so take what I say with a grain of salt, but that guys over there now are still in danger, and they still have a mission to accomplish.
Anyways, not much going on here on the home front. I’ve just been super busy. We found out his tentative R&R dates, but of course I can’t say. We are looking forward to the time together, and are planning to take a little time and go to another island. I can’t wait to hug and kiss him. I miss him so much!

Our Trip, a review of where we ate...

Most of ya'll know that we had a list of restaurants we wanted to eat at while on the mainland, and we got to almost all of them. I wish I had taken pictures at every single one, but I didn't, I did get some, but those will wait, they're on my phone, and I don't know where my cord is....

So here is a run down on where we ate -
Atlanta - Chick-Fil-A (twice), Vortex, The Varsity, Olive Garden and The Cheesecake Factory (yes, we have one in Hawaii though), Kilwin's (Ice Cream and Chocolate shop), Ben & Jerry's
Dahlonega - Chick-Fil-A (twice), Piazza's (Italian), Red Robin, Robyn's Nest, Dipper Dan, The LT's Grandmother's (twice), Papa N's homemade pizza, Captian D's. Taco Bell
Chattanooga - Formosa (Chinese), Logan's, Big River Grill, Panera, Zaxby's, Cracker Barrel, Famous Daves (for dessert), Amigo's (Mexican), Sarku Japan (in the mall), Applebee's,
Dallas/Fort Worth - TGI Fridays
Los Angeles - Chili's

I'm sure there are places I forgot, but that is about what we ate....

Deployment Leave, yuck

So we leave tonight for the mainland, we're going to visit family for 2 weeks. It brings me great sadness because it means that the LT will be leaving soon. We know the time frame, but for the safety of him and the others, we're not allowed to tell. Just know that it's not as far away as it once was. And I also have decided that I'm not going to say when he's gone until I know he's safely there. It's just better that way. I've posted the OPSEC rules and guidelines before, so it should be something people are aware of. I can't tell you where exactly he'll be, and I can't tell you what he's doing exactly (not just for safety, but because I honestly have NO idea, ha) and I can't tell you when he'll be home, you will know when he's home when I say, hey, he's home. There will be no countdown, because it wouldn't be safe, and at this moment in time we have no idea when that will be. I don't know when he'll be home on R&R and I don't know when he'll be coming home for good. But as soon as I have eyes on, you will know. It is going to be a long 12 months, but we've prepared for this, the LT has trained hard, and knows what he's suppose to do. I have every faith that he will come home safely. I think it's best to have that mindset, or else you'll drive yourself crazy. I'm ready for this, I've trained in my own way, the last stretch of training when the LT was gone there was a 2 week period where we had no contact, and that helped me a lot. I realized I could do a lot of things on my own, and that not hearing from him wouldn't be the end of the world. In the military you have the saying "no news is good news" and I just kept that in mind the whole time. By the end of the 2 weeks I was a pro! And I think that will suit me well when he's gone, because there is no way to know if  I'll get to talk to him every day, and for some people that might be a little too much, but for me, going through the 2 weeks with no contact helped me prepare for the unknowns in contact.

I get a little annoyed at people who complain about deployments and training where they're separated. This lifestyle isn't for everyone, and I know that. And I try to remind myself that when I get annoyed. But my whole thing about that is, you signed up for it, and you knew it was bound to happen, so put your big girl panties on and deal with it. Yeah, being away from your loved one SUCKS, but you have to be strong for them. They need to know that you are going to be okay, so they can keep their mind on the mission at hand, and that in turn keeps them safe. So remember that when you start to feel sorry for yourself when your loved one is deployed, or at training, or just away. You might just surprise yourself ;)

Our Trip Home

We fly out tonight for the mainland, and will be there from March 6th to March 19th, staying in Atlanta for 2 nights, then we will be in Dahlonega March 8th to March 13th, then Chattanooga March 13th to March 17th and then back to Atlanta until we leave on March 19. If you want to see us, please let us know which date works best for you when we are in your town, we will do the very best we can to see everyone! Obviously family comes before friends, but we are going to try and visit everyone we can!

Hubby's Home

He's been home a week now. YAY! And Valentine's Day is right around the corner. I'd tell ya'll what we got each other, but I'd rather not. I'm actually thinking about shutting down this site. It's hard to keep up with, and I have another one. I had to lock up Facebook pretty tight because of some drama, and I don't want that drama to leak over to here. So, that's pretty much all that is going on. We are going to be getting enough money from taxes to come home. We will be spending equal amounts of time in each of our home towns, with a few nights in Atlanta. And I'll say it now, and won't say it again. If you don't like the dates or amount of time we're spending in one place, you can go ahead and get right over it because the dates are non-negotiable and in order to spend time with everyone, and have equal time with everyone that is just how our time is being divided. I'm sure someone is bound to get their panties in a wad, but frankly I don't give a damn. We don't HAVE to go home, we could easily stay here, or for even cheaper go somewhere else. I'd rather spend that time with the hubby and not deal with anyone's bullshit, as it marks the end of his time here, and means he'll be deploying soon afterward. And it is some times cheaper to fly HERE than it to leave here. I mean, we have bills too...I don't know how people expect us to pay all our bills, food, gas, and then spend a shit ton on airline tickets to come home. It's humanly impossible. And people just don't seem to understand that. Anyways, that's all for now. Like I said, we'll be home for a couple weeks, but our time is already set for where we will be and when, so nobody can ask for more time, or for us to change the dates. We won't do it. And I will tell you right now, that if anyone tries to make a big deal about this, or throws a fit I will go off. Like I said, we don't HAVE to go home. But we are, and we have made plans to see everyone while there.

It's Official

Today the LT became the 1LT, I got to "pin" him, it was pretty neat. I'll upload the pictures later, but I just wanted to say congrats to him, and the other LT's who got promoted today as well!! Even though the promotion to 1LT is practically a "give me" it is still a big deal, so I'm very proud of the hubby!!

Next up, Thanksgiving break, Christmas leave and then NTC....and what we're most looking forward too, March leave when we can come home and visit friends and family!

Maui 2010

I haven't gotten around to uploading the pics from the camera, we've hit the ground RUNNING since we got back, and I've had so many doctor's appointments because of my ankle, 2 dentist appts and tomorrow I have a lady check up, and I'm suppose to have another phone session with my therapist, which is a whole other bag of worms, things to do, and NO LICENSE...so I've had to depend on people to take me around places, and I just have to give a big fat THANK YOU to Jackie Roberts!! She is amazing! I honestly don't know how I would have gotten to and from places without her.

I was going to upload the pics from my phone, to just give ya'll a preview!!!

Our plane - super small, but it got us there!

On the plane...

On the way to the hotel I think...I can't remember, lol

Calamari anyone!? YUMMMMMMM

He has missed fresh Krispy Kremes..so we had to go, it's the ONLY Krispy Kreme in the State of Hawaii....

 

Watermelon Margarita!!!!

On a boat...going to go get on a sub!

My birthday present....Steven picked the oyster out of a bowl of water, we blessed it and the lady opened it, it was the neatest thing...

My other birthday present, from myself, lol...it's sprained, doing a lot better now though....

Uhm, I had 2 of these in Maui, they were both so yummmy!

Banana Bread from Halfway to Hana on the road to Hana...it was so good, but we threw away half of it when packing :(

A fling I could really get into, hahaha

Grape bubble gum for my bestie!!!

Sugar Cane grows there like Pot does in Mexico (just kidding)

The beach by our hotel - it was super windy and we got sand in EVERYTHING...hahaha

Hope you enjoyed the pictures, I'm hoping that while Steven is on the Big Island I'll get the ones from the camera onto the computer. He leaves in about a week, so pray for them, they will be gone for a month. But it's really good that they're going, so they can get a lot of training in before Afghan....

Oh and while I'm thinking about it - we have decided to come home in Feb. instead of Dec. because we will have more days saved up and will save money since it isn't going to be a holiday or anything. So this way we can spend more time with each family, and see more people. And we won't have to worry about making sure we see everyone for Christmas, I was really stressing out about that part of it. So just thought I'd let ya'll know!!!

 

And we're OFF

Except we're not really off, the LT still has to work some. But a week from today we'll be in Maui, so we'll be off then!

Today marked the start of Block Leave for 3-7. But this weekend is July 4th, and we have a ton going on. There is a July 4th party type thing for families of the 25th ID on Sunday and Smash Mouth is going to play and there will be fireworks. I am helping our Battery with the booth we are sponsering, which is that color hair spray, and that will be BUSY!

The LT only took off enough time for our trip to Maui to help save some leave for Christmas, so he'll be working most of Block Leave. Which is fine, it will still be a relaxing time, I hope anyways. He'll be pulling Staff Duty all nighters more, but that's just because of Block Leave and only being one of a few who can actually do it. So that is okay with me, it's when he gets it when other's are able to do it too, and he gets picked to do it every time. No fair. But oh well.

We were without 'net for a few days, but we got it back yesterday, but we've been cleaning cleaning cleaning because the house was just a mess, and needed to get cleaned, so I really haven't sat down at the computer until now. So, that is one reason I haven't updated, but I also have been without words, which if you know me is weird. But I just don't know what to talk about. I'm going to try and find stuff to work on for the blog while we have this Block Leave time. I'm super excited!

Oh, I have to go by and pick up a plate I made with other wives at a coffee. I'm sure it's UGLY, but I'll pick it up anyways. Maybe it turned out better than I thought. I definitely want to go back to his place and do something else. They have figures you can paint and take, stuff like piggy banks, bugs, they even have an army tank! Too cute!! And they are super nice!

Anyways, just a quick update! Hope all is well.

Block Leave

Hey ya'll!!

So, next week starts our Block Leave, it's a block of time when we take leave as a Battalion. You have to use leave you've saved up though, so most people won't be able to take the whole amount of time off, but they should take some time off. We're only going to take about a week. We're going to Maui from July 6-July 11. We'll be there for my birthday and we're gonna do it as a birthday/honeymoon celebration. It should be a lot of fun. I am totally looking forward to it, as I'm sure LT is looking forward to it. And I'm hoping that since it will be Block Leave, and most of the people will be gone that he won't have to work as much as if it weren't a leave time.

Block Leave is usually given in the summer and around the Christmas holidays, as well as before and after deployments, for those wondering. We will have leave again in December and are going to TRY our hardest to come home. It just all depends on money and how much it'll cost. It is super expensive to fly from here to the mainland. But it isn't as expensive to fly from the mainland to here. Which is weird, but who knows. We haven't really figured out how we're going to split our time on the mainland, it'll be hard, and we won't be able to stay for very long, so we're thinking a few days with his family and a few with mine. We just have SO much to fit in while we're there, that someone is bound to get upset with us. But really, there just doesn't seem to be a way around it. And anyone who knows me, knows that I hate disappointing people, or hurting feelings. I try to accommodate everyone. But it'll be ok, and I hope that us being there for a short amount of time will be enough for everyone. And we're probably not going to do gifts for people, since it's going to cost so much to get home. Again, hopefully that will be enough.

So, just thought I'd update ya'll alittle. I will be posting pictures from our trip to Maui when we get back. I also have some pictures from when we went to the USS Missouri...it was pretty neat, it was HUGE!

Hope all is well!